Georg Quistgaard (February 19, 1915 - May 22, 1944) was one of 102 members of the Danish resistance movement, who were executed following a court-martial.[1]
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Georg Brochhoff Quistgaard was born in Copenhagen in 1915, to Georg B. Quistgaard and Marie Quistgaard, née Breyner.
Quistgaard dropped out of high-school and travelled through Europe on foot and bicycle. In Paris, he met Ellen Nielsen, whom he later married. They returned to Denmark, and they opened a small shop of art works in Copehangen, which went out of business in 1940.[1]
During the occupation of Denmark Quistgaard and his wife provided support for SOE operatives. On several occasions Quistgaard demanded (in vain) that one such operative, an Englishman who had parachuted into Denmark, should be returned as inadequate. During a subsequent interrogation by Gestapo this operative named Quistgaard.
On January 13, 1944 Gestapo arrested Quistgaard in his home (Abenraa 10, Copenhagen) after an exchange of fire and placed him in Vestre Fængsel. His wife was not at home and managed to escape to Sweden, a fact which was later communicated to Quistgaard.
On January 28, 1944 Gestapo arrested Quistgaards mother.
The interrogation by Gestapo took place at their headquarters in Dagmarhus. Quistgaards prison diary and letters to his wife and mother indicate that he did not consider himself to be subjected to torture, but rather that there was some element of mutual respect between him and his interrogators. This changed one day when his interrogator proclaimed: "It is up to you alone how long this woman has to remain here", after which the woman was revealed to be his mother. Quistgaards initial interrogation did in fact include sleep deprivation including one 28 hour interrogation and thinly veiled threats of being beaten with a rubber baton. His mother was released after about two weeks of imprisonment.
On March 2, 1944 Quistgaard was moved with eight others to Schwerin and on April 25, 1944 he was transferred back to Vestre Fængsel.
On May 12, 1944 Quistgaard was put on trial in front of three judges from the SS as one of twelve members of the resistance. As witnesses the prosecution presented two SOE operatives, known as Jacob Jensen and Bent. The former incriminated eight of the twelve to the point where they admitted to the charges. Together with three others Quistgaard was condemned to death, with the execution pending any new act of sabotage.[1]
On May 20, 1944 Quistgaard wrote what was to be his last letter, to his mother. It was smuggled out the following day by Jørgen Kieler.[2]
On May 22, 1944 Quistgaard was executed with two of the other three from the trial (the fourth, a women, had her sentence changed to life imprisonment, she died in German captivity before the end of the war). The news of their execution was brought by the papers the following day.
On August 29, 1945 Quistgaards remains were reburied at Mindelunden in Ryvangen.
In 1946 his prison diary and letters were published, prefaced by Elias Bredsdorff. The royalties from the book were donated to Frihedsfonden.[1]