| Battles of Narvik | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Allied soldiers during the Battle of Narvik. | |||||||
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| Belligerents | |||||||
 German Reich |  Norway United Kingdom France Poland | ||||||
 | |||||||
TheBattles of Narvik were fought from 9 April to 8 June 1940, as a naval battle inOfotfjord and as a land battle in the mountains surrounding the north Norwegian town ofNarvik, as part of theNorwegian campaign of theSecond World War.
The two naval battles in Ofotfjord on 10 April and 13 April were fought between the BritishRoyal Navy together with thePolish Navy (under British supreme command) and the GermanKriegsmarine, while the two-month land campaign was fought byNorwegian,French,British, andPolish troops against German mountain troops, shipwreckedKriegsmarine sailors, and Germanparatroopers (Fallschirmjäger) from the7th Air Division. Although defeated at sea off Narvik, losing control of the town of Narvik and being pushed back towards the Swedish border, the Germans eventually prevailed because of the Alliedevacuation from Norway in June 1940 following theBattle of France.
Narvik provided anice-free harbour in the North Atlantic foriron ore transported by rail fromKiruna inSweden. Both sides in the war had an interest in securing this iron supply for themselves and denying it to the enemy, thereby setting the stage for one of the biggest battles since theInvasion of Poland.[1]
Prior to the German invasion, British forces had considered Narvik as a possible landing point for an expedition to help Finland in theWinter War. Such an expedition also had the potential of taking control of the Swedish mines and opening up the Baltic for theAllies.[2]
| Naval battle preceding the first naval battle of Narvik | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of theSecond World War | |||||||
 Lapland 1940 Iron ore dug at Kiruna and Malmberget, was railed to Luleå and Narvik (borders 1920–1940). | |||||||
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| Belligerents | |||||||
| Norway | Germany | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
 Per AskimO. Isaachsen Willoch †Konrad Sundlo  |  Friedrich BonteEduard Dietl | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
| 2 coastal defence ships | 10 destroyers | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| 2 coastal defence ships sunk 281 dead | One cargo ship scuttled (no fatalities) | ||||||
On 1 March 1940,Adolf Hitler ordered the invasion of Norway, codenamedOperation Weserübung as a preventive manoeuvre against a planned, and openly discussed, Franco-British occupation of Norway.[3] This operation would involve most of theKriegsmarine. Participating units were divided into five groups, which were to occupy six of the main Norwegian ports.[4]
Group I departedBremerhaven on 6 April. It consisted of 10German destroyers of the1934A and1936 classesGeorg Thiele,Wolfgang Zenker,Bernd von Arnim,Erich Giese,Erich Koellner,Diether von Roeder,Hans Lüdemann,Hermann Künne,Wilhelm Heidkamp (flagship) andAnton Schmitt, commanded byKommodoreFriedrich Bonte. Each of the warships carried around 200 soldiers (a total of 1,900 mountain troops (Gebirgsjäger) from the 139th Mountain Regiment (Gebirgsjägerregiment) of the3rd Mountain Division commanded by GeneralEduard Dietl).[5] The troop-carrying destroyers were escorted most of the way by the battleshipsScharnhorst andGneisenau.[4]
In the early morning of 9 April, the destroyers of Group I passed theVestfjorden and arrived at theOfotfjorden leading to Narvik, in fog and heavy snow. In Ofotfjord, they captured three Norwegian patrol boats (Senja,Michael Sars andKelt). Before captureKelt managed to send a message to the coastal defence shipHNoMSNorge, alerting the local Norwegian naval commander of the incoming vessels.[6] The German shipsWolfgang Zenker,Erich Koellner andHermann Künne landed their soldiers inHerjangsfjord (a northern branch of Ofotfjorden) in order to capture a Norwegian regimental supply base atElvegårdsmoen.[7]Hans Ludemann andHermann Künne also landed their troops in order to engage the nearby Norwegian forts (which turned out to be non-existent).Diether von Roeder remained in Ofotfjord in order to ensure German control of the sea.Erich Giese was delayed by engine trouble and did not join the main force for some time.
