General Carton de Wiart, found at: http://badassoftheweek.com/images/30045813384/wiart1.jpg
On April 15th 1940 The codebreaking team at Bletchley Park broke the Enigma code used by the German army and Luftwaffe. Unfortunately there was no team to analyse the information, and no way of transmitting information directly to British forces securely http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/ww2peopleswar/stories/08/a6841208.shtml.
Further British reinforcements for Alesund were delayed by gales off Scotland.
Troops at Namsos reported snow 4ft deep. The British Commander General Carton de Wiart was unable to leave the flying boat he had arrived at Namsos in due to German machine gun fire.
Night time temperatures fell to zero degrees farenheit. Frostbite was reported,
Other British troops held positions at Harstad, Salangen and Bogen, all suffering in the harsh conditions.
In the south of Norway the Norwegian 3rd Division surrendered to the Germans at Sedestal. 2000 soldiers surrendered.
Norwegian Campaign Map April may 1940, found at:https://historicalresources.files.wordpress.com/2008/09/norway.jpg
On April 14th 1940 350 British Royal Marines landed at Namsos, Norway to prepare for the arrival of the 146th Territorial Brigade, the first British troops to land in Norway. German paratroopers of the 7th Flieger Division landed at Dombas, Norway, they suffered heavy losses due to landing in the middle of the camp belonging to the Norwegian 11th Regt. Unfortunately they were still able to damage nearby railways and occupied farmhouses causing logistic problems for several days.
HMS Sterlet, found at:http://www.battleships-cruisers.co.uk/images/hmssterlet.jpg
Out at sea, British submarine HMS Sterlet damaged the German gunnery training ship and minelayer Brummer in the Skagerrak (between Sweden and Norway). The Brummer sank the next day.
Brummer before #WW2, found at:http://www.kbismarck.com/photo100.html
HMS Warspite, found at:http://ww2today.com/the-second-battle-of-narvik
On April 13th 1940 The Royal Navy with 9 destroyers screening the battleship HMS Warspite, attacked 3 German destroyers and a submarine at Narvik. The Swordfish biplane launched from HMS Warspite attacked and sunk the submarine taking damage from the U-Boat's anti-aircraft gun. The three German warships were sunk by a combination of shell fire from the Royal navy ships and the Fairey Swordfish.http://ww2today.com/the-second-battle-of-narvik
Gun position at Hegra Fortress, found at:http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/84/Hegra_Fortress_gun_position.jpg/300px-Hegra_Fortress_gun_position.jpg
On 11th April 1940, German forces advanced so to link up from Oslo to Trondheim.
The German ship Lutzow was badly damaged by the British submarine HMS Spearfish, as a result Lutzow returned to base on April 18th 1940.
Why was Britain and France involved in Norway? The reason was its neighbour - Sweden. In winter, iron ore from Sweden was exported from the Norwegian port of Narvik - whoever occupied Norway would control the supply of iron ore to Germany. If Britain controlled the Norwegian ports, the North Sea would be virtually closed to the German navy, and the Baltic would be in striking distance.
Blackburn Sea Skuas on deck of HMS Ark Royal, image found at:http://media-cache-ec0.pinimg.com/736x/d0/d2/3b/d0d23b34fcba0e724e7022d46459b8ae.jpg
I thought I would get some info on this aircraft as it took part in the Norway campaign on the carrier HMS Ark Royal. On 10th April 1940, 16 Skuas from the Orkney Isles sank the Konigsburg in Bergen harbour, this was the first time a destroyer had been sunk by aircraft alone. It was withdrawn from front line service in 1941, as it was too vulnerable to attack by land based fighters such as the Me-Bf109.
Diagram of Blackburn Skua found at:http://home.online.no/~oela/Skua%20snitt.jpg
Powered by a Bristol Perseus XII radial engine of 890 hp, the Skua was armed with 4 x .303 in forward firing Browning machine guns and a single flexibly mounted .303 in Lewis or Vickers K machine gun in the rear cockpit. It also had the capacity to carry a 500 lb bomb mounted under the fuselage and up to 4 x 40 lb or 8 x 20 lb bombs in racks under each wing.http://www.tangmere-museum.org.uk/aircraft-month/blackburn-skua
Other Specifications
Crew - 2
Max range - 435 miles
Service Ceiling - 20,200ft
Max Speed - 225mph.
