Misplaced Pages

#407592

58-546: The Alta battalion was mobilized 10 October 1939 to help guard Norway's neutrality in the Second World War and positioned in the border areas of eastern Finnmark during the Finnish Winter War to safeguard the northernmost areas of Norway against possible Soviet aggression. At the time the battalion consisted of around 900 soldiers. Guard and patrol duty in the border areas brought the battalion near

116-513: A mutual defense pact (under TIAR and NATO respectively). For many states, such as Ireland, neutrality does not mean the absence of any foreign interventionism. Peacekeeping missions for the United Nations are seen as intertwined with it. The Swiss electorate rejected a 1994 proposal to join UN peacekeeping operations. Despite this, 23 Swiss observers and police have been deployed around

174-478: A fellow member that is the victim of armed aggression. It accords "an obligation of aid and assistance by all the means in [other member states'] power" but would "not prejudice the specific character of the security and defense policy of certain Member States" (neutral policies), allowing members to respond with non-military aid. Ireland's constitution prohibits participating in such a common defence. With

232-581: A further 13 were purchased on 17 March 1934, arriving in the winter of 1935. During the Winter War , Sweden donated three more C.V-Es. Two C.V-Ds were also flown from Norway to Finland at the closing stages of the Norwegian Campaign. These were interned and turned over to the FAF. The aircraft were used as reconnaissance and light bomber aircraft between 20 September 1927 and 14 February 1945. During

290-683: A further 28 C.VDs followed between 1932 and 1939. In total, the NoAAS operated 48 Fokker C.Vs, 43 of which were license built in Norway. When the Germans invaded Norway on 9 April 1940, 42 Fokker C.Vs were still in Norwegian service. The C.Vs were based on several air bases in different parts of the country and mostly saw service as reconnaissance aircraft and light bombers. Although the planes were outdated, they still saw extensive and successful service in

348-489: A sizeable military, while barring itself from foreign deployment. Not all neutral countries avoid any foreign deployment or alliances, as Austria and Ireland have active UN peacekeeping forces and a political alliance within the European Union . Sweden 's traditional policy was not to participate in military alliances, with the intention of staying neutral in the case of war . Immediately before World War II ,

406-404: Is already in port, in which case it must have a 24-hour head start. A prize ship captured by a belligerent in the territorial waters of a neutral power must be surrendered by the belligerent to the neutral, which must intern its crew. Neutrality has been recognised in different ways, and sometimes involves a formal guarantor. For example, Switzerland and Belgium's neutrality was recognized by

464-534: The Donegal Corridor , making it possible for British planes to attack German U-boats in the mid-Atlantic. On the other hand, both Axis and Allied pilots who crash landed in Ireland were interned. Sweden and Switzerland, surrounded by possessions and allies of Nazi Germany similarly made concessions to Nazi requests as well as to Allied requests. Sweden was also involved in intelligence operations with

522-626: The Low Countries . The German 10 May invasion, and the disastrous consequences of this operation for the Allies , led to the land, sea and air forces committed to the Norwegian Campaign being suddenly withdrawn, with notice given the Norwegian authorities only days before the evacuation. Without the support of the RAF and the Royal Navy the Norwegian government lost all hope of prevailing against

580-691: The Nordic countries stated their neutrality, but Sweden changed its position to that of non-belligerent at the start of the Winter War . Sweden would uphold its policy of neutrality until the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine . During the Cold War , former Yugoslavia claimed military and ideological neutrality from both the Western and Eastern Bloc , becoming a co-founder of the Non-Aligned Movement . There have been considerable changes to

638-472: The SCO ). As a type of non-combatant status, nationals of neutral countries enjoy protection under the law of war from belligerent actions to a greater extent than other non-combatants such as enemy civilians and prisoners of war . Different countries interpret their neutrality differently: some, such as Costa Rica have demilitarized , while Switzerland holds to "armed neutrality", to deter aggression with

SECTION 10

#1732781022408

696-685: The Allies, including listening stations in Sweden and espionage in Germany. Spain offered to join the war on the side of Nazi Germany in 1940, allowed Axis ships and submarines to use its ports, imported war materials for Germany, and sent a Spanish volunteer combat division to aid the Nazi war effort. Portugal officially stayed neutral, but actively supported both the Allies by providing overseas naval bases, and Germany by selling tungsten . The United States

