Norwegian Army 1940

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Slavomir
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Norwegian Army 1940 numbers

#16

Post by Slavomir » 22 Jan 2008, 00:30

Welcome again, gentlemen

I have another difficulty in reading the strenghts of Norwegian Army and Armed Forces in total.

Derry gives 120,000 soldiers in all Armed Forces without breaking it into services/branches. In Polish publications I have found that Army was to have 50,000 soldiers. Unfortunately without giving numbers for Navy.

Can anyone help me here, please? What were the planned numbers of Norwegian Armed Forces? What was the Army share here?

Thank you in advance

Slavomir

Gaijinaho
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#17

Post by Gaijinaho » 24 Jan 2008, 02:09

A very good website that has loads of information is http://www.orbat.com/site/ww2/drleo/000 ... 000oob.htm

The Norwegian Navy had 5200 officers and men, including those of its Air Service. The Norwegian Air force had 940 officers and men. This information is from Andrew Mollo's "The Armed Forces of World War II", 1981, Orbis Publishing, London England. No figure was given on total numbers for the Army.
Later, Gaijinaho


Gaijinaho
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#18

Post by Gaijinaho » 24 Jan 2008, 02:10

A very good website that has loads of information is http://www.orbat.com/site/ww2/drleo/000 ... 000oob.htm

The Norwegian Navy had 5200 officers and men, including those of its Air Service. The Norwegian Air force had 940 officers and men. This information is from Andrew Mollo's "The Armed Forces of World War II", 1981, Orbis Publishing, London England. No figure was given on total numbers for the Army.
Later, Bill

Slavomir
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#19

Post by Slavomir » 24 Jan 2008, 18:54

In other book about Norwegian Army I have found that during peacetime there were 19 700 soldiers (including 1700 oficers, 2000 NCOs) and there is again the number 50 000 after mobilization :?

Source: T. Konecki "Skandynawia w drugiej wojnie swiatowej", Warszawa 2003

Thanks for the website.

Slavomir

Kelvin
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Re: Norwegian Army 1940

#20

Post by Kelvin » 09 Jun 2019, 14:15

Did all six Norwegian divisions were captured by German or all evacuated by Royal Navy. Norwegian Merchant fleet had over 1,000 ship, also enough to carry all troops to England. Anyone know that ? Thank

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jwsleser
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Re: Norwegian Army 1940

#21

Post by jwsleser » 10 Jun 2019, 21:44

No major Norwegian army formations were evacuated. Note that all six brigades were not fully mobilized and parts of some were overrun while mobilizing. The units east of Oslo were trapped after the German offensive and had no way out. You aren't talking about a large number of troops. Norwegian and Allied resistance lasted long enough that there wasn't much left of the army to evacuate if it was so decided.

Many of the units had either surrendered/been captured or were ordered disbanded once further effective resistance was deemed unlikely. These men needed to return home and care for their families, businesses and farms.

Any ports suitable for evacuation were already under German control/aerial attacks and many merchant ships in Norwegian waters had already been lost. Those 1k of ships were not all in Norwegian waters but spread around the world.

Pista! Jeff
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Kelvin
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Re: Norwegian Army 1940

#22

Post by Kelvin » 25 Jun 2019, 12:06

Hi, Jeff, thank for your Reply. Both Norwegian and Danish had known the German attack from Dutch Military Attache stationed in Dutch embassy at Berlin three days before attack. I think the Royal Navy should know that. Given naval superiorty of the Royal Navy, British not doing well to Prevent German from Landing on Norway.
I found that German navy on 09th April 1940 only had 11 Cruisers and 20 destroyers, 2 new battleships and one pre-Dreadnought battleship.The Royal Navy had 70 Cruisers, 200 destroyers, 15 battleships/battlecruisers and 7 carriers. It was obvious British fault in this war.

