The 6th Brigade’s immediate objective was the Vasshaugen-Elvemo area east of Hartvigvann. Fleischer expected the brigade to reach this area by May 5. The division order of April 29 required that the 6th Brigade be prepared to start its offensive within 24 hours. It was allowed to send the reinforced Co 6, 2/16th to Gressvann early in the evening of April 29 and the reinforced Co 7, 2/16th to Brattbakken. The mission of Co 6, 2/16th was to clear the Germans from the area north of Gressvann while Co 7, 2/16 provided flank security and patrolled towards Storfossen, behind the German defensive positions at the southern end of Gressvann. Norwegian aircraft stationed at Bardufoss and naval aircraft operating from Tromsø were to support the attack.
German forces contesting the Norwegian-French offensive consisted of the 1st and 3rd Battalions of the 139th Regiment. The 1st Bn, commanded by Major Stautner, consisted of 2nd, 4th, 5th, and 13th companies. Company 1 of this battalion was detached, as earlier related, to Bjørnefjell. The 1/139th covered the Gratangen-Bjerkvik road. Patrols from both battalions covered the approaches in the mountainous area in the east for about eight kilometers, to the vicinity of Lortvann and Høgtind. Since the Germans did not believe it possible for major enemy units to operate in the eastern wilderness, it was weakly defended when the Norwegian offensive began. For example, a 16-men detachment with only one machinegun had the mission of securing the Gressvann area.
The bulk of the 3/139th (Co 12 and parts of Cos 14 and 15), commanded by Major Hagemann, was co-located with the regimental headquarters in the Hartvigvann area. Company 11 of this battalion defended Bjerkvik against possible enemy landings in Herjangsfjord. The road leading west from Bjerkvik was secured by only one platoon. The coastline south of Bjerkvik was covered by three companies from Naval Battalion Kothe. The Øyjord area was occupied by Co 3, 139th. The operational boundary between the two German battalions was a line over Hills 785, 842, and 856 with the mountain tops assigned to the 1st Battalion.
6th Brigade’s Attack
The 6th Brigade ordered 1/16th Bn commanded by Major Hunstad and 2/16th Bn commanded by Major Munthe-Kaas, to prepare to execute the attack on a one-hour notice after midnight on April 30. The 1/12th Inf, now assigned to the brigade, did not participate since it was still undergoing reorganization because of its heavy losses in Gratangen on April 24. The advance was divided into three phases. The first phase line was near Hill 437, a ridgeline that separated Gressdal from the Stormyra area. The second phase line ran from Hill 1009 across Gressvann to Hill 1013. The valley in this area is actually a defile with almost vertical walls that are 1200 to 1500 feet in height. An advance through this defile was only possible if the western mountains were in friendly hands. The final phase line ran from Læigastind (Hill 1335) to Hill 1146 (Bukkefjell). The broken mountainous terrain, and their superior cross-country mobility, offered the Norwegians an opportunity to outmaneuver the Germans. The 8th Mountain Artillery Battery was to follow 1/16th Inf and set up in firing positions on Hill 437.
A platoon from Co 6, 2/16, on a security mission at the southern end of Stormyra, made the first contact with the Germans during the night of April 29. Two machinegun sections sent towards a cabin at the southern end of Gressvann ran into a German unit. This German squad-size unit had an observation mission at the southern end of the Stormyr area and withdrew as the Norwegians approached. The sergeant who commanded the Norwegian unit was wounded and he and two machine gunners were captured. The rest of the platoon took up positions on Hill 437.
The early and piecemeal forward movement of Norwegian forces in the east alerted Colonel Windisch to the fact that his troops faced a major threat in that area. He made an urgent request to General Dietl for reinforcements. Dietl had expected the main Norwegian-French effort along Route 50 because of extensive shipping activities in the Sjøvegan and Gratangen areas since the last week in April. However, he now viewed the threat through the Gressdal-Vassdal area as the most dangerous. In this respect, Generals Fleischer and Dietl were thinking alike. A successful Norwegian advance through Gressdal, Raudal, and Vassdal, slipping behind the Germans occupying the high ground to the north, would pose a direct threat to the rear of Group Windisch. The Norwegians could not only sever its supply but cut its line of retreat.
