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Rene Lagrou

René Lagrou (born in 1904 - f. In 1969 ) was a Flemish politician - Belgian and collaborator with Nazi Germany . Originally from West Flanders , Lagrou worked as a lawyer in Antwerp . 1

Lagrou gained notoriety as a member of the National Flemish Union . 2 published his own newspaper Roeland , which became increasingly anti - Semitic after the rise to power of Adolf Hitler . 3 After the German occupation of Belgium in World War II , Lagrou with Ward Hermans was the founder of the Algemeene-SS Vlaanderen (since 1942, the Germaansche SS in Vlaanderen ), the SS Flemish. 2

Lagrou came into action with the Waffen-SS on the Eastern Front and some initial reports erroneously suggest that he died in battle; 2 however, Lagrou survived and was captured by the Allies in France , but managed to escape to Spain . 4 In May 1946 his name was one of three on the blacklist sent by the government of Belgium to Spain, where he was hiding along with Léon Degrelle and Pierre Daye . 5Shortly afterwards, he was sentenced to death in absentia by the war crimes court in Antwerp . 4

When the possibility of extradition from Spain arose , Lagrou fled to Argentina in July 1947 and adopted the false name of Reinaldo van Groede. 4 There, he became a central personality in the ratlines sponsored by Juan Domingo Perón to rescue the Nazis from persecution in Europe. 6 In the Immigration Office in Argentina, Lagrou received extensive powers and devised ambitious plans to relocate two million people from Belgium, all of whom were either Nazi collaborators or their families. 6 He was also a member of the Information Division commanded by Rodolfo Freude and in this position initiated resettlement plans for several Nazis. 7

References

  1. Back to top↑ Mikhman, 1998 , p. 176
  2. ↑ Jump to:a b c Littlejohn, 1972 , p. 155
  3. Back to top↑ Mikhman, 1998 , p. 172
  4. ↑ Jump to:a b c Goñi, 2003 , p. 112
  5. Back to top↑ Goñi, 2003 , p. 89
  6. ↑ Jump to:a b Goñi, 2003 , p. 113
  7. Back to top↑ Goñi, 2003 , p. 175

Bibliography

  • Goñi, Uki (2003). The Real ODESSA . London: Granta Books.
  • Littlejohn, David (1972). The Patriotic Traitors: A History of Collaboration in German-Occupied Europe, 1940-45. London: William Heinemann Ltd., ISBN 043442725X
  • Mikhman, Dan (1998). Belgium and the Holocaust: Jews, Belgians, Germans. Berghahn Books.
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