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The Resistance to Axis occupation took various forms in different regions. Resiatance groups operated in all the occupied European countries. The Resistance was especially important in the Soviet Union where guerrila groups disrupted German supply lines. The Polish resistance was active, but impaired by Soviet actions against non-Communist Polish POWs and resistance groups. Resistance groups tied up important German units in Yugoslavia and Greece. Resistance groups in France played an important tole in the success of the D-day invasion. The Norwegian resistance played an important role in impaiting the German atomic bomb program. The Danish resistance was able to employ non-violent tecniques tosome affect. The Dutch resistance was limited in its ability to stage atrmed resistance, but was an important source of information. Although Italy was an Axis partner, anti-Fascist resistance groups played an important role in th Italian campaign. There was little resistance activity in the Eastern European counties that joined the Axis (Bulgaria, Hungary, and Romania). The situation on Africa, Asia, and the Pacific was different, principally because many of the countries occupied by the Japanese were colonies of European countries and not independent countries as was the case of NAZI aggression in Europe. Sone of the Asian/Pacific countries (especially Burma and the Dutch East Indies) actually welcomed the Japanese. There was little resistance activity in the Eastern European counties that joined the Axis (Bulgaria, Hungary, and Romania). The same was true in Asia where the Thailand joined the Japanese. In the case of these countries, the overwealming German and Japanese military forces deployed on their borders was a major factor in their government's decisions to join the Axis. There was little resistance to the Germans in the European Axis allies until the Red Army approached the borders.
World War II in many ways began in Asia with the Japanese invasion of Chinese Manchuria and the exposure of the League of Nations as totally encapable of maintaing the peace. The Resistance movement in Asia was radically different than what developed in Europe. Of all the countries in the region that Japan attacked and seized, China was the only independent country. (Thailand was alo indpendent, but became a Japanese ally.) Here a Resistance movement formed, in fact two Tesistnce mobemnts, the Nationalists and the Communists. They would play an imprtant role in the ensuing struggle. And despite their vast conqusts, the Japanese were unable to complete their conquest of China. The many other Japanese conquests were not independent countries, but colonial posessions. This significantly affected the Resistance movements hat devloped. Some cooperated with the Japanese (Burma and the Dutch East Indies). Others opposed the Japanese (Indo-China). Almost none, however, cooperted with the return of their colonial masters. The one exception was the Philippines where the United States was in the process of granting independence. Besides China, the most important Asian country was India, still a British posession. The Japanesed reached the borders of India, but were turnd back. The IndiannNational Congress refused to cooperate with the British defense of India, although Indian soldiers played a major role. The pro-Axis Free Indian army proved a non-factor.
The Imperial Japanse Army (IJA) launched the Second Sino-Japanese War (1937). The first year of the war was conventional combat. The Kuomingtng (KMT) Nationalist Army surprised the Japanese with their comnbat capability. There was bitter fighting, especilly for Shanghai. The Chinese did not have the industrial capacity of the Japanese. After the first year of the War, the best Chinese divisions had been chewed up and much of their heavy equipment as Nationalist armies retreated inrto the interior. The Nationalist strategy shifted from fighting conventional battles with the Japanese to avoiding pitched battles, substituting space for time. The Chinese seeing that they could not defeat the Japanese sought to drag out the war for as long as possible, conducting low level operations so as not to exhausrt their resources. The idea was to exhaust Japanese resources and make the Japanese war effort as costly as possible all the while building up Chinese military capacity in the interior. American general Joseph Stilwell who served in China diring the inter-War era, including stints as a military attache before America entered the war described the Chinese strategy as 'winning by outlasting', an accurate description and actually the only option available to the Chinese. The Nationalist Army was not totally reactive. They developed the concept of 'magnetic warfare'. The idea was draw advancing Japanese forces forward to positions where they were exposed to ambush, flanking attacks, and encirclements. One example of this tactic was the successful defense of Changsha which resulted in substantial Japanese casualties (1939 and 1941). The Japanese as the war progressed did, however, advance from their northern area of control both south and west and occupied increasingly large areas of China, including large areas of productive agricultural lands. While this denied more and more agricultural lands to the Nationalists, it also meant taking areas that were too large to control as long as the Nationalists had an army in the field that the IJA had to confront with most of its force. Local Chinese resistance forces organised separately by both the communists and KMT behind Japanese lines. And these resistance groups became a major part of the Chinese war effort. These two resistance forces made it difficult for the IJA to fully control conquered areas, especially at night and beyond the urban centers adminidtered by the Japanese. This made it difficult for the IJA to effectively exploit conquered areas. Japanese troops would occassionally sweep through rural areas to take as much food as could be fojnd from the villagers. Having to contend with the guerillas also raised the cost of the War. The IJA not only had to have aarge force to engage the convebtional Nationalist Army, but had to support substantial grisons throughout the huge area of China that they conquered.
