135-735: Associated articles Asia-Pacific Mediterranean and Middle East Other campaigns Coups The Red Sea Flotilla ( Flottiglia del mar rosso ) was part of the Regia Marina (Italian Royal Navy) based at Massawa in the colony of Italian Eritrea , part of Italian East Africa . During the Second World War , the Red Sea Flotilla fought the East Indies Station of the Royal Navy from
270-462: A Europe first stance, giving first priority to defeating Nazi Germany. The Japanese had great difficulty replacing their losses in ships and aircraft, while American factories and shipyards produced ever increasing numbers of both. Fighting included some of the largest naval battles in history and massive Allied air raids over Japan , as well as the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki . Japan surrendered unconditionally on 15 August 1945 and
405-781: A bombing of the city of Darwin on 19 February, which killed at least 243 people. At the Battle of the Java Sea in late February and early March, the IJN defeated the main ABDA naval force, under Admiral Karel Doorman . The Dutch East Indies campaign ended with the surrender of Allied forces on Java and Sumatra. In March and April, an IJN carrier force launched a raid into the Indian Ocean . British Royal Navy bases in Ceylon were hit and
540-678: A per-capita basis, Norway is the world's largest producer of oil and natural gas outside of the Middle East. The country has the fourth- and eighth-highest per-capita income in the world on the World Bank 's and IMF 's list, respectively. It has the world's largest sovereign wealth fund , with a value of US$ 1.3 trillion. Norway has two official names: Norge in Bokmål and Noreg in Nynorsk . The English name Norway comes from
675-590: A resistance movement which incorporated civil disobedience and armed resistance including the destruction of Norsk Hydro 's heavy water plant and stockpile of heavy water at Vemork , which crippled the German nuclear programme . More important to the Allied war effort, however, was the role of the Norwegian Merchant Marine , the fourth-largest merchant marine fleet in the world. It was led by
810-407: A unitary state with a constitutional monarchy , Norway divides state power between the parliament , the cabinet , and the supreme court , as determined by the 1814 constitution . Norway has both administrative and political subdivisions on two levels: counties and municipalities . The Sámi people have a certain amount of self-determination and influence over traditional territories through
945-521: A central role in the peaceful separation of Norway from Sweden on 7 June 1905. A national referendum confirmed the people's preference for a monarchy over a republic. However, no Norwegian could legitimately claim the throne, since none of Norway's noble families could claim royal descent . The government then offered the throne of Norway to Prince Carl of Denmark, a prince of the Dano-German royal house of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg and
1080-518: A cloud of smoke, before turning away at high speed. The two other ships did not receive the sighting report from Sauro but ten minutes later, Pantera saw the ships and fired torpedoes, hearing explosions and claiming probables on two merchantmen; Tigre failed to find the convoy. Close to the Massawa in the South Channel, Sauro ran into Kingston but had run out of torpedoes. Fearful that
1215-458: A conservative society. Life in Norway (especially economic life) was "dominated by the aristocracy of professional men who filled most of the important posts in the central government". There was no strong bourgeois class to demand a breakdown of this aristocratic control. Thus, even while revolution swept over most of the countries of Europe in 1848, Norway was largely unaffected. Marcus Thrane
1350-500: A defensive perimeter to absorb and defeat Allied counterattacks; Japanese decisonmakers believed such a military situation would lead to a negotiated peace that would preserve Japanese territorial gains. Japanese planning divided the early war into two operational phases. The First Operational Phase was further divided into three separate parts in which the major objectives of the Philippines, British Malaya, Borneo, Burma, Rabaul and
1485-665: A distant relative of Norway's medieval kings. Following the plebiscite, he was unanimously elected king by the Norwegian Parliament ; he took the name Haakon VII . Throughout the First World War , Norway remained neutral; however, diplomatic pressure from the British government meant that it heavily favoured the Allies . During the war, Norway exported fish to both Germany and Britain, until an ultimatum from
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#17327727843021620-457: A distinct national character. The movement covered all branches of culture, including literature ( Henrik Wergeland , Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson , Peter Christen Asbjørnsen , Jørgen Moe ), painting ( Hans Gude , Adolph Tidemand ), music ( Edvard Grieg ), and even language policy, where attempts to define a native written language for Norway led to today's two official written forms for Norwegian: Bokmål and Nynorsk . King Charles III John came to
1755-746: A four-month campaign. The Japanese achieved major military victories, but world opinion—in particular in the US—was hostile to Japan's invasion, especially after the Panay incident . In addition, the Japanese had failed to destroy the Chinese army, which continued to resist from the new Nationalist capital in Chongqing , or in the case of the Communists, Yan'an . In 1939, Japanese forces tried to push into
1890-559: A halt. The Japanese media, influenced by military propagandists, began to refer to the embargoes as the " ABCD line " ("American-British-Chinese-Dutch"). The Japanese Imperial General Headquarters (GHQ) began planning for a war with the Western powers in April or May 1941. Japan increased its naval budget and placed large formations of the Army, along with their attached air components, under
2025-475: A major armed clash in January 1941 , effectively ending their co-operation. Japanese strategic bombing efforts mostly targeted large Chinese cities such as Shanghai, Wuhan , and Chongqing , with around 5,000 raids from February 1938 to August 1943. Japan's strategic bombing campaigns killed between 260,000 and 350,934 non-combatants . As early as 1935, Japanese military strategists had concluded that
2160-699: A military alliance with Germany and Italy, becoming one of the three main Axis Powers . The war entered a new phase with Japanese defeats at the Battle of Suixian–Zaoyang , the 1st Battle of Changsha , the Battle of Kunlun Pass and the Battle of Zaoyi . After these victories, Chinese nationalist forces launched a large-scale counter-offensive in early 1940; however, due to a lack of military-industrial capacity, they were repulsed in late March 1940. In August 1940, Chinese communists launched an offensive in Central China ; in retaliation, Japan instituted
2295-634: A small group had left Norway following their king to Britain. This group included 13 ships, five aircraft, and 500 men from the Royal Norwegian Navy. By the end of the war, the force had grown to 58 ships and 7,500 men in service in the Royal Norwegian Navy, 5 squadrons of aircraft in the newly formed Norwegian Air Force, and land forces including the Norwegian Independent Company 1 and 5 Troop as well as No. 10 Commandos . During German occupation , Norwegians built
