Denmark under military occupation
By Keld Jørgensen
World War II begins
In March 1939 Germany made Bohemia and Mähren a protectorate and Slovakia a vassal state. General Franco won the civil war in Spain, and in August 1939 von Ribbentrop and Molotov signed a Non-aggression Pact between Germany and the Soviet Union.
Travelling with a friend in Germany I happened to be in Berlin that very day. In the following week we saw the situation becoming tense with special proclamations. New regulations were constantly being announced on the radio, and there were rumours of war. A castle we had wanted to visit was declared a military area, and we noticed that we were almost the only tourists left in the area. When we came to Frankfurt, the Mosel area was closed; and when we arrived in Hamburg, the invasion of Poland had begun. Although the war had started in Europe, we did not yet, in small neutral Denmark, fully understand the implications this could have for us.
The war moves closer
However when Russia attacked Finland on November 1st, I felt that it also concerned me. This was a small Scandinavian country being invaded by a large neighbour. I felt it so deeply that I went to the Finnish Embassy offering to volunteer in whatever way I could. Not having any military training, and being only 20, I could not take part in the war, so I tried to organise a student sponsored Finland-day, to collect money for Finland and create awareness about the matter. I and another student approached the Chancellor of the University and the leader of the Copenhagen police with the idea; they showed great sympathy, but said that nothing like that could be done, because it might have international implications for Denmark's position as a neutral country. To me that was deeply regrettable.
On April 9th 1940, Germany invaded Denmark. The Danish border defence was able to halt the German invasion in southern Denmark, but at the same time Copenhagen was invaded by seaborne forces, which succeeded in occupying the centre of city, while many local garrisons were being attacked by airborne troops. With the German airforce circling overhead, threatening to bomb Copenhagen at any moment, the Danish government surrendered, though under protest. The agreement of surrender allowed Denmark to govern its own affairs, and military and naval personnel and equipment were kept under Danish control.
With German planes in the sky over Copenhagen and many strategic places under German control, the surrender by the government was understandable, although we resented it deeply. But what many others and I came to resent even more was the compromises that the Danish government slowly made under growing German pressure. I began to take active part in the Students Shooting Association, which, secretly, under the cover of cross-country running, had begun to prepare an underground movement that might develop into military groups.
National soul-searching
The first period under the German occupation became in many ways a national revival of common values with the potential of strengthening the unity of the people. That made me search deeper into my own soul. The pressure of living under the occupation also raised a question for me about the moral and spiritual values needed to preserve and develop the strength of the Danish society.
It was in this situation that I met some young people from the Oxford Group. Here I found Christian attitudes expressed simply and clearly, and a real urge to implement them in day to day life. In this way I got to know the group of people who had initiated the LAB. And I discovered that the sense of common values which I had experienced in the wake of the occupation had very much been helped on the way by individuals who felt the need for such unity.
A sense of identity
The German occupation of Denmark put the Danes in a very difficult position in regard to their identity and loyalties. As in most occupied countries, the people at large were against the occupying forces, and underground resistance-groups made life difficult for the Germans and their supporters by sabotage. However, until 1943 the Danish government was still in position, trying to ease the situation of the country by uncomfortable co-operation with the occupying power. For the civilian population this meant that in effect the police force was working for the Germans: it had to track down and arrest saboteurs. For the army it meant that although still under Danish command, it was confined to certain areas and could do absolutely nothing about the situation of the country. This obviously put the officers into an impossible situation.
Altogether, the situation made for a population of confused loyalties and an atmosphere of growing distrust. Germany was laying down the guidelines, but law and order were still being imposed by a Danish police force under a Danish government. In this situation how was one best to be loyal to Denmark?
Initiatives were needed, both in order to revive a sense of Danish identity which could make the people feel a united whole, and in order to give the Danish military personnel a role which could build up trust between them and the people.
One way of creating a sense of unity in the people was by bringing opposing Danish groups together in co-operation. This had already started to happen on a small scale in the autumn of 1939, when some young people inspired by the challenges of the Oxford Group had decided to attempt to build a better relationship between various young people’s associations that did not usually talk to each other. They had a successful start in a local area in Jutland where the different political and Christian youth groups decided to work together.