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Polar bear
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Re: Norwegian Army 1940

#23

Post by Polar bear » 26 Jun 2019, 16:52

Kelvin wrote:
25 Jun 2019, 12:06
I found that German navy on 09th April 1940 only had 11 Cruisers ...
Less.
If you count the two pocket-battleships LÜTZOW and ADMIRAL SCHEER as heavy cruisers (as they were re-classified), the German navy had 4 heavy and 6 light cruisers, which sums up to 10.
... and to be honest, you have to deduct ADMIRAL SCHEER (in extensive re-building) and the light cruisers NÜRNBERG and LEIPZIG as the had been extensively damaged in December 1939 by the British sub SALMON.

Thus : 7

greetings, the pb
Peace hath her victories no less renowned than War
(John Milton, the poet, in a letter to the Lord General Cromwell, May 1652)

Kelvin
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Re: Norwegian Army 1940

#24

Post by Kelvin » 27 Jun 2019, 06:50

Hi, PB, I made a mistake in my calculation: My heavy cruiser list includes Admiral Hipper, Blucher, and two reclassified cruiser Admiral Scheer and Lutzow. I mistakenly put Prinz Eugen in list as that ship not yet in service in April 1940.

My light cruiser list should be correct : it is Karlsruhe, Konigsberg, Koln, Emdan, Nurnberg and Leipzig.

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yantaylor
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Re: Norwegian Army 1940

#25

Post by yantaylor » 11 Aug 2019, 21:08

Hi everyone.

I am working on the Norwegian army April 1940 and need some help with the artillery, mainly the battery commanders.

Can anyone give me the commanders of any of these units plaese;

FELTARTILLERIREGIMENT NR 1
Feltartilleri Batteri nr 1-----commander
Feltartilleri Batteri nr 2-----commander
Landvernet batteri Feltartilleriregiment nr 1-----commander
Skolebatteri Feltartilleriregiment nr 1-----commander
FELTARTILLERIREGIMENT NR 2
Feltartilleri Batteri nr 1-----commander
Feltartilleri Batteri nr 2-----commander
Landvernet batteri Feltartilleriregiment nr 1-----commander
Skolebatteri Feltartilleriregiment nr 1-----commander
FELTARTILLERIBATALJON NR 3
Feltartilleri Batteri nr 1-----commander
Feltartilleri Batteri nr 2-----commander
Landvernet Batteri Feltartilleriregiment nr 3

BERGARTILLERIBATALJON NR 1
Bergartilleri Batteri nr 1---------commander
Bergartilleri Batteri nr 2---------commander
Bergartilleri Batteri nr 3---------commander
Øvelsesavdeling Bergartilleribataljon nr 1

BERGARTILLERI BATALJON NR 2
Bergartilleri Batteri nr 4---------commander
Bergartilleri Batteri nr 5---------commander
Bergartilleri Batteri nr 6---------commander
Landvernet Bergartilleri batteri nr 2---------commander
Øvelsesavdeling Bergartilleribataljon nr 2---------commander

BERGARTILLERIBATALJON NR 3
Bergartilleri Batteri nr 7 -----commander
Bergartilleri Batteri nr 8 -----commander
Øvelsesavdeling Bergartilleribataljon nr 3 ---------commander

I know that it is a big ask as some of these units were not even mobilised, but any help would be great.

Thanks
Yan

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Re: Norwegian Army 1940

#26

Post by Carl Schwamberger » 15 Aug 2019, 20:51

Recommendations where to find locations of Norwegian airfields, including civilian and lesser auxiliaries?

Thanks

John T
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Re: Norwegian Army 1940

#27

Post by John T » 18 Aug 2019, 21:31

Carl Schwamberger wrote:
15 Aug 2019, 20:51
Recommendations where to find locations of Norwegian airfields, including civilian and lesser auxiliaries?

