Showing posts with label Stavanger. Show all posts

Thursday, May 26, 2016

April 23, 1940: British Retreating in Norway

Tuesday 23 April 1940

23 April 1940 worldwartwo.filminspector.com BEF General Georges

French General Georges and Lord Gort inspect a BEF 8-inch Mk VIII howitzer at Bethune, France, 23 April 1940. Most likely that is the 1st Heavy Regiment, Royal Artillery.

Norway: The Allied Supreme War Council continues meeting in Paris on 23 April 1940. They focus on capturing Trondheim, when British troops are retreating on two separate Norwegian fronts. The British are being cagey about Operation Hammer, the direct attack on Trondheim, which they know is a dead letter but the French still think has a chance to succeed.

Norway Army Operations: In the evening, the British 15th Brigade arrives at Molde and Andalsnes. Its mission is to support the 148th Brigade, which is under heavy pressure to the south.

At Tretten Gorge on the road north from Lillehammer, the German 196th Infantry Division continues attacking the British 148th Infantry Brigade, inflicting heavy casualties. German artillery is active all morning. The British are trying desperately to hold the river road, but the German panzers are decisive. Three of them break through the British line at 13:00. Mountain troops have scaled the 2165-foot cliff to bypass the British river road defenses. They circle around at at 18:00 begin attacking the British line from the rear.

The British can't hold out and withdraw from Tretten Gorge at 19:00, bombed and strafed on the narrow river road in the Gudbrandsal. Casualties are immense: the British have lost 705 killed, wounded and captured. Only 309 remain fighting. At one point, they take refuge in a railway tunnel and a British officer comments: "700 of us and a bloody train - we're almost suffocating. "We've been stuck here all day with Germans bombing us. One direct hit on the tunnel and we're done for. The train has to keep up steam - choking."

Northeast of Trondheim, the British 146th Infantry Brigade is falling back from Steinkjer under fierce Germans pressure toward its base at Namsos. So far, General de Wiart's troops have lost 19 dead, 42 wounded and 96 missing.

At Hegra Fortress, the Germans continue standing back and lobbing occasional mortar shells at the fort, with Luftwaffe attacks from the nearby airport. Today a few shells destroy one of the fortress' two 7.5 cm positional guns, one of the fortress' command towers and the waterline. The defenders are losing effective ways to strike back.

The Germans are spreading out from Stavanger. At Ogna southeast of Stavanger, the Germans capture the vital bridge, trapping hundreds of troops. The Germans in the area accept the surrender of 1,700 Norwegian troops of the Norwegian 8th Infantry Regiment.

The Polish Podhale Brigade (Chasseurs du Nord) begins moving to Norway.

23 April 1940 worldwartwo.filminspector.com BEF General Georges Lord Gort

General Georges of the French Army and Lord Gort inspect the Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers at Bethune, France, 23 April 1940.

European Air Operations: The Luftwaffe raided the British Home Fleet at Scapa Flow during the night, causing little damage.

The Luftwaffe attacks the British positions at Andalsnes.

The RAF raided Fornebu and Kjeller airports at Oslo, and also Aalborg in northern Denmark for the third night.

The Luftwaffe sent a sweep of Bf 109s over Luxembourg which was met by Hurricanes. No losses on either side.

Battle of the Atlantic: British ship Lolworth hits a mine and sinks in the North Sea.

Kriegsmarine minesweeper M-1302 hits a mine and sinks.

Royal Navy submarine Tetrarch sinks Kriegsmarine vessel UJ-B.

The RAF sends 26 planes on a minelaying operation during the night.

Convoy SL 29 departs from Freetown.

British minesweeping trawler HMS Mangrove (A.E. Johnson) is commissioned.

BEF: The British 46th Infantry Division moves to France.

US/Canadian Relations: President Roosevelt meets with Canadian Prime Minister Mackenzie King in Warm Springs, Georgia.

British Government: Chancellor of the Exchequer John Simon announces a new war budget (classified, of course) which means higher taxes:

income tax raised to 7s 6d per £;
higher duties imposed on tobacco and matches, beer and spirits;
higher postal fees;
higher telegraph and telephone rates;
new purchase tax on the way.

The objective is to raise an additional £2bn for the war, an unheard-of figure.

Sir Stafford Cripps returns to London after his visits to the USSR, India, and China.

Australia: Coal miners have been on strike since early March, and Prime Minister Menzies reminds them that there's a war on. He states that he may resort to force to reopen the mines.