The main defence of Narvik were the oldcoastal defence shipsEidsvold and her sister shipNorge. Having been alerted byKelt, both Norwegian ships prepared for combat: the guns were loaded and life preservers issued to the crew. Around 04:15, the Germans spottedEidsvold, andEidsvold immediately signalled the leading German destroyer with analdis lamp. When the Germans failed to respond to the signal, a warning shot was fired across their bow.[8]
The Germans had orders to occupy Norway peacefully if at all possible, so the German flagshipWilhelm Heidkamp stopped and signalled that it would send an officer to negotiate. A small launch ferriedKorvettenkapitän Gerlach over toEidsvold. Gerlach was taken to the bridge to speak to CaptainOdd Isaachsen Willoch.[9]
Gerlach tried to convince Willoch that the Germans had arrived as friends, but that the Norwegians had to hand over their warships to the German armed forces. Captain Willoch asked for time to consult his commander, CaptainPer Askim, the commander ofNorge. This request was refused by the Germans, but while Willoch had been talking to the German officer, the radio officer on boardEidsvold had communicated the events to Askim. Askim's response to the German demands and order to Willoch came immediately; Willoch andEidsvold was to open fire.[10] Willoch responded to Askim; "I am attacking."[8] While this was going on, the German destroyerWilhelm Heidkamp had positioned herself 700 m (770 yd) off the port side ofEidsvold and trained her torpedo launchers on the Norwegian ship.[8]
Gerlach tried once again to convince Willoch to surrender, but Willoch refused. As Gerlach leftEidsvold, he fired a red flare, indicating that the Norwegians intended to fight. At this point, Captain Willoch shouted:"På plass ved kanonene. Nå skal vi slåss, gutter!" ("Man the guns. We're going to fight, boys!").[11]Eidsvold turned towards the closest destroyer and accelerated, closing the distance toWilhelm Heidkamp to 300 m (330 yd) while the battery commander ordered the port battery (three 15 cm (5.9 in) guns) to open fire.[12]
The Germans, afraid thatEidsvold might ram the destroyer, fired four torpedoes fromWilhelm Heidkamp at the old ship. Two of the torpedoes hit before the port guns could fire. The Norwegian ammunition magazine was ignited andEidsvold was blown in two. The forward part of the ship sank in seconds, the stern followed in minutes, propellers still turning. At around 04:37, she was gone. 175 Norwegian sailors died in the freezing water, including Captain Willoch, with just eight surviving.[13]
Deeper inside the fjord, the explosions were heard aboardNorge, but nothing could be seen until two German destroyers suddenly appeared out of the darkness and Captain Per Askim ofNorge gave orders to open fire at 04:45. Four rounds were fired from the 21 cm (8.3 in) guns (one from the fore gun and three from the aft) as well as seven or eight rounds from the starboard 15 cm (5.9 in) guns, against the German destroyerBernd von Arnim, at a range of about 800 m (870 yd). Due to the difficult weather conditions, the guns'optical sights were ineffective: the first salvo fell short of the target and the next ones overshot it.
The German destroyers waited until they were alongside the pier before returning fire.Bernd von Armin opened fire with her 12.7 cm (5 in) guns as well as with machine guns, but the weather gave the Germans problems as well. The destroyer also fired three salvoes of two torpedoes each. The first two salvoes missed, but the last struckNorge midships and she sank in less than one minute. Ninety of the crew were rescued, but 101 perished in the battle which had lasted less than 20 minutes. The destruction ofNorge signalled the end of Norwegian resistance in the port.
Much of the Norwegian garrison at Narvik awoke to the sound of gunfire and were unprepared to face the Germans. Many were surrounded and disarmed as they scrambled to occupy defensive positions. The commander-in-chief of the Narvik area, ColonelKonrad Sundlo, is often cited as the reason for the quick capitulation.[14] Described by Kriegsmarine AdmiralErich Raeder as "an officer with reportedly pro-German feelings", he quickly withdrew from the area following the naval engagement and began negotiations with the Germans. After the initial loss of Narvik, Norwegian generalCarl Gustav Fleischer sent out a communiqué, part of which read:
Colonel Sundlo initiated immediate negotiations for a cease-fire and withdrew the troops to Framnes. The Germans occupied the city and the Norwegian troops were surrounded between the Germans and the sea. The division commander, who was in East Finnmark, was notified about the situation by telephone and he ordered Colonel Sundlo's second in command, Major Omdal, to arrest Colonel Sundlo
— Carl Gustav Fleischer[citation needed]
Sundlo was charged with treason for the surrender of Narvik after the war, but these charges were dismissed. Instead he was found guilty of negligence for failing to adequately prepare for Narvik's defence, and on charges of cooperating with the Germans duringthe occupation.[14]