Thanks
From Norsk forsvarshistorie bind 3.
by Hobson, Kristensen

Militär landflystasjon - Full time Military Airfield
Civil landflygstasjon - Full time Civilian Airfield
Militär Sjoflystasjon - Full time Military Naval aviation base (floatplanes)
Mellanlandningsplass - Refueling stop over
Feltflygplass - forward operating base
Attachments
Försvarshist3.jpg

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jwsleser
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Re: Norwegian Army 1940

#28

Post by jwsleser » 05 Mar 2024, 19:20

I realize that this is a oldish post, but I am currently working through the Norwegian official histories of the war (Krigen i Norge 1940). A literature search turned up this thread, so some comments.

RE: Artillery batteries and commanders. This seemingly simple task is complicated by the structure of the Norwegian officials. The twelve army and four navy volumes (covering 1940) are organized by regions/areas rather than by topic/theme. I quickly understood that I needed more than a basic knowledge of Norwegian geography to know which volumes covered what.

This also meant that accounts of units can start in one volume and then be dropped to be picked-up in another volume, For example:
The Norwegian troops who fought in the areas to be addressed here were units of Akershus Infantry Regiment No. 4, the Skoleeskadronen (which had come to Nannestad from Oslo), Artillery Regiment No. 2 and Vestoppland Infantry Regiment No. 6. The formation of the latter regiment and the first operations are dealt with in the volume «Operasjonene på Ringerike-Hadeland», and the regiment's units only appear in this account at a later time. Furthermore, a number of small units were set up at Toten. (Operasjonene på Vestsiden av Mjøsa - Follebu – Gausdal, p.21).
The indexes in the books only list personalities; no units, places, or actions. This makes tracking a unit across the volumes quite challenging. Added to this is that combat involving the coastal defenses are addressed in the naval volumes (Norges Sjøkrig 1940–1945). Army units that fought during those battles are covered in the navy volumes. The army volumes only tells one to read the navy volumes.

Finally the army volumes only discuss the general planned organization of the army, but doesn't provide a detailed listing/organization. Instead the books address the actual mobilization. Since A.R. 3 wasn't mobilized, there are no details beyond the plan that the regiment would have a stabsbatteri, two linjebataljoner (with two batteries each), an øvelsesavdeling, and a landvernsdetasjement (Sør-Trøndelelag go node del av Hedmark, p.18).

This is what I have assembled to date. It is possible that more will be uncovered once I compete my translations of the volumes.

FELTARTILLERIREGIMENT NR 1
Regimentssjef –––––––––––––––––––––––––––– oberst C. Frølich-Hanssen
I/A.R. 1
Bataljonsjef
Feltartilleri Batteri nr 1
Feltartilleri Batteri nr 2
Landvernet batteri Feltartilleriregiment nr 1
Skolebatteri Feltartilleriregiment nr 1
II/A.R. 1
Bataljonsjef ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– major A. Sevaldson (Bk X)
Feltartilleri Batteri nr 3 –––––––––––––––––––– kaptein H. Østbye (Bk X)
Feltartilleri Batteri nr 4 –––––––––––––––––––– kaptein R. A. Graff (Bk X)
Feltartilleri Batteri nr 5 –––––––––––––––––––– kaptein A. Sæhlie (Bk X)

FELTARTILLERIREGIMENT NR 2
Regimentssjef –––––––––––––––––––––––––––– oberst Oswald Nordlie (Bk VIII)
I/A.R. 2
Bataljonsjef ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– major Poul Ringdal (Bk VIII)
Batteri Ringdal (nr. 1) –––––––––––––––––––––– major Poul Ringdal (Bk VIII)
Feltartilleri Batteri nr 2 –––––––––––––––––––– kaptein A.D. Mellby (Bk VIII)
II/A.R. 2
Bataljonsjef ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– kaptein (major) Hans Jahren (Bk VIII)
Batteri Jahren ––––––––––––––––––––––––––– kaptein (major) Hans Jahren (Bk VIII)
BATALJONEN HEGSTAD
Bataljonsjef ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– major Roar Hegstad (Bk IV)
Feltartilleri Batteri nr 1 (formerly Batt. 4/AR.2) kaptein Olaf O. Baarlid (Bk IV)
Feltartilleri Batteri nr 2 (formerly Skolbatteri) – kaptein Harald Jyhne (Bk IV)

