Luxembourg in WWII: From Neutrality to Occupation

On May 11, 1940, the Third Reich invaded the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, which had declared itself a neutral country. By 1942, the Grand Duchy had been fully incorporated into the Third Reich under the Nazi Civil Administration. During the occupation, the German government pursued a policy of Germanization, aiming to eliminate Luxembourg’s national identity, resulting in the growing protests and a general strike of the local population in 1942. The Allied forces returned Luxembourg its independence in 1944.

Luxembourg is one of the smallest countries in the world. It is located in northwestern Europe, bordering France, Belgium, and Germany. This small land serves as a buffer zone to the south and east. Due to its advantageous geostrategic location, European empires have shown a keen interest in gaining control of Luxembourg’s territories.

Following the Austro-Prussian War in 1866 and the subsequent collapse of the German Confederation, the Treaty of London was signed on May 11, 1867, between the six European powers, including Prussia, France, and the United Kingdom. The treaty changed the European political order established since the Congress of Vienna in 1815 and established Luxembourg as a neutral political entity.

Before signing the Treaty of London of 1867, Luxembourg had been a member of the German Confederation, and a number of Prussian military units had been stationed there since the Congress of Vienna. Simultaneously, Luxembourg was also in a personal union with the Kingdom of the Netherlands. According to the laws of the union, Luxembourg and the Netherlands had one governing monarch; however, they remained independent in their jurisdiction and national interests.

The king of France, Napoleon III, played an important role in European diplomacy during the signing of the Austro-Prussian War-ending Treaty of Prague, which established the Prussian-dominated North German Confederation. Fearing Prussia’s expansion, Napoleon III suggested to the king of the Netherlands, William III, a considerable amount of money (5,000,000 guilders, the currency of the Netherlands) in exchange for the territory of Luxembourg. Considering the strategic location of Luxembourg, Prussia, under the leadership of Otto von Bismarck, objected. France demanded that Prussia withdraw its soldiers or threatened military confrontation. The European powers were once again on the brink of a new war. The event is widely known as the Luxembourg Crisis of 1867.

Great Britain hosted an intergovernmental conference in London, fearing that the upcoming confrontation would weaken its strategic ally, Belgium. The outcome of the conference was the creation of the independent, neutral Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, seen as a promise that it would not be drawn into the crossfire between the great powers. Prussia withdrew its military forces, and Luxembourg ceased to be a German state.

However, in the early stages of World War I, on August 2, 1914, the successor of Prussia, Germany, invaded Luxembourg and violated its neutrality. The decision to occupy Luxembourg was taken in terms of the Schlieffen Plan. According to the plan, Luxembourg would play a crucial role as a logistical hub in the military operation against France.

Despite protests, Luxembourg could not do much. Germany’s and Luxembourg’s economies were interconnected. In previous years, German industrial companies and factories had made significant investments in Luxembourg’s steel sector. Their mutual railway infrastructure further intertwined their economic relations.

Considering the interdependence, the Grand Duchess Marie-Adelaide made several attempts to collaborate with the German authorities. One of her suggestions was the creation of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg within the German territory with some degree of autonomy in case of the latter’s victory in World War I. The Allies—France, the United Kingdom, Russia, the United States, Italy, and Japan—aware of the collaboration attempts and the importance of Luxembourg’s transportation and industrial facilities to Germany, bombed the territory 136 times, claiming 53 deaths. Eventually, Germany was defeated in World War I in 1918.

Following the end of World War I, Luxembourg emerged as a constitutional monarchy under the rule of Grand Duchess Charlotte, who governed from 1919 to 1946. During the interwar period between 1919 and 1939, Luxembourg reaffirmed its independence and sovereignty and once again declared its commitment to neutrality.

Nazi Germany, under the leadership of Adolf Hitler, invaded Luxembourg on May 10, 1940. Besides the geostrategic location and considerable resources (steel and iron), Adolf Hitler perceived Luxembourg as ethnically and culturally Germanic. Luxembourg, indeed, shared strong historical ties with German-speaking territories, including being part of the German Confederation in the 19th century. This connection had significantly influenced the customs and traditions of Luxembourg, making it resemble those of Germany. Both the rural population and elite society commonly used the German language in their daily lives.

According to Nazi Germany’s expansionist policies, known as the Lebensraum, or Living Space in English, acquiring the territory of Luxembourg was not just intended to gain access to France and Belgium but to return Germans residing in Luxembourg to where they belonged: the Third Reich.

Annexing Luxembourg was not particularly hard, as Luxembourg, a neutral country, had no standing army. Grand Duchess Charlotte, her family, and the entire government fled the country in the early hours of the German invasion. They first arrived in France, then in Spain, and finally formed a government in exile in London, United Kingdom.

Just two months later, Nazi Germany declared the establishment of the military administration in Luxembourg and, in August 1940, replaced it with the civil administration, which remained in place until the American forces liberated Luxembourg in September 1944.

The newly installed civil administration of the Third Reich envisioned Luxembourg as part of their New European Order. According to Nazi ideology, the new Europe would represent a pan-German racial state. The successful accommodation of the German race required the Third Reich’s expansion into Central and Eastern Europe and, according to Nazi ideology, the complete eradication of the “racially inferior” population of those with Jewish and Slavic origins.

Germanization and Nazification of the conquered territories were perceived as leading tools in achieving the New European Order. In the case of Luxembourg, Adolf Hitler assigned the task to Gustav Simon. Simon was enthusiastic about Germanizing the population of Luxembourg and did not anticipate much resistance. He expressed his aim with the following words:

“We certainly did not come because 80 million Germans could not live without the 300,000 Luxembourgers. We came because the high call of our blood relationship impelled us to win back the people of this German soil. It is because of this duty that we are forever approaching you, so that we may be your guides in your historic return to the Reich.”

