This book examines the social experience of occupation in German- and Italian-occupied Europe, and in particular the strategies ordinary people developed in order to survive. Survival included dealing with hunger, having to work for the enemy, women having relationships with soldiers, preservation of culture in a fascist environment, resistance, and the reaction of local communities to punishment of resistance. The book adopts a comparative approach from Denmark and the Netherlands to Poland and Greece, and offers a fresh perspective on the Second World War.

Despite the wealth of historical literature on the Second World War, the subject of religion and churches in occupied Europe has been undervalued - until now. This critical European history is unique in delivering a rich and detailed analysis of churches and religion during the Second World War, looking at the Christian religions of occupied Europe: Catholicism, Lutheranism, Calvinism, and Orthodoxy.

The authors engage with key themes such as relations between religious institutions and the occupying forces; religion as a key factor in national identity and resistance; theological...