Viking Magazine - May 2015 - 19

OSCARSBORG
UNDER ATTACK
On April 8, 1940, just before
midnight, a Norwegian whaler
boat patrolling the inlet of the
fjord spotted and confronted
a slew of German ships that
were sailing for Oslo and aiming
for a decisive takeover of king
and country. Damaged in
the skirmish, the boat
managed to fire flares
before the captain
drowned, Norway's
first World War II
casualty, alerting
the coastal batteries
up and down the
fjord. At 04:21 on April 9,
Commander Briger Eriksen
ordered the fortress soldiers to
open fire on Blücher, a heavy
cruiser, crippling the ship's
steering, knocking out the main
guns and triggering fires aboard.
But the Norwegian soldiers
in the fortress, many of them
conscripted just one week earlier
and with little more than written
instructions on how to operate
the fortress weapons, could
hear the German sailors singing
" Deutschland, Deutschland über
alles " as the ship passed the
narrowest spot of the fjord, just
600 yards from island to shore.
Nine minutes after the first
shots, the soldiers at Oscarsborg
descended the tunnels and
launched two 40-year-old
torpedoes, neither of which the
Germans knew existed and both
of which struck the ship. The
first shot silenced the singers
and the second one stopped
the ship dead with a blow to
the engines. Thinking Blücher
had hit a mine, the German
ships lined up behind her and
retreated. At 05:30 there
was a massive explosion
midship and by 06:00
the order had been
given to abandon
ship. At 06:22, Blücher
sank, taking the
lives of 500 to 1,000
German soldiers and
officers aboard. In the chaos
of fire, smoke and waves, the
Norwegians gained time. And
that time changed everything.
King Haakon, the brother of
King Christian X of Denmark
who had surrendered to the
Germans the same morning
after two hours of fighting,
escaped from Oslo to Elverum
with his family, his cabinet
and much of the parliament.
Under Haakon's steely and
single-minded leadership, the
government refused to yield to
German force. The king would
hide from German air raids,
sometimes under nothing more
than birch canopies, for nearly
two months before escaping
to England where he would
rule in exile.
MORE FORTRESSES TO EXPLORE
Akershus Fortress: Built in the late 13th century under
the rule of King Håkon V, the Oslo fortress is a national
symbol.
Vardøhus Fortress: The world's northernmost fortress
sits on an island in the Barents Sea.
Hegra Fortress: Located near Trondheim, it features
artifacts, uniforms and photos from World War II.
Kristiansten Fortress: The fort was built after
Trondheim's city fire in 1681. The cannon tower is known
as the Donjon and houses a defense museum, which is
open to the public.
Fredriksten Fortress: Constructed in 1661, the fortress is
comprised of three freestanding forts on approximately
150 acres.
sonsofnorway.com VIKING MAY 2015 19
PHOTOS FAR RIGHT (TOP TO BOTTOM): TERJE BORUD / VISITNORWAY.COM, FORSVARSBYGG NASJONALE FESTNINGSVERK / FORSVARSBYGG NATIONAL FORTIFICATION HERITAGE, CATO EDVARDSEN, PETR ŠMERKL / WIKIPEDIA, KJETIL BJØRNSRUD

http://www.VISITNORWAY.COM http://www.sonsofnorway.com

Viking Magazine - May 2015

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