The morning of the German attack four Norwegian steamers were anchored in Narvik; the 4,285 GRTCate B, the 1,712 GRTEldrid, the 1,758 GRTHaalegg and the 4,306 GRTSaphir. In addition to the Norwegian vessels, four foreign, neutral ships were present; the 951 GRT Dutch steamerBernisse, and the three Swedish steamshipsBoden (4,264 GRT),Oxelösund (5,613 GRT) andStrassa (5,603 GRT). As well as neutral ships, the warring parties had vessels at Narvik, riding anchor in the same port. The British had five steamers in the harbour; the 6,582 GRTBlythmoor, the 5,141 GRTMersington Court, the 4,304 GRTNorth Cornwall, the 5,378 GRTRiverton, and the 4,887 GRTRomanby. As the German flotilla seized Narvik, there were 11 German merchant steamers at the port town; the 6,388 GRTAachen, the 5,398 GRTAltona, the 4,902 GRTBockenheim, the 5,386 GRTHein Hoyer, the 4,879 GRTMartha Henrich Fisser, the 8,096 GRTNeuenfels, the 5,806 GRTOdin, the 7,849 GRTLippe, the 4,339 GRTFrielinghaus, the 5,881 GRTPlanet, and the 11,776 GRTreplenishment oiler/maintenance shipJan Wellem.[7]Jan Wellem, a converted former whale factory ship, awaited the arrival of the German warships, which she was tasked to refuel.[15][16][17] Working in the harbour were the Swedish tugsDiana (213 GRT) andStyrbjörn (167 GRT). As the German destroyers entered the harbour, the captain ofBockenheim, who assumed that the intruding warships were British, beached and scuttled his vessel.[7] In total, 25 ore ships had been riding at anchor in Narvik at the outset of the fighting, 10 of which were German.[18]
The German destroyers were now short of fuel and had only one fuel tanker in support, the ex-whale factory shipJan Wellem that had been despatched to Narvik, according to some sources from the secret German naval baseBasis Nord atZapadnaya Litsa in theSoviet Union, where she had been based since 4 February 1940.[16][19][20] Another source indicates that she departedMurmansk in the evening of the 6 April[21] and that Basis Nord was never even established.[22] She had arrived off Narvik from the north on 8 April, and had been stopped by the Norwegian patrol boatKvitøy.Jan Wellem was allowed entry to Narvik by the regional Norwegian naval command, where she was inspected. Her captain claimed that she was carrying 8,500 short tons (7,700 t) of fuel oil and 8,098 crates of food provisions and that she was on her way to Germany.[23] A second tanker, the 6,031 GRTKattegat which had sailed to Norway fromWilhelmshaven,[21] had been sunk in theGlomfjord in the evening of 9 April.Kattegat had been stopped by the Norwegian fishery protection shipHNoMSNordkapp, the Norwegian ship first trying to take the tanker as aprize, but due to the large German crew could not control it all the way toBodø, in the end sinkingKattegat by firing four 47 mm (1.85 in) rounds into the tanker's water line.[24][25]
Kattegat had been delayed from reaching Narvik in time by the British 8 April mining operations off Norway (Operation Wilfred).[26] A third tanker—Skagerrak—had also been despatched to Norway, in support of the German landings atTrondheim, but she was intercepted by the British cruiserHMS Suffolk, on 14 April, after she had been redirected by German naval command to a waiting position at sea.[27][28] When the British warship tried to boardSkagerrak her crew scuttled her at68°15′N02°00′E / 68.250°N 2.000°E /68.250; 2.000. BothKattegat andSkagerrak, which were sister ships, were inspected at Kopervik by the Norwegian torpedo boatHNoMS Stegg, on 5 and 7 April respectively. The captain ofKattegat told the Norwegians that he was headed to Narvik for further orders, and the captain ofSkagerrak claimed Murmansk as their destination, and inspections revealed that both tankers had a full load of fuel oil.Skagerrak also carried 165 short tons (150 t) of food provisions, which was claimed as supplies for German merchant ships. The food crates were labelled "Wehrmacht".[29][30] According to the German plan the destroyers were supposed to have been refuelled by two tankers,Kattegat andJan Wellem, each receiving some 600 short tons (540 t) of fuel oil.[29]
The flotilla was then to be on its way back to Germany by the evening of 9 April. The plan failed because onlyJan Wellem made it to Narvik. Refuelling with just one tanker was difficult; only two destroyers could be refuelled simultaneously, taking seven or eight hours. At arrival in Narvik, the destroyers were almost out of fuel.[31] Making the refuelling more challenging was the fact thatJan Wellem had only improvised refuelling arrangements and inferior pumping equipment.[15][17] While two destroyers were being refuelled at a time, a third was on guard in fjord, the remaining seven being spread around in the nearby area.[32] By 04:00 on 10 April,Jan Wellem had managed to fully refuel three of the German destroyers, and was in the process of refuelling two more.[17]
In the meantime, British forces had tried to engage theKriegsmarine, but for the most part, unsuccessfully. On 8 April, the BritishG-class destroyerHMS Glowworm engaged theheavy cruiserAdmiral Hipper and two destroyers, and was lost, ramming and damagingHipper in the battle. On the 9 April morning, the BritishbattlecruiserHMS Renownexchanged artillery salvos with the German battleshipsScharnhorst andGneisenau, which were screening the destroyers. During the battle one of the artillery shells fromRenown damaged the fire control system onGneisenau, the British battlecruiser was also hit two times and slightly damaged. After that the German battleships withdrew from the battle at high speed.[33] The destroyers' main mission had been completed, however, as they had succeeded in landing the invasion force.