754-586: The Axis and Allied powers alike, while still keeping to the rules of the Law of Neutrality . The Holy See has been criticized—but largely exonerated later—for its silence on moral issues of the war. Some countries may occasionally claim to be "neutral" but not comply with the internationally agreed upon definition of neutrality as listed above. Fokker C.V The Fokker C.V was a Dutch light reconnaissance and bomber biplane aircraft manufactured by Fokker . It

812-666: The European states closest to the war, only Andorra , Ireland , Portugal , Spain , Sweden , Switzerland (with Liechtenstein ), and Vatican City (the Holy See ) remained neutral to the end. Their fulfillment to the letter of the rules of neutrality has been questioned: Ireland supplied important secret information to the Allies ; for instance, the date of D-Day was decided on the basis of incoming Atlantic weather information , some of it supplied by Ireland but kept from Germany. Ireland also secretly allowed Allied aircraft to use

870-636: The Germans seized some Danish Fokker C.V.-Es. Some of these aircraft were used by the Estonian volunteer-manned Nachtschlachtgruppe 11 (Night Ground Attack Wing 11) at Rahkla in 1944. NSGr. 11 used its C.V-Es on the Eastern Front to carry out disruptive harassment night bombing sorties against the Russian front lines. These operations were carried out in response to similar nocturnal operations by Soviet light aircraft, such as Po-2 biplanes. Two of

928-450: The Germans, and fled the country with the evacuating Allies. The last order of the evacuating government to the Norwegian units opposing the Nazis was: Demobilise . After the conclusion of the campaign Eduard Dietl commented that at the time of the Norwegian capitulation his forces would have been able to hold out for only another 24 to 48 hours, after which they would have had to abandon

986-570: The Italian Army, with 238 Ro.1s as the main aircraft force. It was the most numerous Italian aircraft in the Second Italo-Abyssinian War . The Norwegian Army Air Service bought its first five C.VEs in 1926. The initial purchase agreement with Fokker included license production rights, and in the period 1929–1931, 15 C.VEs were manufactured at the NoAAS' aircraft factory at Kjeller . After the production of C.VEs ended,

1044-698: The J 3B were redesignated S 6 , the J 3 and J 3A S 6A . Ten C.VE with Nohab My VI engines instead of Jupiter VI engines were given the designation S 6B . The S 6 became the prime liaison aircraft for the Swedish Air Force. It was used for fire spotting, aerial photographing and liaison duty in conjunction with the Army. At the outbreak of World War II, there were 36 aircraft left in service. They would continue until being replaced by Saab 17s from 1942. CVM manufactured 17 S 6 between 1929 and 1932. Some were fitted with floats and designated S 6H . In 1945,

1102-751: The Luftwaffe's ability to support the German forces on the Narvik Front was the rapid improvement of Værnes air base , giving the German bombers much more time to operate over the northern front lines. Nevertheless, by early June 1940, in co-operation with French and Polish land forces, as well the RAF , the Royal Navy and the French and Polish navies, the 6th Division had pushed the German invaders out of

1160-529: The Netherlands on 10 May 1940. They were used successfully on reconnaissance and bombing missions using "nap of the earth" (HuBoBe)(short for huisje-boompje-beestje, literally translated into house-tree-animal, referring to the low altitude at which they flew) flying techniques. Nearly two dozen aircraft were used as trainers and hacks, or in storage and repair In 1927, the Swedish Air Force purchased two C.VDs ( J 3 ) and two C.VE ( S 6 ) to serve as models for

1218-797: The North Pole. After comparative trials in 1927, Swiss authorities had 48 C.V.-E licence-built in Switzerland for use by the Swiss Air Force (then the Swiss Army Air Corps). 24 machines were built at K+W Thun and 24 at Doflug Altenrhein . The aircraft were in service from 1933 to 1940 and were armed with bombs, two pilot machine guns and a double machine gun for the observer. The Swiss Air Force used their C.Vs as target tugs until 1954, after their retirement from frontline service. During their occupation of Denmark ,

SECTION 20

#1732781022408

1276-546: The Soviet Union) but in other cases it is an active policy of the country concerned to respond to a geopolitical situation ( Ireland in the Second World War ). For the country concerned, the policy is usually codified beyond the treaty itself. Austria and Japan codify their neutrality in their constitutions, but they do so with different levels of detail. Some details of neutrality are left to be interpreted by

1334-616: The SwAF sold three S 6s to Svensk Flygtjänst to be used for aerial application over forest. Two other were sold to Skåneflyg in 1947. One is preserved and can be seen in the Swedish Air Force Museum . Lieutenant Einar Lundborg rescued the Italian General Umberto Nobile in 1928, with a S 6B, equipped with skis. Nobile was on an ice shelf after his airship Italia had crashed on its way to

