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German-occupied Europe, or Nazi-occupied Europe, refers to the sovereign countries of Europe which were wholly or partly militarily occupied and civil-occupied, including puppet states, by the Wehrmacht (armed forces) and the government of Nazi Germany at various times between 1939 and 1945, during World War II, administered by the Nazi regime, under the dictatorship of Adolf Hitler.[2]

Key Information

The Wehrmacht occupied European territory:

In 1941, around 280 million people in Europe, more than half the population, were governed by Germany or their allies and puppet states.[citation needed]

Outside of Europe, German forces controlled areas of North Africa, including Egypt, Libya and Tunisia between 1940 and 1945. German military scientists established the Schatzgraber Weather Station as far north as Alexandra Land in Francis Joseph Land. Manned German weather stations also operated in North America included three in Greenland: Holzauge, Bassgeiger [de], and Edelweiss.[citation needed] German Kriegsmarine ships also operated in all oceans of the world throughout World War II but maintained their focus in the North Sea and the North Atlantic. There were certain cases of U-boats being present in other more difficult to reach oceans as well, such as furthest in the west being in the Gulf of Mexico. A few cases of cooperation with the Imperial Japanese Navy led to U-boats being in the Pacific Ocean. There were also cases in the Indian Ocean with German U-boats using the Japanese occupied port of Palang[citation needed] in order to disrupt allied convoys further and in the Arctic Ocean German U-boats intercepted Allied convoys heading to Murmansk while also possibly damaging crucial Lend lease at the same time.[clarification needed]

History

[edit]

Several German-occupied countries initially entered World War II as Allies of the United Kingdom[3] or the Soviet Union.[4] Some were forced to surrender before the outbreak of the war such as Czechoslovakia;[5] others like Poland (invaded on 1 September 1939)[2] were conquered in battle and then occupied. In some cases, the legitimate governments went into exile, in other cases the governments-in-exile were formed by their citizens in other Allied countries.[6] Some countries occupied by Nazi Germany were officially neutral. Others were former members of the Axis powers that were subsequently occupied by German forces, such as Italy and Hungary.[7][8]

Concentration camps

[edit]
Main article: Nazi concentration camps
Part of German-occupied Europe
Head of the SS, Heinrich Himmler, inspects captured prisoners in German occupied Minsk, August 1941.
Date1941–1945
Attack type
Starvation, death marches, executions, forced labor

Germany operated thousands of concentration camps in German-occupied Europe. The first camps were established in March 1933 immediately after Adolf Hitler became Chancellor of Germany. Following the 1934 purge of the Sturmabteilung (SA), the concentration camps were run exclusively by the Schutzstaffel (SS) via the Concentration Camps Inspectorate and later the SS Main Economic and Administrative Office. Initially, most prisoners were members of the Communist Party of Germany, but as time went on different groups were arrested, including "habitual criminals", "asocials", and Jews.

After the beginning of World War II, people from German-occupied Europe were imprisoned in the concentration camps. About 1.65 million people were registered prisoners in the camps, of whom about a million died during their imprisonment. Most of the fatalities occurred during the second half of World War II, including at least 4.7 million Soviet prisoners who were registered as of January 1945.

Following Allied military victories, the camps were gradually liberated in 1944 and 1945, although hundreds of thousands of prisoners died in the death marches.

After the expansion of Nazi Germany, people from countries occupied by the Wehrmacht were targeted and detained in concentration camps. In Western Europe, arrests focused on resistance fighters and saboteurs, but in Eastern Europe arrests included mass roundups aimed at the implementation of Nazi population policy and the forced recruitment of workers. This led to a predominance of Eastern Europeans, especially Poles, who made up the majority of the population of some camps. The ethnicities of captured people were various other groups from other different nationalities were transferred to Auschwitz or sent to local concentration camps.

Occupied countries

[edit]

The countries occupied included all, or most, of the following nations or territories:

Country or territory of occupation Puppet state(s) or military administration(s) Timeline of occupation(s) German annexed or occupied territory Resistance movement(s)
Albanian Kingdom Albanian Kingdom 8 Sep 1943 – 29 Nov 1944 None Albanian resistance
Bailiwick of Guernsey Bailiwick of Guernsey

Jersey Bailiwick of Jersey

Nazi Germany German Occupied Channel Islands
(Part of the Military Administration in France) 		30 Jun 1940 – 9 May 1945 (Guernsey)

1 Jul 1940 – 9 May 1945 (Jersey)

None Channel Islands resistance
Czechoslovakia First Czechoslovak Republic

Czechoslovakia Second Czechoslovak Republic

Czechoslovakia Third Czechoslovak Republic

Slovak Republic

Nazi Germany German Zone of Protection in Slovakia

1 Oct 1938 – 11 May 1945 Nazi Germany Gau Bayreuth
Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia
Nazi Germany Reichsgau Niederdonau
Nazi Germany Reichsgau Oberdonau
Nazi Germany Reichsgau Sudetenland 		Czechoslovakian resistance
Austria Federal State of Austria
Main article: Anschluss § End of an independent Austria
None[b] 		12 Mar 1938  – 9 May 1945 Nazi Germany Reichsgau Kärnten
Nazi Germany Reichsgau Niederdonau
Nazi Germany Reichsgau Oberdonau
Nazi Germany Reichsgau Salzburg
Nazi Germany Reichsgau Steiermark
Nazi Germany Reichsgau Tirol-Vorarlberg
Nazi Germany Reichsgau Wien 		Austrian resistance
Free City of Danzig Free City of Danzig None[c] 1 Sep 1939 – 9 May 1945 Nazi Germany Reichsgau Danzig-West Prussia Danzigian resistance
France French Republic

Free France

France Provisional Government of the French Republic

 French Tunisia

Military Administration in Belgium and Northern France

Military Administration in France

Reichskommissariat of Belgium and Northern France

10 May 1940 – 9 May 1945 Gau Baden
Gau Westmark
Reichsgau Wallonien 		French resistance
Luxembourg Luxembourg Military Administration of Luxembourg

Nazi Germany Civil Administration Area of Luxembourg

10 May 1940 – Feb 1945 Nazi Germany Gau Moselland Luxembourg resistance
Kingdom of Italy Italian Islands of the Aegean Italian Social Republic Italian Islands of the Aegean 8 Sep 1943 – 8 May 1945 None
Belgium Belgium Military Administration in Belgium and Northern France

Nazi Germany Reichskommissariat of Belgium and Northern France

10 May 1940 – 4 Feb 1945 Nazi Germany Gau Cologne-Aachen
Nazi Germany Reichsgau Wallonien
Nazi Germany Reichsgau Flandern 		Belgian resistance
Denmark Denmark Protectorate state 9 Apr 1940 – 5 May 1945 None Danish resistance
Kingdom of Greece Kingdom of Greece Nazi Germany Military Administration in Greece 6 Apr 1941 – 8 May 1945 None Greek resistance
Kingdom of Hungary Kingdom of Hungary 19 Mar 1944  – May 1945 None Hungarian resistance
Kingdom of Italy Kingdom of Italy Italian Social Republic Italian Social Republic 8 Sep 1943 – 2 May 1945 None Italian resistance
Norway Norway Nazi Germany Reichskommissariat Norwegen 9 Apr 1940 – 8 May 1945 None Norwegian resistance
Netherlands Netherlands Nazi Germany Reichskommissariat Niederlande 10 May 1940 – 20 May 1945 None Dutch resistance
Kingdom of Yugoslavia Kingdom of Yugoslavia Albanian Kingdom

German-occupied territory of Montenegro

Independent State of Croatia Independent State of Croatia

Independent State of Macedonia

Nazi Germany Territory of the Military Commander in Serbia
 6 Apr 1941 – 15 May 1945 Nazi Germany Reichsgau Kärnten
Nazi Germany Reichsgau Steiermark 		Yugoslav resistance
Monaco Monaco None 8 Sep 1943 – 3 Sep 1944 None
Finland Finland None Sep 15, 1944 – Apr 25, 1945 None Finnish resistance
Lithuania Republic of Lithuania

Provisional Government of Lithuania

Nazi Germany Reichskommissariat Ostland 22 Mar 1939 – 21 Jul 1940

23 Jun 1941 – 5 Aug 1941

Nazi Germany Gau East Prussia Lithuanian resistance
Republic of Poland Nazi Germany Military Administration in Poland

Nazi Germany General Government administration

Nazi Germany Reichskommissariat Ostland

Nazi Germany Reichskommissariat Ukraine

1 Sep 1939 – 9 May 1945 Nazi Germany Bezirk Bialystok
Nazi Germany Gau East Prussia
Nazi Germany Gau Schlesien
Nazi Germany Gau Oberschlesien
Nazi Germany General Government
Nazi Germany Reichsgau Danzig-West Prussia
Nazi Germany Reichsgau Wartheland 		Polish resistance
San Marino San Marino None (military trespassing) 17–20 Sep 1944 None
Nazi Germany Territory of the Military Commander in Serbia Commissioner Government

