2 August

The 1914 German Occupation of Luxemburg was the first of two German occupations, the Germans claimed the occupation occurred in order to support their forces in France.

During the occupation Luxemburg was allowed to retain its own government and political systems and the populace tried to lead as normal a life as possible.

Luxemburg was considered neutral and the German chancellor used the excuse that if the Germans had not occupied Luxemburg the French would have, which of course the French vigorously denied.

As the occupation progressed the German chancellor turned discussion to making Luxemburg part of the German federal state. This did not come to pass because the British and French forces managed to halt the German advance at the Battle of the Marne in September.

The Prime Minister of Luxemburg Paul Eyshen managed to maintain the fine line between keeping the Germans happy which allowed him to retain a free government and speaking out against German mistreatment of some citizens.