Action off Lofoten

Part of the Norwegian Campaign, World War II

The capital ships that fought during the Action off Lofoten: Scharnhorst (top), HMS Renown (middle), and Gneisenau (bottom).

Date	9 April 1940
Location	off the coast of Lofoten, Norway
Result	British tactical victory German strategic victory

Belligerents

Kriegsmarine

Royal Navy

Commanders and leaders

Günther Lütjens

Sir William Whitworth

Strength

2 battleships

1 battlecruiser
9 destroyers

Casualties and losses

1 battleship damaged
6 killed

1 battlecruiser slightly damaged
2 killed

The Action off Lofoten was a naval battle fought between the German Kriegsmarine and the British Royal Navy off the southern coast of the Lofoten Islands, Norway during World War II. A German squadron under Vizeadmiral Günther Lütjens consisting of the battleships Scharnhorst and Gneisenau met and engaged a British squadron under Admiral Sir William Whitworth consisting of the battlecruiser HMS Renown and 9 destroyers. After a short engagement, Gneisenau suffered moderate damage and the Germans withdrew.

The German invasion of Norway, Operation Weserübung, began on 9 April 1940. In order to prevent any disruption of the invasion by the British, the Kriegsmarine had previously dispatched a force under Vice Admiral Günther Lütjens to protect the troop convoy landing at Narvik. The German squadron consisted of the battleships Scharnhorst and Gneisenau, the heavy cruiser Admiral Hipper, and 10 destroyers. With intelligence suggesting that the Germans were massing ships, the British sent out a squadron under Admiral Sir William Whitworth to deny German access to neutral Norwegian waters by laying mines in Operation Wilfred and prevent any German naval movements into the Atlantic Ocean.

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