Skuas in flight, found at:https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjE04_RXfru99pdGrqM8ZIydgS0De4ZDCcb4GxVqs1EblHrrQsLGle3HenUjg6eri53Us11y2xdPT0V08bvZTRfmeIIp9qioEJjpS5yDOLUwV807lAJBRg73FStqJnIVdfADoaEV_jyulUb/s1600/Blackburn_B-24_Skua.jpg
HMS Hunter sunk at First Battle Of Narvik, found at: https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-c02WufFlBsM/UOuVjacSJYI/AAAAAAAAjPU/oxlRj8ljbRg/s800/HMS_Hardy_1936.jpg
On this day in 1940 The First Battle Of Narvik took place.Five British destroyers took on ten German destroyers and shore batteries near Narvik, (Ofot Fjord). 2 destroyers from both sides were sunk; Hardy & Hunter (British) and Wilhelm Heidkamp & Anton Schmitt (German).Three German destroyers were also damaged in the daring British attack. Eight German merchant ships and one ammunition carrier also were sunk. The British submarine Thistle was sunk by U-4 off Stavanger.
It was no victory for either side, but the British had made their presence felt, and the Germans had half their destroyers put out of action.
Wrecked shipping at Narvik, found at:http://i4.minus.com/ibkaLRXtEBFfzU.jpg
Today in 1940 Denmark was invaded and captured by German forces - notably 170th & 198th Infantry Divisions. Norway was also attacked, Egersund and Arendal captured without any resistance.
Me109 found at:http://www.flugzeug-bild.de/name/galerie/kategorie/historische-flugzeuge~militaerische-propellermaschinen~messerschmitt-me-109.html
The Me-109 first saw action with the Condor Legion in the Spanish Civil War 1936 proving itself a useful fighter aircraft. Four months before the beginning of The Second World War, the Me-109 was declared to be a record holder of 469.22 m.p.h.
This was not an Me-109, it was an Me209VI, but the F.A.I (Fédération_Aéronautique_Internationale) had not been told. They can't have looked very hard either.The aircraft looks totally different.
Me209 VI found at:http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0d/Messerschmitt_Me_209.jpg
At the outbreak of the Second World War the Germans had some useful propaganda - declaring they had the world's fastest fighter aircraft. The Battle of Britain would help dispel the myth.
The Great Escape (1963). I have to put this one in first, why? Because this is the first one I remember watching as a child with my Dad. It has a start studded cast, James Garner, Richard Attenborough, David McCallum etc. The story is based on the escape from Stalagluft III and a well organised set of prisoners headed by 'Big X' played by Attenborough. They plan to get hundreds of prisoners out of 3 tunnels and are constantly causing their German guards problems, as all good Allied prisoners should. The One That Got Away (1957). This is a great film based on the escape of Luftwaffe pilot Franz Von Werra who is played by Hardy Kruger. Von Werra proves a very troublesome prisoner for the British, and attempts escape many times, including trying to steal a Hurricane from an airfield.
The Wooden Horse (1950). This film is based on events from the same P.O.W camp as the Great Escape. The Allied prisoners used an excersise horse for cover in an excersise yard. The idea was simple. Two men were carried underneath the horse to the yard, the horse put down and the men dug a tunnel out. Easy. The Germans never thought to check under the horse. It was made on a low budget and starred Leo Genn and Anthony Steel also featuring many amateur actors.
The Great Escape II (1988). This sequel to the Great Escape starred many actors including Ian McShane, Christopher Reeve and Donald Pleasence. It tells the true story of the fate of the captured prisoners from Stalagluft III and the investigation after the war. This is a very good and under-rated film, that sticks more to the real story than the first Great Escape film did.
As Far As My Feet Will Carry Me (2001). Starring Bernhard Bettermann This film is about a German prisoner of war held in a Soviet Union gulag. He has been sentenced to 25 years hard labour for 'crimes against partisans'. He escapes from the camp and endures much hardship across the Soviet Union to Turkey via Iran. This is a brilliant story of endurance and triumph of the human will against all odds.
Last but not least, The Password Is Courage, (1962), this film stars Dirk Bogarde and is based on the true story of John Castle's memoirs as a prisoner under the pseudonym Charles Coward. He proves a real thorn in the side of the Germans and attempts to escape many times, disguised as a german soldier, digging tunnels etc. He also helps sabotage a labour camp much to the amusement of fellow prisoners and distress of the guards. A must see film.
