I was wondering if anyone here might have any insight into why the Norwegian government was so much less cooperative when faced with German invaders compared, with, say, the Danish government. The Germans, from what I've been able to glean, were for the most part willing to allow both the Danish and Norwegian governments to handle domestic policy.
The Danes chose to cooperate, fearing for the safety of ordinary citizens, whereas Norway's Storting and King Haakon faced the prospect of imprisonment or assassination by defying the Germans. Denmark's government seemed to reluctantly collaborate while Norway's fled and operated in exile.
Clearly, neither Norwegians nor Danes had any particular affinity for German occupation, but the leaders of the countries took very different strategies. Is this a product of the vicissitudes of the particular politicians who were in power, or were there other societal factors at play? Is it simply that Denmark's government could not flee while Norway's had that possibility? Was the Norwegian resistance more active than the Danish resistance as the war progressed?
I don't know too much about the Danes, but my impression is that they were pretty much overrun before they had time to react.
In Norway, the government had time to get out of Oslo before the Germans could capture them. One thing I believe was important was the attitude of Haakon VI, king of Norway. He refused to cooperate with the Germans or capitulate.
It might also be a factor that the battle for Norway was still on for a couple of months before the military capitulation.
As far as I know, the major difference was simply that the Norwegian government had the opportunity to flee while the Danish did not.