The Global War On Civilians: 1905-1945

ERC Advanced Grant that explores the evolution of types of warfare that explicitly targeted the enemy’s civil population during the first half of the 20th century

Anne van Mourik Podcast Episode 45
August, 2025

New episode of the podcast on war & violence by Anne Van Mourik

In this episode, Anne van Mourik speaks with historian Tatjana Tönsmeyer (University of Wuppertal) and Peter Romijn (NIOD and UvA) about Tönsmeyer’s groundbreaking book Unter deutscher Besatzung: Europa 1939–1945 (Under German occupation: Europe 1939-1945).

The book offers a Europe-wide account of life under Nazi occupation told from the perspective of the occupied, exploring fear, deprivation, and everyday strategies of survival. How did a climate of fear affect daily life in occupied Europe? Why is it not useful to talk in terms of ‘collaboration’ and ‘resistance’? And what can the book teach us about how to understand and respond to situations of occupation today?

To listen to the Episode: LINK

Listen to the full NIOD Rewind Podcast series: LINK

← Back to News & Events