title: Norwegian campaign

text: On 7 April, bad weather began to develop in the region, blanketing the area with thick fog and causing rough seas, making travel difficult. "Renown"s force was soon caught in a heavy snowstorm, and , one of the destroyer escorts, had to drop out of formation to search for a man swept overboard. The weather aided the Germans, providing a screen for their forces, and in the early morning they sent out "Gruppe 1" and "Gruppe 2", who had the largest distance to travel.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: Although the weather did make reconnaissance difficult, the two German groups were discovered south of the Naze (the southernmost part of Norway) slightly after 08:00 by Royal Air Force (RAF) patrols and reported as one cruiser and six destroyers. A trailing squad of bombers sent out to attack the German ships found them farther north than they had been before. No damage was done during the attack, but the German group's strength was reassessed as being one battlecruiser, two cruisers and ten destroyers. Because of a strict enforcement of radio silence, the bombers were not able to report this until 17:30.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: On learning of the German movement, the Admiralty came to the conclusion that the Germans were attempting to break the blockade that the Allies had placed on Germany and use their fleet to disrupt Atlantic trade routes. Admiral Sir Charles Forbes, Commander-in-Chief of the British Home Fleet, was notified of this and set out to intercept them at 20:15.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: With both sides unaware of the magnitude of the situation, they proceeded as planned. "Renown" arrived at the Vestfjord late that night and maintained position near the entrance while the minelaying destroyers proceeded to their task. Meanwhile, the Germans launched the remainder of their invasion force. The first direct contact between the two sides occurred the next morning without either side's intention.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: "Glowworm", on her way to rejoin "Renown", happened to come up behind and then in the heavy fog around 08:00 on 8 April. Immediately a skirmish broke out and the German destroyers fled, signalling for help. The request was soon answered by "Admiral Hipper", which quickly crippled "Glowworm". During the action, "Glowworm" rammed "Admiral Hipper". Significant damage was done to "Admiral Hipper"s starboard side, and "Glowworm" was destroyed by a close range salvo immediately afterwards. During the fight "Glowworm" had broken radio silence and informed the Admiralty of her situation. She was not able to complete her transmission though, and all the Admiralty knew was that "Glowworm" had been confronted by a large German ship, shots were fired, and contact with the destroyer could not be re-established. In response, the Admiralty ordered "Renown" and her single destroyer escort (the other two had gone to friendly ports for fuel), to abandon her post at the Vestfjord and head to "Glowworm"s last known location. At 10:45, the remaining eight destroyers of the minelaying force were ordered to join them as well.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: On the morning of 8 April, the Polish submarine confronted and sank the clandestine German troop transport ship off the southern Norwegian port of Lillesand. Discovered amongst the wreckage were uniformed German soldiers and various military supplies. Though "Orzeł" reported the incident to the Admiralty, they were too concerned by the situation with "Glowworm" and the presumed German breakout to give it much thought and did not pass the information on. Many of the German soldiers from the wreck were rescued by Norwegian fishing boats and the destroyer . On interrogation the survivors disclosed that they were assigned to protect Bergen from the Allies. This information was passed on to Oslo where the Norwegian Parliament ignored the sinking due to being distracted by the British mining operations off the Norwegian coast.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: At 14:00, the Admiralty received word that aerial reconnaissance had located a group of German ships a considerable distance west-northwest of Trondheim, bearing west. This reinforced the notion that the Germans were indeed intending a breakout, and the Home Fleet changed direction from northeast to northwest to again try to intercept. Additionally, Churchill cancelled Plan R 4 and ordered the four cruisers carrying the soldiers and their supplies to disembark their cargo and join the Home Fleet. In fact, the German ships, "Gruppe 2", were only performing delaying circling manoeuvres in order to approach their destination of Trondheim at the designated time.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: That night, after learning of numerous sightings of German ships south of Norway, Charles Forbes began to doubt the validity of the breakout idea, and he ordered the Home Fleet to head south to the Skagerrak. He also ordered , along with another cruiser and a few destroyers, to head north and join "Renown".


