Hans Reidar Holtermann
20 October 1895 – November 25, 1966
Holtermann as an oberst in 1945
Nickname	"Majoren" ("the Major")[1]
Place of birth	Sogndal, Sogn og Fjordane
Place of death	Bærum, Akershus
Allegiance	Royal Norwegian Army
Years of service	?–1962
Rank	Generalmajor (Major General) of the Royal Norwegian Army
Commands held	Commander of: • Hegra Fortress • Norwegian Brigade in Scotland • District Command Trøndelag • Inspector General of the Army Artillery • Commander in Chief North Norway • Independent Norwegian Brigade Group in Germany • Army Staff Commander • Allied Land Forces Southern Norway • Norwegian Civil Defence forces
Battles/wars	World War II: Battle of Hegra Fortress
Awards	War Cross with sword[2][3] Knight, First Class of the Royal Norwegian Order of St Olav[2][4][5] Norwegian Military Journal's[6] Silver Medal[4] Norwegian Athletic Society Medal[7] in Gold[4] Légion d'honneur[2][4] Knight 1st Class - Order of the Sword[2][4]
Other work	Economist Office manager (1940-1942)

Hans Reidar Holtermann, born 20 October 1895 in Sogndal^[2] - died 25 November 1966 in Bærum. Events 1740 - Maria Theresa takes the throne of Austria. France, Prussia, Bavaria and Saxony Year 1895 ( MDCCCXCV) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year Events 1034 - Máel Coluim mac Cináeda, King of Scots dies Donnchad, the Year 1966 ( MCMLXVI) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar of the 1966 Gregorian calendar. Norwegian military ranks Norwegian Army Royal Norwegian Sogndal is a municipality in the county of Sogn og Fjordane, Norway. is a county (fylke in Norway, bordering Møre og Romsdal, Oppland, Buskerud, and Hordaland. is a municipality in the county of Akershus, Norway. Bærum was established as a municipality January 1 1838 (see Formannskapsdistrikt) is a county in Norway, bordering Hedmark, Oppland, Buskerud, Oslo and Østfold. The Norwegian Army (Hæren is Norway 's military land force It is part of the Norwegian Defence Force along with the Royal Norwegian Navy, the The question mark (? also known as an interrogation point, question point, query, or eroteme, is a punctuation mark that replaces Year 1962 ( MCMLXII) was a Common year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1962 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Norwegian military ranks Norwegian Army Royal Norwegian Hegra Fortress ( Hegra festning) is a small mountain fortress in Hegra, Stjørdal, in the county of Nord-Trøndelag, Norway Tysklandsbrigaden was a Norwegian expeditionary force stationed first in the Hanover area and from 1948 to 1953 in the Schleswig Holstein area of Germany as part World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including The Battle of Hegra Fortress was a twenty-five day engagement in the 1940 Norwegian Campaign which saw a small force of Norwegian volunteers fighting superior German forces Krigskorset med Sverd or the War Cross with Sword is the highest ranking Norwegian gallantry decoration The Royal Norwegian Order of St Olav ( Norwegian: Den Kongelige Norske St The Order of the Sword ( Swedish Svärdsorden) is a Swedish order of chivalry created by King Frederick I of Sweden on February Events 1740 - Maria Theresa takes the throne of Austria. France, Prussia, Bavaria and Saxony Year 1895 ( MDCCCXCV) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year Sogndal is a municipality in the county of Sogn og Fjordane, Norway. Events 1034 - Máel Coluim mac Cináeda, King of Scots dies Donnchad, the Year 1966 ( MCMLXVI) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar of the 1966 Gregorian calendar. is a municipality in the county of Akershus, Norway. Bærum was established as a municipality January 1 1838 (see Formannskapsdistrikt) Holtermann is best known as the commander of Hegra Fortress during the Battle of Hegra Fortress in the Norwegian Campaign 15 April to 5 Mai 1940. Hegra Fortress ( Hegra festning) is a small mountain fortress in Hegra, Stjørdal, in the county of Nord-Trøndelag, Norway The Battle of Hegra Fortress was a twenty-five day engagement in the 1940 Norwegian Campaign which saw a small force of Norwegian volunteers fighting superior German forces The Norwegian Campaign, lasting from 9 April to 10 June 1940, led to the first direct land confrontation between the military forces of the Allies

