QUICK FACTS
Created Jan 0001
Status Verified Sarcastic
Type Existential Dread
Keywords
north west europe campaign, lofoten islands, united kingdom, norway, germany, quisling regime, louis k. hamilton, martin linge, lord lovat, armed trawler

Operation Claymore

“Date: 4 March 1941 (1941-03-04) Location: Lofoten Islands, Norway Coordinates: 68°09′09″N 14°12′00″E Result: British-Norwegian...”

Contents
  • 1. Overview
  • 2. Etymology
  • 3. Cultural Impact

Operation Claymore: The 1941 British-Norwegian Raid on the Lofoten Islands

Part of the North West Europe Campaign

Commandos watching fish oil tanks burning.

Date: 4 March 1941 (1941-03-04) Location: Lofoten Islands , Norway Coordinates: 68°09′09″N 14°12′00″E Result: British-Norwegian victory

Belligerents

vs.

Commanders and Leaders

Strength

  • British & Norwegian Forces:
    • 500 British commandos
    • 52 Norwegian volunteers
    • 7 ships (including infantry landing ships and destroyers)
  • German Forces:

Casualties and Losses

  • British & Norwegian:
    • 1 wounded
  • German:
    • 228 captured
    • 10 ships sunk

Background: The Birth of the Commandos and the Need for Retaliation

After the disastrous Dunkirk evacuation in 1940, British morale was at a low point. The British Expeditionary Force had been forced out of Europe, leaving the United Kingdom vulnerable to potential German invasion. In this climate of uncertainty, Prime Minister Winston Churchill demanded action—not just defensive measures, but offensive strikes to disrupt German operations and restore British confidence.

Churchill’s vision was clear: “They must be prepared with specially trained troops of the hunter class who can develop a reign of terror down the enemy coast.” This directive led to the formation of the British Commandos, elite units trained for swift, devastating raids behind enemy lines.

The Formation of the Commandos

The concept of commando raids was not entirely new—Lieutenant-Colonel Dudley Clarke had already proposed such a force to General Sir John Dill , the Chief of the Imperial General Staff . Dill, recognizing the strategic value, approved the plan. By November 1940, the first commando units were formed, drawing volunteers from the Territorial Army and the disbanding Independent Companies , which had previously seen action in Norway.

These units were organized into the Special Service Brigade , under Brigadier J.C. Haydon . By autumn 1940, over 2,000 men had volunteered, forming 12 commando units ready for deployment.

The Strategic Importance of the Lofoten Islands

The Lofoten Islands , located within the Arctic Circle off the coast of Northern Norway , were a critical economic asset for Nazi Germany. The islands were a major producer of fish oil and glycerine, essential components in the German war economy. Glycerine, in particular, was vital for the production of explosives.

The idea for a raid on Lofoten was proposed by Hugh Dalton , the Minister of Economic Warfare , in a memo to Churchill on 14 January 1941. Dalton’s plan was straightforward:

  • Destroy fish oil and cod liver oil plants to cripple German supply chains.
  • Sink enemy shipping in the harbors.
  • Eliminate isolated German garrisons.
  • Capture or eliminate Quisling regime collaborators.

Churchill, ever the advocate of bold action, approved the plan and tasked Admiral Roger Keyes , a veteran of the Gallipoli Campaign and the Zeebrugge Raid in the First World War , with overseeing the operation.

Mission Objectives and Preparation

Command Structure and Forces Involved

The raid, codenamed Operation Claymore, was placed under the command of Rear Admiral Louis Keppel Hamilton . The naval task force, known as “Rebel”, consisted of:

The landing force was composed of:

Training and Logistics

The force assembled at Scapa Flow in the Orkney Islands on 21 February 1941. Over the next week, they conducted intensive training, familiarizing themselves with the Landing Craft Assault (LCA) boats they would use to reach the shore.

One major challenge was naval gunfire support—the destroyers could not approach closer than 1 mile (1.6 km) from shore due to shallow waters. This meant the commandos would have to rely on their own firepower for cover. Additionally, each man was ordered to carry 48 hours’ worth of rations in case the destroyers were forced to withdraw due to enemy naval threats.

The Targets: Stamsund, Henningsvær, Svolvær, and Brettesnes

The raid was planned as a multi-pronged assault on four key ports:

  1. Stamsund – Home to the Lofotens Cod Boiling Plant.
  2. Henningsvær – Two fish oil factories.
  3. Svolvær – Thirteen fish oil factories.
  4. Brettesnes – Additional industrial targets.

The goal was not to engage in prolonged combat but to destroy infrastructure, capture prisoners, and withdraw before German reinforcements could arrive.

The Raid: Execution and Outcomes

Approach and Landing (4 March 1941)

The task force departed Scapa Flow just after midnight on 1 March 1941, heading toward the Faroe Islands before turning north into the Arctic to avoid detection. By 04:00 on 4 March, they reached the Vestfjorden —and to their surprise, the harbor navigational lights were still on, indicating they had achieved complete tactical surprise.

