The subject of Norwegian volunteers in the
Wehrmacht and SS has already been studied for years. This will be a very
short version of the complex topic.
About 15 000 Norwegians volunteered
to the Wehrmacht or SS during the years 1940-1945, and an estimate of 7000
reached the front lines in some way. (Some sources state 6 000, but the
number of Norwegians joining the Wehrmacht while being residents in Germany,
is unknown but believed to be about 1000)
Quisling, however saw this as
a rather disappointing number, as he had visions of about 50,000 proud
Norwegian soldiers, but one should bear in mind that "only" 11,000 volunteered
to serve with the Allies, mainly the British. The Norwegian Police formations
in Sweden, or the Merchant Navy sailors are not included in this number.
About 1000 Norwegians were killed
in combat, or died in Soviet POW camps. Most Norwegians volunteered for
the Waffen SS, but some did try their luck in the Luftwaffe, or the Heer,
Kriegsmarine, NSKK, Organisation “Todt” etc.
There were many reasons why a
Norwegian volunteer would want to risk his life by going to the front.
The most common were:
- Disappointment with the
Norwegian armed resistance during the German invasion, and the political
circumstances that allowed such a weak and outdated defence policy.
- Disappointment with the
King and Government going into exile in the UK, and the feeling of have
being betrayed by the British and French during the German invasion.
- The fear of the communist
threat from East, and the chance to take part in a ”Crusade against Bolshevism”
- The fact that Norway had
capitulated, and this was seen by many as the only way to re-build a new
Of course, many that joined were
convinced nationalists, and believed in its international movement. Most
were members of the right wing Nationalist party in Norway, ”Nasjonal
Samling” (NS-National Unity), and a few were
recruits from the Norwegian SS.
However, a remarkable number
of volunteers were amongst those who had fought the Germans during the
invasion, and many were officers. Quisling gave orders on the 9th April
1940 that no NS member should participate in the armed resistance against
the Germans, but most ignored this order, among them his own “Minister
of Defence”, Maj. Ragnvald Hvoslef. However, small and inexperienced German
forces as it turned out, conquered Norway with minor losses.
Why, and how?
The Ohio University historian David
Thompson has an interesting theory:
”Inevitably, any reasonable
answer to this question must address the severe disadvantages under which
the Norwegians had to fight, factors that resulted from both the long-term
neglect of the armed forces over the preceding twenty years and the more
immediate circumstances leading up to 9 April 1940. After taking these
things into account, one cannot help but admire the skill and determination
that many Norwegians displayed in their struggle to repel the invaders.
In giving credit where credit
is due, however, many accounts have tended to gloss over the unpleasant
fact that, regardless of the underlying reasons, the Norwegian forces failed.
In the Norwegian historiography of the campaign, a relative handful of
heroic episodes have provided welcome distractions from the more numerous,
deeply humiliating defeats and catastrophes that led to the country's occupation.
Thus, at the risk of seeming unfair or disrespectful of the many brave
and loyal people who did their best in a terrible situation, one must look
beyond the pre-war neglect of the armed forces and ask, what else went
Many of the ones that volunteered
for the Germans had been of the few military formations engaged in fighting
them just a year ago. Well-known men like Jonas Lie, Orvar Sæther
and Olaf Lindvig fought in the Norwegian lines.
|The word ”Frontkjemper”, or
”Front Fighter” is a well known expression for the volunteers today, but
in fact, according to ex-SS Sturmbannführer Frode Halle (“Den
Norske Legion”, hereinafter abbreviated DNL,
PzGrenRgt Norge, SS-Schibatallion Norwegen), this expression was never
used among the ”Front Fighters” themselves. However, a famous award, given
to those who had joined the SS, is the ”Frontkjempermerke”.
A citation for the "Frontkjempermerke"
and the badge
(Front Fighter badge) Facsimile
signature by Quisling.
One must realise that there were
actually no real Norwegian units fighting for the Germans. Even If the
names were Norwegian, like ”Wiking”, ”Nordland” or even ”Norge”, these
elements formed part of the German order-of-battle. This caused discontent
amongst the volunteers, who expected to, and wanted to be in a purely Norwegian
The relatively low number of
volunteers from Norway also made it difficult to fill a regiment-size formation
entirely with Norwegians.
We now examine the best known
in which Norwegians served, starting with Waffen SS.
5. SS- Panzerdivision ”Wiking”
The recruiting of Norwegians
for this formation started on the 12/1-41. SS-PzDiv Wiking consisted of
three Standarten (regiments): “Westland” for the Dutch and Flemings, “Germania”
for Germans and Volksdeutsche, (ethnic Germans), and “Nordland” for Nordic
About 800 Norwegians served
in "Wiking", and most were assigned to “Nordland´s” infantry, but
some were with different artillery units, or other branches – and was placed
in all three Standarten
The officers and NCO´s
were mostly Germans. Totally, in the first days, the division had a strength
of 19 375 men, with about 950 vehicles, and they were at first led by the
famous SS-Gruf. U. Gen.Lt. d. W-SS Felix Steiner.
