Hans Julius Gabrielsen
Encyclopedia
Hans Julius Gabrielsen was a Norwegian jurist and politician for the Liberal Party. He is best known as County Governor of Finnmark and County Governor of Oppland, as well as Consultative Councillor of State for Finnmark Affairs in 1945.
Gabrielsen played a central role in organizing the civilian side of Norwegian war effort in Northern Norway during the 1940 Norwegian Campaign
. After the end of that campaign he led the Norwegian attempts at retaining some of their armed forces outside German control, before being arrested by the Germans and placed in concentration camp. After the war Gabrielsen became a cabinet member and led the early reconstruction efforts in the northernmost parts of Norway.
as a son of district stipendiary magistrate Nils Harald Berg Gabrielsen (1856–1934) and Ragnhild Stenersen (1857–1938). He grew up in Hadeland
, and graduated with the cand.jur. degree in 1914. He worked as a deputy judge in Nes på Romerike
from 1914 to 1915, and as an attorney in Tana
from 1915 to 1921. Here he married Sara Andersen (born 16 March 1896) in 1918. Gabrielsen was a secretary in the Ministry of Justice
for one year, before being appointed district stipendiary magistrate in Vardø. In 1928 he became the County Governor of Finnmark.
used by the border garrison
at Svanvik near Finland
with regular barracks
, to avoid a military build-up that might challenge the friendly relations Norway had with Finland. Gabrielsen instead argued for spending the funds on building more police and customs posts at the border instead. At the time the earthen Goahti at Svanvik was considered the largest in the world. Gabrielsen wanted the military moved further away from the border in order to maintain friendly relations with Finland. Gabrielsen was generally positive towards Finland, in a period when many Norwegian officials viewed the young country's national ambitions with suspicion. Gabrielsen wanted more trade and tourist traffic with Finland. Still, he cooperated with the bishop of the Diocese of Hålogaland, Eivind Berggrav
, in carrying out surveillance of Finnish and Kven people in the region. In 1932 Gabrielsen even went so far as to suggest a strict regulation of Finnish priests' access to use churches in the Norwegian border areas. During the same year Gabrielsen was part of a group of officials that intervened after slate
workers in Alta
broke out in demonstrations and elected a company board dominated by communists
. The officials reorganized the slate production in Alta, starting the new company Alta Skiferlag. The slate workers were then forced to deliver their products to the company.
reached Norway with the German invasion
on 9 April. German forces conquered Southern Norway during the first three weeks of the Norwegian Campaign, and the last Norwegian stronghold was Northern Norway, of which Finnmark is the northernmost part. After the German invasion Gabrielsen discussed the situation with the Norwegian commanding general in Northern Norway, General Carl Gustav Fleischer
. Fleischer had been on an inspection journey of Finnmark, and had arrived in Vadsø in evening of 8 April 1940. Due to a violent blizzard Fleischer could not leave Vadsø when the invasion came the next day and had to spend the night in Vadsø. Gabrielsen then invited Fleischer and his chief of staff, Major Odd Lindbäck-Larsen
to stay at the County Governor's mansion. The result of the discussions was an agreement that the best course of action was for Fleischer to declare Northern Norway a theatre of war
. Fleischer thus assumed all power in the region and ordered a total military and civilian mobilization. At first Gabrielsen was given the task of handling most of the civilian authority in Finnmark while the area was a theatre of war. However, after the sudden death of the County Governor of Troms a few days later he relocated to Tromsø
and assumed the entire civilian administration for all of Northern Norway. Together with General Fleischer Gabrielsen set Northern Norway on a war footing to support the fighting on the Narvik front
. As part of his work for the war effort Gabrielsen went through great efforts to obtain the supplies needed for the coming months. While the Norwegian Armed Forces had enough to make it through the summer, the civilian population at first had small stocks of essential goods. Gabrielsen and other officials soon solved the supply problems through contracts with foreign suppliers. Goods also came in from captured German supply ships, and from the British military. The cooperative effort between Gabrielsen and Fleischer continued until the Nygaardsvold's Cabinet and the overall commanding general in Norway, Otto Ruge