FELTARTILLERIBATALJON NR 3
Regimentssjef–––––––––––––––––––––––––––– oberst Oscar Strugstad (Bk V)
I/A.R. 3
Bataljonsjef
Feltartilleri Batteri nr 1
Feltartilleri Batteri nr 2
II/A.R. 3
Bataljonsjef
Feltartilleri Batteri nr 3
Feltartilleri Batteri nr 4
Landvernet Batteri Feltartilleriregiment nr 3

BERGARTILLERIBATALJON NR 1
Bataljonsjef ––––––––––––––––– oberstløytnant Biger Ullern (Bk II)
Bergartilleri Batteri nr 1–––––––– kaptain J. Finborud (Bk II)
Bergartilleri Batteri nr 2
Bergartilleri Batteri nr 3–––––––– kaptain I.S.A. Birkeland (Bk II)
Øvelsesavdeling Bergartilleribataljon nr 1

BERGARTILLERI BATALJON NR 2
Bataljonsjef –––––––––––––––––– oberstløytnant Nils Henningsmoen (Bk IX)
Bergartilleri Batteri nr 4–———— kaptein Eivind Stensvik (Bk IX)
Bergartilleri Batteri nr 5––––––––– major Arne Damm (Bk. II)
løytnant Poul Biørn (Bk IX)
Bergartilleri Batteri nr 6
Landvernet Bergartilleri batteri nr 2
Øvelsesavdeling Bergartilleribataljon nr 2

BERGARTILLERIBATALJON NR 3
Bataljonsjef ––––––––––––––––––––––––– oberstløytnant Aksel Horslien (Bk XII)
Bergartilleri Batteri nr 7 ——–––––––––––– kaptain Paul Holmen (Bk XII)
Bergartilleri Batteri nr 8 ——–––––––––––– kaptain Ottar Sandness (Bk XII)
Øvelsesavdeling Bergartilleribataljon nr 3

There are some points that need to be cleaned up. Two volumes give a different commander for berg.btt. 5. I am still search for information on I/A.R. 1. I have found little on the Landvernet and Øvelsesavdeling units.

Just a start.

Pista! Jeff
Jeff Leser

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Re: Norwegian Army 1940

#29

Post by jwsleser » 05 Mar 2024, 19:35

RE: Airfields. Just a quick glance at the map above shows that Fornebu outside of Oslo is missing from the map. Of course, that is due to the fact the airport wasn't opened until 1939.

The planned military airfield/seaplane bases in 1939-1940 were (from Hærens go Marinenes flyvåpen 1912-1945, p.65):
During the mobilization, the Army Air Force distributed its aircraft to Kjeller, Fornebu, Sola, Værnes, Bardufoss, Seida and Banak, and the Navy's aircraft were distributed to Horten, Kristiansand, Hafrsfjord at Sola, Flatøy outside Bergen, Aunøy at Hitra, Skattøra at Tromsø, Hammerfest and Vadsø. Some of these stations were very provisional. Jonsvannet near Trondheim was also used.
These were the locations tested during the August 1939 air attack exercise.

Pista! Jeff
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Re: Norwegian Army 1940

#30

Post by Palg » 14 Mar 2024, 16:44

Hi Jeff,

Not sure if you will find anything new here, but Narviksenteret has published a database with more than 11000 names of people serving in the Norwegian Army in 1940.

https://soldater.no/avdelinger/

Within the different units you can sort the lists based on Grad (rank) or Stilling (position) to find commanders of subunits etc.

Hope it can be of use,

regards,

Pål

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