History

The pinnacle of this division's service was during World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

, during the German

Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

 invasion of Norway

Norway

Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...

. It was commanded by General

General

A general officer is an officer of high military rank, usually in the army, and in some nations, the air force. The term is widely used by many nations of the world, and when a country uses a different term, there is an equivalent title given....

 Carl Gustav Fleischer

Carl Gustav Fleischer

Carl Gustav Fleischer KCB was a Norwegian general and the first land commander to win a major victory against the Germans in the Second World War...

, who was one of the King of Norway's favourite military officers. His division was one of the few Norwegian military commands that was battle ready on 9 April 1940 when the Germans invaded. With help from British

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

, French

French Third Republic

The French Third Republic was the republican government of France from 1870, when the Second French Empire collapsed due to the French defeat in the Franco-Prussian War, to 1940, when France was overrun by Nazi Germany during World War II, resulting in the German and Italian occupations of France...

, and Polish

Polish Armed Forces in the West

Polish Armed Forces in the West refers to the Polish military formations formed to fight alongside the Western Allies against Nazi Germany and its allies...

 forces, 6th Division were able to recapture the city of Narvik

Narvik

is the third largest city and municipality in Nordland county, Norway by population. Narvik is located on the shores of the Narvik Fjord . The municipality is part of the Ofoten traditional region of North Norway, inside the arctic circle...

, during what became known as the Battle of Narvik.

The Germans took the city at the beginning of the battle, but it was retaken May 28, in what was known as the first major victory for the Allies in World War II (though Norway was not officially an ally at the time). However, the successful German attack on France forced the Allied task force to retreat, which they did in June. As a result of the withdrawal of allied air and naval support the Norwegians were forced to lay down their arms. In one of the most controversial episodes in history of Norway's role in World War II General Fleischer ended his life in 1942, after being sent to Canada as the Norwegian military attaché, a role that was basically a demotion.

After the demobilisation, 6th Division was disbanded. However, when Norway was liberated in 1945, the division was immediately re-established. One long-term consequence of the action at Narvik was the close cooperation between the British military and Norwegian Army, along with close cooperation with France's alpine forces. During the Cold War the division fought in no conflicts. After the end of the Cold War the 6th was re-organized in 2002, as part of an overall reform of the Norwegian military.

Final organisation

In its peace-time organisation, 6th Division consisted of approximately 1,200 commissioned and non-commissioned officers (COs and NCOs), with approximately 3,000 enlisted soldiers and 200 civilian support staff. In wartime, its numbers could exceed 12,000 in total.

Being the only division in the Norwegian Army, the 6th utilise a wide range of modern combat equipment. Its heaviest weapons include Leopard 2

Leopard 2

The Leopard 2 is a main battle tank developed by Krauss-Maffei in the early 1970s for the West German Army. The tank first entered service in 1979 and succeeded the earlier Leopard 1 as the main battle tank of the German Army. Various versions have served in the armed forces of Germany and twelve...

A4NO MBTs, CV9030 IFVs and modernized M109A3GN howitzer

Howitzer

A howitzer is a type of artillery piece characterized by a relatively short barrel and the use of comparatively small propellant charges to propel projectiles at relatively high trajectories, with a steep angle of descent...

s. The infantry use Bv206 tracked all-terrain vehicles, snowmobiles and light off-road vehicles. Their airlifting capabilities are provided by the Tactical Helicopter Group of the Royal Norwegian Air Force

Royal Norwegian Air Force

The Royal Norwegian Air Force is the air force of Norway. It was established as a separate arm of the Norwegian armed forces on 10 November 1944. The RNoAF's peace force is approximately 1,430 employees . 600 personnel also serve their draft period in the RNoAF...

, which is stationed at Bardufoss

Bardufoss

Bardufoss is a small village in the municipality of Målselv in Troms county, Norway. The population was 2,580. Bardufoss is located in the Målselvdalen valley near the confluence of the Barduelva and Målselva rivers. It is located about north of the city of Narvik and about south of the city...

. The division's motto is "Styrke for fred, evne til strid", or "Strength for peace, capability for war".

Subsidiary units

• Brigade Nord
  Brigade Nord
  Brigade Nord is the only brigade in the Norwegian Army. It is mostly based in mid-Troms north of the Arctic Circle. Until 2009, the brigade was part of the 6th Division.-Units:...
  
   - Mechanised infantry brigade including armoured and artillery battalions
• Brigade 6
  Brigade 6
  Brigade 6 is an inactive Norwegian Infantry Brigade. Upon mobilization of the Norwegian Army, this Infantry Brigade will be under the command of the 6th Division of the Norwegian Army.-Further Reading :...
  
   - Light infantry reserve brigade
• Army Ranger Command
• Border Guard Battalion
• Intelligence & EW Battalion
• Home Guard - Although technically a separate branch from the Army, all Home Guard districts are under the 6th Division mobile Command.

The 6th division also included a number of support functions such as engineering and NBC units.

The 6th Division was disbanded on 1 August 2009.