Footsteps of WWII · Norway
Narvik War Museum (Narviksenteret)
Museum · 9 Apr – 8 Jun 1940
The story
Narvik mattered for its ice-free port, which shipped Swedish iron ore by rail. On 9 April 1940 German destroyers landed General Eduard Dietl's mountain troops; the Norwegian coastal defence ships Eidsvold and Norge were sunk and the town surrendered. On 10 April Commodore Bernard Warburton-Lee's destroyers attacked the harbour, sinking two German destroyers; he was killed and awarded a posthumous VC. On 13 April a force led by HMS Warspite destroyed the remaining German destroyers. After weeks of mountain fighting, Norwegian, French and Polish troops retook Narvik on 28 May, but the Allies withdrew in early June and Dietl reoccupied the town on 8 June.
What to look for
A modern museum in the centre of Narvik, sharing a building with the public library since 2016. Exhibitions cover the 1940 campaign and the occupation years to 1945. Look for Warburton-Lee's Victoria Cross and a German Enigma machine.
Plan your visit
Opening hours and prices could not be verified on the official site; check the website before you go. The harbour, where the naval battles were fought, is a short walk away.
Things change, so check opening times before you travel.
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Footsteps of WWII: Europe 1939–1945
A free field guide for your phone: the route, the maps and the stories built in, even with no signal. The whole Second World War in Europe, from the first shots at Westerplatte on 1 September 1939 to the German surrender in May 1945: Dunkirk, the Battle of Britain, Normandy, Arnhem, Bastogne, Stalingrad, Berlin and the camps, in 15 areas from Britain to Russia.
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