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Egil Reksten (3 May 1917 – May 30, 2009) was a Norwegian engineer and
resistance Resistance may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Comics * Either of two similarly named but otherwise unrelated comic book series, both published by Wildstorm: ** ''Resistance'' (comics), based on the video game of the same title ** ''T ...
member during
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
. He is best known as leader of the illegal radio post Skylark B.


World War II

Reksten was born in Kristiania (now
Oslo Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of ...
), Norway. He was the son of Saron Eriksen Reksten (1875-1955) and his wife Inger Jacobsen (1887-1987). His father was the
Rector Rector (Latin for the member of a vessel's crew who steers) may refer to: Style or title *Rector (ecclesiastical), a cleric who functions as an administrative leader in some Christian denominations *Rector (academia), a senior official in an edu ...
at Kamper School (''Kampen skole'') in the
Gamle Oslo Gamle Oslo is a borough of the city of Oslo, Norway. The name means "Old Oslo", and the district contains Old Town. The borough has several landmarks and large parks, including the Edvard Munch Museum, the Botanical Gardens and a medieval park. ...
district of Oslo. He attended the
Norwegian Institute of Technology The Norwegian Institute of Technology (Norwegian: ''Norges tekniske høgskole'', NTH) was a science institute in Trondheim, Norway. It was established in 1910, and existed as an independent technical university for 58 years, after which it was m ...
, and graduated in chemistry in 1941. His professor was
Leif Tronstad Leif Hans Larsen Tronstad DSO, OBE (27 March 1903 – 11 March 1945) was a Norwegian inorganic chemist, intelligence officer and military organizer. He graduated from the Norwegian Institute of Technology in 1927 and was a prolific research ...
, a well-known resistance member during the
German occupation of Norway The occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany during the Second World War began on 9 April 1940 after Operation Weserübung. Conventional armed resistance to the German invasion ended on 10 June 1940, and Nazi Germany controlled Norway until the ...
since April 1940. In September 1940 the
Secret Intelligence Service The Secret Intelligence Service (SIS), commonly known as MI6 ( Military Intelligence, Section 6), is the foreign intelligence service of the United Kingdom, tasked mainly with the covert overseas collection and analysis of human intellige ...
established two stations for radio communication; the so-called
Skylark A ''Alauda'' is a genus of larks found across much of Europe, Asia and in the mountains of north Africa, and one of the species (the Raso lark) endemic to the islet of Raso in the Cape Verde Islands. Further, at least two additional species ...
in
Oslo Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of ...
led by
Sverre Midtskau Sverre Midtskau (23 September 1914 – 18 December 1987) was a Norwegian resistance member during World War II. He is best known as leader of the illegal radio post Skylark A. World War II On 9 April Nazi Germany invaded Norway as a part of Wor ...
and Skylark B in
Trondheim Trondheim ( , , ; sma, Tråante), historically Kaupangen, Nidaros and Trondhjem (), is a city and municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. As of 2020, it had a population of 205,332, was the third most populous municipality in Norway, an ...
led by
Erik Welle-Strand Erik August Lindhè Welle-Strand (2 June 1915 – 17 July 2001) was a Norwegian mining engineer and resistance member during World War II. He is best known as leader of the illegal radio post Skylark B. Early life He was born in June 1915 in Ber ...
. Skylark B was operated by students at the Institute of Technology, and after technical difficulties in the initial phase, they established regular contact with the intelligence in
London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
in January 1941. Leif Tronstad was also affiliated with the group. When Welle-Strand left the country, Reksten took over as leader of Skylark B. Among others, the group helped spread vital information about
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 ...
activity at
Vemork Vemork is a hydroelectric power plant outside Rjukan in Tinn, Norway. The plant was built by Norsk Hydro and opened in 1911, its main purpose being to fix nitrogen for the production of fertilizer. At opening, it was the world's largest power p ...
heavy water plant. The link between heavy water and a
German nuclear energy project The Uranverein ( en, "Uranium Club") or Uranprojekt ( en, "Uranium Project") was the name given to the project in Germany to research nuclear technology, including nuclear weapons and nuclear reactors, during World War II. It went through s ...
was established later. After less than a year, however,
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 ...
managed to track the Skylark B transmitting activity. Reksten was arrested by the Nazi authorities in September 1941. He was incarcerated at
Møllergata 19 Møllergata 19 is an address in Oslo, Norway where the city's main police station and jail was located. The address gained notoriety during the German occupation from 1940 to 1945, when the Nazi security police kept its headquarters here. This is ...
from 14 September 1941 to 10 March 1942, then at
Akershus Fortress Akershus Fortress ( no, Akershus Festning, ) or Akershus Castle ( no, Akershus slott ) 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 ha ...
, then at
Grini concentration camp '', '' no, Grini fangeleir'', location= Bærum, Viken, Norway, location map=Viken#Norway, built by=Norway, original use=Constructed as a women's prison, operated by=Nazi Germany, notable inmates=List of Grini prisoners, liberated by=Harry Söderm ...
from 7 July to 29 July 1943. He was then shipped to Germany with eleven others. Seven of these people died, but after stays in six different
Nacht und Nebel ''Nacht und Nebel'' (German: ), meaning Night and Fog, was a directive issued by Adolf Hitler on 7 December 1941 targeting political activists and resistance "helpers" in the territories occupied by Nazi Germany during World War II, who were to ...
camps, Reksten returned to Norway after the war's end. He was decorated for his efforts.


