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{{Short description|1941 Allied World War II Operation in the Arctic Campaign}}

During [[World War II]], '''Operation Gauntlet''' was a [[Combined Operations]] raid by [[Canada|Canadian]] Infantry, [[British Commandos]] and [[Norway|Norwegian]] servicemen on the Norwegian island of [[Spitsbergen]], 600 miles south of the [[North Pole]], from [[18 August]], [[1941]], over several weeks.

{{Use Canadian English|date=August 2019}}

{{Infobox military operation

|name = Operation Gauntlet

|partof = the [[Arctic naval operations of World War II|Arctic Campaign]] of the [[Second World War]]

|image = Demolition of wireless station at Spitzbergen, Operation Gauntlet, 1941 (22418716705).jpg

|image_upright = 1.0

|caption = Demolition of a German wireless station

|type = [[Raid (military)|Raid]]

|___location = [[Spitzbergen]], [[Svalbard]], Norway

|coordinates = {{Coord|78|14|48|N|15|40|38|E|display=inline,title}}

|planned = [[Combined Operations (United Kingdom)|Combined Operations]]

|commanded_by = {{ubl|{{flagdeco|Canada|1921|naval}} [[Arthur Edward Potts|Arthur Potts]]

|{{flagdeco|UK|naval}} [[Philip Vian]]

|{{flagdeco|Norway|naval|size=24px}} [[Ragnvald Tamber]]}}

|objective =

* Deny Germans access to natural resources

* Prevent Germans from receiving weather reports

* Repatriate local population, scientists and POWs

|date = {{start and end date|1941|08|25|1941|09|03|df=y}}

|outcome = Success

|casualties = None

|campaignbox = {{Campaignbox Arctic (1941–1944)}}

}}

'''Operation Gauntlet''' was an Allied [[Combined Operations (United Kingdom)|Combined Operation]] from 25 August until 3 September 1941, during the [[Second World War]]. Canadian, British and [[Norwegian armed forces in exile]] ({{lang|no|Utefronten}}, Outside Front) landed on the Norwegian island of [[Spitzbergen]] in the [[Svalbard Archipelago]], {{cvt|650|mi}} south of the [[North Pole]].

Coal mines on the islands were owned and operated by [[Norway]] at [[Longyearbyen]] and by the [[Soviet Union]] at [[Barentsburg]]; both governments agreed to their destruction and the evacuation of their nationals. The objective of Gauntlet was to deny Germany the coal, mining and shipping infrastructure, equipment and stores on Spitzbergen and suppress the wireless stations on the archipelago, to prevent the Germans receiving weather reports.

The object was to destroy the rich coal mines there together with associated equipment and stores, which it was correctly believed the Germans intended to make use of. These mines on Norwegian territory were [[Soviet Union|Soviet]] owned and operated and both governments agreed to their destruction as well as the evacuation of their respective nationals.

Gauntlet was a success; the Germans were ignorant of the expedition until after it had departed, the raiders suffered no casualties, the civilians were repatriated, coal dumps were set on fire and mining equipment destroyed, several ships were taken as prizes and a German warship was sunk on the return journey.

Originally a ground force of two battalions were scheduled, which was reduced to one on confirmation the [[Germany|Germans]] had not yet garrisoned the area. The ground force mainly comprised elements of the 2nd Canadian Infantry Brigade, with a party of Norwegian servicemen trained in and operating from Britain, and a demolition team of 118 officers and men of several Commandos and the [[Royal Engineers]]. Transportation was by the liner [[Empress of Canada]] escorted by two [[Royal Navy]] cruisers, three destroyers and several smaller ships.

==Background==

The troops landed on the 25th and, as hoped, met no opposition throughout and were enthusiastically greeted by the islanders. Some 2000 Soviet miners were conveyed back to the port of [[Archangel]] ''(Arkhangelsk)'' in Russia by the liner and most of the convoy, where a group of nearly 200 [[Free French]] were found waiting. These French had escaped from German prison camps and were duly taken on board for passage to Britain.