Besides China, the most important Asian country was India, still a British posession. The Japanesed reached the borders of India, but were turnd back. The IndiannNational Congress refused to cooperate with the British defense of India, although Indian soldiers played a major role. The pro-Axis Free Indian army proved a non-factor.
Manchuris was the northern province of China. Japan invaded Manchuria and established the puppet state of Manchuko. There was a substabtial resistance mobement, but it was different than that which developed in China 6 years later. Chang knowing that the Nationalist Army was not capable of fighting the Japanese did not resist the Japanese assault or support the Chinese forces in Manchuria resisting the Japanese.
The traditional view of World War II is that Hitler launchd it by invading Polamd (1939). This is not exactly correct. World Wwar II was a joint entrprise by both Hitler and his Soviet ally Stalin who also invaded Poland. This is important to understand as it affected the Resistance movements. The Soviet Union not only invaded Poland, but several othr countries (Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Romania). Thus Resistance movemnts included both anti-NAZIs and anti-Communists. The Communists proved thevmost effctive anti-NAZIs becuse of their cladestine orgnization bfore the War, but for much of the first 2 years of the War, Moscow ordered the Communist parties in occupied countries not to opely resist the NAZIs. Moscow also ordered Communist parties in unoccupied countris (America and Britin) to oppose efforts to resist the NAZIs or in the case of America to expand military prparadness to resist the NAZIs. Only when Hitler invaded the Soviet Union did orders go out from Mosciw to resist the NAZIs (June 1941). All of the European countries invased by the Germans (except for the countries seized by the Soviet Union) were indepndent countries. Thus the Resistance movements took on the charactr of a movemnt of national salvation. Even Soviet propaganda changed from a Communist message to the Great Patriotic War to save the Motherland. The German victories in the first 2 years of the War were so overwealming that there was little resistance to the Germans. And except in Finland to the soviets either. This changed when the German Opration Barbarossa faltered before Moscow (December 1941). The stunning German failure and the increasingly repressive German occupation policies brought the Resistance movements to life througout Europe..
The Germans launched their massive Western offensice (May 10). Within in 2 weeks Belgium was occupied and unlike World War I, The British and French armies largely defeated. The Bdelgian people were shocked. Many thought that the Germans this time had win the War. Resistance thus began slowly as the barbarity of the NAZIs began increasingly apparent and as the Germans began to experience military defeats. The Belgian people resisted the NAZIs in many ways.
The R�seau de R�sistance or Resistance Network (RR) was the principal resistance organization. Armed oposition was not feasible, but the RR engaged in many valuable operations. Two of the most important was sabotage and helping rescue downed Allied airmen. The air routes into the Reich went over the Lowlands and northern France, thus many Allied airmen were shot down over Belgium. Inteligence collection was not as important in Belgium as in France where the all important cross-Channel invasion would take place.
Czehoslovakia abandoned by the West at Munich played a compliant role in the NAZI war economy. The Skoda arms factory was important to the Wehrmacht, supplying both armored vehicles and artillery. The most notable achievement of the Czech resistance was the assasination of Reyhard Hydrich, "The Hangman" by Czech agents trained in Britain. Heydrich played a key role in planning the Holocaust. He was sent to Prague to deal with the Czech's who Hitler believes were becoming restless. He concluded that the NAZI governor in Bohemia and Moravia was dealing to gently with the Czechs.
The Czechs located in the middle of NAZI-occupied Europe were difficult for the Allies to assist. The barbarity of NAZI occupation also made resistance difficult. The NAZI axtion at Licice is only the move notable NAZi action to cow the Resistance.