At the time the first Norwegians
arrived, Germany was not at war with the USSR.
Rumours within ”Wiking” said
that they were about to be sent to Africa…
“Wiking” was assigned to the
southern sector during the attack on Soviet Union in June 1941, and the
Norwegian group of men were split up, and assigned in small groups in almost
every company. (By special order of Steiner)
The Norwegians strongly disapproved
of this situation, as they wanted to stay together as a closed Norwegian
For instance, Fredrik Jensen,
the only Norwegian to ever get the German Cross in Gold, commanded ”Germania”
in periods. He commanded a platoon in 7. Kompanie, Reg ”Germania”, and
later the whole company.
Jensen actually began his service
with SS-Reg. ”Der Führer”, until he was wounded near Moscow. He then
attended the 8. Kriegsjunker Lehrgang at Bad Tölz (along with Emil
Bruun-Evers, Martin Skefstad, Knut Rossnäss and possibly other Norwegians.)
A tunic, fully equipped, from the
regiment. Private collection
A closeup of the cufftitle to the
"Germania" regiment. Private collection
“Wiking” advanced and attacked
Rostov and Tarnopol, and moved towards Caucasus. There were huge Norwegian
casualties, but Wiking was regarded as a élite formation, and always
participated where the battle was at hardest.
"Wiking" advanced as far as Baku,
but as early as in 1943, there were only 320 Norwegians left. When "Wiking"
was finally destroyed in the vicinity of Vienna in ´45, only a handful
of Norwegians were left in the formation.
In 1943, Standarte “Nordland”
was withdrawn from 5.Panzer-Div. "Wiking", to become a part of a new division,
also called “Nordland”. This was to be a Panzer-Grenadier Division, since
it had only one Panzer battalion. (11-SS-Panzerabteilung ”Hermann Von Salza”)
The name was 11. SS-Freiwilligen-Panzergrenadier Division ”Nordland”. A
new regiment was formed in this division: SS-Panzer-Grenadier-Regiment
Panzergrenadier-Regiment 23 ”Norge” (Norw.
This Regiment was formed 9/3-43.
Many volunteered from ”Den Norske
Legion” (DNL), and about 700 Norwegians were
in the barracks and training grounds. Others in this unit, were Hungarians
- Volksdeutsche. Apart from ”Norge”, there was PzGrenRgt ”Danmark”, with
about 1150 Danes.
Two other elements were also
attached, a company from ”Germanske SS Norge”, led by Hauptsturmführer
Olaf T Lindvig, the acting staff chief of GSSN, and a Pionier-Kompanie
led by Reidar Hoel.
Again the number of Norwegians
was disappointingly low, as Quisling had expected 3500 men to volunteer.
The men received very good and
tough training, and being in this high-quality regiment suited everyone
who wanted to build a professional career as a soldier or officer.
At first, the Division was in
the Balkans, mostly in Croatia, and participated in guard duties and anti-partisan
warfare. In December 43 the division, minus their tank battalion, was sent
to Oranienbaum near Leningrad, to lay siege to Russian forces remaining
|During the USSR winter-offensive
in Jan 44, Division “Nordland” had to fight their way back to Narva in
the Baltic’s, once again the Norwegians suffered great losses. The division
held the so-called ”Panther-Stellung”, and fought in the famous battles
of the Courland Pocket. In February 45, SS-Div "Nordland" was sent to Stettin,
and it was finally destroyed in the ruins of Berlin, after the French “Charlemagne”
Division had been ad hoc added to "Nordland", together with several Spanish,
Dutch, Rumanian and ”Volksdeutsche” soldiers.
A Norwegian waffen-SS
armshield. Private collection
Norges SS (Norwegian SS)
This branch of Allgemeine SS
was formed on the 21st of May 41, and was renamed “Germanske SS Norge”
(Germanische SS Norwegen) in 1942. This was not to be a combat unit,
but most who joined soon were enlisted in a newly formed combat unit called
”Den Norske Legion” (DNL), or ”SS-Freiwilligen-Legion-Norwegen”. *
Den Norske Legion
Originally, this unit was promised
to be a fully Norwegian one, with Norwegian uniforms, weapons, language
and officers. Of course, this never came true.
The uniforms were standard SS,
but most men used the Norwegian Lion instead of the SS runes. Members of
NS wore the Raven and St.Olav Cross on the sleeve, and all men on the upper
arm also wore a Norwegian flag.
