1914. The God of War

1914. The God of War

Religion and Patriotism in Belgian Luxembourg

by Jean-Marie Doucet

From the moment of the invasion in August 1914, Belgian Luxembourg was put to the test: battles in the Ardennes and the Gaume, massacres of civilians, villages set ablaze. Numerous works have already been devoted to these tragedies. But little attention has been paid to the role of religion in these events. Thus, in August 1914, German propaganda accused the Catholic clergy of waging a guerrilla war against the imperial troops in Luxembourg. Specific reprisals followed: parish priests were shot, churches were burnt down. It is true that the Church was at the forefront of the patriotic struggle, but what form did this resistance take? Moreover, soldiers from our regions in the trenches, and the people of Luxembourg in the occupied zone, strove to find religious meaning in the tragedies they were experiencing. Thus, faith and patriotism often merged. But which God were they invoking? These are the questions explored in this book, which is also illustrated with previously unpublished images, such as the ‘Resistance’ miniatures by the nuns of Maredret, which depict the invasion of Belgian Luxembourg in a neo-Gothic style.