title: Norwegian campaign

text: At 23:00, as Forbes was just learning of the incident with "Orzeł", "Gruppe 5" was confronted by the Norwegian patrol vessel at the entrance to the Oslofjord. "Pol III" quickly sent an alarm to the coastal batteries on Rauøy (Rauøy island) and opened fire on the torpedo boat with her single gun shortly before colliding with it. "Albatros" and two of her companions responded with anti-aircraft fire, killing the Norwegian captain and setting "Pol III" on fire. "Gruppe 5" continued into the Oslofjord and cleared the outer batteries without incident. Several of the smaller German ships then broke off in order to capture the bypassed fortifications along with Horten.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: This activity did not go unnoticed, and soon reports had reached Oslo, leading to a midnight session of the Norwegian cabinet. At this meeting, the cabinet issued orders for the mobilization of four of the six field brigades of the Norwegian Army. The members of the cabinet failed to understand that the partial mobilization they had ordered would, according to the regulations in place, be carried out in secret and without public declaration. Troops would be issued their mobilization orders by post. The only member of the cabinet with in-depth knowledge of the mobilization system, defence minister Birger Ljungberg, failed to explain the procedure to his colleagues. He would later be heavily criticized for this oversight, which led to unnecessary delays in the Norwegian mobilization. Prior to the cabinet meeting, Ljungberg had dismissed repeated demands for a total and immediate mobilization, made by the chief of the general staff, Rasmus Hatledal. Hatledal had approached Ljungberg on 5, 6 and 8 April, asking the defence minister to request the cabinet to issue orders for mobilization. The issue had been discussed in the evening of 8 April, after the Commanding General, Kristian Laake, had joined the calls for a mobilization. At that time the mobilization had been limited to two field battalions in Østfold, further delaying the larger-scale call-up of troops. When Laake's call for mobilization was finally accepted at some time between 03:30 to 04:00 on 9 April, the Commanding General assumed, like defence minister Ljungberg, that the cabinet knew that they were issuing a partial and silent mobilization. The poor communication between the Norwegian armed forces and the civilian authorities caused much confusion in the early days of the German invasion.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: At about this time, further north, "Renown" was heading back to Vestfjord after reaching "Glowworm"s last known location and not finding anything. Heavy seas had caused Whitworth to sail more north than normal and had separated him from his destroyers when he encountered "Scharnhorst" and "Gneisenau". "Renown" engaged the two battleships off the Lofoten Archipelago, and during the short battle "Renown" scored several hits on the German vessels, forcing them to flee north. "Renown" attempted to pursue, but the German warships used their superior speed to escape.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: In the Ofotfjord leading to Narvik, the ten German destroyers of "Gruppe 1" made their approach. With "Renown" and her escorts earlier diverted to investigate the "Glowworm" incident, no British ships stood in their way, and they entered the area unopposed. By the time they had reached the inner area near Narvik, most of the destroyers had peeled off from the main formation to capture the outer batteries of the Ofotfjord, leaving only three to contend with the two old Norwegian coastal defence ships standing guard in Narvik harbour, and . Although antiquated, the two coastal defence ships were quite capable of taking on the much more lightly armed and armoured destroyers. After a quick parley with the captain of "Eidsvold", Odd Isaachsen Willoch, the German ships opened fire on the coastal defence ship, sinking her after hitting her with three torpedoes. "Norge" entered into the fray shortly after and began to fire on the destroyers, but her marksmen were inexperienced and she did not hit the Germans ships before being sunk by a salvo of torpedoes from the German destroyers.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: Following the sinking of "Eidsvold" and "Norge", the commander of Narvik, Konrad Sundlo, surrendered the land forces in the town without a fight.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: At Trondheim, "Gruppe 2" also faced only minor resistance to their landings. In the Trondheimsfjord, "Admiral Hipper" engaged the defensive batteries while her destroyers sped past them at . A well placed shot by "Admiral Hipper" severed the power cables for the searchlights and rendered the guns ineffective. Only one destroyer received a hit during the landing.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: At Bergen, the defensive fortifications put up stiffer resistance to "Gruppe 3"<nowiki>'</nowiki>s approach and the light cruiser "Königsberg" and the artillery training ship "Bremse" were damaged, the former seriously. The lack of working lights reduced the effectiveness of the guns though, and the landing ships were able to dock without much opposition. The fortifications were surrendered soon after, when Luftwaffe units arrived.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: The fortifications at Kristiansand put up an even more resolute fight, twice repulsing the landing and damaging , nearly causing her to run aground. Confusion soon sprung up though, when the Norwegians received the order not to fire on British and French ships and the Germans began to use Norwegian codes that they had captured at Horten. The Germans also used this opportunity to quickly reach the harbour and unload their troops, capturing the town by 11:00.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: While most of "Gruppe 4" was engaged at Kristiansand, the torpedo boat captured Arendal without any opposition. The main objective at Arendal was the undersea telegraph cable to the United Kingdom.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: "Gruppe 5" encountered the most serious resistance at the inner defensive fortifications of the Oslofjord, in the vicinity of Drøbak. , leading the group, approached the forts assuming that they would be taken by surprise and not respond in time, as had been the case with those in the outer fjord. It was not until the cruiser was at point blank range that Oscarsborg Fortress opened fire, hitting with every shell. Within a matter of minutes, "Blücher" was crippled and burning heavily. The damaged cruiser was sunk by a salvo of antiquated, 40-year-old torpedoes launched from land-based torpedo tubes. She carried much of the administrative personnel intended both for the occupation of Norway and also for the headquarters of the army division assigned to seize Oslo. The cruiser , also damaged in the attack and believing "Blücher" had entered a minefield, withdrew with "Gruppe 5", 19 km (12 mi) south to Sonsbukten where she unloaded her troops. This distance delayed the arrival of the main German invasion force for Oslo by over 24 hours, though the Norwegian capital would still be captured less than 12 hours after the loss of "Blücher" by troops flown into Fornebu Airport near the city.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: The delay induced by the Norwegian forces gave time for the royal family, Parliament, and with them the national treasury, to flee the capital and continue the fighting against the invasion force.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: Fornebu Airport was originally supposed to be secured by paratroops an hour before the first troops were flown in, but the initial force became lost in the fog and did not arrive. Regardless, the airfield was not heavily defended and the German soldiers who did arrive captured it promptly. The Norwegian Army Air Service's Jagevingen fighter flight based on Fornebu Airport resisted with their Gloster Gladiator biplane fighters until ammunition ran out and then flew off to whatever secondary airfields were available. The ground personnel of the Fighter Wing soon ran out of ammunition for their anti-aircraft machine guns as well; in the general confusion and focus on readying the fighters for action, no one had the presence of mind or the time to issue small-arms ammunition for the personal weapons of the ground personnel. Resistance at Fornebu Airport came to an end, with the Germans' only loss being a single Ju 52. Norwegian attempts to mount a counter-attack were half-hearted and effectively came to nothing. On learning of this, Oslo itself was declared an open city and soon fully surrendered.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: For "Gruppe 6" at Egersund and the paratroops at Stavanger, there was no significant opposition and they quickly captured their objectives.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: This battle, although very small, had saved the Norwegian Royal Family. As the invasion had begun, the Norwegian Government fled to nearby Hamar. Among them, a group of Norwegian Royal Guardsmen and some soldiers, possibly from the 5th Regiment in nearby Elverum took positions in Midtskogen. They would try to stop or slow down the Germans so that the Norwegian Royal Family could evacuate.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: In the morning of 10 April, a firefight ended with the retreat of both sides as Captain Spiller, the leader of the German Fallschirmjager, had been hit. Casualties are estimated to 5 Germans killed with an unknown number wounded, and 3 Norwegians hit.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: The German plans for the invasion and occupation of Norway relied heavily on air power. In order to secure the Skagerrak strait between Norway and Denmark, the air bases in Denmark had to be seized. The domination of this strait would prevent the Royal Navy from interfering with the main supply lines of the invasion forces. In this respect, the occupation of Denmark was considered to be vital. The capture of Aalborg Airport was considered particularly important in this respect.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: The German "Wehrmacht" crossed the Danish border around 05:15 on 9 April. In a coordinated operation, German troops disembarked at the docks of Langelinie in the Danish capital, Copenhagen, and began occupying the city. German paratroops also captured Aalborg Airport. Simultaneously, an ultimatum was presented by the German ambassador to King Christian X. The Danish army was small, ill-prepared and used obsolete equipment, but resisted in several parts of the country; most importantly, the Royal Guards located at Amalienborg Palace in Copenhagen, and forces in the vicinity of Haderslev in South Jutland. By 06:00, the small Danish Air Force had been taken out and 28 German Heinkel He 111 bombers were threatening to drop their bombs over Copenhagen. King Christian, having consulted with Prime Minister Thorvald Stauning, Foreign Minister P. Munch and the commanders of the army and the navy, decided to capitulate, believing that further resistance would only result in a useless loss of Danish lives. By 08:43 Denmark had capitulated. The Danish public was taken completely by surprise by the occupation, and was instructed by the government to cooperate with the German authorities. Germany's occupation of Denmark lasted until 5 May 1945.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: An important part of the Danish merchant marine escaped the occupation, as Arnold Peter Møller, President of the Mærsk shipping company, on 8 April instructed his ships on the high seas to move to Allied or neutral ports if at all possible.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: In a pre-emptive move to prevent a German invasion, British forces occupied the Faroe Islands on 12 April 1940, then a Danish amt (county). The Danish county governor and the Faroese parliament Løgting governed the islands for the duration of the war.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: Soon after this, the German landings at Trondheim, Bergen, and Stavanger, as well as the skirmishes in the Oslofjord became known. Not willing to disperse too thinly due to the unknown location of the two German battleships, the Home Fleet chose to focus on nearby Bergen and dispatched an attack force. RAF reconnaissance soon reported stronger opposition than anticipated, and this, along with the possibility that the Germans might be controlling the shore defences, caused them to recall the force and instead use the aircraft carrier to launch torpedo bombers at the enemy ships. The attack never commenced though, as Luftwaffe bombers launched an assault of their own against the Home Fleet first. This attack sank the destroyer and then forced the Home Fleet to withdraw north when their anti-aircraft measures proved ineffective. This German air superiority in the area led the British to decide that all southern regions had to be left to submarines and the RAF, while surface vessels would concentrate on the north.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: In addition to the German landings in south and central Norway, the Admiralty was also informed via press reports that a single German destroyer was in Narvik. In response to this, they ordered the 2nd Destroyer Flotilla, mostly consisting of ships previously serving as escort destroyers for Operation Wilfred, to engage. This flotilla, under the command of Captain Bernard Warburton-Lee, had already detached from during her pursuit of and , being ordered to guard the entrance to the Vestfjord. At 16:00 on 9 April, the flotilla sent an officer ashore at Tranøy west of Narvik and learned from the locals that the German force was 4–6 destroyers and a submarine. Warburton-Lee sent these findings back to the Admiralty, concluding with his intention to attack the next day at "dawn, high water", which would give him the element of surprise and protection against any mines. This decision was approved by the Admiralty in a telegram that night.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: Though ten German destroyers had originally taken Narvik, only five remained in the harbor, with three others moving North and the remaining two going west. Early the following morning, Warburton-Lee led his flagship, , and four other destroyers into the Ofotfjord. At 04:30, he arrived at Narvik harbor and entered along with and , leaving and to guard the entrance and watch the shore batteries. The fog and snow were extremely heavy, allowing Warburton-Lee's force to approach undetected. When they arrived at the harbour itself they found five German destroyers and opened fire, starting the First Battle of Narvik. Warburton-Lee's ships made three passes on the enemy ships, being joined after the first by "Hotspur" and "Hostile", and sank two of the destroyers, disabled one more, and sank six tankers and supply ships. The German commander, Commodore Friedrich Bonte, lost his life when his flagship was sunk.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: However, Captain Warburton-Lee would make a fatal error when he decided to attack the German destroyers one last time. The German destroyers from the North and West converged on the British Fleet at 06:00, while the British were preparing for the final attack. "Hardy" was severely damaged and beached, and Warburton-Lee was killed. "Hunter" and "Hotspur" were both critically damaged, and "Hotspur" ran into the sinking "Hunter". "Hostile" and "Havock" meanwhile had raced ahead, but turned about and came back to aid the retreat of "Hotspur". The German destroyers were low on fuel and ammunition, allowing "Hostile" and "Havock" to come back to aid the retreat of "Hotspur".


title: Norwegian campaign

text: Shortly after the First Battle of Narvik, two more German ships were sunk by British forces. During the night of 9/10 April, the submarine intercepted and sank the light cruiser shortly after she had left Kristiansand. On 10 April, the Fleet Air Arm made a long-range attack from their base at RNAS Hatston (also called HMS "Sparrowhawk") in the Orkney Islands against German warships in Bergen harbour. The attack sank the disabled German light cruiser "Königsberg";