Government of National Salvation

Apr 30, 1941 – Jan 1945 None Serbian resistance
Slovak Republic Nazi Germany German Zone of Protection in Slovakia 23 Mar 1939 – May 1945 None Slovakian resistance
Territory of the Saar Basin None.[d] 1 Mar 1935 – Apr 1945 Nazi Germany Gau Palatinate-Saar
Nazi Germany Gau Saar-Palatinate
Nazi Germany Gau Westmark 		Saar Basinian resistance
Ukraine Ukrainian National Government Nazi Germany Reichskommissariat Ukraine 30 Jun 1941 – Sep 1941 Nazi Germany General Government Ukrainian resistance
Parts of the Soviet Union Lepel Republic

Nazi Germany Military Administration in the Soviet Union

Nazi Germany Reichskommissariat Ostland

Nazi Germany Reichskommissariat Ukraine

22 Jun 1941 – 10 May 1945 Nazi Germany Bezirk Bialystok
Nazi Germany General Government 		Soviet resistance

Governments in exile

[edit]

Allied governments in exile

[edit]
Government in exile Capital in exile Timeline of exile Occupier(s)
Austria Austrian Democratic Union United Kingdom London 1941–1945 Nazi Germany German Reich/Greater German Reich
Free France Free France United Kingdom London
(1940–1941)
Algiers, French Algeria
(1942 – Aug 31, 1944) 		1940 – Aug 31, 1944 France French State
Nazi Germany German Reich/Greater German Reich
Nazi Germany Military Administration in Belgium and Northern France
Nazi Germany Reichskommissariat of Belgium and Northern France
Poland Government of the Republic of Poland in exile France Paris
(Sep 29/30, 1939 – 1940)
France Angers, French Republic
(1940 – Jun 12, 1940)
United Kingdom London
(Jun 12, 1940 – 1990) 		Sep 29/30, 1939 – Dec 22, 1990 Nazi Germany German Reich/Greater German Reich
Nazi Germany Reich Commissariat East
Nazi Germany Reich Commissariat Ukraine
Slovak Republic
Soviet Union Soviet Union
Poland People's Republic of Poland
Belgium Belgium United Kingdom London
(Oct 22, 1940 – Sep 8, 1944) 		Oct 22, 1940 – Sep 8, 1944 Nazi Germany German Reich/Greater German Reich
Nazi Germany Military Administration in Belgium and Northern France
Nazi Germany Reichskommissariat of Belgium and Northern France
Denmark Denmark None 1943–1945 Nazi Germany German Reich/Greater German Reich
Luxembourg Luxembourg United Kingdom London 1940–1944 Nazi Germany German Reich/Greater German Reich
Greece Kingdom of Greece Egypt Cairo, Egypt Apr 29, 1941 – Oct 12, 1944 Nazi Germany German Reich/Greater German Reich
Kingdom of Italy Kingdom of Italy
Bulgaria Kingdom of Bulgaria
Norway Norway United Kingdom London Jun 7, 1940 – May 31, 1945 Nazi Germany Reichskommissariat Norwegen
Kingdom of Yugoslavia Kingdom of Yugoslavia United Kingdom London Jun 7, 1941 – Mar 7, 1945 Albanian Kingdom
Commissioner Government
German-occupied territory of Montenegro
Nazi Germany German Reich/Greater German Reich
Government of National Salvation
Independent State of Croatia
Independent Macedonia
Bulgaria Kingdom of Bulgaria
Kingdom of Hungary
Nazi Germany Territory of the Military Commander in Serbia
Netherlands Netherlands United Kingdom London 1940–1945 Nazi Germany Reichskommissariat Niederlande
Czechoslovakia Provisional Government of Czechoslovakia France Paris
(Oct 2, 1939 – 1940)
United Kingdom London
(1940–1941)
United Kingdom Aston Abbotts, United Kingdom
(1941–1945) 		Oct 2, 1939 – Apr 2, 1945 Nazi Germany German Reich/Greater German Reich
Kingdom of Hungary
Slovak Republic

Axis governments in exile

[edit]
Government in exile Capital in exile Timeline of exile Occupier(s)
Kingdom of Bulgaria Nazi Germany Vienna, Greater German Reich Sep 16, 1944 – May 10, 1945 Kingdom of Bulgaria
Kingdom of Greece
Kingdom of Yugoslavia
Vichy France French State Nazi Germany Sigmaringen, Greater German Reich 1944 – Apr 22, 1945 France Provisional Government of the French Republic
Kingdom of Hungary Nazi Germany Vienna, Greater German Reich

Nazi Germany Munich, Greater German Reich

Mar 28/29, 1945 – May 7, 1945 Czechoslovak Republic
Kingdom of Hungary
Romania Kingdom of Romania
Kingdom of Yugoslavia
Romania Kingdom of Romania Nazi Germany Vienna, Greater German Reich 1944–1945 Romania Kingdom of Romania
Montenegrin State Council Independent State of Croatia Zagreb, Independent State of Croatia Summer of 1944 – May 8, 1945 Kingdom of Yugoslavia
Slovak Republic Nazi Germany Kremsmünster, Great-German Reich Apr 4, 1945 – 8 May 1945 Czechoslovak Republic
Government of National Salvation Nazi Germany Kitzbühel, Great-German Reich Oct 7, 1944 – 8 May 1945 Soviet Union Soviet Union

Neutral governments in exile

[edit]
Government in exile Capital in exile Timeline of exile Occupier(s)
Belarus Belarusian Democratic Republic Czechoslovakia Prague, Czechoslovak Republic
(1923–1938)

Czechoslovakia Prague, Czecho-Slovak Republic
(1938–1939)

Nazi Germany Prague, German Reich/Greater German Reich
(1939–1945)

1919 – present Nazi Germany German Reich/Greater German Reich
Nazi Germany Realm Commissariat East
Nazi Germany Realm Commissariat Ukraine
Poland Republic of Poland
Soviet Union Soviet Union
Estonia Republic of Estonia Sweden Stockholm, Kingdom of Sweden
(1944 – Aug 20, 1991)

United States New York City, United States

Jun 17, 1940 – Aug 20, 1991 Nazi Germany Reichskommissariat Ostland
Soviet Union Soviet Union
Ukrainian People's Republic Poland Warsaw, Republic of Poland
(1920–1939)

Nazi Germany Prague, German Reich/Greater German Reich
(1939–1944)

1920 – Aug 22, 1992 Nazi Germany German Reich/Greater German Reich
Kingdom of Hungary
Romania Kingdom of Romania
Nazi Germany Reichskommissariat Ukraine
Soviet Union Soviet Union

See also

[edit]

Notes

[edit]

References

[edit]

Bibliography

[edit]
[edit]
Revisions and contributorsEdit on WikipediaRead on Wikipedia

German-occupied Europe

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German-occupied Europe refers to the extensive territories across the continent that Nazi Germany invaded, conquered, and administered during World War II, spanning from the invasion of Poland in September 1939 to the regime's collapse in May 1945. These areas encompassed sovereign nations in Western, Northern, Central, Southern, and Eastern Europe, subjected to direct military control, civil administration, or puppet governance structures designed to exploit resources and populations for the German war effort. At its territorial zenith in late 1942, following victories in the West and initial advances into the , German control extended from the Atlantic coast of and to the River in the east, incorporating over 20 countries either fully or partially, while excluding neutral states such as , , , and , as well as the . Administration varied by region: annexed territories like and the were integrated as Reichsgaue; protectorates such as Bohemia-Moravia retained nominal autonomy under German oversight; zones prevailed in much of the West; and Reichskommissariats—civilian-led entities like those in the , , , and Ostland—oversaw vast eastern expanses intended for and under plans like . Policies emphasized economic plunder, with forced labor conscripting millions from occupied populations to sustain German industry, particularly after 1942 when domestic shortages intensified. The occupation's defining characteristics included the systematic implementation of Nazi racial ideology, resulting in the and of approximately six million across Europe through ghettos, death camps, and mobile killing units, alongside the targeting of Roma, , and other groups deemed inferior, with eastern policies marked by deliberate and mass executions far exceeding the relative restraint in the West. Widespread resistance movements, from partisan warfare in and the to sabotage networks in and , challenged German authority, contributing to resource diversion and eventual overextension. Economically, the territories supplied raw materials, , and manpower that prolonged the German war machine, yet causal factors such as ideological rigidity, brutal reprisals, and failure to secure alliances eroded control, culminating in Allied invasions from 1943 onward that liberated most areas by 1945.

