Henry Wilhelm Kristiansen
Encyclopedia
Henry Wilhelm Kristiansen (12 February 1902 - 16 January 1942) was a Norwegian newspaper editor and politician for the Communist Party
. He served as party chairman from 1931 to 1934, and then as editor-in-chief of the party organ Arbeideren
from 1934 until 1940. Due to the Nazi German occupation of Norway
, the newspaper was closed in 1940, and Kristiansen was deported together with his wife in 1941. He died in Neuengamme concentration camp in 1942.
as the son of Martin Wilhelm Kristiansen and his wife Gina, née Olsen. He married the Russian Jew Mirjam Rathaus in 1928. The family settled in Nordstrand
.
He joined the Norges Socialdemokratiske Ungdomsforbund in 1916, but at the Labour-Communist party split in 1923, he joined the Young Communist League
. He had a brief stint as chairman of the Young Communist League in 1923.
politburo
. After a stay in the Soviet Union
from 1929 to 1931, he returned to Norway in 1931 to become party chairman. He was removed in 1934 at the hands of Comintern
. Instead, he became editor-in-chief of the official party newspaper Arbeideren
.
On 9 April 1940, Norway was invaded
and occupied by Nazi Germany
. The Communist Party and Arbeideren originally declared themselves neutral. On 16 August 1940, however, the Communist Party was outlawed, and the newspaper Arbeideren was shut down by the authorities. Kristiansen was arrested, but was released shortly thereafter. He continued as an underground member of the Communist Party, and is considered as the de facto party chairman.
Kristiansen was arrested on 22 June 1941, the same day as Operation Barbarossa
commenced. In November 1941 he and Johan Strand Johansen
were arrested and deported on the SS Donau
to Hamburg
. In December he was sent to Neuengamme concentration camp, where he died in January 1942. His urn
was sent to Skien
and buried there. His wife Mirjam, identified as Jewish, was deported with him, before was sent
via Ravensbrück to Auschwitz, where she was murdered in a gas chamber in May 1942.
Arbeideren was not continued after the war's end in 1945. In 1948, during the legal purge in Norway after World War II
, an indictment towards Arbeideren was considered because of the neutral alignment after 9 April 1940—however, since the editor-in-chief Kristiansen was deceased, the case was closed.
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...
. He served as party chairman from 1931 to 1934, and then as editor-in-chief of the party organ Arbeideren
Arbeideren
Arbeideren was a daily newspaper published in Oslo, Norway.It was started on 2 November 1929 as the official party newspaper from the Communist Party. It lent its name from a Hamar-based newspaper of the same name, which had gone defunct on 4 October. More directly, it replaced Norges...
from 1934 until 1940. Due to the Nazi German occupation of Norway
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...
, the newspaper was closed in 1940, and Kristiansen was deported together with his wife in 1941. He died in Neuengamme concentration camp in 1942.
Early life
He was born in DrammenDrammen
Drammen is a city in Buskerud County, Norway. The port and river city of Drammen is centrally located in the eastern and most populated part of Norway.-Location:...
as the son of Martin Wilhelm Kristiansen and his wife Gina, née Olsen. He married the Russian Jew Mirjam Rathaus in 1928. The family settled in Nordstrand
Nordstrand, Norway
Nordstrand is a borough of the city of Oslo, Norway.The borough is located in the southern part of the city and is the second most populated district of Oslo with over 40,000 inhabitants...
.
He joined the Norges Socialdemokratiske Ungdomsforbund in 1916, but at the Labour-Communist party split in 1923, he joined the Young Communist League
Young Communist League of Norway
Young Communist League of Norway was until April 2006 the youth league of Norges Kommunistiske Parti . April 1st 2006 NKP declared that NKU was no longer its youth organization, and that all youths interested in joining the movement should contact the party directly...
. He had a brief stint as chairman of the Young Communist League in 1923.
Political career
In 1925 he became a member of the Communist PartyCommunist 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...
politburo
Politburo
Politburo , literally "Political Bureau [of the Central Committee]," is the executive committee for a number of communist political parties.-Marxist-Leninist states:...
. After a stay in the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
from 1929 to 1931, he returned to Norway in 1931 to become party chairman. He was removed in 1934 at the hands of Comintern
Comintern
The Communist International, abbreviated as Comintern, also known as the Third International, was an international communist organization initiated in Moscow during March 1919...
. Instead, he became editor-in-chief of the official party newspaper Arbeideren
Arbeideren
Arbeideren was a daily newspaper published in Oslo, Norway.It was started on 2 November 1929 as the official party newspaper from the Communist Party. It lent its name from a Hamar-based newspaper of the same name, which had gone defunct on 4 October. More directly, it replaced Norges...
.
On 9 April 1940, Norway was invaded
Operation Weserübung
Operation Weserübung was the code name for Germany's assault on Denmark and Norway during the Second World War and the opening operation of the Norwegian Campaign...
and occupied 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...
. The Communist Party and Arbeideren originally declared themselves neutral. On 16 August 1940, however, the Communist Party was outlawed, and the newspaper Arbeideren was shut down by the authorities. Kristiansen was arrested, but was released shortly thereafter. He continued as an underground member of the Communist Party, and is considered as the de facto party chairman.
Kristiansen was arrested on 22 June 1941, the same day as Operation Barbarossa
Operation Barbarossa
Operation Barbarossa was the code name for Germany's invasion of the Soviet Union during World War II that began on 22 June 1941. Over 4.5 million troops of the Axis powers invaded the USSR along a front., the largest invasion in the history of warfare...
commenced. In November 1941 he and Johan Strand Johansen
Johan Strand Johansen
Johan Strand Johansen was Norwegian Minister of Labour in 1945. From 1945-1949 and later from 1954-1957 he represented the Communist Party of Norway in the Parliament of Norway...
were arrested and deported on the SS Donau
SS Donau
SS Donau was a Norddeutscher Lloyd refrigerated cargo ship. In the Second World War the Kriegsmarine used it as a transport ship between Germany and Norway. She became known as the "slave ship" after the SS and Gestapo transported 540 Jews from Norway to Stettin, from where they were taken by...
to Hamburg
Hamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
. In December he was sent to Neuengamme concentration camp, where he died in January 1942. His urn
Urn
An urn is a vase, ordinarily covered, that usually has a narrowed neck above a footed pedestal. "Knife urns" placed on pedestals flanking a dining-room sideboard were an English innovation for high-style dining rooms of the late 1760s...
was sent to Skien
Skien
' is a city and municipality in Telemark county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Grenland. The administrative centre of the municipality is the city of Skien. Skien is also the administrative centre of Telemark county....
and buried there. His wife Mirjam, identified as Jewish, was deported with him, before was sent
Jewish deportees from Norway during World War II
During the Nazi occupation of Norway, German authorities deported about 768 individuals of Jewish background to concentration camps outside of Norway. 28 of these survived World War Two.-Deportation:The deportation schedule for the major transports was:...
via Ravensbrück to Auschwitz, where she was murdered in a gas chamber in May 1942.
Arbeideren was not continued after the war's end in 1945. In 1948, during the legal purge in Norway after World War II
Legal purge in Norway after World War II
When the occupation of Norway ended in May 1945, several thousand Norwegians and foreign citizens were tried and convicted for various acts that the occupying powers sanctioned...
, an indictment towards Arbeideren was considered because of the neutral alignment after 9 April 1940—however, since the editor-in-chief Kristiansen was deceased, the case was closed.