Post-war life

In 1947 Reksten started his own engineering company, Argo, together with Erik Welle-Strand and other friends. He spent the rest of his professional career there. He was married, and celebrated his
diamond wedding A wedding anniversary is the anniversary of the date a wedding took place. Couples may take the occasion to celebrate their relationship, either privately or with a larger party. Special celebrations and gifts are often given for particular ann ...
in 2007. He resided in
Asker Asker ( no, Asker), properly called Askerbygda in Norwegian, is a district and former municipality in Akershus, Norway. From 2020 it is part of the larger administrative municipality Asker, Viken (also known as Greater Asker) in Viken count ...
in
Akershus Akershus () is a traditional region and current electoral district in Norway, with Oslo as its main city and traditional capital. It is named after the Akershus Fortress in Oslo. From the middle ages to 1919, Akershus was a fief and main county ...
, Norway. He died in 2009 and was buried in the
churchyard In Christian countries a churchyard is a patch of land adjoining or surrounding a church, which is usually owned by the relevant church or local parish itself. In the Scots language and in both Scottish English and Ulster-Scots, this can al ...
of
Haslum Church Haslum is a district in the municipality of Bærum, Norway. Its population (2007) is 6,041.Bærum Bærum () is a municipality in the Greater Oslo Region in Norway that forms an affluent suburb of Oslo on the west coast of the city. Bærum is Norway's fifth largest municipality with a population of 128,760 (2021). It is part of the electora ...
in
Akershus Akershus () is a traditional region and current electoral district in Norway, with Oslo as its main city and traditional capital. It is named after the Akershus Fortress in Oslo. From the middle ages to 1919, Akershus was a fief and main county ...
.


References


Related reading

* Ottosen, Kristian (1995) ''Nordmenn i fangenskap 1940-1945'' (Oslo: Universitetsforlaget)


External links


Grave stone for Reksten family
(Haslum Church cemetery at
Bærum Bærum () is a municipality in the Greater Oslo Region in Norway that forms an affluent suburb of Oslo on the west coast of the city. Bærum is Norway's fifth largest municipality with a population of 128,760 (2021). It is part of the electora ...
in
Akershus Akershus () is a traditional region and current electoral district in Norway, with Oslo as its main city and traditional capital. It is named after the Akershus Fortress in Oslo. From the middle ages to 1919, Akershus was a fief and main county ...
) {{DEFAULTSORT:Reksten, Egil 1917 births 2009 deaths Norwegian Institute of Technology alumni Engineers from Oslo Norwegian chemical engineers Norwegian resistance members Grini concentration camp survivors Night and Fog program 20th-century Norwegian engineers