RESISTANCE DURING WORLD WAR II

Members of the Dutch Eindhoven Resistance with troops of the US 101st Airborne Division in front of the Eindhoven cathedral during Operation Market Garden in September 1944.

'Resistance during World War II' occurred in every occupied country by a variety of means, ranging from non-cooperation, disinformation and propaganda to hiding crashed pilots and even to outright warfare and the recapturing of towns. Resistance movements are sometimes also referred to as "the underground".
Among the most notable resistance movements were the Yugoslav Partisans (they were the most numerous, and the First Sisak Partisan Brigade established in Croatia, Yugoslavia was the first anti-fascist unit in Europe), the Polish Home Army, the French Maquis, the Italian CLN, the Greek Resistance and the Norwegian Milorg.
Many countries had resistance movements dedicated to fighting the Axis invaders, and Germany itself also had an anti-Nazi movement. Although mainland Britain did not suffer invasion in World War II, the British made preparations for a British resistance movement, called the Auxiliary Units, in the event of a German invasion. Various organisations were also formed to establish foreign resistance cells or support existing resistance movements, like the British SOE and the American OSS (the forerunner of the CIA).
There were also resistance movements fighting against the Allied invaders. The German resistance petered out within a few years, while the Baltic states resistance operations against the Soviet occupation continued into the 60‘s.

Organization

Forms of resistance

Famous resistance operations

Resistance movements during World War II

Notable individuals

Documentaries

Dramatisations

Organization

Soviet partisan fighters behind German front lines in Belarus, 1943.

After the first shock after the Blitzkrieg, people slowly started to get organised, both locally and on a larger scale, especially when Jews and other groups were starting to be deported and used for the Arbeitseinsatz (working for the Germans). Organisation was dangerous, so much resistance was done by individuals. The possibilities depended much on the terrain; where there were large tracts of uninhabited land, especially hills and forests, resistance could more easily get organised undetected. This favoured in particular the partisans in Eastern Europe. But also in the much more densely populated Netherlands, the Biesbosch wilderness could be used to go into hiding. There were many different types of groups, ranging in activity from humanitarian aid to armed resistance, and sometimes cooperating to a varying degree. Resistance usually arose spontaneously, but was encouraged and helped mainly from London, the "capital of the European resistance" (also helping communist resistance groups) and Moscow (helping the partisans).

Forms of resistance

Members of the French resistance group Maquis in La Tresorerie, 14 September 1944, Boulogne, France.

Various forms of resistance were:

★ ''Sabotage'' - the ''Arbeitseinsatz'' ("Work Contribution") forced locals to work for the Germans, but work was often done slowly or intentionally badly

★ Strikes and manifestations

★ Based on existing organisations, such as the churches, students, communists and doctors (professional resistance)

★ Armed

★
★ raids on distribution offices to get food coupons or various documents such as Ausweise or on birth registry offices to get rid of information about Jews

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★ temporary liberation of areas, such as in Yugoslavia and Northern Italy, occasionally in cooperation with the Allied forces

★
★ uprisings such as in Warsaw in 1943 and 1944

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★ assassination of members of occupying forces and prominent collaborators (e.g. local pro-Axis politicians and police)

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★ continuing battle and guerrilla warfare, such as the partisans in the USSR and Yugoslavia and the Maquis in France

★ ''Espionage'', including sending reports of military importance (e.g. troop movements, weather reports etc.)

★ Illegal press to counter the Nazi propaganda

★ Political resistance to prepare for the reorganisation after the war. For instance, the Dutch resistance took part in forming the new government in the Netherlands after the war.

★ Helping people to go into hiding (e.g. to escape the ''Arbeitseinsatz'' or deportation) - this was one of the main activities in the Netherlands, due to the large number of Jews and the high level of administration, which made it easy for the Germans to identify Jews

★ Helping military people caught behind lines get back

★ Helping POW with illegal supplies, breakouts, communication,...

★ Forgery of documents

Famous resistance operations

1941

in February, the Dutch Communist Party organized a general strike in Amsterdam and surrounding cities , known as the February strike, in protest against anti-Jewish measures by the German occupier and violence by fascist street fighters against Jews. Several hundreds of thousands of people participated in the strike, with was mercilessly struck down by the Germans, who executed many participants.
Operation Anthropoid was a resistance move during the WWII to assassinate Reinhard Heydrich, the Nazi “Protector of Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia” and the chief of Nazi's final solution, by the Czech resistance in Prague. Over fifteen thousand Czechs were killed in reprisals, with the most infamous incidents being the complete destruction of the towns of Lidice and Ležáky.

1942

On 25 November 1942, Greek guerrillas with the help of 12 British saboteurs carried out a successful operation which disrupted the German ammunition transportation to the German Africa Corps under Rommel - the destruction of Gorgopotamos bridge (Operation Harling).

1943

On April 19 1943 three members of the Belgian resistance movement were able to stop the Twentieth convoy, which was the 20th prisoner transport in Belgium organised by the Germans during World War II. The exceptional action by members of the Belgian resistance occurred to free Jewish and gypsy civilians who were being transported by train from the Dossin army base located in Mechelen, Belgium to the concentration camp Auschwitz. The XXth train convoy transported 1,631 Jews (men, women and children). Some of the prisoners were able to escape and marked this kind of liberation action from the Belgian resistance movement unique in the European history of the Holocaust. In October the rescue of the Danish Jews meant that nearly all of the Danish Jews were saved from KZ camps by the Danish resistance. This action is considered one of the bravest and most significant displays of public defiance against the Nazis.

