Chapter 24 – Cold Waters and Cod Fish
Iceland & Greenland
March – August 1940
With the German occupation of Denmark on the 17th March 1940 came the dismemberment of the Danish Empire. First was the occupation of the Faroe Islands on the 20th. The remaining parts of the Danish Empire were the colony of Greenland and the self-governing Kingdom of Iceland.
Four days after the occupation of Denmark, the two sheriffs of northern and southern Greenland, Aksel Svane and Eske Brun declared Greenland to be a self-governing territory in line with the emergency clause of a 1925 law regarding Greenland’s governance [1]. Both did so with the support of Henrik Kauffmann, the Danish Ambassador to the United States, who realised that Danish sovereignty had been compromised, as well the US State Department. The main concern for the new rulers of Greenland was that either Germany, Britain or Canada would attempt to invade it. Therefore, Greenland sought protection from the United States, who had no desire to see any other nation establish a presence in Greenland.
On the 19th of April 1940, the United States established a provisional consulate in Godthaab [2] with the arrival of two US Coast Guard ships USCGC Comanche and USCGC Campbell [3]. Another concern in Greenland in 1940 was the security of the cryolite mine at Ivigtut. To this end, 15 US Coast Guardsmen were deployed to protect it, after being voluntarily discharged [4]. Another measure to ensure Greenland’ independence was the establishment of the Sirius Sled Dog Patrol, a 15-man team created to patrol the large islands [5].
The other area affected by Denmark’s capitulation was Iceland. The Kingdom of Iceland had been established in 1918 in personal union with Denmark, but had delegated the task of costal defence and foreign affairs to Copenhagen. With Denmark under German occupation, this policy was unsustainable, and the Althing voted on the 18th of March to take costal defence and foreign relations into Icelandic hands [6]. The first task of the de-facto fully independent Iceland was to ensure its neutrality. To this end, the Icelandic government, headed by Prime Minister Hermann Jónasson, consistently refused offers from Britain to join the conflict on the Allied side. There were reasons for Britain to be interested in Iceland. Its strategic position would be of great use to prevent German ships and U-boats from breaking out into the Atlantic. Additionally, German diplomatic presence in Iceland, headed by consul Werner Gerlach alarmed Britain to the possibility of German spying there.
Hermann Jónasson, Prime Minister of Iceland
Despite this, no invasion of Iceland was undertaken. The Admiralty had made plans to occupy the strategic island, but with control of Norway’s ports and bases, the need to occupy Iceland decreased.
With the Fall of France in June 1940, the Icelandic government’s concern that Britain would invade and violate its neutrality began to increase. As such, these began to reach out to Greenland and the United States for protection. On the 4th of July 1940, the Icelandic government established the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, with Social Affairs minister Stefán Jóhann Stefánsson appointed Minister of Foreign Affairs. On the 15th of July, Stefánsson met with US President Franklin D. Roosevelt and Secretary of State Cordell Hull. Iceland had already established a provisional legation in New York City after the occupation of Denmark [7], but the Icelanders now looked to deepen ties with the Americans as a means to ensure their independence. On the 24th of July, an agreement was reached between the Icelandic and American governments and the authorities in Greenland, the Norwegian Sea Agreement. The Americans agreed to establish relations with Iceland and supply weapons for the founding of an Icelandic defence force able to resist any invasion. The Icelanders and Greenlanders agreed to cooperate on reconnaissance between their nations regarding ships traversing the Denmark Strait between them. Soon after the agreement was signed, the first American arms shipment arrived in Reykjavík on the 5th of August and the Icelandic Defence Force (IDF) was established on the 7th, although at this point it was little more than a small force.
Cordell Hull, US Secretary of State
In London, reactions to the Icelandic-American agreement were mixed. Prime Minister Wood was annoyed by the agreement given that it limited British operational capacity, but also recognised that the Americans were unlikely to be an unfriendly power towards Britain. Similarly, whilst the IDF could pose a challenge to any potential British landing force, it could also cause a problem for any German force, reducing British concerns of a German occupation of Iceland.
For all intents and purposes, the Norwegian Sea was secure.
Footnotes
- [1] They did this in OTL as well.
- [2] In OTL this happened.
- [3] These ships delivered the consular staff to Greenland in OTL as well.
- [4] This happened in OTL as well.
- [5] The Sled Dog Patrol was established around this time in OTL as well.
- [6] See Chapter 16 for more info.
- [7] The Icelandic legation was established in OTL as well.
Comments?