Saturday 13 April 1940

Ships at Narvik at some point during the second battle of Narvik. The photo was taken by the spotter plane from HMS Warspite.

Operation Weserubung: Operation Weserubung continues smoothly on 13 April 1940, but Hitler is concerned - frantic, is more like it. He is particularly worried about the situation in Narvik, which is precarious. Hitler issues several orders based on this paranoia, but, for one of the very few times in the war, the officers around him countermand them and stay the course. They basically tell Hitler to go take a nap (in fact, Hitler is known to stress out over naval operations and says later that he "can't sleep a wink" when large ships are operating). It is one of the first instances of Hitler's unbridled paranoia which will manifest itself in various ways over the next few years to the severe detriment of the German state.

• German troops continue expanding away from their beachheads in the major Norwegian cities:
• German 163rd Infantry Division occupies Larvik near Oslo;
• German 196th Infantry Division occupies Halden and pushes northward;
• Junkers Ju 52s fly supplies to Lake Hartvigvann near Narvik, landing on the frozen lake.

In London, the British War Cabinet debates about sending troops to Norway. Invasion at Trondheim is considered as a block to prevent the Wehrmacht from advancing north from Oslo. Narvik also is on the docket, as it was the original cause of the battle in the first place. Churchill, while firmly in the camp that favors a troop commitment at Narvik, comments that they need to consider:

the grave danger that we should find ourselves committed to a number of ineffectual operations along the Norwegian coast, none of which would succeed.

Prime Minister Chamberlain, his authority reeling from the Norwegian setback and his own recent comment that Hitler has "missed the bus," vows to send troops to Norway anyway. He tells the House of Commons, "Hitler has a real fight on his hands!"

One of Hitler's orders does go through. Generaloberst Nikolaus von Falkenhorst, commanding the Weserubung operation, receives orders to seize control of the village of Dombås, some 336 km (209 mi) north of Oslo, by paratroop attack. This is due to a false report of Allied landings at Åndalsnes. It also may have something to do with the transport of Norwegian gold reserves out of the country and an attempt to seize the gold.

Battle of Narvik on 13 April 1940.

Battle of the Atlantic: The British return to Narvik in force. With aircraft carrier HMS Furious as cover (which launches airstrikes), Battleship HMS Warspite (Vice-Admiral William Jock Whitworth) leads nine destroyers into the Ototfjord. Without air cover, the Kriegsmarine destroyers are defenseless, though Captain Bey in charge of the flotilla misses opportunities to at least mitigate the damage. All eight German destroyers in the area are sunk or scuttled by their crews, some in Narvik Bay, the rest in Rombaks Fjord where they try to hide:

• Z2 Georg Thiele (sunk)
• Z9 Wolfgang Zenker (scuttled)
• Z11 Bernd von Arnim (scuttled)
• Z12 Erich Giese (scuttled)
• Z13 Erich Koellner (sunk)
• Z17 Diether von Roeder (sunk)
• Z18 Hans Lüdemann (scuttled)
• Z19 Hermann Künne (scuttled)

About 100 Kriegsmarine sailors perish, most can scramble to shore in time given the certainty of destruction. Only three of the British destroyers are damaged (HMS Punjabi has 14 KIA/28 wounded, HMS Eskimo has its bow blown off by a torpedo). Wehrmacht troops ashore use field howitzers against the British force, but HMS Cossack puts them out of action.

The aftermath of the Battle of Narvik on 13 April 1940.

In addition, Warspite's Fairey Swordfish spotter plane bombs U-64 (Kapitänleutnant Georg-Wilhelm Schulz) in the Herjangsfjord near Narvik and sinks it (8 perish, 38 survive after a harrowing escape from the sunk U-boat and, half-frozen, are grateful for rescue by the mountain troops in the area). It is perhaps the most dominating performance by a battleship during the entire war and basically justifies many officers' faith in the big gun platform.

However - and this is a qualification - despite the absolute devastation wreaked by the Warspite force, the Wehrmacht under General Dietl retains control of the town of Narvik itself, and 2,600 Kriegsmarine personnel from the destroyers augment the ground troops. Whitworth signals London and tells them that a single brigade could take the key port.

Elsewhere, U-34 (Kapitänleutnant Wilhelm Rollmann) destroys Norwegian Cruiser-minelayer HNoMS Frøya, which has been beached at Søtvika, Norway after encounters with other Kriegsmarine ships.