1392-664: The Swedes each have a long history of neutrality: they have not been in a state of war internationally since 1815 and 1814, respectively. Switzerland continues to pursue, however, an active foreign policy and is frequently involved in peace-building processes around the world. According to Edwin Reischauer , "To be neutral you must be ready to be highly militarized, like Switzerland or Sweden." Sweden ended its policy of neutrality when it joined NATO in 2024. In contrast, some neutral states may heavily reduce their military and use it for

1450-681: The US pretense of neutrality. Sweden also made concessions to the German Reich during the war to maintain its neutrality, the biggest concession was to let the 163rd German Infantry Division to be transferred from Norway to Finland by Swedish trains, to aid the Finns in the Continuation War . The decision caused a political " Midsummer Crisis " of 1941, about Sweden's neutrality . Equally, Vatican City made various diplomatic concessions to

1508-836: The Winter War, the Finnish C.Vs flew 151 reconnaissance and harassment bombing sorties without suffering any losses. The Continuation War saw the C.Vs flying an unknown number of sorties and suffering one aircraft loss. The C.VE was built in Italy by OFM ( Officine Ferroviarie Meridionali , later IMAM ) under licence in 1927 as the Romeo Ro.1 . It was used by the Aviation Corps of the Regio Esercito (Italian Army) as an observation and ground attack aircraft. Well liked in

1566-632: The active battalion the fighting ended before it could see any action. During the fighting a small number of trained foreigners joined the battalion, amongst these were nine Estonians that joined up on 19 May. As the Alta Battalion and the other formations of the 6th Division prepared for one last push against the beleaguered Germans and Austrians of the 3rd Mountain Division, the Third Reich unleashed Fall Gelb and invaded France and

1624-406: The base plates often being in need of replacement, hence the capture of German 50 mm and 81 mm mortars was very welcome. A number of German mountain guns that had been air dropped by the Luftwaffe to the besieged 3rd Mountain Division were also seized by the battalion and sent back to Alta. In Alta gunners began training with the captured pieces, the intention being deploying them on the front at

1682-474: The battalion marched to Grovfjord , under intermittent air attacks, from where they embarked fishing boats for the journey back to Altagård. At the capitulation the battalion's archives were removed from Altagård and shipped into exile, initially to the Faroe Islands . In all the battalion suffered 71 casualties out of around 900 men during the Norwegian Campaign. At the end of the Norwegian Campaign

1740-414: The battalion was combat-hardened, and well-equipped because of the large amounts of German equipment captured by the advancing fishermen-farmers and reindeer herders of the Alta Battalion. For the first time ever Norwegian infantry advanced utilizing weapons such as submachine guns and hand grenades . During the last weeks of the campaign the battalion's mortars had been worn out by the constant use, with

1798-599: The battalion was demobilised and the soldiers returned to their homes and civilian occupations. During the occupation many former members of the battalion were active in the resistance movement , mostly working with gathering intelligence on German forces in Finnmark. Neutral country A neutral country is a state that is neutral towards belligerents in a specific war or holds itself as permanently neutral in all future conflicts (including avoiding entering into military alliances such as NATO , CSTO or

Alta Battalion - Misplaced Pages Continue

1856-536: The battalion was not considered especially ski-worthy and most of the soldiers had their only skiing experience from the neutrality duty. After the German invasion of Norway on 9 April 1940 the battalion was once more mobilized, the soldiers making their way to Alta by boats or reindeer sleds, then being transported to the front area by the Hurtigruten steamships SS  Dronning Maud and Kong Haakon , and

1914-686: The benefit to a belligerent of entering the country by force not worth the cost. This may include: The term derives from the historic maritime neutrality of the First League of Armed Neutrality of the Nordic countries and Russia under the leadership of Catherine the Great , which was invented in the late 18th century but has since been used only to refer to countries' neutralities. Sweden and Switzerland are independently of each other famed for their armed neutralities, which they maintained throughout both World War I and World War II . The Swiss and

1972-645: The bomber role during the April–June 1940 Norwegian Campaign , supporting Norwegian ground troops fighting on the Narvik front . The type was used by the Luchtvaartafdeeling (pre war airforce), MLD (marine luchtvaartdienst) and KNIL-ML. For the Luchtvaartafdeling 67 examples were produced in several batches between 1926 and 1934. 28 were still operational at the time of the German attack on

