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Army Norway (Armeeoberkommando Norwegen, abbreviated AOK Norwegen) was a German army operating in Norway and Finland during World War II. It was one of the two army echelon headquarters controlling German troops in the far north. Army Norway was directly subordinate to OKH, the high command headquarters of the Wehrmacht. It was created from Army Group XXI in December 1940, itself a successor of the XXI Army Corps, and disbanded in December 1944, with its tasks and assets taken over by the 20th Mountain Army.
| Army Norway | |
|---|---|
| German: Armee Norwegen | |
| Active | December 1940 – December 1944 |
| Country |  Nazi Germany |
| Branch |  German army ( Wehrmacht) |
| Size | Army |
| Engagements | Eastern Front |
| Commanders | |
| Notable commanders | Eduard Dietl Lothar Rendulic |
As of 15 January 1941, the actual strength (Iststärke) of Army Norway was 129,759 personnel in total.[1]
Operations
editOn 27 June 1941, shortly after the beginning of Operation Barbarossa (22 June), Army Norway consisted of XXXVI Command (SS Kampfgruppe Nord, 169th Division), Mountain Corps Norway (2nd Mountain Division, 3rd Mountain Division, 199th Division, 702nd Division), XXXIII Command (181st Division, 196th Division) and LXX Command (69th Division, 163rd Division, 214th Division).[2]
A Headquarter Detachment of Army Norway took part in Operation Barbarossa in 1941. In talks between Finnish and German staffs in Helsinki in June 1941, the Germans were given military responsibility over northern Finland; Army Norway was to take Murmansk and the Murmansk railway. The plan was codenamed Operation Silberfuchs (Silver Fox). In January 1942 this HQ detachment became Army Lapland and was responsible for all German forces in Finland. In June 1942 it was renamed 20th Mountain Army.
Commanders
editCommander-in-Chief
edit| No. | Portrait | Commander | Took office | Left office | Time in office |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Generaloberst Nikolaus von Falkenhorst (1885–1968) | 19 December 1940 | 18 December 1944 | 4 years, 0 days |
Assets
editGerman Army of Norway (Falkenhorst)
- From January 1941:
- From July 1941: (during Operation Silberfuchs)
- From September 1941:
- From March 1942: (after creation of German Twentieth Mountain Army)
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ A.O.K. Norwegen, IIa. Abschrift für Kriegstagebuch. Iststärke nach dem Stande vom 15 Januar 1941. Bundesarchiv-Militärarchiv (BA-MA) RW 39/14, fol. 189.
- ^ Schramm, Percy E., ed. (2005). Kriegstagebuch des OKW: 1940–1941, Teilband 2. Augsburg: Verlagsgruppe Weltbild GmbH. p. 1137. ISBN 3828905250.
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