Nansenhjelpen
Encyclopedia
Nansenhjelpen was a Norwegian
humanitarian organization founded by Odd Nansen
in 1936 to provide safe haven and assistance in Norway for Jewish refugees from areas in Europe
under Nazi control. It was formally disbanded in 1945, but effectively ceased operations in late 1942, after all Jews in Norway had been deported, murdered, or had fled into Sweden.
and the Communist party
had focused primarily on helping political refugees. It was a professor of German at the University of Oslo
, Fredrik Paasche
, who approached architect Odd Nansen, the son of famed scientific explorer and Nobel Peace
laureate Fridtjof Nansen
to lend his name to an organization dedicated to rescuing Jews. When another Nobel Peace laureate, Christian Lange and foreign minister Halvdan Koht
added their voices to Paasche's, Nansen agreed to form the organization.
The organization was small from the onset: Tove Filseth became its full-time secretary, Sigrid Helliesen Lund
was named board member and field operative, attorney Fredrik Helweg Winsnes, and professors Georg Morgenstierne
and Edgar Schieldrop also became board members.
More than most organizations, the organization needed significant funds to be successful. The Norwegian government insisted on a NOK 1,000 deposit for each refugee to ensure that they wouldn't be a burden to the state, and refused to grant work permits for them. The labor unions similarly opposed any immigration of individuals who might accept employment. Some refugees nevertheless found unauthorized and secret employment.
. The head of the Norwegian passport office, Leif Ragnvald Konstad, accompanied them and issued entry visas for precisely the number of refugees the organization could afford to sponsor, excluding "weak and sick" individuals from consideration. Meanwhile, Nansen and Paasche continued their fund-raising activities, where they had to overcome both Depression-era frugality and considerable antisemitism. Several donors agreed to support the organization on the condition that their contribution would not benefit Jews. Nansen himself traveled to Prague with Konstad, once again, and quickly filled the quota provided for by the funds raised.
Konstad once again returned to Norway, but Nansen remained in Prague to pre-process applications and help in any other way he could. In addition to their office, the three did much work from the Hotel Esplanade. During this time, Czech army physician Leo Eitinger
volunteered to help and soon became a refugee as well. The Nansens and Filseth also built contacts throughout the city, including with the Red Cross and Quaker relief organizations.
In March 1939, the three Norwegians responded to a call from contacts in Bratislava
that antisemitic attacks in Slovakia
had escalated with the independence from the Czech central government and ascent of Monsignor Jozef Tiso
. On the day of their arrival, the Nansens and Filseth witnessed first hand brutality against Jews at the hands of the Hlinka Guard
, and Odd Nansen managed to arrange a meeting directly with Tiso, whom Nansen characterized as "a fat thickset priest, in a floor length cassock, with a holy cross in gold dangling from a gold chain on his chest - and with a pair of staring dark eyes behind gold framed glasses." Impressed by Nansen's pedigree, Tiso assured him that the detention of Jews in concentration camp was merely a protective measure against "the agitated masses."
Nansen was unconvinced but traveled on to Vienna
and back, all the while registering rampant riots, plundering and systematic persecution of Jews in the wake of Nazi supremacy. In transit through Bratislava, Nansen got exemption from the curfew and entered the Jewish quarter in the city where he witnessed firsthand that German, Austrian soldiers and paramilitary forces would nightly cross over from Austria and join with Hlinka Guard members to ransack and pillage the Jewish section of the city. Nansen tried in vain to register his alarm to Tiso and the chief of police, eventually giving up and returning to Prague where he hoped his efforts would bear more fruit.
While he was traveling, Filseth had returned to Norway to help refugees settle in there. Kari Nansen had joined efforts with, among others, the American and British Quaker organizations, to help Jewish refugees get across the border to Poland
.
Operating under the conventional wisdom that Germany would invade Czechoslovakia on March 15, the Nansens joined forces with Red Cross and the high commissioner for refugees in Prague, Dr. Podajski in appealing to European governments to accept more refugees on an emergency basis and emergency relief funds to effect their departure. In cooperation with Vladislav Klumpbar, the Czech minister of social welfare and public health, the group worked through the night between March 14 and 15 to identify and secure the escape of the 8,000 - 9,000 refugees most in danger when and if the Nazis took over.