| First naval battle of Narvik | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of theSecond World War | |||||||
 A map of the Narvik area | |||||||
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| Belligerents | |||||||
| United Kingdom | Germany | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
 B. Warburton-Lee † | Friedrich Bonte † | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
| 5 destroyers | 10 destroyers | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| 2 destroyers sunk 1 destroyer heavily damaged | 2 destroyers sunk 1 ammunition supply ship sunk 6 cargo ships sunk 4 destroyers damaged 163 casualties | ||||||
The day after the German invasion, the Royal Navy took an opportunity to defeat theKriegsmarine. The 2nd Destroyer Flotilla—under CommodoreBernard Warburton-Lee and comprising fiveH-class destroyers (HMS Hardy (leader),Hotspur,Havock,Hunter andHostile—moved up the fjord in the early morning. The German destroyersHermann Künne andHans Lüdemann were anchored alongside the tankerJan Wellem and refuelling when the British destroyer attack began at 04:30.[7][17] The Germanpicket ship (Diether von Roeder) had left its post to refuel, and as the British flotilla approached Narvik, they surprised and engaged a German force at the entrance to the harbour and sank the two destroyersWilhelm Heidkamp (killing Commodore Bonte) andAnton Schmitt, heavily damagedDiether von Roeder and inflicted lesser damage on two others. They also exchanged fire with German invasion troops ashore but did not have a landing force aboard and therefore turned to leave. Before the destroyers left the scene,Hostile fired her torpedoes at the merchant ships in the harbour. In total, eleven merchant ships (six German, one British, two Swedish and two Norwegian) were sunk during the British sortie into the harbour.[7][32]
The British flotilla was then engaged by three more German destroyers (Wolfgang Zenker,Erich Koellner andErich Giese) emerging from the Herjangsfjord, led by CommanderErich Bey and then two more (Georg Thiele andBernd von Arnim) coming from Ballangen Bay, under CommanderFritz Berger. In the ensuing battle, two British destroyers were lost: the flotilla leader HMSHardy, which was beached in flames and HMSHunter, which was torpedoed and sunk. A third—HMSHotspur—was also damaged badly by a torpedo.Hotspur and the remaining British destroyers left the battlefield, damagingGeorg Thiele as they did so. The German destroyers—now short of fuel and ammunition—did not pursue and the British ships were able to sink the 8,460 GRT ammunition supply shipRauenfels which they encountered on their way out of the fjord.[34] Soon, the German naval forces were blocked in by British reinforcements, including the cruiserHMS Penelope. During the night of 11–12 April, while manoeuvring in Narvik harbour,Erich Koellner andWolfgang Zenker ran aground.Wolfgang Zenker damaged her propellers and was restricted to a speed of 20 kn (23 mph; 37 km/h).Erich Koellner was much more badly damaged, so the Germans planned—when she was repaired enough to move—to moor her atTårstad in the same capacity asDiether von Roeder, as an immobile defence battery.[7]
As the British destroyers left theVestfjorden outside Narvik, two German submarines—U-25 andU-51—fired torpedoes at them but German torpedoes at the time had severe problems with theirmagnetic detonator systems—possibly due to the high northern latitude: all of them failed and either did not detonate at all or detonated well before reaching their targets.
Both the German naval commander—KommodoreFriedrich Bonte (onWilhelm Heidkamp)—and the British commander—CaptainBernard Warburton-Lee (onHardy)—were killed in the battle. Warburton-Lee was posthumously awarded theVictoria Cross, Bonte theKnight's Cross of the Iron Cross.[1][35]
| Second naval battle of Narvik | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of theSecond World War | |||||||
 Warspite engaging shore batteries during the Second Battle of Narvik. | |||||||
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| Belligerents | |||||||
| United Kingdom | Germany | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
| William Whitworth | Erich Bey | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
| 1 battleship 9 destroyers 1 aircraft carrier a small number of aircraft | 8 destroyers 2 U-boats | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| 3 destroyers damaged 2 aircraft shot down 28 killed 55 wounded | 8 destroyers sunk or scuttled 1 U-boat sunk 128 killed 67 wounded | ||||||
The Royal Navy considered it imperative, for morale and strategic purposes, to defeat the Germans in Narvik, soVice AdmiralWilliam Whitworth was sent with thebattleshipHMS Warspite and nine destroyers; fourTribal-class (HMS Bedouin,Cossack,Punjabi, andEskimo) and five others (HMSKimberley,Hero,Icarus,Forester andFoxhound), accompanied byaircraft from theaircraft carrierHMS Furious. These forces arrived in the Ofotfjord on 13 April to find that the eight remaining German destroyers—now under the command ofFregattenkapitänErich Bey—were virtually stranded due to lack of fuel and were short of ammunition.
