Alf Larsen Whist (6 August 1880 – 16 July 1962) was a Norwegian businessperson and politician for

Nasjonal Samling The Nasjonal Samling (, NS; ) was a Norway, Norwegian far-right politics, far-right political party active from 1933 to 1945. It was the only legal party of Norway from 1942 to 1945. It was founded by former minister of defence Vidkun Quisling a ...

Pre-war life and career

He was born in Fredrikshald as a son of Svend Larsen (1833–1893) and Sofie Mathilde Laumann (1842–1897). He finished middle school in 1896, and after a period at sea he started working with insurance in Kristiania. He was married to editor's daughter Augusta Kathinka Hals from 1904. He started his own insurance company Norske Lloyd in 1905, and also founded insurance companies like Norske Alliance, Norske Forenende Livsforsikringsselskap, Globus and Andvake. Norske Lloyd went bankrupt in 1920–1921. He then moved from

Ullern Ullern is a List of boroughs of Oslo, borough of the city of Oslo, Norway. History The borough has its name from an old farm, Old Norse language, Norse ''Ullarin''. The first element is the genitive case of the name of the Norse god Ullr. The l ...

to France. He was a board member of insurance companies in Finland, France, Algeria and the United States. He was decorated as an Officier of the

Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and Civil society, civil. Currently consisting of five cl ...

, Officer of the

Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

, Commander of the Order of Leopold and Knight of the Order of the White Rose of Finland. However, in France he was sentenced for economic crimes in 1935 (the sentence was overturned in 1942 under Nazi control). Some time after the sentence he returned to Norway, now running the company ''Alf L. Whist & Co''. This company made a profit which he invested in real estate. One of his sons was given control over the company Heggedal Bruk, which constructed readymade cabins.

World War II

Following the occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany which started on 9 April 1940, Whist made himself a new career as a profiteer. Despite having no political experience, he now joined the only legal political party in the country, the Fascist party

(NS), in the summer of 1940, and was soon installed in the board of directors of Vinmonopolet (as chairman) and Norges Brannkasse. His companies also received substantial orders from

Organisation Todt Organisation Todt (OT; ) was a Civil engineering, civil and military engineering organisation in Nazi Germany from 1933 to 1945, named for its founder, Fritz Todt, an engineer and senior member of the Nazi Party. The organisation was responsible ...

. On 8 November 1941 he was proclaimed as the NS Ombudsman for Enterprise (). This was a new office, whose establishment had been suggested by Whist himself. Its purpose was in part to establish a network of NS sympathizers in the Norwegian business life and to recruit businesspeople to the party, but the mandate was vague. Whist used it as a vehicle to further his own interests, but also to strengthen national socialist economic ideas within business. He was behind the merger of several employers' associations to found Norges Næringssamband on 1 May 1943, where he also became president. Vice president was Whist's close supporter Carl Dietrich Hildisch. As chairman of the organization, Lars Hasvold was installed, a former secretary-general who had been in contact with Whist since the autumn of 1941. Norges Næringssamband was also used as a personal vehicle for political power, as well as an organization to outline technological visions for a future Fascist Norway. On 4 November 1943 Whist's power platform became even larger, as he was named in Quisling's Second Cabinet as a minister without portfolio, responsible for the coordination of provisions and industrial war efforts. In January 1944 he was allowed to accompany

Vidkun Quisling Vidkun Abraham Lauritz Jonssøn Quisling (; ; 18 July 1887 – 24 October 1945) was a Norwegian military officer, politician and Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy, Nazi collaborator who Quisling regime, headed the government of N ...

on his visit to

Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (20 April 1889 – 30 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was the dictator of Nazi Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his suicide in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the lea ...

. He unsuccessfully tried to become Minister of Finance, but on 12 June 1944 he took over for Eivind Blehr as Minister of Industry and Shipping. Blehr was pressured out of government because he was too Norwegian-nationalist, whereas Whist was more German-friendly.

Post-war career

The German occupation ended on 8 May 1945, and Whist promptly lost his jobs. As a part of the

legal purge in Norway after World War II The legal purge in Norway after World War II (; ) took place between May 1945 and August 1948 against anyone who was found to have Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy, collaborated with the German occupation of Norway, German occupat ...

, in 1946 he was sentenced to forced labour for life as well as in repairs. A minority of two judges voted to impose the death penalty. He was pardoned in 1952, and died in 1962.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Whist, Alf 1880 births 1962 deaths People from Halden Norwegian company founders Norwegian businesspeople in insurance Norwegian expatriates in France Norwegian white-collar criminals Members of Nasjonal Samling People convicted of treason for Nazi Germany against Norway Government ministers of Norway Officers of the Legion of Honour Officers of the Order of the British Empire Norwegian politicians convicted of crimes Norwegian prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment Prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment by Norway 20th-century Norwegian criminals Norwegian male criminals Recipients of Norwegian royal pardons