With the Germans firmly in control of the country and prepared to brutally apply force, the only real options open to the Danes was passive resistance. This would not work in many countries because the NAZIs were prepraring genocide, not only against the Jews, but also the Slavs. The Danes were different. They were a Nordic people, infact more Nordic than the Germans. Thus race hatred and genocide was not an element of NAZI occupation policy, except for the Danish Jews. The Danish resistance movement began to form in 1941. It was realtively quiet until Danish attitudes toward the NAZIs began to change (1943). The Danish Government that ruled until 1943 essentially played a game of saying one thing to the German occupation forces and then delayed actions for as long as they could. THe NAZI authorities became increasingly frustrated. There are maby accounts of ordinary Danes working as slowly as possible and if they could recalibrate a machine to make duff parts they did. It is difficult to tell just how much of this really occurred. Of course after liberation, everyone made such claims. Actually doing such things during the NAZI occupation was very dangerous. The Resiatance targeted the German military and businesses working for the NAZIs with acts of sabotage actions. There was also growing labor unrest. Massive strikes were staged in many Danish cities (1943). The Danish Government resigned and the NAZIs took over the government. Among other actions they imposed a curfew. Workers left work early on the pretext that they had to tend their gardens because the curfew provented them in the evening. In reality some went out to demonstrate, but this was dangerous. Teenagers and older students did not like passive resistance so they were the ones who carried out many of the acts of sabotague. The NAZIS as in other occupied countries targeted the Danish Jews for deportation, maning of course death. Saving the Danish Jews was the finest achievemebt of the resistance, Danes formed the Danish Freedom Council (DFC) (September 1943). By that time it was increaingly clear that the NAZIs were losing the War. They were, however, firmly in control of Denmark. The DFC was the coordinating prganization for the Resistance. Some of the major actions were clandestine newspapers, intelligence gathering for the Allies, and sabotage designed to disrupt war production. The DFC worked with Danish political figures.
Resistance groups in France played an important tole in the success of the D-day invasion. France surrendered to the German Army on June 22, 1940. The terms of the armistace divided France into an occupied and unoccupied zone, with a rigid demarcation or boundary line between the two. Provisions of the armistice, the "surrender on demand clause", was an obligation to arrest and turn over anyone requested by the Germans. French soldiers escaped to England in the Dunkirt evacualtion. Other French soldiers, including General Charles DeGaulle, also reached England. DeGualle when he arrived in England made an inspiring radio speech where he proclaimed that "whatever happens, the flame of French Resistance must not and will not be extinguished." This was in fact the beginning of the French Resistance. Most French people thought that the Germans had weon the War and that resistance was futile. It looked at first like Britain, the only country still resisting the Germans, would also soon fall. The Germans banned political activity. They were most concerned about the Communists and Scocialists which had been the most critical of then. The Gestapo in the occupied zone began arresting members of the Communist Party and Socialist Party. The Gestapo also demanded that Vichy authorities make similar arrests. As a result, many Communists and Socialists went into hising. The safest place was the rugged forests of the unoccupied zones. Some soldiers who refused to surrender to the Germans also hid in the forests. The men and women involved gradually formed into small units. Often the units were based on common political beliefs such as Communists or Free French. The groups also formed on geographic lines as the Germans made communications difficult. These groups, despite their political differences joined together to organize the Maquis. The success of the RAF in the Battle of Britain (July-October 1940) proved that the Geramns could be defeated. Then the German invasion of the Soviet Union (June 1941) meant that Britain no longer fought alone. The German losses before Moscow and the entry of the United States into the War (December 1941), changed the whole power ballance. The Germans no longer looked unbeatable and ressistance futile. Winston Churchill was a strong believer in unconventional forces. Thus when he became primeminister he orderede that resistance movements in occupied countries be supported. The Ressiatance movement grew in strength an began to organize small-scale attacks on German forces. These attacks were answered savedly
with German reprisals on civilians. The Allies did not have the strength to engage the Germans militarily in 1941, but British Bomber Command carried out limited air
attacks in 1941 which they escalted in 1942 when the Lancaster ling-range bomber became vavilable. The Resistance assisted Allied airman, still mostly British in
1942, shot down over France to get back to Britain. Usually they helped get the airmen to Spain whuch allowed them to return to England. General Dwight D.
