In July 2016 I visited the Norway Resistance Museum in Oslo, which told the story of Norway’s occupation by the Nazis during World War II. A name that kept popping up throughout the museum was Vikdun Quisling, the Norwegian politician who collaborated with Hitler and seized control of Norway’s government during the occupation.
I wanted to know more about the man who put himself in that position. What compelled him? What happened in an occupied country during World War II? And how did his name instantly and internationally become synonymous with “traitor”?
Luckily there’s a book on him: Quisling: A Study in Treachery by Hans Fredrick Dahl. It’s definitely niche history—I had to get one of the few library copies via interlibrary loan—but as a part-Norwegian World War II buff this happened to be right up my alley.
The crux of this story is that Quisling honestly believed he was doing the right thing. Highly intellectual, aloof, and humorless, he dreamt of establishing Universism—his homegrown philosophy combining Lutheranism and science—as the “new world religion”, with Norway as the homeland of the supreme Nordic race. In that respect, along with his anti-Bolshevism and anti-Semitism, his eventual partnership with Hitler made perfect sense.
Once the Nazis occupied Norway, and its King and legislature had fled London with the other governments-in-exile, Quisling and his National Union party quickly filled the power vacuum, working with their Nazi occupiers to establish a fascistic, one-party authoritarian state.
But being an occupied country that officially was neither at peace nor at war with Germany stymied Quisling’s ambitions for a “new order” in Norway. (The goal of this new order? To stamp out the “destructive principles of the French Revolution: representation, dialogue, and collegiality”.) And since Hitler refused to discuss peace terms until the Axis had won the war, Quisling in his quasi-legitimate government was left to tussle with his German commissars from above and the Norwegian resistance movement from below.
Throughout it all, Quisling remained naively optimistic about leading an independent Norway into his utopian future. Even when Germany capitulated and the war was over, he assumed he’d take part in a peaceful transition back to the old Norwegian government. Instead, he was arrested, tried, and executed by firing squad at the Akershus Fortress, which, in a delightful irony, now houses the aforementioned Norway Resistance Museum.
Dahl’s book is admirably thorough, so most people will probably prefer the Wikipedia summary of his life story to a 400-page book elucidating the same. But I’m glad for such an in-depth study of a tragic figure at a crucial historical moment.
(And for the realization that one of the few spots the Quisling name lives on is in my hometown of Madison, Wisconsin, at the super-cool looking Quisling Clinic, which was founded by Quisling’s cousins.)
Notes & Quotes from the book
- At military academy Quisling scored highest average examination in 100 years
- Held high regard for Soviet organizational skills, if critical of Bolshevik policies
- Skills were more organizational and staff-bound rather than executive and creative
- Developed theory of Universism, which combined Christianity with modern natural sciences, especially physics
- Original manuscript over 2,000 pages; final 700-page version from 1920s; dense and ambitious but not good
- Dreamt of establishing Universism as ‘new world religion’, Norway as homeland of Nordic race; like “a combination of the United Nations and the Catholic Church”
- Became a scholar of Soviet Union, studied Russian, and was appointed military attaché of Norwegian legation in Petrograd in 1918
- Present during Terror, and sent back reports that were widely read including by the King, before he was forced home
- Book about Russia shot him to fame in Norway, and began slide toward fascism; founded movement aimed at overthrowing Marxism, enhancing Nordic race
- Defense minister of new Agrarian Party, then new National Union (NS) party
- Little sense of irony, not much humor, crippling shyness, aloof, but highly respected for his mind
- Knew Norway wouldn’t be able to remain neutral in war due to its strategic significance and low defense spending
- Urged cooperation between British naval hegemony and German continental ambitions
- His growing anti-semitism signaled ideological sympathy with Hitler; thanked him for having “saved Europe from Bolshevism and Jewish domination”
- Thought Hitler was wrong to sign pact with Stalin given how advanced Germany already was, and knew Red Army was weakened by purges so wouldn’t be able to conquer Finland
- Envisioned Germany would topple Soviet government and reestablish nation-states with German capital
- Met with Hitler December 1939 while reported Britain to use Norway as transit country to aid Finland; Quisling offered loyalty from his party
- Preferred neutrality but didn’t think it possible, so would act in Germany’s interest to prevent British establishment
- Hitler saw value to occupying Norway before Britain could
- Naval skirmishes between Germany and Britain in April: King and government relocated, but Quisling characterized as fleeing and initiated coup
- Quisling hoped for legal appointment understanding from King, but King refused to accept man twice beaten at the polls
- Wide campaign to get rid of Quisling as he sought legitimacy
- Hitler supportive at first but then in setting up “government commission” put Quisling in reserve; when commission failed Hitler sent Terboven to command Norway occupation
- Miscalculated public’s feelings and sense of morality
- Quisling name almost immediately became international byword for traitor
- Curried Hitler’s favor as they strategized voting in new occupation government; became prime minister due to his warning of Britain
- Quisling’s “New Order” in Norway stamped out “destructive principles of the French Revolution: representation, dialogue, and collegiality”
- Unresolved whether Norway and Germany were at war or peace; Quisling wanted full NS government to provide legitimacy and eventually got it, though with Reichskommissar
- Sincerely believed he was doing the right thing for Norway and eventual Nordic dominance
- Oslo University source of strong anti-NS “Home Front” resistance, along with prominent bishop Berggrav, who had tried to broker peace in Berlin and London
- Photos of “Fører Quisling” everywhere, became authoritarian state sans functioning legislature and King
- Quisling sought to limit NS membership despite one-party rule to strengthen quality
- Edict to make youth service in NS Youth Organization compulsory backfired, as did new teachers corporation; when backed by bishops, revolt began
- Mass teacher resignations followed by large-scale arrests
- Lobbied Hitler for peace treaty but was denied and remained occupied country, also lost direct contact with Hitler
- Had different ideas of future than Hitler, whose world domination plans were more improvisatory
- Began rounding up and registering Jews in 1942
- Hitler refused to negotiate peace because then other occupied countries would want it, and Quisling’s dreams of Norwegian supremacy dashed
- After Hitler died, naively assumed there would be peaceful transition of power back to exiled government
- Arrested May 8; said he knew suicide would be easiest but wanted to “let history reach its own verdict”; thought he’d be deified
- Quisling Clinic in Madison founded by cousins in interwar years; otherwise name has disappeared