The main purpose of DNL was to
fight in Finland, but this never happened. In December 41, 1900 men had
volunteered; however of the 900-1000 accepted, about 20 were more than
50 years of age!
DNL was organised as a reinforced
battalion, and according to Frode Halle, the total strength after basic
training was about 700 men. Most officers were Norwegians, and many saw
this unit as the real beginning of a New Norwegian national army.
Many of the volunteers did not
accept the strong German influence, and left DNL – especially after it
turned out that they were to participate in the siege of Leningrad instead
of going to Finland. DNL was never; as seen by the Germans, a first class
combat battalion, but it was suited to the static warfare in the trenches
Fighting in trenches can also
get quite hard, as it did in DNL´s sector – they surely had to suffer
DNL remained in Leningrad until
spring 43, and had at least 180 casualties.
Back in Norway, both the N.S
party and G.S.S.N had problems in maintaining their organisations, since
so many prominent members served at the front.
1.SS und Polizeikompanie, led
by GSSN leader, Jonas Lie, was soon attached to DNL.
In 43, DNL was disbanded, but
the bad experiences in the co-operation with the Germans, caused severe
problems with the recruiting of Norwegian volunteers later, in fact for
the rest of the war.
The SS - and Police Companies (SS - und Polizei-Kompanien)
|4. SS and Police companies were
formed from Norwegian policemen. A special order was awarded for front
line combat service, the ”Jarnkross”, (Rikspolitiets hederstegn).
1.Kompanie was lead by GSSN
chief, and Police minister Jonas Lie. It was attached to DNL in 42-43.
Its strength was about 160 men. It was withdrawn spring 43.
2. Kompanie was lead by Reidar
Hoel (later Erling Waksvik), and also consisted of 160 men. It was originally
to join SS-Panzer-Grenadier-Regiment ”Norge”, but was sent to Finland instead.
It was attached to AA 6 (Aufklãrungsabteilung – recce unit) / 6.
SS-Gebirgsdivision ”Nord”. It returned to Oslo in May 44.
A citation for Rikspolitiets Heders-
tegn. (State police honor badge)
Facsimile signed of Jonas Lie
The above citation was awarded
for effort at the front
3. Kompanie was lead by Aage
Henry Berg, and received basic training in April 1944. It was also
sent to Finland to form the 3. Kompanie of Schijäger-Batallion ”Norwegen"
but reached their unit just in time to join the Lapland Army in its withdrawal.
This was the only Norwegian unit never to have lost a man in combat. Back
in Norway, It was split up in 10-12 ”Jagdkommandos”, and operated in Northern-Norway.
Strength: 200 men.
4. Kompanie was led by Oscar
Rustand, but was not ready by the German surrender. Was intended to fight
the Soviets in the northern parts of Norway.
A very rare pair of collar patches
as worn by an SS-Scharfuhrer in one of the Norwegian SS-& Police Companies.
Not to be confused with the patch to DNL that had a lion faced to the right.
The top of the axe was often broken
off as per regulations from the Germans who did not like the Norwegian
lion symbol. By a mistake I have scanned the rank patch backwards, the
bars should be on the left side of the pip.
|The Skijägerbatallion was
originally a company, and was a part of AA 6 / 6.
SS-Gebirgsdivision ”Nord”. Led by Gust Jonassen,
who was a Sports Leader in NSUF (The NSUF was the Norwegian equivalent
of Hitler Jugend). When he was killed, Frode Halle succeeded him. It became
a battalion in late 43.
It was intended to be a purely
Norwegian unit just like DNL,
but its mission was completely different. SS-Skijägerbtl ”Norge” mostly
consisted of well-trained skiers and the unit was used for long-range patrols
(sometimes lasting for weeks), ambush, and combat patrols. Regarded by
Germans as an élite unit, they were mostly led by Norwegian officers
Norwegian Waffen-SS officers from
(Frode Halle is the officer at
the far right.)
Photo scanned from a book by Arneberg.
Many Norwegians from other units,
amongst them SS PzGrenRegt ”Norge” volunteered, and were transferred to
The strength was about 700 men
in the beginning of 1944, and 1200 at the end of the same year.
They were organised in three
light platoons, each of three squads. Each squad had one MG, and two sharpshooters.
There was also a mortar group.
Submachine guns, including those
of Czech manufacture, were very commonly in use, and out of the nature
of their mission, only between 20% and 30% carried the M98K rifle. French
shrapnel handgrenades were also widely issued.
This unit suffered severe
losses at the hills of ”Kaprolat” and “Hasselmann” when a Soviet regiment,
the 731 Infantry Regiment, attacked these positions, then manned by about
300 men. The casualties are reported at between 141 – 182 killed or missing.
Only a few were to escape, and soldiers from this unit are known to have
been in Soviet imprisonment until 1955.