===Svalbard Archipelago===

Meanwhile on Spitsbergen, the demolition parties achieved all their tasks destroying the mines, equipment not transported with the Soviets to Russia, and 450’000 tons of coal and 275’000 Imperial gallons of fuel, oil, petrol and grease. 1000 tons of steam coal was left in case needed by Allied ships who may stop there in the future.

{{main|Svalbard}}

[[File:Topographic map of Svalbard.svg|thumb|{{centre|Topographical map of Svalbard}}]]

The Svalbard Archipelago lies in the [[Arctic Ocean]] about halfway [{{cvt|650|mi}}] between northern Norway and the [[North Pole]]. The islands are mountainous, their peaks permanently covered with snow and some are glaciated. There are occasional river terraces at the bottom of steep valleys and some coastal plain. In winter, snow covers the islands and the bays ice over. The main island, Spitzbergen, to the west, has several large fiords along its west coast; [[Isfjorden (Svalbard)|Isfjorden]] is up to {{cvt|10|mi}} wide. The [[Gulf Stream]] warms the waters, making the sea ice-free during the summer. There are settlements at [[Longyearbyen]] and [[Barentsburg]] (inlets along the south shore of Isfjorden), in [[Kongsfjorden]] (Kings Bay), north of Isfjorden up the coast and in [[Van Mijenfjorden]] to the south.{{sfn|Schofield|Nesbit|2005|pp=61–62}}

The settlements had attracted colonists from several countries and the [[Svalbard Treaty]] of 1920 neutralized the islands and recognised the mineral and fishing rights of the participating countries. Before 1939, the population consisted of about 3,000 people, mostly Norwegians and Russians, who worked in the mining industry. [[Drift mines]] were linked to the shore by overhead cable tracks or rails and coal dumped over the winter was collected after the summer thaw. By 1939 production was about {{cvt|500,000|LT}} a year, roughly evenly divided between Norway and the Soviet Union. A [[long ton]] weighs 2,240 [[Pound (mass)|lb]]; a [metric] [[tonne]] 2,205 lb.{{sfn|Schofield|Nesbit|2005|pp=61–62}}

On [[2 September]] the ships returned from Archangel when all forces ashore embarked together with some 800 locals and 15 sled dogs. The two radio stations were destroyed which up to this point had continued to broadcast normally, so as not to alert the Germans, and even falsely reported fog to deter any German observation planes.

===Naval operations===

The full convoy returned to Britain together with several Norwegian coastal ships. Some of the escort found the opportunity to break away and engage a German Naval formation, sinking one cruiser, one destroyer and two smaller vessels for no loss to themselves. The ships which made the excursion on to Russia had made a 7'000 mile round trip from Britain.

{{see also|Arctic Ocean operations of World War II}}

From 25 July to 9 August 1940, the {{ship|German cruiser|Admiral Hipper||2}} sailed from Trondheim to search the area from [[Tromsø (city)|Tromsø]] to [[Bear Island (Norway)|Bear Island]] and [[Svalbard]] (formerly Spitzbergen) and intercept British ships returning from [[Petsamo, Finland|Petsamo]] but found only a Finnish freighter.{{sfn|Roskill|1957|p=260}} Action to deny Germany its coal exports was mooted by the British [[War Cabinet]] and the [[British Admiralty|Admiralty]] soon after the German occupation of Norway in 1940. It was also desirable that wireless stations on the islands, which supplied un-coded weather reports which were useful for German military operations, be suppressed. After [[Operation Barbarossa]], the German invasion of the Soviet Union on 22 June 1941, German occupation of the islands could threaten the Arctic convoy route to North Russia.{{sfn|Stacey|1956|p=301}} On 12 July 1941, the Admiralty was ordered to assemble a force of ships to operate in the Arctic, in co-operation with the USSR, despite objections from Admiral [[John Tovey, 1st Baron Tovey|John (Jack) Tovey]], commander of the [[Home Fleet]], who preferred to operate farther south, where there were more targets and better air cover.{{sfn|Woodman|2004|pp=10–11}}

