Finn Støren

Who was Finn Støren?

Finn Sofus Støren was a Norwegian businessperson and civil servant for Nasjonal Samling.

He was born in Kristiansand as a son of customs officer Petter Johan Nicolay Støren and Elise Christopha Rude. He had a twin brother, was a nephew of Ernest Rude and his father was a cousin of Johan Nicolai Støren. The family moved to Kristiania when Finn was seven years old. He took his examen artium as a private candidate in 1914, and spent time in Belgium, the United States, Norway, Germany, Spain and Russia. He spent four years in Russia, and became an anti-Communist. He then lived for two years in Colombia and four years in Panama. In 1930 he became Norwegian consul in Panama. In April 1919 in he had married Inger Lorange Suhrke, a daughter of architect and politician Wilhelm Christian Suhrke.

Støren moved back to Norway in 1933, settled in Drangedal, and joined the newly formed Fascist party Nasjonal Samling. He continued as a businessman until May 1940, one month after the start of the occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany. He then "offered his services" to Nasjonal Samling's leader Vidkun Quisling, and in September 1940 he was appointed as deputy under-secretary of state in the directorate Direktoratet for spesialorientering. Serving until 1945, he has been called "Quisling's informal Minister of Foreign Affairs".