This book is the first comprehensive political biography of Vidkun Quisling, whose name became an eponym for "traitor" as a result of the notoriety he gained from his collaboration with the Germans during World War II. Despite the recognition his name evokes, Quisling has remained a mystery. Hoidal places his life in historical context in order to better understand his actions as a collaborator, and focuses in particular on the details of his position in Norwegian politics, providing new information on Quisling's party, National Union (Nasjonal Samling).
