Economic Consequences Of The German Occupation Of Norway, 1940–1945

Abstract

Since the liberation from the German occupation of 1940–1945, the dominant national narrative has been of the far-reaching exploitation and destruction of the Norwegian economy by the occupant forces. The scholarly basis for this narrative was a book written by Odd Aukrust and Petter Jacob Bjerke in 1945. The narrative formed an important basis for the Norwegian variant of economic reconstruction following liberation and has also dominated historiography. However, Aukrust and Bjerve’s presentation of the bleak situation in 1945 was exaggerated and is, historically speaking, untenable. Another conclusion is that the German occupation initiated a 20-year period in which the Norwegian economy was less open and exposed to internal and external competition than in any other period subsequent to Norway entering the liberal age of free trade and free international capital transactions in the middle of the 19th century.

Keywords:

• Norway
• Second World War
• German occupation
• economic governance
• economic regulation
• war costs and damages

Notes

1. 1 The latest summary and analysis of the national narrative of the Second World War is Grimnes, ‘Hvor står okkupasjonshistorien’. On the business elites, see Espeli, ‘The German’.

2. 2 Cf. the memoirs of the Prime Minister from 1945, Gerhardsen, Fellesskap, esp. 217 ff., and Gerhardsen, Samarbeid, 22 ff.

3. 3 Aukrust and Bjerve, Hva krigen. The official status of the book was underlined by the foreword by Gunnar Jahn, director of Statistics Norway. It is typical of the book’s elevated status among Norwegian economists that no critical comments of its perspective and analysis can be found in the most recent comment on the book by a prominent Norwegian economist, Bjerkholt, Kunnskapens krav, esp. 93, 98.

4. 4 Bjerkholt, Kunnskapens krav, 93 ff; Lie, Ambisjon, esp. 115–16; Bjerve, Økonomisk planlegging, esp. 56–7; Nordby, Storting, 68–70.

5. 5 Milward, The Fascist; Bohn, Reichskommisariat.

6. 6 Hodne and Grytten, Norsk økonomi 1900–1990, 170–1; Hodne and Grytten, Norsk økonomi i det tyvende århundre, 177–8; Hodne, Norges økonomiske historie; Hodne, The Norwegian Economy; Bergh, ‘Norsk økonomisk politikk’, 19–20. See also Wasberg and Svendsen, Industriens historie, 225–31; Bergh and Hanisch, Vitenskap, 188; Lange, Samling, 126–7.

7. 7 Vogt, Vår økonomiske, 11 ff.

8. 8 Bjerkholt, Kunnskapens krav.

9. 9 SSB, NOS X., 102, Christensen, Vårt folks liv, 478.

10. 10 Eitrheim, Klovland, and Qvigstad, Historical Monitary Statistics, 279; Aukrust, Norges økonomi.

11. 11 See, for example, Grønlie, Norsk industripolitikk, and the numerous volumes he initiated, describing and analysing research on post-war history (in the series Etterkrigshistorisk register), Tjelmeland, ‘Hva krigen’; Hanisch, Søilen, and Ecklund, Norsk økonomisk politikk, 137 ff.

12. 12 Wicken, ‘Industrial Change’; Hjeltnes, Hverdagsliv, 67–96. The increased installation of electrical motors had been noted earlier by Valen, De tjente, 30 ff.

13. 13 Hanisch and Lange, Veien til velstand, 36–46; Furre, Vårt hundreår, 191–203; Lange, Samling om felles mål, 107 ff; Bull, Klassekamp, 369–86, Bull, Norge i den rike verden, 67–96; Rokkan, ‘Geography’.

14. 14 Administrasjonsrådet, Bestemmelser, 1–2.

15. 15 Didriksen, Industrien, 164.

16. 16 Espeli, ‘Det gavner’.

17. 17 Espeli, ‘The German Occupation’, 114–15.

18. 18 van der Wee and Verbreyt, A Small Nation, 135 ff.

19. 19 Grytten, ‘Arbeidsledighetens omfang’, 272.

20. 20 SSB, Statistisk-økonomisk, 231, 277.

21. 21 Andersen, De gjorde, 372. His figures only include blue collar workers. I have added clerks and functionaries in the same proportion as in Norway.

22. 22 SSB, Statistisk-økonomisk, 218–23, 276–7; Tuveng, Arbeidsløshet, 124–37.

