Hitler’s Pre-Emptive War: The Battle for Norway, 1940 (34 page)

Bonte’s problems were twofold. Each destroyer required about 600 tons of fuel for the return trip to Germany. With the loss of
Kattegat
, he had only half of the fuel called for in the operational plan.
Jan Wellem
could only provide this amount through the time-consuming procedure of mixing diesel oil with boiler oil.
²
The second problem involved the time required to refuel. With two tankers, he could have refueled four destroyers at a time and the time required would be much shorter since there would be no need to mix diesel oil and boiler oil. With one tanker, only two destroyers could refuel simultaneously, and each pair required seven to eight hours. Only three destroyers were refueled by 2400 hours, April 9.

The order in which Bonte refueled them presented a problem in itself.
Wilhelm Heidkamp
, Bonte’s flagship, was one of the refueled destroyers. The other two were
Bernd von Arnim
and
Georg Thiele
. However, the last two destroyers also had minor engine troubles that needed to be fixed before they could undertake the voyage back to Germany. Only one destroyer was therefore fully ready to depart. At 1357 hours Captain Bonte sent a message to Admiral Saalwächter at Naval Command West and to Admiral Lütjens, who was waiting to link up with the destroyers. The message notified them that the destroyers could not depart Narvik on April 9 as planned, but Bonte intended to depart after dark on April 10, by which time all destroyers should be refueled. Saalwächter approved Bonte’s decision and informed him that German submarines had taken up positions at the entrance to Norwegian fjords, including Vestfjord and Ofotfjord.

U-boat Group 1, consisting of
U25
,
U46
,
U51
,
U64
and
U65
, operated off North Norway. Some of these submarines were now patrolling Vestfjord and Ofotfjord along the approach any British force would have to follow.
U51
patrolled the inner part of Vestfjord;
U25
was in position off Barøy Lighthouse; and
U46
was in Ofotfjord, off Ramnes. Bonte’s journal entries indicate that he had strong faith in the submarines’ ability to warn him about approaching enemy ships. He was confident that the two submarines in the narrow straits near Barøy and Ramnes would detect any approaching enemy force. He even hoped that the submarines could prevent an enemy attempt to enter the fjord. This assessment was an overestimation of the submarines’ capabilities in the low visibility caused by almost continuous snow squalls. Naval Command West informed Bonte about the submarines’ positions and he in turn asked that command to impress upon the U-boat commanders the importance of their mission to report and hinder a British attack on Narvik.

The British would have been dismayed to know that the Germans had excellent and accurate intelligence about British naval operations. The information was obtained from intercepted and deciphered British radio traffic. Captain Bonte knew, for example, that a large naval force, thought to be the main body of the Home Fleet, was on its way north and that the force in or near Vestfjord included two battle cruisers. The most important intelligence passed to Bonte was that a British destroyer flotilla had orders to attack an unknown target.

Bonte may have feared air attacks more than a surface attack and this concern probably influenced how he deployed the ships that were not refueling in the evening of April 9. To some extent, his concern was unwarranted. Narvik was well beyond the reach of British land-based aircraft. The nearest British aircraft carrier was with the Home Fleet, still well out of range, but believed to be heading north. Bonte directed Commander Berger to send
George Thiele
and
Bernd von Arnim
into Ballangen Bay, about 15 miles southwest of Narvik. He ordered Commander Bey to take the destroyers
Wolfgang Zenker
,
Erich Giese
, and
Erich Koellner
into Herjangsfjord, about ten miles northeast of Narvik. Commander Hans-Joachim Gadow was to keep three of the 3rd Destroyer Flotilla’s four destroyers in Narvik to refuel. The fourth destroyer was assigned patrol duty in Ofotfjord. This destroyer would be relieved, as required, by the refueling schedule. Bonte also kept his flagship,
Wilhelm Heidkamp
, in Narvik. He planned initially to have the refueled
Wilhelm Heidkamp
join the three destroyers in Herjangsfjord. However, Dietl convinced him to remain in Narvik to facilitate consultations.