Before the battle,Warspite launched her catapult plane (afloat-equippedFairey Swordfish, L 9767), with the crew ordered to search for German ships and to bomb any targets of opportunity.[36] After spotting and reporting several of the German destroyers, the crew spotted the U-boatU-64, anchored just 50 yards off-shore in theHerjangsfjord nearBjerkvik. The Swordfish attacked and dropped two 100 lb anti-submarine bombs: one was a near-miss, but one hit and sank the submarine.[36] Most of the crew survived and were rescued by German mountain troops. This was the firstU-boat sunk by an aircraft during the war and the only instance of an aircraft launched from a battleship sinking a U-boat.[37]
In the ensuing battle, three of the German destroyers were sunk byWarspite and her escorts and the other five were scuttled by their crews when they ran out of fuel and ammunition. The first lost wasErich Koellner, which tried to ambush the Allied forces but was spotted byWarspite's Swordfish and subsequently torpedoed and shelled by the destroyers and battleship. The destroyer's commander,Alfred Schulze-Hinrichs, and the surviving members of his crew, were captured by Norwegian forces. ThenWolfgang Zenker,Bernd von Arnim,Hans Ludemann andHermann Künne engaged the British forces but only managed to lightly damage HMSBedouin andWolfgang Zenker tried to torpedoWarspite. The British launched a force of ten Swordfish fromFurious to attack the German destroyers with 250lb bombs. They scored no hits and two aircraft were shot-down; the crew of one were lost, the crew of the other were picked up byPunjabi after making a forced-landing on the shore.[38]
Finally, when the German destroyers were low on ammunition, they retreated, except forHermann Künne, which had not received the order.Hermann Künne was fired upon by the pursuing HMSEskimo, but she took no hits. Out of ammunition but undamaged,Hermann Künne was scuttled by her crew inTrollvika in the Herjangsfjord. After scuttling the ship, the crew placed demolition depth charges on the ship, attempting to sink her in Trollvika's shallow waters.Eskimo, still in hot pursuit, launched a torpedo which hitHermann Künne, setting her on fire. Whether the German ship's own depth charges or the torpedo fromEskimo was the source of the explosion is unclear.[39]Eskimo was in turn ambushed byGeorg Thiele andHans Ludemann, losing her bow but surviving.Diether von Roeder andErich Giese, both suffering engine problems, fired upon the British forces while still docked, damagingPunjabi andCossack but they were both sunk before they could cause further damage. That was the last German counter-attack.
Shore batteries and installations were also very badly damaged byWarspite's guns. On the Allied side, the damage to HMSEskimo kept her in Norway until 31 May 1940. German submarines again suffered torpedo failures, whenU-46 andU-48 fired at the departingWarspite on 14 April. The remaining German destroyers (Wolfgang Zenker,Georg Thiele,Bernd von Arnim andHans Lüdemann) retreated into Rombaksfjord and were scuttled soon after. The only German ship which survived within the port area was the submarineU-51.
The Germans lost over 1,000 men, aU-boat, and eight destroyers.[40] With the losses from the previous battle this constituted 50% of the Kriegsmarine's destroyer strength. The shipwrecked crew ofErich Giese and several other German destroyers reported that they were fired on during the engagement.[41]
About 2,600 German survivors from the battle were organised into an improvised marine unit, theGebirgsmarine, and fought with the 139thGebirgsjäger Regiment in the subsequent land battle.[42] Although unsuited for combat in the mountainous terrain around Narvik, the shipwrecked sailors manned the two10.5 cm (4.1 in)FlaK guns and the 11 lightanti-aircraft guns salvaged from the ships sunk during the naval battles and conducted defensive operations.[5] The sailors were armed from the stocks captured at the Norwegian army base Elvegårdsmoen, more than 8,000Krag-Jørgensen rifles and 315 machine guns intended for the mobilisation of Norwegian army units in the Narvik area.[43]
After the naval battles of Narvik, the port and its surroundings remained in German hands, as no Allied forces were available to be landed there. Naval operations were limited at this stage toshore bombardment, as Narvik was not a primary Allied objective.