Rear-Admirals [[Philip Vian]] and [[Geoffrey Audley Miles|Geoffrey Miles]] flew to Polyarnoe in northern Russia and Miles established the British military mission in Moscow.{{sfn|Woodman|2004|pp=10–11}} Vian reported that Murmansk was too close to German-held territory, that its air defences were inadequate and that the prospects of offensive operations on German shipping were poor. Vian was then sent to reconnoitre the west coast of [[Spitzbergen]], the main island of the Svalbard Archipelago, which was mostly ice-free and {{cvt|450|mi}} from northern Norway, to assess its potential as a base. The cruisers {{HMS|Nigeria|60|6}}, {{HMS|Aurora|12|6}} and two destroyers departed Iceland on 27 July, but Vian found that the advantages of a base at Spitzbergen were negated by the obstacles of weather and proximity to German bases in Norway.{{sfn|Roskill|1957|p=488}} The force closed on the Norwegian coast twice and each time was discovered by {{lang|de|[[Luftwaffe]]}} reconnaissance aircraft and retired.{{sfn|Woodman|2004|pp=10–11, 35–36}}

[[Category:World War II British Commando raids|Gauntlet]]

[[Category:Svalbard]]

==Prelude==

===Allied preparations===

[[File:SS EMPRESS OF CANADA 1941.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.0|{{centre|SS ''Empress of Canada''}}]]

On 26 July 1941, the [[Canadian Corps (World War II)|Canadian Corps]] in Britain offered to provide sufficient troops for a landing on Spitzbergen, to garrison a naval refuelling base for four months and then withdraw before winter.{{sfn|Stacey|1956|p=301}} Force 111 was to be raised, comprising two battalions of a Canadian infantry brigade, less transport and attached units including an anti-aircraft battery. The Canadians offered the HQ of the [[2nd Canadian Infantry Brigade]] (Brigadier [[Arthur Edward Potts|Arthur Potts]]) and its signal section, the 3rd Field Company [[Royal Canadian Engineers]] (RCE).{{sfn|Stacey|1956|p=303}}

A battalion each of [[Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry]] and the [[The Loyal Edmonton Regiment (4th Battalion, Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry)|Edmonton Regiment]] was attached and two field hospitals of the 5th Field Ambulance [[Royal Canadian Army Medical Corps]] (RCAMC) and detachments of administrative troops accompanied the expedition. The War Office added the 40th Field Battery [[Royal Canadian Artillery]] (RCA), with eight [[Ordnance QF 25-pounder|25-pounder field guns]] from the 11th Field Regiment RCA; Force 111 was ready by 4 August.{{sfn|Stacey|1956|p=303}}

The Canadians embarked on {{RMS|Empress of Canada|1920|6}} in Glasgow, sailed for No. 1 Combined Training Centre at HMS ''Quebec'' (shore establishment), [[Inveraray]] on [[Loch Fyne]] and began rehearsing the landings. On 11 August, Potts was told that the operation had been considerably reduced in scope, and on 16 August, Potts was ordered to ensure "that the Germans get no advantage out of Spitzbergen between now and March, 1942". The operation was to be a landing of a force sufficient for the demolition or the removal of mining equipment, coal and the transport and harbour infrastructure. Wireless and weather stations were to be disabled; the Russians were to be transported to [[Arkhangelsk]] and the Norwegians to Britain.{{sfn|Stacey|1956|pp=303–304}}

Russian and Norwegian civilian representatives and a Norwegian army officer, the Governor Designate of Spitzbergen, would accompany the expedition to manage civilian matters. Force 111 returned to Surrey except for the 2nd Canadian Infantry Brigade HQ with 29 Canadian officers and 498 other ranks from the Edmonton Regiment (Major W. G. Bury) and the 3rd Field Company RCE (Major Geoffrey Walsh), 84 men of the [[The North Saskatchewan Regiment|Saskatoon Light Infantry (M.G.)]] and administrative parties, 14 British officers and 79 men, including 57 [[Royal Engineers]] and a Norwegian infantry party (Captain Aubert) with three officers and 22 other ranks, a total of 645 men.{{sfn|Stacey|1956|pp=303–304}}

