On 22 September 2024, 80 years after the first liberation of the Grand-Duchy, the new Liberation Route Luxembourg trails were launched at an official event in the city of Ettelbruck. These hiking trails extend across the whole country and allow us to discover the history of Luxembourg during the Second World War, from occupation to liberation.
A celebratory event held on Sunday saw the newly created Liberation Route Luxembourg officially launched in the presence of many invited guests. Luxembourg’s Minister Delegate for Tourism and Minister of Culture Eric Thill had the honour of unveiling Liberation Route Europe’s newest Vector of Memory, commemorating the double liberation of the Grand-Duchy. Designed by renowned US-American architect Daniel Libeskind, the vectors serve as trailmarkers, highlighting significant locations, individuals, and stories along the transnational Liberation Route Europe.
A 280 kilometers national trail running the whole length of Luxembourg has been created, as well as smaller routes connecting it. Along the trail, around 70 points of interest have been identified, which tell personal and collective stories from different phases of the Second World War from a multitude of perspectives. One highlight along the trail is the new themed route “The Second World War in the city of Luxembourg”, which gathers significant remembrance sites in the Grand-Duchy’s capital. The network of routes explores the country’s wartime history since its invasion by German troops on 10 May 1940, with sites and stories of resistance, forced conscription, persecution and liberation.
“The Luxembourg Trails are a valuable addition to the Liberation Route Europe trails network which highlights the many sites and stories of Luxembourg’s rich Second World War history,” Emerald Johnson, the responsible LRE Project Officer explains. “From stories of occupation and deportation to forced conscription and resistance, this project encourages visitors to not only remember this important history, but to spend time outside and follow the route of Luxembourg’s liberation.”
The launch of the new Luxembourg Trails took place during a whole weekend of festivities in Ettelbruck from Friday 20 September to Sunday 22 September 2024. Presenting the newly refurbished General Patton Square and holding different commemorative ceremonies throughout the city, the City of Ettelbruck and the General Patton Memorial Museum shed a light on the importance of remembering the Battle of the Bulge and the country’s double liberation on 11 September and 25 December 1944 respectively.
Family members of U.S. General George S. Patton, the famous liberator of the “Patton Town of Luxembourg” (Ettelbruck), were participating in the commemorations and laid flowers at the newly revealed Patton statue. The weekend’s festivities ended with a military parade by soldiers of different nations, a display of historical WW2 vehicles and a concert performed by the Grand-Ducal and Municipal philharmonic orchestra of Ettelbruck.
Commenting on the significance of the new trails, Eric Thill, Minister Delegate for Tourism and Minister for Culture said: “The Liberation Route Europe not only symbolizes the liberation of our continent from Nazi oppression, but it also embodies the fundamental values of European society: democracy, peace and solidarity between the nations. By staking out the Liberation Route Luxembourg, we are affirming our commitment to defending these principles and reminding ourselves that the construction of Europe is based on sacrifice and the unity of the people in the face of tyranny”.
