Norwegian campaign order of battle


The German operation for the invasion of Denmark and Norway in April 1940 was code-named Weserübung, or "Weser Exercise." Opposing the invasion were the partially mobilized Norwegian military, and an allied expeditionary force composed of British, French, and Free Polish formations. The following list formed the order of battle for this campaign.

Germany

Gruppe XXI

On 1 March 1940, the German 21st Army Corps was renamed Group XXI and placed in charge of the invasion of Norway. The group was allotted two Mountain and five Infantry divisions for this task. It was led by the commanding officer of the XXI Korps, General der Infanterie Nikolaus von Falkenhorst. His chief of staff was Oberst Erich Buschenhagen.2nd Mountain Division

Luftwaffe

The Luftwaffe's X Fliegerkorps was commanded by Generalleutnant Hans Ferdinand Geisler; it had operational command of all Luftwaffe units participating in Operation Weserübung.Parachute troops
  • * I/German 1st Parachute Regiment
  • * Commanded by Major Erich Walther
  • * Individual companies were used to occupy key airfields in northern Denmark, near Stavanger, and Oslo.Aircraft available
  • * 102 fighters.
  • * 233 bombers.
  • * 39 dive bombers.
  • * 165 reconnaissance aircraft.
  • * 582 transport aircraft.

Kriegsmarine

Baltic Sea and Norwegian Waters
Naval Group Command West – Generaladmiral Alfred Saalwächter
Battleship Force – Vizeadmiral Günther LütjensGneisenau, Kapitän zur See Harald Netzbandt Scharnhorst, Kapitän zur See Kurt-Caesar Hoffmann
Objective: Narvik
Warship Group One – Kapitän zur See and Kommodore Friedrich Bonte
Transporting:
  • Advanced HQ/3rd Mountain Division – Generalleutnant Eduard Dietl, 139th Mountain Regiment/3rd Mountain Division – Oberst Windisch, coastal artillery battery, Naval signals section, Army signals platoon, I Bn/32nd LW Flak Regiment
Landing Group
Tanker Group
  • – arrived at Narvik, sunk 13 April
  • – scuttled by crew after being intercepted by Norwegian patrol boat on 9 April
Objective Trondheim
Warship Group Two – Kapitän zur See Hellmuth Heye,
Transporting:
  • 138th Mountain Regiment/3rd Mountain Division – Oberst Weiss, minus one company on the Lutzow, diverted to Oslo, 1./112th Mountain Artillery Regiment, 1./38th Engineer Battalion, naval signals detachment, army signals platoon, Two Coast Artillery Batteries, I Bn/611th LW Flak Regiment – personnel only, airbase personnel
Landing Group
  • ,
Tanker Group
Objective Bergen
Warship Group Three – Rear Admiral Hubert Schmundt
1. S-Boatflotilla – Kapitänleutnant Heinz Birnbacher
  • S-Boat-Tender, Kapitänleutnant Otto Hinzke
  • S19, S21, S22, S23, S24,,
Transporting:
  • HQ/69th Infantry Division, 1./169th Engineer Bn, 2./169th Engineer Bn, HQ/159th Infantry Regiment, I./159th infantry Regiment, II./159th infantry Regiment, 159th Band, naval signals section, army signals platoon, two coastal artillery batteries, I Bn/33rd LW Flak Regiment – personnel only, airbase personnel
Landing Group
Landing Group Stavanger
Objectives Kristiansand and Arendal
Warship Group Four – Kapitän zur See Friedrich Rieve
  • – Kapitän zur See Friedrich Rieve
  • Torpedo boat – Kapitänleutnant Karl Kassbaum, flagship of Kapitän zur See Hans Bütow,
  • Torpedo boat – Kapitänleutnant Wilhelm-Nikolaus Freiherr von Lyncker, flagship Korvettenkapitän Wolf Henne, leader of 5. Torpedo Boat Flotilla),
  • Torpedo boat – Kapitänleutnant Franz Kohlauf,
2. S-Boat-Flotilla – Korvettenkapitän Rudolf Petersen
  • S-Boat-Tender Tsingtau – Kapitän zur See Carl KlingnerS7, S8, S17, S30, S31, S32, S33
Transporting
  • HQ/310th Infantry Regiment, I/310th Infantry Regiment, 9 Co./310th Infantry Regiment, 234th Bicycle Infantry Co., naval signals platoon, two coastal artillery batteries
Objectives Oslo and Oslofjord
Warship Group Five – Rear Admiral Oskar Kummetz
