French resistance groups
This article is about the resistance fighters in German-occupied Europe. For other uses, see
Maquis.
Members of the Maquis in La Tresorerie
The Maquis (French pronunciation: [maˈki] ⓘ) were rural guerrilla bands of French and Belgian Resistance fighters, called maquisards, during World War II. Initially, they were composed of young, mostly working-class, men who had escaped into the mountains and woods to avoid conscription into Vichy France's Service du travail obligatoire (STO; 'Compulsory Work Service') which provided forced labor for Germany. To avoid capture and deportation to Germany, they became increasingly organized into active resistance groups.
They had an estimated 25,000 to 40,000 members in autumn of 1943 and approximately 100,000 members in June 1944.
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