Narvik — too senior an admiral

The Admiral of the Fleet Lord Cork and Orrery, a veteran recalled to active service by Winston Churchill, commands in late April 1940 the Allied forces charged with retaking Narvik, the port of Norway's far north. Narvik is the central stake: it is through it that, in winter, transits the Swedish iron ore from Gällivare on which German war industry depends. The German general Eduard Dietl holds the place with his mountain troops and sailors rescued from the destroyers sunk in the fjord.

In the sector, the Allies have assets: nearly total naval supremacy, out of reach of most German aviation, and the support of the Norwegian 6th Division, the only one fully mobilised. But the command is badly arranged. Lord Cork has seniority over the admiral commanding the Home Fleet and over the land commanders, paralysing coordination: his peers hesitate to impose their views on a more senior officer. Churchill and the staff have not clarified the chain of command.

On 27 April 1940, Lord Cork wants to force the decision. He must choose how to break Dietl's resistance, while the cold, snow and absence of unified command complicate everything.