Per Oluf Gjestvang (17 March 1915 – 26 January 2002) was a Norwegian veterinarian, resistance member, military officer, and politician for the Conservative Party. He was born in

Eidsvoll Eidsvoll (; sometimes written as ''Eidsvold'') is a Municipalities of Norway, municipality in Akershus Counties of Norway, county, Norway. It is part of the Romerike Districts of Norway, traditional region. The administrative centre of the munic ...

, and finished his secondary education in 1934. He then took a military education in the engineer corps, and tutored at the camp at Hvalsmoen. He also attended the

Norwegian School of Veterinary Science Norwegian School of Veterinary Science () or NVH was a public university located at Adamstuen in Oslo, that educated veterinarians and veterinary nurses as well as research within aquatic medicine, food safety, comparative medicine and mam ...

from 1935, and graduated with the

cand.med.vet. Candidate ( or ) is the name of various academic degrees, which are today mainly awarded in Scandinavia. The degree title was phased out in much of Europe through the 1999 Bologna Process, which has re-formatted academic degrees in Europe. The de ...

degree in 1941. During the

occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany 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 th ...

he was a member of

Milorg Milorg (abbreviation of militær organisasjon – military organization) was the main Norwegian resistance movement during World War II. Resistance work included intelligence gathering, sabotage, supply-missions, raids, espionage, transport of ...

, as "pioneer leader" in District 13. He worked as an assistant veterinary in

Lesja Municipality Lesja is a List of municipalities of Norway, municipality in Innlandet county, Norway. It is located in the Traditional districts of Norway, traditional district of Gudbrandsdal. The administrative centre of the municipality is the Lesja (villag ...

and

Dovre Municipality Dovre is a municipality in Innlandet county, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Gudbrandsdal. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Dovre. Other villages in Dovre include Dombås and Hjerkinn. The ...

in 1942 before returning to the Norwegian School of Veterinary Science. He worked as a

research assistant A research assistant (RA) is a researcher employed, often on a temporary contract, by a university, research institute, or privately held organization to provide assistance in academic or private research endeavors. Research assistants work under ...

from 1942 to 1945, an

associate professor Associate professor is an academic title with two principal meanings: in the North American system and that of the ''Commonwealth system''. In the ''North American system'', used in the United States and many other countries, it is a position ...

from 1946 to 1953 and then

docent The term "docent" is derived from the Latin word , which is the third-person plural present active indicative of ('to teach, to lecture'). Becoming a docent is often referred to as habilitation or doctor of science and is an academic qualifi ...

from 1954 to 1955 before being hired as chief veterinary in the Norwegian Defence Forces in 1955. He remained here until retirement in 1980. He held the degree Colonel from 1969. Gjestvang was also a secretary-general of the Norwegian Veterinary Association from 1945 to 1948, and was a member and chairman (from 1958) of the central board from 1954 to 1966. He chaired the Norwegian Equestrian Federation from 1976 to 1982, Dyrenes Beskyttelse from 1982 to 1986 and was a vice president in Norges Dyrebeskyttelsesforbund from 1984 to 1988. He was also involved in the

Norwegian Red Cross The Norwegian Red Cross (''Norges Røde Kors'') was founded on 22 September 1865 by prime minister Frederik Stang. In 1895 the Norwegian Red Cross began educating nurses, and in 1907 the Norwegian Ministry of Defence authorized the organization ...

and Rotary, and was a member of the

municipal council A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, borough cou ...

for

Stange Municipality is a municipality in Innlandet county, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Hedemarken. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Stangebyen. Other villages include Bekkelaget, Espa, Bottenfjellet, Il ...

from 1972 to 1983. He was chosen as leader of the local Conservative Party branch in 1993. Gjestvang was decorated with the

Defence Medal 1940–1945 The Defence Medal 1940–1945 () is the award rewarded to those military and civilian personnel who participated in the fight against the German invasion and occupation of Norway between 1940 and 1945. The Defence Medal 1940–1945 can be award ...

in 1945, the

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 ...

in 1963, the ''Forsvarsmedaljen'' in 1983 and the

HM The King's Medal of Merit The King's Medal of Merit (Norwegian: ''Kongens fortjenstmedalje'') is a Norwegian award. It was instituted in 1908 to reward meritorious achievements in the fields of art, science, business, and public service. It is divided in two classes: gold ...

in 1995. He was an honorary member of the Norwegian Veterinary Association from 1977 as well as its Swedish and Finnish counterparts from 1965 and 1977 respectively. He died in January 2002.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gjestvang, Per 1915 births 2002 deaths Norwegian veterinarians Norwegian School of Veterinary Science alumni Academic staff of the Norwegian School of Veterinary Science Norwegian resistance members Norwegian Army personnel Conservative Party (Norway) politicians Hedmark politicians Norwegian sports executives and administrators Order of the Dannebrog Recipients of the King's Medal of Merit People from Eidsvoll