Topic summary
Free Norwegian Forces
Extracted from the Wikipedia article Norwegian armed forces in exile.
Background
However, the German attack on the Low Countries and France on 14 May forced the Allies to decide a pullout of Norway two weeks later, as the troops were desperately needed in France. Despite reservations on the part of the Norwegians, an evacuation plan was put in effect that involved the exile of the king and the government to Britain and the evacuation of some 25,000 Norwegian soldiers who eventually served in the Free Norwegian forces overseas, which would be commanded by General Carl Gustav Fleischer. King Haakon, Crown Prince Olav, the Norwegian government and some 400 additional civilians were evacuated to Britain by the heavy British cruiser HMS Devonshire. Thirteen ships, five aircraft and 500 men from the Royal Norwegian Navy followed. The evacuation also involved a British battalion stationed at Dombås.