, escaped the German advance in Southern Norway and came to the north in May. The cabinet sent Gabrielsen back to Finnmark and assumed power themselves over civilian and many aspects of the military matters. Gabrielsen's and Fleischer's governance of Northern Norway had been highly popular with the local population, who felt that their views were finally being heard by those in control. Due to this popularity of the improvised administration what was viewed as essentially as a switch back to central rule was not well received by the North Norwegian population, who wanted a voice in the government. When King Haakon VII
and the Norwegian cabinet arrived in Tromsø on the former royal yacht
Heimdal
on 1 May 1940, having transferred from the Royal Navy
cruiser HMS Glasgow
in the Gisundet narrows by Malangen
, it was Gabrielsen who arranged their accommodation. Gabrielsen felt that it would not be safe for the King and cabinet ministers to stay in Tromsø proper, instead organizing housing for them in the surrounding areas. King Haakon VII and Crown Prince Olav
were located to Øverbygd
in the Målselv
valley, taking the prime minister, Johan Nygaardsvold
with them. Nygaardsvold brought along Minister of Social Affairs
Sverre Støstad
in order to maintain contact with his cabinet and avoid becoming isolated. Nygaardsvold moved to Tromsø on 18 May in order to gather the cabinet in one location. The Norwegian forces in mainland Norway capitulated on 10 June 1940.
in June 1940 they had given Gabrielsen the task of administrating the as yet unoccupied parts of Northern Norway. In this respect Gabrielsen commanded the troops still guarding the border against the Soviet Union
in accordance with the capitulation agreement. The border units were under the military command of Colonel Wilhelm Faye. The arrangement had been organized by General Otto Ruge, who during the capitulation negations with the Germans demanded that the Norwegians should either be allowed to retain military forces on the eastern border, or that the Germans should immediately occupy all of Finnmark. This demand originated in a fear of a possible Soviet occupation of Eastern Finnmark, as had happened in Poland
in 1939. As the Norwegian military refused to serve under direct German command, any potential orders from the Germans had to go through county governor Gabrielsen. The arrangement was supposed to last until the Germans could deploy forces to Eastern Finnmark, and was not cleared with the exiled Norwegian government, being secret for anyone but Gabrielsen. Gabrielsen and General Ruge ordered Gabrielsen's military chief-of-staff, Major Odd Lindbäck-Larsen, to use the two battalions and one artillery battery at his disposal in preparation for a rebuilding of the Norwegian Armed Forces
. Lindbäck-Larsen was to start training officers, using the border guard task as a cover. The 1,600-1,700 strong border guard was however dissolved by the German occupying authorities
in July 1940. The plan for the establishment of a new Norwegian elite army in Finnmark, outside German control, was supposed to include several thousands of soldiers. As part of Ruge's plan Gabrielsen and Lindbäck-Larsen had placed Norwegian liaison officers on strategic points from Saltdalen in the south to Kirkenes
in the north-east. The hope had been that a new Norwegian volunteer army would be allowed by the Germans to remain on border guard duties in Finnmark for the duration of the conflict. After the Germans took over the border guard duties in early July 1940 Gabrielsen was given command over four armed Norwegian guard posts at the coast of Eastern Finnmark. These guard posts were set up on the secret orders of the German officer in charge of Eastern Finnmark, SS
-Obersturmführer
Willy Laqua, in accordance with the capitulation agreement. None of the Norwegian officers and soldiers on border guard duties were informed of the fact that they were under German overall command.
, and from 24 April 1942 to the war's end on 8 May 1945 he was imprisoned at Grini concentration camp. In the summer of 1942 both Gabrielsen and Lindbäck-Larsen were part of the so-called Forest Gang at Grini, which spent the summer days cutting down trees near the camp. The forestry work allowed easy access to food hidden in the woods by sympathizers, and messages could be smuggled in and out with little difficulty, making the Forest Gang the most popular assignment at Grini. During his time at Grini Gabrielsen also took part in secret debating meetings organized by journalists amongst the prisoners, where various aspects of the organizing of post-war Norway was discussed. Amongst the issues Gabrielsen discussed with fellow Grini inmates was the post-war reconstruction of Finnmark, most the of the county having been laid waste to during the German retreat in Northern Norway in 1944—1945. One important question with regards to the future reconstruction was whether or not the devastated areas should be rebuilt like they were organized before the war, or if they should be reformed with the future development in mind. With only the single exception of Finnkongkjeila in Gamvik
the reconstruction ended up following the old pre-war population patterns.