2430-462: A squadron of five MAS ( Motoscafo Armato Silurante motor torpedo boats ) and eight submarines in two squadrons. The main base was at Massawa , with other bases at Assab (also in Eritrea) and Kismayu , in southern Italian Somaliland . The Red Sea Flotilla would have to operated cautiously because its finite stock of fuel and ammunition. The base at Massawa and the smaller base at Assab on
2565-686: A union between the two countries. In 1397, under Margaret I , the Kalmar Union was created between the three Scandinavian countries. She waged war against the Germans, resulting in a trade blockade and higher taxation on Norwegian goods, which led to a rebellion . However, the Norwegian Council of State was too weak to pull out of the union. Margaret pursued a centralising policy which inevitably favoured Denmark because of its greater population. Margaret also granted trade privileges to
2700-634: A united Norway. Harald's realm was mainly a South Norwegian coastal state. Fairhair ruled with a strong hand and according to the sagas, many Norwegians left the country to live in Iceland, the Faroe Islands , Greenland , and parts of Britain and Ireland. Haakon I the Good was Norway's first Christian king, in the mid-10th century, though his attempt to introduce the religion was rejected. Norse traditions were replaced slowly by Christian ones in
2835-677: Is Oslo . Norway has a total area of 385,207 square kilometres (148,729 sq mi). The country shares a long eastern border with Sweden , and is bordered by Finland and Russia to the northeast. Norway has an extensive coastline facing the Skagerrak strait, the North Atlantic Ocean, and the Barents Sea . The unified kingdom of Norway was established in 872 as a merger of petty kingdoms and has existed continuously for 1,151–1,152 years. From 1537 to 1814, Norway
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#17327727843022970-900: Is also used, referring to the period from the Mukden Incident of 1931 through 1945. The major Allied participants were China , the United States and the British Empire . China had already been engaged in a war against Japan since 1937 . The US and its territories, including the Philippine Commonwealth , entered the war after being attacked by Japan . The British Empire was also a major belligerent consisting of British troops along with colonial troops from India as well as from Burma , Malaya , Fiji , Tonga ; in addition to troops from Australia , New Zealand and Canada . The Dutch government-in-exile (as
3105-454: Is little archaeological evidence dating to the early Iron Age (the last 500 years BC). The dead were cremated, and their graves contained few goods. During the first four centuries AD, the people of Norway were in contact with Roman-occupied Gaul ; about 70 Roman bronze cauldrons, often used as burial urns, have been found. Contact with countries farther south brought a knowledge of runes ; the oldest known Norwegian runic inscription dates from
3240-471: The BETASOM flotilla at Bordeaux and evaded British attempts to intercept them. On 8 April Massawa fell, five ships were sunk at Harmil (38,125 GRT) where two ships bombed earlier lay and three ships of 23,765 GRT were sunk at Assab. British efforts to bring the harbour back to service were frustrated by the extreme heat and humidity. Commander Joseph Stenhouse was able to re-float one oil tanker before he
3375-886: The Asia–Pacific War or the Pacific Theater , was the theater of World War II that was fought in eastern Asia, the Pacific Ocean , the Indian Ocean , and Oceania . It was geographically the largest theater of the war, including the Pacific Ocean theater , the South West Pacific theater , the Second Sino-Japanese War , and the Soviet–Japanese War in the last few months of the war. The Second Sino-Japanese War between
3510-807: The Declaration by United Nations on 1 January 1942, the Allied governments appointed the British General Archibald Wavell to the American-British-Dutch-Australian Command (ABDACOM), a supreme command for Allied forces in Southeast Asia. This gave Wavell nominal control of a huge force, albeit one that was thinly spread across a vast area, from Burma to the Philippines to northern Australia. Other regions, including India, Hawaii, and
3645-687: The Empire of Japan and the Republic of China had been in progress since 7 July 1937, with hostilities dating back to 1931 with the Japanese invasion of Manchuria . However, it is more widely accepted that the Pacific War itself began on 7 December (8 December Japanese time) 1941, when the Japanese simultaneously attacked American military bases in Hawaii , Wake Island , Guam , and the Philippines ,
3780-584: The German invasion of France . King Haakon and the Norwegian government escaped to Rotherhithe in London. Throughout the war they sent radio speeches and supported clandestine military actions against the Germans. On the day of the invasion, the leader of the small National-Socialist party Nasjonal Samling , Vidkun Quisling , tried to seize power, but was forced by the German occupiers to step aside. Real power
3915-753: The Khmer Issarak , and the Hukbalahap . The Soviet Union fought two short, undeclared border conflicts with Japan in 1938 and again in 1939 , then remained neutral through the Soviet–Japanese Neutrality Pact of April 1941, until August 1945 when it (and Mongolia ) joined the rest of the Allies and invaded the territory of Manchukuo , China, Inner Mongolia , the Japanese protectorate of Korea and Japanese-claimed territory such as South Sakhalin . Mexico provided air support in
4050-867: The Kingdom of Norway , is a Nordic country in Northern Europe , situated on the Scandinavian Peninsula with a population of 5.5 million as of 2024. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of Norway. Bouvet Island , located in the Subantarctic , is a dependency , and not a part of the Kingdom; Norway also claims the Antarctic territories of Peter I Island and Queen Maud Land . The capital and largest city in Norway
4185-1016: The Kwantung Army to oversee its occupation of Manchukuo and the China Expeditionary Army during the Second Sino-Japanese War, created the Southern Expeditionary Army Group at the outset of its conquests of South East Asia. This headquarters controlled the bulk of the Japanese Army formations which opposed the Western Allies in the Pacific and South East Asia. In 1931, without declaring war, Japan invaded Manchuria , seeking raw materials to fuel its growing industrial economy. By 1937, Japan controlled Manchuria and
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4320-485: The Labour Party held an absolute majority in the parliament. The government, led by prime minister Einar Gerhardsen , embarked on a programme inspired by Keynesian economics , emphasising state financed industrialisation and co-operation between trade unions and employers' organisations . Many measures of state control of the economy imposed during the war were continued, although the rationing of dairy products
4455-585: The Maldives , the New Zealand cruiser HMS Leander sighted a merchant resembling an Italian Ramb -class fruit carrier ( Ramb I). Soon after 11:15 a.m. the ship hoisted the Italian merchant flag and trained its guns on Leander . The cruiser was broad on the beam of Ramb I and at 3,000 yd (1.5 nmi; 1.7 mi; 2.7 km) was an easy target for its guns and torpedoes. At 11:53 a.m.,
4590-483: The Nordic welfare model with universal health care and a comprehensive social security system, and its values are rooted in egalitarian ideals. The Norwegian state has large ownership positions in key industrial sectors, having extensive reserves of petroleum, natural gas, minerals, lumber, seafood, and fresh water. The petroleum industry accounts for around a quarter of the country's gross domestic product (GDP). On