Convoy OB 128 departs from Liverpool, and Convoy HG 26 departs from Gibraltar.

European Air Operations: The RAF sends 15 Hampden bombers to drop parachute mines off the Danish coast during the night. While the Luftwaffe has dropped mines regularly, this is the first time the RAF drops mines. One aircraft is lost.

Luftwaffe bombers make unproductive attacks against Royal Navy vessels along the Norwegian coast.

Following the successful long-range reconnaissance of Narvik from northern Scotland performed by the New Zealand (75 NZ) Squadron on 12 April, another flight is taken over Trondheim. This time, the plane fails to return.

German Military: Morale within the Wehrmacht is skyrocketing given the latest successes in Norway. While difficult to quantify, it manifests itself in interactions with the British, who are not feeling quite so sanguine. For instance, the British rescue some of the German sailors at Narvik and make them prisoners but are nonplussed at their attitude. One of the Royal Navy sailors guarding them, Harry Neesdowne on battleship HMS Warspite, notes of them: "They are impossibly arrogant- certain of victory" - and this right after they have been pulled from the water and locked up.

Battle of Narvik on 13 April 1940.

British Military: British troops arrive at the Faroe Islands per First Lord of the Admiralty Winston Churchill's vow to "protect" them.

Legendary General Carton de Wiart takes command of troops in Norway.

Spies: US embassy official Tyler Kent passes copies of documents to Anna Wolkoff, who gives them to the German embassy.

US Navy: Destroyer USS J. Fred Talbot returns to the Canal Zone after its humanitarian mission to aid an ill passenger on the Japanese steamship Arimasan Maru.

Poland: The German authorities in occupied Poland permits the formation and meeting of the Ukrainian Central Committee. It is allowed to represent the concerns of Ukrainian citizens. Numerous local groups operate under its umbrella.

Holocaust: Approximately 250,000 additional Poles in the Soviet-occupied zone of former Poland are banished to Siberia.

American Homefront/Future History: The New York Rangers beat the Toronto Maple Leafs 3-2 in overtime to win the 1940 Stanley Cup. It is the last time the Rangers win the Cup for 54 years. As the years lengthen during that span, the derisive chant "1940! 1940!" becomes a rallying cry for fans of the team's opponents. It is one of the most enduring legacies of 1940 for hockey fans.

The Warspite (left) force withdrawing during the Battle of Narvik on 13 April 1940.

April 1940

April 1, 1940: Weserubung is a Go
April 2, 1940: British Subs On Alert
April 3, 1940: Churchill Consolidates Power
April 4, 1940: Missed the Bus
April 5, 1940: Mig-1 First Flight
April 6, 1940: Troops Sailing to Norway
April 7, 1940: Fleets At Sea
April 8, 1940: HMS Glowworm and Admiral Hipper
April 9, 1940: Invasion of Norway
April 10, 1940: First Battle of Narvik
April 11, 1940: Britain Takes the Faroes
April 12, 1940: Germans Consolidate in Norway
April 13, 1940: 2d Battle of Narvik
April 14, 1940: Battle of Dombås
April 15, 1940: British in Norway
April 16, 1940: Germans Cut Norway in Half
April 17, 1940: Trondheim the Target
April 18, 1940: Norway Declares War
April 19, 1940: Dombås Battle Ends
April 20, 1940: Germans Advancing in Norway
April 21, 1940: First US Military Casualty
April 22, 1940: First British Military Contact with Germans
April 23, 1940: British Retreating in Norway
April 24, 1940: British Bombard Narvik
April 25, 1940: Norwegian Air Battles
April 26, 1940: Norwegian Gold
April 27, 1940: Allies to Evacuate Norway
April 28, 1940: Prepared Piano
April 29, 1940: British at Bodo
April 30, 1940: Clacton-on-Sea Heinkel

2019

Friday 12 April 1940

Discussion before take-off for Narvik on 12 April 1940. L-R: LAC Edwin Williams, Wireless Operator; F/L Aubrey Breckon 1st Pilot; Lieutenant Commander Howie, R.N.; Sgt Robert Hughes Navigator, P/O Donald Harkness, 2nd Pilot, and AC Thomas Mumby, Gunner Observer. – From “Early Operations with Bomber Command.” Probably RNZAF Official.

