The ''Førergarde'' ('leader guard' in Norwegian) was the personal guard of

Vidkun Quisling Vidkun Abraham Lauritz Jonssøn Quisling (, ; 18 July 1887 – 24 October 1945) was a Norwegian military officer, politician and Nazi collaborator who nominally headed the government of Norway during the country's occupation by Nazi Germ ...

, the leader of the puppet Norwegian government 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 ...

. The ''Førergarde'' was founded in April 1942. At first, it numbered about 150 people personally selected by Quisling from the members of

Hird The hird (also named "Håndgangne Menn" in Norwegian), in Scandinavian history, was originally an informal retinue of personal armed companions, hirdmen or housecarls, but came to mean not only the nucleus ('Guards') of the royal army, but also ...

, the paramilitary wing of the fascist

Nasjonal Samling Nasjonal Samling (, NS; ) was a Norwegian 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 and a group of supporters such ...

party (NS). They were his most trusted fighters, also performing special tasks. Over time, the unit grew to the size of a company of 250-300 people. They were also recruited from the front veterans of the Volunteer

Norwegian Legion Norwegian Legion ( no, Norske Legion, german: Freiwilligen-Legion Norwegen) was a Norwegian collaborationist formation of the Waffen-SS during World War II. It was formed in German-occupied Norway on 29 June 1941, in support of the war aims of ...

and SS-Polizei-Battaillon 506. On August 17, 1943, the Førergarde, together with the police and the Hird organization, formally joined the

Norwegian Armed Forces The Norwegian Armed Forces ( no, Forsvaret, , The Defence) is the military organization responsible for the defence of Norway. It consists of five branches, the Norwegian Army, the Royal Norwegian Navy, which includes the Coast Guard, the Ro ...

. The organization was headed by ''sveitfører'' Per Carlson (April 20, 1942 - April 1, 1944), Sverre Henschien (until February 1945) and ''sveitfører'' Sophus Kahrs (until May 9, 1945). The members of the bodyguard wore a special oval silver badge with a black enamelled edge. At the top was the emblem of the NS party ( St. Olaf's cross), on which sat an eagle with outstretched wings, and below the initials "VQ" in white.

References

External links

Photos of the førergarde
Norway in World War II Nasjonal Samling 1942 establishments in Norway 1945 disestablishments in Norway Vidkun Quisling German occupation of Norway Collaboration with Nazi Germany {{Norway-stub

See also

References

External links