4725-593: The Old English word Norþweg mentioned in 880, meaning "northern way" or "way leading to the north", which is how the Anglo-Saxons referred to the coastline of Atlantic Norway. The Anglo-Saxons of Britain also referred to the kingdom of Norway in 880 as Norðmanna land . There is some disagreement about whether the native name of Norway originally had the same etymology as the English form. According to
4860-456: The Red Sea and the Persian Gulf had meagre results and British intelligence successes caused the loss of several ships. Rear Admiral Mario Bonetti ordered the harbour facilities to be denied to the British by the scuttling of more than thirty vessels in the harbour approaches. Bonetti directed the harbour workers to destroy their machine tools , two floating dry docks and a floating crane. The capture of Massawa and other Italian ports in
4995-516: The South West Pacific . US sources refer to two theaters within the Pacific War: the Pacific theater and the China Burma India Theater (CBI). However, these were not operational commands. In the Pacific, the Allies divided operational control of their forces between two supreme commands, known as Pacific Ocean Areas and Southwest Pacific Area . The Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) did not integrate its units into permanent theater commands. The Imperial Japanese Army (IJA), which had already created
5130-435: The Soviet Far East . They were defeated in the Battle of Khalkhin Gol by a mixed Soviet and Mongolian force led by Georgy Zhukov . This caused the Japanese to abandon attempts to expand to the north , while Soviet aid to China ceased as a result of the Soviet–Japanese Neutrality Pact. In September 1940, Japan decided to invade French Indochina , which was controlled at the time by Vichy France . On 27 September Japan signed
5265-414: The Syttende mai (Seventeenth of May) holiday. Norwegian opposition to the decision to link Norway with Sweden caused the Norwegian–Swedish War to break out as Sweden tried to subdue Norway by military means. As Sweden's military was not strong enough to defeat the Norwegian forces outright, and Norway's treasury was not large enough to support a protracted war, and as British and Russian navies blockaded
5400-507: The Sámi Parliament and the Finnmark Act . Norway maintains close ties with the European Union and the United States . Norway is a founding member of the United Nations , NATO , the European Free Trade Association , the Council of Europe , the Antarctic Treaty , and the Nordic Council ; a member of the European Economic Area , the WTO , and the OECD ; and a part of the Schengen Area . The Norwegian dialects share mutual intelligibility with Danish and Swedish . Norway maintains
5535-603: The Thai government signed an armistice and entered an alliance with Japan. Although Japan declared war on the United States and the British Empire , the declaration was not delivered until after Japanese forces had already struck British and American targets. In the early hours of 7 December (Hawaiian time), carrier-based Japanese aircraft launched a surprise, large-scale air strike on the U.S. Pacific Fleet's anchorage at Pearl Harbor in Honolulu, which knocked eight American battleships out of action, destroyed 188 American aircraft, and killed 2,403 Americans. The Japanese believed that
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5670-417: The introduction of Protestantism in 1536, the archbishopric in Trondheim was dissolved; Norway lost its independence and effectually became a colony of Denmark. The Church's incomes and possessions were instead redirected to the court in Copenhagen. Norway lost the steady stream of pilgrims to the relics of St. Olav at the Nidaros shrine, and with them, much of the contact with cultural and economic life in
5805-410: The union with Sweden . Under this arrangement, Norway kept its liberal constitution and its own independent institutions, though it shared a monarch and foreign policy with Sweden. Following the recession caused by the Napoleonic Wars , economic development of Norway remained slow until 1830. This period also saw the rise of Norwegian romantic nationalism , as Norwegians sought to define and express
5940-458: The " Three Alls Policy " ("Kill all, Burn all, Loot all") in occupied areas, killing at least 2.7 million civilians. By 1941 the conflict had become a stalemate. Although Japan had occupied much of northern, central, and coastal China, the Nationalist Government had retreated to the interior and set up a provisional capital at Chongqing , while the Chinese communists remained in control of base areas in Shaanxi . Japanese offensive action against
6075-422: The Allied embargo. This was known as the Southern Plan . It was decided—because of the close relationship between the U.K. and the U.S., and the belief that the U.S. would inevitably become involved in the ongoing war in Europe—that Japan would also seize the Philippines, Wake Island and Guam . Japan had initially planned for a limited war, where Japanese forces would seize key objectives and then establish
6210-414: The Allies staging areas from which to mount a counteroffensive. By November 1941 these plans were mostly complete, and were modified only slightly over the next month. Japanese military planners' expectation of success rested on the United Kingdom and the Soviet Union being unable to effectively respond to a Japanese attack because of the threat posed to each by Nazi Germany; in particular, the Soviet Union
6345-417: The Americans, faced with such a sudden and massive blow to their naval power in the Pacific, would agree to a negotiated settlement. However, American losses were less serious than initially thought: the three American aircraft carriers were at sea during the attack, and vital naval infrastructure, Honolulu's submarine base, and signals intelligence units were unscathed. The fact that the bombing happened while
6480-406: The British colonies of Malaya , Singapore , and Hong Kong , and invaded Thailand . The Pacific War saw the Allies pitted against Japan, the latter aided by Thailand and to a lesser extent by the Axis powers , Germany and Italy . The Japanese achieved great success in the initial phase of the campaign, but were gradually driven back using an island hopping strategy. The Allies adopted
6615-414: The British government and anti-German sentiments as a result of German submarines targeting Norwegian merchantmen led to a termination of trade with Germany. 436 Norwegian merchantmen were sunk by the Kaiserliche Marine , with 1,150 Norwegian sailors killed. Norway once more proclaimed its neutrality during the Second World War , but was invaded by German forces on 9 April 1940. Although Norway
6750-403: The British had suspended sailings to the Red Sea on 24 May 1940. On 7 June, the Italian minelayer Ostia laid 470 mines in eight barrages and the destroyer Pantera , laid two barrages with 110 mines off Assab. Leakage of chloromethane refrigerants into the Italian submarines while under water caused central nervous system poisoning. Macallé ran aground while the crew was incapacitated by
