Hitler's Savage Canary: A History of the Danish Resistance in World War II

After Adolf Hitler made plans to create a "model protectorate" out of Denmark, Winston Churchill predicted that the nation would become the Fuhrer's tame canary. Isolated from the Allies and fueled only by a sense of human decency and national pride, the Danes created an extraordinary resistance movement that proved a relentless thorn in the side of the Nazis. By 1945, they had published twenty-six million issues of illegal newspapers. They set up radio guides for Allied aircraft on the coasts and proved invaluable in penetrating Nazi defenses. Regular boat services ran between Sweden, Denmark, and Britain. German ships could not move out of ports, and troops were stymied again and again by the sabotage of railways and air bases. Most amazing of all was the transportation of some 7,000 Danish Jews to safety in Sweden. They were not trained; they were not soldiers. They were simply ordinary citizens who refused to stand idly by and witness an atrocity. The story of the selfless courage and daring should inspire countless future generations.

About Author

David Lampe was born in Maryland in 1923. He served with the United States Army Air Corps in Europe during World War II until his discharge in 1952. After the war he lived in Britain, working as a freelance writer. This was his first book, originally titled The Savage Canary, and published in 1957 in England. Lampe died in 2003 after suffering from a long-term illness.

Birger Riis-Jørgensen holds a master’s degree from the University of Copenhagen. He joined the Foreign Service in 1976 and now serves as the Danish ambassador to London.