title: Norwegian campaign

text: On 10 April, "Furious" and the battleship joined the Home Fleet, and another air attack was made against Trondheim hoping to sink "Admiral Hipper". "Admiral Hipper", however, had already managed to escape through the watch set up outside of the port and was on her way back to Germany when the attack was launched; none of the remaining German destroyers or support ships were hit in the assault. Better luck was had in the south when severely damaged the heavy cruiser at midnight on 11 April, putting the German ship out of commission for a year.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: With it becoming more evident the German fleet had slipped out of Norwegian waters, the Home Fleet continued north to Narvik in the hope of catching the remaining destroyers. En route the ships suffered further harassment from German bombers, forcing them to divert to the west away from the shoreline. By 12 April, they were in range of Narvik and an aerial attack on Narvik from "Furious" was attempted, but the results were disappointing. It was instead decided to send in the battleship "Warspite" and a powerful escort force, to be commanded by Whitworth.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: On the morning of 13 April, Whitworth's force entered the Vestfjord using "Warspite"s scouting aircraft to guide the way. Aside from locating two of the German destroyers, the scouting aircraft also sank an enemy submarine, the first such occurrence. "Warspite"s destroyers travelled in advance of the battleship and were the first to engage their German counterparts which had come to meet them, thus starting the Second Battle of Narvik. Though neither side inflicted notable damage, the German ships were running low on ammunition and were gradually pushed back to the harbour. By that afternoon, most attempted to flee up the Rombaksfjord, the only exception being which beached herself as she made for the Herjangsfjord and was destroyed by . Four British destroyers continued to chase the German ships up through the Rombaksfjord, "Eskimo" was soon damaged by the waiting opposition. However, the German situation was hopeless, having run out of fuel and ammunition, and by the time the remaining British ships arrived, the German crews had abandoned and scuttled their ships. By 18:30 the British ships were making their way out of the now cleared fjord.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: The German invasions for the most part achieved their goal of simultaneous assault and caught the Norwegian forces off guard, a situation not aided by the Norwegian government's order for only a partial mobilization. Not all was lost for the Allies though, as the repulsion of the German "Gruppe 5" in the Oslofjord gave a few additional hours of time which the Norwegians used to evacuate the Royal family and the Norwegian Government to Hamar. With the government now fugitive, Vidkun Quisling used the opportunity to take control of a radio broadcasting station and announce a coup, with himself as the new Prime Minister of Norway. Quisling's coup and his list of new ministers was announced at 19:32. The Quisling coup government remained in place until 15 April, when the Administrative Council was appointed by the Supreme Court of Norway to deal with the civilian administration of the occupied areas of Norway, and Quisling resigned.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: In the evening of 9 April, the Norwegian Government moved to Elverum, believing Hamar to be insecure. All German demands were rejected and the Elverum Authorization was passed by the members of the parliament, giving the cabinet wide-ranging powers to make decisions until the next time the Parliament could be assembled under ordinary circumstances. However, the bleakness of the situation prompted them to agree to continued negotiations with the Germans, set for the following day. As a precaution Colonel Otto Ruge, Inspector General of the Norwegian Infantry, set up a roadblock about 110 km (68 mi) north of Oslo, at Midtskogen. The Norwegian position was soon attacked by a small detachment of German troops, led by Eberhard Spiller, the air attaché for the German Embassy, who were racing north in an attempt to capture King Haakon VII. A skirmish broke out and the Germans turned back after Spiller was mortally wounded. On 10 April, the final negotiations between the Norwegians and Germans failed after the Norwegian delegates, led by Haakon VII, refused to accept the German demand for recognition of Quisling's new government. The same day, panic broke out in German-occupied Oslo, following rumours of incoming British bombers. In what has since been known as "the panic day" the city's population fled to the surrounding countryside, not returning until late the same evening or the next day. Similar rumours led to mass panic in Egersund and other occupied coastal cities. The origins of the rumours have never been uncovered.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: On 11 April, the day after the German-Norwegian negotiations had broken down, 19 German bombers attacked Elverum. The two-hour bombing raid left the town centre in ruins and 41 people dead. The same day 11 "Luftwaffe" bombers also attacked the town of Nybergsund, in an attempt at killing the Norwegian King, Crown Prince Olav and cabinet.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: One of the final acts of the Norwegian authorities before dispersement was the promotion on 10 April of Otto Ruge to the rank of major general and appointment to Commanding General of the Norwegian Army, responsible for overseeing the resistance to the German invasion. Ruge replaced the 65-year-old General Kristian Laake as Commanding General, the latter having been heavily criticized for what was considered to be passive behaviour during the initial hours of the invasion. Elements in the Norwegian cabinet considered General Laake to be a defeatist. Following the appointment of Ruge the Norwegian attitude became clear, with orders to stop the German advance being issued. With the Germans in control of the largest cities, ports and airfields, as well as most of the arms depots and communication networks, repulsing them outright would be impossible. Ruge instead decided that his only chance lay in playing for time, stalling the Germans until reinforcements from the United Kingdom and France could arrive.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: On 11 April, after receiving reinforcements in Oslo, General Falkenhorst's offensive began; its goal was to link up Germany's scattered forces before the Norwegians could effectively mobilize or any major Allied intervention could take place. His first task was to secure the Oslofjord area, then to use the 196th and 163rd Infantry Divisions to establish contact with the forces at Trondheim.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: When the nature of the German invasion became apparent to the British military, it began to make preparations for a counter-attack. Dissension amongst the various branches was strong though, as the British Army, after conferring with Otto Ruge, wanted to assault Trondheim in Central Norway while Churchill insisted on reclaiming Narvik. It was decided to send troops to both locations as a compromise. Admiral Lord Cork was in overall command of the Allied operations.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: After the appointment of Ruge as Commanding General on 10 April, the Norwegian strategy was to fight delaying actions against the Germans advancing northwards from Oslo to link up with the invasion forces at Trondheim. The main aim of the Norwegian effort in eastern Norway was to give the Allies enough time to recapture Trondheim, and start a counter-offensive against the German main force in the Oslo area. The region surrounding the Oslofjord was defended by the 1st Division, commanded by Major General Carl Johan Erichsen. The rest of the region was covered by the 2nd Division, commanded by Major General Jacob Hvinden Haug. Having been prevented from mobilizing in an orderly fashion by the German invasion, improvised Norwegian units were sent into action against the Germans. Several of the units facing the German advance were led by officers especially selected by Ruge to replace commanders who had failed to show sufficient initiative and aggression in the early days of the campaign. The German offensive aimed at linking up their forces in Oslo and Trondheim began on 14 April, with an advance north from Oslo towards the Gudbrandsdalen and Østerdalen valleys. Hønefoss was the first town to fall to the advancing German forces. North of Hønefoss the Germans began meeting Norwegian resistance, first delaying actions and later units fighting organized defensive actions. During intense fighting with heavy casualties on both sides, troops of the Norwegian Infantry Regiment 6 blunted the German advance at the village of Haugsbygd on 15 April. The Germans only broke through the Norwegian lines at Haugsbygd the next day after employing panzers for the first time in Norway. Lacking anti-tank weapons, the Norwegian troops could not hold back the German attack.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: The basis for the Norwegian strategy started collapsing already on 13 and 14 April, when the 3,000 troops of the 1st Division in Østfold evacuated across the Swedish border without orders, and were interned by the neutral Swedes. The same day that the 1st Division began crossing into Sweden, the two battalions of Infantry Regiment no. 3 at Heistadmoen Army Camp in Kongsberg capitulated. The 3rd Division, commanded by Major General Einar Liljedahl and tasked with defending southern Norway, surrendered to the Germans in Setesdal on 15 April, having seen no action up to that point. Some 2,000 soldiers marched into captivity in the Setesdal capitulation. With the abandonment on 20 April of the Franco-British plans for recapturing the central Norwegian city of Trondheim, Ruge's strategy became practically infeasible.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: With the calling off of the Allied plans for recapturing Trondheim, British forces which had been landed at Åndalsnes moved into eastern Norway. By 20 April three British half-battalions had moved as far south as Fåberg, near the town of Lillehammer. The main British units deployed to eastern Norway in April 1940 were the Territorials of the 148th Infantry Brigade and the regular 15th Infantry Brigade. In a series of battles with Norwegian and British forces over the next weeks the Germans pushed northwards from Oslo, their main effort through the Gudbrandsdal valley. Particularly heavy fighting took place in places like Tretten, Fåvang, Vinstra, Kvam, Sjoa and Otta. In the Battle for Kvam on 25 and 26 April, the British managed to delay the German advance for two days of heavy fighting. Other German units broke through the Valdres and Østerdalen valleys, in the former case after heavy fighting and an initially successful Norwegian counterattack.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: During their advance northwards from Oslo the Germans regularly broke down Norwegian resistance using air strikes. Junkers Ju 87 dive bombers proved particularly effective in demoralizing Norwegian troops opposing the advance. The Norwegian forces' almost complete lack of anti-aircraft weapons allowed the German aircraft to operate with near impunity. Likewise, when German panzers were employed the Norwegians had no regular countermeasures. The British No. 263 Squadron RAF fighter squadron set up base on the frozen lake Lesjaskogsvatnet on 24 April to challenge German air supremacy, but many of the squadron's aircraft were destroyed by German bombing on 25 April. The four Gladiators that survived to be evacuated to Setnesmoen army base near Åndalsnes were out of operation by the end of 26 April. Setnesmoen was bombed and knocked out by the "Luftwaffe" on 29 April.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: After their capture of Kristiansand on 9 April the battalion-strong German invasion force in southern Norway permitted the evacuation of the civilian population from the city. At the same time the Germans moved to secure the areas surrounding Kristiansand. After several days of confusion and episodes of panic among the Norwegian troops, despite the complete absence of fighting, the 2,000 men of the defending 3rd Division in Setesdal surrendered unconditionally on 15 April.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: The important western cities of Bergen and Stavanger were captured by the Germans on 9 April. Some 2,000 German soldiers occupied Bergen and captured the Norwegian arms depots there. The small Norwegian infantry forces in Bergen retreated eastwards, blowing up two railway bridges and sections of road after them. Despite the loss of the cities, the regional commander, General William Steffens, ordered a total mobilization. During mid-April the 6,000-strong Norwegian 4th Division, responsible for the defence of western Norway, was mobilized around the town of Voss in Hordaland. The 4th Division was the only military district outside of northern Norway to be mobilized completely and in an orderly fashion. The soldiers of the 4th Division managed to repulse the initial German push along the Bergen Line railway line connecting western and eastern Norway.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: After troops of the more northerly 5th Division had covered the British landings at Åndalsnes, Steffens planned an offensive aimed at recapturing Bergen. To achieve this aim the 4th Division had a total mobilized force of 6,361 soldiers and 554 horses. General Steffens' plans were made redundant when General Ruge on 16 April ordered most of the division's forces to be redeployed to Valdres and Hallingdal, in order to reinforce the main front in eastern Norway. The focus of the remaining forces in western Norway became to prevent the Germans from advancing from the areas around Bergen. Norwegian naval forces, organized into three regional commands by Admiral Tank-Nielsen, prevented German intrusions into Hardangerfjord and Sognefjord. In total the Royal Norwegian Navy fielded some 17–18 warships and five to six aircraft in western Norway following the German capture of Bergen. After the "Luftwaffe" bombed and severely damaged Voss and the surrounding countryside on 23–25 April, inflicting civilian casualties, the Germans captured the town on 26 April.