Among others, thePolish destroyersGrom,Burza andBłyskawica took part in these operations, during whichGrom was sunk by German aircraft on 4 May 1940, with the loss of 59 sailors.[citation needed]
| Battle of Narvik | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of theSecond World War | |||||||
 Narvik during the Second World War | |||||||
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
| Norway FranceUnited KingdomPoland | Germany | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
| Carl Gustav FleischerR. Magrin-VernereyWilliam BoyleZ. Bohusz-Szyszko | Eduard Dietl | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
| Norwegian 6th Division Three battalions ofChasseurs Alpins Two battalions of13th Demi-Brigade of the Foreign Legion 342e CACC (15Hotchkiss H35 tanks) Four British battalions Four battalions of thePolish Independent Highland BrigadeTotal: 24,500 men |
| ||||||
During theNorwegian Campaign, Narvik and its surrounding area saw significant fighting, initially from 9 April between German and Norwegian forces, subsequently between Allied and German forces, conducted by theNorwegian 6th Division of theNorwegian Army as well as by anAllied expeditionary corps until 9 June 1940. Unlike the campaign in southern Norway, the Allied troops in Narvik would eventually outnumber the Norwegian troops. Five nations participated in the fighting. From 5–10 May, the fighting in the Narvik area was the only active theatre of land war in the Second World War.
At the outset, the position of the German commander—Dietl—was not good: his 2,000 troops were outnumbered. After the German destroyers had been sunk, however, about 2,600 German sailors joined in the land battle. Another 290 German specialists travelled via Sweden posing as health care workers. During the last three to four weeks, the Germans were also reinforced by about 1,000 men air dropped overBjørnfjell, thus bringing the total number of Germans to around 5,600. Their position and outlook changed from good to dire several times. On occasions, the entire operation was controlled directly from theGerman High Command inBerlin;Hitler's mood was reportedly swinging heavily and he repeatedly contemplated withdrawal. Intelligence agents captured later in the war also stated that Dietl himself had been considering crossing the Swedish frontier with his troops to be interned, until the German agentMarina Lee infiltratedAuchinleck's headquarters atTromsø and obtained the British battle plan;[45] however, the accuracy of this allegation has been questioned.[46] TheNorwegian force—under GeneralCarl Gustav Fleischer—eventually reached 8,000–10,000 men after a few weeks. The total number of Allied troops in the campaign—in and around Narvik—reached 24,500 men.[47]
The early phase of the invasion was marked by the German advantage of surprise. Norwegian troops in northern Norway had been called out on a three-month neutrality watch during the winter of 1939/1940, and so they had trained together. From 9–25 April, the Norwegian forces suffered three catastrophes. First, the forces protecting Narvik were unable to resist the Germans due to the commanding officer—the laterNSHird commander ColonelKonrad Sundlo—refusing to fight the invaders; second, around 200 soldiers from the Narvik garrison who had escaped capture and were blocking the railway to Sweden were caught by surprise while resting at Bjørnfjell, most of the men being captured; third, I/IR12 (1st battalion of Infantry Regiment 12) sent to holdGratangsbotn was attacked by surprise while in camp, suffering casualties that ruined its spirit and effectively knocked it out of the remainder of the campaign.
FromDenmark, a battalion-sized detachment of theLuftwaffe'sRegiment General Göring, commanded byHauptmann Kluge was sent by sea toOslo, in April, being engaged alongside theArmy first in the advance toTrondheim, then north up into theArctic Circle to take the port ofBodø and relieve the pressure on the beleaguered éliteGebirgsjäger further north at Narvik.[48]
Due to mounting Norwegian pressure and difficulties with bringing up supplies to the forward lying troops, the Germans abandoned Gratangsbotn and withdrew from the hillLapphaugen and the valleyGratangsdalen, following theBattle of Gratangen. In the beginning of May, the Norwegians started an advance southwards towards Narvik. Once it became clear that the Allies would mount the main invasion of Narvik itself in mid-May, the Norwegian direction altered towardsBjørnfjell. The British arrived first and set up headquarters inHarstad on 14 April. In the following days, three battalions were deployed mainly atSjøvegan inSkånland Municipality (where a naval base was established) and atBogen. Later, they were deployed south of theOfotfjord, atBallangen andHåkvik.
The initial British detachment was reinforced on 28 April by a French expeditionary force (Corps expéditionnaire français en Scandinavie, CEFS), led by GeneralAntoine Béthouart and composed ofmountain troops. Three battalions ofAlpine troops and two battalions of13th Demi-Brigade of the Foreign Legion[49][50] were deployed both north and south of theOfotfjord, but later, the north would be the main French area of operation. FourPolish battalions arrived on 9 May. They were first deployed north of the Ofotfjord, but later redeployed to the area south of thefjord. In early June they were formed into thePolish Podhale Independent Highland Brigade under GeneralZygmunt Bohusz-Szyszko and part of CEFS.