The Germans had, as already mentioned, only a 16-man detachment at the southern end of Gressvann, which served as a supply point for forward observation posts. Dietl agreed with Windisch that it was imperative to reinforce Group Windisch’s right flank quickly. He immediately stripped three companies from forces located in other areas and sent them by forced marches to the threatened area. He ordered Major Schleebrügge, who had commanded the successful attack on Bjørnefjell in mid-April, to take Co 1, 1/139th to the threatened area on the right flank of the German northern front. The company started its march at 1300 hours on April 30. At Windisch’s request, the division had ordered one platoon from this company to Elvegårdsmoen on April 28. The mission of Co 1 in the Bjørnefjell area was taken over by naval Co Zenker. By an exhausting forced march, one platoon from Co 1 reinforced the detachment at the southern end of Gressvann while the rest of the company occupied Britatind on May 1 and caused much difficulty for the 6th Brigade.4
The other two German companies rushed in as reinforcements were a mixture of mountain troops and naval personnel from Narvik, Cos Brucker and Erdmenger. These units started their move in the evening of April 30 via a difficult route in order to avoid fire from British warships. They marched from Narvik along the southern shore of Beisfjord, climbed and crossed the mountains at the southern end of this fjord to Sildvik from where they were brought by train to Nordal Bridge. From there, they undertook an arduous 29-hour march through mountains covered by 3-6 feet of loose snow to the area east of Hartvigvann. Company Müller (1st Lieutenant Müller from the division staff took over command when Captain Brucker became ill) arrived at its destination at 0330 hours on May 2 followed by Co Erdmenger at 0230 hours the following day. Company Erdmenger relieved Co 11, 3/139th of its coastal defense mission in the Bjerkvik area and that company was attached to 1/139th. Company Müller occupied the area from Storebalak northeastward during the night of May 4. The 3rd Division directed Group Windisch to relieve Co 3 at Øyjord with naval personnel in order that this full-strength company of mountain troops could be used for other missions. The regimental reserve was reduced to Co 12, 3/139th.5
The 2/16th Inf began its advance at 0500 hours on May 1. It took place in difficult terrain with deep snow. The battalion commander noted in his report that his unit had been severely reduced by the time the operation began and consisted of only one reinforced rifle company, one under-strength rifle company, a machinegun platoon, and a mortar section. Two squads from this force were also sent into the mountains on the west side of Gressdal as security. To make matters worse, the battalion had never operated as a unit and the troops had not even tested their weapons.6
There appears to have been some confusion about the operational boundary between the 7th and 6th Brigades and this became a factor in the failure of the 6th Brigade to reach its objective in Vassdalen. Major Munthe-Kaas, the commander of the 2/16th Inf, assumed that the 7th Brigade was responsible for securing the high ground west of Gressdal. The 6th Brigade order appears to recognize a responsibility for the western high ground since it directed the 2/16th Inf to protect the brigade’s right flank and clear the mountainous area north of Læigasvann. The confusion was increased by a report from division that there were no German forces in the Britatind (Hill 1009) area. Munthe-Kaas probably assumed that this report was based on the 7th Brigade having captured this area or determined that it was clear of German forces.7
The 2/16th Inf reached the first phase line at 0800 on May 1 and sent Co 6 forward to take up positions at the northern end of Gressvann, near the second phase line. At 1035 hours, the battalion was ordered to attack the German forces located at the southern end of Gressvann. This was a deviation from the planned two-battalion drive, one on each side of the l
ake, after the 1/16th Inf had passed through the 2/16th Inf. The 1/16 was still at the first phase line and the advance became a single battalion action. Whatever the reasons for the change, it became very difficult to deploy two battalions in the narrow valley after the Germans secured Britatind.
The 2/16th, with Co 6 in the lead, progressed steadily but rather slowly because of difficult snow conditions. The Norwegians continued forward even after they met heavy German fire from the heights west of Gressvann, heights they had assumed were clear of enemy forces. The great difference in altitude made the German fire inaccurate and only a few soldiers were wounded, one seriously. The battalion was well supported by mortar and artillery fire as long as there was landline connection but when they ran out of communication wire and ammunition for the mortars, the advance came to a halt. The lead company was withdrawn after a large German force was reported southeast of Hill 1009.