Objective Oslo Blücher – Kapitän zur See Heinrich Woldag, flagship Lützow – Kapitän zur See August Thiele Emden – Kapitän zur See Werner LangeR18R19Rau 8
Objectives Son and Moss
  • Torpedo boat – Kapitänleutnant Helmut Neuss
Objective Horten
Objective Rauøy Island R20R24
Objective Bolærne IslandR22R23
Objective Egersund Cable Station
Warship Group Six – Korvettenkapitän Kurt Thoma,
2 Minehunting Flotilla
  • ,,,
Objectives Korsör and Nyborg
Warship Group Seven – Kapitän zur See Gustav KleikampSchleswig-Holstein – Kapitän zur See Gustav KleikampClaus von Bevern Pelikan Nautilus MRS 12
School Flotilla of Commander in Chief Baltic Approaches
  • Six armed fishing trawlers – Fregattenkapitän Dr. Oskar Dannenberg
Objectives Copenhagen
Warship Group Eight – Korvettenkapitän Wilhelm SchroederHansestadt Danzig – Korvettenkapitän Wilhelms Schroeder
Warship Group Eight supported in the waters of the Belt by 13. Patron-Flotilla – Kapitänleutnant Dr. Walther Fischer
Objectives Middelfart and Belt Bridge
Warship Group Nine – Kapitän zur See Helmut Leissner, F.d.V.O
  • , flagship of F.d.V.O,Arkona, Otto Braun, Cressida, ''Silvia, R6, R7 UJ 107 Passat, Monsun
Objectives Esbjerg and Nordby
Warship Group Ten – Kapitän zur See and Kommodore Friedrich Ruge F.d.M. WestKönigin Luise
12. Minehunter Flotilla – Korvettenkapitän Karl Marguth KFK M1201, KFK M1202, KFK M1203, KFK M1204, KFK M1205, KFK M1206, KFK M1207, KFK M1208, M4, M20, M84, M102
2. Minesweeper Flotilla – Korvettenkapitän Gert von KamptzR25, R26, R27, R28, R29, R30, R31, R32
Objective Thyborön
Warship Group Eleven – Korvettenkapitän Walter Berger
4. Minehunter Flotilla – Korvettenkapitän Walter BergerM-61, M-89, M-110, M-111, M-134, M-136
3. Minesweeper Flotilla – Kapitänleutnant Hagen Küster R 33, R 34, R 35, R 36, R 37, R 38, R 39, R 40
Mine Sweeper Covering Group
Laying minefields to the Skagerrak to protect the German resupply route to southern Norway.Schlesien
Minelaying Group – Kapitän zur See Kurt Böhmer: Roland – Korvettenkapitän Karl von Kutzleben
  • – Kapitänleutnant Dr. Ing. Karl-Friedrich Brill Preussen – Korvettenkapitän Karl Freiherr von der Recke
  • – Kapitänleutnant Kurt FoersterM6, M10, M11, M12
U-Boat Force Force – Rear Admiral Karl Dönitz
U-Boat Group One
Patrol area: Narvik, Harstad, Vestfjord, Vågsfjord
  • ,,,,
U-Boat Group Two
Patrol area: Trondheim, Namsos, Romsdalsfjord
  • ,
U-Boat Group Three
Patrol area: Bergen, Ålesund, Shetland Islands
  • ,,,,
U-Boat Group Four
Patrol area: Stavanger
  • ,
U-Boat Group Five
Patrol area: East of the Shetland Islands, Vågsfjord, Trondheim
  • ,,,,,
U-Boat Group Six
Patrol area: Pentland, Orkney Islands, Shetland Islands
  • ,,,
U-Boat Group Seven
Never assembled
U-Boat Group Eight
Patrol area: Lindesnes, Egersund
  • ,,,
U-Boat Group Nine
Patrol area: Bergen, Shetland Islands
  • ,,
Unassigned to a group'''
Operating in the area of the Orkney Islands, Shetland Islands, and Bergen
  • ,,,

Norway

Owing to the speed and surprise achieved by the German forces, the Norwegian army was only able to partially mobilize. Unit strengths were only a fraction of their paper establishments.
Unlike the armies of most other nations, the Norwegian "division" was more of an administrative and mobilization unit, rather than a fighting formation. The most important tactical unit of the Norwegian army was the regiment. When mobilized, each regiment was supposed to muster two battalions of infantry of the line, and one battalion of landvern. Some of the Norwegian forces were ad hoc battalions.
The commander of the Norwegian Army at the time of the invasion was General Kristian Laake. He was replaced by Colonel Otto Ruge on 11 April.
Each Regiment had 3,750 soldiers, with 60,000 being the total number of soldiers by 1940. Every battalion had around 1,250 soldiers. However, only 55,000 soldiers were well prepared.