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

Tuesday, May 24, 2016

April 17, 1940: Trondheim the Target

Wednesday 17 April 1940

17 April 1940 worldwartwo.filminspector.com LA Times news clipping Denmark

Los Angeles Times, 17 April 1940.

Norway: The Wehrmacht is making deliberate moves to occupy Norway on 17 April 1940, but their hold remains precarious. The British War Cabinet is slowly formulating a strategy that centers on Trondheim. They authorize a direct landing after the naval bombardment of shore batteries in Operation Hammer. Operation Sickle is the land attack following the bombardment. The direct land attacks at Trondheim will be accompanied by attacks from the north (Namsos) and south (Andalsnes). General Hotblack is put in command, but in the evening suffers a stroke.

Norway Army Operations: At Oslo, the Germans have broken out and captured the fort of Kongsvinger. This creates a route to Sweden in the east. The Norwegian defenders are under-armed and many are killed. The Germans now have advanced across the country East/West at both Oslo and at Trondheim.

The 3rd Mountain Division troops under General Dietl at Narvik are in increasing jeopardy, with the British landing troops both to the north and south. They receive an order: "hold out as long as possible."

At Dombås Oblt. Schmidt begins the day on the move. He and his men have captured three heavy machine guns from the Norwegian companies that attacked him on the 16th. The 60-odd men move in a column, armed to the teeth. At the front are soldiers with hand grenades, followed by captured trucks carrying the wounded and POWs. Schmidt himself is badly wounded but remains in command.

The Dombås column runs into a Norwegian roadblock at Landheim bridge. The 25 Norwegians, though, are no match for the desperate Fallschirmjäger troops and quickly withdraw to Dovre Church. The Germans block the road at Einbugga road bridge, between Toftemo and Dovre to the south.

The Fallschirmjäger force winds up at the North and South Lindse Farm just south of Dombås. They are in control of the barn, which is made of stone and quite formidable. The farmstead is on a hillside and overlooks both the main road (700 m (770 yds) away) and the vital rail line (250 m (270 yds) away). Oblt. Schmidt, badly wounded, remains in command and is carried to the barn on a door by Norwegian POWs. The Germans have taken 15 military personnel and 40 civilians as prisoners, which they keep at South Lindse.

The men, while obviously desperate and under attack, do not unduly harass the Ulateig family that owns the farm. Egils Ulateig, the grandfather of the farm, disregards a command not to enter the barn, the heart of the defense, stepping over a barricade to feed the cows, sheep, and goats. The Germans smile and let him go, saying "Du bist ein gute mensch."

At Hegra fortress, the German bombardment begins at 07:00, both from howitzers sited at Avelsgaard and from Luftwaffe raids. At 09:00, an infantry assault goes in from the northeast. There are machine gun nests a mere 150 m (160 yards) from the fortress walls on the north. The Norwegians are in trenches behind barbed wire, and there the attack falters and falls back. Luftwaffe bombers resume their assault for the remainder of the day, knocking out power and the phone lines.

At Stavanger-Sola, the Luftwaffe has airlifted in units of the 355th Infantry Regiment. They begin spreading out to the south and east.

Norway Naval Operations: Late in the day, British 148th Infantry Brigade troops land at Andalsnes. This is part of Operation Sickle, which is the land invasion of Trondheim after the naval bombardment. Trondheim is 130 miles away, a long trek in the Norwegian winter. They have no skis (assuming the men, largely from London, even know how to ski, which is doubtful) and few vehicles.

British cruiser HMS Suffolk and its accompanying naval force join in the attacks on Stavanger-Sola airfield, blasting away at it for 80 minutes. It also bombards the nearby seaplane base, causing heavy damage. The Germans also shoot down the Suffolk's Walrus seaplane. The bombardment destroys four German aircraft but otherwise accomplishes little.

Norway Air Operations: The RAF sends bombers to attack Trondheim-Vaernes airfield. It also sends a dozen bombers to attack Stavanger-Sola during the day. Overnight, the RAF sends 20 aircraft to attack Stavanger, Trondheim, Bergen, and Oslo.

Junkers Ju 88 bombers seek out the HMS Suffolks after it bombards the Stavanger airfield. They bomb it for 7 hours and make two hits. The Ju 88s inflict heavy damage and the Suffolk barely makes it back to Scapa Flow the next morning.

Battle of the Atlantic: U-13 (Max-Martin Schulte) torpedoes and sinks 4,935-ton British freighter Swainby 25 miles north of Muckle Flugga, Shetlands at 17:33. All 38 onboard survive.

