A Better First Lord of the Admiralty 1939

[Derek Jackson]

WI the Royal Navy planned things better. Could the Norway invasion be defeated?

Does this prevent the Nazis from attacking the Netherlands, Belgium and Luxemburg?

What happens to Chamberlain's reputation?

 

[steamboy]

Could Norway have been saved? Probably not. Could the Germans have suffered heavier naval casualties? yes. Really what was needed was the Norwegians to not mobilise by post, and to be a bit more proactive, as well as the deployment of Allied troops to be a lot less chaotic and slapdash. In timelines like the superb https://www.alternatehistory.com/fo...-hurry-up-dying-a-ww2-polish-si-story.467055/ even with the casualties the Germans take at sea, on the land it goes poorly.

And even then a defeat at Norway won't stop an Invasion of France, and the Low countries, that was going to happen, it basically HAD to happen.

As for Chamberlains rep, if he survived norway with a somewhat better reputation, the man's still getting blamed for the UK not being ready for war and if the land battle goes poorly, but the sea battle goes well, the 1st Lord WILL ensure that he's the first one to put the dagger in Chamberlains back, after all it was HIS Navy that succeeded, not Chamberlains army....

 

[ArtosStark]

Could the Norway invasion be defeated?

Possibly. If all went well at sea many of the attacks in central and northern Norway could have gone down with their ships. This would give the Norwegian Divisions in those areas more time to mobilize. However, the attacks on Oslo are likely still successful, and if the Germans still seize airfields in the south then they can still reinforce that Bridgehead. So, certainly helpful, but Norway could still be lost on land. Drachinfel has a good video speculating on this:

Does this prevent the Nazis from attacking the Netherlands, Belgium and Luxemburg?

Unlikely. AIUI the invasion of Norway was specifically designed not to interfere with plans on the continent. If Norway threatens those plans it seems more likely that the Germans would pull out of Norway first.

 

[Driftless]

Too much dithering (yes we will/no we won't/ oh, I dunno) at the top of the political chains of command for both Britain and France. That contributed to rapidly countermanding and confused orders to the military. I'm not sure that changing the First Lord is enough to overcome that chaos.

 

[Garrison]

If the British had guessed German intentions correctly and sent Home Fleet to intercept an invasion of Norway rather than block a breakout into the Atlantic the German invasion would have been hammered and the Kriegsmarine losses would have been catastrophic, rather than merely disastrous. That wouldn't have saved France and the Low Countries though.