The remains of this battalion
were reformed as SS-Panzer-Grenadier-Battalion 506 in Oslo, with Frode
Halle as its commander. They were also the last (and only) armed Norwegian
SS unit stationed in Norway, now acting as Quislings lifeguard together
with a few Hird men.
SS Vaktbataljon Norge (SS Wachbatallion Norwegen)
This rather infamous formation
was in fact the only pure Norwegian unit within the ranks of SS ever.
Its duty was mostly to
serve as concentration camp guards, and the ones serving were either former
Frontfighters, or older NS members too old for front line service. The
training grounds were at Holmestrand. A total of about 360 men served in
the battalion, and served as KZ-guards, mostly in Northern Norway.
|Norwegians used standard SS
equipment, but some adopted items that did not comply with German regulations.
Norwegian pre-1940 medals and
badges were allowed to be worn. Some Norwegian insignia, like sleeve cuffs,
collar patch lions and NS
sleeve emblems were also common in certain units.
Norwegians served in a surprisingly
large number of different German units, ranging from SS Standarte ”Kurt
Eggers” (Propaganda and recruiting) to ordinary Heer units.
At least two Norwegians met their
fate at Stalingrad. Stein Pakusch Johansen and Henry Nicolaysen. Johansen
survives, heavily injured, and Nicolaysen dies in a Russian POW camp several
years later. Many of the numerous Norwegian students in Germany volunteered
for the Heer some in 1939. A few Norwegians back home in Norway even volunteered
for Italian service, the “Bersaglieri” (Mountain Troops), but there is
no evidence of them actually enlisting)
Drawing: Kurt Monsen
Many Norwegians, mostly men
from “Hirdens Flykorps”, volunteered for the Luftwaffe, but most were more
or less voluntarily transferred to Waffen-SS. About 75 - 100 men served
as individuals and only two managed to become pilots. (One of them, Alf
Lie, was a former “Wiking” veteran, with EK I, Wound Badge, Eastern Campaign
Medal and KVK II)
About 450-500 Norwegians served
as individuals, or small groups, which was a low number when one considers
Norway’s fame as a seafaring nation.
Norwegians are known to have
served on ”Schlesien” and ”Lützow” in the Baltic Sea, amongst them
Oscar Bang, a former officer in the Norwegian Navy.
Suggestions were made to make
a National Shield (“Ärmelabzeichen”), but it most likely never happened.
Ole Henderson Blom, whose parents were residents in the US, led the recruiting
and education of officers.
About 350-400 women served as
front line nurses, and at least 13 were killed in the front lines. Mrs
Anne Moxness is the only non-German woman to ever receive the Iron Cross.
Frontsisters were deployed in
pairs, and those older than 21 years mostly served in Finland, the Baltic
States, Soviet, Poland, Croatia, Italy, France – and Norway. The younger
ones were sent to serve in Germany.
Norwegians served in non-military
units as well, such as “Germansk Landtjeneste”; this organisation can be
compared to “Organisation Todt”. Members of “Germansk Landtjeneste” usually
served in Germany, France or Italy, mostly for a year. Norwegians are known
to have been in NSKK, as well as the NS organisations “Hirdens Bedriftsvern”
and “Hirdens Alarmenhet”, but these two formations were purely Norwegian,
and only used for guard duties.
All volunteers were put on trial
after the war. The standard sentence for a Front Fighter was 3,5 years’
imprisonment, but prominent ones, like Olaf T Lindvig received a 12 years
sentence. Some committed suicide and a few were sentenced to death, but
only for working for the Gestapo or the Abwehr. (There were about 45 death
penalties totally, but 15 were Germans)
|Some escaped to South America
or Spain, mostly by boat. Among them was Sophus Kahrs, platoon commander
from the “Skijegerbataljon”.
Frontfighers were also denied
citizen rights for years, and only a few have actually come out in to the
open and admitted to their war time service in the German armed forces.
Only a few got promoted to higher
ranks than Captain (SS-Hauptsturmführer), but many EKs, KVKs and Assault
Badges were awarded.
This memorial plaque is in the German
cemetary in Rovaniemi, Finland.
To the memory of the 196 Norwegian
volunteers that died in the
Owner: Klaus-Jürgen von Schmidt-Laussitz
copyright: Nicolas von Schmidt
Thanks to Hugh Page-Taylor
and Kurt Monsen (inspiration,layout
and splendid pictures!)
A nice collection of Norwegian Waffen-SS items.
Renè Chavez collection
"Budstikka", a Norwegian Waffen-SS song! (MP3)
All pictures/material unless
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You are not allowed to copy, publish or in any way distribute material
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with the historical interest of Norway in the period between 1940 - 1945.
Copyright 1999, 2000 © Kurt Monsen.