Eisenhower wrote: "Throughout France the Resistance had been of inestimable value in the campaign. Without their great assistance the liberation of France would
have consumed a much longer time and meant greater losses to ourselves."
The most important Ressistance activity in Germany was spying. There was no sabotage or para-militry resistance of any importance. Hitler's military and security forces were riddled with secret agents. These agents relayed a great deal of very important information to both the Soviets and Western Allies. Unfortunately much of it was not acted on. Stalin for example dismissed reports of an imminent NAZI invasion which he received from both a Soviet spy ring in Germany and from the western Allies which had various sources as well as Ultra. Eventually The German military staged an unsuccessful attemp to kill Hitler (July 1944). The highest level spy was Afmiral Canaris, the head of military intelligence. He turned against Hitler as a result of the killings of Polish civilians, including the Jews, that he first observed in Poland. There was also some notable ressistance among the clergy. One of the most notable youth Ressistance effort was the White Rose. Others were the Swing Kids and the Edelweiss Pirates.
The Greeks did not submit meekly to Axis (German, Italian, and Bulgarian) occupation and Ressistance groups soon fornmed. From the earliest period of the occupation, ressistance groups began to organize. The Greeks were, however, divided into feuding political factions, including monarchists, Communists, democrats, and others. Greece's contentious political parties were unable to work together against the Germans. The Communists played an especially importanf role in the Greek resistance. One group of political leaders, trade unionists, communists and others approved the National Liberation Front (EAM) and a military branch (ELAS). Other parties set up theie own resistance organizations. The two most important were the EKKA and EDES (National and Social Liberation and National
Greek Democratic League). Leaders of ELAS, EKKA and EDES were former officers in the Greek army. They thus organized armed resistance to the Germans. Attacks on the Germans and Italians were conduced in the countryside and cities. The Resiatance was especially active in the countryside. The Germans and Italians found that it difficult to track down the guerillas. The German reaction was brutal beyond description. Normally large numbers of Greek civilians were executed for every German killed. The ratio varried. To expedite these reprisals, the Germans often arrested civilians in advance who could then be convemiently executed. There were also reprisals on villages in the country, but these envolved major operations. The Germans carried out brutal reprisals in both the country side and cities,
usually executing men and women unconnected to the attacks. Strikes and sabotage of all nature were organized. There was some coopertion between the diffrent Resistance groups. The most prominant joint action was the ELAS and EDES attack on the Gorgopotamos bridge in November 1942. This seriously complicated military supply lines and destroyed substantial quantities of military supplies. The Wehrmacht was forced to divert 50 battalions to Greece despite the desperate need on the Eastern front in the Soviet Union. The Hellenic Patriotic Society in Rigopoulos transmit radio reports leading to the sinking 55 Axis vessels. The war and the experience of the occupation threw traditional family roles into question as women became breadwinners and children took up arms. NAZI reprisals were severe.
Although Italy was an Axis partner, anti-Fascist resistance groups played an important role in the Italian campaign, especially in the fighting north of Rome (1944-45) We have not much compiled much informsation on the Itsalian Resistance. As best we can tell Mussolini and his Fasvists suceeded in supressing resistance to the rgime in the 1920s. Italy was a founding member of the Axis. And while there was no great enthusism for the war when Mussolini entered the War by declaring War on Britain and France and subsequently the Soviet Union and America. While there was no enthusism for the War, there was also no resistance to the War or the Fascist regime. This remained the case even after after terrible Italian losses in North Africa and the Soviet Union. And even after the Allied invasion of Sicily (July 1943), we do not note any major actions by the Resistance in Italy. Allied airmen shot down in Italy did not find the same Resistance network to get them home as was the case of The Low Courtries and France as well as Yugoslavia.
This did not change until the Fascist Grand Council arrested Mussolini abd even more importantly the Italian surrender (Armistice) (September 1943). The Italian Army did not offer effective resistance to the Germans.
