Jens Tangen

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Jens Eugen Tangen[1] (20 July 1897 – 22 September 1980) was a Norwegian trade unionist.

Career[]

Tangen chaired the trade union Norwegian Union of Building Workers from 1935, having been deputy chairman from 1933 to 1934.[1] In 1940, he was a central member of Fagopposisjonen av 1940 (Trade Opposition of 1940),[2] for which he chaired the executive committee. The purpose of the Trade Opposition was to use the recent German occupation of Norway for the better, in the then-absence of a real "bourgeois" political authority. The Trade Opposition leader Håkon Meyer became more content with cooperating with the Nazis, including the Norwegian Fascist party,[3] and on 28 September 1940 Tangen was ordered by the Nazis to assume the chairmanship of the Norwegian Confederation of Trade Unions.[2] He chose Ludvik Buland as deputy chairman.[4] Tangen cooperated to a certain degree with the Nazis, and visited Germany in January 1941. He became unpopular with some, but never became popular with the authorities either.[2]

Imprisonment[]

Following the milk strike in September 1941, the Nazis took a tighter grip on society in general, usurped the Confederation of Trade Unions completely and installed Odd Fossum as new leader on 10 September. Tangen was arrested[2] and imprisoned in Grini concentration camp from 10 September 1941 to 27 February 1942, and then at Møllergata 19 for one week.[5] After his release, he fled to Sweden, where he played no political role.[2] Ludvik Buland was imprisoned and died in Germany,[4] whereas the head of the judicial office in the Confederation, Viggo Hansteen, was executed.[6]

Post-war[]

After the war, in 1946, Tangen was excluded by the Congress of the Confederation of Trade Unions for collaboration. His personal secretary, , was excluded as well. However, Tangen was acquitted of treason by Oslo City Court in 1949, as a part of the legal purge in Norway after World War II. The court found that his degree of cooperation was acceptable.[2]

References[]

  1. ^ a b Friis, Jakob; Hegna, Trond; Juel, Dagfin, eds. (1936). "Tangen, Jens Eugen". Arbeidernes Leksikon (in Norwegian). Vol. 6. Oslo: Arbeidermagasinets Forlag. p. 723.
  2. ^ a b c d e f Pryser, Tore (1995). "Tangen, Jens". In Dahl, Hans Fredrik (ed.). Norsk krigsleksikon 1940-45. Oslo: Cappelen. Archived from the original on 29 May 2013. Retrieved 2 August 2010.
  3. ^ Pryser, Tore (1995). "fagopposisjonen av 1940". In Dahl, Hans Fredrik (ed.). Norsk krigsleksikon 1940-45. Oslo: Cappelen. Archived from the original on 29 May 2013. Retrieved 2 August 2010.
  4. ^ a b Kamsvåg, John L. "Ludvik Buland". In Helle, Knut (ed.). Norsk biografisk leksikon (in Norwegian). Oslo: Kunnskapsforlaget. Retrieved 2 August 2010.
  5. ^ Ottosen, Kristian, ed. (2004). Nordmenn i fangenskap 1940–1945 (in Norwegian) (2nd ed.). Oslo: Universitetsforlaget. p. 672. ISBN 82-15-00288-9.
  6. ^ Berntsen, Harald. "Viggo Hansteen". In Helle, Knut (ed.). Norsk biografisk leksikon (in Norwegian). Oslo: Kunnskapsforlaget. Retrieved 2 August 2010.
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