Qualla: Actions in Nordland https://qualla.com/actions-in-nordland en-us © 2026 Bendyline Mon, 20 Jul 2026 10:21:35 GMT Qualla serial false Qualla support@bendyline.com yes https://qualla.com/_m/u/7/9/m/actions-in-nordland-wp/hero-small.webp Qualla: Actions in Nordland https://qualla.com/actions-in-nordland Actions in Nordland: Introduction https://qualla.com/actions-in-nordland/ Photo credit Unknown author, Public domain. The German mountain troops covered 125 miles from Grong to Mosjoen on foot, against armed opposition, in five days. That pace tells you everything about the campaign fought in Nordland during May 1940 -- the speed of the German advance, the hopelessness of the Allied position, and the brutal terrain that made every mile a fight. When Germany launched Operation Weserubung on 9 April 1940, seizing Norway's ports, the Allies scrambled to respond. In the far north, the port of Narvik became the prize, and to prevent German forces from relieving their isolated garrison there, a patchwork of British, French, and Norwegian units was thrown into the mountainous, sparsely populated county of Nordland. What followed was a month of ambushes, retreats, disasters at sea, and a final evacuation that left Bodo in ruins.

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]]> Fri, 27 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://qualla.com/_m/u/7/9/m/actions-in-nordland-wp/u79m-actions-in-nordland-intro.mp3 0:06 1 full Actions in Nordland: Scissorsforce and the Independent Companies https://qualla.com/actions-in-nordland/ Photo credit Unknown author, Public domain. The British units sent to Nordland were among the most unusual in the army. MI(R), a War Office branch specializing in irregular warfare, had formed ten Independent Companies for raiding purposes under Lieutenant Colonel Colin Gubbins -- the man who would later direct the Special...

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]]> Fri, 27 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://qualla.com/_m/u/7/9/m/actions-in-nordland-wp/u79m-actions-in-nordland-scissorsforce-and-the-independent-companies.mp3 0:06 2 full Actions in Nordland: Ambush at Mosjoen https://qualla.com/actions-in-nordland/ Photo credit Unknown author, Public domain. The first real engagement came on 10 May. No. 5 Independent Company and two Norwegian companies held a position ten miles from Mosjoen, where the road from the south squeezed between the Bjornaa river and steep hillsides. When German troops from the 181st Infantry Division advanc...

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]]> Fri, 27 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://qualla.com/_m/u/7/9/m/actions-in-nordland-wp/u79m-actions-in-nordland-ambush-at-mosjoen.mp3 0:06 3 full Actions in Nordland: Disasters at Sea https://qualla.com/actions-in-nordland/ Photo credit Unknown author, Public domain. The deployment of reinforcements -- the 24th Guards Brigade, diverted from the Narvik siege -- became a catalogue of misfortune. On 14 May, the destroyer carrying Brigadier William Fraser was bombed and forced to limp to Scapa Flow, taking the brigade commander with it. The next ...

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]]> Fri, 27 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://qualla.com/_m/u/7/9/m/actions-in-nordland-wp/u79m-actions-in-nordland-disasters-at-sea.mp3 0:06 4 full Actions in Nordland: Fighting Retreat to Bodo https://qualla.com/actions-in-nordland/ Photo credit Unknown author, Public domain. Gubbins assumed command and orchestrated a fighting withdrawal northward through the Saltdal valley. At Pothus, Lieutenant Colonel Hugh Stockwell held a delaying position with the reconstituted Irish Guards -- whose senior surviving officer was a captain -- the Independent Compan...

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]]> Fri, 27 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://qualla.com/_m/u/7/9/m/actions-in-nordland-wp/u79m-actions-in-nordland-fighting-retreat-to-bodo.mp3 0:06 5 full Actions in Nordland: Seeds of Special Operations https://qualla.com/actions-in-nordland/ Photo credit Unknown author, Public domain. The Nordland campaign's legacy extended far beyond its immediate military failure. Gubbins was awarded the Distinguished Service Order and, rather than receiving the divisional command he had earned, was sent back to MI(R) to organize the Auxiliary Units -- a secret stay-behind f...

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]]> Fri, 27 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://qualla.com/_m/u/7/9/m/actions-in-nordland-wp/u79m-actions-in-nordland-seeds-of-special-operations.mp3 0:06 6 full