The Admiralty announces that it has laid a protective minefield across the Firth of Clyde. It sends 33 aircraft to lay mines off the Danish coast during the night.

The Luftwaffe lays mines along the British coast.

Convoy OA 131 departs from Southend, Convoy OB 131 departs from Liverpool, Convoy SL 28F departs from Freetown.

The British commission minesweeping trawler HMS Birch (Lt. Commander Frederick G. Tidswell).

US/Japanese Relations: Following statements by Japanese Foreign Minister Arita Hachiro on April 15, 1940, about the effects of a European war in the Pacific region, US Secretary of State Cordell Hull states:

“Any change in the status of the Netherlands Indies would directly affect the interests of many countries. The Netherlands Indies are very important in the international relationships of the whole Pacific Ocean. . . . They produce considerable portions of the world's supplies of important essential commodities such as rubber, tin, quinine, copra, et cetera. Many countries, including the United States, depend substantially upon them for some of these commodities. Intervention in the domestic affairs of the Netherlands Indies or any alteration of their status quo by other than peaceful processes would be prejudicial to the cause of stability, peace, and security not only in the region of the Netherlands Indies but in the entire Pacific area.”

Soviet/Romanian Relations: The USSR alleges 15 instances of Romanian violation of its sovereignty.

Italy: Italy declares the port of Bari in the Adriatic closed to non-authorized personnel.

A Dornier Do-17 dropping bombs at Namsos, April 1940.

April 1940

Sunday, May 22, 2016

April 11, 1940: Britain Takes the Faroes

Thursday 11 April 1940

11 April 1940 worldwartwo.filminspector.com Neubaufahrzeuge

Three Neubaufahrzeuge experimental tanks arriving in Oslo Harbour, April 1940. They are the only three in the Wehrmacht and the only three that will ever be built. They are used in battle in Norway with minimal effect.

Operation Weserubung: General Otto Ruge replaces Major-General Laake as Commander-in-chief of the Norwegian armed forces on 11 April 1940. Laake resigned after being accused of being a defeatist and failing to quickly act against the invasion (the mobilization orders after the German invasion were sent by mail). He establishes his headquarters at Lillehammer and orders the immediate mobilization of all forces. He also orders the destruction of infrastructure around Oslo - roads, bridges, telephone equipment - to delay the Germans.

The Norwegian government has settled in at Elverum for the time being. In a proclamation, Norwegian Premier Nygaardsvold reaffirms the country's determination to resist the German invasion.

German strategy is to link up their forces from Oslo to Trondheim. This is made possible by long mountain defiles that run the length of that section of the country. German 196th Division (General Richard Pellengahr) is to move north from Oslo up the Gudbrandsdal and Østerdal valleys, using air support to clear the way in an early form of Blitzkrieg.

The German 163rd Division and 196th Infantry Division attack the Norwegian 1st Infantry Division around Oslo. More Kriegsmarine transports arrive there carrying troops.

Northwest of Kristiansand, the German 310th Infantry Regiment moves inland and occupies Hægeland.

HMS Furious launches air attacks against shipping in Trondheimsfjord.

Late in the day at Narvik, Kriegsmarine destroyers SMS Erich Koellner (Z13) and SMS Wolfgang Zenker (Z9) both run aground. The Zenker can still move at 20 knots, but the Koellner is in bad shape and the Germans decide to convert it into a stationary defensive battery at the Tårstad, on the north shore of the fjord west of Narvik.

The British are focused on Narvik, which is so isolated in northern Norway that it may as well be an island. Basically, the entire battle in Norway is because of that one port, and whoever controls it basically wins. The British 146th Territorial Brigade re-embarks on transports and ships out of the Clyde, destination: Narvik.

First Lord of the Admiralty Winston Churchill announces to the House of Commons that the Royal Navy is occupying the Faroe Islands. They are a Danish possession, which cannot be ceded to German control:

We shall shield the Faroe Islands from all the severities of war and establish ourselves there conveniently by sea and air until the moment comes when they will be handed back to the Crown and people of a Denmark liberated from the foul thraldom in which they have been plunged by the German aggression.

While certainly unintentional, Churchill's justification sounds uncannily like the German offer of "protection" to Norway and Denmark. Previously, Iceland essentially seceded from Denmark to avoid German domination.

European Air Operations: The RAF sends 6 bombers to attack Stavanger-Sola airfield. This is the first daylight attack by bomber command on a continental target. One of the bombers is lost.

