La Libre Belgique (1940–44)

La Libre Belgique
of Peter Pan

Satirical letterhead of La Libre
Founder(s) Robert Logelain and Paul Struye
Founded August 15, 1940 (1940-08-15)[1]
Political alignment Conservative-Catholic
Language French
Ceased publication September 3, 1944 (1944-09-03)[1]
Relaunched La Libre Belgique (from September 1944)
Headquarters Brussels
Circulation 10,000-30,000[2]

La Libre Belgique (English: Free Belgium) was published clandestinely by at least seven unaffiliated groups[3] during the German occupation of Belgium in World War II, each unofficially copying the name of the Belgian newspaper, La Libre Belgique.

Editions

La Libre Belgique de Peter Pan

The La Libre Belgique of Peter Pan was the longest running edition of La Libre and the most important French-language underground paper.[2]

Its name derives from the spurious publication data which appeared on the letterhead, giving the address as the Oberfeldkommandantur of Brussels and the director's name as "Peter Pan".

It appeared bi-monthly; each issue consisted of between 4 and 8 pages.[1] Overall, 85 issues of La Libre Belgique were published during the conflict.[1] It was founded by lawyers Robert Logelain and Paul Struye, and some of the first editions were printed in the basement of the Banque de Bruxelles in the Rue de la Régence.

La Libre Belgique Ressuscitée en 1940

La Libre Belgique
Ressuscité en 1940
Editor André Hanssens
Founded September 15, 1940 (1940-09-15)[1]
Language French
Ceased publication November 1, 1944 (1944-11-01)[1]
Headquarters Liège
Brussels (~June 1941)

The La Libre Belgique Resurrected in 1940 was another paper, with a relatively small circulation, printed during the war. It was published in Brussels and Liège. After the arrest of the Brussels group in June 1941, the paper continued in Liège only for the rest of the war.[1]

84 issues were published including 12 in Brussels.[1] All issues were Mimeographed.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 "World War, 1939-1945, Underground Resistance Collection—Belgium" (pdf). McMaster University. Retrieved 2 February 2013.
  2. 1 2 "La Libre Belgique". The Belgian War Press. CEGESOMA. Retrieved 9 February 2013.
  3. ↑ Stone, Harry (1996). Writing in the Shadow: Resistance Publications in Occupied Europe (1st ed.). London [u.a.]: Cass. p. 40. ISBN 0-7146-3424-7.

Further reading

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