Outside Oslo’s Eastern Railway Station (Østbanestasjonen) sits a glistening monument to Norway’s most active World War II resistance group. The sculpture, created by Bjørn Melbye Gulliksen, was unveiled in 2015 and shows a shining hammer smashing a swastika. Titled Knus nazismen (“Crush nazism”), the sculpture celebrates the efforts of the Osvald Group (Osvaldgruppen).
Five of the group’s surviving members helped unveil the sculpture, which is situated where they carried out their most recognized act of sabotage—the 1942 Eastern Railway bombing. Particularly active from 1941 to 1944, the sabotage group had over 200 members and carried out at least 110 actions to wreak havoc against the Nazi occupying forces and the Norwegian government that collaborated with the Nazis.
Led by resistance fighter Asbjørn Sunde, the group targeted railways and Norwegian industries that helped the occupying forces. They also liquidated members of the Gestapo living in Norway who were deemed a threat. After the war, the group fell out of favor, mainly due to Sunde’s ties to the Communist Party and the Soviet Union. In fact, Sunde was later accused of treason and spying for the Soviets.
However, in 1995 the first commemorative plaque honoring the group appeared, and they are now appreciated for playing an active role in freeing Norway from the Nazi occupation. In 2013, Defence Minister Anne-Grete Strøm-Erichsen honored the eight remaining members, stating, “You were saboteurs and soldiers of darkness, who remained in the dark. Today, we regret that many of you were seen as suspicious and rejected.”
The design for Knus nazismen was selected after the Norwegian Confederation of Trade Unions commissioned a monument and a public competition took place. Though the work drew some criticism from art critics, who called it “banal” and “superbrutalistic and old-fashioned,” it continues to be a reminder of the group’s important work.
This work is put into perspective by Sunde’s quote, which is etched into the base: “It was worth fighting for freedom, for all countries, for all classes, for all people.”
Outside of an Oslo railway station, a sculpture titled Knus nazismen (“Crush nazism”) celebrates the efforts of the Osvald Group.
A plaque on the base honors members of the group who lost their lives.
The resistance group was active during World War II and was known for its acts of sabotage against the Nazis, including the 1942 Eastern Railway bombing.
The track area at the Østbanestastionen in 1942, the same year that the Osvald group blew up the facility. The swastika banners were hung on the occasion of Heinrich Himmler’s visit to Oslo. (Photo: Oslo city archive via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0)
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