Echoes of War: Giant Swastika Pops Up On Norwegian School Wall During Renovation

During the early stage of the occupation of Norway, Solborg school served as headquarters for the Nazi air force, the Luftwaffe and, according to a local historian, was “one of the most important command centers in southern Norway”.

A huge full-wall swastika has emerged in Solborg high school in the city of Stavanger in southern Norway during renovation.

The Nazi symbol, dating back to the years of the Second World War, was hidden behind several layers of paint on the outer walls of the building, national broadcaster NRK reported.

Today, Solborg high school is hidden in the middle of a residential area. But during the Nazi occupation in 1940, well before the oil boom of the Sixties when the city greatly expanded, the area was completely open, which is why the symbol was prominent during the war years.

“It was quite dominant, and perfectly visible in the cityscape,” school caretaker Mindor Vårvik told NRK.

Local historian Erik Ettrup points out that Solborg was where the German air force - the Luftwaffe - established itself when the Nazis arrived in Stavanger in April 1940.

“In April and May 1940, Solborg was probably one of the most important command centers in southern Norway, I would say,” Ettrup told NRK. Its was from here that decisive air strikes by German bombers against Norwegian forces were directed, breaking their morale.

When the Germans came to Stavanger in 1940, there were few large buildings in the city that could house thousands of soldiers. The Germans therefore occupied school buildings, and it didn't take long before they made them their own.

“The Germans were extremely good at painting. You can also see that from other buildings they occupied. They must have used professional painters to decorate these buildings. It often involved flags and propaganda, preferably short slogans,” the historian said.

Ettrup is unsure what should be done with the swastika. “It is hard to say. It is a political message that doesn't belong in our time, but on the other hand there is a history here that should be taken care of. At the same time, you cannot have Nazi symbols on the wall in a school,” he said.

According to Vårvik, the swastika is firmly attached. “Now they are sandblasting the entire wall and facade. I doubt whether they will get everything away. It will probably be painted over with new layers of paint. It will probably be a lasting memory that will remain under paint,” Vårvik said.

A couple of decades ago, a document signed by Nazi leader Adolf Hitler was found in the attic of the school during renovation.

Norway was occupied by Nazi Germany from April 1940, with conventional armed resistance ending in June 1940, and it remained subjugated until German forces surrendered in Europe in May 1945. During this period, the country was ruled by the Reich Commissariat of Norway in collaboration with a pro-German puppet regime, the Quisling government led by Vidkun Quisling, whose name subsequently became synonymous with “traitor” in Norwegian.