Having been told by Rudolf Kac, the leader of the Communist Refugee Group, that German forces had crossed the border, he managed to reach Klumpbar and Podajski in the early morning. Podajski told Nansen over the phone that the rumors were overblown, but Nansen actually saw German soldiers marching through the streets as the two were talking.
The Nansens had secured visas for about 80 refugees who were waiting outside the hotel that morning, awaiting their promised departure. Nansen made inquiries at several foreign missions in Prague before the Norwegian consul, Hribek, issued visas to all those whose passports were left with him. The Nansens were themselves evicted from the hotel to make room for Gestapo
officials. They were able to find room in the Hotel Alcron, where they found one of their fellow guests was Erich Hoepner
, a Germany army general. The Nansens sought out Hoepner and convinced him to allow exit for Jewish women and children, apparently behind the backs of the Gestapo. The Nansens helped the remaining male refugees across the border to Poland.
Tove Filseth returned to Prague shortly after this, and the organization resumed efforts to secure visas and both legal and illegal departures from Czech territories. Funds quickly ran out, though, as much of the travel had to be paid for with bribes. The refugee flow through Poland had become more organized, with the Norwegian ambassador Niels Christian Ditleff
providing food, clothing, and transportation to Gdynia
, where they could travel by sea to Norway.
On March 26, 1939, the Nansens traveled by train to Berlin
and separated at Tempelhof
airport, Odd Nansen flying to London to seek the assistance from Lord Herbert Emerson, the League of Nations
high commissioner for refugees. Emerson had ignored all of Nansen's previous telegrams but was more receptive in person. He agreed to send an emissary to Warsaw
to assess the situation. Nansen took his cause to the British parliament and the Soviet ambassador to St. James, Ivan Mayskiy (Иван Михайлович Майский), where he was rebuffed, though the ambassador expressed his profound appreciation for Nansen's father's efforts to alleviate the Ukrainian famine
.
, the minister of justice at the time, agreed to support Nansen's request for financial support if he could persuade a majority of the Norwegian parliament to vote for the measure. Nansen persuaded every party in parliament to vote for such a grant, with the exception of the Agrarian party, which at least promised to abstain. This resulted in an infusion of NOK 500,000 to the cause, though Nansenhjelpen had to share it with the Labour Justice fund.
. After securing exit visas for them, they convened in Berlin
, where they stayed at a synagogue and traveled together by train via Sweden to Norway. See Jewish Children's Home in Oslo
.
, Grini concentration camp, and finally at Sachsenhausen
, from where he returned in May 1945.
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
humanitarian organization founded by Odd Nansen
Odd Nansen
Odd Nansen was a Norwegian architect, author, and humanitarian, credited with his humanitarian efforts on behalf of Jews in the early years of World War II and for being a founder of UNICEF.-Biography:...
in 1936 to provide safe haven and assistance in Norway for Jewish refugees from areas in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
under Nazi control. It was formally disbanded in 1945, but effectively ceased operations in late 1942, after all Jews in Norway had been deported, murdered, or had fled into Sweden.
Founding
Although a few Norwegian individuals had made efforts to save Jews from Nazi persecution in Europe, Norwegian humanitarian organizations, such as that founded by LandsorganisasjonenNorwegian 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...
and the 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...
had focused primarily on helping political refugees. It was a professor of German at the University of Oslo
University of Oslo
The University of Oslo , formerly The Royal Frederick University , is the oldest and largest university in Norway, situated in the Norwegian capital of Oslo. The university was founded in 1811 and was modelled after the recently established University of Berlin...
, Fredrik Paasche
Fredrik Paasche
Fredrik Paasche was a Norwegian literary historian. He was born in Bindal, a son of Olaf Kristian Amundsen and a brother of Olaf Amundsen. He was appointed professor of European literature in 1920, and professor of Middle Age literature in 1938...
