Haldis Elisabeth Arentz Sveri (21 October 1927 – 30 January 2018) was a Norwegian military officer. She was known for being a pioneer among Norwegian

women in the military Women have served in the military in many different roles in various jurisdictions throughout history. Women in many countries are no longer excluded from some types of combat missions such as piloting, mechanics, and infantry officer. Since 1 ...

. Despite her young age, Sveri 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 ...

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 ...

. In 1946, she started a regular military career as platoon leader in ''Kvinnekompaniet''. She was later in ''Hærens Samband''. From 1959 to 1987 she served as inspector of women in the

Norwegian Army The Norwegian Army ( no, Hæren) is the land warfare service branch of the Norwegian Armed Forces. The Army is the oldest of the Norwegian service branches, established as a modern military organization under the command of the King of Norway ...

. In 1982, she reached the rank of

lieutenant colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colone ...

, and became the first female senior official in the Norwegian military. Sveri was also an advisor to

Queen Sonja Sonja (born Sonja Haraldsen on 4 July 1937) is Queen of Norway since 17 January 1991 as the wife of King Harald V. Sonja and the then Crown Prince Harald had dated for nine years prior to their marriage in 1968. They had kept their relations ...

from 1980 to 1987. From 1961 to 1987 the represented the Norwegian Army in the Committee on Women in the NATO Forces. She has been a member of the

World Federalist Movement The World Federalist Movement advocates strong democratic institutions adhering to the principles of subsidiarity, solidarity and democracy. The movement formed in the 1930s and 1940s by citizens groups concerned that the structure of the new ...

council since 1992 and has also been president. She has been active in Norges Forsvarsforening, chairing the

Oslo Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) 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 ...

branch from 1989 to 1997. She chaired the

Akershus Akershus () is a traditional region and current electoral district in Norway, with Oslo as its main city and traditional capital. It is named after the Akershus Fortress in Oslo. From the middle ages to 1919, Akershus was a fief and main county ...

county chapter of the Pensioners Party from 1998 to 2007, and has been a member of Akershus

county council A county council is the elected administrative body governing an area known as a county. This term has slightly different meanings in different countries. Ireland The county councils created under British rule in 1899 continue to exist in Irela ...

. She has been decorated with the

National Service Medal The Norwegian National Service Medal is awarded upon completion of mandatory military service (usually one year, six months for the Home Guard). The medal exists in four versions, one for each branch of service (army, air force, navy and home gu ...

, ''Forsvarsmedaljen'', ''Forsvarsmedaljen med laurbærgren'' and the Knight of the 1st Class of the

Royal Norwegian Order of St. Olav Royal may refer to: People * Royal (name), a list of people with either the surname or given name * A member of a royal family Places United States * Royal, Arkansas, an unincorporated community * Royal, Illinois, a village * Royal, Iowa, a cit ...

. She resided in

Eiksmarka Eiksmarka ("Oakfield") is an affluent suburb of the Norwegian municipality of Bærum in the Greater Oslo Region with around 4,000 inhabitants. It is located just west of the border of Oslo municipality, but within the contiguous urban area of O ...

. She died in 2018.Death announcement, ''

Budstikka ''Budstikka'' (The Bidding Stick), prior to 2004 known as ''Asker og Bærum Budstikke'', is a daily local newspaper published out of Billingstad in Asker, Norway. It covers the municipalities of Asker and Bærum, and is the only newspaper issued ...

'' 1 February 2018 p. 32

References

1927 births 2018 deaths Norwegian resistance members Female resistance members of World War II Norwegian Army personnel Norwegian female military personnel Pensioners' Party (Norway) politicians Bærum politicians Norwegian women in politics Norwegian women in World War II 20th-century Norwegian women People from Akershus {{Norway-mil-bio-stub