Knut Moe (1921–1989) was a Norwegian resistance member and a radio agent for the

Special Intelligence Service The Special Intelligence Service was a covert counterintelligence branch of the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) located in South America during World War II. It was established to monitor the activities of Nazi and pro-Nazi gr ...

, 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 ...

World War II

He was born in

Hammerfest Hammerfest (; sme, Hámmerfeasta ) is a municipality in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. Hammerfest is the northernmost town in the world with more than 10,000 inhabitants. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Hammerfe ...

. When

reached Norway in 1940 with the

invasion An invasion is a military offensive in which large numbers of combatants of one geopolitical entity aggressively enter territory owned by another such entity, generally with the objective of either: conquering; liberating or re-establishing con ...

and

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 ...

, Moe joined the

Norwegian resistance movement 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, ...

. He eventually fled to England, where he was recruited by the

and trained as a telegrapher. He soon returned to Norway to conduct intelligence work, being parachuted over

Finnmarksvidda Finnmarksvidda ( sme, Finnmárkkoduottar; en, Finnmark plateau/highland) is Norway's largest plateau, with an area greater than . The plateau lies about above sea level. Approximately 36% of Finnmark lies on the Finnmarksvidda. Geography Fr ...

. He operated an illegal radio post in Alta together with

Torstein Raaby Torstein Pettersen Raaby (6 October 1918 – 23 March 1964) was a Norwegian telegrapher, resistance fighter and explorer. He is known as a crew member on the Kon-Tiki expedition. Biography Raaby was born in the village of Dverberg on the island ...

, Alfred Henningsen and Karl Rasmussen. The codename was "Ida", and it became a part of the network "Venus" of

Northern Norway Northern Norway ( nb, Nord-Norge, , nn, Nord-Noreg; se, Davvi-Norga) is a geographical Regions of Norway, region of Norway, consisting of the two northernmost counties Nordland and Troms og Finnmark, in total about 35% of the Norwegian mainlan ...

. They mainly reported on German troop and naval movements. Among their achievements was the 25 December 1943 report that the German battleship was heading into open waters. The ship was subsequently sunk in the

Battle of North Cape The Battle of the North Cape was a Second World War naval battle that occurred on 26 December 1943, as part of the Arctic campaign. The , on an operation to attack Arctic Convoys of war materiel from the Western Allies to the Soviet Union, was ...

. Rasmussen was later captured by

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 ...

, whereas Moe and Raaby fled in May 1944 to England via Sweden and Finland. Imprisoned and tortured, Rasmussen committed suicide by auto-defenestration in June 1944. Another major concern was the presence of the German battleship . In September 1943 Torbjørn Johansen bicycled from Tromsø to Alta and back with reports on the ship. The information was conveyed by his brother, radio operator

Einar Johansen Oliver (Einar) Johansen (15 August 1915 – 16 October 1996) was a Norwegian engineer and resistance member during World War II. He is known as a member of the illegal radio group Skylark B, and after this was discontinued he set up new radio posts ...

, leading to an attack in September 1943. ''Tirpitz'' was damaged, but not destroyed. In April 1944, before fleeing for the first time, Raaby reported on its status, leading to an attack where ''Tirpitz'' was again damaged. In September 1944, Moe and another agent were parachuted over Finnmarksvidda for the second time. They stayed in the mountains west of Alta while taking several tours of reconnaissance. Following an assault on 15 September 1944, ''Tirpitz'' was moved further south, near Tromsø to function as a floating gun battery. Moe reported on ''Tirpitz'' in November 1944, and the ship was finally destroyed. He fled Norway for the third time, again via Finland and Sweden in a harsh climate.

Post-war life

After the war Moe participated in the

Independent Norwegian Brigade Group in Germany The Independent Norwegian Brigade Group in Germany ( no, Tysklandsbrigaden, 'the Germany Brigade') was a Norwegian expeditionary force stationed in the British zone of Allied-occupied Germany, from 1946 to 1953. At first it was based in the Hanov ...

. He took a hotelier's education in Switzerland and worked as a steward before being hired in the interest group Sjømilitære Samfund in 1958. He died in 1989.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Moe, Knut Norwegian resistance members Norwegian expatriates in the United Kingdom People from Hammerfest 1921 births 1989 deaths