Ludvik Buland
Encyclopedia
Ludvik Buland was a Norwegian trade unionist. He chaired the Norwegian Union of Railway Workers
, but was imprisoned and died during the occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany
.
as the son of Gunnar Buland and his wife Kjerstina, née Kleivplass. He took secondary education, and was hired in the Norwegian State Railways in 1914. After some time he was promoted to railway station manager. He was the chairman of his local trade union
from 1920 to 1928, and vice chairman of the national Norwegian Union of Railway Workers
, affiliated with the Norwegian Confederation of Trade Unions
(LO), from 1928 to 1930. The union had witnessed turbulent times in the 1920s, with inner strife between communists and social democrats. Buland had been an elected politician for the Labour Party
, serving in Trondheim
city council from 1925 to 1930. In 1930 he became chairman of the Union of Railway Workers, and succeeded in his task to reinforce the union.
He had four children.
in 1940, Buland was still chairman of the Union of Railway Workers. The leadership of the LO fled Oslo
shortly after the invasion, and secretary Elias Volan
, a former member Communist Party
member, became chairman. Volan cooperated and negotiated with the Nazi occupants to a certain degree, but was pressured by the loosely organized Fagopposisjonen av 1940
(trade opposition of 1940), spearheaded by Håkon Meyer and Jens Tangen
, who went further in stressing the importance of cooperation. Buland, too, was a member of this opposition. Following a higher degree of German
control, represented by Reichskommissar
Josef Terboven
who formed a cabinet on 25 September, Volan was removed as LO chairman on 28 September, paving the way for Jens Tangen as the new chairman and Ludvik Buland as deputy chairman.
However, the new LO leadership grew uneasy with the attempts on nazification of the union. On 3 April and 15 May 1941 Buland wrote two letters to Terboven, protesting this development. For this, Buland was incarcerated for a short period, at Møllergata 19
from June to July 1941. In September 1941, he was arrested for the second time under martial law
, following the so-called milk strike
. The milk strike occurred on 9 September, and martial law was declared the next day. A local union leader, Rolf Wickstrøm
, and chief jurist in the Confederation of Trade Unions, Viggo Hansteen
were executed immediately. Ludvik Buland, Josef Larsson
and Harry Vestli
were sentenced to death. The Confederation of Trade Unions were usurped by the Nazis, who installed Odd Fossum
as chairman. Håkon Meyer from the trade opposition, who had joined the Nazi Party, was promoted as well.
Buland, Larsson and Vestli were later reprieved, and instead given a life-long jail sentence. After some time in Grini concentration camp from September to October 1941, he was sent via Akershus Fortress
to the Nacht und Nebel
camp Hamburg-Fuhlsbüttel where he arrived on 16 October. He was transferred to Rendsburg
in August 1943, then to Dreibergen, Köln
and Coswig
. He died on 5 February 1945, shortly before the war's end
.
Norwegian Union of Railway Workers
The Norwegian Union of Railway Workers is a trade union in Norway. It was formed on 20 November 1892, and mainly organizes workers in Norges Statsbaner—with the exception of locomotive drivers— and the Norwegian National Rail Administration, including related companies such as...
, but was imprisoned and died during the occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany
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...
.
Early life and career
Ludvik Buland was born in HegraHegra
Hegra is a village and former municipality in Nord-Trøndelag county, Norway. The former municipality encompassed most of the eastern part of the present-day municipality of Stjørdal....
as the son of Gunnar Buland and his wife Kjerstina, née Kleivplass. He took secondary education, and was hired in the Norwegian State Railways in 1914. After some time he was promoted to railway station manager. He was the chairman of his local trade union
Trade union
A trade union, trades union or labor union is an organization of workers that have banded together to achieve common goals such as better working conditions. The trade union, through its leadership, bargains with the employer on behalf of union members and negotiates labour contracts with...
from 1920 to 1928, and vice chairman of the national Norwegian Union of Railway Workers
Norwegian Union of Railway Workers
The Norwegian Union of Railway Workers is a trade union in Norway. It was formed on 20 November 1892, and mainly organizes workers in Norges Statsbaner—with the exception of locomotive drivers— and the Norwegian National Rail Administration, including related companies such as...
, affiliated with the Norwegian Confederation of Trade Unions
Norwegian Confederation of Trade Unions
The Norwegian Confederation of Trade Unions is a national trade union center, decidedly the largest and probably the most influential umbrella organization of labour unions in Norway. The 21 national unions affiliated to the LO have more than 850,000 members of a Norwegian population of 4.8 million...
(LO), from 1928 to 1930. The union had witnessed turbulent times in the 1920s, with inner strife between communists and social democrats. Buland had been an elected politician for the Labour Party
Norwegian Labour Party
The Labour Party is a social-democratic political party in Norway. It is the senior partner in the current Norwegian government as part of the Red-Green Coalition, and its leader, Jens Stoltenberg, is the current Prime Minister of Norway....
, serving in Trondheim
Trondheim
Trondheim , historically, Nidaros and Trondhjem, is a city and municipality in Sør-Trøndelag county, Norway. With a population of 173,486, it is the third most populous municipality and city in the country, although the fourth largest metropolitan area. It is the administrative centre of...
city council from 1925 to 1930. In 1930 he became chairman of the Union of Railway Workers, and succeeded in his task to reinforce the union.
He had four children.
World War II
At the time of the German invasion of NorwayOperation 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...
in 1940, Buland was still chairman of the Union of Railway Workers. The leadership of the LO fled Oslo
Oslo
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...
shortly after the invasion, and secretary Elias Volan
Elias Volan
Elias Karelius Johansen Volan was a Norwegian trade unionist.He was born in Inderøy as a son of crofter Johan Berent Johannessen Volvollan and Lise Eliasdatter Kjærbo. He attended Sund Folk High School from 1903 to 1904, but spent the rest of his youth as a worker. In 1908 he became chairman of...