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: Following the fall of Voss, General Steffens evacuated the remains of his forces northward, evacuating the south side of the Sognefjord on 28 May (except for a small contingent at Lærdal). He set up his own headquarters at Førde and prepared for the further defence of Sogn og Fjordane. On 30 April a message from General Otto Ruge was communicated, telling of the evacuation of all allied troops and also of the King and Army command, from southern Norway. With no help forthcoming from either allied or Norwegian forces, on 1 May 1940, Steffens ordered his troops to disband. The advancing German forces were informed of the whereabouts of the Norwegian troops, and agreed to let them disband unmolested. On the night between 1 May and 2 May, Steffens left for Tromsø with three naval aircraft, effectively ending the campaign in the region. No allied land troops had been involved in the fighting in Hordaland and Sogn og Fjordane. Another two aircraft flew to the United Kingdom to undergo service. Although the Royal Norwegian Navy's ships in western Norway were ordered to evacuate to the United Kingdom or northern Norway, only the auxiliary sailed to the United Kingdom and "Steinar" to northern Norway. The remaining ships were either prevented from leaving due to massive desertions, or had commanders who chose to disband their men rather than risk the voyages to Allied-controlled territory. The last Norwegian forces in western Norway only disbanded in Florø on 18 May 1940.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: The original plans for the campaign in Central Norway called for a three pronged attack against Trondheim by Allied forces while the Norwegians contained the German forces to the south. It was called Operation Hammer, and would land Allied troops at Namsos to the north (Mauriceforce), Åndalsnes to the south (Sickleforce), and around Trondheim itself (Hammerforce). This plan was quickly changed though, as it was felt that a direct assault on Trondheim would be far too risky and therefore only the northern and southern forces would be used.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: In order to block the expected allied landings the "Oberkommando der Wehrmacht" ordered a "Fallschirmjäger" company to make a combat drop on the railway junction of Dombås in the north of the Gudbrandsdal valley. The force landed on 14 April and managed to block the rail and road network in Central Norway for five days before being forced to surrender to the Norwegian Army on 19 April.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: A British vanguard force arrived at Åndalsnes on 12 April. The main landing of Sickleforce, consisting primarily of the British 148th Infantry Brigade and commanded by Major-General Bernard Paget, occurred on 17 April. The successful Norwegian mobilization in the area opened the opportunity for the British landings.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: In the waning hours of 14 April, Mauriceforce, composed primarily of the British 146th Infantry Brigade and commanded by Major-General Adrian Carton de Wiart made their initial landings at the Norwegian port town of Namsos. During the trip the force had been transferred to destroyers instead of bulky transport ships due to the narrow waters of the fjord leading to Namsos; in the confusion of the transfer a great deal of their supplies and even the brigade commander were misplaced. Another great problem for Mauriceforce was the lack of air support and effective anti-aircraft defences, something of which the "Luftwaffe" took full advantage. On 17 April the force moved forward from Namsos to positions around the village of Follafoss and the town of Steinkjer. French troops arrived at Namsos late on 19 April. On 20 April German aircraft bombed Namsos, destroying most of the houses in the town centre, and large portions of the supply storage for allied troops, leaving de Wiart without a base. Regardless, he moved 130 km (81 mi) inland to Steinkjer and linked up with the Norwegian 5th Division. Constant aerial harassment prevented any kind of offensive from taking place though, and on 21 April Mauriceforce was attacked by the German 181st Division from Trondheim. De Wiart was forced to fall back from these assaults, leaving Steinkjer for the Germans. On 21 and 22 April Steinkjer was bombed by the "Luftwaffe", leaving four-fifths of the town in ruins and more than 2,000 people homeless. By 24 April Steinkjer and the surrounding areas had been occupied by the Germans.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: By 28 April, with both groups checked by the Germans, the Allied leadership decided to withdraw all British and French forces from the southern and central regions of Norway. The Allied retreat was covered by Norwegian forces, which were then demobilized to avoid having the soldiers taken prisoner by the Germans. On 30 April the Germans advancing from Oslo and Trondheim linked up.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: On 28 and 29 April the undefended port town of Kristiansund had been heavily bombed by the "Luftwaffe", as was the nearby port of Molde, which functioned as the headquarters of the Norwegian government and King. The town of Ålesund had also suffered heavily from German bombing during the last days of April.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: Sickleforce managed to return to Åndalsnes and escape by 2 May at 02:00, only a few hours before the German 196th Division captured the port. The western Norwegian port had been subjected to heavy German bombing between 23 and 26 April, and had been burning until 27 April. The village of Veblungsnes and the area around Åndalsnes train station suffered particularly heavy damage. By the time the Germans arrived, some 80% of Åndalsnes lay in ruins. Mauriceforce, their convoys delayed by thick fog, were evacuated from Namsos on 2 May, though two of their rescue ships, the French destroyer and the British destroyer were sunk by Junkers Ju 87 dive bombers.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: Organized Norwegian military resistance in the central and southern parts of Norway ceased on 5 May, with the capitulation of the forces fighting at Hegra in Sør-Trøndelag and at Vinjesvingen in Telemark.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: The failure of the central campaign is considered one of the direct causes of the Norway Debate, which resulted in the resignation of British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain and the appointment of Winston Churchill to the office.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: Having evacuated from Molde during German air attacks on 29 April, King Haakon VII and his government arrived in Tromsø in northern Norway by 1 May. For the remaining weeks of the Norwegian Campaign Tromsø was the "de facto" capital of Norway, as the headquarters of the King and cabinet.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: In northern Norway the Norwegian 6th division, commanded by General Carl Gustav Fleischer, faced the German invasion forces at Narvik. Following the German invasion General Fleischer assumed the position of commander-in-chief of all Norwegian forces in northern Norway. The Norwegian counter-offensive against the Germans at Narvik was hampered by Fleischer's decision to retain significant forces in Eastern Finnmark to guard against a possible Soviet attack in the far north.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: Along with the Allied landings at Åndalsnes and Namsos, aimed against Trondheim, further forces were deployed to the north of Norway and assigned the task of recapturing Narvik. Like the campaign in the south, the Narvik expedition faced numerous obstacles.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: One of the first problems faced by the Allies was that the command was not unified, or even truly organized. The naval forces in the area were led by Admiral of the Fleet William Boyle, 12th Earl of Cork who had been ordered to rid the area of the Germans as soon as possible. In contrast, the commander of the ground forces, Major-General Pierse Mackesy, was ordered not to land his forces in any area strongly held by the Germans and to avoid damaging populated areas. The two met on 15 April to determine the best course of action. Lord Cork argued for an immediate assault on Narvik and Mackesy countered that such a move would lead to heavy casualties for his attacking troops. Cork eventually conceded to Mackesy's viewpoint.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: Mackesy's force was originally codenamed "Avonforce", later "Rupertforce". The force consisted of the 24th Guards Brigade, led by Brigadier William Fraser, and French and Polish units led by Brigadier Antoine Béthouart. The main force began landing at Harstad, a port town on the island of Hinnøya, on 14 April. The first German air attacks on Harstad began on 16 April, but anti-aircraft defences prevented serious damage until a raid on 20 May destroyed oil tanks and civilian houses and another raid on 23 May hit Allied shipping in the harbour.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: On 15 April, the Allies scored a significant victory when the Royal Navy destroyers and , which were escorting the troop-carrying Convoy NP1, forced the German U-boat to surface and scuttle in the Vågsfjorden. Found floating around the sinking U-boat were documents detailing the dispositions, codes and operational orders of all U-boats in the Norwegian operational area, providing the Allies with an efficient and valuable tool when planning troop and supply convoys to the campaign in northern Norway.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: After the Allied failure in Central Norway, more preparation was given to the northern forces. Air cover was provided by two squadrons of carrier-transported fighters operating from Bardufoss Air Station, the re-equipped No. 263 Squadron RAF with Gloster Gladiators and No. 46 Squadron RAF with Hawker Hurricanes.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: As part of the Allied counter-offensive in northern Norway, French forces made an amphibious landing at Bjerkvik on 13 May. The naval gunfire from supporting Allied warships destroyed most of the village and killed 14 civilians before the Germans were dislodged from Bjerkvik.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: While the Norwegian and Allied forces were advancing at Narvik, German forces were moving swiftly northwards through Nordland to relieve Dietl's besieged troops. The captured Værnes Air Station near Trondheim was rapidly expanded and improved to provide the "Luftwaffe" with a base from which to support the Narvik sector. As the German forces moved northwards, they also gained control of the basic facilities at Hattfjelldal Airfield to support their bomber operations.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: In late April, ten Independent Companies had been formed in Britain, commanded by Lieutenant Colonel Colin Gubbins. On 2 May, four of these companies were formed into "Scissorsforce", under Gubbins, and dispatched to forestall the Germans at Bodø, Mo i Rana and Mosjøen. Although they ambushed the leading German units south of Mosjøen they were outmatched by the German main body and were withdrawn to Bodø, which was to be defended by the 24th Guards Brigade.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: As the 24th Guards Brigade moved to Bodø, the destroyer , which was carrying Brigadier Fraser, was bombed and was forced to return to Britain. Gubbins, with the acting rank of colonel, assumed command of the brigade. On 15 May the troop ship carrying the 1st Irish Guards was bombed, with heavy casualties to the troops, and two days later the cruiser went aground while carrying much of the equipment of the 2nd South Wales Borderers. Both battalions returned to Harstad to reform and to be re-equipped before setting out again for Bodø.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: As the Germans advanced northward from a railhead at Mosjøen, the garrison of Mo i Rana (a mixed force based on the 1st Scots Guards) withdrew on 18 May, too precipitately in Gubbins's opinion. The commanding officer of the Scots Guards, Lieutenant Colonel Thomas Byrnand Trappes-Lomax, continued to retreat despite orders to hold successive positions which, with the delayed arrival of the rest of the brigade, left Gubbins no time to prepare a defensive position at Storjord. The brigade withdrew under heavy pressure across Skjerstad Fjord on 25 May, covered by a rearguard from the 1st Irish Guards and several of the Independent Companies under Lieutenant Colonel Hugh Stockwell.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: In the evening of 27 May Bodø was bombed and strafed by the "Luftwaffe". The bombing raid destroyed the recently constructed improvised airstrip, the radio station and 420 of the town's 760 buildings, killing 15 people and leaving a further 5,000 homeless in the process.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: Gubbins's force was evacuated from Bodø from 30 May to 2 June. During these three days, low cloud prevented the "Luftwaffe" interfering. The improvised air strip which had been hit during the 27 May air raid fell into German hands, providing the Germans with an air base much closer to the Narvik fighting, and was of great significance for their continued advance northwards.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: On 28 May, two French and one Norwegian battalion attacked and recaptured Narvik from the Germans. To the south of the city Polish troops advanced eastwards along the Beisfjord. Other Norwegian troops were pushing the Germans back towards the Swedish border near Bjørnfjell. However, the German invasion of France and the Low Countries had immensely altered the overall situation of the war and the importance of Norway was considerably lessened. On 25 May, three days before the recapture of Narvik, the Allied commanders had received orders to evacuate from Norway. The attack on the city was in part carried out to mask from the Germans the Allies' intention of leaving Norway. Shortly after the 28 May Allied recapture of Narvik, the city was bombed and heavily damaged by the "Luftwaffe".


