Grethe Bartram facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Grethe Bartram
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Grethe Bartram in 1942
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| Born |
Maren Margrethe Thomsen
23 February 1924 |
| Died | January 2017 (aged 92) |
| Nationality | Danish |
| Other names | Thora, Maren Margrethe Bartram |
| Known for | Informed on at least 53 people from the Danish resistance movement during the Second World War |
| Criminal status | Deceased |
| Conviction(s) | Treason |
| Criminal penalty | Death; commuted to life imprisonment |
Maren Margrethe Thomsen, known as Maren Margrethe "Grethe" Bartram and "Thora" (born February 23, 1924 – died January 2017), was a Danish woman who became an informer during World War II. She gave information about at least 53 people who were part of the Danish resistance movement. This led to early communist resistance groups being broken up. Many of their members were sent to Nazi concentration camps, which were terrible prisons. Bartram even informed on her own brother, husband, and close friends.
After the war, Bartram was found guilty of betraying her country. She was sentenced to death. However, in 1947, her sentence was changed to life in prison. She was released in 1956 and moved to Halland in Sweden. There, she lived under her married name.
Contents
Early Life in Denmark
Grethe Bartram was born in Aarhus, Denmark. She grew up in a family that didn't have much money. She was the second of eight children. Both her parents were members of the Communist Party of Denmark (DKP). Their friends were also involved with the party. Her father, Niels Peter Christopher Bartram, had fought in World War I for Germany. He had a mental condition from the war that made it hard for him to work. He ran a small bicycle repair shop in Midtbyen, Aarhus.
Grethe left school when she was 13 years old and started working. At 16, she became pregnant and married Frode Thomsen, a young machinist, in July 1941. Their marriage didn't last long, ending in the summer of 1943. Their son was then cared for by her mother-in-law.
Becoming an Informer
Grethe Bartram's family, including her older brother Christian, became involved in the Danish resistance movement. This group secretly worked against the German occupation during World War II. In September 1942, the Danish police offered a reward for information about a fire in a shop in Aarhus. Grethe learned who was involved from her brother. She then gave this information to the police. Five people were arrested, including her brother. One person escaped, and the others were sent to prison.
After this, Bartram took part in some secret activities with people from the resistance. However, in March–April 1944, she started working as an agent for the Gestapo. The Gestapo was the secret police of Nazi Germany. In June, a group called the Samsing Group and some university students connected to them were arrested. They were later sent to Neuengamme concentration camp. Because of Bartram's actions, the communist resistance groups in Aarhus and central Jutland were mostly stopped from operating.
Many people in the resistance still trusted Bartram at this time. In August 1944, she was sent to Copenhagen. Her task was to help set up new leaders for the resistance in Aarhus. But the resistance soon became suspicious of her. To avoid suspicion, Bartram arranged to be arrested and sent to Frøslev Prison Camp. This didn't help, and the resistance tried to kill her several times, but only managed to wound her. She was sent to Germany to get better.
In March 1945, she was hired by the Gestapo in Kolding. She worked there until the German forces in Denmark surrendered. On May 5, the day Germany surrendered, she was at the Gestapo headquarters in Esbjerg. She was wounded when the resistance set off bombs there. She quickly recovered and rode her bicycle to Kolding for help. But the Gestapo had already left. Bartram then went to Brejning, where she was arrested on May 10.
Bartram said she received about 500-700 Danish kroner per month for her work. However, a witness from the Gestapo claimed she received three-quarters of the money paid to informers. This amounted to 1200–1500 kroner a month, which was a lot of money at the time.
The Trial and Sentence
During her trial, it was discovered that Grethe Bartram had given information about as many as 53 people. Her information directly led to 15 people being treated very badly while questioned. It also led to 35 people being sent to Nazi concentration camps in Germany. Eight of these people sadly died or were reported missing.
Bartram admitted to most of the accusations against her. She was sentenced to death on October 29, 1946, by the Criminal Court of Aarhus. This decision was later confirmed by higher courts.
However, like Anna Lund Lorenzen, the only other Danish woman sentenced to death for war crimes after 1945, her sentence was changed. On December 9, 1947, the Minister of Justice, Niels Busch-Jensen, changed her sentence to life in prison. He said his reasons were Bartram's young age at the time and that she had faced money problems.
Bartram was released after ten years in prison on October 26, 1956. After her release, she moved to Sweden. She became a Swedish citizen in the 1960s and passed away in Vessigebro at the age of 92.
Literature
- T. Lauridsen, John (2007). Over stregen - under besættelsen. Samvirke. ISBN 978-87-02-05199-5. https://books.google.com/books?id=mh4wi5I5G_0C&q=Over+stregen+-+under+bes%C3%A6ttelsen.
- Bisgaard, Nina (1986). Kvinder i modstandskampen. Tiderne skifter. ISBN 87-7445-284-3. https://books.google.com/books?id=gXiAAAAACAAJ&q=Kvinder+i+modstandskampen.
- Tamm, Ditlev (1984). Retsopgøret efter besættelsen. Jurist- og Økonomforbundets Forlag. ISBN 87-574-4261-4. https://books.google.com/books?id=fqD7LgAACAAJ&q=Retsopg%C3%B8ret+efter+bes%C3%A6ttelsen.
- Haaest, Erik (1977). Udyr – eller hvad. Viking. ISBN 87-87503-03-4. https://books.google.com/books?id=7hSXAAAACAAJ&q=Udyr+%E2%80%93+eller+hvad.
- Skov Kristensen, Henrik (2010). Grethe Bartram – fra kommunist til gestapoagent. Nyt Nordisk Forlag. ISBN 978-87-17-04140-0. https://books.google.com/books?id=MS9fewAACAAJ&q=Grethe+Bartram+%E2%80%93+fra+kommunist+til+gestapoagent.
- Hauerbach, Sven (1945). 5. Kolonne. Aarhussabotørernes modige indsats. https://www.saxo.com/dk/5-kolonne-aarhus-sabotoerernes-modige-indsats_sven-hauerbach_ukendt_SX18985203.
- Wolthers, Signe (12 December 2006). Gestopas største stikker. Samvirke.
- Chr. Nielsen, Flemming (1995). Dødsdømt – benådet – straffet. Jyllands-Posten.
External sources
- Grethe Bartram – biography in Dansk Kvindebiografisk Leksikon
- Storstikkeren – Chapter 10 in Erik Haaests book, Udyr – eller hvad from 1977 in an updated e-version from 2006.
- Myter, Mordet i Højbjerg, Marie Lock-Hansen, Forlaget Din Bog
- Grethe Bartram
- Samvirke, Gestapos Største Stikker
