page_title: Luxembourg in World War II
section_title: Life under occupation
hierarchical_section_title: Luxembourg in World War II / German occupation / Life under occupation
caption_attribution_description: English: "Luxemburger du bist Deutsch" - poster by the Volksdeutsche Bewegung, a pro-nazi movement in Luxembourg during World War II; it advocated the annexation of Luxembourg to the Reich.
context_page_description: The involvement of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg in World War II began with its invasion by German forces on 10 May 1940 and lasted beyond its liberation by Allied forces in late 1944 and early 1945.
  Luxembourg was placed under occupation and was annexed into Germany in 1942. During the occupation, the German authorities orchestrated a programme of "Germanisation" of the country, suppressing non-German languages and customs and conscripting Luxembourgers into the Wehrmacht, which led to extensive resistance, culminating in a general strike in August 1942 against conscription. The Germanisation was facilitated by a collaborationist political group, the Volksdeutsche Bewegung, founded shortly after the occupation. Shortly before the surrender, the government had fled the country along with Grand Duchess Charlotte, eventually arriving in London, where a Government-in-exile was formed. Luxembourgish soldiers also fought in Allied units until liberation.
context_section_description: The departure of the government left the state functions of Luxembourg in disorder. An administrative council under Albert Wehrer was formed in Luxembourg to attempt to reach an agreement with the occupiers whereby Luxembourg could continue to preserve some independence while remaining a Nazi protectorate, and called for the return of the Grand Duchess. All possibility of compromise was eventually lost when Luxembourg was effectively incorporated into the German Gau Koblenz-Trier (renamed Gau Moselland in 1942) and all its own government functions were abolished from July 1940, unlike occupied Belgium and the Netherlands which preserved their state functions under German control. From August 1942, Luxembourg was officially made part of Germany.
  From August 1940, speaking French was forbidden by proclamation of Gustav Simon in order to encourage the integration of the territory into Germany, proclaimed by posters carrying the slogan "Your language is German and only German" This led to a popular revival of the traditional Luxembourgish language, which had not been prohibited, as a form of passive resistance.
  From August 1942, all male Luxembourgers of draft age were conscripted into the German armed forces. Altogether, 12,000 Luxembourgers served in the German military, of whom nearly 3,000 died during the war.
caption: A propaganda poster declaring, 'Luxemberger, you are German; your mothertongue is German' (Luxemburger du bist Deutsch; Deine Muttersprache ist Deutsch)
exif: {"Image ImageWidth": "5312", "Image ImageLength": "2988", "Image Make": "samsung", "Image Model": "SM-G920F", "Image Orientation": "Rotated 90 CW", "Image XResolution": "72", "Image YResolution": "72", "Image ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Image Software": "G920FXXU3DPEU", "Image DateTime": "2016:08:12 13:00:16", "Image YCbCrPositioning": "Centered", "Image ExifOffset": "226", "Thumbnail ImageWidth": "512", "Thumbnail ImageLength": "288", "Thumbnail Compression": "JPEG (old-style)", "Thumbnail Orientation": "Rotated 90 CW", "Thumbnail XResolution": "72", "Thumbnail YResolution": "72", "Thumbnail ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormat": "928", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormatLength": "14212", "EXIF ExposureTime": "1/10", "EXIF FNumber": "19/10", "EXIF ExposureProgram": "Program Normal", "EXIF ISOSpeedRatings": "400", "EXIF ExifVersion": "0220", "EXIF DateTimeOriginal": "2016:08:12 13:00:16", "EXIF DateTimeDigitized": "2016:08:12 13:00:16", "EXIF ShutterSpeedValue": "83/25", "EXIF ApertureValue": "37/20", "EXIF BrightnessValue": "-183/100", "EXIF ExposureBiasValue": "0", "EXIF MaxApertureValue": "37/20", "EXIF MeteringMode": "Pattern", "EXIF Flash": "Flash did not fire", "EXIF FocalLength": "43/10", "EXIF FlashPixVersion": "0100", "EXIF ColorSpace": "sRGB", "EXIF ExifImageWidth": "5312", "EXIF ExifImageLength": "2988", "EXIF ExposureMode": "Auto Exposure", "EXIF WhiteBalance": "Auto", "EXIF FocalLengthIn35mmFilm": "28", "EXIF SceneCaptureType": "Standard", "EXIF ImageUniqueID": "A16LLIC08VM A16LLIL02GM"}