A Clearing murder was a revenge killing of a known and popular

Dane Dane or Danes may refer to: People Pertaining to Denmark * Dane, somebody from Denmark * Danes, an ethnic group native to Denmark * Danes (Germanic tribe) Other people * Dane (name), a surname and a given name (and a list of people with the nam ...

in the last part of the German

occupation of Denmark At the outset of World War II in September 1939, Denmark declared itself neutral. For most of the war, the country was a protectorate and then an occupied territory of Germany. The decision to occupy Denmark was taken in Berlin on 17 December ...

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 vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. When a

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

or Danish soldier or

informant An informant (also called an informer or, as a slang term, a “snitch”) is a person who provides privileged information about a person or organization to an agency. The term is usually used within the law-enforcement world, where informan ...

was killed by the

Danish resistance movement The Danish resistance movements ( da, Den danske modstandsbevægelse) were an underground insurgency to resist the German occupation of Denmark during World War II. Due to the initially lenient arrangements, in which the Nazi occupation autho ...

, the

Peter group The Peter group (Danish: ''Petergruppen'') was a paramilitary group created in late 1943 during the occupation of Denmark by the German occupying power. The group conducted counter-sabotage, also known as Schalburgtage, in response to the Danish re ...

performed one or more clearing murder.

Hitler Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Germany from 1933 until his death in 1945. He rose to power as the leader of the Nazi Party, becoming the chancellor in 1933 and then ...

, at some time in the latter half of 1944, ordered that 10 civilians be killed each time a German soldier was killed by civilians. In Denmark, this was modified so that only one civilian was shot for one German soldier. The first clearing murder was of the famous author and priest,

Kaj Munk Kaj Harald Leininger Munk (commonly called Kaj Munk) (13 January 1898 – 4 January 1944) was a Danish playwright and Lutheranism, Lutheran pastor, known for his cultural engagement and his martyrdom during the Occupation of Denmark of World ...

January 4, 1944. Subsequently, several doctors were murdered, including a senior consultant in Vejle and four doctors in Odense. In all, it is estimated that around one hundred people were killed in clearing murders. Usually, the clearing murders were done as street shooting in order to increase the

terror Terror(s) or The Terror may refer to: Politics * Reign of Terror, commonly known as The Terror, a period of violence (1793–1794) after the onset of the French Revolution * Terror (politics), a policy of political repression and violence Emoti ...

impact of fear and uncertainty in the general population. The aim was to turn the population against the Danish resistance movement. Doctors were especially vulnerable to clearing murders since they were out to look after the sick at any time of day. The Germans demanded the Danish newspapers to print articles linking resistance killings and clearing murders next to each other on the same page.

References

* * {{Denmark-hist-stub Terrorism tactics Denmark in World War II German military occupations

See also

References