RAF Coastal Command shoots down a Dornier flying boat in the North Sea.

RAF Bomber Command attacks German shipping around Norway during the night without causing damage.

Two Luftwaffe reconnaissance planes - a Heinkel and a Dornier - are shot down over the western front.

The British Air Ministry issues a report stating that 19 Luftwaffe planes had been shot down in the past four days, to 6 RAF losses.

11 April 1940 worldwartwo.filminspector.com German Panzerkampfwagen

Hauptmann Herbert Stemmer in front of a light PzKpfw in Norway April 1940. Stemmer passed away in 1974.

Battle of the Atlantic: The Royal Navy submarine fleet is perfectly positioned around Norway and has plenty of targets, thanks to Admiral Horton and his hunch that something was about to happen there.

The Lützow is towed home after an attack by HMS Spearfish during the night in the Kattegat. While Spearfish fires 6 torpedoes and only one hit, that one torpedo nearly rips off her stern. In fact, it is a lucky break for the Kriegsmarine: Spearfish assumed there was an escort that would attack it, but the cruiser, in fact, was traveling without an escort.

British submarine HMS Triad sinks German troop transport Ionia.

British submarine HMS Sealion sinks German ship, August Leonhardt.

Kriegsmarine minelayers set mines in the Skagerrak.

Western Front: The British 42nd Infantry Division embarks for France.

Sweden: Stockholm radio reports that the country has mined its western coast.

Belgium: The country cancels all military leaves - again.

Soviet Union: General Pavel Batov becomes Deputy Commander in Chief of the Transcaucasus Military District.

Albania: Italy clamps down on civil disobedience, outlawing strikes, protests, rallies and the like.

Australia: General Thomas Blamey assumes command of the Australian I Corps.

US Navy: Rear Admiral Claude C. Bloch replaces Rear Admiral Orin G. Murfin as Commandant Fourteenth Naval District and Navy Yard Pearl Harbor, Territory of Hawaii.

China: With the Chinese Winter Offensive over, the Japanese turn to weeding out communist partisans in the central Hebei, Anhui, and Shanghai sectors.

Norwegian General Otto Ruge.

April 1940

April 9, 1940: Invasion of Norway

Tuesday 9 April 1940

9 April 1940 worldwartwo.filminspector.com Blucher Oslo

Kriegsmarine cruiser Blucher after the engagement at the Oscarsborg Narrows.

Among all the truly pivotal moments of World War II, 9 April 1940 stands out as one of the most significant but least recognized.

Prior to the invasion of Norway and Denmark, there had been secret peace talks conducted through the Vatican. While little known, and contingent upon removal of Adolf Hitler from power, they may have borne fruit. After the invasion, however, those talks ended. Peace based on the status quo ante became impossible.

Operation Weserubung was the decisive moment in the chain of events which led to the Soviet conquest of Berlin. The Phony War may have died a quiet death if neither side had launched a major attack on the other. After this, each link in the chain also could have been broken, but it became progressively harder as each side became hardened in its position. Norway and Denmark also were the last two virtually untouched portions of the Nazi Reich when the war ended.

Operation Weserubung: The Germans land in Norway and Denmark. It is River Weser Day in Germany, and thus an appropriate date for a River Weser Exercise. At 05:20, the Germans deliver a diplomatic memorandum to each government stating that they now will be under the Reich's protection for the duration.

For the time being, the existing government of Denmark will be permitted to remain in power. Norwegian Foreign Affairs Minister Halvdan Koht, however, responds with the defiant words "Vi gir oss ikke frivillig, kampen er allerede i gang" ("We will not submit voluntarily; the struggle is already underway"). The Norwegian government does not capitulate like Denmark and instead heads for the mountains in the north. They somewhat awkwardly order full military mobilization for 11 April 1940. This is done by post, so it takes a minimum of two days.

9 April 1940 worldwartwo.filminspector.com Oslo citizens

Norwegians fleeing during the invasion. PHOTO: SCANPIX / SCANPIX

Weserübung Nord (Norway): German transports which have been collecting offshore land at Oslo, Kristiansand, Stavanger, Bergen, Trondheim and Narvik.

Outside Oslo, German Bf-10 fighters land at Fornebu Airfield, followed by Ju-52 transports carrying a battalion of 324th Infantry Regiment of German 163rd Infantry Division. They are quickly followed by units of 324th Infantry Regiment of German 163rd Infantry Division and two companies of 1st Fallschirmjaeger Regiments. The German embassy at Oslo sends a welcoming party to the waterfront.

