User:Iselilja/NorwegianWomen

Maria Quisling (1900–17 January 1980), was the wife of Vidkun Quisling.

Born Maria Vasiljevna Pasetsjnikova in Ukraine, she met Quisling when

During their stay in Moscow 1928–1929, the couple bought a high number of paintings, household items of silver, crystals and porcelain as well as antiques and furniture.

Back in Norway the couple's economy was strained until Quisling got the position of Minister of Defence. Maria in these years frequently visited Vidkun's parents in Telemark as well as sanatoriums for health reasons.

Maria was inscribed by Vidkun as member of Nasjonal Samling in 1933 ans was for a time somewhat active but never played an important role.

The couple moved to Villa Grande, renamed Gimle, in December 1941. After the arrest of Vidkun on 9 May 1945, Maria continued to live in Villa Grande till May 1945 when the authorities forced her to leave and she moved to the widow of Frederik Prytz.

Maria was not allowed to follow the court case against Vidkun, and he refused to let her witness, but a number of messages she had written were read aloud by Bergh. She reacted with shock when she via a friend was informed that Vidkun had been sentenced to death and wrote numerous letters to in an attempt to save his life, including to Otto Ruge, King Haakon VII and Einar Gerhardsen.

On 29 August 1945, Dagbladet had the headline "Why is Mrs. Quisling not in prison?" In February 1946, she was summoned for questioning by the police at Victoria Terrasse about her background and activities during the occupation. A month later the police carried out a raid at her home in Villa Maihaugen to look for things of value that she might hide, but did not find anything.