Historical Background and Expansion

Pre-War Annexations and Diplomacy

On March 7, 1936, remilitarized the , a along the French border stipulated by the (1919) and the (1925), by marching in approximately 20,000-30,000 troops without significant opposition from Britain or , marking the first major breach of post-World War I restrictions. This action, justified by Hitler as a response to French ratification of the Franco-Soviet Pact, boosted German prestige domestically and revealed the reluctance of Western powers to enforce treaty obligations militarily. The with followed on March 12, 1938, when German troops crossed the border after Austrian resigned under pressure from Nazi-aligned Austrian Nazis and Hitler, leading to the formal incorporation of into the on March 13, 1938, in violation of the and the 1936 Austro-German Agreement. The move was facilitated by internal Austrian pro-Nazi sentiment and received enthusiastic support from much of the population, expanding Germany's territory by about 7 million people and key resources like without immediate international intervention. Britain and issued verbal protests but took no action, consistent with their policy of toward Hitler's revisionist demands. In September 1938, the , signed on September 30 by , Britain, , and , permitted the annexation of the —home to roughly 3 million ethnic Germans—from , ostensibly to resolve border disputes but effectively dismantling the country's fortified defenses. , excluded from the talks, mobilized 1.2 million troops but was forced to cede the territory, which occupied between October 1-10, 1938, gaining strategic industrial assets and emboldening further expansion. This diplomatic concession, hailed by British Prime Minister as securing "," failed to deter Hitler and weakened Allied credibility. Germany completed the dismemberment of Czechoslovakia on March 15, 1939, by invading and occupying and , establishing the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia under nominal Czech President , who had been coerced into submission in the previous night. declared independence as a German the same day, leaving no sovereign Czech entity and adding about 7 million more subjects to German control, with the region providing vital armaments production capacity. This outright seizure, disregarding guarantees, prompted Britain and France to abandon and pledge military aid to but elicited no immediate response. Diplomatic maneuvering culminated in the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, a non-aggression treaty signed on August 23, 1939, between and the , which included a secret protocol dividing into spheres of influence, assigning Poland's western half to and the east to the USSR while neutralizing initially. This agreement neutralized the threat of a for , enabling the on September 1, 1939, and Soviet occupation of eastern Poland on September 17, effectively partitioning the country and initiating in Europe. The pact's territorial stipulations reflected pragmatic over ideological enmity, allowing both regimes to pursue expansionist goals unhindered.

Outbreak of War and Initial Invasions

The outbreak of war in began with 's on , when approximately 60 German divisions, supported by air strikes, crossed the border in a coordinated assault that overwhelmed Polish defenses in the west. This unprovoked attack, justified by fabricated claims of Polish aggression including the staged , prompted Britain and to declare war on two days later on September 3, honoring their guarantees to Poland's sovereignty. The campaign concluded with the fall of on September 27 and Poland's capitulation on October 5, after which annexed western territories while the , pursuant to the secret Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, invaded eastern Poland on September 17 with over 600,000 troops, partitioning the country along predefined lines. Following a period of limited hostilities known as the , Germany launched on April 9, 1940, simultaneously invading neutral and to secure iron ore supplies from and establish naval bases threatening Allied shipping. surrendered within hours due to its small military, allowing German forces to transit unhindered, while faced amphibious and airborne assaults at key ports like Narvik and , leading to prolonged fighting until Norwegian King Haakon VII's government fled to exile and resistance ended on June 10. These operations involved ten German divisions and marked the first major use of paratroopers in the war, resulting in Allied counter-efforts including British naval engagements but ultimately yielding German occupation of both nations. The most decisive initial invasions occurred on May 10, 1940, when Germany attacked the —Netherlands, , and —as a prelude to the , employing 136 divisions in Fall Gelb to bypass the via the Ardennes Forest. Dutch forces capitulated after five days of bombing including the Rotterdam Blitz, while Belgian defenses collapsed amid rapid Panzer advances, enabling German troops to encircle Allied armies at where over 338,000 British and French soldiers were evacuated between May 26 and June 4. France signed an armistice on June 22, 1940, after fell on June 14, dividing the country into an occupied northern zone and a nominally independent regime in the south, thus placing most of under German control by summer's end. These swift conquests demonstrated the effectiveness of tactics and set the stage for further expansions eastward.

Peak Territorial Extent

Nazi Germany's territorial control over Europe peaked in late 1942, after the completion of Operation Anton on November 11, which resulted in the full military occupation of , and during the height of advances on the Eastern Front following Operation Blue in the summer of that year. At this juncture, German forces directly occupied or administered vast swaths of the continent, extending from the Atlantic coast to the western frontiers of the , excluding neutral states such as , , , , , and . Directly occupied territories included Denmark and Norway since April 1940; the Netherlands, Belgium, and Luxembourg since May 1940; metropolitan France in its entirety by November 1942; Poland, partitioned and administered as the General Government alongside annexed regions since September 1939; the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia since March 1939; the Baltic states of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania since July 1941; and extensive areas of Belarus, Ukraine, and western European Russia captured during Operation Barbarossa starting June 22, 1941, reaching approximate lines from Leningrad in the north to the Don River bend in the south. In the Balkans, occupation encompassed Serbia, Montenegro, Macedonia, and parts of Greece since April 1941, with Albania under Italian control until German takeover in September 1943, though de facto German influence predominated earlier through alliance. The —, , and others—were occupied since July 1940, marking the only British soil under German control. Puppet regimes in (independent since March 1939) and the Independent State of (established April 1941) operated under heavy German oversight, effectively extending influence without formal occupation of their core administrations until later interventions. This expanse represented control over approximately 3 million square kilometers of European territory and governance over roughly 200 million people, though subsequent defeats at Stalingrad and in initiated contractions by early 1943.

Administrative Frameworks

Annexed Territories and Germanization

Nazi Germany of territories deemed suitable for incorporation into the , distinguishing these from mere occupation zones or states. involved administrative integration as Reichsgaue or similar units, accompanied by aggressive Germanization policies to assimilate populations racially, culturally, and linguistically compatible with Nazi ideology while expelling or eliminating others. These efforts, formalized under Heinrich Himmler's appointment as Reich Commissioner for the Strengthening of Germandom on October 7, 1939, aimed to expand Lebensraum by resettling ethnic Germans (Volksdeutsche) and reclassifying inhabitants through pseudoscientific racial screening. The with Austria on March 12, 1938, marked the first major annexation, incorporating the entire country—population approximately 6.7 million—into the Reich without partition, though reorganized into seven Reichsgaue by 1942. Germanization focused on ideological alignment rather than demographic overhaul, given the predominantly German-speaking populace; measures included the dissolution of Austrian political institutions, of Jewish property, and enforcement of Nazi racial laws, resulting in the exclusion of about 200,000 by 1939. Following the of September 30, 1938, the —encompassing roughly 29,000 square kilometers and 3.6 million inhabitants, mostly ethnic Germans—was annexed on October 1, 1938, and administratively divided among neighboring Gau districts. Germanization entailed the suppression of Czech cultural elements, expulsion of approximately 30,000 non-Germans, and economic integration, with local officials facilitating Nazi control. The on September 1, 1939, led to the annexation of western territories totaling about 94,000 square kilometers, forming Reichsgaue Danzig-West Prussia and Wartheland (Posen) by October 8, 1939, encompassing over 10 million residents, predominantly Polish. Germanization policies were ruthless: by 1944, around 1.7 million Poles and Jews were expelled or deported from these areas, while 500,000–600,000 ethnic Germans were resettled; children deemed racially suitable—estimated at tens of thousands—were kidnapped for programs or German foster families. Himmler's plans targeted the evacuation of 3.5–4.5 million Poles to make way for German settlers, alongside the eradication of Polish elites through executions and cultural suppression, such as renaming cities (e.g., Łódź to Litzmannstadt) and banning in schools. Alsace-Lorraine, seized after the fall of in June 1940 and formally annexed on July 23, 1940, covered 14,500 square kilometers with 1.8 million inhabitants. Germanization involved mandatory German-language education, reversion of French-imposed names to German forms, and racial classification via DVA (German Racial and Settlement Commission) exams; resisters faced or expulsion, with about 100,000 Alsatians conscripted into the despite initial reluctance, while 40,000–50,000 French loyalists were deported to or camps. Smaller annexations included the Memel Territory from on March 23, 1939 (2,657 square kilometers, 141,000 inhabitants, largely German), integrated into with minimal resistance, and southern Slovenian regions like Lower Styria after the April 1941 , where 30,000–40,000 Slovenes were expelled and 20,000 resettled with Germans. Overall, Germanization across these territories displaced over 2 million non-Germans by 1942, prioritizing Volksdeutsche repatriation from and , though wartime constraints limited full implementation to about 1 million settlers.