title: Norwegian campaign

text: Operation Alphabet, the general Allied retreat from Norway, had been approved on 24 May. Among those who argued against evacuating Norway was Winston Churchill, who later expressed that the decision had been a mistake. The Norwegian authorities were only informed of the decision on 1 June. After a meeting on 7 June at which the decision to carry on the fight abroad was made, King Haakon VII, Crown Prince Olav and the Norwegian cabinet left Norway on the British cruiser and went into exile in the United Kingdom. Without supplies from the Allies the Norwegian Army would soon have been unable to continue the fight. Both the King and the Crown Prince had considered the possibility of remaining in Norway, but had been persuaded by the British diplomat Cecil Dormer to instead follow the government into exile. The Crown Prince suggested that he should remain and assist the Administrative Council in easing the effects of the occupation, but due to the King's old age it was decided that they both had to go into exile, in order to avoid complications should the King die while abroad. By 8 June, after destroying rail lines and port facilities, all Allied troops had been evacuated. The Germans had launched Operation Juno to relieve pressure on the Narvik garrison and, after discovering the evacuation, shifted the mission to hunt and subsequently sunk two British destroyers and the aircraft carrier . Before the British warships were sunk, however, the destroyer torpedoed and damaged "Scharnhorst". Shortly after the encounter the British submarine intercepted the German ships and torpedoed "Gneisenau", causing severe damage.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: The Norwegian forces on the mainland capitulated to the Germans on 10 June 1940. Units fighting on the front had been ordered to disengage in the early hours of 8 June. Fighting ceased at 24:00 on 9 June. The formal capitulation agreement for forces fighting in mainland Norway was signed at the Britannia Hotel in Trondheim at 17:00 on 10 June 1940. Lieutenant Colonel Ragnvald Roscher Nielsen signed for the Norwegian forces, Colonel Erich Buschenhagen for the German side. A capitulation agreement for the Norwegian forces fighting at Narvik was also signed the same day, at Bjørnfjell. The signatories of this agreement, the last local capitulation of Norwegian troops during the campaign, were General Eduard Dietl for the Germans, and Lieutenant Colonel Harald Wrede Holm for the Norwegians. The 62-day campaign made Norway the country to withstand a German invasion for the longest period of time, aside from the Soviet Union.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: With the capitulation of Norway's mainland army a German occupation of the country began. Although the regular Norwegian armed forces in mainland Norway laid down their arms in June 1940, there was a fairly prominent resistance movement, which proved increasingly efficient during the later years of occupation. The resistance to the German occupation began in the autumn of 1940, steadily gaining strength and becoming better organized. Despite the "Gestapo" infiltrating and destroying many of the early organizations, the resistance movement survived and grew. The last year of the war saw an increase in sabotage actions by the exile government-aligned Norwegian resistance organization "Milorg", although the organization's main goal was to retain intact guerilla forces to aid an Allied invasion of Norway. In addition to "Milorg", many independent, mostly communist, resistance groups operated in occupied Norway, attacking German targets without coordinating with the exiled Norwegian authorities.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: The civilian side of the German occupation of Norway was organized through the establishment of the "Reichskommissariat Norwegen", led from 24 April by Josef Terboven. The Germans attempted to make the exiled Norwegian authorities irrelevant, especially targeting the King. Weeks after the end of the Norwegian Campaign the Germans pressured the presidency of the Norwegian parliament to issue a request that Haakon VII abdicate. On 3 July Haakon VII turned down the request, and on 8 July gave a speech on BBC Radio proclaiming his answer. "The King's No", as it became known, encouraged resistance to the occupation and the Norwegian collaborators. The Administrative Council, appointed by the Norwegian Supreme Court on 15 April to stand in for the Norwegian government in the occupied territories, functioned until 25 September. After that date the Norwegian partner of the occupying Germans was the fascist Quisling regime, in one form or another.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: The Royal Norwegian Navy and Royal Norwegian Air Force (RNoAF) were re-established in Britain – based on the remnants of forces saved from the Norwegian Campaign. The forces soon saw extensive combat in the convoy-battles of the North Atlantic and in the air-war over Europe. The ranks of the Navy and Air Force were swollen by a steady trickle of refugees making their way out of occupied Norway, and their equipment brought up to standard by British and American aircraft and ships. From a force of 15 ships in June 1940, the Royal Norwegian Navy had expanded to 58 warships by the end of the Second World War in Europe. The ships were manned by around 7,000 crew members. In all 118 warships had been under Norwegian command at one time or another during the war years.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: Norwegian squadrons flew with the RAF Fighter and Coastal Commands. The Norwegian-manned 331 Squadron and 332 Squadron operated Hawker Hurricane and Supermarine Spitfire fighter aircraft. The naval 330 Squadron and 333 Squadron flew Northrop N-3PB patrol bombers, Consolidated PBY Catalina and Short Sunderland flying boats and de Havilland Mosquito fighter bombers. Individual Norwegians flew with British air units. In November 1944 the Royal Norwegian Naval Air Service and the Norwegian Army Air Service, having been under a unified command since March 1941, were amalgamated to form the RNoAF. At the end of the war some 2,700 personnel served in the RNoAF.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: A c. 4,000 strong Norwegian Army was also re-established in Scotland. However, with the exception of a small number of special forces, it saw little action for the rest of the war. A reinforced company from the Scotland-based Norwegian Army participated in the liberation of Finnmark during the winter of 1944–45. Finnmark and the northern parts of Troms county had been forcibly evacuated by the Germans in a scorched earth operation following the Petsamo–Kirkenes Offensive by the Red Army against occupied Finnmark in October 1944. The offensive had captured the north-eastern town of Kirkenes from the occupying German forces. After the arrival of the 300 troops from Scotland, further troops were moved in from Sweden and mobilized locally. At the end of the war, the Norwegian forces in Finnmark totalled 3,000. In the course of this operation, there were some minor skirmishes with German rear guards and patrols.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: In neutral Sweden there was also a Norwegian build-up of forces in the last two years of the war through the so-called "police troops" established with the support of Swedish authorities. The term "police" served as a cover up for what in reality was pure military training of a force mustering around 13,000 well trained and equipped troops by VE-day. In 1945 around 1,300 "police troops" took part in the Liberation of Finnmark.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: Aside from the regular Norwegian forces, the main armed resistance movement in Norway, the exile government-controlled "Milorg", fielded some 40,000 combatants at the end of the war. In November 1941 "Milorg" had been declared by the exiled Norwegian government to be the fourth branch of the Norwegian Armed Forces.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: The official German casualties for the Norwegian Campaign totalled 5,296. Of these 1,317 were killed on land, while 2,375 were lost at sea. 1,604 were listed as wounded.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: The German losses at sea were heavy, with the sinking of one of the "Kriegsmarine"<nowiki>'</nowiki>s two heavy cruisers, two of its six light cruisers, 10 of its 20 destroyers and six U-boats. With several more ships severely damaged, the German surface fleet had only three cruisers and four destroyers operational in the aftermath of the Norwegian Campaign. Two torpedo boats and 15 light naval units were also lost during the campaign. Two German battleships and two cruisers were damaged during the campaign.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: Official German sources give the number of German aircraft lost during the Norwegian Campaign as 90, with other estimates by historian François Kersaudy ranging as high as 240.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: In transport ships and merchant vessels, the Germans lost 21 ships at 111,700 tons, around 10% of what they had available at the time.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: The Norwegian and Allied casualties of the Norwegian Campaign totalled around 6,602. The British lost 1,869 killed, wounded and missing on land and approximately 2,500 at sea, while the French and Polish lost 533 killed, wounded and missing. On the Norwegian side there were around 1,700 casualties, of whom 860 were killed. Some 400 Norwegian civilians were also killed, mostly in German bombing raids. Around 60 of the civilians killed were shot by German soldiers during the fighting in eastern Norway, many in summary executions.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: On the naval side of the Norwegian casualties, the Royal Norwegian Navy, fielding 121 mostly outdated ships at the outset of the German invasion, was virtually wiped out during the campaign. Only 15 warships, including a captured German fishing trawler, with some 600 men had managed to evacuate to the United Kingdom by the end of the fighting. The remaining Norwegian naval vessels were sunk in action, scuttled by their own crews, or captured by the Germans. Among the warships sunk in action during the campaign were two coastal defence ships and two destroyers. Seven torpedo boats were also sunk or scuttled, while the remaining ten were captured by the Germans. Only one of the nine Norwegian submarines managed to escape to the United Kingdom, the other eight being scuttled or captured. Some 50 captured Norwegian naval ships were over time pressed into service by the "Kriegsmarine".


title: Norwegian campaign

text: The British lost one aircraft carrier, two cruisers, seven destroyers and a submarine but with their much larger fleet could absorb the losses to a much greater degree than Germany.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: The French Navy lost the destroyer and a submarine during the campaign, and a cruiser severely damaged. The exiled Polish Navy lost the destroyer and the submarine .


title: Norwegian campaign

text: While the British lost 112 aircraft during the campaign, the Norwegians lost all their aircraft except a small number that were successfully evacuated to the United Kingdom or flown to neutral Finland.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: The combined total loss of merchants ships and transports for the Allies and Norwegians was around 70 ships.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: The operation as planned was a decisive victory for Germany. Both Denmark and Norway were occupied. Surprise was almost complete, particularly in Denmark.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: At sea the invasion proved a temporary setback. For the "Kriegsmarine" the campaign led to heavy losses, leaving the "Kriegsmarine" with a surface force of one heavy cruiser, two light cruisers and four destroyers operational. This left the navy weakened during the summer months when Hitler was pursuing plans for an invasion of Britain.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: The greatest cost of the campaign on land came in the need to keep most of the invasion troops in Norway for occupation duties away from the fronts. On the whole, the campaign was successful with great benefits for the victor.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: Through the Norwegian government's Nortraship system, the Allies also gained the services of the Norwegian merchant navy, the fourth largest in the world. The 1,028-ship strong Nortraship was established on 22 April at a government meeting at Stuguflåten in Romsdal. The Nortraship fleet consisted of some 85% of the pre-war Norwegian merchant fleet, the remaining 15% having been in Norway when the Germans invaded and been unable to escape. The Nortraship vessels were crewed by 27,000 sailors. In total 43 free Norwegian ships were sunk during the Norwegian Campaign, while another 29 were interned by the neutral Swedes. Nortraship gave the Norwegian government-in-exile economic independence and a basis for continued resistance from abroad.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: The Allies achieved a partial success at Narvik. The Germans had destroyed much of the port facilities there before their loss of the city on 28 May. Shipping from the port was stopped for a period of six months, although the Allies had believed it would be out of operation for a year.