, who approached architect Odd Nansen, the son of famed scientific explorer and Nobel Peace
Nobel Peace Prize
The Nobel Peace Prize is one of the five Nobel Prizes bequeathed by the Swedish industrialist and inventor Alfred Nobel.-Background:According to Nobel's will, the Peace Prize shall be awarded to the person who...
laureate Fridtjof Nansen
Fridtjof Nansen
Fridtjof Wedel-Jarlsberg Nansen was a Norwegian explorer, scientist, diplomat, humanitarian and Nobel Peace Prize laureate. In his youth a champion skier and ice skater, he led the team that made the first crossing of the Greenland interior in 1888, and won international fame after reaching a...
to lend his name to an organization dedicated to rescuing Jews. When another Nobel Peace laureate, Christian Lange and foreign minister Halvdan Koht
Halvdan Koht
Halvdan Koht was a Norwegian historian and politician representing the Labour Party.As a politician he served as the Norwegian Minister of Foreign Affairs from 1935 to 1941. He was never elected as a member of the Parliament of Norway, but was a member of Bærum municipal council in 1917–1919 and...
added their voices to Paasche's, Nansen agreed to form the organization.
The organization was small from the onset: Tove Filseth became its full-time secretary, Sigrid Helliesen Lund
Sigrid Helliesen Lund
Sigrid Helliesen Lund was a Norwegian peace activist, noted for her humanitarian efforts throughout most of the 20th century, and in particular her resistance to the occupation of Norway during World War II.-Biography:...
was named board member and field operative, attorney Fredrik Helweg Winsnes, and professors Georg Morgenstierne
Georg Morgenstierne
Georg Morgenstierne was a Norwegian professor of linguistics with the University of Oslo . He specialized in Indo-Iranian languages.- Studies :...
and Edgar Schieldrop also became board members.
More than most organizations, the organization needed significant funds to be successful. The Norwegian government insisted on a NOK 1,000 deposit for each refugee to ensure that they wouldn't be a burden to the state, and refused to grant work permits for them. The labor unions similarly opposed any immigration of individuals who might accept employment. Some refugees nevertheless found unauthorized and secret employment.
Campaign in Prague
Already in January 1939, Nansen sent Ms. Filseth and his own wife Kari to establish a field office in PraguePrague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
. The head of the Norwegian passport office, Leif Ragnvald Konstad, accompanied them and issued entry visas for precisely the number of refugees the organization could afford to sponsor, excluding "weak and sick" individuals from consideration. Meanwhile, Nansen and Paasche continued their fund-raising activities, where they had to overcome both Depression-era frugality and considerable antisemitism. Several donors agreed to support the organization on the condition that their contribution would not benefit Jews. Nansen himself traveled to Prague with Konstad, once again, and quickly filled the quota provided for by the funds raised.
Konstad once again returned to Norway, but Nansen remained in Prague to pre-process applications and help in any other way he could. In addition to their office, the three did much work from the Hotel Esplanade. During this time, Czech army physician Leo Eitinger
Leo Eitinger
Leo Eitinger was a Holocaust survivor and Norwegian Psychiatrist who studied the late-onset psychological trauma experienced by people who went through separation and psychological pain early in life only to show traumatic experience decades later...
volunteered to help and soon became a refugee as well. The Nansens and Filseth also built contacts throughout the city, including with the Red Cross and Quaker relief organizations.
In March 1939, the three Norwegians responded to a call from contacts in Bratislava
Bratislava
Bratislava is the capital of Slovakia and, with a population of about 431,000, also the country's largest city. Bratislava is in southwestern Slovakia on both banks of the Danube River. Bordering Austria and Hungary, it is the only national capital that borders two independent countries.Bratislava...
that antisemitic attacks in Slovakia
Slovakia
The Slovak Republic is a landlocked state in Central Europe. It has a population of over five million and an area of about . Slovakia is bordered by the Czech Republic and Austria to the west, Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east and Hungary to the south...
had escalated with the independence from the Czech central government and ascent of Monsignor Jozef Tiso
Jozef Tiso
Jozef Tiso was a Slovak Roman Catholic priest, politician of the Slovak People's Party, and Nazi collaborator. Between 1939 and 1945, Tiso was the head of the Slovak State, a satellite state of Nazi Germany...