Anti-Fascist groups began organizing armed bands. When the Allies announced that Italy was surrendering. Hitler expecting this, ordered the Wehrmact to seize control of Italy. Fied Marshal Kesserling set up a defensive line in the south. Hitler assigned Rommel to intern the Italian Army. They were given the option of joining a Fascist militia or being interned. Units that attempted to resist were analilated. The Italian Navy as required by the armistice left Italian ports for Malta to surrender to the Allies. The Luftwaffe succeeded in sinking a battle ship with a remotely controlled missle. The Germans transported the POWs (both Italiahs and Allied soldiers) to Germany. The NAZIs also began roundups of Italian Jews and the conscription of workers for war work in Germany. The Italian Left which had been effectively silenced by Mussolini began organizing to confront the NAZIs and their Italian Fascist allies.
Some soldiers mamaged to evade capture and internment and organize resistance cells. In addition, German brutality towrd civilans also help motivate Italians civilians to form resistance units. The conscription of workers as in France also fueled the Resistance. The Italian resistance was largely organized along political lines. The Resistance at first was primarily involved with assisting Allied trops (1943-44). This changed after the liberarion of Rome (June 1944). The Italian resistance essentially began at this point. Young people who rose up formed the nucleus for the Resistance that would play an important role in the campaign against the Germans and Fascists in northern Italy. The Resistance organized larger units that actualy confronted the Germans and Fascists, although experiencing heavy losses. They also organized non-military resistance such as strike actions. The main goal of the Resistance was to drice the Germans out of Italy. The timing of final German surrender was more the result of insurections in northern cities (Genoa and Milan) more than impending Allied assaults. [Katz] It was Italian partisans that captured and hung Mussolini.
The Dutch resistance was limited in its ability to stage atrmed resistance, but was an important source of information. Unlike countries like Poland, the Soviet Union, and Yugoslavia, there was just no where for Ressistance groups to hide. There were not dense forrests in the highly developed Netherlands.
The Resistance had little possibility of armed oposition, but assisted the allies with relaying intelligence and assisting downed Allied airmen. The important resistance to the NAZIs did not come from the Dutch Army. Rather it was conducted by civilians. The Dutch resisted in a variety of ways. There was sabotage of German
equipment and vehicles. The Resistance stole food ration cards, essential to helping Jews in hiding as well as others hiding from the NAZIs. The Resistance was
divided into two main groups, the sabotaging group and the communications group. The Dutch Resistance did not begin in earest until the NAZIs began intensified
their persecution of theJews. Other than the actioins against theJews, German authorities in the Netherlands had behaved relatively correctly. Resistance intensified when the NAZIs began conscripting the Dutch for war work in Germany. The Resistance took many forms. There were fistfights in the streets with the Jeugdstorm, but this could be dangerous. Resistance members stole identification papers and ration cards. They also attempted to hide Jews. This was very dangerous. Many Dutch people were sympsthetic, byt did not dare take in Jews becausev it put the entire family in danger. the Resistance did save some Jews and succeeded in
keeping downed airmen out of German hands. The Resistance created a network of well organized codes and safehouses.
The Norwegian Resistance to the Germans was active from the moment the Germans landed in the country. The Norwegiam Resistance was aided by the British and staged some important raids and kept the Allies informed of German military movements. Allied strategy came to be different than in most other countries. The objective was not to liberate Norway, but to convince the Germans to wastefully deploy more forces in Norway. As a result, the Norwegians and British did not always view operations in the same light. The Norwgians faced difficulties. The Germans were very good at supressung resistance. The greatest advantage the Germans had as oposed to operations in other countries was the very large German military garrison in the country with relatively little to do, except hunt down the Resistance. The Norwegian ratio of germans to occupied population was the highest of any occupied country. The German focus changed a little after the invasion of the Soviet Union (June 1941) and a new Murmansk Front was opened. This was, however, an area far removed from southern Norway where most Norwegian lived. The Norwegian Resistance also had some advantages. The country had a long North Sea coat which made it very difficult for the Germans to patrol. Much of the country, especially the area north of Trodheim was only lightly populated. This provided the Resistance a lrge area where they could hide and stage operations. There was also a long border with neutral Sweden, a country sympathetic to the Norwegians. and like the North sea coast, the length of the Sedish border made it difficult to patrol. Of course crossing the Swedish border than making it across the North Sea. It was from the British and the North Sea, however, that explosives, weapons, and operatives had to come. The Swedish border was more of an escape route. The geographic layout and the nearby location of Britain gave the Resistance advantages that the Resiatance movement in most other countries did not have. General Otto Ruge helped organize the Norwegian secret army (Milorg). The Resistance movement was stronly unified. There was no importnt Communist faction, unlike Czechoslovakia, France, Greece, Poland, and Yugosalvia. The Norwegians proved a highly patriotic group. The pro-NAZI group led by Vidkun Quisling was unable to garmer any signigicnt support. The major issue which arose within the Norwegian Resistance was over tactics. Milorg wanted to focus on intellignce gathering and other operations such as helping Norwegians escape to Sweden. These opertions did not result in German repisals on civilans which would mean executing hostages and other atrocities. Britain�s Special Operations Executive (SOE) wanted intelligence, but also wanted Milorg to conduct sabotage and raids on German facilities. Aggreemnt on tactics was not reached untill 1942 and involved compromise on both sides. The major action of the Norwegian resistance was the attack on the Rjukan
The Polish resistance was active, but impaired by Soviet actions against non-Communist Polish POWs and resistance groups. The Polish resistance managed to obtain information on the German missile program and get it to London. The most notable action by the resistance was the Home Army's uprising in Warsaw when the Soviets neared the Vistula (1944). The uprising was savagely put down by the NAZIs. Stalin stopped the Red Army to allow the NAZIs to destroy the Home Army which was loyal to the London Givernent in exile.