==Operation Gauntlet==

[[File:Lot 11609-2 (22417951105).jpg|thumb|{{centre|Norwegian population readying for evacuation from [[Longyearbyen]]}}]]

The expedition sailed from the [[River Clyde]] on 19 August in ''Empress of Canada'' and rendezvoused with Force A (Vian) with the cruisers ''Nigeria'', ''Aurora'' and the destroyers {{HMS|Anthony|H40|6}}, {{HMS|Antelope|H36|2}} and {{HMS|Icarus|D03|2}}. The ships put in at [[Hvalfjörður]] in Iceland to refuel and departed on the evening of 21 August. Late on 22 August, the destination of the force was revealed to the troops. Force A met the oiler ''Oligarch'' and its trawler escorts on the evening of 24 August, west of Spitzbergen and as the force approached, an aircraft made a reconnaissance flight over Isfjorden, the large inlet on the western coast of Spitzbergen island, the most populated area of the archipelago. At {{nowrap|4:30 a.m.,}} ''Icarus'' landed a signal party at the Kap Linne wireless station at the entrance to the fiord, where they were welcomed by the Norwegian operators. The big ships entered Isfjorden, steamed on to [[Grønfjorden]] at {{nowrap|8:00 a.m.}} and anchored off the Soviet mining township of Barentsburg. Potts went ashore to confer with the Soviet authorities about the embarkation of the population and its delivery to Archangelsk as the Canadians occupied other Soviet and Norwegian settlements along Isfjord.{{sfn|Stacey|1956|pp=303–305}}

[[File:Royal Canadian Engineers sappers burning coal piles during Operation Gaunlet.jpg|thumb|left|{{centre|Sappers of the 3rd Field Company, [[Royal Canadian Engineers]], burning coal piles during Operation Gauntlet (photograph: war correspondent [[Ross Munro (journalist)|Ross Munro]])}}]]

The evacuation proceeded slower than planned because the Soviet Consul wanted machinery and stores loaded on ''Empress of Canada'' as well as personal effects. ''Empress of Canada'' set out for Archangelsk at midnight on the night of {{nowrap|26/27 August,}} escorted by ''Nigeria'' and the destroyers. ''Aurora'' stayed behind to guard the landing parties and assist in the embarkations from the remoter settlements. The Canadian engineers set fire to about {{cvt|450000|LT}} of coal dumped at the mines, fuel oil was poured into the sea or burned and mining equipment was removed or sabotaged, during which, Barentsburg was mysteriously burned down. On the evening of 1 September, the ''Empress of Canada'' and its escorts returned from Archangelsk to Green Bay.{{sfn|Stacey|1956|p=305}}

Normal business was kept up at the wireless station by the Norwegian Military Governor Designate, Lieutenant [[Ragnvald Tamber]] except for bogus reports of fog, to deter {{lang|de|Luftwaffe}} air reconnaissance. Three colliers sent from the mainland were hijacked along with a whaler, icebreaker, tug and two fishing boats. On 2 September, about 800 Norwegians boarded ''Empress'' as did 186 French prisoners of war, who had escaped from German captivity and been interned in the USSR until the German invasion. Force A sailed for home at {{nowrap|10:30 p.m.}} on 3 September, with 800 Norwegian civilians and the [[Prize (law)|prizes]], after a ten days' occupation, having never been in darkness.{{sfnm|1a1=Roskill|1y=1957|1p=489|2a1=Stacey|2y=1956|2p=306}} Anders Halvorssen preferred not to join the Norwegian army-in-exile, hid and remained on the island. The final wireless message was transmitted on the evening of 3 September and the sets at Barentsburg, Longyearbyen, Kap Linné and Grønfjord were destroyed; as Force A made its return journey, a German station was heard calling Spitzbergen. The spurious weather reports had led to the cancellation of {{lang|de|Luftwaffe}} [[weather reconnaissance]] flights by the {{lang|de|[[Wettererkundungsstaffel]]}} ({{lang|de|Wekusta}} 5).{{sfn|Kington|Selinger|2006|p=89}}

