Altafjord ( en, Alta Fjord;Koop, Gerhard, & Klaus-Peter Schmolke. 2000. ''Heavy Cruisers of the Admiral Hipper Class: Warships of the Kriegsmarine''. Barnsley, UK: Seaforth Publishing, p. 55. no, Altafjorden; fkv, Alattionvuono) is a

fjord In physical geography, a fjord or fiord () is a long, narrow inlet with steep sides or cliffs, created by a glacier. Fjords exist on the coasts of Alaska, Antarctica, British Columbia, Chile, Denmark, Germany, Greenland, the Faroe Islands, Ice ...

Alta Municipality ( se, Áltá ; fkv, Alattio; fi, Alattio) is the most populated municipality in Finnmark in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Alta. Some of the main villages in the municipality in ...

Troms og Finnmark Troms og Finnmark (; sme, Romsa ja Finnmárku ; fkv, Tromssa ja Finmarkku; fi, Tromssa ja Finnmark, lit. Troms and Finnmark in English language, English), is a Counties of Norway, county in Northern Norway, northern Norway that was established ...

county,

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...

. The long fjord stretches from the town of Alta in the south to the islands of

Stjernøya Stjernøya ( sme, Stierdná) is an island in western Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. The island sits at the mouth of the Altafjorden on the south side of the Sørøysundet strait. It is divided among the municipalities of Loppa, Hasvik Has ...

and

Seiland Seiland ( sme, Sievju) is the eighth largest island in mainland Norway, located in Troms og Finnmark county. The island is divided between the municipalities of Alta and Hammerfest Archeological excavations have shown that people have lived ...

. The long river

Altaelva Altaelva ( en, Alta River; sme, Álttáeatnu; fkv, Alattionjoki) is the third-longest river in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. The river begins in the mountains and lakes in Kautokeino Municipality, near the border with Troms og Finnmark ...

empties into the fjord at the town of Alta. At Stjernøya and Seiland islands, the fjord splits into two

strait A strait is an oceanic landform connecting two seas or two other large areas of water. The surface water generally flows at the same elevation on both sides and through the strait in either direction. Most commonly, it is a narrow ocean channe ...

s before emptying into the

Norwegian Sea The Norwegian Sea ( no, Norskehavet; is, Noregshaf; fo, Norskahavið) is a marginal sea, grouped with either the Atlantic Ocean or the Arctic Ocean, northwest of Norway between the North Sea and the Greenland Sea, adjoining the Barents Sea to ...

. Some of the larger side-branches off the main fjord include Langfjorden, Kåfjorden, and Korsfjorden. The fjord was historically known as "Altenfjord", and was referred to as such by British historians throughout most of the 20th century. Altafjord01

History

Prehistoric culture

A large number of prehistoric rock carvings have been found along the fjord, particularly at the bay

Jiepmaluokta ''Hjemmeluftbukta'' ( Northern Sámi: ''Jiepmaluokta'') is a bay in Alta Municipality, Finnmark, Norway. It is the main site for the rock carvings at Alta with about 3,000 individual carvings (petroglyphs). The bay lies on the southwestern edge ...

. These locations at Kåfjord, Jiepmaluokta, and Amtmannsnes are assigned a

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...

World Heritage Site A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...

. The petroglyphs are dated from 4,200 BC to

500 BC __NOTOC__ The year 500 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. In the Roman Empire it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Camerinus and Longus (or, less frequently, year 254 '' Ab urbe condita''). The denomination 500 BC for thi ...

, based on old shorelines and nearby prehistoric settlements.

World War II

During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

there was a

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

naval base along the Kåfjorden, which branches off the main Altafjord. The German battleship '' Tirpitz'' was based at the village of Kåfjord (along the Kåfjorden). It was subject to attacks by British X class

midget submarine A midget submarine (also called a mini submarine) is any submarine under 150 tons, typically operated by a crew of one or two but sometimes up to six or nine, with little or no on-board living accommodation. They normally work with mother ships, ...

s in September 1943 (

Operation Source Operation Source was a series of attacks to neutralise the heavy German warships – ''Tirpitz'', ''Scharnhorst'' and ''Lützow'' – based in northern Norway, using X-class midget submarines. The attacks took place in September 1943 at Kaa ...

), and in 1944 to air strikes in April (

Operation Tungsten Operation Tungsten was a Second World War Royal Navy air raid that targeted the German battleship ''Tirpitz''. The operation sought to damage or destroy ''Tirpitz'' at her base in Kaafjord in the far north of Norway before she could become ...

), July ( Operation Mascot), August (

Operation Goodwood Operation Goodwood was a British offensive during the Second World War, which took place between 18 and 20 July 1944 as part of the larger battle for Caen in Normandy, France. The objective of the operation was a limited attack to the south, ...

), and September (

Operation Paravane Operation Paravane was a British air raid of World War II that inflicted heavy damage on the German battleship ''Tirpitz'', at anchor in Kaafjord in the far north of German-occupied Norway. The attack was conducted on 15 September 1944 by ...

), after which ''Tirpitz'' was relocated to

Tromsø Tromsø (, , ; se, Romsa ; fkv, Tromssa; sv, Tromsö) is a List of municipalities of Norway, municipality in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the Tromsø (city), city of Tromsø. Tromsø lies ...

, where a final bombing raid in November (

Operation Catechism Operation Catechism was a British air raid of World War II that destroyed the German battleship ''Tirpitz''. It was conducted on 12 November 1944 by 29 Royal Air Force heavy bombers that attacked the battleship at its anchorage near the Norwegia ...

) sank the battleship.

References

{{authority control Alta, Norway Fjords of Troms og Finnmark