Weserübung
Weserübung was the German language codename for Nazi-Germany's assault on neutral Scandinavia during World War II. The name translates as "Weser Exercise," the Weser being a German river.
On April 9 Germany occupied Denmark and Norway, ostensibly as a defensive maneuver against a planned (and openly discussed) Franco-British occupation of those countries.
Denmark capitulated instantly in exchange for retained political independence in domestic matters, which resulted in an occupation uniquely lenient until the summer of 1943, also postponing the arrest and deportation of Danish Jews until nearly all of them were warned and on their way to Sweden. Fewer than 500 Danish Jews were deported, and fewer than 50 of them lost their lives.
The occupation of Norway went swiftly, except in the far north, where British and German troops fought over the control of the winter harbor Narvik, important for the export of Swedish iron ore. The Germans evacuated on May 28, but due to the detoriating situation on the European continent, the British troops were evacuated in Operation Alphabet – and the Germans recaptured Narvik on June 9, by then deserted also by the civilians.
As a consequence, Germany put pressure on neutral Sweden to permit transition of military goods and soldiers on leave. On June 18 an agreement was reached: Soldiers were to travel unarmed and not be part of unit movements. A total of 2,140,000 German soldiers, and over 100,000 German military railway carriages, crossed Sweden until the traffic was officially suspended on August 20, 1943.
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