German occupation of Luxembourg in World War I The German occupation of Luxembourg in World War I was the first of two military occupation s of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg by Germany in the twentieth century . From August 1914 until the end of World War I on 11 November 1918 , Luxembourg was under full occupation by the German Empire . The German government justified the occupation by citing the need to support their armies in neighbouring France , although many Luxembourgers , contemporary and present , have interpreted German actions otherwise . During this period , Luxembourg was allowed to retain its own government and political system , but all proceedings were overshadowed by the German army ' s presence . Despite the overbearing distraction of the occupation , the Luxembourgish people attempted to lead their lives as normally as possible . The political parties attempted to focus on other matters , such as the economy , education , and constitutional reform . The domestic political environment was further complicated by the death of Paul Eyschen , who had been Prime Minister for 27 years . With his death came a string of short - lived governments , culminating in rebellion , and constitutional turmoil after the withdrawal of German soldiers . Background . Since the 1867 Treaty of London , Luxembourg had been an explicitly neutral state . The Luxembourg Crisis had seen Prussia thwart France ' s attempt to purchase the Grand Duchy from the Netherlands . Luxembourg ' s neutrality was accepted by Prussia ' s then - Chancellor , Otto von Bismarck , who boasted , " In exchange for the fortress of Luxembourg , we have been compensated by the neutrality of the country , and a guarantee that it shall be maintained in perpetuity . " In June 1914 , Archduke Franz Ferdinand , heir to the thrones of Austria - Hungary , was assassinated by pan - Slavic nationalists , leading to a sudden deterioration in relations between Austria - Hungary and Serbia . Austria - Hungary was supported by the German Empire , whilst Serbia had the backing of the Russian Empire . On 28 July , Austria - Hungary attacked Serbia , which , in turn , required the mobilisation of Russia , hence of Germany , thanks to its responsibilities under the Dual Alliance . Since the 1860s , Luxembourgers had been keenly aware of German ambition , and Luxembourg ' s government was well aware of the implications of the Schlieffen Plan . In 1911 , Prime Minister Paul Eyschen commissioned an engineer to evaluate Germany ' s western railroad network , particularly the likelihood that Germany would occupy Luxembourg to suit its logistical needs for a campaign in France . Moreover , given the strong ethnic and linguistic links between Luxembourg and Germany , it was feared that Germany might seek to annex Luxembourg into its empire . The government of Luxembourg aimed to avoid this by re - affirming the country ' s neutrality . Invasion . On 1 August 1914 , Germany declared war on Russia . On the outbreak of war with its eastern neighbour , Germany put the Schlieffen Plan into action , and Luxembourg ' s government ' s fears were realised . Initially , Luxembourg was only a transit point for Albrecht von Württemberg ' s Fourth Army . One of the railways from the northern Rhineland into France passed through Troisvierges , in the far north of Luxembourg , and Germany ' s first infringement of Luxembourg ' s sovereignty and neutrality was the unauthorised use of Troisvierges station . Eyschen protested , but could do nothing to prevent Germany ' s incursion . The next day , Germany launched a full invasion . German soldiers began moving through south - eastern Luxembourg , crossing the Moselle River at Remich and Wasserbillig , and headed towards the capital , Luxembourg City . Tens of thousands of German soldiers had been deployed to Luxembourg in those twenty - four hours ( although the Grand Duchy ' s government refuted any precise number that was suggested ) . Grand Duchess Marie - Adélaïde ordered that the Grand Duchy ' s small army , which numbered under 400 , not resist , and , on the afternoon of the 2 August , she and Eyschen met the German commander , " Oberst " Richard Karl von Tessmar , on Luxembourg City ' s Adolphe Bridge , the symbol of Luxembourg ' s modernisation . They protested mildly , but both the young Grand Duchess and her aging statesman accepted German military rule as inevitable . On 2 August , German Chancellor Theobald von Bethmann Hollweg justified the complete occupation of Luxembourg in terms of military necessity , arguing that France was ready to invade Luxembourg itself . The French minister in Luxembourg dismissed this argument , claiming that it would not have considered violating Luxembourg ' s neutrality unless Germany had done so first . Bethmann Hollweg attempted to prove his country ' s regret by offering Luxembourg compensation for the losses due to the military presence . On 4 August , Bethmann Hollweg told the Reichstag : However , when it seemed that Germany was on the verge of victory , the Chancellor began to revise his statements . In his " Septemberprogramm " , Bethmann Hollweg called for Luxembourg to become a German federal state , and for that result to be forced upon the Luxembourgish people once Germany achieved victory over the Triple Entente . Given this promise , it came as a great relief to most Luxembourgers that the British and French halted the German advance at the Battle of the Marne in mid - September . The result for the combatant nations was trench warfare , but , for Luxembourg , it was the indefinite continuation of German occupation . Eyschen government . Just as the war was in the balance on the Western Front , so the fate of Luxembourg was see - sawing back and forth . It was clear to all that the good conduct of the Luxembourgish government , if fully receptive to the needs of the German military administrators , could guarantee Luxembourg ' s continued self - government , at least in the short - term . Eyschen was a familiar and overwhelmingly popular leader , and all factions put their utmost faith in his ability to steer Luxembourg through the diplomatic minefield that was occupation . On 4 August 1914 , he expelled the French minister in Luxembourg at the request of the German minister , followed by the Belgian minister four days later and the Italian minister when his country entered the war . To the same end , Eyschen refused to speak ill of the German " Zollverein " , even though he had talked openly of exiting the customs union before the war began . On occasions , Eyschen ' s principles got the better of him . On 13 October 1914 , a Luxembourgish journalist named Karl Dardar was arrested by the German army for publishing anti - German stories . He was then taken to Koblenz , and tried and sentenced by court - martial to three months imprisonment . Eyschen was outraged that the Germans had kidnapped a Luxembourgish citizen and tried him for an extraterritorial offence , and Eyschen did nothing to hide his indignation . Eyschen told the German minister in Luxembourg that the action was a ' direct injury to the Grand Duchy ' s national sovereignty ' . Such vexatious complaints were repeated , by both Eyschen and Victor Thorn , when a railway worker was arrested in January 1915 for allegedly working for French military intelligence , and subsequently tried and sentenced in Trier . As Minister for Justice , Thorn was incensed that the Luxembourgish legal system had been treated with such disdain . Such objections were not received well by the German authorities . Although they tired of Eyschen ' s stubborn ways , he remained a useful tool to unite the various Luxembourgish political factions . Eyschen was not alone in letting his principles obstruct government business . In the summer of 1915 , Eyschen pushed to further reduce the role of the Catholic Church in the state school system . Grand Duchess Marie - Adélaïde objected . A fervently religious Catholic ( as was most of the country , but not her late father , who was Protestant ) , she was reputed to have said , " I will not allow their most precious heritage [ Roman Catholicism ] to be stolen while I have the key . " Marie - Adélaïde refused to budge , inviting Eyschen to resign if he could not accept her decision . Eyschen nearly did , but decided to control himself . Nevertheless , he would not be long in the job . After Eyschen . Eyschen ' s death . On 11 October 1915 , Luxembourg ' s political system was brought to its knees by the death of Paul Eyschen . When war broke out , Eyschen had been 73 years old , but his premiership of twenty - seven years was the only government that most Luxembourgers had known . Throughout the first year of German occupation , he had been a rock for the Luxembourgish people . He had also been of great importance to Marie - Adélaïde ; the Grand Duchess had never been groomed for the position , was fifty - three years Eyschen ' s junior , and was considered both politically naïve and dangerously partisan for a constitutional monarch . The recent strains were relatively cosmetic . Critically , Eyschen had the confidence of the Chamber of Deputies , and he had managed to hold together a government containing all major factions , seemingly by force of personality alone . To make matters worse for national unity , the strain of occupation had broken apart the pre - war anti - clericalist alliance between the socialist and the liberal factions , thus depriving both the