Holtermann attended military college in both Norway and France in the inter-war years. Norway ( Norwegian: Norge ( Bokmål) or Noreg ( Nynorsk) officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Constitutional This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics. ^[2]

After the war he continued his military service, among other missions commanding the Independent Norwegian Brigade Group in Germany in 1949-1950. Tysklandsbrigaden was a Norwegian expeditionary force stationed first in the Hanover area and from 1948 to 1953 in the Schleswig Holstein area of Germany as part ^[8]

Contents 1 Childhood 2 Pre-War studies 3 Military career 4 Norwegian Campaign 4.1 Mobilising A.R.3 4.2 Hegra Fortress 4.3 PoW 5 Office manager and resistance fighter 6 Continued service abroad 7 Post-war 8 Honours 9 War Cross citation 10 See also 11 Footnotes 12 Literature

Childhood

Holtermann was the son of the district doctor in Sogndal and grew up there. ^[2]

Pre-War studies

Holtermann started his military career at Officer's School and in 1917 graduated from the Norwegian Military Academy with the rank of premierløytnant (First Lieutenant)^[4] and from Military College in 1919. The Norwegian Military Academy ( Krigsskolen) was established in 1750. First Lieutenant is a Military rank. The rank of Lieutenant has different meanings in different military formations (see Comparative military ranks ^[9]

Thereafter he graduated from the University of Oslo in 1923 with a degree in economics. The University of Oslo (Universitetet i Oslo Universitas Osloensis is the oldest and largest University in Norway, situated in the Norwegian capital Economics is the social science that studies the production distribution, and consumption of goods and services. ^[9][4]

After leaving university Holtermann went to France. There he attended the École spéciale militaire de Saint-Cyr in France for three years from 1924 to 1926. The École Spéciale Militaire de Saint-Cyr ( ESM, literally the "Special Military School of St Cyr" is the foremost French Military academy. This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics. ^[9][2]

Military career

After completing his general staff training Holtermann served as Chief of staff for the Inspector General of the Norwegian Army's Field artillery, achieving the rank of kaptein in 1930. The chief of staff is the chief aide to the Commander of larger military Formations and Units It is sometimes the case that the chief of staff is more directly In a civilian or military administration an Inspector General is a high ranking official charged with the mission to inspect and report on some bodies in their field of competency The Norwegian Army (Hæren is Norway 's military land force It is part of the Norwegian Defence Force along with the Royal Norwegian Navy, the Field artillery is a category of mobile Artillery used to support armies in the field Norwegian military ranks Norwegian Army Royal Norwegian ^[4] In 1937 he became a major^[4] and second in command of Artillery Regiment no. Norwegian military ranks Norwegian Army Royal Norwegian 3 in Trondheim. (Trondhjem is a city and municipality in the county of Sør-Trøndelag, Norway. He held this position until the German invasion of Norway on 9 April 1940. Operation Weserübung was the codename for Nazi Germany 's assault on Denmark and Norway during World War II and the opening operation Events 193 - Septimius Severus is proclaimed Roman Emperor by the army in Illyricum (in the Balkans) Year 1940 ( MCMXL) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display the full 1940 calendar of the Gregorian calendar.

Norwegian Campaign

Main article: Battle of Hegra Fortress

Mobilising A. The Battle of Hegra Fortress was a twenty-five day engagement in the 1940 Norwegian Campaign which saw a small force of Norwegian volunteers fighting superior German forces R. 3

As the German Gruppe 2 broke through the Norwegian coastal forts defending Trondheim major Holtermann was ordered to take part in the mobilisation of Artillery Regiment no. Coastal artillery is the branch of Armed forces concerned with operating anti-ship Artillery or fixed gun batteries in coastal Fortifications. 3 at Værnes. As the Germans advanced on this important army camp it became impossible to complete the mobilisation there and Holtermann sought out a new and more secure location to organize the troops. The choice fell on Ingstadkleiva Fort near the village of Hegra in Stjørdal - a fort put in reserve in 1926, but still largely intact and defensible. Hegra Fortress ( Hegra festning) is a small mountain fortress in Hegra, Stjørdal, in the county of Nord-Trøndelag, Norway This article is about the Physics experiment. For other meanings see Hegra (disambiguation HEGRA, which stands for High-Energy-Gamma-Ray Stjørdal is a municipality and town in the county of Nord-Trøndelag, Norway. The mountain border fort was soon to become internationally known as Hegra Fortress. Hegra Fortress ( Hegra festning) is a small mountain fortress in Hegra, Stjørdal, in the county of Nord-Trøndelag, Norway

