Richard Andvord (6 March 1886 – 26 January 1965) was a Norwegian cavalry officer, diplomat and aide-de-camp for the

Norwegian royal family Members of the Norwegian royal family are people related to King Harald V of Norway or former Norwegian monarchs who are royals and who hold royal titles. The term does not include non-royal relatives. The current family who holds the throne a ...

Early life and career

Andvord was educated in commerce in Leipzig and

Oxford Oxford () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and non-metropolitan district in Oxfordshire, England, of which it is the county town. The city is home to the University of Oxford, the List of oldest universities in continuou ...

. In 1911 he was employed as a cavalry officer, and between 1916 and 1927 he served as Norwegian

military attaché A military attaché or defence attaché (DA),Defence Attachés
''Geneva C ...

in Bern, Vienna, Helsinki and London. From 1927 to 1930 he was an aide-de-camp of 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 ...

of Norway. He held the titles of cavalry captain ('' rittmester'') from 1930, and from 1949 ''kammerherre''.

Later career

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 ...

, Andvord was arrested in December 1944 in

Hamar Hamar is a List of cities in Norway, town in Hamar Municipality in Innlandet Counties of Norway, county, Norway. Hamar is the administrative centre of Hamar Municipality. It is located in the Districts of Norway, traditional region of Hedmarken. ...

for "hostile behaviour" towards Germans. He was imprisoned in

Grini concentration camp Grini prison camp (, ) was a Nazi concentration camp in Bærum, Norway, which operated between 1941 and May 1945. Ila Detention and Security Prison is now located here. History Grini was originally built as a women's prison, near an old croft ...

from 18 December 1944 to the

liberation 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 th ...

. In 1945 he was hired as director of the Royal Stables, and stayed in this position until 1960. He was succeeded by Erik Blankenborg Prydz. Curiously, the head of the Royal Stables had no responsibility for horses or equipages, but the motor vehicles owned by the

as well as all car driving in connection with events at the

Royal Palace This is a list of royal palaces, sorted by continent. Africa Americas Asia Europe Oceania {, class="wikitable" width="95%" , - bgcolor="white" !align=center, Residence !align=center, Photo !align=center, City !align=cen ...

. Andvord also acted as driver for foreign dignitaries, guiding them on their way to royal audience. In 1958 the entire court of the Norwegian royal family consisted of as few as seven people; Richard Andvord,

Ingvald Smith-Kielland Ingvald Marillus Emil Smith-Kielland (9 August 1890 – 29 January 1984) was a Norwegian military officer, diplomat, sports official, and royal servant. He was born in Egge Municipality as the son of Colonel Ingvald Mareno Smith-Kielland (1863� ...

, Odd Grønvold and Ellinor Grønvold, Else Werring, Ingeborg von Hanno and Vincent Bommen.

Legacy and death

In 1959 Andvord was decorated as a Commander of the

Royal Norwegian 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 ...

, and he also held four royal medals and several foreign orders of knighthood. He died in January 1965, 79 years old.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Andvord, Richard 1886 births 1965 deaths Norwegian Army personnel Norwegian expatriates in England Norwegian expatriates in West Germany Norwegian expatriates in Switzerland Norwegian expatriates in Austria Norwegian expatriates in Finland Military personnel from Oslo Military attachés for Norway Burials at the Cemetery of Our Saviour Grini concentration camp survivors Diplomats from Oslo