Paget at Åndalsnes — Sickleforce
To counter the German occupation of Norway, London launches Operation Maurice: a landing at Åndalsnes (west coast, Romsdalen fjord) to attack Trondheim from the south. Force "Sickleforce": 5,000 men of the and the , commanded by Major-General , 53. Mission: to take Dombås, which locks the railway line to Trondheim, then to advance on Lillehammer.
Landing at Åndalsnes on 18 April 1940 without initial opposition. But the equipment is unsuited: summer kit for soldiers advancing through 1.5 m of snow, no skis, no heavy artillery, no air support (the local airstrips are frozen). Opposite advances the German under General Pellengahr, coming up from the south with massive air support — the Stukas of and 2 harry the British troops in stretched-out columns.
On 23 April, first unfavourable engagement at Tretten: the 148th Brigade is driven back with losses. The logistics buckle. Paget must decide what comes next: try to hold, abandon, or push on to Trondheim regardless.
What should Paget do after the unfavourable engagement at Tretten?
Paget chooses B. From 30 April to 2 May 1940, Sickleforce is evacuated under continuous Luftwaffe bombardment. 5,000 men brought back to Scapa Flow by destroyers. Balance: 1,300 killed or taken prisoner, heavy equipment abandoned, 17 British destroyers damaged by the Stukas. Åndalsnes is the first major Allied setback of the war. The parliamentary debate that follows — the Norway Debate — brings down Chamberlain. Paget returns to service, commands the at El Alamein in 1942, then becomes Allied commander-in-chief in Italy in 1944. He survives the war and dies in 1961. Strategic lesson taken on board by Dowding and the RAF staff: the Luftwaffe dominates the Channel and the North Sea. That lesson will shape British air defence doctrine for the Battle of Britain.
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