2030-454: The brutality of war and served to harden the men of the unit. After seeing the fighting and burning town in Petsamo the soldiers and officers of the Alta Battalion began to view war as a reality and not merely something found in the history books. The Alta battalion was then demobilized on 15 January 1940. As the battalion deactivated, Lt. Col. Dahl realised that the international situation

2088-504: The campaign was one Madsen light machine gun and Krag–Jørgensen rifles. When the battalion left for the front it consisted of around 830 men, with 112 horses and 100 ski sleds. The unit spent the entire two-month campaign conducting offensive operations against general Eduard Dietl 's entrenched troops. The at first lightly armed infantrymen attacked through the extreme mountainous terrain of northern Nordland against far better trained German gebirgsjäger and fallschirmjäger troops;

2146-503: The cargo ship Senja . The battalion departed the pier in Alta on 19 April 1940 and arrived at Sjøvegan on 21 April. During the coming two-month-long campaign in the mountains north and east of Narvik the battalion spearheaded the 6th Division's advance against the German 3rd Mountain Division in the Narvik area. The standard issue weapons of an infantry squad of the battalion during

2204-536: The civilian market, it was selected for use by Air Marshal Italo Balbo , as superior to the Breda A.7 and Ansaldo A.120 . It entered service in 1927, in Italian Libya against the local rebels. It was used both for reconnaissance and light attack. It was convertible as a three-seat machine, or as a light attack aircraft (two machine-guns), or as a very long range aircraft with an auxiliary fuel tank that increased

2262-469: The earliest opportunity. While the Alta Battalion was fighting Dietl's men at the front a training battalion of three companies was formed at Altagård and Banak back in Finnmark. In addition Alta Battalion also formed smaller local forces in western Finnmark, including an air warning unit of fifteen men in Kårhamn . Although the training battalion was supposed to provide replacements and reinforcements for

2320-419: The endurance from five to twelve hours. The last version had a 410 kW (550 hp) engine instead of 321 kW (430 hp) and produced until 1934, a total of 456, but it was outdated and too slow for the standards of the mid-1930s. Although this was only an army observation aircraft, it still had a quite powerful engine and performance. In 1933, there were 40 squadrons, of seven machines each, related to

2378-405: The entire Narvik front and cross into Sweden. As the still undefeated units of the 6th Division, amongst them the Alta Battalion, marched down from the snow-covered hills on 9 June 1940 many of the soldiers cried tears of bitterness and disappointment that victory had been snatched from them. At 0000hrs 10 June 1940 the ceasefire came into effect. During the early hours of the 10th the soldiers of

Alta Battalion - Misplaced Pages Continue

2436-433: The eventual license manufacturing of the aircraft by CVM at Malmen. The four aircraft were flown to Sweden in 1928. They proved suitable and an agreement for licence production was made and a further four C.V-E and six C.V-D were purchased, the latter designated J 3A . Seven C.VD ordered from CVM were built as C.VE, as by 1929 it was clear the type was unsuitable as a fighter, but still they were designated J 3B . In 1931,

2494-412: The express purpose of home defense and the maintenance of their neutrality, while other neutral states may abandon military power altogether (examples of states doing this include Liechtenstein ). However, the lack of a military does not always result in neutrality: Countries such as Costa Rica and Iceland replaced their standing army with a military guarantee from a stronger power or participation in

2552-516: The extent to which they are, or should be, neutral is debated. For example, Ireland, which sought guarantees for its neutrality in EU treaties, argues that its neutrality does not mean that Ireland should avoid engagement in international affairs such as peacekeeping operations. Since the enactment of the Lisbon Treaty , EU members are bound by TEU, Article 42.7 , which obliges states to assist

2610-490: The government while others are explicitly stated; for example, Austria may not host any foreign bases, and Japan cannot participate in foreign wars. Yet Sweden, lacking formal codification, was more flexible during the Second World War in allowing troops to pass through its territory. Armed neutrality is the posture of a state or group of states that has no alliance with either side of a war but asserts that it will defend itself against resulting incursions from any party, making

2668-503: The interpretation of neutral conduct over the past centuries. Belligerents may not invade neutral territory, and a neutral power's resisting any such attempt does not compromise its neutrality. A neutral power must intern belligerent troops who reach its territory, but not escaped prisoners of war . Belligerent armies may not recruit neutral citizens, but they may go abroad to enlist. Belligerent armies' personnel and materiel may not be transported across neutral territory, but