This encouraged two young men from Copenhagen to try something similar on a larger scale, not shying away from contacting people in more senior positions. The contacts they made resulted in an initiative from the Social Democratic Youth, which led to joint discussions with leaders of other youth groups. One month after the occupation, 27 national youth leaders and 4 of the young people connected with the Oxford Group met to discuss the possibility of forming a joint youth council. Then, on June 25th, 1940, they, and a group of leaders from the Folk High School Movement, officially founded the Danish Association of Youth Co-operation. This association came to play a vital part in strengthening national unity in the difficult years that followed during the occupation.
Other people were thinking very strategically. One was a naval captain, Kaj Hammerich, whose son was later to be executed for sabotage, and who a decade later became known countrywide for sailing a hospital-ship to Korea in the heat of the Korean War. A few days after the German invasion, he and his wife invited some close friends for a meal in their home from a sense of need to talk about the serious situation and pray about what to do. Amongst them were some members of Folketinget as well as ship-owner Christian Harhoff with his wife Rigmor. They soon agreed that above everything Denmark needed a strengthened sense of nationhood. At the end of the lunch they tried to think of various people who had insight and vision, but also quite different political views and religious backgrounds. It amounted to around one hundred names of men and women who might be able to take on national responsibility together, with the purpose of strengthening a common sense of national belonging. In this way they hoped that a vacuum which could otherwise be an inroad for Nazi ideology might be filled.
A week later, about 75 people met in the Harhoff home. There were people from very varied walks of life, both politicians and people from trade unions, education, the Church, youth groups and business. They did not have a history of mutual agreement, but on this occasion they all agreed not to blame each other for past annoyances and instead to concentrate on tasks that could help build unity and inner strength in the Danish people.
This led to other meetings that inspired people in various fields to take action.
One of the first initiatives to grow out of these encounters in the home of the Harhoffs was a series of meetings in town halls and churches. They stressed that the shape of the country depended very much on the shape of the homes that constituted that country, and at least everyone could do something to make their own home a good and harmonious one, thus strengthening the country as a whole. The first meeting was in the Copenhagen Town Hall, led by Brodersen, Dean of Copenhagen and the Lord Mayor. Various leaders gave speeches, and these meetings gave hope to the Danish people that Denmark would not become a German province, but again become a free nation - a nation, more united, cleansed and strengthened.
Bringing the people and the army together
Another initiative was to have great consequences for Denmark during the occupation. Colonel H.A.V. Hansen, and Naval Captain Kaj Hammerich decided to start the movement known as "Folk og Værn" (People and Defence) to foster contact between the military and the civilian population. In the time between the two world wars the government had cut down on the budget for the army, following the general opinion that Denmark could hardly be defended anyway, so there was no reason to waste money on the military. This disregard for the army and its role created a lack of understanding in the population and in the government in particular, for the hopeless situation that the military had been put into when Denmark was occupied. So there was a certain bitterness and great lack of purpose in the army.
Hansen went to some of the leading figures in the army and told them about the idea of "Folk og Værn". Some were enthusiastic, others not. But the Chief of General Staff believed in the idea and entrusted Hansen with the task of helping the garrison commanders to restore the spirit in the army in order to give them a sense of purpose and respect in their work and to have faith in the future. To begin with it was a matter of the inner morale in the armed forces, but it was clear that a further aim was necessary, namely to better the relationship between the civilian population and the forces.
The Chief of General Staff was quite convinced that no man in the army was better fitted than Colonel Hansen for the task of building bridges between people, opening new avenues, and establishing contacts, and he gave him his full support. H.A.V. Hansen was given a desk and a telephone in the Ministry of Defence and took on the work with the conviction that the task should not just be for the benefit of the Forces, but for the entire country. The army might not be in a position to fight in arms for Denmark, but it might still become the strength of the nation.
In the autumn of 1940, a conference took place which brought together a group of civic and military representatives: a number of leading politicians, youth leaders, and people from university, education, church and industry as well as outstanding military leaders. The purpose of the gathering was to find out how to mobilise the strength of a nation through teamwork. Among the speakers were Major General E. Gørtz, who was to take over as Chief of General Staff half way through the war, and the National Chairman of the Social Democratic Youth Association. The work of the Danish Youth Council and LAB, which were both founded on the idea of co-operation between conflicting parties, was used as an example, and the meeting laid the ground for some understanding between civilians and military.