In addition, the Allies had difficulty in deciding how best to retake Narvik and theiron ore railway. There was no unified command for the troops facing the Germans at Narvik: the Norwegians and the Allies retained separate commanders and cooperation between them was not always smooth. Even within the British forces, the Army and Navy commanders—Major-GeneralPierse J. Mackesy andAdmiral of the FleetWilliam Boyle, Lord Cork—had difficulty cooperating: Cork advocated a swift and direct attack from the sea while Mackesy advocated a cautious approach from both sides of the Ofotfjord. Consequent to this, on 21 April, Lord Cork was given supreme command of all Allied forces.[51]
In the second week of May, the Norwegian advances against the Germans east ofGratangseidet were the most significant movements on the Narvik front. In addition, on the Norwegians' right flank French alpine troops advanced up theLaberg valley, supported by a company of Norwegianski troops. In the south, the Allies did not have much success, and in the north of the Ofotfjord, they were not making any progress. The Norwegians continued their successfulmountain campaign, and in mid-May the Allies took the initiative and achieved significant victories. BothParis andLondon had been growing impatient with the slow progress in Narvik, and the French commander—Béthouart—had pressed for more action.
The cautious approach on land was abandoned and anamphibious attack was launched at around midnight on 12 May. This was directed atBjerkvik and was preceded by a naval bombardment from British warships inHerjangsfjord. Thenlanding craft put ashoreFrench Foreign Legionnaires, supported by five FrenchHotchkiss H39light tanks of the 342e CACC (Compagnie Autonome de Chars de Combat/ Independent Tank Company), which successfully attackedBjerkvik,[50] theElvegårdsmoen army camp and advanced northeast to where the Germans were withdrawing and south along the east side ofHerjangsfjord. The plan also required Polish troops to advance toward Bjerkvik from land on the west side of the fjord, but heavy terrain delayed them and they did not arrive before Bjerkvik was taken. It had also been part of the plan for French and Norwegian troops to advance from the north in order to box the Germans in, but cooperation problems between the Norwegian and French commanders left a gap through which the Germans escaped. Despite this, the Allies had a clear path north of Narvik and planned to attack overRombaksfjord.
It had been anticipated in London that as the buildup of troops in Narvik slowly continued, a corps headquarters would be needed to exercise effective control.[52] On 11 May,Lieutenant-GeneralClaude Auchinleck arrived in Narvik, and on 13 May assumed leadership of the Allied land and air forces (under Lord Cork's overall command), which at this time was designated the North-Western Expeditionary Force.[53] It was clear to the Allies that once Narvik was captured, its long-term retention would depend on permanently holding the town ofBodø to the south inNordland which was on the route of the German advance fromTrondheim. Consequently, Auchinleck redeployed all British troops to concentrate on this southern enterprise, and appointed FrenchBrigadier-General Béthouart—an expert in both mountain and winter warfare—to command the French and Polish troops, which would be responsible for operations in the Narvik area in conjunction with Norwegian forces.[54]
Again, the attack was stalled while the Allies waited forair support to be fully established fromBardufoss. At 23:40 on 27 May, a naval bombardment commenced from the north. Two French and one Norwegian battalions would be transported across the Rombaksfjord and advance on Narvik from the north. In the south, the Polish battalions would advance towardAnkenes and innerBeisfjord. The maximum capacity of the landing barges was 290 men, and these troops could not be reinforced for 45 minutes. These first troops were able to get a foothold on Ornes by the time the rest of the French and the Norwegians were landed. The French moved west toward the city and east along the railway. The Norwegians moved towardTaraldsvik mountain, circled around and moved down toward the city. TheGerman commander decided to evacuate before 07:00 and retired along theBeisfjord. This was the first major Allied victory on land.[55]
It seemed now that it was only a matter of time before the Germans would have to surrender. They were pushed from the north by the Norwegians, from the west by the French and from the southwest by the Poles. It appeared thatBjørnfjell would be the Germans' last stand, but events elsewhere in Europe came to their rescue. London had already secretly decided to evacuate on 24 May and that became apparent in the following days. On the night of 24/25 May, Lord Cork received orders to retreat, but under cover so the Germans would be prevented from interfering. The Allied commanders agreed that an attack on Narvik would disguise the retreat and allow the destruction of the iron ore harbour.