23. 23 SSB, Statistiske meddelelser 1942, 275–6, 1943, 154–5. Until 1944 persons entitled to poor relief had few reasons not to register. In 1944 persons receiving poor relief able to do hard physical labour might be forced to enlist in the ‘National work effort’, introduced by the Quisling regime in 1943.

24. 24 Milward, War, Economy, 138–48; Bohn, Reichskommisariat, 321–2; Mazower, Hitler’s Empire, 271; Klemann and Kudryashov, Occupied Economies, 99.

25. 25 SSB, Norges offisielle statistikk, (NOS) XII 163, NOS X.102; Vogt, Skrifter; Grytten, ‘The Gross Domestic Product’; Norwegian National Archives (RA), Private Archive (PA) 951, Korffs unpublished manuscript ‘Norwegens Wirtschaft im Malstrom der Okkupation’, part I, 354 ff.

26. 26 Kjeldstadli, Hjemmestyrkene, 32–7; Vogt and Hartmann, Akten, esp. 50.

27. 27 Tjelmeland and Brochmann, I globaliseringens tid, 12; Soleim, ‘Sovjetiske krigsfanger’, 3, 56, 195; Skodvin, Norsk historie, 225, 235; Bohn, Reichskommisariat, 379.

28. 28 Klemann and Kudryashov, Occupied Economies, 210; SSB, Statistisk-økonomisk, 113 ff.

29. 29 For an indication of the scope of this, see Kroener, Müller, and Umbreit, Germany, 223.

30. 30 SSB, Statistisk-økonomisk, 28–44.

31. 31 SSB, NOS X. 102, 164.

32. 32 Stortingsforhandlingene (Parliamentary Records, PR), St.meld.nr.55 (1957), 24.

33. 33 Hodne and Grytten, Norsk økonomi, 172–3.

34. 34 SSB, NOS X. 102, 158–9. The total Norwegian demand for war reparations from Germany amounted to 21 billion NOK at 1939 prices; Christensen, Vårt folks liv, 478.

35. 35 Aukrust and Bjerve, Hva krigen, 41–9; SSB, NOS X. 102,129–67.

36. 36 Cf. Hodne and Grytten, Norsk økonomi, 170–1; Hodne and Grytten, Norsk økonomi, 142, 177–8.

37. 37 See also Espeli, ‘De økonomiske relationer’, 145–8.

38. 38 Aukrust and Bjerve, Hva krigen, esp. 49; SSB, Statistisk-økonomisk; SSB, NOS X. 102.

39. 39 PR, St.meld.nr.8 (1953), St.prp.nr.69 (1945–1946).

40. 40 Archive of the Auditor General of Norway, unsorted papers, Korff’s P.M 5 July 1945 to Riksrevisor Lütken; Bohn, Reichskommisariat, 268–9.

41. 41 Gulowsen and Ryggvik, Jernbanen, 11–60.

42. 42 Espeli, Norsk telekommunikasjonshistorie.

43. 43 Thue, Statens Kraft, 385.

44. 44 Henden, Frøland, and Karlsen, Globalisering, 194–203; Sogner, Skaperkraft, 125–7; Bergh and Lange, Foredlet virke, 194–9; PR St.prpr.nr.1 (1949) tillegg nr.1, Norges Industri 1941, 196, 234.

45. 45 Andreassen, ‘Kjøle og fryseteknologi’.

46. 46 Johannessen, ‘Fiskeskinn’.

47. 47 Slettan, Bondesamfunn, 14.

48. 48 Espeli, Fra hest, 609–13.

49. 49 Espeli, Norsk telekommunikasjonshistorie, 266; Bjørnhaug and Halvorsen, Medlemsmakt, 255.

50. 50 Næss and Hovland, Folkestyre, 155–207; Espeli, Fra hest, 292–4.

51. 51 Wicken, ‘Industrial’; Johannessen, ‘Fiskeskinn’; Sogner, Skaperkraft, 117–41; Sogner, God på bunnen; Amdam and Sogner, Rik på kontraster, 85 ff.

52. 52 Blom and Sogner, Med kjønnsperspektiv, 345.

53. 53 Trustkontrollen 1939, 279–85, 352–406, 1940, 63 ff, 227–58; Pristidende 1940, 41–9, 259–354, 1941, 764 ff, 1005 ff, 1942, 334–42, 606–10, 875–6, 1943, 209; Kili, ‘Den borgerlige’, 159–60.

54. 54 Norsk Lovtidende (the London Edition) 1940–1945, 483–502, esp. Section 2.