In January 1941, for the first time, the political leaders of the Labour Movement and the National Trade Union leaders met with representatives of the military forces to discuss a closer co-operation. It was essential for the officers to develop some knowledge and understanding of other sections of society, in order to build trust, and this meeting was one major step on the way.
The officers expressed their frustration at the situation that they had been put into, and the Social Democratic leader, Hans Hedtoft, who became Prime Minister after the liberation, said: "We need to realise that we all have made mistakes. I can only state that if we again become a free, independent and democratic Denmark, we have learned, as General Gørtz underlined for us, that a military vacuum cannot exist." In war time such a vacuum was bound to be filled out by someone, and that had happened in Denmark. For a Social Democratic leader to be ready to respect the military as having an important role to play was quite a break-through for understanding and co-operation between army and people.
Danish refusal to give in to German pressure
In August 1943, the situation came to a head with the German occupying forces. Faced with further German demands, the Danish caretaker-government resigned. Germany immediately made strong counter-measures, and the garrisons where the Danish officers were stationed were attacked. The battle was, of course, very uneven and the garrisons were taken over by the German army, the equipment confiscated and officers and military personnel interned.
There was also a move to take over the ships from the Danish navy. But the Danish Admiral in command was able to send an order to all the naval ships to sail to Sweden or, if this was prevented by the German navy, to sink their ships. A few succeeded in reaching Sweden, but most of the Danish naval ships were sunk, either in the harbour or when they were approached by German naval vessels.
On this very day there was to have been a gathering of people from the Oxford Group in a hall in Copenhagen. However, gatherings of more than a few people were prohibited, so instead we met in a church, because that was the one place where larger groups could meet. This was shortly after my own contact with the group and for the first time I met some of those who had taken these initiatives. I was especially moved by what Kaj Hammerich told. He had been able to reach Sweden with a small naval vessel, but had a growing sense that God had a task for him in Denmark. He obeyed his inner conviction and went back. This example of obedience to an inner prompting came to mean much to me.
The resigning of the Danish government was a great relief for many of us. Now we were freed from having to compromise with German demands. Hitler was furious, but as there were no people of standing in the Danish Nazi party, a "Quisling" government was not installed, and Denmark continued its own life under the administration of civil servants, but. the entire Danish police-force was rounded up and sent to concentration camps.
Rescue Operation
To give vent to his anger Hitler gave orders that all Danish Jews should be taken into custody and sent to Germany. This information was leaked and gave rise to a momentous Danish rescue operation. Practically all Jews were hidden before the occupying forces could find them. To Danes, the Jewish population were just other Danes, free to practise their own religion and culture, so Jewish families were warned immediately and taken into other Danish families. Spontaneous actions were then mounted to help them to safety in Sweden. The hospitals were the main centres for this rescue operation in which all kinds of groups took part.
A student organisation, which I had joined in 1940, was one of these groups. One night we were forced to hide from the German soldiers in a forest at the Gjorslev Estate just south of Copenhagen with 250 Jews. It was actually during that night that I decided to take up the challenge I had met through the people in the Oxford Group. The following night I went with 50 of the Jews, hiding under canvasses on a truck, to a place where a ship was waiting. We managed to get all 250 men, women and children safely to Sweden.
Hammerich and his family took a very active part in helping Jews escape to Sweden and continued with many rescue operations of others who had to flee there, such as people from the Danish resistance. Many of those who had been meeting in the Harhoff home, also became involved in the increasing underground activities.
When the Danish army was interned, Colonel Hansen was for some reason overlooked. However, he felt that with the sudden change of circumstances in Denmark the army needed to reconsider its role as a part of the resistance. He later told me how he had had the conviction that he needed to talk with General Gørtz, who had been the general in command, about the overall situation in the country, and to discuss the position and responsibility of the officer corps. But Gørtz was held under German guard at the Marienlyst Hotel north of Copenhagen.
