Buy Now! Norway 1940: Home Hitler Turns North By Joseph Miranda Background dolph Hitler viewed Norway as critical to the Reich’s war effort for two World War II, had two plans in mind. reasons. First, deliveries to Germany of Swedish iron ore went through One, Operation Catherine, called for A the Norwegian port of Narvik. The high-grade ore was then transshipped a naval push into the Baltic Sea to via Norwegian coastal waters to Germany, where it was used in the steel industry. cut German lines of communication Second, Norway formed the geostrategic northern fl ank of the Reich. From with Scandinavia. While that plan was Norwegian bases the German Navy (Kriegsmarine) and Air Force (Luftwaffe) scotched owing to the inherent risks could dispatch planes, surface raiders and U-boats to interdict Britain’s naval of operating within reach of Luftwaffe lines of communication. That would overcome the restriction under which air attack, it showed the lengths to the German Navy had operated during World War I, when its High Seas Fleet which the British were considering could only approach the British isles from bases at Kiel and in the Baltic. pushing their naval strategy. As 1939 ended, the Germans had good reason to be concerned about Norway. At the same time, the British One was the British were clearly taking an increased interest in Scandinavia understood the importance of and the Baltic. Winston Churchill, First Lord of the Admiralty at the start of Germany’s iron supplies. Narvik was critical because the direct sea route from Sweden via the Baltic to Germany froze during the winter, while Narvik operated year round. Consequently the Allies developed a contingency plan for seizing that port, and events elsewhere in Europe gave them their opportunity. In November 1939 the Soviet Union, then still allied with Germany under the Molotov-Ribbentrop Non- Aggression Pact, invaded Finland. The ensuing Winter War saw the Finns making a determined defense against the Red Army, cutting up several waves of invaders. While the Soviets managed to bludgeon through to victory in the end, the Finns’ resistance gave the British and French time and reason to consider sending an expeditionary force to the far north. The ostensible intent was to aid Finland, but part of the operation called for seizing Narvik as a forward base, thereby conve- niently cutting it off from German use. The nascent Allied plan fell through when the Winter War ended in March 1940. There were also diplomatic issues involved with what would’ve clearly been a violation of neutral Norway. Nonetheless, it showed the potential of what could be done. (Also see the fi rst sidebar.) With everyone expecting major German offensives across the west in the spring, the Allies again moved forward with a plan to land This photo, of German infantry advancing along an Oslo street, was continued on page 9 » widely circulated throughout the Reich at the time. 6 WORLD at WAR 29 | APR–MAY 2013 WORLD at WAR 29 | APR–MAY 2013 7 The Altmark provided fuel and resupply to search the hold in which the prisoners were at arranging a joint search of the German the warship, and in return the Graf Spee being held and, when those men attempted ship. The Norwegians refused, stating repeat- transferred the prisoners to Altmark. to signal the searchers by making noise, the edly that, as far as they were concerned, the Concerned at the damage being done Germans ran some winches to cover the sound. Altmark had already been thoroughly searched. to vital merchant shipping, the British The Altmark was escorted by the When Vian relayed the outcome of the Admiralty sent out eight “hunting groups” Norwegian patrol boats Kjell, Skarv and Firern. talks to the Admiralty, he was instructed to into the Atlantic and one into the Indian The British requested the Norwegians stop the make one fi nal offer: the Altmark was to be Ocean to fi nd the German ships. Altmark until RN destroyers could arrive and a jointly escorted to Bergen for a new search When Hunting Group G, consisting of the joint search undertaken, but the Norwegians there. If that was rejected, he was immediately heavy cruiser Exeter and the light cruisers refused. Not wanting to anger the Germans, the to board the German ship and free the prison- Ajax and Achilles, located the German vessels, Norwegians did no more than shadow Altmark. ers. The offer was declined by the Norwegians. the resulting engagement, fought close by The Admiralty meanwhile dispatched At 11:23 p.m. the Cossack closed on the northern Argentine coast, became known Fourth Destroyer Flotilla to intercept. Altmark with a boarding party standing by. as the Battle of the River Plate. After putting Flotilla commander Capt. Phillip Vian, on The Altmark shone bright searchlights