title: Norwegian campaign

text: The German occupation of Norway was to prove a thorn in the side of the Allies during the next few years. Bombers based at Sola had a round trip of about 920 km to Rattray Head in north-east Scotland, instead of a round trip of about 1,400 km from the nearest airfield on German soil (the island of Sylt), while the east of Scotland and coastal shipping suffered from bombing raids, most from Norway, until 1943. After the fall of Norway, Scotland (especially the fleet bases at Scapa Flow and Rosyth) were seen as much more vulnerable to a diversionary assault by air- and sea-borne troops. German commerce raiders used Norway as a staging base to reach the North Atlantic. After Germany invaded the Soviet Union in 1941, air bases in Norway were also used to interdict the Allied Arctic convoys there, inflicting painful losses to shipping.


title: Ashland, Oregon

text: Ashland is a city in Jackson County, Oregon, United States. It lies along Interstate 5 approximately 16 miles (26 km) north of the California border and near the south end of the Rogue Valley. The city's population was 21,360 at the 2020 census.


title: Ashland, Oregon

text: The city is the home of Southern Oregon University (SOU) and the Oregon Shakespeare Festival (OSF). These are important to Ashland's economy, which also depends on restaurants, galleries, and retail stores that cater to tourists. Lithia Park along Ashland Creek, historic buildings, and a paved intercity bike trail provide additional visitor attractions.


title: Ashland, Oregon

text: Ashland, originally called "Ashland Mills", was named after Ashland County, Ohio, the original home of founder Abel Helman, and secondarily for Ashland, Kentucky, where other founders had family connections. Ashland has a council-manager government assisted by citizen committees. Historically, its liberal politics have differed, often sharply, with much of the rest of southwest Oregon.


title: Ashland, Oregon

text: Prior to the arrival of white settlers in mid-19th century, the Shasta people lived in the valley along Ashland Creek approximately where today's city is located. Early Hudson's Bay Company hunters and trappers following the Siskiyou Trail passed through the site in the 1820s. In the late 1840s, mainly American settlers following the Applegate Trail began passing through the area. By the early 1850s, the Donation Land Claim Act brought many to the Rogue Valley and into conflict with its native people. These often violent clashes, known ultimately as the Rogue River Wars, continued until 1856.


title: Ashland, Oregon

text: In 1851, gold was discovered at Rich Gulch, a tributary of Jackson Creek, and a tent city grew on its banks, today's Jacksonville. Settlers arrived in the Ashland area in January, 1852, including Robert B. Hargadine, Sylvester Pease, Abel D. Helman, Eber Emery, and others. Helman and Hargadine filed the first donation land claims in Ashland. Helman and Emery built a sawmill along what was then called Mill Creek to turn timber into lumber for settlers. In 1854, they and another settler, M. B. Morris, built a second mill, Ashland Flouring Mills, to grind local wheat into flour. The community around the mill became known as "Ashland Mills". A post office was established in Ashland Mills in 1855 with Helman as postmaster.


title: Ashland, Oregon

text: During the 1860s and 1870s the community grew, establishing a school, churches, businesses and a large employer, Ashland Woolen Mills, which produced clothing and blankets from local wool. In 1871, the Post Office dropped "Mills" from Ashland's name. In 1872 Reverend J. H. Skidmore opened a college, Ashland Academy, a predecessor of Southern Oregon University.


title: Ashland, Oregon

text: In 1887, Portland, Oregon and San Francisco, California were joined by rail at Ashland. Until 1926, when most rail service began taking a different route (east through Klamath Falls to avoid the steep grade through the Siskiyou Mountains), Ashland thrived on rail trade of local products, including pears, peaches, and apples.


title: Ashland, Oregon

text: In 1908 the Women's Civic Improvement Club petitioned for the creation of community space along Ashland Creek, which became Ashland Canyon Park. The discovery of lithia water near Emigrant Lake around the same time led to a plan to establish a mineral spa at the park. Voters approved bonds to pay for the project, which included piping the mineral water from its source to Ashland. The town engaged John McLaren, landscape architect of San Francisco's Golden Gate Park, to design the park, renamed Lithia Springs Park, later shortened to Lithia Park. Although the park was popular, the mineral spa plans proved too expensive for local taxpayers and were abandoned in 1916. Meanwhile, entrepreneurs took to bottling and selling mineral waters from the area's springs.


title: Ashland, Oregon

text: During the Fourth of July celebration in 1935, Angus L. Bowmer arranged the first performances of what would become the Oregon Shakespeare Festival. The festival has grown since then, and has become an award-winning and internationally-known regional theater company.


title: Ashland, Oregon

text: Many of Ashland's historic buildings have been preserved and restored. The city has 48 individual structures and two historic districts (the Ashland Railroad Addition District and the Downtown District) on the National Register of Historic Places. The structures include the Enders Building (home of the Columbia Hotel), which from 1910 to 1928 contained the largest mercantile establishment between Sacramento and Portland.


title: Ashland, Oregon

text: Ashland is at above sea level in the foothills of the Siskiyou and Cascade ranges, about north of the California border on Interstate 5 (I-5). About south of Ashland and north of the California border is Siskiyou Summit, which at is the highest point on I-5. Ashland is about southeast of Medford and south of Portland. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of about , all land.


title: Ashland, Oregon

text: Ashland Creek and its tributaries begin on the flanks of Mount Ashland, at above sea level in the Siskiyou Mountains south of the city. Upstream (south) of the city boundary, these streams flow mainly through the Rogue River–Siskiyou National Forest. The creek flows through the city to meet Bear Creek, which roughly parallels I-5 along the east side of Ashland. Bear Creek, one of many streams in the Rogue Valley, flows generally northwest to join the Rogue River near Gold Hill, and from there the river flows generally west to its mouth on the Pacific Ocean.


title: Ashland, Oregon

text: Oregon Route 99, running roughly parallel to I-5, passes through downtown Ashland. Oregon Route 66 enters Ashland from the east and intersects Route 99 near the city center. Route 66 leads east to Klamath Falls.


title: Ashland, Oregon

text: Ashland lies within Oregon's southwest interior climate zone, in which all but the higher-elevation sites are in the rain shadow of the Oregon Coast Range to the west. The largest urban areas in this zone in addition to Ashland are Medford and Grants Pass in the Rogue Valley, and Roseburg in the Umpqua River Valley further north. Although the mountain peaks in this zone receive up to of precipitation a year, the urban areas and the valleys in which they lie generally get or less. This valley climate is particularly good for growing fruit, especially pears, and for producing other crops and farm goods such as hay, grain, poultry, and beef.


title: Ashland, Oregon

text: Cloud cover in nearby Medford varies from an average of 21 percent in July to 86 percent in December. On average, precipitation falls in Ashland on 114 days each year and totals about . The average annual snowfall is only . The average relative humidity, measured at 4 p.m. daily, is 47 percent in Medford, varying from 26 percent in July to 76 percent in December. According to the Köppen climate classification system, Ashland has a warm-summer Mediterranean climate ("Csb").


title: Ashland, Oregon

text: The coolest month is December, with an average high temperature of , and the warmest month is July, with an average high of about . The highest temperature ever recorded in Ashland was , observed in August 1981, and the record low of occurred in December 1972. The wettest "rain year" has been from July 1926 to June 1927 with and the driest from July 1954 to June 1955 with only . The wettest month on record has been December 1964 with , but the only other months with over have been December 1996 with , November 1903 with and November 1998 with .


title: Ashland, Oregon

text: Ashland's coldest recorded daytime temperature was in December 1972. During the full year, the coldest day of the year averages around or just above freezing. Warm summer nights are rare, with the record of being set as far back as 1910. The mean for the warmest summer night between 1991 and 2020 was at a mild .


title: Ashland, Oregon

text: In the census of 2010, there were 20,078 people, 9,409 households, and 4,542 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 10,455 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was about 90% White, 2% Asian, 1% African American, 1% Native American, 0.3% Pacific Islander, 1.4% from other races, and 4% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were about 5% of the population.


title: Ashland, Oregon

text: There were 9,409 households, out of which about 21% had children under the age of 18 living with them. About 34% were married couples living together; 10% had a female householder with no husband present, about 4% had a male householder with no wife present, and about 52% were non-families. About 38% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.03 and the average family size was 2.63.


title: Ashland, Oregon

text: The median age in the city was 42.9 years. About 16% of residents were under the age of 18, and about 16% were between the ages of 18 and 24. Rounded to the nearest whole number, 21% were from 25 to 44 years old; 30% were from 45 to 64; and 18% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was about 46% male and 54% female.


title: Ashland, Oregon

text: In 2010, the median income for a household in the city was $41,334, and the median income for a family was $58,409. Males had a median income of $50,368 versus $34,202 for females. The per capita income for the city was $28,941. About 21% of the population and 13% of families had incomes below the poverty line. Out of the total population, about 30% of those under the age of 18 and 3.5% of those 65 and older were living below the poverty line.


title: Ashland, Oregon

text: Ashland has a council-manager government consisting of a city manager, a mayor, and six council members. The mayor and council members are elected by the city's voters to serve staggered four-year terms. Current mayor Julie Akins was elected to her first term in 2020.


title: Ashland, Oregon

text: Pam Marsh, a Democrat from Ashland, represents Ashland and all of Oregon House District 5 in the state legislature. As part of Oregon Senate District 3, Ashland is represented by Democrat Jeff Golden. At the federal level, Cliff Bentz, a Republican, represents Ashland as part of Oregon's 2nd congressional district in the United States House of Representatives. Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley, both Democrats, serve the state of Oregon in the United States Senate.


title: Ashland, Oregon

text: Historically, Ashland has been something of a political outlier in southwest Oregon. In the presidential election of 1860, Ashland favored Abraham Lincoln while its neighbors strongly preferred pro-slavery candidates. In the early 1900s, Ashland voters supported women's suffrage and prohibition, generally out of step with the rest of the region. In more recent elections, liberal Ashland has supported tax levies and environmental regulations opposed by voters elsewhere in Jackson and nearby counties. Critics sometimes refer to the city as the "People's Republic of Ashland".


