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Norwegian armed forces in exile
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Norwegian armed forces in exile
The Norwegian armed forces in exile (Norwegian: Utefronten, lit. 'Outside Front') were remnants of the armed forces of Norway that continued to fight the Axis powers from Allied countries, such as Britain and Canada, after they had escaped the German conquest of Norway during World War II.
Norway was neutral in World War I and tried to remain neutral in World War II. Neutrality was maintained until the German invasion began on 9 April 1940. Norwegian coastal artillery sufficiently delayed the German capture of Oslo to permit Norway's King Haakon VII, the royal family and the government to flee the capital and eventually reach Tromsø at the top of Norway on 2 May.
The Norwegian Army retreated northwards from the capital towards Lillehammer, where they were joined by two British brigades. It was decided that the Allies should concentrate on the recapture of Narvik, which was entered by the Norwegian 6th Division on 28 May. With the help of British, French and Polish forces, the Norwegian defence initially saw a number of successes. For instance, troops were able to take over most of the French line north of the Rombaksfjord and were poised for a major offensive, scheduled for 8 June.
However, the German attack on the Low Countries and France on 14 May forced the Allies to decide a pullout of Norway two weeks later, as the troops were desperately needed in France. Despite reservations on the part of the Norwegians, an evacuation plan was put in effect that involved the exile of the king and the government to Britain and the evacuation of some 25,000 Norwegian soldiers who eventually served in the Free Norwegian forces overseas, which would be commanded by General Carl Gustav Fleischer. King Haakon, Crown Prince Olav, the Norwegian government and some 400 additional civilians were evacuated to Britain by the heavy British cruiser HMS Devonshire. Thirteen ships, five aircraft and 500 men from the Royal Norwegian Navy followed. The evacuation also involved a British battalion stationed at Dombås.
General Ruge stayed, to supervise an orderly withdrawal and successfully demobilise the back areas before the Germans found out what was going on. On 10 June, Ruge signed the treaty of capitulation for the Norwegian Army. The Germans occupied Norway until the German capitulation on 8 May 1945.
Unlike the navy and air force, the army was not able to easily escape, and almost all remained in Norway after the German invasion. Some of these men would form part of the Norwegian resistance forces during the rest of the war until Norway regained freedom in May 1945.
Norwegian soldiers in the United Kingdom formed units including the Norwegian Independent Company 1, and 5 Troop of the No. 10 (Inter-Allied) Commando. During the years in exile in Britain the bulk of the Norwegian Army consisted of a brigade in Dumfries, and smaller units stationed in Iceland, Jan Mayen, Svalbard and South Georgia. Some units were sent to take part in the liberation of Finnmark.
The navy was the largest of the three Norwegian armed services that had evacuated to Britain. A new naval headquarters was established in London in June 1940, and with the approval and support of the British government and navy, the Norwegian navy set to work repairing and re-equipping their ships, with the goal of remaining an effective force of resistance against Germany.
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Norwegian armed forces in exile
The Norwegian armed forces in exile (Norwegian: Utefronten, lit. 'Outside Front') were remnants of the armed forces of Norway that continued to fight the Axis powers from Allied countries, such as Britain and Canada, after they had escaped the German conquest of Norway during World War II.
Norway was neutral in World War I and tried to remain neutral in World War II. Neutrality was maintained until the German invasion began on 9 April 1940. Norwegian coastal artillery sufficiently delayed the German capture of Oslo to permit Norway's King Haakon VII, the royal family and the government to flee the capital and eventually reach Tromsø at the top of Norway on 2 May.
The Norwegian Army retreated northwards from the capital towards Lillehammer, where they were joined by two British brigades. It was decided that the Allies should concentrate on the recapture of Narvik, which was entered by the Norwegian 6th Division on 28 May. With the help of British, French and Polish forces, the Norwegian defence initially saw a number of successes. For instance, troops were able to take over most of the French line north of the Rombaksfjord and were poised for a major offensive, scheduled for 8 June.
However, the German attack on the Low Countries and France on 14 May forced the Allies to decide a pullout of Norway two weeks later, as the troops were desperately needed in France. Despite reservations on the part of the Norwegians, an evacuation plan was put in effect that involved the exile of the king and the government to Britain and the evacuation of some 25,000 Norwegian soldiers who eventually served in the Free Norwegian forces overseas, which would be commanded by General Carl Gustav Fleischer. King Haakon, Crown Prince Olav, the Norwegian government and some 400 additional civilians were evacuated to Britain by the heavy British cruiser HMS Devonshire. Thirteen ships, five aircraft and 500 men from the Royal Norwegian Navy followed. The evacuation also involved a British battalion stationed at Dombås.
General Ruge stayed, to supervise an orderly withdrawal and successfully demobilise the back areas before the Germans found out what was going on. On 10 June, Ruge signed the treaty of capitulation for the Norwegian Army. The Germans occupied Norway until the German capitulation on 8 May 1945.
Unlike the navy and air force, the army was not able to easily escape, and almost all remained in Norway after the German invasion. Some of these men would form part of the Norwegian resistance forces during the rest of the war until Norway regained freedom in May 1945.
Norwegian soldiers in the United Kingdom formed units including the Norwegian Independent Company 1, and 5 Troop of the No. 10 (Inter-Allied) Commando. During the years in exile in Britain the bulk of the Norwegian Army consisted of a brigade in Dumfries, and smaller units stationed in Iceland, Jan Mayen, Svalbard and South Georgia. Some units were sent to take part in the liberation of Finnmark.
The navy was the largest of the three Norwegian armed services that had evacuated to Britain. A new naval headquarters was established in London in June 1940, and with the approval and support of the British government and navy, the Norwegian navy set to work repairing and re-equipping their ships, with the goal of remaining an effective force of resistance against Germany.
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