Maquis (World War II) of sympathy or cooperation from the local populace. In March 1944, the German army began a terror campaign throughout France. This included reprisals against civilians living in areas where the French resistance was active, such as the Oradour-sur-Glane, Maillé and Tulle massacres by SS troops. The Maquisards were later to take their revenge in the "épuration sauvage" that took place after the war's end. Most of the Maquis cells—like the Maquis du Limousin or the Maquis du Vercors—took names after the area they were operating in. The size of these cells varied from tens to thousands of men and women.
Maquis (World War II) people in revolt against the S.T.O. This unification was due, in part, to Michel Brault, a Parisian lawyer, who headed the organization of the resisters in April 1943 and to the drafted circulars establishing the Maquis’s charter. "Within one month, 20,000 copies of the text—which did not exceed the size of a playing card—were distributed throughout the southern zone". Michel Brault, in a report sent to London on 14 February 1944, listed the various elements available for action to the Allies and described the Maquis as "youths who have rebelled against the S.T.O. as well as men of all ages