Partisans in Northern Norway

The anti-Nazi Partisan movement and their operations between 1940-1945 in Northern Norway are not well known. Their main task was to spy on Nazis and to collect information from local people.  Many of the Partisans were people from Northern Norway. Some of them also had heritage, like that of Jørgund Mikkalsen from Kramvik near Keberg, who had a Finnish grandmother.

Harsh winters made it very difficult for Partisans to survive hiding outside during their spy operations. They couldn´t trust anyone. Some of the locals collaborated with Nazis and cost them lives. Partisans had their base in Murmansk, Russia. They use to come with the submarines and boats to the Norwegian coasts. Partisans hated Nazis, quislings and traitors and they had only one dream: to see Norway free again.

Local people had the very important task to feed Partisans with news about Nazi development in eastern Finnmark.  Partisans in eastern Finnmark were moving between Nålneset, Kongsfjorden and Laukvika.  Many Partisans left their lives in North Norway as well as many civilians that were helping Partisans. Nazis didn´t spare even the pregnant women and newly born children like little Oidis, a daughter of Jørgund Mikkalsen. The Gestapo had tortured pregnant Jørgund because she was helping Partisans. The torture was so bad that her newly born daughter died, and she lived with pains for the rest of her life.

My great grandfather was a Partisan in Serbia. He survived the war and kept his memories until he died, to remind us about the sacrifice these people gave for our freedom today.

Norwegian Partisans were often not considered to be  good Norwegians after the war, because of their links to Russia and Communism. For many people these tight connections with Russia are not positive, but still their efforts to liberate Norway from Nazi Germany shouldn’t be forgotten.