as Consultative Councillor of State for Finnmark Affairs. The northermost part of Norway had been completely devastated during Germany's withdrawal, where they employed the scorched earth
tactic. Gabrielsen cooperated with chief engineer Harald Hofseth in organizing the reconstruction effort. After serving as Consultative Councillor of State, Gabrielsen returned as County Governor. He became County Governor of Oppland in 1948, and remained there until his retirement in 1961. He was chairman of the board of Opplandskraft from 1952 and in Vinmonopolet
from 1958 to 1962, and a board member of Utbyggingsfondet for Nord-Norge from 1952 to 1960.
He was decorated as a Commander With Star of the Order of St. Olav. Gabrielsen died in March 1965 in Lillehammer
.
Gabrielsen played a central role in organizing the civilian side of Norwegian war effort in Northern Norway during the 1940 Norwegian Campaign
Norwegian Campaign
The Norwegian Campaign was a military campaign that was fought in Norway during the Second World War between the Allies and Germany, after the latter's invasion of the country. In April 1940, the United Kingdom and France came to Norway's aid with an expeditionary force...
. After the end of that campaign he led the Norwegian attempts at retaining some of their armed forces outside German control, before being arrested by the Germans and placed in concentration camp. After the war Gabrielsen became a cabinet member and led the early reconstruction efforts in the northernmost parts of Norway.
Early life and career
He was born in KristianiaOslo
Oslo is a municipality, as well as the capital and most populous city in Norway. As a municipality , it was established on 1 January 1838. Founded around 1048 by King Harald III of Norway, the city was largely destroyed by fire in 1624. The city was moved under the reign of Denmark–Norway's King...
as a son of district stipendiary magistrate Nils Harald Berg Gabrielsen (1856–1934) and Ragnhild Stenersen (1857–1938). He grew up in Hadeland
Hadeland
Hadeland is a traditional district in the south-eastern part of Norway. It is located around the southern part of lake Randsfjorden in Oppland county, and consists of the municipalities of Gran, Jevnaker and Lunner. Hadeland occupies the area north of the hills of Nordmarka close to the Norwegian...
, and graduated with the cand.jur. degree in 1914. He worked as a deputy judge in Nes på Romerike
Nes, Akershus
Nes is a municipality in Akershus county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Romerike. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Årnes.-Name:...
from 1914 to 1915, and as an attorney in Tana
Tana, Norway
Deatnu or Tana is a municipality in Finnmark county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Tana Bru....
from 1915 to 1921. Here he married Sara Andersen (born 16 March 1896) in 1918. Gabrielsen was a secretary in the Ministry of Justice
Norwegian Ministry of Justice and the Police
The Royal Norwegian Ministry of Justice and the Police is a Norwegian government ministry in charge of justice, police and domestic intelligence. The main purpose of the Ministry is to provide for the maintenance and development of the basic guarantees of the rule of law...
for one year, before being appointed district stipendiary magistrate in Vardø. In 1928 he became the County Governor of Finnmark.
Finnmark County Governor
While County Governor of Finnmark Gabrielsen was a member of the Finnmark Commission from 1931, coordinating official Norwegian policy towards the national minorities in Finnmark. In 1928 Gabrielsen and the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs opposed replacing the earth goahtiGoahti
A goahti is a Sami construction that can be similar to a Sami lavvu or a peat covered version using the same base structure. It is often constructed slightly larger than a lavvu...
used by the border garrison
Garnisonen i Sør-Varanger
The Sør-Varanger Garrison is a military camp located next to Høybuktmoen Airport near Kirkenes in Sør-Varanger, Norway. The Garrison is under the control of the Norwegian Army and is organized as a battalion. The garrison...
at Svanvik near Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
with regular barracks
Barracks
Barracks are specialised buildings for permanent military accommodation; the word may apply to separate housing blocks or to complete complexes. Their main object is to separate soldiers from the civilian population and reinforce discipline, training and esprit de corps. They were sometimes called...
