Commander of the Hammerfest Naval Defense
The commander of the sea defense Hammerfest , in short sea commander Hammerfest , was a regional coastal commander of the German navy in World War II based in Hammerfest .
history
After the German occupation of Norway in July 1940, the Navy initially deployed the sea commander Tromso , who was responsible for the entire northern Norwegian coast up to the Russian border. In March 1941, the Kirkenes Sea Command was formed from the eastern part of this area . In March 1942, the Hammerfest sea command was spun off from parts of both areas . She was subordinate to the Admiral of the Norwegian Arctic Coast .
The command of the sea commander extended from the Laksefjord with Nordkyn as the border point in the east to the island of Loppa in the west. This area was evacuated by the German troops in January 1945 and the Maritime Command was dissolved
Subordinate departments and associations
The following units and offices were subordinate to the sea commander:
- Harbor Captain Hammerfest
- Port Captain Alta
- Port captain Honningsvaag
- Marine artillery department 514 (Hammerfest / Honningsvåg), newly established
- Hammerfest Harbor Protection Flotilla, renamed the 65th Outpost Flotilla in May 1944 and subordinated to the 2nd Coastal Protection Association
- 6th landing flotilla, from June 1944 (Hammerfest)
- Naval Flak Division 710 (Alta) from Maritime Commander Narvik
- Naval Equipment Station Hammerfest
Naval commanders
The following officers held the post of sea commander Hammerfest:
- Frigate Captain Adolf Hesse, March - August 1942, former commandant of the Kirkenes naval defense
- Captain Jakob Förschner, August 1942 - May 1943
- Sea captain Horst Kessler, May 1943 - January 1945
literature
- Walter Lohmann , Hans H. Hildebrand: The German Navy 1939-1945 . Compilation in three volumes. OO 1956. Volume II, main chapter XII, chapter 5