Lom prisoner of war camp facts for kids

The Lom prisoner of war camp (Norwegian: Lom krigsfangeleir) was a place where the Norwegian army kept German prisoners during the 1940 Norwegian Campaign of World War II. The camp was open for a short time, from April 20 to April 27, 1940. It also held some Norwegians who were thought to be helping the Germans or the Norwegian fascists led by Vidkun Quisling.

On April 27, 1940, the camp had to be emptied. German forces were getting close to the area. The prisoners and their guards marched west across the mountains to Sogn. By the time they reached Sogn, the Norwegian resistance in South Norway was falling apart. The Norwegian guards soon left the prisoners to find their own way.

Setting Up the Camp

Nazi Germany attacked neutral Norway on April 9, 1940. This attack was called Operation Weserübung. Fighting broke out across the country. Soon, German soldiers started to be captured by the Norwegians. This meant Norway needed places to hold these prisoners behind the battle lines.

In Eastern Norway, the first German prisoners were held at a small prison in Sel in Oppland. But this prison quickly became too full. A bigger, more permanent camp was needed for the German prisoners.

Choosing a Location

The job of setting up a new camp was given to Lieutenant Colonel Lars Dannevig. He was 66 years old. Dannevig had been in Oslo when the Germans invaded. He left the city to help fight and slow down the German advance. He traveled through neutral Sweden and then back into Norway.

Colonel Hans Sommerfeldt Hiorth ordered Dannevig to create a prisoner-of-war camp. It needed to hold up to 200 German captives. Dannevig also became the commander of the Otta Valley area. His first choice for the camp was an agricultural school in Vågå. However, the Norwegian Army wanted to use it as a hospital. So, Loar School in the village of Fossbergom in Lom was chosen instead.

How the Camp Operated

Lieutenant Colonel Dannevig used local volunteers and soldiers to prepare the school. They turned it into a prison camp. They dug trenches around the school. Barbed wire fences were put up. Fighting positions and shelters were built from wood. Dannevig also organized local groups of soldiers in the surrounding areas.

The Lom camp was part of the Norwegian 2nd Division, led by General Jacob Hvinden Haug. The first German prisoners arrived at the camp on April 20, 1940. A few members of the Norwegian fascist party Nasjonal Samling were also brought in. The prisoners stayed in the school's gym. Food was cooked in the main school building. On April 21, Dannevig and the local police questioned the Nasjonal Samling members. Once it was clear they were not a danger, they were released. They were even allowed to join the local soldiers.

Air Raids and Safety

German air attacks by the Luftwaffe were a constant threat. So, the camp held drills for using the trenches and shooting at planes. On April 22, a small air attack happened. The Norwegians fired at the bombers to make them fly higher.

The next day, April 23, a much bigger attack on Lom took place. Several houses were hit. One soldier and three civilians were hurt. One bomb hit the prisoner-of-war camp but did not explode. The post office and a local business were also damaged. The Norwegians believed the bombers were trying to hit a nearby bridge.

Prisoners at Lom

The second and last group of prisoners arrived at Lom on April 25, 1940. At this point, the camp held:

• Six Norwegian officers
• 100 Norwegian soldiers
• Four Norwegian female personnel
• 35 German prisoners-of-war
• Five Norwegian prisoners

The German prisoners included infantry soldiers, artillery soldiers, Luftwaffe airmen, and Fallschirmjäger (paratroopers). Many of them had been captured in fighting east of Lake Mjøsa. This included a battle at Strandlykkja.

During the battle of Strandlykkja, a German bus accidentally drove into Norwegian positions. Nine German artillerymen were captured. These prisoners were sent to Lom. The Fallschirmjäger prisoners at Lom had been shot down by Norwegian ground fire. They were on their way to attack the rail junction of Dombås on April 14, 1940. Among the German prisoners were three officers. Two German airmen, pilot Helmut Mütschele and navigator Karl Lorey, were also held at Lom. Their plane had been shot down near Oslo on April 9, 1940.

One of the Norwegian prisoners at Lom was Rittmester Harald Normann. He was the commander of the Norwegian Army Air Service's air school at Kjeller. Normann was arrested on April 16, 1940. He was suspected of helping the fascist group led by Vidkun Quisling. He was held for 10 days. Later investigations cleared Normann of these suspicions.

Closing the Camp

On April 26, 1940, Lieutenant Colonel Dannevig learned that the Germans were about to capture Otta. This would cut off the Otta Valley. General Jacob Hvinden Haug, the commander of the 2nd Division, told Dannevig to do what he thought was best.

Dannevig decided to empty the camp. He would march his troops and prisoners over the mountains to join the Norwegian 4th Division in Sogn. All the prisoners came along. About half of the Norwegian soldiers were sent home because they were not good at skiing.

The march west began at 10:00 AM on April 27. The German prisoners pulled ski sleds across the snowy mountains. Many prisoners soon suffered from snow blindness and exhaustion. Some had to be left behind at the hotel Turtagrø. They were later picked up by snow sleds. Over several days, the prisoners were taken by boat to Vadheim in Sogn. By the time they reached Vadheim, the fighting in southern Norway was ending. The German prisoners were then left to themselves. Dannevig's group of soldiers was officially ended on May 1, 1940.

After the Norwegian Campaign ended, Lars Dannevig joined the Norwegian resistance movement. He tried to escape across the North Sea to the United Kingdom. However, he was arrested by the Gestapo in 1942. He died while being questioned in Trondheim.