55. 55 Pristidende 1941, 38–45, 1114–23.

56. 56 PR, Ot.prp.nr.82 (1997–98), Section 8.5.

57. 57 Jahn, Eriksen, and Munthe, Norges bank, 316; Administrasjonsrådet, Bestemmelser, 70–1; Espeli, Konkurransebegrensninger, 51 ff.

58. 58 Espeli, ‘Det gavner’.

59. 59 Lie, ‘Pengesanering’. In Belgium a swift and drastic monetary reform was enacted in October 1944, but it was not well prepared and the results were mixed; see van der Wee and Verbreyt, A Small Nation, 425 ff.

60. 60 Aukrust and Bjerve, Hva krigen, 248–60; Eitrheim, Klovland, and Qvigstad, Historical Monitary Statistics, 124 ff.

61. 61 Olsen and Hoffmeyer, Dansk pengehistorie, 162–212.

62. 62 Rygg, Norges Bank, 465–70, 542–4, 622–3; Koefoed, Den norske bankforening, 121–5, 142, 178–81; Roll, ‘Bytte eller utbytte’.

63. 63 Administrasjonsrådet, Bestemmelser, 48, 226–9; Lyng, Veksten i statens makt, 114–16.

64. 64 Halvorsen, Jern og metall, 28 ff; Administrasjonsrådet, Bestemmelser, 52–3; Bjørnhaug and Halvorsen, Medlemsmakt, 111–2, 273 ff; Bergh, Storhetstid, 133–51.

65. 65 Espeli, Bergh, and Rønning, Melkens pris, 60 ff ; RA, S 1062, Dca box 196.

66. 66 Espeli, ‘Landbruket under’, 75 ff; Lyng, Veksten i statens makt, 187–205.

67. 67 Administrasjonsrådet, Bestemmelser, 182–3, 217–20, 400–1, 409; Lyng, Veksten i statens makt, 142–155.

68. 68 Administrasjonsrådet, Bestemmelser, 155–7, 361–4.

69. 69 Norsk Lovtidende 2nen Avdeling 1940, 250–3, 1941, 421–6, 1943, 146–56; Vidvei, ‘Eit oversyn’; Vidvei, ‘Skatt til’; Espeli, Norsk telekommunikasjonshistorie, 308.

70. 70 Haugen, På ære, 144–51; Bohn, Reichskommisariat, 336–42.

71. 71 Grønlie, Statsdrift.

72. 72 Espeli, Norsk telekommunikasjonshistorie, ch. 9.

73. 73 Pedersen, Danmarks økonomiske historie, 98 ff, 392 ff.

74. 74 Fure, Mellomkrigstid, 149–79.

75. 75 Paavonen, ‘Finland’.

76. 76 Boje and Kallestrup, Marked, 130 ff; Just, Landbruket; Pedersen, Danmarks økonomiske historie; Wetterberg, Money and Power, 323 ff.

77. 77 One of the newest examples is Lie, Norsk økonomisk, 79 ff.

78. 78 Also in this respect Norwegian policies and experiences were much closer to the Danish experience than that of other German-occupied countries; Christensen, ‘Sortbørskriminalitet’.

79. 79 Bull, Norge i den rike verden, 65 ff. The British experience was much closer to Norway in this respect than continental countries; Zweiniger-Bargelowska, Austerity.

80. 80 Taylor, Between Resistance and Collaboration; Klemann, ‘Did the German Occupation’.

81. 81 See, for example, Espeli, Fra Thagaard til Egil Bakke, 13 ff; Solli, Krigsforsyninger.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Harald Espeli

Harald Espeli (b.1955) is senior researcher at BI Norwegian Business School. He has written a number of commissioned works, including the second volume of the history of Norwegian telecommunications between 1920 and 1970 (2005). He has published extensively on Norway’s economic and political history in the 20th century including topics concerning World War II such as ‘De økonomiske relasjoner mellom Tyskland og Norge 1940–45’ in Hans Fredrik Dahl, Hans Kirchhoff, Joachim Lund & Lars Erik Vaale, Danske tilstander, norske tilstander: Forskjeller og likheter under tysk okkupasjon 1940–45. Oslo: Forlaget Press, 2010: 135–166 and ‘The German occupation and its consequences for the composition and changes of Norwegian business elites’ in Jahrbuch für Wirtschaftsgeschichte 2010/2: 107–130. Department of Innovation and Economic Organization, BI Norwegian Business School, Nydalsveien 37, 0442 Oslo, Norway.