Nikolai Andreas Schei (9 May 1901 – 25 May 1985) was a Norwegian jurist and civil servant. He was born in

Førde Førde is a former municipality in the county of Sogn og Fjordane, Norway. It was located in the traditional district of Sunnfjord. The administrative center was the town of Førde which in 2016 had 10,255 inhabitants. Other villages in Førde ...

as the son of Per Schei (1872–1960) and Johanne Schei (1874–1963). He was a brother of

Andreas Schei Andreas Olai Schei (7 October 1902 – 25 December 1989) was a Norwegian jurist and civil servant. He was born in Førde as the son of Per Schei (1872–1960) and Johanne Schei (1874–1963). He was a younger brother of Nikolai Schei. In 1936 he ...

, and through him an uncle of Chief Justice Tore Schei. He took his

examen artium Examen artium was the name of the academic certification conferred in Denmark and Norway, qualifying the student for admission to university studies. Examen artium was originally introduced as the entrance exam of the University of Copenhagen in 1 ...

in 1925, and took the

cand.jur. Candidate of Law (Latin: ''candidatus/candidata juris/iuris'') is both a graduate law degree awarded to law students in the Nordic region as well as an academic status designation for advanced Law School students in German-speaking countries. ...

degree in 1928. He also worked part-time as an assistant in the Ministry of Justice and the Police. He left in 1929, was a deputy judge in

Sunnfjord Sunnfjord ( en, the southern fjord - in contrast to Nordfjord) is a traditional district in Western Norway located in Vestland county. It includes the municipalities of Askvoll, Fjaler, the southernmost parts of Kinn, Sunnfjord, and the souther ...

for a short time before working for the counties of

Møre og Romsdal Møre og Romsdal (; en, Møre and Romsdal) is a county in the northernmost part of Western Norway. It borders the counties of Trøndelag, Innlandet, and Vestland. The county administration is located in the town of Molde, while Ålesund is the ...

from 1929 to 1931 and

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 ...

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 ...

from 1931 to 1934. In April 1933 he married Othilia Helberg Christensen (1901–1991), a daughter of Ingolf Elster Christensen. In 1934 he was appointed as inspector in a national arbitration institution, which was led by

Carl Platou Carl Nicolai Stoud Platou (25 July 1885 – 1 February 1956) was a Norwegian civil servant and politician. A jurist by education, he is best known for his civil servant career in the Norwegian Ministry of Justice and the Police, which spanned from ...

. In 1939 Schei was hired by the newly established

Ministry of Provisioning The Royal Norwegian Ministry of Industrial Provisioning ( no, Provianteringsdepartementet) was a Norwegian ministry that existed from 1917 to 1922. It was established on 26 August 1916, during the first World War. It ceased to exist on 31 October ...

. He was tasked to head the Directorate of Provisioning and Rationing. In 1940, when Germany invaded Norway as part of

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 ...

and the

royal family A royal family is the immediate family of kings/queens, emirs/emiras, sultans/ sultanas, or raja/ rani and sometimes their extended family. The term imperial family appropriately describes the family of an emperor or empress, and the term ...

and

government of Norway The politics of Norway take place in the framework of a parliamentary, representative democratic constitutional monarchy. Executive power is exercised by the Council of State, the cabinet, led by the prime minister of Norway. Legislative power i ...

fled the country, Schei was specifically asked to stay in Norway, where he continued as director of provisioning and rationing until 1945. As a civil servant Schei was one of the many people who worked throughout the war without being favoured by the new Nazi authorities. In addition, Schei was involved in 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, ...

, as a clandestine member of Hjemmefrontens Ledelse. He was imprisoned briefly in

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 ...

in 1944, and also survived an assassination attempt. Similarly, Carl Platou also continued in his position, but was eventually imprisoned for secret resistance work. His father-in-law Ingolf Elster Christensen came to be the leader of the

Administrative Council Administrative Council () was a part of Council of State of the Congress Poland. Introduced by the Constitution of the Kingdom of Poland in 1815, it was composed of 5 ministers, special nominees of the King and the Namestnik of the Kingdom of Polan ...

, which was abolished in September 1940. In 1945, at the end of the war in Norway, Schei became acting Minister of Provisioning and Reconstruction (so-called "chief officer" of the Ministry), waiting for the exile Nygaardsvold government to return. As the normal state of affairs in Norway resumed, Schei was appointed County Governor of Sogn og Fjordane. He sat until his retirement in 1971. He was also profiled nationally as chair of the so-called

Schei Committee The Schei Committee ( no, Schei-komitéen) was a committee named by the Government of Norway to look into the organization of municipalities in Norway post-World War II. It convened in 1946, and its formal name was (The 1946 Committee on Municip ...

. The findings of the committee were highly influential; spurring a series of mergers and thus greatly reducing the number of municipalities in Norway. He was also a board member of the Directorate for Enemy Property, the industrial company Årdal Verk and the

Nansen Academy The Nansen Academy – Norwegian Humanistic Academy ( no, Nansenskolen – Norsk Humanistisk Akademi) is a folk high school in Lillehammer, Norway. History Nansen Academy was founded as a humanist and anti-totalitarian institution. The school was ...

, among others. He was a Commander with Star 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 ci ...

, a Commander, First Class of the Danish

Order of the Dannebrog The Order of the Dannebrog ( da, Dannebrogordenen) is a Danish order of chivalry instituted in 1671 by Christian V. Until 1808, membership in the order was limited to fifty members of noble or royal rank, who formed a single class known a ...

and the Swedish

Order of the Polar Star The Royal Order of the Polar Star (Swedish: ''Kungliga Nordstjärneorden'') is a Swedish order of chivalry created by King Frederick I on 23 February 1748, together with the Order of the Sword and the Order of the Seraphim. The Order of the ...

, and a Knight, Grand Knight's Cross with Star (Commander with Star) of the Icelandic

Order of the Falcon The Order of the Falcon ( is, Hin íslenska fálkaorða) is the only order of chivalry in Iceland, founded by King Christian X of Denmark and Iceland on 3 July 1921. The award is awarded for merit for Iceland and humanity and has five degrees. N ...

.Icelandic Presidency Website (''Icelandic''), Order of the Falcon
Schei, Nikolai
14 April 1962, "Stórriddarakross með stjörnu" (Grand Knight with Star) He died in May 1985 in Førde.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Schei, Nikolai 1901 births 1985 deaths People from Førde Norwegian civil servants Directors of government agencies of Norway Norwegian resistance members County governors of Norway Commanders First Class of the Order of the Dannebrog Commanders First Class of the Order of the Polar Star Grand Knights with Star of the Order of the Falcon