Military Occupation Zones

German military occupation zones encompassed territories in directly governed by commanders following invasions, prioritizing security, resource extraction, and suppression of resistance over full civil integration. These zones operated under Militärbefehlshaber (military commanders) who enforced German directives while often retaining nominal local governance structures to facilitate administration. Unlike annexed regions subjected to Germanization or civil commissariats managed by the Ministry for the Occupied Eastern Territories, military zones maintained authority to support ongoing operations and counter partisans. Establishment typically followed conquest, with transitions to civil control occurring in select areas like parts of by late 1939. In , military administrations were imposed after the 1940 Blitzkrieg campaigns. Denmark fell under Wehrmacht control on April 9, 1940, with a military commander overseeing operations from , allowing limited Danish autonomy until escalating resistance prompted stricter measures by 1943. , invaded the same day, received a parallel administration under General , who coordinated with the puppet regime while the Wehrmacht handled security across fjords and coastal defenses. The , occupied from May 15, 1940, was administered by General , focusing on economic plunder and deportation logistics. and northern came under General Alexander von Falkenhausen's command in May 1940, extending to Channel ports vital for U-boat operations; von Falkenhausen issued decrees on forced labor and anti-Jewish measures until his replacement in 1944 amid rising . The occupied zone of , delineated by the June 1940 armistice, was managed by Military Commander-in-Chief from October 1940, enforcing collaboration while extracting industrial output, with authority shifting to Heinrich von Stülpnagel in 1942 before further SS influence. In the Balkans, military zones emerged post-1941 interventions. Serbia, after the April 1941 coup and , was initially under General Franz Böhme's short-lived , transitioning to a puppet government under by August 1941 but retaining oversight for anti-partisan sweeps, resulting in over 20,000 executions by 1942. Northern Greece, including Salonika and Aegean Macedonia, fell under a established in April 1941, deporting approximately 50,000 Jews from Salonika by 1943 under and SS coordination. These zones emphasized garrisoning strategic routes against British incursions and Italian failures. On the Eastern Front, following Operation Barbarossa on June 22, 1941, vast Soviet territories operated as de facto military zones through Rückwärtiges Heeresgebiet (army rear areas) under commands like General Max von Schenckendorff for Army Group Center, spanning Belarus and western Russia. These administrations secured supply lines, conducted anti-partisan operations claiming over 300,000 "bandits" killed by 1943, and facilitated Einsatzgruppen actions, with military authority persisting amid plans for eventual civil handover that largely failed due to Red Army advances. Poland's initial military occupation from September 1939 involved brutal pacification before the General Government civil entity on October 12, 1939, though frontier strips remained under Wehrmacht control.

Puppet States and Civil Administrations

Nazi Germany established puppet states in occupied Europe to exert indirect control through local authoritarian regimes that aligned with its ideological and strategic goals, thereby reducing the administrative burden on German forces while facilitating resource extraction and military support. These entities maintained facades of sovereignty, including flags, governments, and armed forces, but operated under German oversight, with key decisions dictated by Berlin. Prominent examples included the Slovak Republic, the Independent State of Croatia, and Vichy France, each led by collaborators who implemented Nazi-aligned policies such as antisemitic legislation and participation in the war effort. The Slovak Republic declared independence on March 14, 1939, following German pressure on and support from , who had encouraged Slovak separatists led by the Hlinka Slovak People's Party. Under President , a Catholic priest, the state joined the Axis on November 24, 1940, and contributed militarily by invading in September 1939 and sending two divisions—totaling around 45,000 troops—to the Eastern Front during in 1941, with one division advancing to the by 1942. The regime enacted antisemitic laws, deporting approximately 70,000 Jews to Auschwitz between 1942 and 1944, though domestic opposition led to partial halts. The puppet status ended with the in August 1944, suppressed by German forces, followed by full occupation and the state's dissolution in spring 1945 as Soviet troops advanced. The Independent State of Croatia (NDH), proclaimed on April 10, 1941, after the Axis invasion and partition of , served as a puppet regime controlled by and , encompassing , under Ante Pavelić's movement. The implemented genocidal policies targeting Serbs, , and Roma, operating concentration camps like Jasenovac where tens of thousands perished through mass killings and forced labor from 1941 to 1945. German liaison officers and economic directives ensured NDH alignment, including resource shipments to the and suppression of partisans, though internal instability from resistance and ethnic violence weakened its effectiveness. The state collapsed in May 1945 amid Yugoslav Partisan advances. Vichy France, formally the French State, emerged on July 10, 1940, after the armistice with , governing the unoccupied southern zone from Vichy under Marshal , who pursued a policy of collaboration formalized in his October 1940 meeting with Hitler at Montoire. Vichy enacted the Statut des Juifs in October 1940, stripping Jews of citizenship and enabling deportations—facilitating the roundup of over 13,000 Jews in during the July 1942 Vel' d'Hiv operation—while maintaining French police forces for internal control until full German occupation on November 11, 1942, following Allied landings in . Though retaining some autonomy in administration and propaganda promoting "National Revolution" ideals, Vichy's decisions consistently deferred to German demands on labor, food supplies, and military non-interference. In parallel, Germany imposed civil administrations in other territories, transitioning from initial governance to civilian-led Reichskommissariats for efficient exploitation, particularly in the East. The , established July 1941 under , administered occupied and , enforcing Germanization, forced labor for over 1 million locals, and the murder of 250,000 Jews by and local auxiliaries. Similarly, the , headed by from September 1941, oversaw vast areas for grain requisitions supporting the , amid brutal pacification that killed millions through and reprisals. In the West, civil rule in the under from May 1940 centralized economic plunder, deporting 75% of Dutch Jews, while Norway's administration under from April 1940 integrated Vidkun Quisling's party as a nominal government from February 1942 to coordinate occupation policies. These structures prioritized Nazi racial hierarchies and mobilization over local autonomy.

Governments in Exile and Their Roles

During the German occupations of 1939–1941, governments from several European nations relocated primarily to , where they asserted legal continuity of their states amid territorial losses. These entities, numbering eight major ones by 1942—including those of , Czechoslovakia, , the Netherlands, , , and —coordinated from the Allies, raised exile military forces totaling hundreds of thousands, and supported through intelligence sharing and broadcasts. Their operations preserved national institutions, managed overseas assets for war efforts, and documented Axis crimes to garner international support, though internal rivalries and dependence on British hospitality sometimes limited autonomy. The , established on September 30, 1939, following the German invasion on September 1 and Soviet incursion on September 17, initially based in before transferring to in June 1940 after France's fall. Led by Prime Minister until his death in a plane crash on July 4, 1943, it commanded Polish forces in the West that grew to approximately 165,000 personnel by mid-1944, contributing to battles like and the . It also relayed early intelligence on Nazi extermination camps, including Auschwitz-Birkenau, via diplomatic channels and couriers from the Polish Home Army, alerting the Allies to systematic by 1942. Norway's government, under Johan Nygaardsvold, fled on June 7, 1940, after the April 9 German invasion, establishing operations in by June 29. It directed the Norwegian Merchant Fleet, which supplied 50% of Allied oil transports by 1943, and coordinated sabotage operations like the Heavy Water Plant raid at in 1943 through the resistance. The , formed as the Pierlot IV cabinet on May 29, 1940, and formalized in by October, under Hubert Pierlot, administered the to provide uranium and resources critical for the while recruiting 13,000 troops for Allied campaigns. The , headed by Queen Wilhelmina after evacuating on May 13, 1940, utilized Radio Oranje for morale-boosting broadcasts reaching occupied territories and sustained control over the until Japan's 1942 conquest, preserving naval assets for Allied use. Czechoslovakia's council of state, reorganized under President in from July 1940, negotiated the 1941 Anglo-Czechoslovak alliance and 1943 treaty with the , while forming exile brigades that fought in and ; it emphasized pre-Munich 1938 borders in post-war claims. Greece's government, relocated after the April 1941 fall of , and Yugoslavia's multiple factions under King Peter II, both in by mid-1941, focused on partisan coordination and Balkan intelligence, though Yugoslav exiles contended with Tito's communist rivals. Luxembourg's grand ducal government, exiled since May 10, 1940, collaborated closely with Belgian and Dutch counterparts on . These governments enhanced Allied cohesion by formalizing mutual aid pacts, such as the 1942 on , and provided symbolic resistance against collaborationist regimes in occupied lands, yet their post-1945 relevance diminished in due to Soviet dominance, with the Polish entity persisting unrecognized until 1990.

Economic Exploitation and Policies

The New European Order and Resource Extraction

The New European Order, or Neuordnung Europas, represented Nazi Germany's ideological framework for reorganizing Europe into a hierarchical economic and political system dominated by the , with occupied territories reoriented to supply raw materials, food, and industrial outputs essential for and prolonged warfare. Articulated in Adolf Hitler's speeches, such as his 30 January 1941 address to the Reichstag, the plan extended Hermann Göring's Four-Year Plan beyond Germany's borders, aiming to create a self-sufficient continental bloc through centralized resource mobilization under entities like the proposed in 1942. This vision prioritized German needs, treating as a productive workshop and Eastern territories as colonial extraction zones, though implementation was hampered by ideological rigidity, logistical failures, and resistance, yielding less than anticipated returns relative to the occupied economies' potential. Resource extraction was enforced via occupation costs, clearing agreements, direct seizures, and spoliation decrees, which funneled billions of Reichsmarks (RM) from occupied states to Germany. Between 1939 and 1945, occupied Europe—whose combined economies were roughly twice the size of Germany's in 1938—contributed approximately 93.6 billion RM in formal occupation payments, equivalent to unpaid booty and forced labor adding up to 118.2 billion RM, or about 28.6% of the Reich's total war expenditure. In Western Europe, extraction focused on industrial raw materials and machinery; France alone supplied 73% of its iron output and 5 million tons of steel, while occupation levies reached 31.6 billion RM by 1943, often exceeding 20% of national GDP annually through inflated clearing credits and compulsory exports. Belgium and the Netherlands faced similar drains, with the former's gold reserves yielding 545.7 million RM funneled via French accounts and the latter paying 100 million gulden monthly (about 75 million RM) in charges, plus 2.15 billion RM in "voluntary" contributions by 1944. In , policies were more predatory, emphasizing agricultural plunder under the , which sought to divert foodstuffs from Slavic populations to , resulting in deliberate to free resources. Poland's incorporated territories saw 693,252 agricultural estates (6,097,525 hectares) confiscated by May 1943 for German settlers, alongside industrial dismantling that left cities like unrepaired per Rudolf Hess's 20 November 1939 order. From the , extraction targeted grain and oil, but yielded only about 1.5 million tons of grain over four years against planned annual targets of 4-9 million tons, due to scorched-earth tactics, partisan sabotage, and overextended supply lines. Overall, these efforts added 10-15% to 's wartime economy annually, yet fell short of full mobilization—Western Europe underdelivered by an estimated 30 billion RM in potential output—exacerbating resource shortages that undermined military sustainability.

