Norway

   At the time of the German occupation of Norway in April 1940, there were approximately 2,100 Jews in the country, with about 200 from central Europe. Most Jews lived in Oslo, where they were integrated into all aspects of the city’s life. Despite the presence of the anti-Semitic National Unity or NS Party, which modeled itself after the Nazis, there was little anti-Jewish feeling in Norway. After the Germans’ occupation of the country, they installed Vidkun Quisling, the founder of the NS Party, as prime minister of Norway, but real authority rested with the occupying force. Following the German invasion of the Soviet Union in June 1941, a number of Norway’s Jews were arrested and sent to forced labor camps or prisons. Subsequently, the Germans promulgated anti-Jewish decrees, accompanied by a campaign of violence by Quisling’s storm troopers. In the spring of 1942, all business establishments were ordered to submit lists of their employees by religion. This was followed by the demand for an inventory of all Jewish real estate, and by the end of June, Jewish businesses were placed under German control. These decrees were accompanied by measures that insisted that the word “Jew” be marked on all passports and identity cards held by Jews.

   The roundup of Norway’s Jews began in October 1942 in the city of Trondheim, where all male Jews over the age of 14 were arrested. This was followed by the arrest and deportation of approximately 700 men, women, the elderly, the mentally retarded, the sick, and children to Auschwitz. The deportations were organized by Quisling’s bureaucracy in cooperation with the Germans, and were accompanied by the confiscation of Jewish property. The deportation of Norway’s Jews was not supported by the population. In November 1942, the bishop of Norway, together with other Protestant congregations, wrote to Quisling in protest over the deportations. The letter sent to the prime minister was supported by the people of Norway, who stood behind the clergy in its confrontation with Quisling and the German occupation force. Despite the protest, however, the deportations continued. Yet, due to the assistance of the Norwegian underground, most of Norway’s Jews managed to escape the German roundups and make their way to Sweden. Ironically, between those who were sent to the death camps and the others who fled to Sweden, Norway had, in fact, become Judenrein (free of Jews). In June 1998, the government of Norway proposed the payment of $60 million to Norwegian Jews and international Jewish organizations as compensation for property seized during World War II.