, to avoid a military build-up that might challenge the friendly relations Norway had with Finland. Gabrielsen instead argued for spending the funds on building more police and customs posts at the border instead. At the time the earthen Goahti at Svanvik was considered the largest in the world. Gabrielsen wanted the military moved further away from the border in order to maintain friendly relations with Finland. Gabrielsen was generally positive towards Finland, in a period when many Norwegian officials viewed the young country's national ambitions with suspicion. Gabrielsen wanted more trade and tourist traffic with Finland. Still, he cooperated with the bishop of the Diocese of Hålogaland, Eivind Berggrav
Eivind Berggrav
Eivind Josef Berggrav was a Norwegian Lutheran bishop, primarily known as Primate of the Church of Norway and remembered for his unyielding resistance against the Nazi occupation of Norway during World War II.-Background:Berggrav was born in Stavanger, Norway...
, in carrying out surveillance of Finnish and Kven people in the region. In 1932 Gabrielsen even went so far as to suggest a strict regulation of Finnish priests' access to use churches in the Norwegian border areas. During the same year Gabrielsen was part of a group of officials that intervened after slate
Slate
Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade regional metamorphism. The result is a foliated rock in which the foliation may not correspond to the original sedimentary layering...
workers in Alta
Alta, Norway
-Birdlife:For those interested in bird watching, the river outlet, known locally as Altaosen is well worth a visit. This tidal area is used as a stopover for many wetland species.-Transportation:...
broke out in demonstrations and elected a company board dominated by communists
Communism
Communism is a social, political and economic ideology that aims at the establishment of a classless, moneyless, revolutionary and stateless socialist society structured upon common ownership of the means of production...
. The officials reorganized the slate production in Alta, starting the new company Alta Skiferlag. The slate workers were then forced to deliver their products to the company.
Norwegian Campaign
In 1940, the Second World WarWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
reached Norway with the German invasion
Operation Weserübung
Operation Weserübung was the code name for Germany's assault on Denmark and Norway during the Second World War and the opening operation of the Norwegian Campaign...
on 9 April. German forces conquered Southern Norway during the first three weeks of the Norwegian Campaign, and the last Norwegian stronghold was Northern Norway, of which Finnmark is the northernmost part. After the German invasion Gabrielsen discussed the situation with the Norwegian commanding general in Northern Norway, General Carl Gustav Fleischer
Carl Gustav Fleischer
Carl Gustav Fleischer KCB was a Norwegian general and the first land commander to win a major victory against the Germans in the Second World War...
. Fleischer had been on an inspection journey of Finnmark, and had arrived in Vadsø in evening of 8 April 1940. Due to a violent blizzard Fleischer could not leave Vadsø when the invasion came the next day and had to spend the night in Vadsø. Gabrielsen then invited Fleischer and his chief of staff, Major Odd Lindbäck-Larsen
Odd Lindbäck-Larsen
Odd Lindbäck-Larsen was a Norwegian military officer and war historian.-Early and personal life:Lindbäck-Larsen was born in Kristiania as the son of Ludvig Martinius Larsen and Fanny Olivia Lindbäck. He graduated from Oslo Cathedral School in 1915, and from the Norwegian Military Academy in 1918...
to stay at the County Governor's mansion. The result of the discussions was an agreement that the best course of action was for Fleischer to declare Northern Norway a theatre of war
Theater (warfare)
In warfare, a theater, is defined as an area or place within which important military events occur or are progressing. The entirety of the air, land, and sea area that is or that may potentially become involved in war operations....
