Frank Olsen (30 April 1922 – 17 March 1945) was a

Norwegian resistance The Norwegian resistance (Norwegian: ''Motstandsbevegelsen'') to the occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany began after Operation Weserübung in 1940 and ended in 1945. It took several forms: *Asserting the legitimacy of the exiled government, ...

member who was executed 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 the ...

. He was born in

Vestby Vestby is a municipality in former Akershus now Viken county, Norway. It is part of the Follo traditional region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Vestby. General information Name The municipality (originally th ...

, and lived in

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 ...

. During the

, he became involved in

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 ...

, and carried out a series of sabotage missions. On 13 February 1945, Olsen was going to plan a sabotage action to take place on the same evening, together with Adolf Bogstad and Storm Weinholdt, in the latter's home at

Kampen Campen or Kampen may refer to: Places Finland * Kampen, the Swedish name of Kamppi, a district in Helsinki Germany * Campen, Germany, a village by the Ems estuary, northwestern Germany, home of the Campen Lighthouse * Campen Castle, a part ...

. Before either of these arrived, two

Gestapo The (), abbreviated Gestapo (; ), was the official secret police of Nazi Germany and in German-occupied Europe. The force was created by Hermann Göring in 1933 by combining the various political police agencies of Prussia into one organi ...

officers, one German and one Norwegian, arrived in the Weinholdt family's home to check on Storm Weinholdt's brother Kjell. As Kjell was not home either, the Gestapo officers waited in the living room. Bogstad and Storm Weinholdt soon arrived, and while the Gestapo officers became suspicious of the rendez-vous, the men stated that they were planning an outdoors trip. They were searched, and knew that they had to leave before Frank Olsen showed up, as Olsen carried important documents which would compromise them. When Olsen did arrive, he was spotted by Storm Weinholdt's father through a window, but he was unable to contact Olsen. Olsen rang the doorbell, entered, and the Gestapo officers understood the situation. The three resistance members were held in the house for the time being, but after Adolf Bogstad tried to escape and was killed, Frank Olsen was arrested together with Storm Weinholdt, Weinholdt's father and his brother Kjell, who also had arrived. They were subject to torture at

Møllergata 19 Møllergata 19 is an address in Oslo, Norway where the city's main police station and jail was located. The address gained notoriety during the German occupation from 1940 to 1945, when the Nazi security police kept its headquarters here. This is ...

. Frank Olsen was sentenced to death on 15 March in an SS court-martial; prosecutor was

Siegfried Fehmer Siegfried Wolfgang Fehmer (10 January 1911 – 16 March 1948) was a German ''SS'' officer during World War II. He was stationed in Norway during the occupation by Nazi Germany, and by the end of the war he was heading the Oslo branch of the Gesta ...

. He was executed by gunshot at

Akershus Fortress Akershus Fortress ( no, Akershus Festning, ) or Akershus Castle ( no, Akershus slott ) is a medieval castle in the Norwegian capital Oslo that was built to protect and provide a royal residence for the city. Since the Middle Ages the fortress h ...

on 17 March. His body was lowered in the

Oslofjord The Oslofjord (, ; en, Oslo Fjord) is an inlet in the south-east of Norway, stretching from an imaginary line between the and lighthouses and down to in the south to Oslo in the north. It is part of the Skagerrak strait, connecting the Nor ...

. This was the second to last execution of Norwegians by Germans during the war; the last person was an ''SS-Jäger'' executed for desertion () on 19 April. Together with eight other resistance members—Adolf Bogstad, Erik Bruun,

Henry Gundersen Henry Gundersen (3 March 1920 – 17 March 1945) was a Norwegian resistance member who was executed during the occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany. He was born in Glemmen, and lived in Oslo. He was educated at the Norwegian National Academy of Cr ...

Arvid Hansen Arvid Hansen (1 March 1916 – 13 February 1945) was a Norwegian resistance member who was executed during the occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany. He was born in Oslo as the son of Harald and Helga Marie Hansen. He worked in Oslo as an el ...

, Ingolf Nordstrøm,

Kåre Olafsen Kåre Adolf Olafsen (19 January 1920 – 17 March 1945) was a Norwegian resistance member who was executed during the occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany. He was born in Sørum, and lived in Østre Aker. He became involved in Milorg in 1941, duri ...

, Kjell Ramberg and Storm Weinholdt—he is commemorated with a memorial stone at

Sarabråten Sarabråten is an area near the lake Nøklevann in Østmarka, Oslo, Norway. Now a recreational area, it was owned by Thomas Johannessen Heftye and his descendants from 1856 to 1911, and after that by Oslo municipality. It was first recorded unde ...

Østmarka Østmarka is a forested area to the east of Oslo and part of the congregation of woodland areas known as Oslomarka. The area is situated within the municipalities Oslo, Lørenskog, Rælingen, Ski and Enebakk. Østmarka is delimited to the west by ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Olsen, Frank 1922 births 1945 deaths People from Vestby Norwegian resistance members Resistance members killed by Nazi Germany Norwegian civilians killed in World War II People executed by Nazi Germany by firing squad Norwegian torture victims Norwegian people executed by Nazi Germany