Luxembourg Resistance
When Luxembourg was invaded and annexed by Nazi Germany in 1940, a national consciousness started to emerge. From 1941 onwards, the first resistance groups formed in secret, operating underground and in defiance of the German occupation. Their covert activities included aiding political refugees and those evading conscription into the German forces, as well as disseminating patriotic leaflets to bolster the Luxembourgish population's spirits.
As with other countries, the origins and ideologies of the various Resistance groups were diverse. Motivations ranged from those who found Nazi ideology itself worth fighting against, to those who valued first and foremost their country's freedom. The political spectrum spanned from communists to clerical-conservative elements, with some groups even harboring anti-Semitic sentiments.
Historical development[edit]
Overview[edit]
People who actively resisted the German occupation in Luxembourg were only a small minority (just like collaborators).[1] The relationship between them and the wider population can be described as "symbiotic". The resistors, without the support of the population, would have struggled to operate, and without the Resistance's activity, the population might have succumbed to the German occupants' propaganda.[1]
Early beginnings: spontaneous protest[edit]
German troops invaded the country on the morning of 10 May 1940 as part of the wider invasion of the Low Countries and France. By the end of the day, Luxembourg was almost entirely occupied. The Grand Duchess and the government politicians immediately went into exile. With no moves of a French counter-attack nor any news at all from the government, there was a general sense of abandonment in the population.[2] However, their attitude towards the occupiers was robustly hostile from the beginning.[2] Without real means of defence, they had to bend to the Germans' wishes, but little by little acts of sabotage and demonstrations of anti-Nazi sentiment appeared.[2] Phone lines would be cut here and there; in many villages, discussions with the German soldiers turned into brawls from which the Germans had to flee.[2] The consequences of these actions came soon. From late May, the first Luxembourgers were judged by military tribunals for physically fighting with German soldiers or causing offence to the Wehrmacht or Adolf Hitler.[2]
In August, the Gauleiter Gustav Simon arrived in Luxembourg as Chef der Zivilverwaltung, taking over from the military administration. He implemented a "Germanisation" policy to prepare Luxembourg for complete annexation into Germany, which heightened Luxembourgish hostility towards the new regime.[2] The "Spengelskrich" (Luxembourgish; "war of the pins") was one of the first episodes of this spontaneous public resistance.[2] From 14 August 1940, many Luxembourgers publicly wore pins showing the Luxembourgish red lion, which they had worn recently in 1939 for the centenary festivities of Luxembourgish independence.[2] Activists of the pro-German collaborationist Volksdeutsche Bewegung tried to tear off these pins, and fights would break out.[2] The Gestapo intervened against the pin-wearers, calling them "provocateurs".[2] Nevertheless, the wearing of patriotic symbols continued throughout the occupation as a sign of defiance and many young people found themselves in front of special tribunals, accused of anti-German agitation.[2]
The demolition of the Gëlle Fra monument in October 1940 saw protests from many Luxembourgers.[2] The Gestapo arrested around 50 young people who were taken to the Villa Pauly, the Gestapo's headquarters in Luxembourg.[2] Until autumn 1940, then, Luxembourgers protested in a spontaneous and disorganised fashion against the German occupation and annexationist measures.