| 1st Division | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Active | 1916 – 5 May 1940 May 1952 – 1 January 1963 |
| Country |  Norway |
| Type | Infantry |
| Size | Division |
| Garrison/HQ | Halden, Norway (1916–1940) Ski, Norway (1952–1963) |
| Engagements | World War II |
| Commanders | |
| Notable Commanders | Major Carl Johan Erichsen |
The 1st Division (Norwegian : 1. divisjon) is a former unit in the Norwegian Army, responsible for the defence of Eastern Norway along with the 2nd Division.
The history of the Norwegian 1st Division can be traced back to the reorganization in 1911 of the 1st Akershusiske Infantry Brigade into the combined arms 1st Brigade. In 1916, this brigade was reclassified as the 1st Division, having evolved into what would be considered a division by European definitions. During the First World War, the 1st Division was activated to ensure Norwegian neutrality. Training was intensified with several large-scale exercises and units performed guard duty at important sites such as arsenals and industrial facilities. [1]
Following the German invasion of Norway in 1940 the Norwegian 1st Division, commanded by Major General Carl Johan Erichsen, was responsible for defending the land areas on both side of the Oslofjord against the invading troops. The division was not well prepared for the situation, the troops were not mobilized and the division's stores depots in Fredrikstad were captured by the Germans already on 9 April. The 1st Division was responsible for Fossum Fortress (Høytorp Fort and Trøgstad Fort) in Askim and the Greåker Fort in Sarpsborg. The Germans started attacking on 12 April, and there were battles at bridges crossing Glomma (Fossum Bridge, Langenes Railway Bridge, and a bridge near Kykkelsrud Power Station). Fossum Fortress was surrendered on 13 April. On 14 April a large number of troops in Østfold, around 3,000 men, chose to cross the border to Sweden instead of continuing the fight or surrendering to the German troops. At Kongsberg two bataillons surrendered without fighting, while some officers and soldiers disagreed with the surrender and defended the Vinje district for about one month. [2] [3] [4]
The 1st Division was re-established in May 1952 with headquarters in Ski, tasked with the defence of South Norway. The 1st Division was disbanded by 1 January 1963, its personnel dispersed and its tasks reassigned to the District Command Østlandet. [5]
The Norwegian Army is the land warfare service branch of the Norwegian Armed Forces. The Army is the oldest of the Norwegian service branches, established as a modern military organization under the command of the King of Norway in 1628. The Army participated in various continental wars during the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries as well, both in Norway and abroad, especially in World War II (1939–1945). It constitutes part of the Norwegian military contribution as a charter member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) since 1949.
The German operation for the invasion of Denmark and Norway in April 1940 was code-named Weserübung, or "Weser Exercise." Opposing the invasion were the partially mobilized Norwegian military, and an allied expeditionary force composed of British, French, and Free Polish formations. The following list formed the order of battle for this campaign.
The Norwegian campaign involved the attempt by Allied forces to defend northern Norway coupled with the resistance of the Norwegian military to the country's invasion by Nazi Germany in World War II.
Arne Toralf Sunde was a Norwegian politician, Olympic shooter and army officer. He is best known for his participation in the 1940 Norwegian Campaign, his participation in Nygaardsvold's Cabinet during its 1940–1945 exile in London and three years as a United Nations ambassador. Sunde was President of the United Nations Security Council in June 1949 and July 1950.
This is an incomplete list of Norwegian coats of arms. Today most municipalities and all counties have their own coats of arms. Many Norwegian military units and other public agencies and some private families have coats of arms. For more general information see the page about Norwegian heraldry.
The Norwegian 2nd Division was responsible for defending Eastern Norway against Nazi Germany during the early part of the Norwegian campaign of the Second World War. The division was commanded by General Jacob Hvinden Haug.
Erwin Engelbrecht was a German military officer.
Hans Reidar Holtermann was a Norwegian military officer. Holtermann is best known as the commander of Hegra Fortress during the Battle of Hegra Fortress in the Norwegian Campaign of 1940.