The reforms initiated by Gustav Simon’s civil administration brought many changes to the population of Luxembourg. The German police force known as the Schutzpolizei began patrolling the streets in early August 1940, and the Sondergericht, a Nazi Germany-based court with the authority to enforce punishments, was founded in the same month.

By the end of August, all of the main Luxembourgish political parties had been dissolved except for the Volksdeutsche Bewegung, or “Ethnic German Movement.” The National Socialist German Workers Party (NSDAP) became a prominent political force in Luxembourg by September 1941 and wielded significant influence on the country’s political landscape. Additionally, almost all levels of administrative jobs were assigned to German nationals, tightly gripping control over the socio-cultural lives of the population.

Besides political pressure, Luxembourg endured repressions in the areas of education, culture, and religion. Prior to the occupation by Nazi Germany, the vast majority of Luxembourg’s citizens were Catholic. The new civil administration commanded the dissolution of Catholic monasteries and the seizure of their property. Educational institutions were utilized to spread Nazi propaganda, and they forcefully imposed German as the only language to be used.

The Third Reich faced strong resistance. Besides some collaborators with the Nazi regime, the majority of Luxembourgers strongly opposed the occupation and attempted to maintain the national identity and sovereignty.

About ten resistance organizations were established within a year of the Nazi annexation of Luxembourg. The growing number of resistance organizations can be seen as a result of the political repressions coupled with the poor living conditions in the broader context of World War II’s economic and social hardship. While they all had different political goals, they were all united in their opposition to the Nazi government and Luxembourg’s liberation.

The resistance organizations’ initial actions were restricted to purely symbolic acts of protest, such as distributing anti-Nazi propaganda posters. The propaganda efforts were directed against the Nazi propaganda narrative that depicted Luxembourg as an integral part of Germany under the motto Heim ins Reich, which translates as “Back Home to the Empire.”

The resistance group members also tried to support the families of the arrested or persecuted persons and demonstratively joined the armed forces of the Allied Powers.

The catalyzing factor for the emergence of the strong resistance organization was the Nazi decision to introduce compulsory military service for male workers born between 1920 and 1927 in Luxembourg, around 11,000 conscripts, and to force them to fight against the Allied forces. The Union Nationale des Passeurs et Filiéristes Luxembourgeois (UPAFIL) actively worked to help citizens flee Luxembourg in order to avoid conscription.

In opposition to the conscription of men into the Wehrmacht Nazi military defense forces, workers in Luxembourg organized a national strike on August 31. Protesters first staged the demonstration in Wiltz, refusing to show up at work. A wave of protest quickly hit the entire nation. The underground press quickly organized and distributed propaganda and informational leaflets nationwide. However, in a matter of days, the Third Reich’s Civil Administration effectively suppressed the opposition by coercive means. As a result, around 200 people were arrested, and about 20 were executed.

The general strike in Luxembourg was covered extensively in the media outlets of the Allied countries. It was praised as the first tangible opposition in a Germany-occupied country and as actively exposing Nazi propaganda efforts, which were claiming that citizens of Luxembourg voluntarily joined the Third Reich’s forces. On September 13, 1942, the New York Times referred to the bravery of Luxembourgers with the following words: “They were tough and tenacious and showed an indomitable spirit despite the adversity they faced.”

The general strike of September 1942 in Luxembourg is regarded as the first general strike held on Nazi German-occupied territory.

By 1944, the defeat of Nazi Germany in World War II was already apparent. The Allied forces had managed to advance on the Western Front. The American 5th Armored Division entered Pétange in Luxembourg on September 9, 1944. They did not face much resistance from German forces. On September 10, the capital city of Luxembourg was liberated. Within days, the American forces advanced to the north and east, closer to the German border. By September 14, the whole of Luxembourg was freed from the German military.

While Luxembourg and the Allied forces were celebrating victory and the restoration of its independence, by December 1944, the German army had organized a counteroffensive along the Moselle, a river in northeastern France and Luxembourg that runs into western Germany. Adolf Hitler ordered General Field Marshal Alfred Jodl to organize the counteroffensive. According to the Nazi plan, Germans intended to cut westwards across Luxembourg and the Belgian Ardennes, cross the Meuse River, and retake Antwerp, a major supply hub for the Allied forces.

Nazi Germany attacked American forces on December 16. Despite the unexpected attack and snowy and foggy weather, the American 28th Infantry Decision showed strong resistance. Luxembourgers refer to the Nazi counteroffensive against the Allied forces as the Ardennes Offensive, also widely known as the Battle of the Bulge.

On February 22, 1945, the Allied forces freed the last town, Vianden, from Nazi forces, finalizing the liberation of Luxembourg. By January 25, 1945, the Battle of the Bulge was officially over.

Prime Minister of Britain, Winston Churchill, described the Battle of the Bulge as “undoubtedly the greatest American battle of the war.”

Indeed, the battle exhausted and drained Nazi Germany’s resources, including the manpower. The casualties were heavy on both sides, however. About 75,000 American soldiers lost their lives. The Germans lost 80,000 to l00,000 soldiers.

Grand Duchess Charlotte returned from exile on April 14. Soon, on May 8, Adolf Hitler uncordially surrendered, marking the end of World War II.

Luxembourg suffered 5,700 deaths, accounting for approximately 2% of the total population, the second highest percentage in Western Europe, during the short period of Nazi occupation. The post-World War II period saw unprecedented progress in reconstructing war-torn Luxembourg, largely thanks to the American aid received in the framework of the Marshall Plan.