25. The Norwegian Would-be Fuhrer
Discharged from the army during a period of cutbacks, Quisling traveled throughout Europe for much of the 1920s. Returning to Norway in 1929, he launched a political career marked by anti-Semitic, anticommunist, and anti-liberal positions. Joining a movement called “Rise of the Nordic People“, he became Norway’s defense minister from 1931-1933. In 1933, inspired by the Nazis’ victory in Germany, he launched a fascist party, appointing himself its Fuhrer.
Unlike Germany’s Nazis, however, Quisling’s party never won more than 2% of the vote in Norway. That left him increasingly bitter and frustrated with his countrymen. In late 1939, he flew to Berlin, met with Hitler, and offered to assist the Germans if they tried to seize Norway. The Nazis, aware of his lack of support in Norway, were noncommittal. When Germany dragged Norway into WWII by invading in 1940, the Norwegian government fled into exile. Quisling, opportunistically, tried to set up a collaborationist government. However, he was initially ignored by all, including the German occupiers.