Annæus Schjødt
Encyclopedia
Annæus Schjødt was a Norwegian lawyer. He is best known as the prosecutor
of Vidkun Quisling
.
as a son of Attorney General Annæus Johannes Schjødt (1857–1923) and Laura Marie Rømcke (1860–1893). In October 1914 he married Hedevig Petersen (1892–1966). The two had the son Annæus Schjødt, Jr
, as well as the daughter Karen Hedevig Schjødt who married chief physician Thorstein Guthe
.
in 1907 and the cand.jur. degree in 1911. He worked in Hadeland and Land District Court from 1913 to 1914. He was a junior solicitor in the law firm Bredal, Christiansen & Fougner from 1914, and lawyer from 1917 to 1920. He started his own firm in 1936. By the mid-1930s the firm was called Fougner, Schjødt, Grette og Smith.
During the occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany
, Schjødt and his wife joined the resistance organization 2A. He had to flee to Sweden in the spring of 1942 and at the Norwegian legation in Stockholm
he became leader of the refugee office. His wife was active in the sub-department, the sports office. During Schjødt's time the office moved to Kjesäter
. In the autumn of 1943 the couple were ordered to move to London
where the Norwegian government-in-exile was seated. Schjødt became leader of Norges Luftfartstyre. He also used his background in law to lead the commissions London-utvalg I and London-utvalg II, which prepared the principles for treason trials against Norwegians after the war.
After the war, Schjødt was chosen as the prosecutor
in the most high-profiled treason case in Norway, the Court of Appeal case against Vidkun Quisling
. He called for the death sentence
, which was unanimously agreed to in the Court of Appeal, and also in the Supreme Court. Other cases include the treason trials against Kjeld Stub Irgens
and Axel Heiberg Stang
and the review trial of Halldis Neegård Østbye.
He was a board chairman of Forsikringsselskapet Viking and board member of Forsikringsselskapet Minerva and Avviklingsinstituttet. In 1965 he was decorated as a Commander of the Order of St. Olav. He died in October 1972 in Oslo.
Prosecutor
The prosecutor is the chief legal representative of the prosecution in countries with either the common law adversarial system, or the civil law inquisitorial system...
of Vidkun Quisling
Vidkun Quisling
Vidkun Abraham Lauritz Jonssøn Quisling was a Norwegian politician. On 9 April 1940, with the German invasion of Norway in progress, he seized power in a Nazi-backed coup d'etat that garnered him international infamy. From 1942 to 1945 he served as Minister-President, working with the occupying...
.
Personal life
He was born in KristianiaOslo
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...
as a son of Attorney General Annæus Johannes Schjødt (1857–1923) and Laura Marie Rømcke (1860–1893). In October 1914 he married Hedevig Petersen (1892–1966). The two had the son Annæus Schjødt, Jr
Annæus Schjødt, Jr.
-Personal life:He was born in Aker as a son of Annæus Schjødt and Hedevig Schjødt, née Petersen . He was a grandson of Attorney General Annæus J. Schjødt. His sister Karen Hedevig Schjødt married chief physician Thorstein Guthe....
, as well as the daughter Karen Hedevig Schjødt who married chief physician Thorstein Guthe
Thorstein Guthe
Thorstein Guthe was a Norwegian physician and Olympic fencer.-Personal life and early career:He was born in Kristiania as a son of tailor Hans O. Guthe and Hilda Kathrine Helgesen . In 1950 he married Karen Hedevig Schjødt, a daughter of Annæus Schjødt, granddaughter of Annæus J...
.
Career
He took the examen artiumExamen artium
Examen artium was the name of the academic certification conferred in Denmark and Norway, qualifying the student for admission to university studies. Examen artium was originally introduced as the entrance exam of the University of Copenhagen in 1630...
in 1907 and the cand.jur. degree in 1911. He worked in Hadeland and Land District Court from 1913 to 1914. He was a junior solicitor in the law firm Bredal, Christiansen & Fougner from 1914, and lawyer from 1917 to 1920. He started his own firm in 1936. By the mid-1930s the firm was called Fougner, Schjødt, Grette og Smith.
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...
, Schjødt and his wife joined the resistance organization 2A. He had to flee to Sweden in the spring of 1942 and at the Norwegian legation in Stockholm
Norwegian legation in Stockholm
The Norwegian Legation in Stockholm played a significant role during the Second World War. Until 9 April 1940 the legation consisted of four persons, and at the end of the war about 1,100 persons were connected to the legation. Refugee cases were among the legation's most central tasks...
he became leader of the refugee office. His wife was active in the sub-department, the sports office. During Schjødt's time the office moved to Kjesäter
Kjesäter
Kjesäter is a manor in the municipality of Vingåker in the county of Södermanland that now serves as a folkhögskola and youth hostel. During World War II, it served as a refugee camp and transit center for refugees fleeing Nazi persecution in Norway....
. In the autumn of 1943 the couple were ordered to move to London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
where the Norwegian government-in-exile was seated. Schjødt became leader of Norges Luftfartstyre. He also used his background in law to lead the commissions London-utvalg I and London-utvalg II, which prepared the principles for treason trials against Norwegians after the war.
After the war, Schjødt was chosen as the prosecutor
Prosecutor
The prosecutor is the chief legal representative of the prosecution in countries with either the common law adversarial system, or the civil law inquisitorial system...
in the most high-profiled treason case in Norway, the Court of Appeal case against Vidkun Quisling
Vidkun Quisling
Vidkun Abraham Lauritz Jonssøn Quisling was a Norwegian politician. On 9 April 1940, with the German invasion of Norway in progress, he seized power in a Nazi-backed coup d'etat that garnered him international infamy. From 1942 to 1945 he served as Minister-President, working with the occupying...
. He called for the death sentence
Death Sentence
Death Sentence is a short story by the American science-fiction writer Isaac Asimov. It was first published in the November 1943 issue of Astounding Science Fiction and reprinted in the 1972 collection The Early Asimov.-Plot summary:...
, which was unanimously agreed to in the Court of Appeal, and also in the Supreme Court. Other cases include the treason trials against Kjeld Stub Irgens
Kjeld Stub Irgens
Kjeld Stub Irgens was a Norwegian politician during the German occupation of Norway.-Early life:He was born in 1879 to vicar Jens Stub Irgens and his wife Sophie Cathinka, née Altschwager. He had several brothers and sisters...
and Axel Heiberg Stang
Axel Heiberg Stang
Axel Heiberg Stang was a Norwegian who was appointed councillor of state in the Nasjonal Samling government of Vidkun Quisling , and minister ....
and the review trial of Halldis Neegård Østbye.
He was a board chairman of Forsikringsselskapet Viking and board member of Forsikringsselskapet Minerva and Avviklingsinstituttet. In 1965 he was decorated as a Commander of the Order of St. Olav. He died in October 1972 in Oslo.