6885-672: The British retreated to Imphal in Manipur, abandoning most of their transportation and equipment. They reached Imphal in May just as the monsoon descended, which halted the operations of both sides in the area. Within China, cooperation between the Chinese Nationalists and the Communists had waned from its zenith at the Battle of Wuhan, and the relationship between the two had soured as both attempted to expand their areas of operation and influence. The Japanese exploited this lack of unity to press their offensive operations in China. Norway in Europe (green and dark grey) Norway ( Bokmål : Norge , Nynorsk : Noreg ), officially
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#17327727843027020-426: The British troops entered the town. More than thirty vessels, including eleven Italian and six German, were scuttled in the harbour approaches, including large commercial ships, smaller coastal steamers, tugs and several naval vessels to a total of 89,870 GRT. The Italian harbour workers were to destroy their machine tools , two floating dry docks and a floating crane. The four remaining submarines were ordered to join
7155-488: The British were trying to spring ambush, the other Italian ships converged on Sauro and called by wireless for air cover at dawn, reaching port unharmed. Local Italian press reports claimed that two ships had been hit but this report was mistaken. On 14 February, in Operation Composition, 14 Albacore bombers from HMS Formidable attacked Massawa, sinking Moncaliere (5,723 GRT) and damaging other ships and freighters. On 21 February another seven Albacores dive-bombed
7290-449: The Chinese 38th Division, led by Sun Li-jen . Meanwhile, in the Battle of Yunnan-Burma Road , the Japanese captured Toungoo after hard fighting and sent motorized units to capture Lashio . This cut the Burma Road , which was the western Allies' supply line to Chinese Nationalist troops. Many of Chinese troops were forced either to retreat to India, or withdraw in small parties to Yunnan . Accompanied by large numbers of civilian refugees,
7425-464: The Danish kingdom was on the losing side in 1814, it was forced by the Treaty of Kiel to cede Norway to Sweden, while the old Norwegian provinces of Iceland, Greenland, and the Faroe Islands remained with the Danish crown. Norway took this opportunity to declare independence, adopted a constitution based on American and French models, and elected the Crown Prince of Denmark and Norway, Christian Frederick , as king on 17 May 1814 – celebrated as
7560-429: The Dutch East Indies were, due to their abundant oil reserves, crucially important for further expansion by the Japanese Empire. By 1940 the Japanese also included Indochina, Malaya, and the Philippines within their concept of the Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere. Japanese troop build-ups in Hainan, Taiwan, and Haiphong were noted in foreign media, Japanese military officers were increasingly and openly talking about
7695-428: The Dutch East Indies would be occupied. The Second Operational Phase called for further expansion into the South Pacific by seizing eastern New Guinea, New Britain, Fiji, Samoa, and strategic points in around Australia. In the Central Pacific, Midway Island was targeted, as were the Aleutian Islands in the North Pacific. Japanese strategists believed that the seizure of these key areas would provide defensive depth and deny
7830-402: The Eritrean coast, was convenient for attacks on convoys sailing from the Gulf of Aden through the Red Sea to the Suez Canal , which became much more important after the Mediterranean was closed to Allied merchant ships, forcing them to sail around the Cape of Good Hope . A strategy of a fleet-in-being and the denial of the Red Sea to British shipping was the only practical strategy open to
7965-403: The Hanseatic merchants of Lübeck in Bergen in return for recognition of her rule, and these hurt the Norwegian economy. The Hanseatic merchants formed a state within a state in Bergen for generations. The " Victual Brothers " launched three devastating pirate raids on the port (the last in 1427). Norway slipped ever more to the background under the Oldenburg dynasty (established 1448). There
8100-500: The IJN and IJA launched simultaneous surprise attacks on the United States and the British Empire on 7 December (8 December in Asia/West Pacific time zones). The locations of this first wave of Japanese attacks included the American territories of Hawaii, the Philippines , Guam , and Wake Island and the British territories of Malaya , Singapore , and Hong Kong . Concurrently, Japanese forces invaded southern and eastern Thailand and were resisted for several hours, before
8235-399: The Italian batteries on Harmil an island off Massawa. When the gunfire ceased, Leander altered course to north-west to intercept the ships at the South Massawa Channel (the Harmil Passage) and at 02:45, opened fire; the range was increasing and the ship was lost to sight after the first salvos. At 02:20 Leander damaged Nullo ' s gyrocompass and gunnery director then lost contact in
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#17327727843028370-463: The Italian declaration of war on 10 June 1940 until the fall of Massawa on 8 April 1941. The flotilla was isolated from the main Italian bases in the Mediterranean by distance and British dispositions. Without an overland route (via Sudan ) or of the Suez Canal , supply was virtually impossible. The submarines in the flotilla suffered from faulty air conditioning, that poisoned crews when submerged, causing several losses. Attempts to attack ships in
8505-454: The Italian ship opened fire and thirty seconds later, Leander replied. The Italian fire was inaccurate and it was estimated that only about three shells were fired from each gun. Leander fired five salvos in a minute and hit the ship several times. A fire spread and an Italian officer in the water called out to a boarding party that they should not approach the ship, as it was burning and laden with ammunition. The boarding party laid off and as
8640-553: The Italian ships separated and turned away at full speed, west-south-west, towards Massawa, firing their aft guns. Pantera fired two torpedoes at 23:31 and another pair at 23:34. Observers in Yarra thought that the leading enemy vessel was hit by their fourth or fifth salvo. Sauro fired a torpedo at Leander which missed and made another ineffective torpedo attack at 02:07. Nullo was not able to attack after its rudder jammed for several minutes and it went round in circles, losing contact with Sauro . Borsini ordered Nullo towards
8775-409: The Italians, using submarines offensively for a war of six months' duration. Because of the Flotilla, the US government declared the Red Sea a war zone and out of bounds to American ships, depriving the British of an important source of tonnage to supply the British forces in Egypt. Italy declared war on 10 June 1940 and the Flotilla tried to attack Royal Navy ships and Allied convoys from Massawa but
8910-459: The Japanese puppet states of Manchukuo (consisting of most of Manchuria ), and the collaborationist Wang Jingwei regime (which controlled the coastal regions of China), respectively. Japan conscripted many soldiers from its colonies of Korea and Taiwan . Collaborationist security units were also formed in Hong Kong , Singapore , the Philippines , the Dutch East Indies , British Malaya , British Borneo , former French Indochina (after
9045-563: The Japanese on 15 February 1942. About 130,000 Indian, British, Australian and Dutch personnel became Japanese prisoners of war. Bali and Timor fell in February. The rapid collapse of Allied resistance left the "ABDA area" split in two. Wavell resigned from ABDACOM on 25 February, handing control of the ABDA Area to local commanders and returning to the post of Commander-in-Chief, India . Meanwhile, Japanese aircraft had all but eliminated Allied air power in Southeast Asia and were carrying out air attacks on northern Australia , beginning with
