Alfhild Hovdan (née Olsen; 13 September 1904 – 20 February 1982) was a Norwegian journalist, and later tourist manager for the city of Oslo for more than forty years. She is known for initiating the tradition of the Trafalgar Square Christmas tree, a present from the city of Oslo to the people of London, in recognition of their assistance during World War II.

Early career

Hovdan was born in Kristiania, and grew up in Skien. After examen artium she started a career as journalist. From 1927 she worked for the Swedish newspaper ''

Stockholms Dagblad ''Stockholms Dagblad'' was a conservative morning newspaper published in Stockholm between 1824 and 1931. History and profile ''Stockholms Dagblad'' was established on 2 January 1824 as a newspaper for the Swedish capital. Under the editorship o ...

'', and for ''Oslo Aftenavis'' and the magazine ''Film''. In 1928 she became famous for walking all the way from Stockholm to Rome, crossing the Alps, including having an audience with the Pope in Rome, while a correspondent for Scandinavian newspapers. She also wrote articles on art, theatre and film for the female magazine '' Urd''. Hovdan was appointed secretary for ''Reisetrafikkforeningen for Oslo og Omegn'' in 1931, and was manager of the organization from 1932 to 1976.

World War II

Hovdan was a member of the Norwegian resistance movement during the German occupation of Norway. She was arrested by the Nazi authorities in June 1941 for propaganda against Germany, incarcerated at Møllergata 19 and Grini concentration camp, and released in October 1941. She was involved with the activist network "2A", supported people hiding from the Nazis and helped them to escape to Sweden. She had to flee to Sweden in April 1942, where she worked at the

Norwegian legation in Stockholm The Norwegian Legation in Stockholm played a significant role during the Second World War. Until 9 April 1940 the legation consisted of four persons, and at the end of the war about 1,100 persons were connected to the legation. Refugee cases were ...

, in the "Sports Office" ( no, Idrettskontoret), headed by

Harald Gram Harald Gram (18 September 1887 – 7 June 1961) was a Norwegian jurist, politician and genealogist. He was secretary general for the Conservative Party of Norway for 22 years, deputy mayor of Aker, Norway, Aker, member of parliament of Norway, P ...

, which organized underground courier traffic between Sweden and Norway. While in Sweden, she was among the founders of the theatre group Fri Norsk Scene, which consisted of Norwegian actors residing in Sweden as refugees.

Post war

In 1947 she initiated the tradition of donating a

Christmas tree A Christmas tree is a decorated tree, usually an evergreen conifer, such as a spruce, pine or fir, or an artificial tree of similar appearance, associated with the celebration of Christmas. The custom was further developed in early modern ...

to London, a present from the city of Oslo, in recognition of assistance from the people of London during World War II. In the following years she was always present at the ceremony when the tree was cut down, along with the mayor of Oslo. She continued her work as "Tourist Manager" for Oslo until 1976, and has been characterized as brave, dynamic and controversial, being called names such as "The Shrew" ( no, Rivjernet) and "The Bulldozer". Hovdan was awarded the

Medal of St. Hallvard The Medal of St. Hallvard ( no, St. Hallvardsmedaljen) is the highest award of the City of Oslo, Norway. It is awarded to people who have made a particularly noteworthy contribution to the City of Oslo. It is named after the city's patron, Saint ...

in 1967.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hovdan, Alfhild 1904 births 1982 deaths Norwegian resistance members Female resistance members of World War II Grini concentration camp survivors Writers from Oslo 20th-century Norwegian writers 20th-century Norwegian journalists People from Skien