Forced Labor Programs

The Nazi regime's forced labor programs in occupied were implemented to compensate for acute domestic labor shortages caused by the conscription of German men into the armed forces and the expansion of armaments production. Beginning with the in September 1939, German authorities systematically deported civilians from conquered territories, initially targeting Poles and , with the policy escalating after the 1941 invasion of the . By March 1942, appointed Fritz Sauckel as Plenipotentiary General for the Allocation of Labor, tasking him with procuring millions of workers through coercive measures including roundups, quotas imposed on local collaborationist governments, and the exploitation of prisoners of war (POWs). Sauckel's directives emphasized mass deportation and enslavement, framing it as essential to the , which relied on foreign labor to sustain industrial output and infrastructure projects like the Atlantic Wall fortifications. The scale of these programs was immense, with estimates indicating that by late 1944, approximately 7.6 million foreign civilians from occupied Europe worked involuntarily within the , supplemented by around 3 million Allied POWs under German control, many of whom were also compelled into labor. The largest contingents came from , where racial ideology deemed expendable: about 2.5 million Soviet civilians, designated as (Eastern workers), were deported primarily from and , alongside 1.5 million Poles subjected to similar raids and transports starting in 1940. Western European contributions were smaller but significant, enforced through compulsory schemes like France's (introduced February 1943, which drafted over 600,000 French workers by war's end), while and the supplied hundreds of thousands via bilateral agreements that devolved into coercion amid resistance. These workers were funneled into armaments factories under Albert Speer's Ministry of Armaments, construction firms like , agriculture, and mining, contributing decisively to Germany's ability to prolong the war despite resource constraints. Conditions for forced laborers were deliberately harsh, reflecting Nazi racial hierarchies that afforded minimal protections to "inferior" groups from the East while offering slightly better treatment to Western Europeans to encourage compliance. Ostarbeiter endured segregated barracks, caloric intakes as low as 1,000-1,500 per day (far below sustenance levels), systematic beatings, and prohibition from public spaces, with women comprising over half of Eastern deportees often isolated in household or farm roles to prevent "racial mixing." Mortality rates were elevated due to , disease, overwork, and executions for or escape attempts; Soviet laborers faced death rates up to 25-30% in some cohorts from 1941-1943, exacerbated by deliberate underfeeding policies documented in as elements of enslavement. Concentration camp prisoners, numbering in the hundreds of thousands by 1944, provided the most brutalized labor pool, with SS-run subcamps attached to factories yielding high fatalities from exhaustion and medical experiments, though exact aggregate deaths from forced labor across remain debated due to incomplete records, conservatively estimated in the low millions when including in-situ exploitation in occupied territories. These programs not only fueled the German but also served ideological aims of subjugating "subhuman" populations, with Sauckel's recruitment drives prioritizing brutality over efficiency.

Industrial and Agricultural Reorientation

The Nazi administration systematically reoriented the industrial sectors of occupied Europe to prioritize armaments, munitions, and military equipment production, subordinating local economies to the German war effort. In Western occupied territories such as France and the Netherlands, factories were converted with relative preservation of infrastructure to sustain output; for instance, French industrial activity declined by about 50% from pre-occupation levels due to requisitions, labor drafts, and redirection toward German needs, while Dutch legal economic operations fell 25% (adjusted to 14% accounting for clandestine work). Eastern regions like Poland faced more destructive conversion, with machinery dismantled for shipment to the Reich and surviving facilities focused on extractive industries such as coal mining, contributing to overall German industrial exploitation valued at billions of Reichsmarks. From February 1942, Albert Speer's appointment as Minister of Armaments and War Production centralized oversight, integrating occupied territories' resources and forced labor—comprising 43% of foreign workers deployed in industry—to drive a surge in output; German armaments production peaked in 1944, exceeding 1942 levels despite resource strains and Allied disruptions. Agricultural policies emphasized extraction to alleviate Germany's food shortages and support its population and , imposing compulsory delivery quotas enforced by German overseers and local collaborators. In Western Europe, particularly , production was sustained through reliance on existing farm structures but directed toward exports, with policies motivated by demands from German industry and goals; this yielded moderate surpluses amid that reduced local consumption. Eastern territories, including and , underwent harsher reorientation under ideologically driven plans like the devised in 1941 by , which aimed to seize grain and livestock outputs—targeting up to 30 million Soviet civilians for —to redirect resources westward, resulting in millions of deaths from and related hardship between 1941 and 1944. Overall, occupied agricultural contributions formed a key component of the 28.6% of German war costs derived from exploitation, totaling around 118 billion Reichsmarks when including unpaid labor and booty, though Eastern devastation limited yields below potential. In specifically, German agricultural directors enforced requisitions that prioritized and oilseeds for export, exacerbating local collapses while experimental crops like Kok-sagyz for were imposed on farmland. This reorientation reflected racial hierarchies in policy application: Western outputs were optimized for sustained utility, whereas Eastern lands were treated as disposable colonial resources, leading to infrastructural ruin and demographic losses estimated at 6.7% from economic privation alone in and the USSR. Forced labor bridged industrial and agricultural demands, with 36% of foreign workers allocated to farms, enabling quotas but at the cost of productivity declines from and resistance. By 1944, and wartime attrition eroded these systems, contributing to Germany's logistical failures on multiple fronts.

Military and Security Operations

Occupation Forces and Garrison Strategies

The German occupation forces in Europe primarily comprised rear-area units of the , divisions, and the (Order Police), supplemented by local auxiliary forces to extend control with limited core German manpower. These forces totaled several hundred thousand personnel across occupied territories by 1943-1944, though exact figures fluctuated with frontline demands; for instance, security and garrison units on the Eastern Front alone numbered around 100,000-102,000 in identified formations for Army Group Center rear areas. The , under SS oversight, provided urban policing and anti-partisan operations, peaking at approximately 400,000 men including reserves, with battalions deployed for mass security sweeps and executions in occupied regions. Garrison strategies emphasized selective fortification of strategic sites, deterrence through reprisals, and delegation to collaborators to conserve Wehrmacht resources for the Eastern Front, where over 200 divisions were committed by late 1941. In Western Europe, garrisons relied on static infantry divisions of reduced strength—often 10,000-14,000 men each, equipped lightly for defensive roles—positioned along coasts and infrastructure hubs, as seen in OB West's pre-D-Day array of understrength units like the 709th Infantry Division in Normandy. Norway exemplified oversized commitments, with 340,000 troops stationed by 1945 to guard ports, iron ore routes, and against perceived Allied threats, tying down divisions that could have reinforced elsewhere despite minimal resistance. In Eastern occupied territories, security divisions (Sicherungs-Divisionen) formed the backbone, tasked with pacification, supply line protection, and countering ; these units, averaging 10,000-12,000 personnel, operated in rear zones behind frontline armies, conducting scorched-earth operations and village clearances to deny guerrilla bases. SS and police elements augmented these with mobile and Reserve Police Battalions for ideological enforcement, including anti-Jewish actions, freeing units for combat while leveraging Hiwis (local volunteers) numbering up to 250,000 in the East by 1943 to bolster manpower without diluting German command structures. Overall, occupation absorbed 20-30% of German field forces by mid-war, prioritizing economic extraction over full demobilization of locals, though partisan activity in the and necessitated escalations, such as deploying mountain divisions for high-intensity sweeps.