The Norwegian government and commanders were first told in early June and the news was met with disbelief and bitterness. The Norwegians still hoped to defeat the Germans alone and, as late as 5 June, one of the two Norwegian brigades was ordered to attack. The Norwegian government also explored the possibility of creating a neutral, but free Northern Norway. This plan proved futile, and on 7 June the King and government were evacuated to Britain. All Allied troops were evacuated from Narvik between 4 and 8 June.
ThreePolish passenger ships,MSSobieski,Batory andChrobry, took part in the evacuation operation.Chrobry was sunk on 14–15 May by German bombers. On 8 June, General Dietl retook Narvik, and on 10 June the last Norwegian forces in Norway surrendered.
On 7 June, the British aircraft carrierHMS Glorious had taken on board 10Gloster Gladiators and eightHawker Hurricanes from46 Squadron and263 SquadronRoyal Air Force (RAF). These were flown off from land bases to keep them from being destroyed in the evacuation.Glorious left a largerconvoy to proceed independently. The next day, while sailing through theNorwegian Sea to return toScapa Flow, the carrier and her escorts—the destroyersHMS Acasta andArdent—were intercepted by the German battlecruisersScharnhorst andGneisenau. The carrier and her escorts were sunk with the loss of more than 1,500 men.Scharnhorst was badly damaged by a torpedo fromAcasta and both German vessels were hit by a number of medium shells. The damage to the German ships was sufficient to cause the Germans to retire toTrondheim, which allowed the safe passage of the evacuation convoy through the area later that day.
The British had drafted plans to land in Narvik before the German invasion; troops and supplies had been loaded onto ships when they executed their mining operation on 8 April. These had been hastily unloaded when German ships were spotted northbound because the British thought that the German ships were trying to break into the Atlantic to avoid being trapped in German ports and wanted all their ships available to intercept the German fleet. The confusion dogged the troops for weeks, men and equipment were shipped to Norway separately without clear landing sites and orders were changed while en route. It became apparent that the Allies were confused by the many small and large fjords and bays and could not decide where it would be best to start; British, French and Polish units rapidly relieved each other which added to the lack of local knowledge.
The cold and snow was a common enemy for all troops at Narvik but most of the Allies were poorly prepared for it. The Norwegians were the only ones fully equipped with skis and able to use them. The British tried skis but their troops were largely untrained and supply was scarce. German sailors faced the same problems, even within theGebirgsjäger (mountain troops) and French mountain specialists, only a few units were equipped with skis and the Polish mountain brigade had no mountain training.
Most troops were untested in battle. TheGebirgsjäger had participated in the invasion of Poland and some of the troops that had been air dropped over Bjørnfjell had fought in theNetherlands. Some of the French Foreign Legionnaires came directly from fighting inNorth Africa and most of the Polish officers and many of the soldiers had participated in the defence of Poland, some even in theSpanish Civil War and were highly motivated.[56]
The Allies had sea and air superiority until the very last stage of the operation, but did not take full advantage. The Germans lost the naval battle, but achieved the main goal of their operation: the successfulOperation Weserübung andoccupation of Norway. Around Narvik, German naval losses were high: they lost 10 destroyers (50 percent of their entire destroyer force), one submarine, and several support ships. In exchange, they sank one aircraft carrier, four Allied destroyers and damaged several others. The reason for their defeat lay in the German plans, which made it impossible for their destroyers to retire quickly, even if they had had adequate supplies. This was compounded by the design of German destroyers: despite their relatively large size and armament, they had inadequate fuel and ammunition storage.[citation needed] The British forces achieved an indisputable local naval victory but were unprepared to follow it up with any land operation. This allowed the Germans to consolidate their foothold in Norway and made the subsequent Allied counter-invasion more difficult.
In 1964, a war museum opened in Narvik; since 2016, the collections have been displayed in theNarvik War Museum—located inside theNarvik War and Peace Centre.[57][58]
Parts of the bow of the German destroyerGeorg Thiele remain visible above the water inRombaksbotn to this day. The wrecks at Narvik remain popular diving spots, although some are off-limits because they still contain undetonated ammunition.[59] Three of the German destroyers were raised in 1964 and moved to Framnesodden, near Eidsvoid, to clear the shipping lane. The destroyersAnton Schmitt,Diether von Roeder, andWilhelm Heidkamp rest in 12 m (39 ft) of water there and were opened for diving. A number of other wrecks are also accessible, but most have been preserved as historic sites and it is forbidden to dive to them.[60]
At least 1,200 French, British, and Polish participants in the battle were awarded the NorwegianWar Cross for their contribution to the battle. Among the Norwegians who took part in the battle, only the top two military leaders were awarded the medal. Norwegian media has complained about this limited award.[61]
All German forces (8,577 military personnel) who partook in the battles of Narvik were awarded with theNarvik Shield.
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