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Niels Christian Ditleff (29 October 1881 – 18 June 1956) was a Norwegian diplomat noted for his humanitarian efforts on behalf of refugees from Nazi Germany. In spite of opposition from his own and allied governments, he initiated and led the White Buses campaign to rescue Scandinavian prisoners held in German concentration camps. He also played an instrumental role in evacuating foreign diplomats from Warsaw during the German invasion and to rescue Jews in coordination with Nansenhjelpen. ==Biography== Ditleff was born to a maritime family in the port city of Larvik. His father, a sea captain, died when Niels was only three years old. Niels mustered as a sailor in his youth and subsequently was admitted to the Norwegian Naval Academy. He graduated with a commission as a lieutenant but resigned his commission to pursue a career in diplomacy.〔 He was first stationed in the Norwegian consulate general in Le Havre from 1903 to 1906 and was thereafter sent as vice consul and chargé d'affaires to missions in Havana, Bilbao, and Lisbon before an interval at the ministry offices in Oslo from 1920 to 1926.〔 He was stationed in Warsaw in 1926, where he rose through the ranks and became ambassador, both to Poland and Czechoslovakia in 1930. He was also accredited to Romania from 1935 to 1937. Although he had to evacuate Warsaw during the German invasion in 1939, he maintained his official role as emissary until the end of the war.〔 He was stationed as Norway's ambassador to Finland from 1945 to 1950, after which he chose to retire. Ditleff never sought recognition or fame for his contributions.〔 In addition to his diplomatic career, Ditleff was also an accomplished composer, artist, and playwright. In 1921, he wrote the three-act play ''Tahove'', and another play ''Statsministeren'', which were both shown at Nationaltheatret. He wrote the libretto for the operetta Don Carrambo, set up at Den Nationale Scene in Bergen. In the course of his work, he also developed fluency in Portuguese, Spanish, and Polish, in addition to his working languages of Norwegian, German, and English. He also published newspaper articles and stories, often with his own illustrations.〔 At a time when this was unusual, he was also an avid recreational runner, known in the city of Warsaw for his daily runs back and forth along the Vistula River, criss-crossing the bridges. His friend Johan Borgen dubbed him "the running diplomat."〔 He and his wife died in an automobile accident.〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Niels Christian Ditleff」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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