[[File:Lot 11609-10 (21797661953).jpg|thumb|{{centre|Destroying mining explosives unable to be removed, [[Ny-Ålesund]]}}]]

On 5 September a {{lang|de|Luftwaffe}} sortie was flown over Svalbard and the crew found Spitzbergen deserted and the coal dumps on fire. {{lang|de|Wekusta}} 5 resumed flights and on 10 September the crew saw Halvorssen waving to them at Longyearbyen. The crew saw a river terrace at Sònak in [[Adventfjorden]], about {{cvt|4|mi}} away, which was about {{cvt|1500|yd}} long and could serve as a runway. On 25 September, a [[Ju 52]] landed safely at Sònak but was unable to send a message due to the low power of its radio; a [[Ju 88]] managed to land on 27 September, finding the party and the Norwegian defector. A plan to establish a temporary base was abandoned after an odd illumination, resembling searchlights, was seen in the sky; the two aircraft hurriedly took off for Norway in case it was the British.{{sfn|Kington|Selinger|2006|p=89}}

The British cruisers diverted towards the Norwegian coast to hunt for German ships and early on 7 September, in stormy weather and poor visibility, found a German convoy off [[Porsanger Municipality]], near the [[North Cape (Norway)|North Cape]]. The cruisers sank the training ship {{ship|German training ship|Bremse||2}} but ''Barcelona'' and ''Trautenfels'', two troop transports with 1,500 men of the [[6th Mountain Division (Wehrmacht)|6th Mountain Division]] aboard, escaped into the fjord.{{sfn|Rohwer|Hümmelchen|2005|p=93}} ''Nigeria'' was thought to have been damaged by hitting a wreck but after the war it was surmised that it had hit a mine.{{sfn|Woodman|2004|pp=35–36}} Force A reached to the Clyde on the night of {{nowrap|7/8 September.}}{{sfnm|1a1=Stacey|1y=1956|1p=306|2a1=Roskill|2y=1957|2p=489}}

==Aftermath==

===Analysis===

[[File:Norway Finnmark - Porsanger.svg|thumb|{{centre|Finnmark municipality in north Norway (in red) around [[Porsangerfjorden]]}}]]

Gauntlet was a success; the Germans had not known of or had been able to challenge the expedition. The raiders had suffered no casualties, the local civilians were repatriated, several ships were taken as prizes and one German warship was sunk on the return journey.{{sfn|Stacey|1956|p=306}} After the operation, the British expected the Germans to occupy Svalbard as a base for attacks on Arctic convoys but the Germans were more interested in meteorological data, the Arctic being the origin of much of the weather over western Europe.{{sfn|Schofield|Nesbit|2005|pp=63–64}}

===Subsequent operations===

{{see also|North Atlantic weather war}}

Arctic expert Erich Etienne made a proposal on his return to Norway, to set up a weather station on Svalbard to obtain better weather data and to relieve {{lang|de|Wekusta}} 5 of the burden of flying in the long night of the polar winter. [[Operation Bansö]] ({{lang|de|Unternehmen Bansö}}) began on 8 October with the flight of a Ju 52 to Svalbard to transport a weather party of four men and ten labourers to convert a house {{cvt|2.5|mi}} from Longyearbyen, near the landing ground at Sònak. On 18 October, the crew of a Ju 52 heading for Longyearbyen saw several British ships near the island and next day the crew of a Heinkel 111 spotted four British minesweepers in Isfjorden. The two Ju 52s and the He 111 abandoned the airstrip; engine trouble delayed one of the Ju 52s for two hours but clouds of dust in the valley obscured the German aircraft and they went unseen. The all clear was given on 22 October and by 9 November, Bansö was operational, after 38 flights which carried {{cvt|5|LT}} of equipment and 24 builders to the island; on 2 November, a Ju 88 escort for a Ju 52 was caught by a gale-force wind and crashed soon after taking off from Banak, with the loss of the crew.{{sfn|Kington|Selinger|2006|pp=89−92}}

