The German invasion of Norway took place on the night of April 8–9, 1940, as part of Operation Weserübung, under the pretext of protecting Norway from military aggression by Great Britain and France. Most of Norway’s best weapons were lost within the first 24 hours. And the Norwegian government, including the royal family, managed to leave Norway and form a government-in-exile.

The author of this archive is an unknown German soldier from one of the Wehrmacht mountain infantry units that participated in the occupation of Norway and was subsequently stationed in occupied territory. Most of his photographs were taken in the  city and municipality of Kristiansand  in southern Norway on the Atlantic coast. Kristiansand was also attacked by the German Navy and Luftwaffe on April 9, 1940, but the Germans encountered fierce resistance from Norwegian coastal artillery near Odderøya. Bombs and shells hit the city center and, by mistake, the 70-meter-high church tower of Kristiansand Cathedral. The third attempt to attack the city was successful because the German signal flag was confused with the French national flag, a misunderstanding discovered too late by the Norwegian army. The city was occupied by a German force of 800 soldiers, most likely including the photographer. 

Images from this archive show Wehrmacht troops marching through the streets of Kristiansand, where an advertisement for “Freia,” one of Norway’s most famous chocolate brands, can be seen on a house wall. There are also portraits of German soldiers in the harbor against the backdrop of ships, on the bridge, and near the train station. The photographer captured many scenes from the soldiers’ everyday lives: duty, guard duty, exercise, drills, eating, sleeping, and so on. The photos show German soldiers engaging in physical exercise and acrobatics, including riding motorcycles without hands and performing various stunts. And, of course, German mountain troops go skiing whenever snow falls. Indeed, the culture of physical exercise held a special place in the policy of the Third Reich, and this is particularly evident in the photos from this archive. Often, soldiers can be seen with awards for their sporting achievements on their uniforms.

The photographer is not insensitive to the astonishing and, to him, apparently new Norwegian landscapes and fjords, which he often captured or where he photographed other German soldiers. The highlight of this archive are the photographs of the German soldiers’ Christmas celebration in their barracks. The celebration began with a traditional feast with portraits of relatives in front of a decorated Christmas tree and ended with absurd role-playing scenes in semi-nudity with helmets on their heads and weapons in hand.