At 2200 hours on April 9, Captain Bonte received a radio message from Lieutenant Commander Knorr, the skipper of
U51
. This submarine patrolled the inner part of Vestfjord and reported sighting five British destroyers on a southwest course. This course took them away from Narvik and therefore the message did not cause Bonte to take any further precautions. As in the case of Admiral Forbes earlier with respect to Task Force 2, Captain Bonte placed too much reliance on the reported course of the British destroyers. These ships were waiting for dawn and high tide for their entry into Ofotfjord and the German submarine just happened to see the ships while they were heading southwestward.

Bonte is criticized for the actions he took or failed to take that fateful evening. Some of the criticism is justified, but not all. Bonte failed to be sufficiently on guard, despite knowing that superior British naval forces were in the Vestfjord area. However, it was logical for Bonte to assume that the three submarines at the entrance to Ofotfjord and one destroyer on patrol in the fjord outside the harbor entrance would provide adequate warning about a British attack. It was difficult for Bonte to increase the early warning patrols since seven of the ten destroyers were not refueled and did not have sufficient fuel to patrol. Nevertheless, he could have used his fully refueled flagship, despite Dietl’s desire for it to remain in Narvik, and the two destroyers in Ballangen Bay to patrol further out in the fjord to provide earlier warning of approaching enemy forces.

He also kept too many destroyers in Narvik harbor, which was most likely to be the target of any surprise attack. There were five destroyers in the harbor when the British attacked but Bonte believed there were only four. Two had to be there in order to refuel. However, it would have been a good idea to move
Jan Wellem
to a side fjord to conduct the refueling operation. Refueling destroyers were vulnerable targets and the destruction of
Jan Wellem
would have ended all hopes of bringing the destroyers back to Germany. He could also have reduced the number of ships in Narvik by taking his flagship out of the immediate harbor area and by relocating the destroyer that was not actually involved in refueling operations. Bogen, on the north side of the fjord, or Rombaken would have been a good place for these two ships.

Captain Dickens is critical of Bonte for failing to issue orders to the destroyer captains about what actions to take in case of attack. With the exception of those in the harbor, the German ships were in excellent positions to respond to an attack. The three destroyers in Herjangsfjord threatened the flank of any force attacking Narvik. The two in Ballangen Bay could strike an attacking force from the rear. If instructions were in fact lacking, we can only conclude that the German destroyer captains responded in a professional manner and it is difficult to see how instructions could have improved on their actions.

General Dietl’s main concern was a Norwegian counterattack and he placed his emphasis on improving and strengthening the defenses in the two beachheads. There were five armed British merchant ships in Narvik harbor when the Germans attacked. These were seized, the crews imprisoned, and attempts were begun to bring their guns ashore to support Dietl’s troops. Bonte understood how exposed and ill equipped the German troops were, and he ordered all small arms and ammunition on the destroyers brought ashore for their use. The German operational plan called for Dietl to seize Bardufoss Airfield and the Setermoen depot and training area as quickly as possible after landing. The heavy snowfall blocked all roads leading north and it was therefore not possible to begin this part of the plan immediately.

The German dispositions at Narvik remained generally unchanged during April 9. The preponderance of the 139th Mountain Infantry Regiment (two battalions) remained near Elvegårdsmoen. This part of the 139th Regiment is later referred to as Group Windisch, after its commander, Colonel Windisch. Platoon and company-size security forces were positioned north of Bjerkvik and on both sides of Herjangsfjord. Dietl had to rely on Norwegian telephone facilities to communicate with Windisch since most of the division’s communications equipment was lost on the stormy passage from Germany.

In retrospect, General Dietl’s worries about a Norwegian counterattack were not well founded. The only Norwegian force near Narvik was the remnants of the 1/13th Inf that had managed to slip out of town. It was in no position to undertake offensive operations of any kind. The only other forces within a reasonable distance were the 2/15th Inf and the 3rd Mountain Artillery Bn. The 2/15 Inf, located at Setermoen, and a motorized artillery battery were ordered to Elvegårdsmoen late in the evening of April 8, but the heavy snowfall kept these units from making any appreciable progress.