==Order of battle==

Data taken from Dean and Lackenbauer [2017] unless indicated.{{sfn|Dean|Lackenbauer|2017|pp=35–36}}

{{col-begin}}

{{col-break}}

'''Canadian'''

* Headquarters, 2 Canadian Infantry Brigade

* Signals Section, 2 Canadian Infantry Brigade

* 3 Field Company, Royal Canadian Engineers

* D Company, plus one platoon, C Company, Edmonton Regiment

* Saskatoon Light Infantry (Machine Gun, Composite detachment)

* Detachment, Royal Canadian Army Medical Corps (5 Field Ambulance)

* X Canadian Field Cash Office, Royal Canadian Army Pay Corps

* Empress of Canada Ship's Staff (from Edmonton Regiment)

'''Norwegian'''

* Detachment, Norwegian Infantry

{{col-break}}

'''British'''

* Detachment, Kent Corps Troops, Royal Engineers

* Detachment, 992 Docks Operations Company, Royal Engineers

* Detachment, B Section 1 Motor Boat Company, Royal Army Service Corps

* Detachment, 60 Detail Issue Depot Royal Army Service Corps

* D Field Cash Office, Royal Army Pay Corps

* Royal Engineers, Attached 2 Canadian Brigade Headquarters

* Intelligence Corps

* Army Film Unit

* Major H. C. Smith, Liaison Officer (Canadian in British service)

* Captain E. W. Proctor, Royal Engineers

* Major A. W. Salmon, Royal Army Service Corps

{{col-end}}

==See also==

* [[Operation Fritham]]

* [[Operation Gearbox]]

* [[Operation Gearbox II]]

* [[Operation Zitronella]]

* [[Operation Haudegen]]

==References==

===Footnotes===

{{reflist|20em}}

===Bibliography===

{{refbegin}}

* {{cite journal |last1=Dean |first1=R. |last2=Lackenbauer |first2=P. W. |title=Conceiving and Executing Operation Gauntlet: The Canadian-Led Raid on Spitzbergen, 1941 |year=2017 |journal=Canadian Military History |volume=26 |issue=2 |url=http://scholars.wlu.ca/cmh/vol26/iss2/16/ |access-date=21 August 2019 |issn=1929-400X}}

* {{cite book |title=Wekusta: Luftwaffe Meteorological Reconnaissance Units & Operations 1938–1945 |last1=Kington |first1=J. A. |last2=Selinger |first2=F. |year=2006 |publisher=Flight Recorder Publications |___location=Ottringham, E. Yorks |edition=1st |isbn=978-0-9545605-8-4}}

* {{cite book |last1=Rohwer |first1=Jürgen |author-link1=Jürgen Rohwer |last2=Hümmelchen |first2=Gerhard |title=Chronology of the War at Sea 1939–1945: The Naval History of World War Two |publisher=Naval Institute Press |___location=Annapolis, Maryland |year=2005 |edition=3rd rev. |isbn=1-59114-119-2}}

* {{cite book |series=History of the Second World War United Kingdom Military Series |title=The War at Sea 1939–1945: The Defensive |volume=I |last=Roskill |first=S. W.|author-link=Stephen Roskill |editor-last=Butler |editor-first=J. R. M. |editor-link=James Ramsay Montagu Butler |year=1957 |orig-year=1954 |publisher=[[HMSO]] |___location=London |edition=4th impr. |url=http://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/UN/UK/UK-RN-I/index.html |access-date=18 April 2018 |oclc=881709135}}

* {{cite book |first2=R. C. |last2=Nesbit |first1=E. |last1=Schofield |title=Arctic Airmen: The RAF in Spitzbergen and North Russia 1942 |year=2005 |orig-year=1987 |publisher=W. Kimber |___location=London |isbn=978-0-7183-0660-1}}