at into Montevideo for repairs, Langsdorff was the destroyer Cossack, was ordered to fi nd the bridge, hoping to blind the English crew. convinced by a British hoax that superior forces Altmark, force her into international waters, As the lights came on, Dau also tried to were awaiting his departure. He choose to and then board her to free the prisoners. ram the Cossack using the Altmark’s stern, scuttle his ship and commit suicide rather than As they were unsure as to the but deft handling allowed the British ship risk it or his person falling into British hands. Altmark’s exact appearance, the destroyers to escape almost undamaged. As the two This is the cover of a German propaganda After the destruction of the Graf Spee stopped and searched several merchant ships brushed sides, some members of the pamphlet published soon after the Altmark The German dead being solemnly carried ashore. incident concluded. You don’t really need the Royal Navy began the search for Altmark, ships before their true target was fi nally boarding party jumped onto the Altmark. the words to get the idea; however, the which they knew to still be in the area. They discovered by a Coastal Command aircraft Vian quickly turned around the Cossack and, title translates as: “[The] Altmark Case – assumed, with the sinking of the Graf Spee, the on 16 February. Vian immediately ordered on the next pass, the rest of the boarding German sailors. With that quickly completed, action brought accolades to those involved Documents [on] British War Management.” Altmark would run for Germany. Anticipating destroyers Ivanhoe and Intrepid, along with party made the jump onto the freighter. Vian departed Jossing Fjord at 11:55 p.m., within the UK, but the Germans accused that, the captain of the Altmark, Heinrich Dau, the light cruiser Arethusa, to the area. In a brief but violent struggle, six Germans barely 30 minutes after the action the Royal Navy of “piracy” and of having The Altmark Incident: The remained in the South Atlantic for several When the British caught up to Altmark, were killed and eight wounded. The Germans started. The Altmark was set free and no respect for the laws of neutrality. Royal Navy as Pirates weeks before turning north. With luck, and by Intrepid signaled the German ship to heave later alleged that several sailors trying to fl ee allowed to continue on her way More importantly, for both the Norwegians avoiding shipping lanes, the Altmark passed to but was ignored. Two warning shots then along the ice were shot in the back, a claim It’s still open to debate whether the and the Allies, the incident focused Hitler’s “The navy’s here!” With those words between Iceland and the Faeroe Islands, fi nally also had no effect. The Germans gambled, denied by the Royal Navy. In fact, at one point Altmark was breaking international law by mind on contemplating military action in the ordeal of 299 Allied prisoners-of-war entering Norwegian waters off Trondheim on 14 correctly, the British wouldn’t fi re accurately two British sailors dived into the freezing steaming through Norwegian waters. According Scandinavia. Since Swedish iron ore was ended. Those sailors had come from nine February 1940. Dau hoped Norwegian neutrality for fear of hitting their own prisoners. water in an attempt to rescue a wounded to the Hague Convention of 1907, she was vital for Germany’s war industries, and that merchant ships sunk by the German pocket would protect him from attack by British ships. The British maneuvered so as to try to force German sailor who’d fallen in, but he was entitled to go through neutral waters with ore was transported through Norwegian battleship Admiral Graf Spee. Prior to their As the Altmark steamed south along the the Altmark out to sea, but they were hampered then found to be already dead. The British prisoners on board as long as it didn’t involve waters, to the dictator it suddenly seemed ships being sunk, their crews were given the Norwegian coast toward Germany, the ship in that effort by the presence of the Norwegian quickly took control of the ship but not before a stop of more than 24 hours. It was open proven that England would unhesitatingly opportunity to surrender by the commander was stopped and searched three times by the patrol boats. That interference allowed Altmark she ran aground, causing minor damage. to interpretation whether the Convention soon move to cut that supply line. of the Graf Spee, Capt. Hans Langsdorff. Norwegian Navy. Each inspection was merely to slip into the ice-fi lled Jossing Fjord. A search was undertaken, and one of allowed a warship to legally seek protection The episode is also signifi cant in Royal The Graf Spee was accompanied for cursory, and the Norwegians took the Germans’ At dusk Capt.