Anti-Partisan Warfare and Repression

German anti-partisan warfare, officially termed (bandit-fighting), encompassed a range of security operations conducted by , SS, and police units against resistance groups in occupied Europe from 1941 onward. These efforts escalated following the invasion of the on June 22, 1941, with directives emphasizing ruthless suppression to secure rear areas and supply lines. A key policy shift occurred on August 18, 1942, when issued Directive No. 46, mandating all state institutions to support in eradicating armed partisans through coordinated actions that blurred distinctions between combatants and civilians. In the Eastern Front, particularly Belarus, operations integrated ideological extermination with , resulting in approximately 950,000 deaths, including 550,000 and 400,000 non-Jewish civilians, alongside the destruction of 8,526 villages. Early directives, such as Wilhelm Keitel's decree of May 13, 1941, exempted personnel from legal accountability for actions against "saboteurs," while Reinhard Heydrich's order on July 2, 1941, explicitly targeted and civilians as potential threats. Notable actions included Operation Swamp Fever in 1942, which killed 8,350 labeled as partisans, and Operation Cottbus from June to July 1943, executing 9,500 individuals. , as Higher SS and Police Leader, oversaw many of these, employing scorched-earth tactics and "dead zones" to deny partisans resources. In the Balkans, German forces faced intense guerrilla activity from Yugoslav Partisans and Chetniks, prompting large-scale offensives and reprisal policies. Operations like Weiss in 1943 inflicted over 8,500 Partisan casualties west of , while Rösselsprung targeted Josip Broz Tito's headquarters, killing 6,000 guerrillas. Reprisals followed a of 100 hostages executed per German soldier killed, as seen in on October 21, 1941, where around 4,000 civilians died in an "atonement exercise." Village burnings and hostage shootings were standard, with units like the , composed of convicted criminals under , conducting brutal sweeps that exacerbated civilian suffering. In and , operations such as Gembock and Steinadler resulted in over 2,500 and 567 guerrilla deaths, respectively, often accompanied by mass executions of suspects. Western Europe saw less systematic intensity but similar tactics, with SS and police units responding to sabotage through village razings and executions, such as the destruction of Oradour-sur-Glane in France on June 10, 1944, where 642 villagers were killed in reprisal for resistance actions. Overall, these operations prioritized deterrence over precision, frequently conflating resistance with racial enemies, leading to disproportionate civilian tolls that undermined occupation stability while tying down significant German resources.

Demographic and Ideological Policies

Racial Hierarchies and Population Transfers

The Nazi , rooted in pseudoscientific theories of superiority, was systematically extended to occupied European populations, prioritizing ethnic and those deemed racially akin while relegating others to exploitation or destruction. At the summit stood "full s" such as and Scandinavians, viewed as bearers of superior culture and entitled to dominion; Western Europeans like the Dutch, Flemish, and ranked closely below, often eligible for partial assimilation due to perceived Nordic traits. In contrast, Eastern Slavic groups—Poles, , , and —were branded Untermenschen (subhumans), culturally inferior and biologically expendable, fit only for labor or elimination to secure (living space). Jews and Roma occupied the as existential threats, subject to immediate rather than mere subjugation. This framework, articulated in Heinrich Himmler's speeches and SS directives from 1939 onward, justified differential treatment: privileged access to resources for "racially valuable" individuals versus enslavement or death for the rest. Enforcement relied on the Race and Settlement Main Office (RuSHA), established in 1931 and expanded post-1939 conquests, which deployed "racial experts" to classify inhabitants via anthropological exams, genealogical reviews, and biometric assessments in occupied territories. In annexed Polish regions like the Warthegau (), RuSHA screened locals for "Germanizable" potential, granting Reich citizenship to roughly 500,000 deemed suitable while condemning others to expulsion; similar processes occurred in Bohemia-Moravia and Baltic areas, where ethnic Germans received preferential status. These classifications informed recruitment for units from "racially elite" volunteers, such as Dutch and , while barring except as auxiliaries. Policies evolved pragmatically amid war demands—e.g., temporary exemptions for skilled Ukrainian laborers—but consistently prioritized racial purity over economic utility, as evidenced in RSHA memos prioritizing Volksdeutsche resettlement over native retention. Population transfers operationalized this hierarchy, aiming to "ethnically reconstruct" by repatriating and displacing "inferior" natives. The "" initiative, launched October 1939 after Poland's partition, resettled about 350,000 from Ukraine's Black Sea region to Polish annexed territories between late and mid-1944, displacing locals en masse. In the Warthegau, over 1.1 million Poles faced expulsion by mid-1941, herded into the General Government or labor sites, with operations like the 1940 clearances removing 115,000 from urban centers alone to install colonists. The Zamość Land action (November 1942–March ) epitomized this: approximately 110,000 Poles, including 50,000 children, were deported from province farms to pave way for SS settlements, with many rerouted to Auschwitz or extermination via starvation tactics. The (GPO), drafted May–July 1942 under for the , crystallized these efforts with blueprints for depopulating 30–45 million Easterners (80–85% of Poles, 64% of ) via deportation to , mass , or killing, freeing space for 10 million German settlers by 1970. Though wartime reversals curtailed full execution—e.g., only partial Ukrainian clearances before Soviet counteroffensives—GPO influenced ad hoc transfers, such as Baltic German evacuations (500,000 total from 1939–1941) and plans for as a "German Riviera." Himmler's oversight ensured ideological rigor, rejecting deviations like Alfred Rosenberg's milder Ostministerium approaches in favor of ruthless clearance, underscoring causal links between racial doctrine and demographic engineering.

Persecution of Jews, Roma, and Other Targeted Groups

The Nazi regime implemented systematic across occupied as the core element of its racial ideology, viewing them as an existential threat to the and orchestrating their near-total extermination through the "" formalized at the on January 20, 1942. In German-occupied territories from to the , faced immediate discriminatory measures including forced registration, property confiscation, and segregation starting in 1939–1940, escalating to mass deportations and killings. By war's end, approximately 6 million —two-thirds of 's pre-war Jewish population of 9.5 million—had been murdered, with the highest tolls in (about 3 million) and the (over 1 million via mobile killing units alone). In , particularly occupied and the USSR invaded in , persecution began with death squads conducting mass shootings of Jews and others, killing over 1.3 million Jews by late 1942 through operations like (33,771 Jews executed on September 29–30, 1941). Ghettos such as (confining 400,000 by 1941) served as holding areas for starvation, disease, and deportation to extermination camps like Auschwitz-Birkenau, where 1.1 million perished, mostly via gas from 1942 onward. In Western occupied countries like the , , and , Vichy and collaborationist regimes aided roundups; for instance, over 75,000 Dutch Jews (75% of the community) were deported, primarily to Auschwitz, between 1942 and 1944, reflecting high compliance rates in bureaucratic states. Roma (Gypsies) were targeted as racially inferior and "asocial," subjected to similar measures including sterilization, , and known retrospectively as the Porajmos, with estimates of 250,000 to 500,000 killed across Europe. Persecution intensified after 1941, with shootings in the East claiming tens of thousands and deportations to Auschwitz's Zigeunerfamilienlager (Gypsy Family Camp), where 23,000 were gassed or died of conditions by August 1944. In occupied and , Ustaše allies massacred up to 20,000 Roma alongside Serbs. Other targeted groups included Slavs deemed subhuman under , with 1.8–1.9 million Poles and millions of Soviet civilians killed via executions, forced labor, and famine in occupied territories; ethnic Poles faced liquidations of 50,000–100,000 elites in 1939–1940. The disabled were murdered under euthanasia from 1939, expanding to 70,000–200,000 victims in camps, while 5,000–15,000 homosexuals were deported to camps marked by pink triangles, enduring high mortality from abuse. Jehovah's Witnesses (about 10,000 imprisoned) could escape persecution by renouncing faith but numbered around 1,200 deaths. These policies, enforced by SS, , and local collaborators, aimed at demographic reshaping but prioritized Jewish extermination.

Concentration Camps and Extermination Infrastructure

The Nazi regime, through the SS under Heinrich Himmler, expanded its concentration camp system into occupied Europe following the invasions of Poland in September 1939 and subsequent conquests, transforming it into a sprawling network exceeding 42,000 sites including subcamps, ghettos, and detention facilities by 1945. These camps served multiple functions: initial detention of political opponents, forced labor extraction, and, from 1941, industrialized mass extermination as part of the "Final Solution" targeting Jews and other groups deemed racial enemies. The infrastructure relied on rail transport from across occupied territories—France, the Netherlands, Belgium, Norway, and Eastern Europe—to funnel victims to killing centers, primarily in German-occupied Poland for logistical secrecy and proximity to large Jewish populations. Concentration camps, such as Auschwitz I (established May 1940 near , ) and Majdanek (opened October 1941 near ), combined imprisonment with slave labor in armaments production, where prisoners faced starvation, disease, medical experiments, and executions; Auschwitz alone held up to 100,000 inmates at peak capacity by 1944. Extermination infrastructure, however, was purpose-built for genocide: (operational December 1941) used gas vans for initial mobile killings; Bełżec, Sobibór, and Treblinka (activated March, May, and July 1942, respectively) employed from engine exhaust in stationary gas chambers, processing arrivals within hours via deception and immediate cremation. Auschwitz-Birkenau (Auschwitz II, expanded 1941–1942) integrated extermination with labor, featuring gas chambers capable of murdering 6,000 persons daily by mid-1944, supported by crematoria designed by firms like Topf & Söhne. Estimated deaths in these extermination camps totaled approximately 2.7 million , with Auschwitz accounting for about 1 million, Treblinka 870,000–925,000, Bełżec 434,000–600,000, Sobibór 167,000–250,000, Chełmno 152,000–320,000, and Majdanek 59,000–78,000, based on Nazi transport records, survivor testimonies, and perpetrator confessions cross-verified at postwar trials. Non-Jewish victims, including Poles, Roma, Soviet POWs, and political prisoners, added hundreds of thousands more across the system, often via shootings, gassings, or lethal conditions; for instance, (1942–1943) alone liquidated 1.7 million in the three Aktion Reinhard camps using SS and Ukrainian guards. The camps' efficiency stemmed from bureaucratic coordination—Himmler's Inspectorate of Concentration Camps oversaw construction, while the WVHA (SS Economic-Administrative Main Office) managed labor allocation—enabled by plunder from victims' belongings to fund further expansion. Dismantling began in late 1944 as Soviet forces advanced, with death marches evacuating over 700,000 prisoners westward under guard, resulting in tens of thousands of additional deaths from exposure and shootings; sites like Treblinka were razed by to conceal evidence, though Allied liberation uncovered mass graves and ruins. Postwar excavations, Nazi documents seized in 1945, and demographic analyses of pre- and post-war censuses in occupied countries substantiate these operations' scale, countering minimization claims by aligning perpetrator admissions (e.g., Höß's Auschwitz commandant testimony) with physical remnants like residue in ruins.