General Fleischer remained in Vadsø on April 9 since the weather prevented a return to his headquarters. He kept in contact with District Command by telephone. Fleischer did not wait for the government to order mobilization. At 0445 hours on April 9 he ordered the mobilization of the remaining two line battalions of the 16th Infantry Regiment and later the same morning he expanded the mobilization to include the Alta Battalion and the remaining battalion of the 14th Infantry Regiment in Mosjøen. He also ordered all aircraft to Bardufoss where they could support operations near Narvik. Fleischer halted the move of the units from Setermoen to the Narvik area and these were instead concentrated in defensive positions in Salangsdal, south of Setermoen.

The British Reaction to the Capture of Narvik and Admiralty Intervention

It will be recalled that Admiral Whitworth finally dispatched his destroyers in the morning of April 9 to take up positions at the entrance to Vestfjord to prevent the Germans from reaching Narvik. The British were operating in an intelligence vacuum. The concentration of naval forces at the entrance to Vestfjord was based on the faulty assumption that the Germans were still to their south. When the 2nd Destroyer Flotilla, commanded by the 45-year old Captain Bernard Armitage Warburton-Lee, established a patrol line across the Vestfjord entrance at 0930 hours (GMT) on April 9, the Germans were already in firm control of Narvik.

Shortly after establishing the patrol line across Vestfjord, Captain Warburton-Lee began receiving a stream of contradictory orders and directives from his superiors. At 0952 hours (GMT) An order from Admiral Forbes, bypassing Admiral Whitworth, directed him to send destroyers to Narvik to ensure that no German troops landed in that city. Five minutes later, Warburton-Lee received an order from Admiral Whitworth to join him about 50 nautical miles southwest of Skomvær Lighthouse. Finally, at midday, the Admiralty intervened by sending the following message directly to Captain Warburton-Lee:

This Admiralty message bypassed both Admirals Forbes and Whitworth. The Admiralty had no business in directing tactical operations in this way, but it is possible that Churchill was behind this order. While the Admiralty had now concluded that the Germans were already in Narvik, their intelligence was limited only to press reports, which were wildly inaccurate.

These messages must have both flattered and frustrated Warburton-Lee, but the conflicting orders gave him an opportunity to use his initiative and to follow his own instincts. The order from Forbes allowed Warburton-Lee to ignore the order from Whitworth to withdraw, since Admiral Forbes was the senior of the two. Warburton-Lee, the central actor in the coming events, is described as follows by Dickens:
⁴
“He was a man of integrity, honour and ambition; a dedicated man, intensely professional and although an excellent games-player, somewhat aloof and single-minded.” This officer took his four destroyers,
Hardy
,
Hunter
,
Havock,
and
Hotspur
, and proceeded up Vestfjord to carry out the order of his Commander-in-Chief.

Warburton-Lee was more than a little skeptical about the information forwarded by the Admiralty. It appeared inconceivable that the Germans would have undertaken an expedition to Narvik with only one ship, and equally unlikely that they would have entrusted such an important operation to only a few troops. He was also concerned about the Norwegian shore batteries in the fjord. The general lack of intelligence led him to make an effort to gather whatever information he could on his own before taking any further action. He stopped at Tranøy Lighthouse (on the east side of Vestfjord, about 50 miles north of the British minefield) around 1600 hours (GMT) and sent two officers ashore to find out what the officials at the pilot station knew about the conditions in Ofotfjord and enemy strength in Narvik. While at Tranøy, a fifth destroyer,
Hostile
, joined the British force.
⁵

The British party sent ashore did not speak Norwegian and the Norwegians they met did not speak English. The communications that followed boiled down to a mixture of a few words of English and gestures. The two officers came away from the encounter with the impression that there was some disagreement among the Norwegians whether four or five German warships had passed on their way to Narvik. For unknown reasons, the two officers reported that six German warships had headed for Narvik.