Mountain Corps Norway
Mountain Corps Norway (German: Gebirgskorps Norwegen) was a German army unit during World War II. It saw action in Norway and Finland.
The corps was formed in July 1940 and was later transferred to Northern Norway as part of AOK Norwegen. Its first action was taking part in Operation Renntier, the occupation of Finnish Petsamo. In June 1941 the corps attacked from Petsamo to Murmansk in an operation codenamed Platinfuchs. The attack failed and the corps never reached its goal.
In April and May 1942 the Corps faced one of its toughest challenges. During a period of three weeks, the 14th Soviet Army attacked, trying to defeat the Corps. But there was another enemy - on May 4, 1942, a devastating, 90-hour-long polar storm took its toll on the soldiers.[1]
In November 1942 the corps was renamed the XIX Gebirgskorps or XIX Mountain Corps.
In 1944 the corps finally had to retreat back to Norway, where it surrendered in May 1945. From November 1944 onwards the corps was also sometimes known as Armeeabteilung Narvik.
Commanders
- Generaloberst Eduard Dietl (14 June 1940 - 15 January 1942)
- Generalfeldmarschall Ferdinand Schörner (15 January 1942 - 1 October 1943)
- General der Gebirgstruppe Georg Ritter von Hengl (1 October 1943 - 15 May 1944)
- General der Gebirgstruppe Ferdinand Jodl (15 May 1944 - 8 May 1945)
Area of operations
| Date | Area | Subordinate to | Operations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 July 1940 - 19 December 1940 | Norway | Gruppe XXI | Operation Weserübung |
| 19 December 1940 - 14 January 1942 | Finland | AOK Norwegen | Operation Platinfuchs |
| 14 January 1942 - 22 June 1942 | Finland | AOK Lappland | - |
| 22 June 1942 - 24 April 1945 | Finland, Norway | GebAOK 20 | Operation Nordlicht |
Organisation
- 2.Gebirgs-Division
- 3.Gebirgs-Division (until September 1941)
- 6.Gebirgs-Division
- 210th Coastal Defense Division (1943 - October 1944)
- Division Rossi
- Er.Os. P (Finnish Separate Detachment P)
- Finnish 14th Regiment (2 battalions)
Strength based on supply documents
On April 30, 1942, the supply numbers for the Mountain Corps Norway showed the following numbers: 73,978 men and 8,913 horses [2]
Of the men:
- 48,576 were Heer (Army)
- 8,744 were Luftwaffe (Air Force)
- 6,942 were Kriegsmarine (Navy)
- 2,380 were Reichsarbeitsdienst (labor service)
- 975 were Organisation Todt
- Plus some Finns (border security, road maintenance), Norwegian and Dutch workers, Nationalsozialistisch Kraftfahrkorps (Speer) and 2,335 prisoners of war.