Marius Fiil (21 May 1893 – 29 June 1944) was the inn keeper at
Hvidsten Inn
Hvidsten Inn ( da, Hvidsten Kro) is a historic, listed inn, formerly a coaching inn located in Hvidsten between Randers and Mariager.
Today the inn consists of five buildings of which the oldest is the travellers stable from 1790.
A notable inn ...
and a member of the Danish resistance executed by the
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
**Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ger ...
occupying power.
Biography
Fiil was born in Hvidsten Inn on 21 May 1893 as son of its owner Niels Pedersen (Fiil) and 35-year-old wife Nicoline Mathilde Pedersen and baptized Marius Anton Pedersen Fiil in Gassum church on
Trinity Sunday
Trinity Sunday is the first Sunday after Pentecost in the Western Christian liturgical calendar, and the Sunday of Pentecost in Eastern Christianity. Trinity Sunday celebrates the Christian doctrine of the Trinity, the three Persons of God: the ...
Kirstine Kirstine is a given name. Notable people with the name include:
*Kirstine Fiil (1918–1983), Danish resistance member
*Kirstine Frederiksen (1845–1903), Danish pedagogue, writer and women's activist
*Kirstine Meyer (1861–1941), Danish physici ...
and
Niels
Niels is a male given name, equivalent to Nicholas, which is common in Denmark, Belgium, Norway (formerly) and the Netherlands. The Norwegian and Swedish variant is Nils. The name is a developed short form of Nicholas or Greek Nicolaos after Saint ...
he was a house proprietor and bicycle dealer.
In 1930 he lived in Hvidsten Inn with his 72-year-old father as inn keeper, his wife, their son and four daughters and a farm hand, a maid and a manager.
In the autumn of 1932 his oldest daughter was confirmed, at that time he and his wife had taken over the inn, and he additionally worked as a rural postman.
During the occupation Fill and his family became the center of a resistance group, the Hvidsten group.
The group helped the British
Special Operations Executive
The Special Operations Executive (SOE) was a secret British World War II organisation. It was officially formed on 22 July 1940 under Minister of Economic Warfare Hugh Dalton, from the amalgamation of three existing secret organisations. Its pu ...
parachute weapons and supplies into Denmark for distribution to the resistance.
In March 1944 the
Gestapo
The (), abbreviated Gestapo (; ), was the official secret police of Nazi Germany and in German-occupied Europe.
The force was created by Hermann Göring in 1933 by combining the various political police agencies of Prussia into one or ...
made an "incredible number of arrests" including in the region of
Randers
Randers () is a city in Randers Municipality, Central Denmark Region on the Jutland peninsula. It is Denmark's sixth-largest city, with a population of 62,802 (as of 1 January 2022).Peter Sørensen.
The following month De frie Danske reported on Fiil again, that he along with other arrestees from Hvidsten had been transferred from Randers to
Vestre Fængsel
Vestre Prison ( da, Vestre Fængsel) is the main jail of the Danish capital, Copenhagen. Erected in 1895, it is Denmark's largest prison with a total capacity of 530 inmates. It primarily houses pretrial detainees, not convicted felons.
History ...
.
On 29 June 1944 Fiil, his son Niels, his son-in-law and five other members of the
Hvidsten group
The Hvidsten Group ( Danish: ''Hvidstengruppen'') was a Danish resistance group during World War II named after the Hvidsten Inn between Randers and Mariager in Jutland where it was formed.
History
The Hvidsten Group became connected to the r ...
were executed in Ryvangen.
After his death
On 15 July 1944 De frie Danske reported on the execution of Fiil, his son and son in law, the life sentence of his older daughter and the two-year sentence of his younger daughter and compared Fiil to
Svend Gønge
Svend Poulsen ( – ), also referred to as Svend Poulsen Gønge ( sv, Svend Gjönge Povlsen) was a Danish-Norwegian military commander in the 17th century, serving in the armies of Christian IV, Frederick III, and Christian V. He fought in t ...
and
Niels Ebbesen
Niels Ebbesen (1308 – 21 November 1340) was a Danish squire and national hero, known for his killing of Gerhard III, Count of Holstein-Rendsburg in 1340. From 1332 to 1340, Count Gerhard was the lord of both Jutland and Funen. His death me ...
while lamenting the profound loss of Fiil's widow. Six months later the January 1945 issue of the resistance newspaper ''Frit Danmark'' (Free Denmark) reported that on 29 June the previous year Fiil and seven other named members of the Hvidsten group had been executed.
On 2 July 1945 the remains and Fiil and his son were found in Ryvangen and transferred to the Department of Forensic Medicine of the
university of Copenhagen
The University of Copenhagen ( da, Københavns Universitet, KU) is a prestigious public university, public research university in Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark. Founded in 1479, the University of Copenhagen is the second-oldest university in ...
. The remains of the six other executed members of the group were found in the same area three days later.
On 5 July an
inquest
An inquest is a judicial inquiry in common law jurisdictions, particularly one held to determine the cause of a person's death. Conducted by a judge, jury, or government official, an inquest may or may not require an autopsy carried out by a co ...
in the Department of
Forensic Medicine
Forensic medicine is a broad term used to describe a group of medical specialties which deal with the examination and diagnosis of individuals who have been injured by or who have died because of external or unnatural causes such as poisoning, assa ...
of the
university of Copenhagen
The University of Copenhagen ( da, Københavns Universitet, KU) is a prestigious public university, public research university in Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark. Founded in 1479, the University of Copenhagen is the second-oldest university in ...
showed that Fiil was executed with gunshot wounds to the chest.
On 10 July he was together with the seven other executed group members cremated at Bispebjerg Cemetery.
In 1945 a memorial stone over the eight executed members of the Hvidsten group was raised near Hvidsten Inn.
Similarly a larger memorial stone for resistance members including the eight executed members of the Hvidsten group has been laid down in
Ryvangen Memorial Park
Ryvangen Memorial Park ( da, Mindelunden i Ryvangen) is a memorial park in Ryvangen officially inaugurated on 5 May 1950 to commemorate fallen members of the Danish resistance to the German occupation of Denmark during World War II.
The locatio ...
.
Portrayal in the media
* In the 2012 Danish drama film ''Hvidsten Gruppen'' (
This Life
This may refer to:
* ''This'', the singular proximal demonstrative pronoun
Places
* This, or ''Thinis'', an ancient city in Upper Egypt
* This, Ardennes, a commune in France
People with the surname
* Hervé This, French culinary chemist Arts, ...