title: Ashland, Oregon

text: Income from tourism is important to Ashland's economy. A large number of restaurants, galleries, and retail stores cater to thousands of visitors who attend plays each year at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival. In 2011, the festival sold more than 390,000 tickets to its theater productions.


title: Ashland, Oregon

text: The town's largest employer is Southern Oregon University (SOU), which has a faculty and staff of more than 750. In addition to the Oregon Shakespeare Festival and the university, health-service providers make significant contributions to the economy. Businesses related to outdoor recreation, transportation, technology, and light manufacturing are also important. In 2010, the Shakespeare Festival employed about 500 people, the hospital about 400, the public schools about 300, and the City of Ashland about 250. The Bathroom Readers' Press, which produces the Uncle John's Bathroom Reader books, is based in Ashland and San Diego. Brammo, specializing in battery-electric motorcycles, was based in Ashland but moved to Talent.


title: Ashland, Oregon

text: The Oregon Shakespeare Festival has grown from a summer outdoor series in the 1930s to a season that stretches from February to October, incorporating Shakespearean and non-Shakespearean plays at three theaters. The OSF has become the largest regional repertory theater in the United States.


title: Ashland, Oregon

text: The Oregon Cabaret Theater features musicals and comedy throughout the year. Opened in 1986, the dinner theater occupies a former First Baptist Church built in Mission Revival style. The Ashland Independent Film Festival, which shows international and domestic films of almost every genre, takes place each April in the Varsity Theatre downtown. About 90 films are shown during the five days of the festival. In 2009, Ashland was the setting for the film adaptation of Neil Gaiman's "Coraline".


title: Ashland, Oregon

text: The Oregon Center for the Arts at Southern Oregon University focuses on academic programs including creative arts (art, emerging media and creative writing), music, and theatre. Affiliated with the center is the Schneider Museum of Art, which has rotation exhibitions of works featuring professional contemporary artists. Also affiliated with the center are chamber music concerts, a Shakespeare institute, a piano series, and other art-related events.


title: Ashland, Oregon

text: The annual Ashland New Plays Festival (ANPF) is a nonprofit organization that encourages playwrights to develop new work through public readings. Each year, the ANPF holds an international competition that winnows hundreds of submissions to four plays that are read to live audiences by professional actors during a five-day festival in October.


title: Ashland, Oregon

text: The National Fish and Wildlife Forensics Laboratory in Ashland is the world's only laboratory dedicated to solving crimes against wildlife. Using forensic science, experts at the laboratory help wildlife officers to investigate possible crimes against animals and to establish links between victims and suspects in cases that go to court. The laboratory has assisted the International Criminal Police Organization (INTERPOL) and foreign agencies concerned with the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES).


title: Ashland, Oregon

text: The Ashland City Band (ACB) was organized in the late 19th century as the Ashland Brass Band. The band used an octagonal gazebo-style bandstand in Lithia Park until the Butler Memorial Band Shell was built in Lithia Park in 1946. The ACB gives public concerts there each summer between June and August.


title: Ashland, Oregon

text: Lithia Park is a park, including on the National Register of Historic Places, that begins near the downtown shopping area and extends upstream along Ashland Creek near the center of the city. It includes two ponds, a Japanese garden, tennis courts, two public greens, a bandshell (outdoor stage) and miles of hiking trails. The name "Lithia" comes from natural mineral water found in the Ashland area. It has a strong mineral taste and slight effervescence, and the lithia water fountains found on the town plaza are frequently tasted by unsuspecting tourists (often at the behest of residents or frequent visitors who use the fountains as a cheap, humorous Ashland initiation rite).


title: Ashland, Oregon

text: A hiking and biking path, the Bear Creek Greenway, begins in Ashland near the intersection of West Nevada Street with Helman Street, close to the confluence of Ashland Creek (which flows through Lithia Park). The path follows Bear Creek between Ashland and Central Point and passes through Talent, Phoenix, and Medford.


title: Ashland, Oregon

text: Calle Guanajuato is a small park bordering Ashland Creek, with several restaurants offering outdoor dining.


title: Ashland, Oregon

text: Southern Oregon University, a public co-ed four-year university founded in 1926, offers courses of study toward degrees in the liberal arts, science, business, and education. With an enrollment of about 4,400 undergraduates as of Fall 2020, this urban university also offers graduate-level programs on its campus.


title: Ashland, Oregon

text: In 2020–21, about 59 percent of the university's students were women, and about 38 percent were men, while 3 percent were listed as other/unknown. The student–faculty ratio in 2020–21 was 19 to 1. Full-time undergraduate tuition in 2020–21 was about $11,000 per year for Oregon residents and $28,000 for non-residents.


title: Ashland, Oregon

text: The Ashland School District oversees three elementary schools, one of which is a magnet school focused on science and the arts; one middle school; one high school; and a community learning center. Ashland High School was ranked 1,395th best among the nation's public high schools and 15th best in Oregon by "U.S. News & World Report" as of 2013.


title: Ashland, Oregon

text: The "Ashland Daily Tidings" was published Monday through Saturday until August 2021. The "Mail Tribune", a morning daily published electronically Monday through Sunday and in print Wednesday through Sunday in Medford, also serves Ashland. Fifteen radio stations operate in the region around Ashland, including Jefferson Public Radio and KSKQ, an independent non-profit broadcasting at 89.5 FM. A former student-run radio station with the call letters <nowiki>KSOC</nowiki> and the nickname "Radio Free Ashland" shut down in February 2013 after 14 years of broadcasting. Rogue Valley Community Television, based at Southern Oregon University, serves Jackson and Josephine counties. Ashland has no commercial television stations, but nearby Medford has seven.


title: Ashland, Oregon

text: The Asante Ashland Community Hospital is a general medical and surgical hospital that is part of the Asante health network based in Medford. As of 2015, it has 49 inpatient beds.


title: Ashland, Oregon

text: The Ashland Public Library building was expanded from the city's original Carnegie library. In 2003, the historic Carnegie portion of the library was restored. In 2006, budget problems led to the closing in April 2007 of the Ashland Library and 14 others in Jackson County. The event, which lasted until October 2007, was the largest library closure in U.S. history. Although some of its services are handled by a private company, Library Systems and Services, the Ashland branch remains part of the Jackson County network of public libraries.


title: Ashland, Oregon

text: Rogue Valley Transportation District (RVTD) provides bus service to much of the city, with connections to Medford, Central Point, Talent, Phoenix, White City, and Jacksonville. In Medford, passengers can connect to other regional bus lines, including the Southwest POINT, a daily shuttle carrying passengers between Brookings and the Amtrak station in Klamath Falls. The Klamath Falls Amtrak Station serves the Coast Starlight long-haul passenger train on track owned by the Union Pacific Railroad. Ashland Municipal Airport, with a asphalt runway, offers general aviation services. Medford International Airport, from Ashland, also serves the city.


title: Ashland, Oregon

text: The City of Ashland moved to improve local broadband Internet access in the late 1990s by creating the Ashland Fiber Network (AFN) and building a fiber optic ring inside the city boundaries. However, by 2006 the city faced difficulties servicing AFN's debt load, which was approaching $15.5 million. The city hired a new AFN director, Joe Franell, who suggested scrapping cable television service while retaining the more profitable high-speed Internet access. In October 2006, the cable television service was transferred to a local company, Ashland Home Net, while the City retained both the infrastructure and the wholesale Internet business.


title: Russian emigration following the 2022 invasion of Ukraine

text: Following the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, more than 300,000 Russian citizens and residents are estimated to have left Russia by mid-March 2022, at least 500,000 by the end of August 2022, and an additional 400,000 by early October, for a total of approximately 900,000. This number includes political refugees, economic migrants, and conscientious objectors. Aside from a desire to evade criminal prosecution for opposing the invasion and fear of being conscripted after president Vladimir Putin's 21 September announcement of partial mobilization, those fleeing have voiced reasons such as disagreement with the war, the uselessness and cruelty of the war, sympathy for Ukraine, disagreement with the political roots of the war with Ukraine, the rejection of killing, and an assessment that Russia is no longer the right place for their family.


text: In the first wave, immediately after Russia invaded Ukraine, journalists, politicians, and tech workers fled. The first wave's reasons for leaving Russia include, but are not limited to, a desire to evade criminal prosecution for exercising free speech regarding the invasion. In March, Putin introduced prison sentences of up to 15 years for publishing "fake news" about Russian military operations. More than 2,000 people were charged by May 2022 under the laws prohibiting "fake" information about the military. Nina Belyayeva, a Communist Party deputy in the Voronezh Oblast Legislative Assembly, stated that she fled Russia due to threats of criminal prosecution and imprisonment for having spoken against the invasion, saying, "I realized that it was better to leave now. Once a criminal case is opened, it could be too late." Journalist Boris Grozovski stated that "We are refugees. Personally, I was wanted by the police in Russia for distributing anti-war petitions... We ran not from bullets, bombs and missiles, but from prison. If I wrote what I write now while in Russia, I would inevitably go to prison for 15–20 years." Russian actress Chulpan Khamatova stayed in exile in Latvia after she signed a petition against the war in Ukraine. She stated: "it was made clear to me it would be undesirable for me to go back," adding "I know I am not a traitor. I love my motherland very much." Bolshoi Ballet dancer Olga Smirnova left Russia to continue her career in the Netherlands in protest of the war. As for tech workers, for many it was made clear that they would have to leave Russia as a condition of employment; in any case, many tech workers can work remotely. According to a Russian IT industry trade group, approximately 50,000-70,000 IT workers fled in the invasion's first month.


text: Among the Russians who left Russia after the invasion of Ukraine were pop legend Alla Pugacheva and comedian Maxim Galkin, television journalist Alexander Nevzorov, diplomat Boris Bondarev, politician and economist Anatoly Chubais, businessman Oleg Tinkov, and rapper Oxxxymiron.


