Post War Times: Norway

As soon as the WWII ended in 1945, the Norwegian people could finally let their shoulders down. The Germans left the country, the slaves at Grini where set free and the children could finally go back to school. I talked to my Grandmother who was 14 years old in 1945, and was privileged enough during the war to pay her way into a private school. Many of her friends where not as fortunate, and lost their place in school due to the German children filling up the schools. During the war the Norwegian people used secret signs in order to show belongingness to each other - one example was the paper clip they stuck to their jackets. There was always fear in the streets, there was no freedom of speech and people in general were afraid and unhappy. When the occupation of Nazi Germany ended on May 8, 1945, there was an enormous freedom feeling among the people. People stood together to welcome back the royal family, and again felt a strong feeling of belongingness. But big parts of Norway laid in ruins, with shut down factories, damaged railways and roads, and a big damage on agriculture. It was in the peoples interest to rebuild their country, and one man in particular has been credited with doing so, his name was Einar Gerhardsen. Gerhardsen was named the 'lands father', and he was Norway's prime minister for over 17 years, and he was the founder of the Norwegian Labour Party. He has been noted as the architect of the Norwegian welfare state, which came about after the WWII. There was allot of rationing after the war, when it came to food and cars. And damaged land, homes and fabrics had to be rebuilt. But people were enjoying the freedom and joy that was brought about by again being an independent kingdom.