Norway: Operation Weserubung on 12 April 1940 is proceeding with minimal interference so far from either outside powers or the Norwegian military. Locals are responsible for quartering Wehrmacht troops, and, as usual, the German government pays for their billets in Reichsmarks.

The Norwegian government admits in a communique to losing Oslo, Kristiansand, Stavanger, Bergen, Agdense, Trondheim and the Vaernes military base. The rest of southern Norway, it claims, remains in Norwegian hands, along with the entirety of northern Norway save Narvik. The government continues to strike a defiant tone, minimizing the extent of the German invasion. The Germans are annoyed at the Norwegians' refusal to acquiesce like the Danes and express this with an air attack against the small town sheltering the King and government, Elverum, around 17: 20.

Elverum is overflowing with refugees who have followed the government there. Journalist Erik Seidenfaden notes that "The hotels are full of ministers huddling 'round stoves and breaking icicles to clean teeth. All the town's stationery has been bought for government business." King Haakon is distressed at the harm he is bringing to the locals by his presence, stating: "I cannot bear to watch children crouching in the snow as bullets mow down trees." He cannot stay there indefinitely, because the Wehrmacht knows exactly where he is.

In fact, the Wehrmacht is starting to move beyond its city bases in southern Norway. They are expanding away from Oslo in all directions, like a mushroom cloud. The 196th Division takes Kongsberg to the southwest of the city, and the 163rd Division takes Moss, Frederickstad, and Sarpsborg.

Norwegian defenses are firming around Trondheim. An artillery officer, Major Hans Holtermann, collects 250 volunteers and occupies a venerable fort at Ingstadkleiva near Trondheim. This will become known as Hegra Fortress. The fort has been out of operation for some time, but it has four 10.5 cm and two 7.5 cm in half-turrets and 4 Krupp m/1887 field guns, along with a storehouse full of ammunition. The Germans nearby notice the sudden activity at the fort, and a Wehrmacht Major comes to request their surrender. Holtermann refuses.

Danish troops on the morning of the Ger­man in­va­sion, code­named Oper­a­tion Weser­ubung, April 9, 1940. Within hours, two of the squad’s seven men shown in this picture were dead. They were two out of 16 Dan­ish sol­diers total who perished during the in­va­sion.

European Air Operations: The RAF sends its largest raid yet, 83-90 bombers (sources vary), to attack Stavanger airfield, but the damage caused is minimal. The RAF loses around ten planes total during the operation.

The Fleet Air Arm bombs Bergen.

Royal Navy carrier HMS Furious launches air attacks against the German 3rd Mountain Division at Narvik.

The New Zealand (No. 75 NZ) Squadron flies long-range reconnaissance from R.A.F. Bassingbourn in northern Scotland over the Lofoten Islands and Narvik. This requires Wellingtons specially fitted with range petrol tanks, and stripped of armour plating, self-sealing tanks and some armament. Everything considered non-essential, including some chairs and oxygen bottles, is removed to save weight. The reconnaissance, which covers over 2,000 miles, is successful. While near Narvik, the crew spots a Luftwaffe Ju 86 apparently performing similar reconnaissance. Nobody really knows what is going on at Narvik, but everybody is quite interested.
Luftwaffe chief Generalfeldmarschall Hermann Goering creates Luftflotte 5 to cover Norway. Its first commander is Generaloberst Erhard Milch, who operates his headquarters out of Hamburg for the time being. Luftflotte 5 for the time being will assist the ground troops with supplies, transport, and targeted attacks. The planes themselves will be based in Norwegian airfields such as Stavanger.

Battle of the Atlantic: The Gneisenau, Scharnhorst and Admiral Hipper are moving southwest of Stavanger back to Germany. After RAF reconnaissance spots them, the RAF launches both land- and carrier-based air attacks. None hits the ships, two of which already have been damaged, and they make it back to base.

U-37 (Korvettenkapitän Werner Hartmann) continues its successful patrol by torpedoing and sinking the 4,511 ton British freighter Stancliffe 45 miles northeast of Muckle Flugga, Shetlands at 09:42. There are 16 survivors and 21 perish. The survivors sail their lifeboat to Haroldswick, Unst Island.