9180-416: The Norwegian coast, the belligerents were forced to negotiate the Convention of Moss . Christian Frederik abdicated the Norwegian throne and authorised the Parliament of Norway to make the necessary constitutional amendments to allow for the personal union that Norway was forced to accept. On 4 November 1814, the Parliament (Storting) elected Charles XIII of Sweden as king of Norway, thereby establishing
9315-445: The Norwegian shipping company Nortraship under the Allies throughout the war and took part in every war operation from the evacuation of Dunkirk to the Normandy landings . Every December Norway gives a Christmas tree to the United Kingdom as thanks for the British assistance during the war. Svalbard was not occupied by German troops, but Germany secretly established a meteorological station there in 1944. From 1945 to 1962,
9450-422: The US was not officially at war caused a wave of outrage across the country. Japan's fallback strategy, relying on a war of attrition against the United States, was beyond the Imperial Japanese Navy's capabilities. Opposition to war in the United States vanished after the attack. On 8 December, the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, and the Netherlands declared war on Japan, followed by Australia
9585-503: The Western powers through armed forces of the Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere . Japanese officials integrated what they called the Japan–China Incident ( 日支事変 , Nisshi Jihen ) into the Greater East Asia War. During the Occupation of Japan (1945–52), these terms were prohibited in official documents (although their informal usage continued). The war became officially known as the Pacific War ( 太平洋戦争 , Taiheiyō Sensō ) . The Fifteen Years' War ( 十五年戦争 , Jūgonen Sensō )
9720-524: The aircraft carrier HMS Hermes was sunk, along with other Allied ships. The attack forced the Royal Navy to withdraw to the western part of the Indian Ocean, paving the way for a Japanese assault on Burma and India. In Burma, the Japanese captured Moulmein on 31 January 1942, and then drove outnumbered British and Indian troops towards the Sittang River . On 23 February, a bridge over
9855-476: The blockade on 30 March and got as far as Assab and Lichtenfels sailed on 1 April but was turned back. On 31 March 1941, Pantera , Tigre and Leone , attempted a night attack on Suez but Leone ran aground off Massawa and had to be scuttled by gunfire, the delay causing the operation to be cancelled. The two remaining ships joined Sauro , Battisti and Daniele Manin on a final raid against Port Sudan on 2 April. Engine trouble kept Battisti in port and it
9990-666: The city, which fell to Japan after three months of fighting. The Japanese continued to push deeper into China, capturing the capital Nanjing in mid-December 1937 and committing atrocities in the Nanjing Massacre , including rape, murder and torture. In March 1938, Nationalist forces won their first victory at Taierzhuang , but the city of Xuzhou was taken by the Japanese in May. In June 1938, Japan deployed about 350,000 troops to invade Wuhan and captured it in October after
10125-591: The coast, where the huge ice shelf of the last ice age first melted between 11,000 and 8000 BC. The oldest finds are stone tools dating from 9500 to 6000 BC, discovered in Finnmark ( Komsa culture ) in the north and Rogaland ( Fosna culture ) in the southwest. Theories about the two cultures being separate were deemed obsolete in the 1970s. Between 3000 and 2500 BC, new settlers ( Corded Ware culture ) arrived in eastern Norway . They were Indo-European farmers who grew grain and kept livestock, and gradually replaced
10260-599: The command of the Imperial Japanese Navy. Historically, the IJA consumed the majority of the state's military budget (with a 73% - 27% split in 1940), but from 1942 to 1945 the IJA would account for 60% of Japan's military spending, while the IJN would account for 40%. Japan's key initial objective was to seize economic resources in the Dutch East Indies and Malaya, in order to alleviate the effects of
10395-486: The control of Queen Margaret when the country entered into the Kalmar Union . After Sweden broke out of the Kalmar Union in 1521, Norway tried to follow suit, but the subsequent rebellion was defeated, and Norway remained in a union with Denmark until 1814. This period was by some referred to as the "400-Year Night", since all of the kingdom's intellectual and administrative power was centred in Copenhagen . With
10530-476: The death of Haakon in 1379, his 10-year-old son Olaf IV acceded to the throne. As Olaf had already been elected to the throne of Denmark in 1376, Denmark and Norway entered a personal union . Olaf's mother and Haakon's widow, Queen Margaret, managed the foreign affairs of Denmark and Norway during Olaf's minority. Margaret was on the verge of achieving a union of Sweden with Denmark and Norway when Olaf IV suddenly died. Denmark made Margaret temporary ruler on
10665-434: The death of Olaf. On 2 February 1388, Norway followed suit and crowned Margaret. Queen Margaret knew that her power would be more secure if she were able to find a king to rule in her place. She settled on Eric of Pomerania , grandson of her sister. Thus at an all-Scandinavian meeting held at Kalmar, Erik of Pomerania was crowned king of all three Scandinavian countries, bringing the thrones of Norway, Denmark, and Sweden under
10800-545: The destroyers HMS Kandahar , Khartoum , Kingston and the sloop HMS Shoreham , aided by aircraft from Aden . Shoreham was damaged by Torricelli before it was sunk, Khartoum was sunk soon afterwards by an internal explosion. Archimede , Guglielmotti and Perla sailed from 19 to 21 June, Perla on 26 June running aground and being severely damaged on a shoal, then recovered. From 26 to 31 July, Guglielmotti searched and failed to find two Greek ships heading south from Suez. On an offensive sweep,
10935-490: The economy, because of the loans the Hansa had made to the royals and the large debt the kings were carrying. The League's monopolistic control over the economy of Norway put pressure on all classes, especially the peasantry, to the degree that no real burgher class existed in Norway. From the 1040s to 1130, the country was at peace. In 1130, the civil war era broke out on the basis of unclear succession laws , which allowed
11070-625: The end of the century. Throughout the High Middle Ages , the king established Norway as a sovereign state with a central administration and local representatives. In 1349, the Black Death spread to Norway and within a year killed a third of the population. Later plagues reduced the population to half the starting point by 1400. Many communities were entirely wiped out, resulting in an abundance of land, allowing farmers to switch to more animal husbandry . The reduction in taxes weakened
11205-415: The escorts and then attack the convoy with torpedoes. The convoy was about 35 nmi (65 km; 40 mi) north-north-west of Jabal al-Tair Island at 02:19 on 21 October, when the New Zealand cruiser, Leander , sighted two patches of smoke bearing north. Pantera fired over Yarra at the convoy, inflicting some splinter damage to a lifeboat on the convoy commodore's ship. Auckland opened fire and
