Karl Meyer (1888 – 18 December 1971) was a Norwegian businessman, stockbroker and founder of the short-lived

fascist Fascism ( ) is a far-right, authoritarian, and ultranationalist political ideology and movement. It is characterized by a dictatorial leader, centralized autocracy, militarism, forcible suppression of opposition, belief in a natural soci ...

party, the National Legion. He had a history of several big fraud cases against him, although he was acquitted from at least one tax evasion case. His proposed business projects, described in the press as "fantastical", included a "

Coney Island Coney Island is a neighborhood and entertainment area in the southwestern section of the New York City borough of Brooklyn. The neighborhood is bounded by Brighton Beach to its east, Lower New York Bay to the south and west, and Gravesend to ...

"-style

amusement park An amusement park is a park that features various attractions, such as rides and games, and events for entertainment purposes. A theme park is a type of amusement park that bases its structures and attractions around a central theme, often fea ...

Hovedøya Hovedøya is one of several small islands off the coast of Oslo, Norway in the Oslofjord. The island is quite small, no more than 800 metres across in any direction, the total area is 0,4 square kilometre. Its population is 5. It is well known f ...

, and turning the steam-liner RMS ''Carmania'' into a "floating tenement" at the

Oslo Oslo ( or ; ) 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 1,064,235 in 2022 ...

harbour. In 1927 Meyer founded the fascist party the National Legion. The party's activities mainly included Meyer's rousing speeches at a circus, Cirkus Verdensteatret in Oslo, and at Drammens Theater in

Drammen Drammen () is a city and municipality in Buskerud county, Norway. The port and river city of Drammen is centrally located in the south-eastern and most populated part of Norway. Drammen municipality also includes smaller towns and villages such ...

. After increasing internal opposition, Meyer was expelled from the party in early 1928. He unsuccessfully attempted to regain control of the party in February, when along with some co-conspirators he went to action against the party's offices with clubs and revolvers. Meyer and two other men were arrested in the incident. The party quickly fell apart amid internal conflicts, and was dissolved in early 1928. IN 1934, he was sentenced to one year in prsion for embezzlement. Karl Meyer was a son of Ludvig Meyer and a brother of Haakon Meyer.

References

Further reading