Patriotic Distance ... : Patriotic Distance ...

Civilians under military occupation in World War One found their existences severely circumscribed, but they exercised agency – not through large-scale, decisive actions, but through small-scale deeds, words and gestures. One such pattern of behaviour is the subject of this article. In occupied Belgium, civilians kept an ostentatious distance to the occupying troops and administrators. This “patriotic distance” merits closer attention for what it reveals about power dynamics under occupation. ... : 1914-1918-Online International Encyclopedia of the First World War ...