2726-518: The launch of Permanent Structured Cooperation (PESCO) in defense at the end of 2017, the EU's activity on military matters has increased. The policy was designed to be inclusive and allows states to opt in or out of specific forms of military cooperation. That has allowed most of the neutral states to participate, but opinions still vary. Some members of the Irish Parliament considered Ireland's joining PESCO as an abandonment of neutrality. It

2784-540: The offensive. The elderly Fokker biplanes proved themselves to be surprisingly effective at low level bombing of German positions. The RAF provided a certain extent of fighter cover with the Gloster Gladiators of No. 263 Squadron RAF and the Hawker Hurricanes of No. 46 Squadron RAF , although these were too few to continuously patrol the entire front line. In the last weeks of the fighting

2842-525: The signatories of the Congress of Vienna , Austria has its neutrality guaranteed by its four former occupying powers, and Finland by the Soviet Union during the Cold War . The form of recognition varies, often by bilateral treaty (Finland), multilateral treaty (Austria) or a UN declaration (Turkmenistan). These treaties can in some ways be forced on a country (Austria's neutrality was insisted upon by

2900-468: The unit was only occasionally supported by artillery or air power , usually only being backed up by the unit's 18 Colt M/29 heavy machine guns and its few 81 mm mortars . On the German side the Luftwaffe became progressively more active in the campaign as the Germans recruited collaborators who constructed new air bases in the more southerly regions of the country. Especially important for

2958-645: The vital port of Narvik and forced them into a small pocket by the Swedish border. In the mountainous inland areas of the front the Alta Battalion was continuously on the attack, suffering many casualties in the process of throwing back the crack German troops. During the last phase of the fighting Luftwaffe bombers steadily increased their attacks against the allied forces, while the Norwegians deployed their few Fokker C.V light bombers and Heinkel He 115 and Marinens Flyvebaatfabrikk M.F.11 seaplanes in support of

SECTION 50

#1732781022408

3016-441: The world in UN projects. The legitimacy of whether some states are as neutral as they claim has been questioned in some circles, although this depends largely on a state's interpretation of its form of neutrality. There are three members of the European Union that still describe themselves as a neutral country in some form: Austria , Ireland , and Malta . With the development of the EU's Common Security and Defence Policy ,

3074-416: The wounded may be. A neutral power may supply communication facilities to belligerents, but not war materiel, although it need not prevent export of such materiel. Belligerent naval vessels may use neutral ports for a maximum of 24 hours, though neutrals may impose different restrictions. Exceptions are to make repairs—only the minimum necessary to put back to sea —or if an opposing belligerent's vessel

3132-651: Was designed by Anthony Fokker and the series manufacture began in 1924 at Fokker in Amsterdam. The C.V was constructed in the early 1920s by Anthony Fokker. The aircraft was intended as a two-seat reconnaissance and bomber aircraft. When shown to the public in 1924 was manufactured in a variety of versions; the customer could choose from five different wing constructions (which varied in wing span). The radial engines could give between 336–723 kW (451–970 hp). The landing gear could be changed from wheels to pontoons . The aircraft became an export success for Fokker, it

3190-681: Was initially neutral and bound by the Neutrality Acts of 1936 not to sell war materials to belligerents. Once war broke out, US President Franklin Delano Roosevelt persuaded Congress to replace the act with the Cash and carry program that allowed the US to provide military aid to the allies, despite opposition from non-interventionist members. The "Cash and carry" program was replaced in March 1941 by Lend-Lease , effectively ending

3248-571: Was passed with the government arguing that its opt-in nature allowed Ireland to "join elements of PESCO that were beneficial such as counter-terrorism, cybersecurity and peacekeeping... what we are not going to be doing is buying aircraft carriers and fighter jets". Malta, as of December 2017, is the only neutral state not to participate in PESCO. The Maltese government argued that it was going to wait and see how PESCO develops to see whether it would compromise Maltese neutrality. Many countries made neutrality declarations during World War II . However, of

3306-440: Was sold and/or license manufactured in Bolivia, China, Denmark, Finland, Hungary, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, Norway, Switzerland, the Soviet Union and the US. Sweden purchased two different versions to use as models for their license manufacturing of the reconnaissance version S 6 and a fighter version J 3 . The Finnish Air Force used both C.V-Ds and C.V-Es. One C.V-E was purchased in 1927, with delivery 20 September, and

3364-415: Was still unstable and the unit might be needed again soon. Thus the soldiers were ordered to tag their uniforms and personal equipment before handing them in for storage. This precautionary measure helped the battalion greatly when it was again needed less than three months later. After the return to Alta a ski company of ninety volunteers was formed and retained for another two months of training. On average

#407592