. On the day of their arrival, the Nansens and Filseth witnessed first hand brutality against Jews at the hands of the Hlinka Guard
Hlinka Guard
Hlinka Guard was the militia maintained by the Slovak People's Party in the period from 1938 to 1945; it was named after Andrej Hlinka.The Hlinka Guard was preceded by the Rodobrana organization, which existed from 1923 to 1927, when the Czechoslovak authorities ordered its dissolution...
, and Odd Nansen managed to arrange a meeting directly with Tiso, whom Nansen characterized as "a fat thickset priest, in a floor length cassock, with a holy cross in gold dangling from a gold chain on his chest - and with a pair of staring dark eyes behind gold framed glasses." Impressed by Nansen's pedigree, Tiso assured him that the detention of Jews in concentration camp was merely a protective measure against "the agitated masses."
Nansen was unconvinced but traveled on to Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
and back, all the while registering rampant riots, plundering and systematic persecution of Jews in the wake of Nazi supremacy. In transit through Bratislava, Nansen got exemption from the curfew and entered the Jewish quarter in the city where he witnessed firsthand that German, Austrian soldiers and paramilitary forces would nightly cross over from Austria and join with Hlinka Guard members to ransack and pillage the Jewish section of the city. Nansen tried in vain to register his alarm to Tiso and the chief of police, eventually giving up and returning to Prague where he hoped his efforts would bear more fruit.
While he was traveling, Filseth had returned to Norway to help refugees settle in there. Kari Nansen had joined efforts with, among others, the American and British Quaker organizations, to help Jewish refugees get across the border to Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
.
Operating under the conventional wisdom that Germany would invade Czechoslovakia on March 15, the Nansens joined forces with Red Cross and the high commissioner for refugees in Prague, Dr. Podajski in appealing to European governments to accept more refugees on an emergency basis and emergency relief funds to effect their departure. In cooperation with Vladislav Klumpbar, the Czech minister of social welfare and public health, the group worked through the night between March 14 and 15 to identify and secure the escape of the 8,000 - 9,000 refugees most in danger when and if the Nazis took over.
Having been told by Rudolf Kac, the leader of the Communist Refugee Group, that German forces had crossed the border, he managed to reach Klumpbar and Podajski in the early morning. Podajski told Nansen over the phone that the rumors were overblown, but Nansen actually saw German soldiers marching through the streets as the two were talking.
The Nansens had secured visas for about 80 refugees who were waiting outside the hotel that morning, awaiting their promised departure. Nansen made inquiries at several foreign missions in Prague before the Norwegian consul, Hribek, issued visas to all those whose passports were left with him. The Nansens were themselves evicted from the hotel to make room for Gestapo
Gestapo
The Gestapo was the official secret police of Nazi Germany. Beginning on 20 April 1934, it was under the administration of the SS leader Heinrich Himmler in his position as Chief of German Police...
officials. They were able to find room in the Hotel Alcron, where they found one of their fellow guests was Erich Hoepner
Erich Hoepner
Erich Hoepner was a German general in World War II. A successful panzer leader, Hoepner was executed after the failed 20 July Plot in 1944.- Life :Hoepner was born in Frankfurt an der Oder, Brandenburg...
, a Germany army general. The Nansens sought out Hoepner and convinced him to allow exit for Jewish women and children, apparently behind the backs of the Gestapo. The Nansens helped the remaining male refugees across the border to Poland.
Tove Filseth returned to Prague shortly after this, and the organization resumed efforts to secure visas and both legal and illegal departures from Czech territories. Funds quickly ran out, though, as much of the travel had to be paid for with bribes. The refugee flow through Poland had become more organized, with the Norwegian ambassador Niels Christian Ditleff
Niels Christian Ditleff
Niels Christian Ditleff was a Norwegian diplomat noted for his humanitarian efforts on behalf of refugees from Nazi Germany. In spite of opposition from his own and allied governments, he initiated and led the White Buses campaign to rescue Scandinavian prisoners held in German concentration camps...
providing food, clothing, and transportation to Gdynia
Gdynia
Gdynia is a city in the Pomeranian Voivodeship of Poland and an important seaport of Gdańsk Bay on the south coast of the Baltic Sea.Located in Kashubia in Eastern Pomerania, Gdynia is part of a conurbation with the spa town of Sopot, the city of Gdańsk and suburban communities, which together...