text: A second wave became apparent by July 2022, and this wave consisted more generally of middle and upper class people who had required longer to prepare to emigrate, for example people with businesses or people who had to wait for their children's school year to end.


text: Following president Putin's announcement of partial mobilization on 21 September, a third wave of Russian emigration began, with estimates of hundreds of thousands of male citizens fleeing. In the first week after the announcement, 98,000 Russians fled to Kazakhstan. On September 24 alone over 8,500 Russians entered Finland by land, a 62% increase on the previous Saturday, while nearly 4,200 Russians left Finland for Russia the same day. On September 25, it was reported that "On the border with Georgia, queues of Russian cars stretch back more than ," while at checkpoints bordering the regions of Kostanay and Western Kazakhstan, "footage of cars queuing to leave Russia show lines that stretch as far as the eye can see."


text: In this third wave alone, nearly 300,000 Russian citizens had left Russia before September 27, with that number approaching 400,000 by October 4. An upper estimate is for 700,000 Russians to have fled conscription since it was announced. Many went to Kazakhstan, Serbia, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, Georgia, and Finland.


text: Putin signed a decree introducing prison terms of up to 15 years for wartime acts, including voluntary surrender and desertion during mobilization or war.


text: Among the destinations chosen by Russian nationals are Turkey, with more than 100,000 Russians seeking residence, many using Turkish Airlines to fly to Antalya. Georgia and Armenia also received large numbers. By early April, an estimated 100,000 Russians had fled to Georgia and 50,000 went to Armenia. In 2022, 104,000 Russian citizens have registered their stay in Serbia.


text: Other major destinations include Azerbaijan, the United Arab Emirates, Greece, Bulgaria, Romania, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Spain, Israel, Tajikistan, Mongolia, Latin American countries, the Baltic states, and the United States.


text: As the majority of European countries closed their airspace to Russian flights following the invasion, Russians seeking to leave the country have often had to take detours through the Caucasus or have had to find overland routes. On 25 March, the high-speed railway between St. Petersburg and Helsinki was suspended by Finnish state railway operator VR, closing the last direct train route between Russia and the European Union. The route had previously been a significant passage out of Russia for Russian citizens, particularly those who already had work or residence connections to Finland, as a valid visa and EU-recognised COVID-19 vaccine certification was required by the Russian government for passengers.


text: Several EU countries, such as Latvia and the Czech Republic, have suspended granting visas to Russian citizens, complicating their exit from Russia. Some countries have allowed temporary stays without a visa. Turkey, for example, has allowed Russian citizens without visas to stay for up to two months. However, Finland, Poland and the Baltic countries of Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia announced they will not offer refuge to Russians fleeing mobilization. In contrast, Germany offered asylum to Russian oppositionists and conscripts who did not want to go to war with Ukraine.


text: At least five yachts carrying Russian nationals have attempted to enter a number of South Korean ports, but only two Russian passengers were allowed entry.


text: Amnesty International noted that many Russian political emigrants, who entered the European Union on Schengen visas, become illegal immigrants after 90 days because they do not want to submit an applications for asylum due to impossibility to continue their activities as journalists, human rights activists, etc., in such case. In addition, many Russian oppositionists and representatives of civil society, who are in Russia or who had migrated to other non-safe countries from Russia (for example, to CIS-countries), do not have Schengen visas and have difficulties in obtaining them. In this regard, on 25 May 2022, Amnesty International encouraged the Cabinet of Germany to expand the programme of humanitarian admission () on Russians persecuted by Putin's regime. This programme should include humanitarian visas issuance and granting of temporary residence and work permits.


text: Those who have fled tend to be young and well-educated professionals, leading some economists to suggest that the Russian brain drain is worsening. More than 50,000 Russian information technology specialists have left Russia.


text: Despite expecting mostly Jewish refugees from Ukraine, Israel has seen more arrivals from Russia. While Israel relaxed the "Law of Return" for Ukrainian emigrants, it did not extend that measure to Russian emigrants, who have instead obtained tourist visas while starting the citizenship application process.


text: Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev said that Kazakhstan would help fleeing Russians, saying that "Most of them are forced to leave because of the current hopeless situation."


text: On 16 March, president Vladimir Putin issued a warning to Russian "traitors", claiming that the West "wanted to use them as a fifth column" and that Russians would always be able to "distinguish the true patriots from the scum and the traitors". While some experts said Putin's ire was directed toward what he perceived to be wavering loyalty among Russian elites, and in particular, Russian oligarchs, statements from Kremlin officials have also broadly labeled those who fled as "traitors", as spokesman Dmitry Peskov affirmed the following day to "Reuters":"In such difficult times…Many people show their true colors…They vanish from our lives themselves. Some people are leaving their posts. Some are leaving their active work life. Some leave the country and move to other countries. That is how this cleansing happens."


text: On 23 March, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called on Russians to emigrate from Russia so as not to finance the war in Ukraine with their taxes.


text: In August, Zelenskyy called on Western countries to ban all Russian citizens from entering, including those opposed to the war, stating that Russians should "live in their own world until they change their philosophy".


text: While the United States has received Russian applications for asylum since the start of the invasion, it has warned against the increased trend of unauthorized entry: in one example, a maritime incursion by Russian nationals on a charter boat in Key West, Florida was initially characterized by the Department of Homeland Security as a "national security event", with the intercepted migrants subsequently scheduled to be deported.


text: On 27 September 2022, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre encouraged Russian men fleeing their home country to avoid being drafted to apply for asylum in the United States.


title: DeMolay International

text: DeMolay International is an international fraternal organization for young men ages 12 to 21. It was founded in Kansas City, Missouri, in 1919 and named for Jacques de Molay, the last Grand Master of the Knights Templar. DeMolay was incorporated in the 1990s and is classified by the IRS as a tax-exempt 501(c)(3) organization.


title: DeMolay International

text: DeMolay is open for membership to young men between the ages of 12 and 21 who acknowledge a higher spiritual power. It has about 15,000 active members spread throughout every continent except for Antarctica. There are active chapters in Canada, Germany, Australia, Japan, Philippines, Argentina, Aruba, French Guiana, Uruguay, Paraguay, Peru, Bolivia, Brazil, Ecuador (affiliated to Peru jurisdiction), Italy, Romania, Greece (affiliated to Romania jurisdiction), France, Albania, Montenegro, Serbia, Bosnia (affiliated to Serbia jurisdiction), Bulgaria and the United States.


title: DeMolay International

text: Although young women are not permitted to join DeMolay, chapters are permitted to elect chapter "sweethearts" and "princesses."


title: DeMolay International

text: DeMolay is part of the "family" of Masons and associated organizations. DeMolay is the youth group for young men. (Rainbow Girls and Job's Daughters are similar Masonic-related organizations for young women.)


title: DeMolay International

text: The Order of DeMolay was founded in 1919 with nine members, most of whom lived near each other in Kansas City.


title: DeMolay International

text: The crown appearing in the self-adopted heraldic arms (the emblem) of the order contains 10 rubies, each representing one of the original nine members and the organization's founder, Frank S. Land. Frank S. Land was a member of Ivanhoe Lodge No. 446. The rubies were originally portrayed as pearls; as each founding member died, the pearl representing him was changed to a ruby.


title: DeMolay International

text: The Order of DeMolay calls for every member to live according to those Virtues considered by the Order as something that distinguish the life of a leader and a good man. DeMolay also defends three fundamental freedoms:


title: DeMolay International

text: A local DeMolay body is known as a Chapter and is headed by the Master Councilor. The Master Councilor is elected by members of his Chapter and is usually among the older members of the group. The Master Councilor is assisted in his duties by a Senior Councilor and a Junior Councilor. The Senior Councilor is usually considered to be next in line as Master Councilor and Junior Councilor to follow, though two people can run against each other. The remaining officers of a Chapter are appointed by the Master Councilor, except for the Scribe, who is appointed by the Chapter's Advisory Council.


title: DeMolay International

text: Adult men mentor and supervise the Chapter and are referred to as "Dad." These men are often Masons or Senior DeMolays (former active members who have reached the age of 21) but can also be other men in the community, including the fathers of active members. The "Dad" term origiated with a founding member identifying Frank Land as a father figure, calling him "Dad Land". In recent years, women have also served as advisors [sic] for the group, and are referred to as "Mom".


title: DeMolay International

text: In addition to the individual Chapter, DeMolay has an officer structure at the state, provincial, or other large regional level led by a "State Master Councilor", "Provincial Master Councilor", or "Jurisdictional Master Councilor". In some countries, DeMolay may have a national level organization headed by a "National Master Councilor". There are also other state, provincial, or jurisdictional positions, based on the officers of a chapter, which vary for each jurisdiction. The lead advisor (always a Master Mason and a member of the Supreme Council) in a state, jurisdiction, or country, is called an "Executive Officer." The lead advisor internationally is known as a "Grand Master," who governs the International Supreme Council. There are also Active DeMolay officers at an international level; the "International Master Councilor" and "International Congress Secretary " are the heads of the International DeMolay Congress. These officers are always past Jurisdictional Master Councilors.


title: DeMolay International

text: In some countries other than the United States, the International Supreme Council of DeMolay has ceded control to an independent Supreme Council created to govern DeMolay in that country. Such a Supreme Council has its own Grand Master and officers. (Examples are Australia, Canada, Brazil, and the Philippines.)


title: DeMolay International

text: Some DeMolay Chapters elect young women to positions of leadership, who act to support members and their activities. These positions are not officially recognized by DeMolay International; they are approved subject to the authority of the Executive Officer in the jurisdiction.


title: DeMolay International

text: DeMolay Chapters may elect a "Chapter Sweetheart" to serve as the female representative of the Chapter, although she is not an initiated member of DeMolay. Her duties may include attending Chapter functions and acting as an ambassador of DeMolay. The "Sweetheart" must meet the age requirements of a particular jurisdiction or Chapter (often 14 to 21.) She may be a member of a neighboring Job's Daughters Bethel, Rainbow Assembly, or Triangle, but that is not a set requirement in most Jurisdictions.