Légion Belge (resistance)

The Belgian Legion (Légion Belge) was a group of the Belgian resistance during World War II and one of the predecessors of the Armée Secrète.

History
The was established by Belgian army officers and originally led by Charles Claser. In July 1941 another resistance group, the Armée Belge Reconstituée (ABR) joined the organization and took its name. The group experienced a recruitment boom in October 1942 when number of people conscripted by the Germans for forced labour rose. Between 1941 and 1942, the group tried to establish contact with the Government in Exile and SOE in London but the support and resources promised to the Légion were not forthcoming.

Many members of the group had a far-right political ideology and included the notable fascist Paul Hoornaert who was arrested by the Germans for his involvement with the group and members of his National Legion. It included a number of Rexists who, although fascist by inclination, supported an independent fascist Belgium under the rule of Leopold III, rather than a German-occupied satellite state.

The organization received all its funding from private sources in occupied Belgium.

In 1943, the group changed its name to the Armée de Belgique. Eventually, it would become the Armée secrète in 1944.