The lead company of the 1/16th Inf reached phase line two at 1530 hours on May 1. The battalion continued its advance along the east side of the lake but received heavy fire from German positions at the southern end of the lake and from Britatind. The Norwegians placed effective mortar and artillery fire on the enemy positions near the cabin located at the southern end of the lake and the 16-man German detachment withdrew to positions on the northwest slope of Bukkefjell (Hill 1146). Unfortunately, the Norwegians did not press the attack. They undoubtedly did not know the actual strength of the German defenders but the fact that the Germans had only one machinegun should have told them that the force was small. Instead of pursuing, the 1/16th Inf went into night positions and sent security patrols into the mountains to the east. One patrol drove a German outpost from Rivtind (Hill 1458).
The 6th Division was concerned that the troops would soon be exhausted in the winter wilderness. The division estimated that the troops could only tolerate two nights of operations in the mountains. In the division’s view, the 6th Brigade had to reach Vassdal by the morning of May 5 or the brigades would have to retire to positions where the troops could rest. Lindbäck-Larsen wrote later that the troops demonstrated they could endure far more than the division anticipated.
In the evening of May 2, after a delay of nearly 24 hours, the 6th Bde ordered the 1/16th Inf to resume its advance along the east side of Gressvann towards the area to the northeast of Storfossen. The battalion was reinforced by Co 5 from the 2/16th. Major Hunstad began his advance at 0400 hours on May 3 with two companies forward, the 1st on the left and the 3rd on the right. While Co 3 followed the east shore of the lake, Co 1 worked itself diagonally up the steep mountainside into a flanking position between Hills 1013 and 1146. Despite continued fire from German positions on the high ground to the west and on the northwest slope of Bukkefjell, the battalion reached its initial objective at the southern end of the lake.
The German positions southeast of the cabin, on the northwest slope of Bukkefjell, were the battalion’s next objective. Company 1 worked its way along the foot of Hill 1146 towards the German right flank. The company eventually reached an avalanche within 400 meters of the Germans. Company 3 occupied the high ground east of the cabin. Both companies found themselves in open terrain under heavy German fire that the artillery and mortars failed to silence. Around 2000 hours, Hunstad ordered the companies to dig in for the night. It took quite an effort to keep the troops, soaked from the wet snow, from falling asleep.
There were good reasons for the stiffened German resistance. The 16-man detachment, driven back on May 1, was reinforced that evening by a platoon from Schleebrügge’s force. The defenses in the Sorebalak-Gressvann area were taken over by Lieutenant Müller’s company in the early evening of May 3. Dietl and Windisch were sufficiently concerned about the Norwegian threat in the east to order Co 11 commanded by Captain Lömberger to move into the area between Læigastind (Hill 1335) and Britatind (Hill 1009). Company 11 had just arrived in the Storfossen area from Bjerkvik and Co Erdmenger took over its positions in that area.
The left prong of the Norwegian advance ran out of steam at the line reached by Major Hunstad’s battalion. This was five kilometers short of the 6th Brigade’s objective for the offensive. The 1/16th Inf remained in these positions until May 5 when the battalion was relieved by the 2/16th Inf and given another mission. The 1/16th was first moved to a rest area north of Hill 437 but after a couple of hours in that position, it was alerted for an advance via Lortvann to the lake on the east side of Læigastind (Hill 1335). At that point, the battalion would come under the operational control of the 7th Brigade. The withdrawal of 1/16th Inf from the Gressdal front was compensated for by the movement of 1/12th Inf to the north end of Gressvann where it became the brigade reserve.
The 2/16th Inf continued the pressure on the German positions on the ridgeline between Bukkefjell and Gressdalselven (Gressdal River), placing these positions under heavy direct and indirect fire. Because of this pressure, the Germans withdrew and the Norwegians promptly occupied their positions. The Germans carried out a series of air attacks against the 2/16th on May 7 without inflicting any serious casualties. The Norwegians continued to probe towards Storfossen and the north side of Storebalak where the Germans had now established a number of defensive positions. The Gressdal River had thawed below Storfossen and it was not possible to move ammunition, supplies, and heavy weapons forward using sleds. The Norwegians examined alternate routes over the mountain plateau east of Storebalak.