clericalists and anti - clericalists of a legislative majority . The Catholic conservatives formed the largest bloc , but they were least likely to form a majority coalition . Mongenast government . The day after Eyschen ' s death , Grand Duchess Marie - Adélaïde invited Mathias Mongenast , who had been Minister for Finance since 1882 , to form a minority government . Mongenast ' s special status as a ' caretaker ' Prime Minister is underlined by his official title ; he was not ' President of the Government ' , as all other Prime Ministers since 1857 had been , but held the lesser title of ' President of the Council ' . Mongenast ' s administration was never intended to be long - lived , and Marie - Adélaïde ' s main objective when appointing the experienced Mongenast was to steady the ship . Nevertheless , nobody expected the government to fall as soon as it did . On 4 November 1915 , Mongenast nominated a new candidate for head of Luxembourg ' s " école normale " . The nomination did not meet with Grand Ducal approval , and Marie - Adélaïde rejected him . Mongenast persisted ; education had been a hobby horse of his , and he imagined that the Grand Duchess would accept the advice of a minister as experienced as he was . He was wrong ; the Grand Duchess had always been single - minded , and resented a minority Prime Minister , particularly one so new to the job , making demands of her . The next day , Mongenast resigned , just twenty - five days after being given the job . Loutsch government . Having fought with Mongenast , the Grand Duchess decided to appoint an all - conservative cabinet led by Hubert Loutsch . The Chamber of Deputies was steadfastly opposed ; the Party of the Right held only 20 seats out of 52 , but they formed the plurality . Marie - Adélaïde sought to end this deadlock by dissolving the Chamber of Deputies and by calling for the voters to grant a mandate to the conservatives . This outraged the left , which assumed that its deputies alone had the constitutional right to grant the government confidence ; it was dubbed by those on the left a ' coup d ' état by the Grand Duchess ' . Nonetheless , on 23 December 1915 , Luxembourg went to the polls . Although the position of the Party of the Right was improved , taking 25 seats , it fell a whisker short of winning an absolute majority . On 11 January 1916 , the Chamber of Deputies passed a motion of no confidence , and Loutsch resigned . National Union Government . Forming a consensus . After the failure of the all - conservative government , the Grand Duchess turned to the leading liberal politician , Victor Thorn , to form a new government . After Eyschen ' s premiership of 27 years , two governments had come and gone in three months , and the Luxembourgish people were becoming disillusioned with the failure of the politicians . Thorn ' s nature was to be a conciliatory leader , and he made a direct appeal to the Chamber of Deputies to support his government , no matter the deputies ' individual ideological persuasions : " If you want a government that acts , and is capable of acting , it is imperative that all parties support this government . " This support was forthcoming from all parties , but only on the condition that each was invited into the government ; Thorn was left with no choice but to afford them this . The resulting grand coalition cabinet included every leading light in Luxembourgish politics ; besides Thorn himself , there were the conservatives Léon Kauffmann and Antoine Lefort , the socialist leader Dr Michel Welter , and the liberal Léon Moutrier . Food shortage . The most pressing concern of the Luxembourgish government was that of food supply . The war had made importation of food an impossibility , and the needs of the German occupiers inevitably came before those of the Luxembourgish people . To halt the deteriorating supply of food , Michel Welter , the Director - General for both agriculture and commerce , banned the export of food from Luxembourg . Furthermore , the government introduced rationing and price controls to counteract the soaring demand and to make food more affordable for poorer Luxembourgers . However , the measures did not have the desired effect . Increasing numbers of Luxembourgers turned to the black market , and , to the consternation of the Luxembourgish government , the German army of occupation seemed to do little to help . Moreover , the government accused Germany of aiding the development of the black market by refusing to enforce regulations , and even of smuggling goods themselves . Through 1916 , the food crisis deepened , compounded by a poor potato harvest across all of the Low Countries ; in neighbouring Belgium , the harvest was between 30 % and 40 % down on the previous year . Although