Norwegian Army

  • The Royal Guards battalion – based in Oslo and Elverum, the only unit in Southern Norway that received proper training during the inter-war years.
  • 1st Division – This division had its headquarters in Halden, and was commanded by Major-General Carl Johan Erichsen.
  • *1st Infantry Regiment
  • *2nd Infantry Regiment
  • *3rd Infantry Regiment
  • 2nd Division – This division had its headquarters in Oslo, and was commanded by Major-General Jacob Hvinden Haug.
  • *4th Infantry Regiment
  • *5th Infantry Regiment
  • *6th Infantry Regiment
  • 3rd Division – This division had its headquarters in Kristiansand, and was commanded by Major-General Einar Liljedahl.
  • *7th Infantry Regiment
  • *8th Infantry Regiment
  • 4th Division – This division had its headquarters in Bergen, and was commanded by Major-General William Steffens.
  • *9th Infantry Regiment
  • *10th Infantry Regiment
  • 5th Division – This division had its headquarters in Trondheim, and was commanded by Major-General Jacob Ager Laurantzon.
  • *11th Infantry Regiment
  • *12th Infantry Regiment
  • *13th Infantry Regiment
  • 6th Division – This division had its headquarters in Harstad, and was commanded by Major-General Carl Gustav Fleischer. The division was better prepared for war than any other unit of the Norwegian Army as it had been mobilised and kept on duty during the Finnish Winter War.
  • *14th Infantry Regiment
  • *15th Infantry Regiment
  • *16th Infantry Regiment
  • Additional units – These were additional units not organised into divisions.
  • *1st Dragoon Regiment
  • *2nd Dragoon Regiment
  • *3rd Dragoon Regiment
  • *1st Artillery Regiment
  • *2nd Artillery Regiment
  • *3rd Artillery Regiment
  • *1st Mountain Artillery Battalion
  • *2nd Mountain Artillery Battalion
  • *3rd Mountain Artillery Battalion
  • * Alta Battalion
  • * Varanger Battalion
At the time of the German invasion, the Norwegian Army was only partially mobilized, and thus only the following land units were immediately available to the Norwegians;

Norwegian Army Air Service

At the outbreak of the German invasion, the Norwegian Army Air Service consisted of:
Of the Norwegian Army Air Service's aircraft, all were shot down, destroyed or captured by the Germans during the campaign, except two Fokker C.Vs and one Tiger Moth that were flown to Finland on 8 June 1940. The three biplanes were intended to form a Norwegian Army Air Service training unit in Finland under the command of Captain Ole Reistad, but were eventually taken over by the Finnish Air Force.

Royal Norwegian Navy

The Royal Norwegian Navy during the campaign consisted of:
  • 2 s:
  • *,
  • 7 destroyers:
  • *Three :, and .
  • *Four :,, and
  • *Two incomplete Sleipner-class destroyers: and
  • 11 minelayers:
  • *Five :,,,,
  • *Two :,,
  • *Two :,,
  • *Two unique vessels:,
  • 8 minesweepers:
  • *Two Otra-class: and
  • *Six rebuilt 2. class torpedo boats:,,,,,
  • 9 submarines:
  • *Three A class:,,
  • *Six B class:,,,,,
  • 17 torpedo boats:
  • *Three :,,
  • *Six 1. class:,,,,,
  • *Eight 2. class:,,,,,,,
  • 58 patrol boats, including:
  • *,,,,,,

Royal Norwegian Navy Air Service

The Royal Norwegian Navy Air Service consisted of:
Of the Royal Norwegian Navy Air Service's fleet of aircraft, four Heinkel He 115s were evacuated to the United Kingdom at the end of the campaign, while one He 115 and three Marinens Flyvebaatfabrikk M.F.11s were flown to Finland and taken over by the Finnish Air Force.

Allied

Mauriceforce

Commanded by Major-General Carton de Wiart V.C., this group began landing at Namsos on 14 April.

Sickleforce

Commanded by Major-General Bernard Charles Tolver Paget, this force landed at Åndalsnes starting 18 April.

Rupertforce

Commanded by Major-General Pierse Joseph Mackesy, this force landed at Harstad, north of Narvik, between 15 April and 5 May.

North Western Expeditionary Force

Commanded by Lieutenant-General Claude Auchinleck, this force resulted from the reorganisation of British forces in the Narvik area on 13 May 1940.

Royal Navy

French Navy

  • 2 cruisers – and
  • 4 auxiliary cruisers – El Djezaïr, El Mansour, El Kantara, Ville d'Oran
  • 9 destroyers –,,,,,,,,
  • 17 transport ships – Ville d'Alger, Djenné,, Président Doumer, Chenonceaux,, Colombie, Amiénois, Saumur, Cap Blanc, Château Pavie, Saint Firmin, Albert Leborgne, Paul Émile Javary, Saint Clair, Vulcain, Enseigne Maurice Préchac
  • 1 submarine –

Polish Navy in exile

  • 3 destroyers –,,
  • 1 submarine –
  • 3 troopships –,,

Royal Air Force (deployed to Norway)