Resistance, Collaboration, and Societal Responses

Organized Resistance Movements

Organized resistance movements in German-occupied Europe during encompassed a range of clandestine groups that conducted , intelligence gathering, , and support for Allied operations, often at high personal risk and with varying degrees of coordination with exiled governments or Allied forces. These movements arose in response to Nazi occupation policies, including forced labor, extraction, and , and were most prominent in Western and where populations retained national cohesion and access to arms or terrain suitable for hiding. By , resistance activities had disrupted German , with estimates indicating that efforts across Europe delayed troop movements and supply lines, though their overall strategic impact was limited compared to conventional Allied campaigns due to the occupiers' superior s and tactics. In Poland, the Home Army (Armia Krajowa, AK), formed on February 14, 1942, as the primary underground force loyal to the , grew to over 380,000 members by 1944, representing the largest resistance organization in occupied Europe. The AK executed starting in 1944, coordinating uprisings in eastern Polish cities to seize control ahead of the Soviet advance, and conducted extensive sabotage, including the destruction of more than 7,000 German rail transports bound for the Eastern Front between 1942 and 1944. Its most notable action was the from August 1 to October 2, 1944, involving approximately 40,000 fighters who aimed to liberate the capital but faced overwhelming German counterattacks, resulting in around 16,000 Polish combat deaths and the near-total destruction of the city. France's Resistance, unified under the in May 1943, included urban networks for and rural Maquis guerrilla bands that numbered about 100,000 armed fighters by May 1944. These groups sabotaged rail infrastructure, with over 1,000 derailments and attacks on power grids in the lead-up to D-Day on June 6, 1944, disrupting German reinforcements and enabling Allied beachheads. Maquis operations, often supplied via British airdrops, focused on ambushes and in mountainous regions, though they suffered heavy losses from German anti-partisan sweeps, such as the collaborations. In Yugoslavia, the communist-led Partisans under formed the dominant resistance after , expanding from small bands to approximately 800,000 fighters by 1945 through guerrilla tactics that exploited rugged terrain and local recruitment. They liberated significant territory independently, tying down over 20 German divisions and conducting offensives like the Adriatic campaign, which forced Axis withdrawals; however, their focus increasingly shifted to eliminating rival non-communist groups like the , complicating pure anti-occupation efforts. Tito's forces received limited Allied aid after , prioritizing them over monarchist alternatives due to demonstrated effectiveness in pinning German troops. Norway's , established in 1941 as the military arm of the resistance under the Norwegian , emphasized non-violent and over open , growing to around 40,000 members by war's end. Key actions included disrupting production at the plant in February 1943 via Operation Gunnerside, which halted Nazi atomic research efforts, and ferry sinkings that impeded German troop deployments. Milorg's restraint minimized reprisals against civilians, preserving national unity for a peaceful handover upon liberation in May 1945. Smaller but effective movements operated elsewhere: Denmark's resistance sabotaged shipyards and gathered intelligence for the Allies, facilitating the rescue of nearly all 7,000 Danish Jews to in October ; Greece's communist and royalist groups conducted ambushes in mountainous areas, controlling rural zones by 1944; and Italy's partisan bands, numbering up to 200,000 after the , attacked German supply lines in the north, contributing to the Gothic Line's vulnerabilities. These efforts collectively inflicted casualties on occupation forces estimated in the tens of thousands while fostering national narratives, though success depended on , , and Allied support rather than inherent resistance levels.

Widespread Collaboration and Motivations

Collaboration with German occupation authorities extended across governments, institutions, militaries, police forces, and civilian populations in occupied , proving essential to the administration of territories, resource extraction, and the implementation of genocidal policies including . Local collaborators formed auxiliary police units, such as the in the occupied Soviet territories, which numbered tens of thousands and assisted in mass executions of and others. In the , post-war investigations targeted over 300,000 individuals for suspected collaboration, reflecting the scale of administrative, economic, and ideological alignment with the occupier. In , collaboration often involved established state mechanisms. , under Marshal , interned in camps like Gurs and facilitated the of approximately 76,000 , primarily foreign-born, to killing centers, with French police playing a key role in roundups. In , the regime and local police units cooperated in the arrest and of nearly all of the country's 2,000 to Auschwitz-Birkenau. Denmark's civil administration continued functioning under German oversight, with some officials aiding in anti-Jewish measures until late in the war. In the puppet state of , the regime deported over 80% of its Jewish population—around 70,000 individuals—in 1942, motivated by alignment with Nazi racial policies. Eastern Europe saw particularly intense collaboration in the initial phases of , driven by resentment toward Soviet rule following the 1939–1941 occupations under the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact. Lithuanian, Latvian, Estonian, and Ukrainian auxiliary forces participated in pogroms and actions, killing tens of thousands of in 1941 alone, such as during the and massacres. In Croatia, the Ustaša regime independently murdered about 25,000 by late 1942, alongside Serbs and Roma, at sites like Jasenovac camp. These efforts reduced the burden on German manpower, allowing units to advance deeper into the USSR. Motivations for collaboration varied by region and actor but commonly included ideological sympathy with or National Socialism, fervent —especially acute after Stalinist deportations and purges—nationalist aspirations for or revenge against perceived enemies, and through access to confiscated Jewish , advancement, or amid wartime scarcity. , often intertwined with these factors, prompted active participation in persecutions, as seen in Bulgarian officials' expropriation of Jewish assets and Hungarian militias' 1944 rampages. While existed in some cases, many collaborators acted voluntarily, viewing alignment with as preferable to alternatives like Soviet reconquest or internal chaos, though such choices later fueled post-war trials and societal divisions. Empirical assessments indicate collaboration was not marginal but integral to occupation dynamics, with local participation enabling efficiencies that pure German force could not achieve across vast territories.

Civilian Compliance and Daily Life Under Occupation

Civilian compliance in German-occupied Europe stemmed primarily from the pervasive threat of reprisals, including summary executions, hostage-taking, and collective punishments, which deterred overt resistance among the majority of the population. In , such as occupied after June 1940, administrative integration and economic incentives—such as access to rations or under German oversight—further encouraged , with denunciations to authorities often motivated by personal grudges or rather than ideological alignment. In Eastern territories like the General Government in , compliance was enforced through draconian decrees, such as forced labor mobilization orders issued on October 26, 1939, targeting Poles aged 18-60 (later expanded to 14), under penalty of or death, resulting in 1.6 to 3.5 million Poles conscripted for labor in by 1944. Daily life was marked by stringent resource controls, with food imposed universally to prioritize German needs and the . In occupied , began in August 1940, categorizing civilians by age and occupation (e.g., category A for adults 21-70), yielding an average intake of 1,200-1,500 calories per day by 1944—far below the 2,500 pre-war norm—and reducing bread rations from 350 grams daily in 1940 to 180 grams by 1943, prompting widespread queuing, bartering via colis familiaux parcels (13.5 million in 1942), and black-market trade where butter prices reached 107 francs per kilogram against an official 43 francs. In the , the "Hunger Winter" of 1944-1945 exacerbated shortages, with caloric intake dropping below 1,000 per day in urban areas due to transport disruptions and German requisitions. Poland's fared worse, with official rations averaging 611 calories daily in 1941 against a required 2,400, supplemented precariously by black markets or foraging, while substitutes like acorns for coffee or nettles for vegetables became commonplace across regions. Labor policies integrated civilians into the German , mandating work for able-bodied adults and extracting millions for industries; by 1944, over 20 million foreign workers, including Eastern Europeans, toiled under exploitative conditions, with in plummeting 37% from 1939 to 1943 and two-thirds of the population unable to meet minimal caloric needs through official channels alone. Curfews and movement restrictions compounded isolation, such as nightly blackouts and assembly bans in , or death-penalty curfews in Poland's , limiting social interactions and fostering a climate of where German billeting in homes—e.g., 220 troops in the French village of Périers by May 1944—intruded on private spheres. Social controls varied by region, with Western occupations like allowing relative autonomy and minimal direct interference, enabling some normalcy in and , whereas Eastern policies curtailed Polish schooling to elementary levels only, spurring clandestine networks despite risks. Economic requisitioning of raw materials (e.g., , ) and —prices rising 216% in rural from 1939-1943—shifted power dynamics, empowering rural producers via black markets while urban dwellers endured heightened scarcity and tension. Overall, these measures sustained occupation stability by tying survival to cooperation, though ingenuity in circumvention, such as rural-urban or ersatz production, reflected adaptive resilience amid systemic deprivation.

