Cultural preparedness. Cultural heritage, air defense and propaganda in the Nordic countries 1939 -1945.

The notion that the next major war would involve civil society and be devastating was widespread in the 1930s. It would not just be a conflict between warring powers but between cultures, where the civilian population would be severely tested. If a society was to survive the next war at all, it needed to develop ways to protect its culture and heritage. The project explores how this was done and how the strategies were linked to broader notions of Nordic and national history. History was used extensively in public speeches, churches and monuments were built into various shelters, museum objects were evacuated to bomb shelters, museum staff were instructed on how to protect collections in case of bombing. Cultural heritage was also used to boost defense morale and to identify enemies. The Nordic countries could not agree on a common foreign policy; instead, cultural exchanges that emphasized solidarity and historical ties between peoples became important for contact between the countries. In Norway and Denmark, cultural heritage was used for ideological purposes by the occupying power after 1940, and in Finland it was used to describe the enemy Russia as barbaric. The Nordic countries thus represent different approaches to war and cultural heritage. In all cases, cultural heritage was actively used by museums to construct visions of the future, when society could return to normal. The study is based on archival material and literature from the period.