many Luxembourgers were on near - starvation level dietary intakes , the country managed to avoid famine . In part , this was due to a reduction of German soldiers ' dependence upon local food sources , instead relying on imports from Germany . Despite the avoidance of a famine , the Luxembourgish government lost much of the faith placed in it by the public and by the politicians . On 22 December 1916 , Michel Welter , the minister responsible , was censured by the Chamber of Deputies , which demanded his resignation . Thorn procrastinated , seeking any option but firing the leader of one of three major parties , but could find none . On 3 January 1917 , Welter was fired , and replaced by another socialist , Ernest Leclère . Even after the change and von Tessmar ' s promise of his soldiers ' better conduct in future , Léon Kauffmann was capable of citing thirty - six instances of German soldiers caught smuggling foodstuffs between March 1917 and June 1918 . Miners ' strike . Discontent amongst the population grew constantly , particularly in the country ' s industrialised south . The autumn of 1916 had seen the first unionisation within the iron and steel industries , with trade unions springing up in both Luxembourg City and Esch - sur - Alzette . Despite the war demand , iron production had slumped , leading to greater employment insecurity . In March and April , three independents were elected as deputies from the canton of Esch - sur - Alzette , where the economy was dominated by iron and steel . As independents , these newly elected deputies were the only legislative opposition to the National Union Government . For many Luxembourgers , particularly the miners , expression of disgust at the government could not be directed through the ballot box alone . Sensing the threat of civil disobedience or worse , von Tessmar threatened any individual committing an act of violence ( in which he included strike action ) with the death penalty . However , on 31 May 1917 , the workers sought to use their most potent weapon , by defying von Tessmar ' s ultimatum and downing tools . Germany was dependent upon Luxembourgish iron , as the British Royal Navy ' s naval blockade forced Germany to look to accessible local supplies ; in 1916 , Luxembourg produced over one - seventh of the Zollverein ' s pig iron . As such , Germany simply could not afford a strike , lest it be deprived of critical raw materials . In putting down the strike , von Tessmar was ruthlessly efficient , but he was not required to resort to the executions that he had threatened . Within nine days , the strike was defeated and the leaders arrested . The two ringleaders were then sentenced by German court - martial in Trier to ten years imprisonment , to the disgust of the government . The continued refusal of the German authorities to respect the Luxembourgish government , and the humiliating manner in which the strike was put down by German military muscle rather than the Luxembourgish gendarmerie , were too much for Thorn . On 19 June 1917 , the government resigned . Kauffmann government . Although the experiment in grand coalition had failed , the need for some political unity remained . As the National Union Government was collapsing , Kauffmann arranged an alliance between his Party of the Right and Moutrier ' s Liberal League , seeking to achieve change that would outlive the occupation . The primary objective was to address the perennial grievances of the left by amending the constitution ; in November 1917 , the Chamber of Deputies launched a wide - ranging series of debates on various amendments to the constitutions . Ultimately , the constitution was amended to prohibit the government from entering into secret treaties , to improve deputies ' pay ( hitherto set at just 5 francs a day ) , to introduce universal suffrage , and to change the plurality voting system to a proportional one . Whereas all of the above measures were broadly popular , across most of the political spectrum , the same was not true of the proposal to amend Article 32 . Said article had not been amended in the overhaul of 1868 , and its text had remained unchanged since the original constitution of 1848 , stating unequivocally that all sovereignty resided in the person of the Grand Duchess . For some , particularly those that resented the close relations between Marie - Adélaïde and the German royalty , the idea of national sovereignty residing in such a person was unacceptable . The Chamber of Deputies voted to review Article 32 , but Kauffmann refused to allow it , seeing the redefinition of the source of national sovereignty as covert republicanism . The summer of 1918 saw a dramatic decline in the fortunes of the government . On 8 July , Clausen , in central