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When the Winter War broke out between Finland and the Soviet Union in late 1939, international attention turned to the Nordic countries. The neutral country of Norway in particular held strategic importance for Germany, not only due to its naval access to the Atlantic, but also as it was the most efficient route for the transport of Swedish iron to Germany. Norway had the fourth largest shipping fleet in the world, and both sides knew that control of Norway would significantly impact the German war effort; Britain and France had planned a preemptive invasion of Norway in early 1940, however Germany acted faster.

Invasion

On April 9, 1940, Operation Weserübung was launched, which was the simultaneous invasion of Denmark and Norway. Norway was very unprepared for the surprise attack, and Germany's prioritization of Norwegian air and naval bases hindered the response further. The rapidity of the invasion saw Denmark capitulate within a few hours, and Germany quickly took control of several Norwegian cities with little difficulty. It took several days for the Norwegian military to regroup and coordinate a response. With the help of an Allied expeditionary force and the British Navy, it achieved some success in the North Sea, but the delay had allowed enough time for German armored reinforcements to arrive and secure control of south and central Norway. By early May, most of the fighting had been pushed north, especially around Narvik; the main port for Swedish iron exports to Germany. Narvik was actually re-taken by the Allies on May 28, before they withdrew from Norway 10 days later to support the defense of France. Norway's king and government then left for London, where they formed a government-in-exile, and the final Norwegian military units surrendered on June 10 (after much of their resources were sent to Britain). Despite it taking just two months, the German invasion of Norway was the longest of any in Western Europe.

Occupation

Germany had planned on allowing the Norwegian government to remain in power (as in Denmark), to legitimize the occupation, but it quickly became clear that this would not be the case. Administrative councils were created, and a puppet government eventually installed, but ultimate control lay with the SS. The occupying force of more than 340,000 German troops was one of the largest per capita forces of the war, and, with hindsight, German investment in Norway's defense far outweighed its eventual use. The Norwegian underground resistance was very active throughout the war, both on land and at sea, and was responsible for some of the most effective sabotage missions carried out against Germany. The Norwegian economy, which had been dependent on international trade, was redirected towards the German war effort and it then shrunk massively. For Norway's citizens, restrictions were less strict than in other territories, but thousands of perceived opponents were still imprisoned or executed, and acts of terror were common. Around two thirds of Norway's Jewish population fled (mostly to Sweden) or went into hiding. However 773 were arrested and deported to concentration camps in Eastern Europe; the majority of these prisoners eventually perished in Auschwitz, and just 38 returned after the war.

Liberation

As the Soviets pushed the Germans back through Scandinavia in late 1944, German forces adopted a scorched-earth policy as they moved through the northern region of Finnmark. Thousands of homes were burned, and as many as 25,000 Norwegians were forced to live in the wilderness throughout the winter. In November 1944, exiled Norwegian troops and police officers arrived in Russia to take back Finnmark and rescue its citizens; the area was secured by the time of Germany's surrender on May 8, 1945. At the time of surrender, the resistance helped coordinate an effective and generally peaceful transfer of power, before the king and government's return on June 7. Immediately after the war, there were over 140,000 displaced foreigners in Norway, over half of which were Soviet prisoners of war, and over 90,000 displaced Norwegians abroad, mostly in Sweden. Norwegian authorities also investigated 92,000 cases of collaboration, which resulted in 46,000 convictions, 18,000 imprisonments, and 25 executions of Norwegian citizens. Estimates of total Norwegian deaths due to the war are generally around 10,000, although a precise breakdown for the fatalities remains unclear.