VISUAL ARCHIVE. Unacceptable War Pleasures: The Harsh Treatment of Norwegian “German Whores” (Tyskertøser) post-WW2

While being a civilian at war is often associated with fear, pain and suffering, such negative experiences and emotions do not capture the entirety of people’s wartime lives. Research, oral history and war memoirs have also highlighted how people fell in love, engaged in romantic relationships, and experienced bodily pleasures – both despite, and perhaps also because of, the context of war (see e.g. Welland, 2018; Maringira, 2023).

However, not all forms and sources of pleasure are viewed as socially acceptable or appropriate in wartime. Love and intimacy can be transformed from a personal, seemingly apolitical and “innocent” act into a deeply political and moral offence against larger collectives such as the nation. This is illustrated by the harsh treatment and labelling of the so-called “German whores” (tyskertøser) during and after the German occupation of Norway (1940–1945). Between 30,000 and 100,000 Norwegian women are believed to have had sexual or romantic relationships with German soldiers, resulting in around 12,000 children. These women, mostly under 30 and rarely politically motivated, were branded with derogatory terms such as “tyskertøser” (German whores) and treated as traitors on a par with Norwegian Nazis. Their relationships ranged from brief encounters to long-term love affairs, and in some cases prostitution (Lützow-Holm, 2023; Pedersen 2012).

After liberation in 1945, they became easy targets for public anger. Around 5,000 women were publicly shorn in humiliating head-shaving rituals, often carried out by men who had not otherwise shown resistance during the occupation. While many initially believed the women “got what they deserved,” these brutal reprisals gradually aroused wider public disgust.

Although their relationships were not illegal, the authorities also moved against them. The Directorate of Health and the Ministry of Justice authorised detention both on the grounds of “protection” and because the women were assumed or accused of being carriers of venereal diseases. Thousands were arrested, interrogated in detail about their sexual activity, and many lost jobs, homes, or Norwegian citizenship if they had married German soldiers.

Internment camps were also established across the country. In Oslo, 1,100 women were sent to the “German camp” on Hovedøya [see picture below], where they could be held from a few weeks up to a year. Several children were interned with their mothers, but conditions on the island were so poor that the camp was eventually closed in the summer of 1946.

The harsh treatment of these women remains one of the most controversial episodes in Norway’s wartime and post-war history (Lützow-Holm, 2023). 

References

Lützow-Holm, I. (2023). ‘Forbudt kjærlighet: historien om "tyskerjentene.’ Nasjonal Digital Læringsarena (NDLA). Available at: https://ndla.no/r/historie-pb/forbudt-kjarlighet-historien-om-tyskerjentene/bd915869bd  (Accessed 15 September 2025)

Maringira, G. (2023). ‘Combat Sex: Pleasure of War in Africa’ Public Anthropologist Blog. Available at: https://publicanthropologist.cmi.no/2023/02/08/combat-sex-pleasure-of-war-in-africa/ (Accessed 15 September 2025)

Pedersen, T. A. (2012). Vi kalte dem tyskertøser. Scandinavian Academic Press.

Welland, J. (2018) Joy and war: Reading pleasure in wartime experiences. Review of International Studies 44(3): 438-455