* {{cite book |last=Stacey |first=C. P. |author-link=Charles Perry Stacey |series=Official History of the Canadian Army in the Second World War |title=Six Years of War: The Army in Canada, Britain and the Pacific |year=1956 |orig-year=1955 |volume=I |publisher=Authority of the Minister of National Defence |___location=Ottawa |edition=online 2008, Dept. of National Defence, Directorate of History and Heritage |url=http://www.cmp-cpm.forces.gc.ca/dhh-dhp/his/oh-ho/detail-eng.asp?BfBookLang=1&BfId=27 |access-date=18 April 2018 |oclc=317352934 |archive-date=24 October 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171024051334/http://www.cmp-cpm.forces.gc.ca/dhh-dhp/his/oh-ho/detail-eng.asp?BfBookLang=1&BfId=27 |url-status=dead }}

* {{cite book |first=R. |last=Woodman |year=2004 |orig-year=1994 |title=Arctic Convoys 1941–1945 |publisher=John Murray |___location=London |isbn=978-0-7195-5752-1}}

{{refend}}

==Further reading==

* {{cite web |last=Lawson |first=S. H. |work=Warsailors.com |title=D/S Isbjørn |year=2001 |url=http://www.warsailors.com/singleships/isbjorn2.html |access-date=16 April 2018}}

* {{cite thesis |last=Levy |first=J. |title=Holding the Line: The Royal Navy's Home Fleet in the Second World War |degree=PhD |format=pdf |url=http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.493885 |year=2001 |publisher=University of Wales Swansea (Swansea University) |access-date=2 June 2018 |docket=uk.bl.ethos.493885 |oclc=502551844}}

* {{cite thesis |last=Ryan |first=J. F. |title=The Royal Navy and Soviet Seapower, 1930–1950: Intelligence, Naval Cooperation and Antagonism |degree=PhD |format=pdf |url=http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.321124 |year=1996 |publisher=University of Hull |access-date=2 June 2018 |docket=uk.bl.ethos.321124 |oclc=60137725 |archive-date=13 August 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230813010041/https://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.321124 |url-status=dead }}

* {{cite book |first=H. |last=Sebag-Montefiore |author-link=Hugh Sebag-Montefiore |title=Enigma: The Battle for the Code |year=2001 |orig-year=2000 |publisher=Weidenfeld & Nicolson |___location=London |edition=4th, pbk. Phoenix |isbn=0-7538-1130-8}}

* {{cite book |last=Vian |first=P. |author-link=Philip Vian |title=Action This Day: A War Memoir |year=1960 |publisher=Frederick Muller |___location=London |id=D63-4/56-1941E-PDF |oclc=185488211}}

==External links==

* [https://books.google.com/books?id=kk0EAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA38 Contemporary report; LIFE magazine, 29 September 1941]

* [https://www.lermuseum.org/second-world-war-1939-45/1941/operation-gauntlet-spitzbergen-19-aug-8-sept-1941 Operation Gauntlet, Spitzbergen: 19 Aug – 8 Sept 1941 Loyal Edmonton Regiment article]

* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OBLEoiAj_io YouTube video of an Operation Gauntlet newsreel]

{{British Commando raids of the Second World War}}

{{World War II}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gauntlet, Operation}}

[[Category:1941 in Norway]]

[[Category:Amphibious operations of World War II]]

[[Category:Arctic military operations of World War II]]

[[Category:Arctic naval operations of World War II]]

[[Category:August 1941 in Europe]]

[[Category:Battles and conflicts without fatalities]]

[[Category:Battles of World War II involving Canada]]

[[Category:Conflicts in 1941]]

[[Category:History of Svalbard]]

[[Category:Maritime incidents in 1941]]

[[Category:Military history of Canada during World War II]]

[[Category:Naval battles and operations of World War II involving the United Kingdom]]

[[Category:Naval battles of World War II involving Canada]]

[[Category:September 1941 in Europe]]

[[Category:World War II British Commando raids]]

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[[Category:Maritime incidents in September 1941]]