The history of Alsatian youth movements during the Second World War is anything but straightforward. Although it falls within two different spaces, both in Alsace and in areas of Alsatian exile, the story shows their common orientation. Banned by the Nazi authorities in Alsace, and increasingly muzzled in France by the Vichy regime, these movements remained interstices of freedom for the young Alsatians involved. Not only were they the means to maintain an ordinary life for young people and to cultivate a sense of belonging to Alsace, they were also havens in which to engage against oppression, and for some a means to enter the Resistance. Many who took part would become important figures in the reconstruction of Alsace after 1944.