Collapse, Liberation, and Aftermath

Allied Western Advances and Retrenchment

The Western Allies initiated the liberation of German-occupied with , commencing on June 6, 1944, when approximately 156,000 American, British, and Canadian troops landed on five beaches, supported by airborne divisions and naval forces, establishing a crucial beachhead despite fierce German resistance from Erwin Rommel's defenses. By late August 1944, Allied forces had broken out of the enclave through , liberating on August 25 with assistance from fighters under General Charles de Gaulle, and rapidly advancing across northern , reaching the German border by early September. Rapid advances in September 1944 saw the liberation of on September 3 and on September 4, though port facilities at Antwerp remained contested until November due to German attacks and flooding by retreating forces. However, logistical strains from extended supply lines, compounded by Montgomery's ambitious (September 17–25), which aimed to seize bridges for a thrust into Germany's industrial region, resulted in failure; Allied paratroopers captured and but could not secure , leading to 17,000 British casualties and a temporary halt in momentum, marking an early retrenchment as forces consolidated positions short of the . The German Ardennes Offensive, launched on December 16, 1944, exploited thin Allied lines in the Ardennes Forest, achieving initial penetrations of up to 50 miles and surrounding U.S. forces at , forcing a defensive retrenchment that delayed further advances until January 25, 1945, when Allied counterattacks, bolstered by superior air power and reinforcements, restored the front lines at a cost of over 80,000 American casualties. This setback, Hitler's last major Western Front gamble using 410,000 troops and 1,400 tanks, underscored German resilience amid dwindling resources but ultimately exhausted their reserves, enabling renewed Allied offensives. By March 1945, under Supreme Commander Dwight D. Eisenhower's broad-front strategy, Allied forces crossed the Rhine River on March 22 at with the surprise capture of the , followed by amphibious assaults, dismantling organized German resistance in the west. Advances in April 1945 liberated remaining occupied territories, including western pockets, and penetrated deep into Germany, linking with Soviet forces at the River on April 25; Nazi Germany's on May 8, 1945, concluded Western Allied operations, having freed , , , and the from occupation.

Soviet Eastern Offensives and Overruns

The initiated a series of massive offensives on the Eastern Front starting in mid-1944, which systematically dismantled Group Center and other formations holding occupied territories in , , the , and eastern . , launched on June 22, 1944, involved over 1.6 million Soviet troops across four fronts and targeted the German defenses in , resulting in the destruction of 28 out of 34 divisions of Army Group Center and approximately 450,000 German casualties, including killed, wounded, and captured. By August 19, 1944, Soviet forces had advanced up to 600 kilometers, recapturing and much of while pushing into eastern and the Baltic regions, effectively shattering the German and enabling further penetrations into previously occupied areas. Subsequent operations in late 1944, such as the from September 14 to November 24, saw Soviet armies overrun German positions in , , and , isolating and capturing key ports like , which accelerated the collapse of German control over the occupied since 1941. These advances were supported by overwhelming numerical superiority, with Soviet forces employing deep battle tactics that exploited German supply shortages and command disruptions, though at the cost of heavy Soviet losses exceeding 700,000 in Bagration alone. In parallel, initial probes into in breached German defenses near Goldap, foreshadowing deeper incursions into German-held territory adjacent to occupied . The Vistula-Oder Offensive, commencing on January 12, 1945, represented the decisive escalation, with Marshal Ivan Konev's and other Soviet groups deploying over 2 million troops and 6,000 tanks against weakened German lines along the in . This operation liberated and much of occupied , advancing 500 kilometers in under three weeks to reach the , 40 miles from , while inflicting over 700,000 German casualties and destroying 41 divisions. Concurrently, the encircled and overran Königsberg by April 9, 1945, eliminating the last major German stronghold in the region and facilitating the transition of control from German occupation to Soviet administration across eastern territories. Culminating in the Berlin Strategic Offensive from April 16 to May 2, 1945, Soviet forces under Marshals and Konev encircled with 2.5 million troops, capturing the city after intense urban fighting that resulted in the surrender of over 1 million German combatants and the suicide of on April 30. This final overrun extended Soviet control into central , marking the effective end of German occupation in and the onset of dominance over , the Baltics, and adjacent areas, though accompanied by widespread reprisals against civilians.

Post-War Reckonings, Denazification, and Long-Term Impacts

Following the defeat of in May 1945, Allied powers initiated international and national trials to prosecute war crimes and committed during the occupation of . The International Military Tribunal (IMT) at , convened from November 1945 to October 1946, tried 24 high-ranking Nazi officials, convicting 19 on charges including conspiracy, crimes against peace, war crimes, and ; 12 were sentenced to death by hanging (with committing suicide prior to execution), three received life imprisonment, and four got lesser terms, while three were acquitted. (1946–1949), conducted by U.S. authorities, involved 185 defendants across 12 proceedings, resulting in 24 death sentences, 20 life imprisonments, and 77 other prison terms, focusing on groups like judges, doctors, and industrialists. In occupied Western European nations, domestic purges targeted collaborators: France's épuration légale (1944–1951) led to over 300,000 investigations, with about 10,000 convictions and 791 executions (many extrajudicial immediately post-liberation); executed and 25 others after trials starting in 1945; the Netherlands conducted proceedings against roughly 100,000 suspects, executing around 50 by 1950, though was reinstated solely for these cases. Eastern European trials under Soviet influence, such as in and , prosecuted thousands but often served dual purposes of retribution and political consolidation, with estimates of 100,000–200,000 Germans and locals tried continent-wide by 1949. Denazification efforts aimed to eradicate Nazi ideology from public life in Germany and Austria, as well as collaborator networks in occupied territories, through questionnaires, tribunals, and bans on Nazi symbols. In the Western Allied zones (U.S., UK, France), over 13 million Germans were screened by 1947 via the Fragebogen process, categorizing individuals as major offenders (1–2% prosecuted), lesser offenders, followers, or exonerated; approximately 3.6 million proceedings occurred, but by 1948, Cold War exigencies led to amnesty for many lower-level party members (Nazi Party had 8.5 million members by war's end), with only about 1% facing severe penalties, allowing reintegration for economic reconstruction. In the Soviet zone (later East Germany), initial harsh measures interned 122,000 suspects in special camps (with 42,000 deaths from mistreatment), purging 468,000 party members, but selectivity prevailed: useful ex-Nazis were recruited into the Stasi and bureaucracy, framing denazification as anti-fascist class struggle rather than comprehensive ideological purge, differing from Western legalistic approaches that prioritized democratic reeducation but faltered on scale. Austria's process, formalized in 1946, classified 537,000 as Nazis, imposing fines and bans, yet by 1956 most restrictions lifted amid claims of collective victimhood, with limited prosecutions (around 100 death sentences, few carried out). In former occupied states, denazification varied: harsher in the East (e.g., Soviet-backed expulsions), more administrative in the West, but overall incomplete, as practical needs for administrators and anti-communist allies preserved networks. Long-term impacts of the Nazi occupation reshaped Europe's political landscape, entrenching divisions where Western liberation fostered integration via the (1948–1952, aiding $13 billion in reconstruction for 16 nations, spurring GDP growth averaging 5–6% annually), while Soviet-overrun East implemented centralized planning, resulting in slower recovery and suppressed dissent. Socially, the occupation displaced 20–30 million people, including 12–14 million ethnic Germans expelled from Eastern territories (1945–1950, with 500,000–2 million deaths from violence and hardship), fostering enduring ethnic tensions and crises that strained welfare systems. Economically, destruction—equivalent to 20–25% of Europe's pre-war capital stock—coupled with exploitation (e.g., forced labor of 7–8 million from occupied areas) yielded persistent effects: regions with intense Nazi control showed 5–10% lower intergenerational wealth and health outcomes decades later, per longitudinal studies of cohorts born 1920–1939. Politically, occupation legacies included weakened traditional elites, rise of Christian democratic and social democratic parties in the West to counter , and communist dominance in the East; however, incomplete reckonings allowed neo-fascist undercurrents, as seen in Italy's vote shifts toward extremists in heavily occupied areas, underscoring causal links between unresolved collaboration and modern .

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