Kai Christian Middelthon Holst (24 February 1913 – 27 June 1945) was a Norwegian seaman, fur farmer and resistance fighter during World War II.Fra varm til kald krig, 89–92 When the leadership of Milorg was torn up by the Gestapo in 1942, he acquired a leading role in the organisation and participated in re-establishing the central leadership (Sentralledelsen, SL) of Milorg together with Jens Christian Hauge."After this severe draining of the central leadership in SL there was only one connection between the council and all sections within O, namely Kai Holst. There were no horizontal connections, so very much was dependent on him", Milorg 1941–43, 23 Holst had to flee Norway in the autumn of 1943"In August 1943 Kaka crossed the border and by that concluded a uniquely intense effort in occupied Norway", from Rapport om mitt arbeid under okkupasjonen, 134"But during the summer a range of important colleagues had to travel due to razzias and warnings. From Grini there came a warning that Gestapo were on the trail of Kaka (Kai Holst), and in August he went over the border to Sweden, where he soon got important tasks at the Norwegian military office in Stockholm. It was with heavy heart that Hauge let him go. Kaka's bravery, unselfishness (selvoppofrelse) and contagious activism had made him a close friend and a rare valuable colleague. But the dangersigns were after a while so many that both Hauge and Holst realized that it was best to give up while he could.", from Jens Chr. Hauge : fullt og helt, 149 and stayed in Sweden until the liberation of Norway in 1945.
Holst is remembered both for his work with the Norwegian resistance and for the circumstances surrounding his death in Stockholm in 1945. Holst's demise was so much talked of at the time that the Milorg leadership issued a statement in the Norwegian newspaper Aftenposten in July 1945.Milorg-leadership statement regarding Kai Holst's death, of 19 July 1945: "Due to the sensation that has emerged concerning Kai Holst's death we want, after Swedish and Norwegian police have made thorough investigations, to give the statement below: Kai Holst very early entered the work with establishing the resistance forces. He was connected to the leadership (Sentralledelsen), where his work was of invaluable use. His strong and good character, his bravery, clear intelligence and charm made him unusually well fit for this work. In 1943 he was ordered to leave the country, after he had been heavily sought by the Gestapo. In Sweden he was immediately employed by the Norwegian legation in Stockholm, where he continued his outstanding work to support the resistance forces. When peace arrived, it was natural that he got a responsible task in connection with winding down the large structure that had been established in Sweden. Throughout the fight for freedom Kai Holst used all his strength. He worked day and night without thought of himself, and without taking into consideration that he had been through a severe illness that he had won over, but that had given him a severe physical handicap. When he after all managed the enormous workload through several years, it was the satisfaction he felt by submitting his utmost. One has been able to follow Kai Holst from day to day, and in the last time period from hour to hour and on the basis of this it can be stated that there has not been found any proof (holdepunkt) for the assumption that there is a murder. Neither has there been found anything that hints that he – even a few minutes before his death – had plans about taking his own life, and he cannot be seen to have had any motive for such an act. All his dispositions, on the contrary, show that he calculated on living. This is also in line with the impression his friends that talked with him got, also during his last journey from Norway back to Sweden. In the last weeks and days under and after the capitulation, the workload Kai Holst had, reached such a degree of intensity that it went above what a human could manage. He wore himself out in the fight for the liberation of the country.
Olaf Helset Carl Semb Michael S. Hansson Oslo, 19 July 1945", from Fra varm til kald krig, 111–112, originally printed in Aftenposten, 21 July 1945 Swedish and Norwegian authorities officially concluded that Holst committed suicide, but his family and many of his friends and colleagues were of the opinion that Holst was murdered."Also a lot of other friends and colleagues of Holst from the war reject the suicide theory as nonsense. The Swedish police showed little ability or will in solving the case, they argue", Fra varm til kald krig, 105
Background
Kai Holst was born and grew up in the town of Lillehammer. He was the son of businessman Christian Holst and Inga Holst, born Rasmussen, both originally from Stavanger. After elementary school Holst attended secondary school and vocational training in Lillehammer. A couple of years after his confirmation he found work as a seaman, and in the years 1930–1933 he sailed on MS Brageland, owned by the Norwegian shipping company Sydamerikalinjen, then transferred to , owned by the Norwegian shipowner Ditlev-Simonsen.
In 1933 he finished working as a seaman and became a fur farmer in Mesnali, east of Lillehammer. Holst contracted tuberculosis and just before the outbreak of World War II he had a major operation related to his pulmonary tuberculosis.