"I got the thought that I should report to the Germans and say that they must have forgotten me when they interned the other officers. So I did. The Germans were, of course, amazed, but saw nothing for it but to intern me as well. But they send me to another camp, not the Marienlyst Hotel where I had wanted to go. What was I to do? I knelt down and said to God, ‘Here I am. There is nothing more I can do. You will have to get me to Marienlyst." It was no surprise to him when he was transferred to Marienlyst, where he had a talk with the General. General Gørtz, on the other hand, was very surprised to see Colonel Hansen, but he and the other interned officers felt very encouraged by his arrival.
After some discussion, they agreed that the army and the underground resistance movement should join forces and work together for the liberation of Denmark. Gørtz asked Hansen to go to the Social Democratic leaders, in the event that he should be released, in order to talk to them about the situation and see what could be done. Some time later, all the officers were released instead of being sent to Germany as had been expected, and Colonel Hansen made arrangements for the illegal negotiations which led to General Gørtz being put in charge of all the armed underground forces. This turned out to be fortunate, for the resistance was made up of many small groups with very different backgrounds and ideas. With one man in command, respected by all sides, it could act as a unified whole and did not end up fighting for power at the end of the war.
During the last years of the occupation, the Danish resistance was quite effective in its sabotage of railway lines used by German troops travelling between Norway and the retreating German front in Western Europe. In addition the sabotage of industries that produced equipment for the German army increased considerably.
Daring to act
The work of Colonel Hansen also took on another aspect. He undertook to give financial help to the relatives of the officers who had joined the Allied Forces and in this he was assisted by a captain named Agger.
In carrying out such work, conflicts with the occupying forces were unavoidable. In August 1944 Agger was taken by the Gestapo to their headquarters, and word went around that the Germans were looking for Colonel Hansen. Several of his colleagues strongly urged him to leave for Sweden. He listened to them, but after a moment of "turning his ear upwards", he told them that he had had the thought that he could go to the Gestapo Head Quarter in safety and would come out again - and Agger with him. There was general consternation. "Far too dangerous", said his friends. "You know too much and you are not willing to lie." Colonel Hansen replied, "Yes, but I also had another thought - that I would not be asked any questions which I could not answer honestly."
Colonel Hansen told me later how this conviction had been possible. "It was the experience of listening for God's guidance, which led to all the things that happened. Nothing is as exciting as learning to live by guidance. You ‘turn your ear upwards’ and the 'High Commander' tells you what to do. That was what I learned from Frank Buchman. It was by following those steps in guidance that I finally became attached to the General Staff and came into contact with the political leaders."
At the Gestapo headquarters
So, off he went to the Gestapo, where there was almost as much consternation. They were not accustomed to have people they were looking for turning up voluntarily. "You are looking for me. Here I am", said the colonel. A leading Gestapo officer presented him with a list of names and addresses of families who had been receiving help - a list they had found on Captain Agger. "Do you know anything about this?" they asked him. "Yes, indeed I do, and Captain Agger has acted on my orders", he answered.
When he was told that this was a serious offence, Colonel Hansen replied, "I do not see it that way. After the last war it was German and Austrian children who were in need, and then I helped them. My wife and I took in a German boy and made a home for him with us. The same thing could happen again." "Yes indeed," said the German officer. And, after a long pause he went on "I was one of those children. You may go." "No," replied Hansen", "No, I cannot go without Captain Agger. He only did what I ordered him to do." Then there was a long discussion amongst the Gestapo men, but the final outcome was that both Colonel Hansen and Captain Agger left Shell House. Hansen added with a twinkle in his eye, as he told of this episode, "They knew as well as I did that there were many other things that Agger had been up to!"
After this, Colonel Hansen and the captain continued their activities until the end of the occupation
In the spring of 1945, Berlin fell and the British troops reached the north of Germany and were close to the Danish border. On the eve of May 4th, 1945, the message came over the BBC, (to which all Danes listened), that the German armies in Denmark had surrendered. The whole population went out on the streets to celebrate. But as no allied troops had yet crossed the border into Denmark, it was soon obvious that it could be quite a dangerous situation. There and then the underground forces went into action as one movement. There were a few incidents with German soldiers shooting, but on the whole the surrender went well, and the underground units took control.
When a Danish government had again been founded and general order restored in the country, the underground army was dissolved. There was a parade of all the units at the place in Copenhagen where a number of Danes had been executed during the occupation. About 40,000 people, took part in the parade, including the little unit I was in charge of.
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