The battle at Oscarsborg Fortress downstream from Oslo is known as the Battle of Drøbak Sound. It begins at 04:21 when the Kriegsmarine force approaches, and at first in the darkness, the Norwegians don't know who it is or whether they should fire. Their commander, Col. Eriksen, yells: "Either I will be decorated, or I will be court-martialed. Fire!" The fortress' guns include 19th Century cannon "Moses" and "Aaron," but they are as lethal as modern cannon.

Here, at the Oscarsborg Narrows in the Oslo Fjord, the coastal batteries manned by elderly reservists sink the Kriegsmarine cruiser, Blücher, in Oslo Fjord (830 perish, 1370 swim ashore) using guns and fixed torpedo mounts.

This action enables the Norwegian government and its gold reserves to escape - they leave at 08:30. The brand new cruiser, however, is a significant loss. Torpedo boat Albatros also is damaged. Elements of 324th Infantry Regiment of German 163rd Infantry Division land outside Oslo, led by Kriegsmarine heavy cruiser Lutzow.

Airborne troops capture Fornebu Airport (Oslo) and Stavanger-Sola airfield. This gives Luftwaffe protection over the most vulnerable sectors of the invasion. Battalions of the 193rd Infantry Regiment of the German 69th Infantry Division are airlifted into Sola and Stavanger.

At Narvik, the most strategic location in Norway because it is where the Swedish iron ore is shipped, German destroyers Wilhelm Heidkamp and Bernd von Arnim elude heavy British patrols due to the weather and sheer luck. They burst into Narvik Fjord, sink Norwegian coastal protection ships Eidsvold and Norge, and land their troops.

At Bergen, Kvarven Fort’s batteries damage cruiser Königsberg and minelayer Bremse.

At Kristiansand, morning fog delays the landing. Stavanger airport is taken despite a Norwegian destroyer sinking a ship with the airborne force's equipment. At Bergen, cruiser Konigsberg is damaged by a coastal battery, but the troops get ashore. The British react quickly and send a destroyer force to retake the city.

Trondheim falls without a shot after the German ships sail past the coast defense batteries pretending to be British. Detachments of soldiers land at Arendal and Egersund and capture the cable stations there.

Norwegian coastal artillery sinks German cargo liner Seattle.

Norwegians scuttle destroyer Tor at Fredrikstad, but it is in a location where the Germans can recover it.

King Haakon and Prime Minister Nygaardsvold elude German capture after the Norwegian garrison is betrayed by Colonel Sundio.

The Norwegian gold reserve leaves Oslo in the morning. It is in 818 cases weighing 40 kilos each, 685 cases weighing 25 cases each, and 39 kegs weighing 80 kilos each. The shipment totals 53 tonnes, of which the gold itself weighs 48.8 tonnes.

Vidkun Quisling using Oslo Radio proclaims himself Prime Minister, tells Norwegians to cease resistance, and, quite accurately (but perhaps leaving out a word or two) states: "I shall be called the big traitor." He is completely ignored.

9 April 1940 worldwartwo.filminspector.com Junkers Ju 52 transports Copenhagen

Junkers Ju 52 transport aircraft flying over Copenhagen on the morning of 9 April 1940.

Weserübung Sud (Denmark): Rather than having to rely completely on airborne troops and naval transport in Denmark, the operation involves motorized troops. German 170th Infantry Division and 11th Motorized Brigade drive across the border, supported by tanks.

Some Danish islands are occupied. Paratroopers drop at Vordingborg on Zealand and capture Storstrom bridge. Elements of German 198th Infantry Division land on Funen Island, securing the bridge from Jutland and the ferry crossing to Zealand

A battalion of German 308th Infantry Regiment lands by ship in Copenhagen. They simply sail up to the Copenhagen waterfront and disembark. The only resistance in Copenhagen is one policeman with a pistol. The Danish King can hear scattered gunfire as he meets with his ministers and General Pryor.

German paratroopers drop and capture Alborg airfield in northern Jutland.

German troops land by ship at Tyboron and Esbjerg.

9 April 1940 worldwartwo.filminspector.com Danish soldiers

Danish soldiers in position on the outskirts of Aabenraa in the morning of April 9, 1940. Photo: Th. Chris thesis.