The Battle of Dombås was fought between Norwegian Army infantry forces and German Fallschirmjäger paratroops in mid-April 1940. As part of their conquest of Norway south of Trondheim, and as a countermeasure against reported Allied landings in the Romsdal area of south-western Norway, the Germans dropped a company of paratroopers near the vital railroad junction of Dombås on 14 April 1940. For the next five days, the German force blocked the Dovre Line railroad line between Oslo and Trondheim, as well as the main road between the two cities.
The German invasion of Denmark, was the German attack on Denmark on 9 April 1940, during the Second World War. The attack was a prelude to the invasion of Norway.
In Operation Doomsday, the British 1st Airborne Division acted as a police and military force during the Allied occupation of Norway in May 1945, immediately after the victory in Europe during the Second World War. The division maintained law and order until the arrival of the remainder of Force 134, the occupation force. During its time in Norway, the division was tasked with supervising the surrender of the German forces in Norway, as well as preventing the sabotage of vital military and civilian facilities.
Oskar Kummetz was an admiral with the Kriegsmarine during World War II. He also served in the Kaiserliche Marine during World War I. Kummetz was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross for his actions in the Battle of Drøbak Sound, during which his command, the Blücher, was hit in the superstructure by two 28 cm shells from Norwegian fortress Oscarsborg, 15 cm shells from Kopås fortress and 5.7 cm gunfire from Husvik fortress. From Kaholmen Blücher was hit by two torpedoes and she sank 84 metres below the sound.
The Dano–Swedish War of 1808–1809 was a war between Denmark–Norway and Sweden due to Denmark–Norway's alliance with France and Sweden's alliance with the United Kingdom during the Napoleonic Wars. Neither Sweden nor Denmark-Norway had wanted war to begin with but once pushed into it through their respective alliances, Sweden made a bid to acquire Norway by way of invasion while Denmark-Norway made ill-fated attempts to reconquer territories lost to Sweden in the 17th century. Peace was concluded on grounds of status quo ante bellum on 10 December 1809.
Fossum Bridge is a bridge crossing the river Glomma at Askim in Østfold county, Norway. The old wooden bridge was an arch bridge with two spans which opened in 1856. That bridge was partly destroyed in the Battle of Fossum Bridge during the Nazi invasion of Norway in April 1940. The current bridge dates from 1961 and is a suspension bridge with a main span of 125 metres.
Kristian Rikardsen Løken was a highly decorated Norwegian military officer who served in the Belgian Force Publique from 1907 to 1917, fighting German colonial forces in East Africa from 1914 to 1917, and went on to command a Norwegian Army infantry brigade during the 1940 Norwegian campaign of the Second World War.
HNoMS Brand was a 1.-class torpedo boat constructed in 1898. She served the Royal Norwegian Navy for more than four decades, including neutrality protection duties during the First World War. Having once again been employed on neutrality protection duty at the outbreak of the Second World War, Brand was captured by the Germans during their invasion of Norway in April 1940.
Per Askim was a Norwegian naval officer who was in command of the two coastal defence ships defending Narvik during the German invasion of Norway on 9 April 1940.
The 1st Cavalry Division of the Royal Yugoslav Army was established in 1921, soon after the creation of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes, which became the Kingdom of Yugoslavia in 1929. In peacetime it consisted of two cavalry brigade headquarters commanding a total of four regiments. It was part of the Yugoslav 1st Army Group during the German-led World War II Axis invasion of Yugoslavia in April 1941, with a wartime organisation specifying one cavalry brigade headquarters commanding two or three regiments, and divisional-level combat and support units.
Bjarne Keyser Barth was a Norwegian fortress artillery officer. A military officer from 1914, Barth took part in Norwegian neutrality protection duties during the First World War, mostly at Oscarsborg Fortress. Remaining in military service after the end of the First World War, he served at several different Norwegian fortresses, finally at Fossumstrøket Fortress in south-eastern Norway.
The 3rd Division is a former unit in the Norwegian Army, responsible for the defence of Agder and Rogaland.
 | This article about a specific military unit is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
 | This article about the military of Norway is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
  | This Norwegian history-related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |