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Hardrada
I think my fosterfather maybe was going someting over the top when he beat the crap out of his counterpart in Germany, specially when it was in a formal party.. But I can _understand_ him, becouse he was a young man when the war started, and still a young man in his 20s when the war ended and have seen things, that no man his age should be alowed to se... War is hell he used to say, and even tho I have never experienced war myself, I can understand what it does to people who experienced it... And my fosterfather who was rock solid, had a really soft underbelly, if you was so lucky to experience it.. Sometimes his "really him" was showing, and you could se a very caring and loving man.. But then, some times else, he would be rather cold, and strict... He was a counterdictring of terms manytimes.. And I know he sometimes was little to kind for the acoholic even tho he never was To kind for alcohol, and allways was in control over the stuff.. Not everyone have that... For the most part,maybe as a result of our own experience when we was small, (me and my brother) they keept the alcohol stuff to themself, and was seldom driking it. Me and my brother came from a home, where alcohol was misused, with the result that children services got into it, and in the end our parents lost their children... They was warned, and warned, and then some warning, but they just not got it as they should... And we ended up in foster care.. And was growing up as one of their kids... We still have great contact with our fostermother, as my fosterfather died a couple of year ago.. He wanted to be 100, but got just to 83 before he died.. But I would say he was a great influence in my life, and I learned at least the basic from him... To allways be honest and decent.. And understand the difference between wrong and right...
No doubt that it was hard on his nerves to experience japanse fighters flying around him, and posible shot him down in the PBY Catalina.. I am amused that world war two dosen't create a generation of drunken men, as alcohol was one of the few "medicines" freely given to soldiers, as a form of getting them to forget what they was experiensing.. The Russians, had a philosofy, that if they gave soldiers enough vodka, they could forget for a while the hell they was in. And it was one of the few stuff in the war, who was not hevely rationated in Russia. In fact, frontline soldiers, had a endeless suply of vodka..... Becouse it could calm the nervers when some peace broke out.. Its wierd that Russia won the war at all.. And many other armies, also insisted that alcohol was a important tool, to keep raw nerves in control...
It was differece between been in front service, and be in the rear, in the rear it was mutch more "peacefull" than in the front. Even in a war no place is safe... Just somewhat safer than the frontline...
Ah, your relatives is from Norway;). And I guess hey grived, under the occupaying, and then rejoiced when peace broke out again. It was maybe the biggest "public party" in the history of Norway, when the germans finaly was given up, first to the british forces, and then to the organisation MILORG, who was a kind of resistance organisation in Norway.. And suported by the government.
Crown Prince Olav, and our current King, then prince Harald was many times in US, under the war, but also before the war, and was great personal friends with your then President FDR. In fact, our current King, learned to bickcykle in the hallways of The White House right after he and his mom had managed to leave sweden, on a US troop/medical ship, who had been taking on sivilian casualties in Finland, after the "winter-war" in 1939-1940 between Finland and Soviet Russia.. They was welcomed to the White House, and was living as guest of the first family before they finaly could settle down in US, and have a more "normal life" as our king many times have told it public.. He have allways told that his time in US, where he was growing up, was one of the best times in his life. Mostly becouse he could live as a ordinary boy, not as a prince in the line of successision.. He could in fact go to the movies, and play around as a normal boy, with normal friends.. Of course he would have a bodyguard with him all times. But compared to what he would have experienced in Norway, he lived as normal as he could do.. And Norway had a large expat community in US, many emigrated to US, in the 1800s, and early 1900s when Norway was not a paradise for many... And Iowa was a state where many norwians was emigrating to in its time.... Some other nations, like Minesota also got their share of norwigians, often who was small farmers in Norway, but worked themself up to rather big farmers in Minesota.. One of my grandfathers first cousins ended up own a great farm in Minesota, my dad was telling about it once.. He was in US in the 1960s, and he told that they had to drive a whole hour before they got to the main house where he lived.. It was a impresive farm, compared to most of the farms in Norway, who also was lacing may of the nessesaries that was standard in US even in the 1960s.. He had his first experience with a new thing, called TV there.. It was not untill the 1970s, tha TV was more of a standard in Norway, and I was in fact instrumental in geting a collour TV into the home, have I been told... I insisted about the collour TV, even tho the black and white TV cost just half the prize of a collour TV:p (It was in the late 1970s, and a TV was rather expensive then)..
Wel, I doubt they was that afraid of Norway, and norwgians, it was more becouse Hitler had some wierd ideas that Norway was a place of destiny, and a place where the allied forces would put soldiers, to try to invade Germany from the north.. And we are also nabours with Russia, where Germany was fighthing a little war with, between 1941 and 1944-45, so they was allways in need of a base of opperation, and Norway is/was important in all that.. And not to say, Norway with its large coast was also important to attac the convois who was sailing to give Russia a fighting chance when it came to survive the war at all....
For the most part, Norway was a qiet place for germans.. Some claim that compared to other places germans was stationed, Norway was a sort of "hollyday>" as the sivilians, at least was not attacing them all the time, and for the most part if not friendly, correct when contacting germans.. And it was a policy the government in exil was strict about. Trying his best to not provoce germans to kill sivilians wanton...As they did many other places where germans was under attac.. In all, Norway was a rather peacefull place for germans. and germans acted accordingly for the most part.. Even tho we experienced enough about the war, as germans could be barbaric in their response to attac.. A whole community in Telavåg was blown up, by order of Terboven, the german "pro-consul" in Norway under the war.. And the men put in KZ camps in Germany, even the woman and children was put into arrest. Becouse Allied forces had arrested and sabotaged military targets in Telavåg, and happend to kill one of Terbovens close friends in the action.. For that and other things a lot of sivilians was put in prison, for the rest of the war.. In many cases the sivilians also was killed in KZ camps becouse of venegage from the germans.. Not to say that most of Finmar, and Nord-Troms, two county's in the north of Norway, was more or less tourcet in the end-game of the war, when Russian forces was pushing the germans southwards as part of making sure that germany would lose the war.. ten of thousands of sivilians, was outrooted, and had to leave everything they had.. Germans got sure that they was not coming back, as they was burning allmost everything in their ways.. Whole City's was burning down to rubble, becouse of them.. Something that was not forgotten easy. As they had to rebuild everything from scratch..
But, off course 450.000 soldiers in Norway, hampered their war efforts elsewhere, as they was just standing here, and not used where they was needed... Many germans withouth doubt, was thanking the good man, becouse they was in Norway, and not on the russian front, something that was worse than playing Nice with with Hitler withouth doubt.. In fact germans liked it here, and even tho they had to leave after the war, many old soldiers from Whermact have coming to Norway also after the war, and expressed their foundness for Norway, even if it was under some other sircumstances than today...
Your name Hardrada, have not something with Harald Håråde? a king in the Norse Kingdom, who was rather known for his brutality, even for the 1000s he was rather brutal. And he is known to have ended his life, in 1066 when he fall with Stanford Brigde... One of the contestes to the english crown... His real name was Harald Sigurdsson, but he is known as the 3th King with the navn Harald. Our current King Harald V is also, the 5th to have the name as King. And our first King in modern times, was King Haakon 7th. He was a political savy man, who understand how important it was to have a line back to the old kindom, before the unions with Denmark and then Sweden..
Diclotican
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