The Resistance was especially important in the Soviet Union where guerrila groups disrupted German supply lines. The Soviets created the largest and most important Ressistance effort. This was possibly primarily because of the genocidal NAZI policies in the East. Ironically, the Soviet Union was the one country thatr the NAZIs invaded where they could have develooped considerable popular support. The early successes of the Germans staggered the Red Army and Soviet society as a whole. Red Army soldiers surrendered in staggering numbers. Only slowly did anti-NAZI partisan units begin to form. Many of the partisans units were formed from men left behind as the Red Army retreated east. Later the Soviets dropped men and supplies to reinforce the partisan units. Other partisan units were formed by civilians. They Soviet partisans were an important part of the Great Patriotic War. Partisans killed thousands of German soldiers, but the major contribution was in disrupting Wehrmacht supply lines. Not only did this make supplying front line troops difficult, but it forced the Wehrmact to deply an important part of its combat strength in rear areas to secure supply lines. This was especially important in 1941-43. As the tide turned on the Eastern Front, the importance of the partisans declined as the Red Army became an effective fighting force. The partisans even in the later phases of the War was still significant and were a cotinuing drain on the Wehrmacht as it retreated west.
Resistance groups tied up important German units in Yugoslavia. This was in sharp contrast to the ineffectual resistance put up to the German invasion in April 1941. General Draza Mihailovic of the Yugoslav Royal Army was one of the few Yugosalav commanders that put up any effective resistance to the German invasion in 1941. After the German victory, Mihailovic organized the Chetniks. When the NAZIs acrried out brutal reprisals, the Chetniks largely suspended attacks on Germans and focused on the Croat Utache which collaborated with the Germans. Mihailovic refused to conduct opertions likely to result in reprisals against civilians. The NAZIs threatened to kill 100 Yugoslav civilians for ecery one German killed. Josip Broz Tito's Communist partisans did not shrink from such attacks. The Partisans also was not a largely ethnic force like the Utache (Croat) and Chetnik (Partisan). A result, the United States and the other Allies threw their support to Tito's Partisans. Churchill estimated that Tito's Partisans tied up 20 to 30 Axis. That masy have been Allied propaganda, but the Particans did make an important contribution.
There was little resistance activity in the Eastern European counties that joined the Axis (Bulgaria, Crotia, Hungary, Romania, and Slovakia). The same was true in Asia where the Thais joined the Japanese. In the case of these countries, the overwealming German and Japanese military forces deployed on their borders was a major factor in their government's decisions to join the Axis. There was little resistance to the Germans in the European Axis allies until the Red Army approached the borders. Italy was a special case. It was Germany's principal Axis ally. There was no significant resistance until the allies invaded Italy (September 1943). Then a significant Resistance movement devloped.
Cohn, Marthe with Wendy Holden. Behind Enremy Lines: The True Story of a French Jewish Spy in Nazi Germany (Harmony), 182p.
Miller, Russel. Behind the Lines: The Oral History of Special Operatioins in World War II (St. Martins), 287p.
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