Birger Fredrik Motzfeldt

OBE 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 ...

, CVO (22 February 18983 September 1987) was a Norwegian aviator and military officer. During World War II he administered the development of the Royal Norwegian Air Force in exile in Great Britain. During the

Cold War The Cold War was a period of global Geopolitics, geopolitical rivalry between the United States (US) and the Soviet Union (USSR) and their respective allies, the capitalist Western Bloc and communist Eastern Bloc, which lasted from 1947 unt ...

he contributed to the development of a modernized air force in Norway.

Personal life

Motzfeldt was born in

Nesna Municipality Nesna is a List of municipalities of Norway, municipality in Nordland Counties of Norway, county, Norway. It is part of the Helgeland Districts of Norway, traditional region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the Nesna (village), v ...

, as a son of bailiff Birger Fredrik Motzfeldt and Augusta Marie Andersen. He was married twice, in his second marriage with glass sculptor Benny Anette Berg-Nilsen.

Career

Motzfeldt graduated as a military officer in 1920, and then served with His Majesty The King's Guard and at the

Akershus Fortress Akershus Fortress (, ) or Akershus Castle ( ) is a medieval castle in the Norwegian capital Oslo that was built to protect and provide a royal residence for the city. Since the Middle Ages the fortress has been the namesake and centre of the ...

. He lectured at the Army's pilot training school from 1924 to 1925, and from 1932 to 1935. From 1935 to 1938 he served as aide-de-camp for King

Haakon VII Haakon VII (; 3 August 187221 September 1957) was King of Norway from 18 November 1905 until his death in 1957. The future Haakon VII was born in Copenhagen as Prince Carl of Denmark. He was the second son of the Crown Prince and Crown Princess ...

. When the Germans invaded Norway in April 1940, Motzfeldt was in the United States in order to acquire more aircraft for the

Norwegian Army Air Service The Norwegian Army Air Service (NoAAS) () was established in 1914.Official Norwegian Defence Force websiteHistory of the Royal Norwegian Air Force Its main base and aircraft factory was at Kjeller. On 10 November 1944, the NoAAS merged with the ...

. He was subsequently appointed assistant

air attaché An atmosphere () is a layer of gases that envelop an astronomical object, held in place by the gravity of the object. A planet retains an atmosphere when the gravity is great and the temperature of the atmosphere is low. A stellar atmosphere ...

in the US. Among his initiatives was the establishing of the pilot training camp Little Norway. He returned to

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

in 1941, and took part in the development of the Royal Norwegian Air Force in exile in Great Britain. He was also involved in the air route between

Stockholm Stockholm (; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, most populous city of Sweden, as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in the Nordic countries. Approximately ...

and Scotland during the war. During the

he contributed to the development of a modernized air force in Norway. He was promoted to the rank of major general in 1953, and to lieutenant general in 1955. He was appointed head of the Royal Norwegian Air Force from 1955 to 1960, succeeding fellow World War II veteran

Finn Lambrechts Finn Lambrechts DFC (16 June 1900 – 8 December 1956) was a Norwegian military officer, a lieutenant general of the Royal Norwegian Air Force. He served as Chief of Defence of Norway () from 1955 to 1956. Personal life Lambrechts was born in ...

. The Royal Norwegian Air Force went through significant development during his leadership.

Decorations

Motzfeldt was decorated Commander with star of the

Order of St. Olav The Royal Norwegian Order of Saint Olav (; or ''Sanct Olafs Orden'', the old Norwegian name) is a Norwegian order of chivalry instituted by King Oscar I on 21 August 1847. It is named after King Olav II, known to posterity as St. Olav. Just be ...

in 1956. He was Commander of the British

Royal Victorian Order The Royal Victorian Order () is a dynastic order of knighthood established in 1896 by Queen Victoria. It recognises distinguished personal service to the monarch, members of the royal family, or to any viceroy or senior representative of the m ...

, and Knight of the Swedish

Order of the Sword The Royal Order of the Sword (officially: ''Royal Order of the Sword''; Swedish: ''Kungliga Svärdsorden'') is a Swedish order of chivalry and military decoration created by King Frederick I of Sweden on 23 February 1748, together with the Or ...

and the Danish

Order of the Dannebrog The Order of the Dannebrog () is a Denmark, Danish order of chivalry instituted in 1671 by Christian V of Denmark, Christian V. Until 1808, membership in the Order was limited to fifty members of noble or royal rank, who formed a single cla ...

. He was also a recipient of the American

Legion of Merit The Legion of Merit (LOM) is a Awards and decorations of the United States military, military award of the United States Armed Forces that is given for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services and achievemen ...

. Motzfeldt was also decorated 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 ...

(OBE), with the Polish War Order of Virtuti Militari, and Knight of the Dutch

Order of Orange-Nassau The Order of Orange-Nassau () is a civil and military Dutch order of chivalry founded on 4 April 1892 by the queen regent, Emma of the Netherlands. The order is a chivalric order open to "everyone who has performed acts of special merits for ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Motzfeldt, Birger Fredrik 1898 births 1987 deaths Commanders of the Royal Victorian Order Knights of the Order of Orange-Nassau Knights of the Order of the Dannebrog Knights of the Order of the Sword Norwegian aviators Norwegian Army personnel Officers of the Order of the British Empire People from Nesna Recipients of the Legion of Merit Recipients of the Virtuti Militari Norwegian Army Air Service personnel of World War II Royal Norwegian Air Force personnel of World War II Royal Norwegian Air Force generals Military attachés for Norway Non-British Royal Air Force personnel of World War II