Nansenhjelpen

Nansenhjelpen (formally called Nansen Hjelp, variously called the Nansen Relief in English and Nansenhilfe in German) was a Norwegian humanitarian organization founded by Odd Nansen in 1936 to provide safe haven and assistance in Norway for Jewish refugees from areas in Europe under Nazi control. It was formally disbanded in 1945, but effectively ceased operations in late 1942, after all Jews in Norway had been deported, murdered, or had fled into Sweden.

Founding

Although a few Norwegian individuals had made efforts to save Jews from Nazi persecution in Europe, Norwegian humanitarian organizations, such as that founded by Landsorganisasjonen and the Communist party had focused primarily on helping political refugees. It was a professor of German at the University of Oslo, Fredrik Paasche, who approached architect Odd Nansen, the son of famed scientific explorer and Nobel Peace laureate Fridtjof Nansen to lend his name to an organization dedicated to rescuing Jews. When another Nobel Peace laureate, Christian Lange and foreign minister Halvdan Koht added their voices to Paasche's, Nansen agreed to form the organization.