. Fleischer thus assumed all power in the region and ordered a total military and civilian mobilization. At first Gabrielsen was given the task of handling most of the civilian authority in Finnmark while the area was a theatre of war. However, after the sudden death of the County Governor of Troms a few days later he relocated to Tromsø
Tromsø
Tromsø is a city and municipality in Troms county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the city of Tromsø.Tromsø city is the ninth largest urban area in Norway by population, and the seventh largest city in Norway by population...
and assumed the entire civilian administration for all of Northern Norway. Together with General Fleischer Gabrielsen set Northern Norway on a war footing to support the fighting on the Narvik front
Battles of Narvik
The Battles of Narvik were fought from 9 April-8 June 1940 as a naval battle in the Ofotfjord and as a land battle in the mountains surrounding the north Norwegian city of Narvik as part of the Norwegian Campaign of the Second World War....
. As part of his work for the war effort Gabrielsen went through great efforts to obtain the supplies needed for the coming months. While the Norwegian Armed Forces had enough to make it through the summer, the civilian population at first had small stocks of essential goods. Gabrielsen and other officials soon solved the supply problems through contracts with foreign suppliers. Goods also came in from captured German supply ships, and from the British military. The cooperative effort between Gabrielsen and Fleischer continued until the Nygaardsvold's Cabinet and the overall commanding general in Norway, Otto Ruge
Otto Ruge
Otto Ruge was a Norwegian general. He was Commander-in-chief of the Royal Norwegian Armed Forces after Nazi Germany's assault on Norway in April 1940.-Background:...
, escaped the German advance in Southern Norway and came to the north in May. The cabinet sent Gabrielsen back to Finnmark and assumed power themselves over civilian and many aspects of the military matters. Gabrielsen's and Fleischer's governance of Northern Norway had been highly popular with the local population, who felt that their views were finally being heard by those in control. Due to this popularity of the improvised administration what was viewed as essentially as a switch back to central rule was not well received by the North Norwegian population, who wanted a voice in the government. When King Haakon VII
Haakon VII of Norway
Haakon VII , known as Prince Carl of Denmark until 1905, was the first king of Norway after the 1905 dissolution of the personal union with Sweden. He was a member of the House of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg...
and the Norwegian cabinet arrived in Tromsø on the former royal yacht
Royal Yacht
A royal yacht is a ship used by a monarch or a royal family. If the monarch is an emperor the proper term is imperial yacht. Most of them are financed by the government of the country of which the monarch is head...
Heimdal
HNoMS Heimdal OPV (1892)
HNoMS Heimdal was a Norwegian warship built at Akers mekaniske verksted in Kristiania, Norway in 1892 with build number 137.She was built to patrol Norwegian territorial waters and act as a rescue ship for sea travelers...
on 1 May 1940, having transferred from the Royal Navy
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
cruiser HMS Glasgow
HMS Glasgow (C21)
The seventh HMS Glasgow , built on the Clyde, was a Southampton-class light cruiser, a sub-class of the Town-class and commissioned in September 1937. She displaced 11,930 tons and had a top speed of 32 knots . She was part of the 2nd Cruiser Squadron of the Home Fleet; she escorted the...
in the Gisundet narrows by Malangen
Malangen
Malangen is a fjord and a former municipality in Troms county in Norway. The fjord is located between the islands of Kvaløya and Senja and the area today is divided between the municipalities of Balsfjord, Lenvik, Tromsø, and Målselv...
, it was Gabrielsen who arranged their accommodation. Gabrielsen felt that it would not be safe for the King and cabinet ministers to stay in Tromsø proper, instead organizing housing for them in the surrounding areas. King Haakon VII and Crown Prince Olav
Olav V of Norway
Olav V was the king of Norway from 1957 until his death. A member of the House of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg, Olav was born in the United Kingdom as the son of King Haakon VII of Norway and Queen Maud of Norway...
were located to Øverbygd
Øverbygd
Øverbygd is a former municipality in Troms county in Norway. It is located in the present-day municipality of Målselv from the Lille Rostavatn lake along the Målselva river through the Målselvdalen valley. The village of Skjold is home to a large garrison for the Norwegian Army...
in the Målselv
Målselv
Målselv is a municipality in Troms county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Moen. Some other villages include Andslimoen, Bardufoss, Alappmoen, Holmen, Fossmoen, and Heggelia...
valley, taking the prime minister, Johan Nygaardsvold
Johan Nygaardsvold
Johan Nygaardsvold was a Norwegian politician from the Labour Party. He was Prime Minister of Norway from 1935 to 1945 , as head of the cabinet Nygaardsvold.-Political career:...
with them. Nygaardsvold brought along Minister of Social Affairs
Minister of Labour and Social Inclusion (Norway)
The Norwegian Minister of Labour and Social Inclusion is the head of the Norwegian Ministry of Labour and Social Inclusion. The position has existed since 1 January 1846, when the Ministry of the Interior was created...
