In 1942, the Germans dominated most of Europe. Like soldiers in past wars in history, they started scouting around for women, resulting to what was later called “collaboration horizontale.” After the liberation, thousands of women in occupied countries in Europe were accused of collaboration resulting to shameful retribution — their heads forcibly shaved; some were beaten up; and some were even killed.
During World War II, Nazi Germany occupied or influenced much of Europe. In these occupied territories, collaboration took many forms—political, economic, military, and social. Among collaborators were women, whose roles ranged from intimate relationships with German soldiers to active participation in Nazi administration and repression. Understanding this topic requires nuance: women collaborators were not a single group, and their motivations, actions, and levels of responsibility varied greatly.