The Germans concluded that the Norwegian advance in Gressdal had ended and that they were preparing an operation to bypass Gressdal with an advance through Bukkedal and against Storebalak. These conclusions were undoubtedly based on the failure of 2/16th to resume the attack in force and observations of Norwegian activities associated with the examination of alternate routes.
There are several reasons for the failure of General Fleischer’s main effort to reach its objective. The Norwegians neglected to secure Britatind overlooking the route of advance through Gressdal. The division reported the mountain clear of German units, but the Norwegians failed to send forces to occupy it. The early and piecemeal beginning of the 6th Brigade’s offensive tipped their hand and Colonel Windisch’s quick recognition of the dangers posed by the Norwegian advance in Gressdal and Dietl’s quick dispatch of three companies to this flank averted a serious problem.
Major Schleebrügge’s grasp that Britatind was the key to the operation and his quick occupation of that objective enabled the Germans to place flanking fire on the advancing Norwegian troops. At the same time, his quick reinforcement of the German defenders in Gressdal reduced the chance of a Norwegian breakthrough.
The 6th Brigade attacked with two battalions but, as noted, the 2/16th Inf had been reduced to little more than a reinforced company when it began its advance. The weakest battalion was given the lead and there was insufficient space in the valley to deploy more the one battalion at a time.
General Dietl noted that Norwegian marksmanship was outstanding and their winter equipment and cross-country mobility was superior. However, their lack of aggressiveness when faced with obstacles demonstrated that they had still not achieved the required experience to eliminate quickly even a few determined defenders.8
There was a change in command of the 6th Brigade on May 8. Colonel Løken was reassigned to command the 6th District Command when Colonel Mjelde fell ill. Lieutenant Colonel Ole Berg, who had been a member of General Ruge’s staff, became the new 6th Brigade’s commander. This change of command came after the left prong of the Norwegian offensive ran out of steam and it could therefore not have contributed to the abandonment of the Gressdal attack.
The Germans were experiencing problems of their own. They were outnumbered by more than 6 to 1 on the northern front and they lacked some key equipment for winter warfare. There are repeated references in the 3rd Division journal to requests for such things as sunglasses and snowshoes. These were slow in arriving and General Dietl finally sent a curt message to General Jodl on May 4 stating that d
espite repeated requests, equipment needed badly by Group Windisch had not arrived. The 3rd Division was informed within four hours that sunglasses and snowshoes were on their way. The first parachute drop to Group Windisch on May 6 resulted in a mess of broken sunglasses.
The Germans also had difficulties obtaining ground support from the Luftwaffe. There are repeated references in the 3rd Division journal to requests for air support that was not provided, to requested aircraft arriving in the area but not dropping bombs, and to the Luftwaffe bombing German positions. One such incident resulted in six killed and four wounded. The problem was twofold. The Luftwaffe had not provided liaison to Dietl’s forces, not even a transmitter/receiver by which they could communicate with the aircraft. Radio equipment was finally delivered on May 6.
The second problem with air support was that pilots used maps with a scale of 1:1,000,000, rendering accurate air support an impossibility. Major Schleebrügge’s forces were bombed by their own aircraft on May 7 and he sent a blunt message that was relayed to Group XXI and the air support center in Trondheim. The major pointed out that effective close air support was impossible without a direct radio link between the troops and supporting aircraft. The maps carried by pilots made it impossible to distinguish between friendly and enemy positions in the mountainous terrain. Under these conditions, calling for air support often made a bad situation worse.
Attack by the Chasseurs Alpins
The dispositions of the 7th Brigade and the 6th Bn, 27th CA were discussed earlier in this chapter. There was still some movement of forces on April 30 in preparation for the planned offensive. The reinforced Co 2 from the Reserve Battalion, 16th Inf arrived by sea from Salangen and deployed to Foldevik and Laberget as rear security. The 6th Reserve Medical Company was also on its way by sea to the same location.
Hitler’s Pre-Emptive War: The Battle for Norway, 1940 Page 47