Sverre Støstad
Sverre Kornelius Eilertsen Støstad
Sverre Kornelius Eilertsen Støstad was the Norwegian Minister of Social Affairs 1939-1945, and member of the government delegation in Oslo in 1945, as well as head of the Ministry of Supplies and Reconstruction....
in order to maintain contact with his cabinet and avoid becoming isolated. Nygaardsvold moved to Tromsø on 18 May in order to gather the cabinet in one location. The Norwegian forces in mainland Norway capitulated on 10 June 1940.
Occupation
After the Norwegian capitulation Gabrielsen continued as County Governor of Finnmark, and from October 1940 to June 1941 he was also the acting County Governor of Troms.The border guard
When the Norwegian government evacuated to the United KingdomUnited Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
in June 1940 they had given Gabrielsen the task of administrating the as yet unoccupied parts of Northern Norway. In this respect Gabrielsen commanded the troops still guarding the border against the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
in accordance with the capitulation agreement. The border units were under the military command of Colonel Wilhelm Faye. The arrangement had been organized by General Otto Ruge, who during the capitulation negations with the Germans demanded that the Norwegians should either be allowed to retain military forces on the eastern border, or that the Germans should immediately occupy all of Finnmark. This demand originated in a fear of a possible Soviet occupation of Eastern Finnmark, as had happened in Poland
Soviet invasion of Poland
Soviet invasion of Poland can refer to:* the second phase of the Polish-Soviet War of 1920 when Soviet armies marched on Warsaw, Poland* Soviet invasion of Poland of 1939 when Soviet Union allied with Nazi Germany attacked Second Polish Republic...
in 1939. As the Norwegian military refused to serve under direct German command, any potential orders from the Germans had to go through county governor Gabrielsen. The arrangement was supposed to last until the Germans could deploy forces to Eastern Finnmark, and was not cleared with the exiled Norwegian government, being secret for anyone but Gabrielsen. Gabrielsen and General Ruge ordered Gabrielsen's military chief-of-staff, Major Odd Lindbäck-Larsen, to use the two battalions and one artillery battery at his disposal in preparation for a rebuilding of the Norwegian Armed Forces
Norwegian Armed Forces
The Norwegian Armed Forces numbers about 23,000 personnel, including civilian employees. According to mobilisation plans , the strength during full mobilisation would be approximately 83,000 combatant personnel. Norway has mandatory military service for men and voluntary service for women...
. Lindbäck-Larsen was to start training officers, using the border guard task as a cover. The 1,600-1,700 strong border guard was however dissolved by the German occupying authorities
Occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany
The occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany started with the German invasion of Norway on April 9, 1940, and ended on May 8, 1945, after the capitulation of German forces in Europe. Throughout this period, Norway was continuously occupied by the Wehrmacht...
in July 1940. The plan for the establishment of a new Norwegian elite army in Finnmark, outside German control, was supposed to include several thousands of soldiers. As part of Ruge's plan Gabrielsen and Lindbäck-Larsen had placed Norwegian liaison officers on strategic points from Saltdalen in the south to Kirkenes
Kirkenes
is a town in the municipality of Sør-Varanger in the county of Finnmark in the far northeast of Norway...
in the north-east. The hope had been that a new Norwegian volunteer army would be allowed by the Germans to remain on border guard duties in Finnmark for the duration of the conflict. After the Germans took over the border guard duties in early July 1940 Gabrielsen was given command over four armed Norwegian guard posts at the coast of Eastern Finnmark. These guard posts were set up on the secret orders of the German officer in charge of Eastern Finnmark, SS
Schutzstaffel
The Schutzstaffel |Sig runes]]) was a major paramilitary organization under Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party. Built upon the Nazi ideology, the SS under Heinrich Himmler's command was responsible for many of the crimes against humanity during World War II...
