Basis Nord ("Base North") was a secret
naval base
A naval base, navy base, or military port is a military base, where warships and naval ships are docked when they have no mission at sea or need to restock. Ships may also undergo repairs. Some naval bases are temporary homes to aircraft that us ...
of
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...
's ''
Kriegsmarine
The (, ) was the navy of Germany from 1935 to 1945. It superseded the Imperial German Navy of the German Empire (1871–1918) and the inter-war (1919–1935) of the Weimar Republic. The was one of three official branches, along with the a ...
'' in
Zapadnaya Litsa, west of Murmansk provided by the
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...
. The base was part of a partnership that developed between Germany and the Soviet Union following
German-Soviet Non-Aggression treaty of 1939, along with
a broad economic agreement of 1940.
In 1939, the Soviet Union agreed to supply the base location to Germany for the purpose of supporting U-boats and commerce raiding.
Germany sent supply ships that were anchored in the bay, but the base was never used by Kriegsmarine fighting vessels. Germany's April 1940 invasion of Norway thereafter rendered the base unnecessary.
In 2008, Basis Nord featured in a prominent
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
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PBS
The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcasting, public broadcaster and Non-commercial activity, non-commercial, Terrestrial television, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly fu ...
investigative history series, ''
World War II Behind Closed Doors: Stalin, the Nazis and the West'', and a book of the same name by
Laurence Rees
Laurence Rees (born 1957) is an English historian. He is a BAFTA winning historical documentary filmmaker and a British Book Award winning author of several books about Adolf Hitler, the Nazis and the atrocities committed, especially by them, ...
in 2009.
Background
During the summer of 1939, after conducting negotiations with both a British–French group and Germany regarding potential military and political agreements, the Soviet Union chose Germany, resulting in an August 19
German–Soviet Trade Agreement providing for the trade of certain German military and civilian equipment in exchange for Soviet raw materials
and the August 23
Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact
, long_name = Treaty of Non-Aggression between Germany and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics
, image = Bundesarchiv Bild 183-H27337, Moskau, Stalin und Ribbentrop im Kreml.jpg
, image_width = 200
, caption = Stalin and Ribbentrop shaking ...
, which contained secret protocols dividing the states of
Northern
Northern may refer to the following:
Geography
* North, a point in direction
* Northern Europe, the northern part or region of Europe
* Northern Highland, a region of Wisconsin, United States
* Northern Province, Sri Lanka
* Northern Range, a ra ...
and
Eastern Europe
Eastern Europe is a subregion of the Europe, European continent. As a largely ambiguous term, it has a wide range of geopolitical, geographical, ethnic, cultural, and socio-economic connotations. The vast majority of the region is covered by Russ ...
into German and Soviet "
spheres of influence
In the field of international relations, a sphere of influence (SOI) is a spatial region or concept division over which a state or organization has a level of cultural, economic, military or political exclusivity.
While there may be a formal al ...
."
[''Text of the Nazi-Soviet Non-Aggression Pact''](_blank)
executed August 23, 1939.
One week after the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact's signing, the partition of Poland commenced with
the German invasion of western Poland,
followed by the
Soviet Union's invasion of Eastern Poland on September 17, which included coordination with German forces.
Negotiations
In late 1939, both countries began discussions of creating a larger economic agreement than the 1939 German–Soviet Trade Agreement.
From the start of those negotiations, the Soviet Union made clear that it was willing to exchange its strategic maritime position for technology.
The Soviets were willing to provide a northern base to the Germans, but not a busy seaport because it would provide an open indication of Soviet assistance of Germany, indicating that it was a co-belligerent.
In October, the Soviets initially offered to provide a base to the west of
Murmansk
Murmansk (Russian: ''Мурманск'' lit. "Norwegian coast"; Finnish: ''Murmansk'', sometimes ''Muurmanski'', previously ''Muurmanni''; Norwegian: ''Norskekysten;'' Northern Sámi: ''Murmánska;'' Kildin Sámi: ''Мурман ланнҍ'') i ...
, which the Germans noted lacked anchorage shelter and facilities.
The Soviets modified the offer to then undeveloped
Zapadnaya Litsa, in the Motovsky Gulf on the Litsa Fjord at the westernmost point of the
Kola Peninsula
sjd, Куэлнэгк нёа̄ррк
, image_name= Kola peninsula.png
, image_caption= Kola Peninsula as a part of Murmansk Oblast
, image_size= 300px
, image_alt=
, map_image= Murmansk in Russia.svg
, map_caption = Location of Murmansk Oblas ...
, which the Germans accepted.
