Despite the curfew and numerous hardships, life is gradually returning to some semblance of normalcy. At the universities, classes and exams are resuming. Determined not to leave the “intellectual guidance of students” in the hands of the occupying forces, the rectors of Belgian universities all championed the idea of continuing educational and scientific activities. In Namur, the classes of 1941, 1942, and 1943 were even photographed alongside their professors.
However, the situation changed drastically during the spring and summer of 1943. The Third Reich was facing a severe labor shortage, and it was decided to impose a form of compulsory labor on young Belgians. Students were conscripted: a series of laws first barred them from registering for university exams, then denied them all access to higher education unless they had completed several months of labor in the service of the occupying forces. Universities were also ordered to hand over the names and addresses of their students. The rector of the Namur Faculties, Father Eugène Thibaut (1887–1972), opposed this. Fearing a roundup, he suspended classes in May 1943.
However, although the university’s doors remained officially closed, the Namur professors joined the resistance and secretly organized classes during the 1943–1944 academic year. Syllabi were secretly sent to some 120 students enrolled in Philosophy and Humanities, and “tutors”—trusted former students—were appointed to mentor the new enrollees. Unfortunately, this approach could not be applied to science programs, as it was impossible to organize laboratory practicals. Some young faculty members traveled to teach classes to small groups of students gathered in secret. Thus, Father Walthère Derouau (1904–2000), a professor of classical languages, and Father Camille Joset (1912–1992), a professor of medieval and modern history, traveled throughout Belgium to meet with their students.