From December 1944 until his death he was married to Margarete Corneliussen, daughter of Ragnar Corneliussen, the president of Tiedemann's tobacco factory and a member of the board of Industriforbundet, and Monna Morgenstierne Roll. He was thus brother-in-law to Major General Ole Otto Paus, who was married to his wife's sister Else.
Work with the resistance
Clandestine work in Norway
After Norway was invaded and occupied by Nazi Germany Holst soon, despite his bad health, started working with the main Norwegian resistance organisation, Milorg. He was recruited in 1941 by his brother-in-law, the officer Lars Heyerdahl-LarsenSvik og gråsoner, 160 and was soon given important tasks and gained a reputation as the most action-oriented man in the secretariat of the central leadership (Sentralledelsen).Jens Chr. Hauge: fullt og helt, 114 From 1942 Holst worked as a courier, established Milorg's system for hiding refugees (apartments where resistance fighters went into hiding before being "exported" to neutral Sweden)Usynlige veier: fra Edderkoppens og flyktningeksportens historie, 122 and had close contact with such central resistance figures as Ole Borge"The new structure was decided in a meeting in January 1943. There was agreement concerning establishing an i-side and an o-side. (operations and logistics, contributor/translator's remark) But as before there had been two leaders who shared the organisational work in southern Norway between them, it was not decided that there should be one inspector general – one Big I – for all districts, and that he should have a number of district inspectors. On the o-side there was also expansion and the work was led by the chief of organisations, Big O", from Fem år for fred og frihet: med Milorg 1940–1945, 43 and Jens Christian Hauge.Taushetens pris, 52 Kai Holst was, according to professor Tore Pryser, instrumental in teaching Hauge the various skills needed: "In many ways it was actually Holst who trained the inexperienced Hauge."Svik og gråsoner, 161
At this time Holst worked closely with Hauge and for half a year they shared an undercover apartment."Munken, which was situated on the corner of Munkedamsveien and Parkveien, was in the danger zone. At Munken we had at that time huge archives in secret rooms, under the kitchen sink and in the wall under the windows. (Kaka and I had lived there for some time and Rudolf had taken over the place to live there, but it was still kind of a main archive there.)", from Rapport om mitt arbeid under okkupasjonen, 123"Kaka and I lived for a time together in Munken and had it both good and nice", from Rapport om mitt arbeid under okkupasjonen, 129 Holst's girlfriend and wife-to-be cared for the two men and was herself deeply involved in work for the resistance. In his report about his work during the war Jens Christian Hauge was highly approving of "Kaka", as Holst was called informally, and especially recognised him among his colleagues."SL's people were all good to cooperate with and all were very helpful. I especially have to mention Kaka who was a great illegalist, always willing to help, full of inventiveness and in good spirits", from Rapport om mitt arbeid under okkupasjonen, 27 When Jomar Brun (known for his involvement in Norwegian heavy water production) and his wife had to flee to Sweden, it was Holst who through Milorg's chief of communications, Salve Staubo, organised an undercover apartment in Oslo for the couple. It was also Holst who through Staubo recruited Milorg's legendary chief of weapons, Bror With.
Even though he never had any formal executive position in Milorg, Kai Holst had an important role in the practical work in the organisation, and he was especially important for Milorg in the autumn of 1942 when several of the leaders were arrested by the Gestapo or had to flee to Sweden. Holst participated in the meeting at the turn of the year 1942 when Milorg was reorganised with Jens Christian Hauge as Inspector General (known as "big I").
In addition to being the link between the Milorg leadership and its district organisations, Holst was also the link to resistance groups independent of Milorg. They included Oslogjengen with Gunnar Sønsteby,Rapport fra «nr. 24», 100 XU,"Some time later we did however get new and improved contact with Fredrik and XU through Kaka", from Rapport om mitt arbeid under okkupasjonen, 166 Asbjørn Bryhn' groups, 2A and the Osvald Group (also known as the Sunde Group after its leader Asbjørn Sunde). The cooperation with the communists and their inferior security almost resulted in Holst being caught by the Gestapo.Jens Chr. Hauge: fullt og helt, 173 Holst had an important role during the Osvald Group's fire-bombing of the work-service office in Pilestredet in Oslo on 20 March 1943,Usynlige veier: fra Edderkoppens og flyktningeksportens historie, 150"The attack against Pilestredet 31 happened around Easter 1943 (20 April) and was daring and successful. I got a vivid description a couple of hours later from Kaka who had received the guys when they returned", from Rapport om mitt arbeid under okkupasjonen, 72Rød skygge over DI3, 76 which Milorg hesitantly agreed to,Motstandskamp, strategi og marinepolitikk, 14 whose aim was to destroy archives of people assigned to work service for the Nazi regime.