Base operations
Need for secrecy
While it made secret agreements with Germany for territorial division and military aid, the Soviet Union attempted to maintain a thin cloak of neutrality. As such, several options for the Soviet supply of German raiding ships that operated at the edge of international law were considered, such as having the German ships feign the capture of Soviet supply vessels as a "prize" (and then releasing them after the Germans retrieved supplies) or placing supplies at a transshipment point where the Germans would later retrieve them.
The base at Zapadnaya Litsa, called "Basis Nord", had advantages with regard to secrecy. It was surrounded by Russian territory and closed to all foreign and Soviet domestic shipping, so that no one could see operations taking place.
Its entrance also prevented observation from the open sea.
Initial base conditions
Germany knew that overt German fortification of Basis Nord was a political impossibility.
The base at that time was entirely undeveloped, with no communications by rail or road and lacked access to potable water.
Murmansk (120 kilometers away) had access to
White Sea-Baltic Canal
White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...
,
but when the Germans arrived, Murmansk had not yet been developed and
Gulag
The Gulag, an acronym for , , "chief administration of the camps". The original name given to the system of camps controlled by the GPU was the Main Administration of Corrective Labor Camps (, )., name=, group= was the government agency in ...
forced labor was still present constructing Soviet facilities.
Germany initially procured the necessary supplies for its U-boats to use at the base and sent them first to Murmansk.
It used the merchant ships ''Cordillera'' ()
[Hamburg-America at theshipslist.com](_blank)
), ''Phoenicia'' ()
) and () for these purposes.
All three ships had been interned at Murmansk since the beginning of the war.
''Cordillera'' returned to Murmansk almost immediately in December 1939, and then traveled to Hamburg in February 1940.
The Soviet Union's
Northern Fleet
Severnyy flot
, image = Great emblem of the Northern Fleet.svg
, image_size = 150px
, caption = Northern Fleet's great emblem
, start_date = June 1, 1733; Sov ...
headquarters was informed by Moscow that the Germans were to be able to use the base to support their blockade of the British Isles.
However, the British submarine sank , the initial submarine Germany sent to scout ''Basis Nord'', in the Norwegian Sea, though the British did not know ''U-36'' mission.
later accomplished the scouting task despite interference by the Soviet torpedo boats and coast guard ships.
Rumors
In December 1939, western European media began to publish reported rumors of a northern German submarine base operating in the Soviet Union.
Danish newspaper ''
Nationaltidende
''Nationaltidende'' was a Danish daily newspaper published from 18 March 1876 to 3 September 1961 by De Ferslewske Blade in Copenhagen, Denmark.
History and profile
''Nationaltidende'' was established by Jean Christian Ferslew in March 1876. It ...
'', French magazine ''
Paris-Soir'' and a French radio station reported rumors of a German submarine base, though they incorrectly identified the location.
Germany dismissed the reports as unfounded rumors.
Similar rumors surfaced in March 1940 in the ''Stockholm Daily Press''.
Invasion of Norway
![Bundesarchiv Bild 101II-MW-5618-16, Narvik, Hafen, gesunkene Schiffe](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c4/Bundesarchiv_Bild_101II-MW-5618-16%2C_Narvik%2C_Hafen%2C_gesunkene_Schiffe.jpg)
In April 1940, Germany
invaded Norway to attain a base for naval raiding in the
North Atlantic
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the "Old World" of Africa, Europe and ...
, and to secure shipments of
iron-ore from Sweden through the port of
Narvik
( se, Áhkanjárga) is the third-largest municipality in Nordland county, Norway, by population. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Narvik. Some of the notable villages in the municipality include Ankenesstranda, Ball ...
. Although the ships used were not launched from Basis Nord, the supply ship ''Jan Wellem'', important for
Narvik operations was sent from Basis Nord. No German U-boats or surface warships were supplied out of Basis Nord.
On 1 May 1940, the Soviets offered a better anchorage point for Basis Nord at nearby Iokanga Bay.
However, the German capture of Norway decreased the need for operations at Basis Nord, and it became more important as a symbol of cooperation than a base for significant operation.
In April 1940, the Soviet Union withdrew its promises given with regard to Basis Nord.
[Memorandum by the German Ambassador in the Soviet Union (Schulenburg); April 11, 1940](_blank)
Tgb. Nr. A. 1833/40 Moscow, April 11, 1940.
Notes
References
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{{Nazi-Soviet relations
Military history of Germany during World War II
World War II sites of Nazi Germany
World War II sites in Russia
Germany–Soviet Union relations
Soviet Union in World War II
Kriegsmarine
Military in the Arctic