11340-546: The expense of Sweden and Russia. The famine of 1695–1696 killed roughly 10% of Norway's population. The harvest failed in Scandinavia at least nine times between 1740 and 1800, with great loss of life. After Denmark–Norway was attacked by the United Kingdom at the 1807 Battle of Copenhagen , it entered into an alliance with Napoleon , with the war leading to dire conditions and mass starvation in 1812. As
11475-499: The fire spread, a big explosion before the bridge shot flames and smoke high into the sky, the ship settling bow first. As the fire burned, there was another explosion and five minutes later the ship sank under a cloud of black smoke. Leander recovered the boarding party and the Italian lifeboats, while edging away. On 1 March five Albacores raided Massawa again but caused little damage. As the Italians depleted their fuel at Massawa,
11610-628: The form of the 201st Fighter Squadron and Free France sent naval support in the form of Le Triomphant and later the Richelieu . The Axis -aligned states which assisted Japan included the authoritarian government of Thailand . Also involved were members of the Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere, which included the Manchukuo Imperial Army and Collaborationist Chinese Army of
11745-458: The gas and was wrecked on 15 June. The next day, Galileo Galilei sank the Norwegian freighter James Stove (8,215 GRT) off Djibouti . On 19 June, when the submarine engaged the armed trawler Moonstone , all the officers except a midshipman were killed in two shell explosions and the vessel was captured, along with its operational orders and taken to Aden on the same day. The British sent
11880-535: The haze. Nullo headed toward Harmil with Leander in pursuit and at 03:00, Leander challenged a destroyer which turned out to be Kimberley , also in pursuit. After five minutes, the cruiser altered course east to rejoin the convoy, since the Italian ship was drawing away at the rate of 7 kn (13 km/h; 8.1 mph) and the convoy was still vulnerable. At 05:40, off Harmil, lookouts on Kimberley and Nullo spotted each other at 7 nmi (13 km; 8.1 mi). When Kimberley opened fire at 05:53, Nullo
12015-553: The hunting-fishing population of the west coast. From about 1500 BC, bronze was gradually introduced. Burial cairns built close to the sea as far north as Harstad and also inland in the south are characteristic of this period, with rock carving motifs that differ from those of the Stone Age , depicting ships resembling the Hjortspring boat , while large stone burial monuments known as stone ships were also erected. There
12150-539: The king's position, and many aristocrats lost the basis for their surplus. High tithes to church made it increasingly powerful and the archbishop became a member of the Council of State . The Hanseatic League took control over Norwegian trade during the 14th century and established a trading centre in Bergen . In 1380, Olaf Haakonsson inherited both the Norwegian (as Olaf IV) and Danish thrones (as Olaf II), creating
12285-419: The king's sons to rule jointly. The Archdiocese of Nidaros was created in 1152 and attempted to control the appointment of kings. The church inevitably had to take sides in the conflicts. The wars ended in 1217 with the appointment of Håkon IV Håkonsson , who introduced clear laws of succession. From 1000 to 1300, the population increased from 150,000 to 400,000, resulting both in more land being cleared and
12420-437: The kings of Sweden and of Denmark were elected to the throne by their respective nobles. Thus Sweden and Norway were united under King Magnus VII. In 1349, the Black Death killed between 50% and 60% of Norway's population and led to a period of social and economic decline. Although the death rate was comparable with the rest of Europe, economic recovery took much longer because of the small, scattered population. Even before
12555-790: The largest dry dock and pieced together enough machine tool parts to restore machinist operations. By August 1942, after re-floating several ships, Ellsberg opened access to the harbour sufficiently to enable British warships such as HMS Dido (19 August 1942) to be dry-docked and serviced. Assab, the last Italian-held port on the Red Sea, was attacked in Operation Chronometer on 10 June and occupied. Pacific War Allied occupation of Japan Second Sino-Japanese War Taishō period Shōwa period Asia-Pacific Mediterranean and Middle East Other campaigns Coups The Pacific War , sometimes called
12690-516: The late 10th and early 11th centuries. This is largely attributed to the missionary kings Olaf I Tryggvasson and Olaf II Haraldsson (St. Olaf). Olaf Tryggvasson conducted raids in England, including attacking London. Arriving back in Norway in 995, Olaf landed in Moster where he built a church which became the first Christian church in Norway. From Moster, Olaf sailed north to Trondheim where he
12825-455: The main British effort began on 6 April. The light cruiser HMS Capetown was torpedoed by the motor torpedo boat MAS 213 off Massawa and had to be towed to Port Sudan by the sloop HMAS Parramatta for repairs. Attacks on land, combined with air and sea bombardments led the defences to crumble by 8 April. MAS 213, Orsini , MAS 204, 206, 210 and 216 and other ships were scuttled as
12960-499: The next day. Thailand, with its territory already serving as a springboard for Japan's Malayan Campaign , surrendered within hours of the Japanese invasion. The government of Thailand formally allied with Japan on 21 December. To the south, the IJA seized the British colony of Penang on 19 December, encountering little resistance. Hong Kong was attacked on 8 December and fell to Japanese forces on 25 December 1941. American bases on Guam and Wake Island were seized by Japan at around
13095-405: The night of 2/3 February 1941, the Italian destroyers Pantera , Tigre and Sauro sailed from Massawa to intercept Convoy BN 14, consisting of 39 merchant ships, escorted by the cruiser HMS Caledon , the destroyer Kingston and the sloops HMIS Indus and Shoreham . Sauro sighted the convoy, got off a sighting report and fired three torpedoes, then fired again at a ship seen in
13230-469: The night of 6/7 September, Leone and Tigre with Battisti and Sauro tried to intercept Convoy BN 4 spotted by air reconnaissance but failed to find it; Ferraris and Guglielmotti , further to the north, also failed to make contact but Guglielmotti sank the Greek tanker Atlas (4,009 GRT) on 6 September at 15°50'N, 41°50'E. From 19 to 21 September, Leone and Pantera , Battisti and Manin with
13365-519: The ninth century when heading for the Faroe Islands , and eventually came across Vinland , known today as Newfoundland , in Canada. The Vikings from Norway were most active in the northern and western British Isles and eastern North America isles . According to tradition, Harald Fairhair unified them into one in 872 after the Battle of Hafrsfjord in Stavanger , thus becoming the first king of
13500-643: The offensive capability of the Red Sea Flotilla declined and it returned to a strategy of a fleet-in-being. On 23 March the German Oder (8,516 GRT) and the Italian India (6,366 GRT) sailed from Massawa but Oder was intercepted by Shoreham at the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait and scuttled; India docked at Assab. On 29 March Bertram Rickmers (4,188 GRT) sailed and was scuttled on 1 April when intercepted by Kandahar . Piave tried to break
13635-785: The overthrow of the French regime in 1945 ), as well as Timorese militia . Germany and Italy both had limited involvement in the Pacific War. The German and the Italian navies operated submarines and raiding ships in the Indian and Pacific Oceans, notably the Monsun Gruppe . Between 1942 and 1945, there were four main areas of conflict in the Pacific War: China, the Central Pacific , South-East Asia and
