Hitler had an obsession with the northern flank. When planning the attack on Norway, he overruled his staff and ordered the attack on Narvik. His aim was to secure a continuous supply of Swedish iron ore via Narvik for Germany. Swedish iron ore was a strategic resource much needed by Germany, even though controlling an annual production of 26 million tons, after she had conquered the whole of Europe. The armament industry in Germany alone needed 11 million tons annually. The Swedish iron was pure and highly suitable to make the steel needed in the armament industries of Germany. Hence the strong interest in Swedish ore.

After the British raids on the Lofoten islands in 1941, Hitler was convinced that the raids were armed reconnaissance before an invasion, and that the aim of the allies was to take Narvik. The author Collin Partridge writes in his book “Hitler’s Atlantic Wall” that: “The raids finally convinced Hitler that Norway was “the zone of destiny” in this war. On all the Norwegian sites, the Narvik-Harstad area received priority”. This is a correct observation. 

Today, we know that the German countermeasure was a formidable strengthening of the coastal defences on the fjords leading to Narvik from the north and west. Almost a quarter of all the major fortifications built along the coast of Norway were installed in the Ofoten, Lofoten, Vesterålen and the Harstad area. To underline the German emphasis on this area, they sent eight 40,6cm guns for two batteries as part of this fortification. They were the most powerful and expensive guns Germany possessed at that time. One of the guns was lost in transit when the barge sank. Part of the years 1941 and 1942 were used by Germans for reconnaissance and to determine where and what to build.

It was decided to build two batteries to hold the 40,6cm guns, one at Engeløy in Steigen and one at Trondenes near Harstad. They were named Batterie Dietl, with three guns, and Batterie Trondenes with four guns; the latter later became Batterie Theo.

In 1942 Organization Todt was tasked and construction began on the two batteries at Trondenes and Engeløy. Russian POWs were used as slave labourers for all the heavy work. In the spring of 1943 the first bunkers were ready and the guns test fired. The installations were further improved during the rest of the war.

The guns were never fired in anger. After the war, both batteries became part of the Norwegian coastal defence. Battery Dietl was, however, decommissioned in the early fifties and was scrapped in 1956. At Trondenes the battery remained with the Norwegian Costal Defence forces up to 1964 when it was decommissioned, but luckily not scrapped. Today, they are the only remaining guns of their type in the world and have become a unique attraction.

© Vågsfjord Krigshistorie v/Harald Isachsen