Hegra Fortress

At Hegra Holtermann organised an improvised force of 250 soldiers and one female volunteer auxiliary with the intention to resist the invaders until effective support could arrive from elsewhere. As the tide of war developed unfavorably for the Norwegian forces in the south of Norway major Holtermann made it his main mission to hold the fort until the expected allied thrust from the north reached his area of operation. In April and early May 1940 Namsos and its surrounding area were the scene of heavy fighting between Anglo-French, Polish and Norwegian naval and military From its strategic location Hegra Fortress could have played an important role as a junction for the allied offensive. The Allies of World War II were the countries officially opposed to the Axis powers during the Second World War. Holtermann also proposed plans to attempt to bombard the German airfields near Trondheim. An aerodrome is an area on land or water (including any buildings installations and equipment used for the arrival and departure of aircraft However, since the artillery pieces at the fortress were intended to fire eastwards towards Sweden, not westwards towards Trondheim, the guns at Holtermann's disposal could not reach the German held air strips. "Sverige" redirects here For other uses see Sweden (disambiguation and Sverige (disambiguation. An airport is a location where Aircraft such as airplanes, Helicopters and blimps take off and land Attempts were made by the besieged garrison to acquire the tools needed to reconfigure the fixed artillery pieces, but without success. For twenty-five days Holtermann and his small force held out under continuous artillery and Luftwaffe bombardment in what became known as the Battle of Hegra Fortress. ( German 'luftvafe is a generic German term for an Air force. The Battle of Hegra Fortress was a twenty-five day engagement in the 1940 Norwegian Campaign which saw a small force of Norwegian volunteers fighting superior German forces In the end the fortress' significance consisted mostly of serving as a moral booster for the Norwegian population in a time of mostly bad news. At 0515 hrs on 5 May, 1940, after resisting a steadily tightening siege for nearly a month, Holtermann met the commander of the local German forces and surrendered his troops as the last commander in the south of Norway.

PoW

After the surrender at Hegra Holtermann and his ever-loyal soldiers marched into captivity at Berkåk. Berkåk is the administrative centre of Rennebu municipality in Sør-Trøndelag, Norway. At Berkåk the Norwegians were set at work to repair road damage caused during fighting several weeks earlier. The time the defenders of Hegra spent as POWs varied somewhat, with the first being released as soon as 17 May 1940. Events 1521 - Edward Stafford 3rd Duke of Buckingham, is executed for Treason. Another group was let go on 22 May and the final few, including Holtermann, set free on 2 June.

Office manager and resistance fighter

Following his release in June 1940 Holtermann did not resign and accept the German occupation of his homeland but quickly became active in the fledgling Norwegian resistance movement. Starting with the invasion of April 9, 1940, Norway was under Military occupation of German forces and civil rule of a German Norwegian Resistance Movement (Norske Motstandsbevegelsen is a militant offshoot of the Swedish Resistance Movement, with its base in Norway While officially spending the years 1940-1942 working as an office manager for Orkla Metall at Orkanger Holtermann continued resisting the Germans by being secretly active in the resistance movement. Orkla Group ( is a Norwegian industrial conglomerate operating in the Nordic region, Eastern Europe Asia and the US Orkanger is a small town in the municipality of Orkdal, Norway, located at the tip of Orkdalsfjorden. In 1942 his illegal activities were finally uncovered by the Germans and he was forced to flee across the border into neutral Sweden. The policy of Sweden during World War II was to remain neutral. ^[1][2]