Luxembourg City , had been bombed by the British Royal Air Force , killing ten civilians . Although this did not endear the Allies to Luxembourgers , the Grand Duchess ' instinct was to run to the Germans , who were even less popular amongst the people . On 16 August , German Chancellor Georg von Hertling paid a visit to Luxembourg ; although Hertling asked only to see the Grand Duchess , Kauffmann asked that he also attend . To the Luxembourgish people , relations between the two countries now seemed unambiguously cordial , and all that was left of Kauffmann ' s credibility disappeared . This was compounded further by the news on 26 August of the engagement of the Grand Duchess ' sister , Princess Antonia , to Crown Prince Rupprecht of Bavaria , who was " Generalfeldmarschall " in the German army . Pressure mounted on Kauffmann ; with his party still strong , but with his personal reputation shattered , he was left with no option but to resign , which he did on 28 September in favour of Émile Reuter , another conservative . End of the war . Armistice . By the autumn of 1918 , Germany ' s position in the war was becoming untenable . The massive Spring Offensive had been an unmitigated disaster , whereas the Allied counter - attack , the Hundred Days Offensive , had driven Germany back towards its own borders . On 6 November , von Tessmar announced the full withdrawal of German soldiers from Luxembourg . Five days after von Tessmar ' s announcement , Germany signed an armistice treaty , which brought an end to the war of four years . One of the terms of the armistice involved the withdrawal of German soldiers from Luxembourg , along with the other occupied countries . The Allied Powers agreed that the German withdrawal from Luxembourg would be observed by the United States , and that the USA would receive the honour of liberating the captive country . On 18 November , General John Pershing issued a proclamation to the people of Luxembourg , stating that the United States ' newly formed Third Army would move through Luxembourg to occupy the German Rhineland , but that the Americans would come as allies and as liberators : The following day , American soldiers crossed the Franco - Luxembourgish border . Everywhere , they were fêted as liberators , in the spirit that Pershing had intended to inspire , and were met by bands and civilians waving flags , and were adorned with flowers . Luc Housse , the Mayor of Luxembourg City , told the advancing American army that the Germans had , on the whole , been disciplined and well - behaved in the previous three weeks : a marked improvement upon his numerous complaints earlier in the conflict . Finally , on 22 November 1918 , the German army completed its withdrawal from Luxembourg , ending its occupation . Germany ' s defeat created the perfect opportunity for the Allied powers to resolve the Luxembourgish question once and for all . By removing Luxembourg from Germany ' s sphere of influence , they hoped to guarantee its continued independence , and thus preserve the peace they had won . On 19 December , at the instigation of the British and French governments , the Luxembourgish government announced its withdrawal from the " Zollverein " and an end to the railway concessions that Luxembourg had previously granted Germany . Rebellion . Although the Allies were satisfied at this remedy , at the time , the Luxembourgish government was threatened by a communist insurgency . After the retreat of the German army , revolutionaries established Russian - influenced Workers ' council s across Luxembourg . On 10 November , the day after Karl Liebknecht and Rosa Luxemburg declared a similar ' socialist republic ' in Germany , communists in Luxembourg City declared a republic , but it lasted for only a matter of hours . Another revolt took place in Esch - sur - Alzette in the early hours of 11 November , but also failed . The socialists had been fired up by the behaviour of Grand Duchess Marie - Adélaïde , whose interventionist and obstructive streak had stymied even Eyschen . On 12 November , socialist and liberal politicians , finding their old commonality on the issue , called for her abdication . A motion in the Chamber of Deputies demanding the abolition of the monarchy was defeated by 21 votes to 19 ( with 3 abstentions ) , but the Chamber did demand the government hold a popular referendum on the issue . Although the left ' s early attempts at founding a republic had failed , the underlying cause of the resentment had not been addressed , and , as long as Marie - Adélaïde was Grand Duchess , the liberals would ally themselves to the socialists in opposition to her . The French government also refused to cooperate with a government led by a so - called ' collaborator ' ; French Foreign Minister Stéphen Pichon called cooperation ' a grave compromise with the enemies of France ' . More pressing than either of these troubles , on 9 January , a company of the Luxembourgish army rebelled , declaring itself to be the army of the new republic , with Émile Servais ( the son of Emmanuel Servais ) as ' Chairman of the Committee of Public Safety ' . However , by January , the vacuum left by the German withdrawal had been filled by American and French soldiers . President of the Chamber François Altwies asked French troops to intervene . Eager to put an end to what it perceived to be pro - Belgian revolutions , the French army crushed the would - be revolutionaries . Nonetheless , the disloyalty shown by her own armed forces was too much for Marie - Adélaïde , who abdicated in favour of her sister , Charlotte . Belgium , which had hoped to either annex Luxembourg or force it into personal union , grudgingly recognised Charlotte on 13 February . The dynasty ' s hold on power would be tenuous until September 1919 , when a referendum on the future of the Grand Duchy found 77 . 8 % in favour of continued rule by the House of Nassau - Weilburg . Paris Peace Conference . Despite the armistice ending the war , and the end of the revolts , Luxembourg ' s own future was still uncertain . Belgium was one of the countries hit hardest by the war ; almost the whole of the country was occupied by Germany , and over 43 , 000 Belgians , including 30 , 000 civilians , had died as a result . Belgium sought compensation , and had its eye on any and all of its neighbours ; in November 1918 , Lord Hardinge , the Permanent Secretary at the Foreign Office , told the Dutch ambassador in London , " The Belgians are on the make , and they want to grab whatever they can . " The resulting Treaty of Versailles set aside two articles ( § 40 and § 41 ) to address concerns for Luxembourg ' s status . The main article , § 40 , revoked all special privileges that Germany had acquired in Luxembourg , with Germany specifically renouncing advantages gained in the treaties of 1842 , 1847 , 1865 , 1866 , February 1867 , May 1867 , 1871 , 1872 , and 1902 . The effects of these treaties ' revocation were then explicitly stated ; Luxembourg would withdraw from the " Zollverein " , Germany would lose its right to use the Luxembourgish railways , and Germany was obligated to recognise the termination of Luxembourg ' s neutrality , thus validating the actions of the Luxembourgish government since the armistice . Furthermore , to prevent economic embargo after the end of the customs union , the treaty allowed Luxembourg an indefinite option on German coal , and prohibited Germany from levying duty on Luxembourgish exports until 1924 . Luxembourgers overseas . Thousands of Luxembourgers overseas , unconstrained by the Luxembourgish government ' s need to remain neutral , signed up to serve with foreign armies . 3 , 700 Luxembourgish nationals served in the French Army , of whom over 2 , 000 died . As Luxembourg ' s pre - war population was only 266 , 000 , the loss of life solely in the service of the French army amounted to almost 1 % of the entire Luxembourgish population , relatively greater than the totals for many combatant countries ( see : " World War I casualties " ) . The Luxembourgish volunteers are commemorated by the Gëlle Fra ( literally " ' Golden Lady ' " ) war memorial , which was unveiled in Luxembourg City on 27 May 1923 . The original memorial was destroyed on 20 October 1940 , during the Nazi occupation , as it symbolised the rejection of German identity and active resistance against Germanisation . After World War II , it was gradually rebuilt , culminating in its second unveiling , on 23 June 1985 . The Luxembourgish community in the United States found itself confronted by a crisis of identity . Traditionally , they had identified themselves as ethnically German , rather than as a separate community of their own . As such , they read German language newspapers , attended German schools , and lived amongst German Americans . Nonetheless , when it became apparent that the war would not be over quickly , the opinions of Luxembourg Americans changed ; on 2 May 1915 , the Luxemburger Brotherhood of America ' s annual convention decided to adopt English as its only official language . Other organisations were less inclined to change their ways ; the " Luxemburger Gazette " opposed President Woodrow Wilson ' s supposed ' favouritism ' towards the United Kingdom as late in the war as 1917 . However , when the United States entered the war in April of that year , the wavering members of the community supported the Allies , changing forever the relationship between the German and Luxembourgish communities in the USA .