, where they could travel by sea to Norway.
On March 26, 1939, the Nansens traveled by train to Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
and separated at Tempelhof
Tempelhof International Airport
Berlin Tempelhof Airport was an airport in Berlin, Germany, situated in the south-central borough of Tempelhof-Schöneberg. The airport ceased operating in 2008 in the process of establishing Schönefeld as the sole commercial airport for Berlin....
airport, Odd Nansen flying to London to seek the assistance from Lord Herbert Emerson, the League of Nations
League of Nations
The League of Nations was an intergovernmental organization founded as a result of the Paris Peace Conference that ended the First World War. It was the first permanent international organization whose principal mission was to maintain world peace...
high commissioner for refugees. Emerson had ignored all of Nansen's previous telegrams but was more receptive in person. He agreed to send an emissary to Warsaw
Warsaw
Warsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River, roughly from the Baltic Sea and from the Carpathian Mountains. Its population in 2010 was estimated at 1,716,855 residents with a greater metropolitan area of 2,631,902 residents, making Warsaw the 10th most...
to assess the situation. Nansen took his cause to the British parliament and the Soviet ambassador to St. James, Ivan Mayskiy (Иван Михайлович Майский), where he was rebuffed, though the ambassador expressed his profound appreciation for Nansen's father's efforts to alleviate the Ukrainian famine
Holodomor
The Holodomor was a man-made famine in the Ukrainian SSR between 1932 and 1933. During the famine, which is also known as the "terror-famine in Ukraine" and "famine-genocide in Ukraine", millions of Ukrainians died of starvation in a peacetime catastrophe unprecedented in the history of...
.
Activities in Norway
Upon returning to Norway, Nansen approached Norwegian politicians to persuade his government to provide financial support for the refugees. Trygve LieTrygve Lie
Trygve Halvdan Lie was a Norwegian politician, labour leader, government official and author. He served as Norwegian Foreign minister during the critical years of the Norwegian government in exile in London from 1940 to 1945. From 1946 to 1952 he was the first Secretary-General of the United...
, the minister of justice at the time, agreed to support Nansen's request for financial support if he could persuade a majority of the Norwegian parliament to vote for the measure. Nansen persuaded every party in parliament to vote for such a grant, with the exception of the Agrarian party, which at least promised to abstain. This resulted in an infusion of NOK 500,000 to the cause, though Nansenhjelpen had to share it with the Labour Justice fund.
Saving children
The organization's last project was to evacuate a number of Jewish children they had gathered in Bratislava, Prague, and BrnoBrno
Brno by population and area is the second largest city in the Czech Republic, the largest Moravian city, and the historical capital city of the Margraviate of Moravia. Brno is the administrative centre of the South Moravian Region where it forms a separate district Brno-City District...
. After securing exit visas for them, they convened in Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
, where they stayed at a synagogue and traveled together by train via Sweden to Norway. See Jewish Children's Home in Oslo
Jewish Children's Home in Oslo
The Jewish Children's Home in Oslo was established in 1939 under the auspices of Nansenhjelpen, a humanitarian organization established by Odd Nansen, the son of Nobel Peace Prize laureate Fridtjof Nansen...
.
Conclusion
After Norway was invaded and occupied by Nazi Germany starting on April 9, 1940, there could be no more attempts to rescue Jews from the continent. Officials of the organization refocused their efforts on supporting the refugees already in Norway, well over 500. On January 13, 1942, Nansen was arrested by the Gestapo in Norway. He was kept in captivity 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...
, Grini concentration camp, and finally at Sachsenhausen
Sachsenhausen concentration camp
Sachsenhausen or Sachsenhausen-Oranienburg was a Nazi concentration camp in Oranienburg, Germany, used primarily for political prisoners from 1936 to the end of the Third Reich in May, 1945. After World War II, when Oranienburg was in the Soviet Occupation Zone, the structure was used as an NKVD...
, from where he returned in May 1945.