The original plan called for simultaneous landings at 06:30, but this was delayed by 15 minutes to avoid landing in darkness. By 06:50, all commandos were ashore.

Minimal Resistance and Rapid Success

The landings were largely unopposed. The only significant resistance came from the German armed trawler Krebs, which fired four rounds at HMS Somali before being sunk by return fire.

However, a tragic incident occurred when HMS Bedouin mistakenly sank the Norwegian passenger ship D/S Mira, which had inadvertently entered the battle zone. Despite this, the raid proceeded with devastating efficiency.

Destruction of Industrial Targets

The commandos systematically destroyed their objectives:

  • Stamsund: The Lofotens Cod Boiling Plant was demolished.
  • Henningsvær: Two fish oil factories were razed.
  • Svolvær: Thirteen factories were burned to the ground.

In total, 800,000 imperial gallons (3,600 m³) of fish oil and paraffin were set ablaze, dealing a severe blow to German war production.

The Royal Navy sunk 10 German and Norwegian collaborationist ships, totaling 18,000 tons of shipping:

  • Hamburg
  • Pasajes
  • Felix
  • Eilenau
  • Rissen
  • Andø
  • Grotto
  • Bernhard Schulte
  • Krebs (armed trawler)
  • D/S Mira (Norwegian passenger ship, sunk in error)

Capture of Prisoners and Intelligence

The raid yielded 228 prisoners, including:

Additionally, 314 Norwegian volunteers joined the raiders, later forming part of the Free Norwegian Forces in Britain.

The Enigma Machine Capture: A Cryptographic Victory

Perhaps the most significant outcome of Operation Claymore was the capture of a set of rotor wheels for an Enigma machine and its codebooks from the sinking Krebs. Although the trawler’s commander, Lieutenant Hans Kupfinger, threw his Enigma machine overboard before being killed, the rotor settings and codebooks were recovered.

This intelligence allowed Bletchley Park to decrypt German naval communications, providing the Allies with critical intelligence to evade U-boat wolfpacks in the Battle of the Atlantic . The captured documents included the Kriegsmarine Home Waters key for February 1941, which helped break German naval codes for months.

Aftermath and Strategic Impact

British and Norwegian Reactions

  • Winston Churchill hailed the raid as a tremendous success, issuing a memo: “To all concerned… my congratulations on the very satisfactory operation.”
  • Martin Linge and the Norwegian commandos were less enthusiastic, questioning the long-term strategic value of such raids. However, they were not informed of the Enigma capture, which made the operation far more significant than they realized.

German Response: The Fortification of Norway

In response to Operation Claymore and subsequent commando raids, Germany dramatically increased its garrison in Norway. By 1944, the German occupation force had swelled to 370,000 men—far exceeding the size of a standard British infantry division (which numbered 18,347 men in 1944).

Legacy of the Commandos

Historical Significance

Operation Claymore was the first of 12 commando raids conducted against Norway during the war. While some raids were tactical successes, others served as decoys—masking “pinch raids” designed to capture German cryptographic equipment without tipping off the enemy.

The raid also demonstrated the effectiveness of combined British-Norwegian operations, setting a precedent for future Special Operations Executive (SOE) missions in occupied Europe.

See Also

References

Notes

  • The Independent Companies were initially formed in April 1940 from Territorial Army volunteers, intended for guerrilla operations in Norway after the German invasion. Each company consisted of 21 officers and 268 other ranks.

Citations

  • West, Nigel (2015). Double Cross in Cairo: The True Story of the Spy Who Turned the Tide of War in the Middle East. London: Biteback.
  • Haskew, Michael E. (2007). Encyclopaedia of Elite Forces in the Second World War. Barnsley: Pen and Sword.
  • Chappell, Mike (1996). Army Commandos 1940–1945. Osprey.
  • Dunning, James (2010). The Fighting Fourth: No. 4 Commando at War 1940–45. Stroud: History Press.
  • Moreman, Timothy Robert (2006). British Commandos 1940–46. Osprey.
  • Messenger, Charles (1991). The Last Prussian: A Biography of Field Marshal Gerd von Rundstedt. London: Brassey’s.
  • Roskill, S.W. (1957). The War at Sea 1939–1945: The Defensive. London: HMSO.

Bibliography

  • Brayley, Martin & Chappell, Mike (2001). British Army 1939–45: North-West Europe. Osprey.
  • Joslen, H.F. (1990). Orders of Battle, Second World War, 1939–1945. Uckfield: Naval & Military Press.
  • Sebag-Montefiore, Hugh (2001). Enigma: The Battle for the Code. London: Weidenfeld & Nicolson.

External Sources

  • Admiral Sir John C. Tovey, Despatch on raid on military and economic objectives in the Lofoten Islands (Norway), 1941.

Further Reading

Operation Claymore remains one of the most successful commando raids of the Second World War—a masterclass in precision, intelligence gathering, and psychological warfare. While the immediate material damage was significant, the capture of Enigma materials proved invaluable, shaping the course of the Battle of the Atlantic and demonstrating the strategic brilliance of combined operations.