13770-440: The plague, the population was only about 500,000. After the plague, many farms lay idle while the population slowly increased. However, the few surviving farms' tenants found their bargaining positions with their landlords greatly strengthened. King Magnus VII ruled Norway until 1350, when his son, Haakon, was placed on the throne as Haakon VI . In 1363, Haakon married Margaret , daughter of King Valdemar IV of Denmark . Upon
13905-905: The possessor of the Dutch East Indies ) was also involved. All of these were members of the Pacific War Council . From 1944 the French commando group Corps Léger d'Intervention also took part in resistance operations in Indochina. Some active pro-allied guerrillas in Asia included the Malayan Peoples' Anti-Japanese Army , the Korean Liberation Army , the Free Thai Movement , the Việt Minh ,
14040-653: The prospect of war, and Admiral Sankichi Takahashi was reported as stating that a showdown with the US was necessary. In an effort to discourage Japanese militarism, Western powers including Australia, the US, Britain, and the Dutch government in exile , which controlled the Dutch East Indies, stopped selling oil , iron ore, and steel to Japan. In Japan, the government and Japanese nationalists viewed these embargoes as acts of aggression; imported oil made up about 80% of domestic consumption, without which Japan's economy would grind to
14175-612: The region brought the Flottiglia del mar rosso to an end in April 1941. After the Flotta d'evasione (evasion fleet) intended for the Indian Ocean, based in the ports of Italian Somaliland proved to be too expensive, Rear Admiral Carlo Balsamo di Specchia-Normandia , the commander of the East African naval squadron, based a smaller force at Massawa. On 10 June 1940, the Red Sea Flotilla had seven destroyers in two squadrons ,
14310-489: The reign of Charles III John brought some significant social and political reforms. In 1854, women won the right to inherit property. In 1863, the last trace of keeping unmarried women in the status of minors was removed. Furthermore, women were eligible for different occupations, particularly the common school teacher. By mid-century, Norway's democracy was limited; voting was limited to officials, property owners, leaseholders and burghers of incorporated towns. Norway remained
14445-668: The rest of Australia, remained under local commands. On 15 January, Wavell moved to Bandung in Java to assume control of ABDACOM. In January, Japan invaded British Burma, the Dutch East Indies, New Guinea, and the Solomon Islands, and captured Manila, Kuala Lumpur and Rabaul . After being driven out of Malaya, Allied forces in Singapore attempted to resist the Japanese during the Battle of Singapore, but were forced to surrender to
14580-418: The rest of Europe. Eventually restored as a kingdom (albeit in legislative union with Denmark) in 1661, Norway saw its land area decrease in the 17th century with the loss of the provinces Båhuslen , Jemtland , and Herjedalen to Sweden, as the result of a number of disastrous wars with Sweden. In the north, its territory was increased by the acquisition of the northern provinces of Troms and Finnmark , at
14715-470: The retreating and regrouping Chinese forces was largely stalled by the mountainous terrain in southwestern China, while the Communists organized widespread guerrilla and saboteur activities in northern and eastern China behind the Japanese front line. Japan sponsored several puppet governments , one of which was headed by Wang Jingwei . Conflicts between Chinese Communist and Nationalist forces vying for territorial control behind enemy lines culminated in
14850-646: The river was demolished prematurely, stranding most of an Indian division. On 8 March, the Japanese occupied Rangoon . The Allies attempted to defend Central Burma, with Indian and Burmese divisions holding the Irrawaddy River valley and the Chinese Expeditionary Force in Burma defending Toungoo . On 16 April, 7,000 British soldiers were encircled by the Japanese 33rd Division during the Battle of Yenangyaung , but subsequently rescued by
14985-455: The same time. British, Australian, and Dutch forces, already drained of personnel and matériel by two years of war with Germany, and heavily committed in the Middle East, North Africa, and elsewhere, were unable to provide more than token resistance. Two major British warships, the battlecruiser HMS Repulse and the battleship HMS Prince of Wales , were sunk by a Japanese air attack off Malaya on 10 December 1941. Following
15120-579: The ships. Ramb I (Lieutenant commander Alfredo Bonezzi ) [3,667 GRT] was a refrigerated merchant ship (reefer) built for the Regia Azienda Monopolio delle Banane (RAMB, the Royal Banana Monopoly Company) in 1933. The ship was adapted for naval service as an armed merchant cruiser . Ramb I had departed Suez on 10 June 1940 for Massawa, from where the ship made short cruises along the coast of Eritrea but
15255-459: The sloop HMS Falmouth to find Galvani in the Persian Gulf , where it had sunk the sloop HMIS Pathan . Galvani was sunk on 24 June and Torricelli , en route to take over from Galileo Ferraris , after another chloromethane poisoning incident off Djibouti, was damaged by British ships on 21 June and forced to turn back. Torricelli was spotted on 23 June near Massawa by
15390-543: The subdivision of farms. While in the Viking Age farmers owned their own land, by 1300, seventy per cent of the land was owned by the king, the church, or the aristocracy, and about twenty per cent of yields went to these landowners. The 14th century is described as Norway's golden age , with peace and increase in trade, especially with the British Islands, although Germany became increasingly important towards
15525-451: The submarines Archimede and Guglielmotti , searched for Convoy BN 5 but failed to find it; Bhima (5,280 GRT) was bombed, ran aground and towed back to Aden. The Italian destroyers sailed on 20 October, the destroyers operating in pairs, Section I the faster Sauro (Commander Moretti degli Adimari) and Francesco Nullo (Lieutenant Commander Costantino Borsini ). Section II, the slower, better armed Pantera and Leone were to divert
15660-582: The third century. By the time of the first historical records of Scandinavia, about the 8th century, several small political entities existed in Norway. It has been estimated that there were nine petty realms in Western Norway during the early Viking Age . Archaeologist Bergljot Solberg on this basis estimates that there would have been at least 20 in the whole country. In the Viking period, Norwegian Viking explorers discovered Iceland by accident in
15795-452: The throne of Norway and Sweden in 1818 and reigned to 1844. He protected the constitution and liberties of Norway and Sweden during the age of Metternich . As such, he was regarded as a liberal monarch. However, he was ruthless in his use of paid informers, secret police and restrictions on the freedom of the press to put down public movements for reform—especially the Norwegian national independence movement. The Romantic Era that followed
15930-458: The torpedo boats Cesare Battisti and Francesco Nullo also found nothing. From 21 to 25 August, Guglielmotti and Ferraris , the torpedo boats Nullo and Nazario Sauro from 24 to 25 August, Battisti and Daniele Manin from 30 to 31 August, Pantera and Tigre from 28 to 29 August searched for ships reported by spies and reconnaissance aircraft, with no result. On the night of 5/6 September, Battisti , Manin and Sauro and over