The Nazis attack Denmark with 2 divisions, a brigade group and a battalion of airborne troops all under the command of General Kaupitsch. There is virtually no resistance, the airborne troops simply land at the airports and take over. They also seize the key Jutland-Funen Bridge. There are scattered Danish resistance attempts in South Jutland, and the Royal Guard resists briefly at Amalienborg Palace, Copenhagen.

Luftwaffe Bf 110 fighters attack Vaerlose Airfield, the Danish Air Force headquarters. One Danish fighter is shot down. Luftwaffe He 111 bombers drop leaflets over Copenhagen and instruct residents what to do. The Danish Navy remains at anchor.

Danish Prime Minister Thorvald Stauning orders cessation of hostilities twelve hours after the start of the invasion. Even by then, however, the situation is completely stabilized and the country pacified. King Christian is nonplussed: "General, may I tell you something? As 1 soldier to another? You Germans have done the incredible again- magnificent work!" General Himer, the German captor of the city, notes, however, that the king is "inwardly shattered."

Overall, despite more shipping losses than the Kriegsmarine would like, Operation Weserübung is a resounding success on its first day.

Battle of the Atlantic: The British Home Fleet, having headed into the Atlantic based upon a false assumption that the Kriegsmarine was headed there, turns and heads toward Bergen. By the time it approaches at 14:00, the Luftwaffe is operating at airfields within Norway. Attacks by 47 Junkers Ju 88s and 41 Heinkel He 111s damage the Battleship Rodney (a 500 kg bomb hits but does not explode), three cruisers, and sink the destroyer HMS Gurkha (15 perish). Four of the Ju 88s are shot down.

The Germans capture numerous Norwegian vessels. These include:

coast defense ship Harald Haarfagre captured by German forces at Horten
coast defense ship Tordenskjold captured by German forces at Horten
torpedo boat Balder captured by German forces at Horten
minelayer Olav Tryggvason captured by German forces at Horten
torpedo boat Odin captured by German forces at Marvika
torpedo boat Gyller captured by German forces at Marvika
submarine B-5

Battlecruisers HMS Renown and Gneisenau exchange fire southwest of Narvik; both are slightly damaged. Gneisenau is hit three times, Renown twice. This is known as the Action off Lofoten and is inconclusive, but the direction that the Kriegsmarine ships take to escape - to the west - reinforces the Admiralty's earlier mistaken impression that the main thrust of the operation is a breakout to the Atlantic.

The Norwegians scuttle torpedo boat Tor off Frederikstad.

At 19:57, British submarine HMS Truant torpedoes and damages light cruiser Karlsruhe in the Skagerrak as it is returning from Kristiansand. German E-boats finish it off at 21:50 to avoid capture.

British submarine HMS Thistle fires four torpedoes at U-4 as it approaches Stavanger, but misses with all four.

British submarine HMS Sunfish sinks German cargo Amasis in the Skagerrak.

French submarine Sybille departs from Harwich to patrol west of Denmark.

Convoy OA 126 departs from Southend, Convoy OB 126 departs from Liverpool.

Allied Supreme War Council: Daladier, General Gamelin, and Admiral Darlan fly to London for consultations. Some of what they discuss is information they learn from the early edition of the New York Times.

British Military: The War Cabinet decides to occupy the Faeroe Islands and offer "assistance" to Iceland.

US Military: The Joint Planning Committee issues a general assessment of the world situation - which, due to events in Scandinavia, is immediately outdated. "Rainbow plans" which designate potential enemies by colors are submitted which envision multiple attacks from several different adversaries simultaneously.

Sweden: The German ambassador informs the Swedish government that it will not be invaded. However, it must remain neutral, maintain communications systems linking Norway and Germany, and must continue delivering iron ore to the Reich.

British Homefront: There are 212,000 children in London, and the government is trying to get them to safer locales. Only 20% of parents respond to that request, and authorities blame "parental apathy."

American Homefront: A Gallup survey finds that 84% of Americans want the Allies to win, 2% want the Germans to win, and only 23% actually want to fight the war.

German troops entering Copenhagen.

World War Two Daily

Pages

Thursday, May 26, 2016

April 23, 1940: British Retreating in Norway

Tuesday 23 April 1940

April 1940

Tuesday, May 24, 2016

April 17, 1940: Trondheim the Target

Wednesday 17 April 1940

April 1940

Sunday, May 22, 2016

April 11, 1940: Britain Takes the Faroes

Thursday 11 April 1940

April 1940

April 9, 1940: Invasion of Norway

Tuesday 9 April 1940

April 1940