Continued service abroad

From Sweden Holtermann made his way to the UK where, in 1943, he assumed the rank of Oberst (Colonel) and took command of the Norwegian Army in exile's main unit - the Norwegian Brigade in Scotland. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located Norwegian military ranks Norwegian Army Royal Norwegian Scotland ( Gaelic: Alba) is a Country in northwest Europethat occupies the northern third of the island of Great Britain. In 1944 Holtermann was transferred to lead District Command Trøndelag and returned to Sweden where he took part in Norwegian preparations for the coming liberation of Norway. After the German surrender in Norway on 8 May 1945 Oberst Holtermann led District Command Trøndelag over the border from Sweden on 10 May, together with two reinforced battalions of 2,570 Norwegian police troops, and took part in the disarmament and internment of the German occupation forces. Events 589 - Reccared summons the Third Council of Toledo 1450 - Jack Cade's Rebellion: Kentishmen Year 1945 ( MCMXLV) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar ^[10][2]

Post-war

After the war Holtermann spent the first five years in Norway commanding the army artillery (1946-1948) and the army in North Norway (1949-1950). North Norway ( Norwegian: Nord-Norge ( Bokmål) or Nord-Noreg ( Nynorsk) is the geographical region of northern From 1 November 1950 to 30 April 1952^[11] Holtermann, now with the rank of generalmajor (Major General), took part in the occupation of Germany as the penultimate commander of the Independent Norwegian Brigade Group in Germany. Norwegian military ranks Norwegian Army Royal Norwegian The Allied powers who defeated Nazi Germany in World War II divided the country west of the Oder-Neisse line into four occupation zones for administrative Tysklandsbrigaden was a Norwegian expeditionary force stationed first in the Hanover area and from 1948 to 1953 in the Schleswig Holstein area of Germany as part ^[8] After returning home once more Holtermann spent his last years in the active army as Army Staff Commander and Commander of Allied Land Forces in Southern Norway before leaving the army in 1956. Instead of entering retirement Holtermann worked on as the leader of the Norwegian Civil Defence Forces between 1956 and 1962. ^[2]

Honours

In the post-war years Holtermann received numerous medals and orders from both Norway and abroad, the most prestigious being the War Cross with sword (awarded in 1942)^[5] and the title of Knight, First Class of the Royal Norwegian Order of St Olav (awarded in 1956). Krigskorset med Sverd or the War Cross with Sword is the highest ranking Norwegian gallantry decoration The Royal Norwegian Order of St Olav ( Norwegian: Den Kongelige Norske St When Generalmajor Holtermann passed away in 1966 after just four years of retirement he was given a state funeral on 1 December, 1966. A state funeral is a public funeral ceremony held to honour Heads of state or other important people of national significance ^[12]

War Cross citation

In the citation to the award of the War Cross with sword to Hans Reidar Holtermann the Norwegian Army High Command wrote:

The defence of Hegra Fort in Stjørdalen by the Lieutenant Colonel is one of the actions from the Campaign of 1940 that has become best known and attracted the greatest amount of interest. I have myself had the opportunity in Norway to read the Lieutenant Colonel's concise, level headed and objective report, and through it gained a strong impression of that his efforts must be seen as a military accomplishment of the greatest order. His gathering of forces at Værnes in the confused conditions of the first day of war and his reactivation of the snow-covered Hegra Fort - which had been placed in reserve - testifies strongly of his clarity of mind and forceful energy. And the continued defence - which was only given up when the other forces in Southern Norway had been forced to cease fighting and after the fort had run completely out of food - shows the Lieutenant Colonel as a strong and forceful leader with the distinctive command abilities that are always such a deciding factor with regard to the defence of surrounded fortresses. ^[2]

See also

• List of Légion d'honneur recipients by name - H
• List of military figures by nickname

Footnotes

Literature

• Arnstad, Johan: Beleiringen av Hegra Festning 10. april - 5. mai 1940, F. Bruns bokforhandels forlag, Trondheim 1965 (Norwegian)
• Brox, Karl H. : Kampen om Hegra - festningen tyskerne ikke greide å ta, Gyldendal Norsk Forlag, Oslo 1988 ISBN 82-05-17716-3 (Norwegian)
• Soldat 31358-38: Rapport fra Hegra Fort, Foreningen Hegra 1940, Trondheim 1985 (Norwegian)

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