Victory in Europe Day, or VE Day is celebrated in many European countries, though not necessarily as a state holiday. There is practically no family in Europe that did not suffer from Nazi vandalism.
In Germany for example, the population traditionally marks the anniversary of liberation of the country from Nazism. Poland which suffered major losses in World War II, holds mass events devoted to the great victory. Elsewhere in Europe VE Day is not forgotten either, even in the states that took no military action against Nazi Germany. The military history of North European countries says there was everyday passive resistance to Nazi terror in Denmark and Norway during the occupation by Hitler’s troops.
According to an official historical concept, World War Two victimized many countries as they were dragged into the merciless mayhem against their will. How could small countries resist the overwhelming might of superpowers? They would have been crushed had they attempted. . .
However history proved that military intervention can be resisted not only by armed heroes, but also by each resident through his personal refusal to participate in the developments. We asked Professor Vadim Roginsky, PhD History and leading fellow of the General History Institute at the Russian Academy of Sciences, to tell how it happened in Scandinavia.
– It is important to remember that Scandinavian peoples occupied a high position in the “new order” hierarchy of the Nazi regime. Hitler did not plan to exterminate them. On the contrary, he wanted the relationship between new authorities and the people in occupied territories serve as an example for others. Therefore, regimes in Scandinavian countries were tolerant to local population. Still the Nazis enjoyed no gratitude from residents of the countries as collaboration with the occupants was inadmissible for most of them.
Denmark: leaflets were printed right under Nazi nose
It is clear that Denmark had no chance to defeat the overwhelming hostile forces. The official military doctrine of the country during the First and Second World Wars rejected military resistance in case of aggression. Although the potential adversary was not named it was clear the talk was about Germany. When on April 9, 1940 Nazi Germany invaded Denmark under the pretext of protection from Great Britain the armed forces of the country were ordered to capitulate. The seizure of Copenhagen in April 1940 was routine: several companies of Nazi soldiers marched in the central Lange Street of the capital city. Residents went to work and astonishingly looked at the march while policemen reacted professionally and began to regulate traffic. German units reached the palace and an officer began to open the doors. A shot was fired and one guard was killed. Brief negotiations agreed that weapons will no longer be used. Relations with England were banned. Danish banks were ordered to subsidize German economy. However the government refused to accept a completely puppet governance of the country and justice system similar to other occupied nations. The Danes stubbornly pushed their own policy up to August 29, 1943 when Gestapo units were sent to the country. The Germans wanted the Danes to “resolve the Jewish issue”. However the Jewish community in Denmark which included refugees from other countries escaped persecutions and reprisals which occurred in other occupied territories. King Christian X of Denmark visited a synagogue in 1942 and defended Jews in his speech. He promised, in particular , that if Jews are forced to wear a yellow star both he and the whole Royal Family will also wear it. Denmark remained the only country under Nazi control where the yellow star w as abandoned. In 1943 the Nazis began to prepare their own massacre of Jews. However there were people in German headquarters who warned would-be victims of upcoming deportation and on day X none of the listed Jews was at home. Danish resistance members helped 7200 out of 7800 Jews escape to neutral Sweden. Local residents sheltered nearly 500 people in their homes. 99 percent of Jews were saved.
An exciting example of solidarity of the people was the operation of an underground printing shop right under the very nose of the Germans in central Lange Street in Copenhagen. To silence the noise of the print several sewing machines operated on the ground floor. Practically the whole city knew where leaflets were printed but it remained a secret for the occupants. Underground committees met nearly openly but the Germans failed to arrest anyone for anti-Nazi propaganda. Any suspect was warned in advance and had time to escape. It is clear that such actions would be impossible without cooperation with the Danish police. The Germans realized that police were double agents and disbanded the force on September 19, 1944 and arrested many officers.
Such indirect resistance baffled the Nazis. To neutralize dissent they resorted to a tactic which was not used in other countries – secret killings of suspected anti- Nazi activists.
Norway: gold reserve and government in exile
The Oslo fjord cuts deep into the land and the Royal Palace and Norwegian parliament are located on its shores. The Nazis sent a warship to seize two strategic objects. The garrison opened fire at the enemy and succeeded to sink the Blucher cruiser with close to a thousand troops. The planned assault on the Norwegian capital was disrupted. The Germans had to change the plan and land their troops at an airfield.
The seizure of Copenhagen in April 1940 was routine: several companies of Nazi soldiers marched in the central Lange Street of the capital city.
The Norwegians won time, just several hours which were enough for the government and the Royal Family to flee from Oslo to Elverum locality. Lawmakers gathered for a session in a forest school and decided not to surrender until a single German soldier remained on the Norwegian territory. The government was vested with extraordinary powers for the whole period of war, but had to emigrate to England. The national gold reserve was also moved there in several train cars. The funds greatly helped Norwegians during the war.
The Nazis several times tried to convene Norwegian Storting (parliament) to resolve the main issue of legitimizing their authority. However there was no quorum as one or another lawmaker was absent for reasonable excuse of illness or travel.
Most Norwegians like Danes rendered considerable although unarmed resistance to Germans. The actions of occupation authorities were targeted at. . . emptiness. Teachers massively rejected the “honor” of joining the Nazi party. The occupants wanted to span bridges with genetically close people and organized sport competitions. However the integration effort failed. Photos of a football match between Norwegian and German teams clearly show an empty stadium.
The Nazis told local priests to pray for the glory of German arms and churches were immediately abandoned by parishioners. Cinemas had to show newsreels about victorious Third Reich army before movies and the art of cinematography immediately lost its popularity .
The Nazis were instructed to be extremely polite and ceded their seats to females in public transport. However women refused to take the seats and many passengers left the vehicle if there were Nazis in it.
There were camps for prisoners of war on the Norwegian territory. Any communication with the POWs was banned under the threat of execution. The Norwegians found a way out and send their children to give bread, fish, potatoes to the prisoners. The Nazis did not touch the kids as it would mean “aggravation” of relations which they were ordered to avoid. However, naturally there was a risk. . .
If POWs succeeded to escape the locals never let them down and helped them hide and then move to Sweden. Their solidarity made the escapees invisible although a huge Nazi army of 400 thousand men w as deployed in Norway.
In 1944 the Nazis prepared mobilization to the East front and suddenly all files of recruits were destroyed by fire. They had to begin listing them anew but had no time to complete the task. The mobilization failed.
Most Norwegians like Danes rendered considerable although unarmed resistance to Germans.
The Scandinavian experience shows you do not always have to risk your life if you refuse to collaborate with occupants. Sometimes you simply don’t have to hurry and show great zeal in fulfilling instructions. It’s better to keep mum…
Ksenia Zagorovskaya,
for Amber Bridge