British submarine HMS Snapper sinks German cargo ship Moonsund.

The Royal Navy has laid mines in both the Skagerrak and the Kattegat. It also has laid mines from near Holland to near Norway.

Convoy OA 128GF departs from Southend.

Royal Navy destroyers arrive at the Faroe Islands and make preparations for the arrival of British troops.

U-103 is commissioned.

Western Front: France and Britain cancel all leave and order forces to be ready to fight at 6-hours notice.

Denmark: The Faroe Islands agree to accept British protection. No troops arrive yet, though.

Cyprus: The Cyprus Regiment officially is formed.

US Government: President Roosevelt refuses to answer a question about whether the Monroe Doctrine applies to Greenland. He states that the issue is "very, very premature" and "awfully hypothetical."

FDR also answers a question about television, which is still very early in its broadcast history. He opines that it has "a great future," but that there were anti-trust issues which the FCC was working on. NBC currently has the most experience with broadcasting locally in the New York City area.

Australian Homefront: The government bans the sale of foreign magazines and newspapers in order aid the country's balance of trade.

American Homefront: Alfred Hitchcock/David O. Selznick film "Rebecca" premieres in the US. It stars Laurence Olivier and Joan Fontaine. "Dr. Cyclops," a rare technicolor science fiction film of the era, also debuts.

Future History: Herbie Hancock is born in Chicago, Illinois. He becomes famous in the late 1960s for scoring the soundtrack to "Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids" and for a collection of jazz and electronic music albums.

The German troops marching through town to Haderslev Barracks in Norway. They are being welcomed as liberators: note the Fuhrer salutes. These marches are a typical Wehrmacht practice, and there is no way to force people into the street to give salutes. In some locales, in fact, the streets are empty on such occasions. The Danish fälg hangs at half-mast due to a memorial service earlier that day for the local fallen.

April 1940

April 1, 1940: Weserubung is a Go
April 2, 1940: British Subs On Alert
April 3, 1940: Churchill Consolidates Power
April 4, 1940: Missed the Bus
April 5, 1940: Mig-1 First Flight
April 6, 1940: Troops Sailing to Norway
April 7, 1940: Fleets At Sea
April 8, 1940: HMS Glowworm and Admiral Hipper
April 9, 1940: Invasion of Norway
April 10, 1940: First Battle of Narvik
April 11, 1940: Britain Takes the Faroes
April 12, 1940: Germans Consolidate in Norway
April 13, 1940: 2d Battle of Narvik
April 14, 1940: Battle of Dombås
April 15, 1940: British in Norway
April 16, 1940: Germans Cut Norway in Half
April 17, 1940: Trondheim the Target
April 18, 1940: Norway Declares War
April 19, 1940: Dombås Battle Ends
April 20, 1940: Germans Advancing in Norway
April 21, 1940: First US Military Casualty
April 22, 1940: First British Military Contact with Germans
April 23, 1940: British Retreating in Norway
April 24, 1940: British Bombard Narvik
April 25, 1940: Norwegian Air Battles
April 26, 1940: Norwegian Gold
April 27, 1940: Allies to Evacuate Norway
April 28, 1940: Prepared Piano
April 29, 1940: British at Bodo
April 30, 1940: Clacton-on-Sea Heinkel


2016

Thursday 28 March 1940

Armed merchant cruiser HMS Transylvania.

Battle of the Atlantic: The 4,007-ton German freighter Mimi Horn is scuttled by its crew on 28 March 1940 after being intercepted in the Denmark Strait by the armed merchant cruiser HMS Transylvania.

Norwegian freighter SS Burgos hits a mine and sinks 30 miles west of Skegness, England. The crew survives and is rescued by sloop HMS Pelican.

Convoy OA 119 departs from Southend, Convoy HG 24 departs from Gibraltar.

Battle of the Pacific: British warships stop Soviet ore ships Selenga and Vladimir Mayakovski and order them to Hong Kong.

Allied Air Operations: Overnight, the RAF sent reconnaissance flights over northwest Germany. Three aircraft of the New Zealand No. 75 Squadron take part in the flights for the first time. Three aircraft never return. One bomber makes a forced landing in Holland after being attacked by Dutch fighters.

Two Dornier Do 17 Luftwaffe aircraft make a sweep over the North Sea but make no successful attacks. Coastal Command intercepts them and scored hits on one, while also one RAF plane is damaged.