-Obersturmführer
Obersturmführer
Obersturmführer was a paramilitary rank of the Nazi party that was used by the SS and also as a rank of the SA. Translated as “Senior Assault Leader”, the rank of Obersturmführer was first created in 1932 as the result of an expansion of the Sturmabteilung and the need for an additional rank in...
Willy Laqua, in accordance with the capitulation agreement. None of the Norwegian officers and soldiers on border guard duties were informed of the fact that they were under German overall command.
Arrest and imprisonment
On 17 June 1941 he was arrested by the Nazi authorities. He was incarcerated until April 1942 at Møllergata 19Møllergata 19
Møllergata 19 is an address in Oslo, Norway where the city's main police station and jail was located. The address gained notoriety during the German occupation from 1940 to 1945, when the Nazi security police kept its headquarters here...
, and from 24 April 1942 to the war's end on 8 May 1945 he was imprisoned at Grini concentration camp. In the summer of 1942 both Gabrielsen and Lindbäck-Larsen were part of the so-called Forest Gang at Grini, which spent the summer days cutting down trees near the camp. The forestry work allowed easy access to food hidden in the woods by sympathizers, and messages could be smuggled in and out with little difficulty, making the Forest Gang the most popular assignment at Grini. During his time at Grini Gabrielsen also took part in secret debating meetings organized by journalists amongst the prisoners, where various aspects of the organizing of post-war Norway was discussed. Amongst the issues Gabrielsen discussed with fellow Grini inmates was the post-war reconstruction of Finnmark, most the of the county having been laid waste to during the German retreat in Northern Norway in 1944—1945. One important question with regards to the future reconstruction was whether or not the devastated areas should be rebuilt like they were organized before the war, or if they should be reformed with the future development in mind. With only the single exception of Finnkongkjeila in Gamvik
Gamvik
is a municipality in Finnmark county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Mehamn. The municipality of Gamvik was separated from Tana on 1 July 1913....
the reconstruction ended up following the old pre-war population patterns.
Post-war life
After Norway's liberation, Gabrielsen became a member of Gerhardsen's First Cabinet, the unification cabinet with members from many political parties—Gabrielsen represented the Liberal Party. He served in the Ministry of Provisioning and ReconstructionNorwegian Ministry of Provisioning and Reconstruction
The Royal Norwegian Ministry of Provisioning and Reconstruction was a Norwegian ministry that existed from 1939 to 1950.It was established on 1 October 1939 as the Ministry of Provisioning, though having no relation to the Ministry of Provisioning which existed from 1916 to 1922. The name was...
as Consultative Councillor of State for Finnmark Affairs. The northermost part of Norway had been completely devastated during Germany's withdrawal, where they employed the scorched earth
Scorched earth
A scorched earth policy is a military strategy or operational method which involves destroying anything that might be useful to the enemy while advancing through or withdrawing from an area...
tactic. Gabrielsen cooperated with chief engineer Harald Hofseth in organizing the reconstruction effort. After serving as Consultative Councillor of State, Gabrielsen returned as County Governor. He became County Governor of Oppland in 1948, and remained there until his retirement in 1961. He was chairman of the board of Opplandskraft from 1952 and in Vinmonopolet
Vinmonopolet
Vinmonopolet , symbolized by Ⓥ and colloquially shortened to Polet, is a government owned alcoholic beverage retailer and the only company allowed to sell beverages containing an alcohol content higher than 4.75% in Norway....
from 1958 to 1962, and a board member of Utbyggingsfondet for Nord-Norge from 1952 to 1960.
He was decorated as a Commander With Star of the Order of St. Olav. Gabrielsen died in March 1965 in Lillehammer
Lillehammer
is a town and municipality in Oppland county, Norway, globally known for hosting the 1994 Winter Olympics. It is part of the traditional region of Gudbrandsdal. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Lillehammer. As of May 2011, the population of the town of Lillehammer was...
.