Although spared by the fightings of World War Two, the village of Riquewihr suffered the compulsory enlistment of its youth in the German forces. They were mostly sent to the Russian front. Gradually, structured and effective resistance groups formed in the region. In 1944, the German fixed the weekly working time at 72 hours, and all factories had to participate in the war effort. Alsace and Moselle, annexed by the Third Reich, paid a heavy price in the conflict. Out of the 130,000 Malgré-nous (despite us) incorporated by force in the Wehrmacht, 30,000 died or disappeared.