The Great Norwegian Gold Escape

The incredible story of the escape with the nation’s gold reserves across Norway in 1940.

April 9th. German soldiers march towards Karl Johan Boulevard in downtown Oslo. A stone’s throw away, at Norges Bank, the last of 26 trucks with Norway’s gold reserve has just driven off. The gold is vital to the country’s ability to operate independently in the fight against the Nazis.

In a secret operation, 49 tons of gold are transported across large areas of the elongated country. The first stop is Lillehammer. As the Germans continue to advance northward, the gold must be moved quickly by special trains to the west. For a time, German paratroopers blocked the railway line. The gold reaches Åndalsnes and Molde, before the Germans bomb the cities to pieces. Loaded onboard fishing boats from Møre and Frøya, the journey continues northward to the country’s temporary capital, Tromsø.

A lot went wrong along the way with the Germans attacking on land and from the air. But the preparedness to protect Norway’s National Treasury did not fail. In Escaping with Norway’s Gold, Asbjørn Jaklin gives us a close look at the dynamic figures in this amazing story: Employees at Norges Bank, thirty regular soldiers, amongst them the poet Nordahl Grieg, politicians like Einar Gerhardsen, Oscar Torp and Fredrik Haslund, the brave leader of the gold transport, and especially the everyday heroes from all over the Norway who contributed to the success og transporting the gold to safety in Great Britain and ultimately in North America. Working against all odds. And with their lives at stake.