16065-498: The traditional dominant view, the first component was originally norðr , a cognate of English north , so the full name was Norðr vegr , "the way northwards", referring to the sailing route along the Norwegian coast, and contrasting with suðrvegar "southern way" (from Old Norse suðr ) for (Germany), and austrvegr "eastern way" (from austr ) for the Baltic . The earliest traces of human occupation in Norway are found along
16200-459: Was occupied by the Allies. Japan lost its former possessions in Asia and the Pacific and had its sovereignty limited to the four main home islands and other minor islands as determined by the Allies. In Allied countries during the war, the "Pacific War" was not usually distinguished from World War II , or was known simply as the War against Japan . In the United States, the term Pacific theater
16335-488: Was 19,000 yd (9.4 nmi; 17 km) distant. Leander left the convoy and at 06:54 increased speed to 26 kn (48 km/h; 30 mph). At about 10:00, Leander arrived and took Kimberley in tow. From 3 to 5 December, Tigre , Leone , Manin and Sauro sortied with Ferraris in another abortive attempt to find a convoy. From 12 to 22 December, Archimede conducted two more sorties with no result and from 23 to 30 December Ferraris lay off Port Sudan. On
16470-631: Was a Utopian socialist who in 1848 organised a labour society in Drammen . In just a few months, this society had a membership of 500 and was publishing its own newspaper. Within two years, 300 societies had been organised all over Norway, with a total membership of 20,000 drawn from the lower classes of both urban and rural areas. In the end, the revolt was easily crushed; Thrane was captured and jailed. In 1898, all men were granted universal suffrage , followed by all women in 1913. Christian Michelsen , Prime Minister of Norway from 1905 to 1907, played
16605-528: Was killed at sea. On 11 April, President Roosevelt announced that the Red Sae and the Gulf of Aden we no longer considered to be war zones, allowing US ships to sail in them. A British civilian contractor was hired but he and his team failed to float any scuttled vessels. Edward Ellsberg , a commander in the U.S. Navy arrived in April 1942 and began systematically to restore the harbour facilities. His staff repaired
16740-411: Was mainly used for anti-aircraft defence of the port. In January 1941, the colonial ship Eritrea , the auxiliary cruisers, Ramb I and Ramb II , were to operate as commerce raiders. As British troops neared the port, Ramb I and Coburg (7,400 GRT), a German freighter, escaped from Massawa on the night of 20/21 February 1941 and passed into the Gulf of Aden. At 10:37 a.m., on 27 February, west of
16875-408: Was one revolt under Knut Alvsson in 1502. Norway took no part in the events which led to Swedish independence from Denmark in the 1520s. Upon the death of King Haakon V in 1319, Magnus Eriksson , at just three years old, inherited the throne as King Magnus VII. A simultaneous movement to make Magnus King of Sweden proved successful (he was a grandson of King Magnus Ladulås of Sweden), and both
17010-468: Was part of Denmark–Norway , and, from 1814 to 1905, it was in a personal union with Sweden. Norway was neutral during the First World War , and in the Second World War until April 1940 when it was invaded and occupied by Nazi Germany until the end of the war. Harald V of the House of Glücksburg is the current King of Norway . Jonas Gahr Støre has been Prime Minister of Norway since 2021. As
17145-656: Was prepared to move deeper into China. The Marco Polo Bridge Incident on 7 July 1937 provoked full-scale war between China and Japan. The Nationalist Party and the Chinese Communists suspended their civil war in order to form a nominal alliance against Japan, and the Soviet Union quickly lent support by providing large amounts of materiel to Chinese troops. In August 1937, Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek deployed some of his best troops to defend Shanghai against some 300,000 Japanese troops attempting to seize
17280-634: Was proclaimed King of Norway by the Eyrathing in 995. One of the most important sources for the history of the 11th century Vikings is the treaty between the Icelanders and Olaf II Haraldsson, king of Norway circa 1015 to 1028. Feudalism never really developed in Norway or Sweden, as it did in the rest of Europe. However, the administration of government took on a very conservative feudal character. The Hanseatic League forced royalty to cede to them greater and greater concessions over foreign trade and
17415-579: Was scuttled off the coat of Arabia on 3 April. The Italian ships were spotted by aircraft about 10 nmi (19 km; 12 mi) off the port and came under attack from the Swordfish bombers of HMS Eagle flying from the Port Sudan airfield that sank Manin and Sauro . Pantera and Tigre were scuttled on the Arabian coast. The defenders of Massawa managed to resist several attacks but
17550-481: Was seen as unlikely to commence hostilities. The Japanese leadership was aware that a total military victory in the traditional sense against the United States was impossible, and instead envisaged that rapid, aggressive and expansive conquest would force the U.S. to agree to a negotiated peace that would recognize Japanese hegemony in Asia. Following prolonged tensions between Japan and the Western powers , units of
17685-405: Was taken by surprise, having mistakenly identified the British ship as Italian. Kimberley closed to 5,000 yd (2.5 nmi; 4.6 km) and at 06:20, Nullo scraped a reef, damaging a propeller and springing a leak. As Nullo rounded Harmil at about 06:25, it was hit several times. Nullo lost all power; Borsini gave the order to abandon ship, trying to run Nullo aground on Harmil. Nullo
17820-410: Was then hit by a torpedo at 06:35, breaking in two. At 06:15 the four naval guns on Harmil engaged Kimberley and hit it in the engine-room. While adrift 10,000 yd (4.9 nmi; 9.1 km) from the shore battery, Kimberley silenced two of the guns. Kimberley managed to get under way, its speed reduced to 15 kn (28 km/h; 17 mph) and the shore battery ceased fire when Kimberley
17955-455: Was unprepared for the German surprise attack (see: Battle of Drøbak Sound , Norwegian Campaign , and Invasion of Norway ), military and naval resistance lasted for two months. Norwegian armed forces in the north launched an offensive against the German forces in the Battles of Narvik , but were forced to surrender on 10 June after losing British support which had been diverted to France during
18090-684: Was widely used. The US Armed Forces considered the China Burma India theater to be distinct from the Asiatic-Pacific theater during the conflict. Japan used the name Greater East Asia War ( 大東亜戦争 , Dai Tō-A Sensō ) , as chosen by a cabinet decision on 10 December 1941, to refer to both the war with the Western Allies and the ongoing war in China. This name was released to the public on 12 December, with an explanation that it involved Asian nations achieving their independence from
18225-529: Was wielded by the leader of the German occupation authority, Josef Terboven . Quisling, as minister president , later formed a collaborationist government under German control . Up to 15,000 Norwegians volunteered to fight in German units, including the Waffen-SS . Many Norwegians and persons of Norwegian descent joined the Allied forces as well as the Free Norwegian Forces . In June 1940,
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