, a former member Communist Party
Communist Party of Norway
The Communist Party of Norway is a political party in Norway without parliamentary representation. It was formed in 1923, following a split in the Norwegian Labour Party. The party played an important role in the resistance to German occupation during the Second World War, and experienced a brief...
member, became chairman. Volan cooperated and negotiated with the Nazi occupants to a certain degree, but was pressured by the loosely organized Fagopposisjonen av 1940
Fagopposisjonen av 1940
Fagopposisjonen av 1940 was a grouping among Norwegian trade unionists in 1940, after the German invasion of Norway....
(trade opposition of 1940), spearheaded by Håkon Meyer and Jens Tangen
Jens Tangen
-Career:Tangen chaired the trade union Norwegian Union of Building Workers from 1935, having been deputy chairman from 1933 to 1934. In 1940 he was a central member of Fagopposisjonen av 1940 , for which he chaired the executive committee...
, who went further in stressing the importance of cooperation. Buland, too, was a member of this opposition. Following a higher degree of German
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
control, represented by Reichskommissar
Reichskommissar
Reichskommissar , in German history, was an official gubernatorial title used for various public offices during the period of the German Empire and the Nazi Third Reich....
Josef Terboven
Josef Terboven
Josef Antonius Heinrich Terboven was a Nazi leader, best known as the Reichskommissar during the German occupation of Norway.-Early life:...
who formed a cabinet on 25 September, Volan was removed as LO chairman on 28 September, paving the way for Jens Tangen as the new chairman and Ludvik Buland as deputy chairman.
However, the new LO leadership grew uneasy with the attempts on nazification of the union. On 3 April and 15 May 1941 Buland wrote two letters to Terboven, protesting this development. For this, Buland was incarcerated for a short period, at Møllergata 19
Møllergata 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...
from June to July 1941. In September 1941, he was arrested for the second time under martial law
Martial law
Martial law is the imposition of military rule by military authorities over designated regions on an emergency basis— only temporary—when the civilian government or civilian authorities fail to function effectively , when there are extensive riots and protests, or when the disobedience of the law...
, following the so-called milk strike
Milk strike
The milk strike was a strike in Nazi occupied Oslo on 8 and 9 September 1941. It led to strong reprisals from the German occupiers, in the form of martial law, court-martial, mass arrests, two executions and several long-term jail sentences.-Start:...
. The milk strike occurred on 9 September, and martial law was declared the next day. A local union leader, Rolf Wickstrøm
Rolf Wickstrøm
Rolf Wickstrøm was a Norwegian labour activist and a victim of the German occupation of Norway during World War II.-Biography:...
, and chief jurist in the Confederation of Trade Unions, Viggo Hansteen
Viggo Hansteen
Harald Viggo Hansteen was a Norwegian lawyer who was executed by the Nazis during the five-year Occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany. -Biography:...
were executed immediately. Ludvik Buland, Josef Larsson
Josef Larsson
Josef Larsson was a Norwegian metal worker and trade unionist, born in Sweden. From 1931 he was a secretary for the Norwegian Union of Iron and Metalworkers...
and Harry Vestli
Harry Vestli
Harry August Vestli was a Norwegian trade unionist who was imprisoned and died during the occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany....
were sentenced to death. The Confederation of Trade Unions were usurped by the Nazis, who installed Odd Fossum
Odd Fossum
Odd Fossum was a Norwegian shop assistant, and leader of the Norwegian Confederation of Trade Unions from 1941 to 1945, under Nazi regime during the occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany. He was also the leader of NS Faggruppeorganisasjon from 12 October 1940 to September 1944, when he was...
as chairman. Håkon Meyer from the trade opposition, who had joined the Nazi Party, was promoted as well.
Buland, Larsson and Vestli were later reprieved, and instead given a life-long jail sentence. After some time in Grini concentration camp from September to October 1941, he was sent via Akershus Fortress
Akershus Fortress
Akershus Fortress or Akershus Castle is a medieval castle that was built to protect Oslo, the capital of Norway. It has also been used as a prison.- Construction :...
to the Nacht und Nebel
Nacht und Nebel
Nacht und Nebel was a directive of Adolf Hitler on 7 December 1941 signed and implemented by Armed Forces High Command Chief Wilhelm Keitel, resulting in the kidnapping and forced disappearance of many political activists and resistance 'helpers' throughout Nazi Germany's occupied...
camp Hamburg-Fuhlsbüttel where he arrived on 16 October. He was transferred to Rendsburg
Rendsburg
Rendsburg is a town on the River Eider and the Kiel Canal in the northeastern part of Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. It is the capital of the Kreis of Rendsburg-Eckernförde. As of 2006, it had a population of 28,476.-History:...
in August 1943, then to Dreibergen, Köln
KOLN
KOLN, digital channel 10, is the CBS affiliate in Lincoln, Nebraska. It operates a satellite station, KGIN, on digital channel 11 in Grand Island. KGIN repeats all KOLN programming, but airs separate commercials...
and Coswig
Coswig, Saxony
Coswig is a town in the district of Meißen, in the Free State of Saxony, Germany. It is situated on the right bank of the Elbe, approximately 9 km southeast of Meißen, and 13 km northwest of Dresden....
. He died on 5 February 1945, shortly before the war's end
Victory in Europe Day
Victory in Europe Day commemorates 8 May 1945 , the date when the World War II Allies formally accepted the unconditional surrender of the armed forces of Nazi Germany and the end of Adolf Hitler's Third Reich. The formal surrender of the occupying German forces in the Channel Islands was not...
.