Allied Supreme War Council: The Supreme War Council meets for the sixth time in London. There is a new leader for the French, new Prime Minister Paul Reynaud. Reynaud's suggestions regarding attacking Soviet oil fields and shipping are rejected, though they will be "studied."

The leaders reach the same conclusion that they had in World War I, namely that neither country will conclude any armistice or other cessation of hostilities without mutual consent. They also decide to mine Norwegian territorial waters to disrupt German iron ore shipments from Sweden via Narvik (Operation Wilfred). A further plan to drop mines in the Rhine River (Operation Royal Marine) at the same time is approved pending approval by the French War Committee. Churchill, whose pet idea this Rhine operation is, says, "It will cause the utmost consternation."

The Council also make a tentative decision to send an expeditionary military force to Norway should the Germans appear to be ready to invade. The Council sets a projected date of 5 April 1940.

While an Allied landing in Norway would have been legal under the League of Nations resolutions pertaining to the Winter War, that authorization now is gone due to the Moscow Peace Treaty. An Allied invasion would be a hostile incursion on a neutral nation's territory, just as would a German invasion. Norway has given no indication that it would accept foreign troops of any nation on its soil. Churchill, though, sees an added benefit from throwing a spanner in the works: "No people are more completely upset when their plans miscarry than the Germans. They cannot improvise."

The Germans, of course, are thinking along identical lines, and their planned invasion has been set for roughly the same time. First Lord of the Admiralty Winston Churchill hopes to provoke the Germans into some rash action with the mining of Norwegian waters, thus justifying Allied "protection" of Norway and Sweden. This would cripple the German war effort, which is based upon Swedish iron ores shipped through Norway.

Propaganda: The issue of German propaganda is on everybody's mind. Churchill notes that "Reynaud spoke of the impact of German propaganda on French morale. The radio blares each night..."

British Government: The Foreign Office calls six ambassadors from southern and central Europe back to London for consultations.

US Government: Undersecretary of State Sumner Welles meets in Washington, D.C. with President Roosevelt following his discussions with European leaders.

Finland: While Finland lost territory during the Winter War in the Moscow Peace Treaty, the country is full of pride for the outstanding showing of its military against an overpowering opponent. Finnish ski soldiers march in Helsinki in a parade, complete with their reindeer.

China: In the Battle of Wuyuan, the Chinese 8th War Area continues attacking around Patzepu, Hsishantzu, Hsichiao, and Mankosu.

Holocaust: 1,600 Jewish refugees fleeing the Germans arrive in Palestine after a journey that took six months. UK troops intern them for illegal entry.

The New Zealand (No. 75) Squadron in 1942.

March 1940

March 1, 1940: Soviet Breakthroughs Past Viipuri
March 2, 1940: Soviets Swarm West in Finland
March 3, 1940: Soviets Across Gulf of Viipuri
March 4, 1940: USSR Apologizes to Sweden
March 5, 1940: Katyn Forest Massacre Approved
March 6, 1940: Finns Head to Moscow
March 7, 1940: The Coal Ships Affair
March 8, 1940: Peace Talks Begin in Moscow
March 9, 1940: Soviets Harden Peace Terms
March 10, 1940: Germany Draws Closer to Italy
March 11, 1940: Winter War Peace Terms Finalized
March 12, 1940: War is Over (If You Want It)
March 13, 1940: Winter War Ends
March 14, 1940: Evacuating Karelia
March 15, 1940: The Bletchley Bombe
March 16, 1940: First British Civilian Killed
March 17, 1940: Enter Dr. Todt
March 18, 1940: Mussolini To Join the War
March 19, 1940: Daladier Resigns
March 20, 1940: Soviets Occupy Hango Naval Base
March 21, 1940: Paul Reynaud Leads France
March 22, 1940: Night Fighters Arise!
March 24, 1940: French Consider Alternatives
March 25, 1940: Reynaud Proposes Action
March 26, 1940: C-46 First Flight
March 27, 1940: Himmler Authorizes Auschwitz Construction
March 28, 1940: Allies Ponder Invading Norway
March 29, 1940: Soviets Prefer Neutrality
March 30, 1940: Allied Uncertainty
March 31, 1940: The Tiger Cage

2019