1944

The Vemork hydroelectric plant in Norway, site of the heavy water production, and a part of the German nuclear program, sabotaged by Norwegians between 1942 and 1944

An intricate series of resistance operations were launched in France prior to, and during, Operation Overlord.
On June 5 1944, the BBC broadcasted a group of unusual sentences, which the Germans knew were code words—possibly for the invasion of Normandy. The BBC would regularly transmit hundreds of personal messages, of which only a few were really significant. A few days before D-Day, the commanding officers of the Resistance heard the first line of Verlaine's poem , "Chanson d'automne", ''"Les sanglots longs des violons de l'automne"'' (''Long sobs of autumn violins'') which meant that the "day" was imminent. When the second line ''"Blessent mon cœur d'une langueur monotone"'' (''wound my heart with a monotonous langour'') was heard, the Resistance knew that the invasion would take place within the next 48 hours. They then knew it was time to go about their respective pre-assigned missions. All over France resistance groups had been coordinated, and various groups throughout the country increased their sabotage. Communications were cut, trains derailed, roads, water towers and ammunition depots destroyed and German garrisons were attacked. Some relayed info about German defensive positions on the beaches of Normandy to American and British commanders by radio, just prior to 6 June. Victory did not come easily; in June and July, in the Vercors plateau a newly reinforced maquis group fought more than 10,000 German soldiers (no Waffen-SS) under General Karl Pflaum and was defeated, with 840 casualties (639 fighters and 201 civilians). Following Tulle Murders, Major Otto Diekmann's Waffen-SS company wiped out the village of Oradour-sur-Glane on June 10. The resistance also assisted later Allied invasions in south of France in Operations Dragoon and Anvil.
They started insurections in cities as Paris when allied forces came close
Operation Tempest launched in Poland in 1944 would lead to several major actions by Armia Krajowa, most notable of them being the Warsaw Uprising.
Norwegian sabotages of the German nuclear program (see Norwegian heavy water sabotage). The raid was later dubbed by the British SOE as the most successful act of sabotage in all of World War II, and was used as a basis for the US war movie The Heroes of Telemark.

Resistance movements during World War II

Plaque to honour the Dutch resistance fighters executed at Sachsenhausen, Germany.

Notable individuals

★ Mordechaj Anielewicz

★ Dietrich Bonhoeffer

★ Tadeusz Bor-Komorowski

★ Pierre Brossolette

★ Manolis Glezos

★ Stefan Grot-Rowecki

★ Jens Christian Hauge

★ Roman Shukhevych

★ Zoya Kosmodemyanskaya

★ Martin Linge

★ Luigi Longo

★ Max Manus

★ Jean Moulin

★ Christian Pineau

★ Hannie Schaft

★ Sophie Scholl

★ Henk Sneevliet

★ Claus von Stauffenberg

★ Dragoljub "Draža" Mihailović

★ Gunnar Sønsteby

★ Josip Broz "Tito"

★ Aris Velouchiotis

★ Nancy Wake

★ Luis Taruc

★ Napoleon Zervas

Documentaries

★ ''Confusion was their business'' (from the BBC series ''Secrets of World War II'' is a documentary about the SOE (Special Operations Executive) and its operations

★ ''The Real Heroes of the Telemark'' is a book and documentary by survival expert Ray Mears about the Norwegian sabotage of the German nuclear program (Norwegian heavy water sabotage)

★ ''Making Choices: The Dutch Resistance during World War II'' (2005) This award-winning, hour-long documentary tells the stories of four participants in the Dutch Resistance and the miracles that saved them from certain death at the hands of the Nazis.

Dramatisations

★ ''The Longest Day'' (1962) features scenes of the resistance operations during Operation Overlord

★ ''The Heroes of Telemark'' (1965) is very loosely based on the Norwegian sabotage of the German nuclear program (the above ''Real heroes of Telemark'' is more accurate)

★ ''L’Armée des ombres''(1969) internal and external battles of the French resistance. Directed by Jean-Pierre Melville

★ ''Massacre in Rome'' (1973) is based on a true story about Nazi retaliation after a resistance attack in Rome

★ ''Secret Army'' (1977) a television series about the Belgian resistance movement, based on real events

★ ''Soldaat van Oranje'' (1977) (Dutch) is about some Dutch students who enter the resistance in cooperation with England

★ '''Allo 'Allo!'' (1982-1992) a situation comedy about the French resistance movement (a parody of ''Secret Army'')

★ ''Het Meisje met het Rode Haar'' (1982) (Dutch) is about Dutch resistance fighter Hannie Schaft

★ ''Charlotte Gray (2001)'' - thought to be based on Nancy Wake

★ ''Sophie Scholl – Die letzten Tage'' (2005) is about the last days in the life of Sophie Scholl

★ '' (2007)'' is a Canadian film about Justice Inspector Friedrich Kellner of Laubach who challenged the Nazis before and during the war

External links

★ European Resistance Archive

★ Interviews from the Underground Eyewitness accounts of Russia's Jewish resistance during World War II; website & documentary film.

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RESISTANCE DURING WORLD WAR II

Organization

Forms of resistance

Famous resistance operations

1941

1942

1943

1944

Resistance movements during World War II

Notable individuals

Documentaries

Dramatisations

See also

External links

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