Despite the fact that the brigade was first established in 2002, it is a continuation of older decommissioned combat formation. The brigade traces its history back to the end of the
Second World War, when the British government requested Norwegian military support in the
British zone of
Allied-occupied Germany. In 1946, the
Independent Norwegian Brigade (in
Norwegian:
Tysklandsbrigaden, ) was founded. This expeditionary brigade consisted of a contingent of 4200 young conscripts, which served six months in Germany, before the next contingent carried on with the service. The brigade, under the command of the
Norwegian Army Command Germany (
Tysklandskommandoen), was stationed in
Schleswig-Holstein. In total, twelve contingents served in Germany between January 1947 and April 1953.
Establishment of a northern brigade The Military Committee and the Norwegian Parliament made many changes to the structure and organisation of the army in the 1950s. The allied military advisors had recommended that Norway should organise the army into three divisions: 1st Division Command in the east, 3rd Division Command in the south and 6th Division Command in the north. Based on a report from the Norwegian Post-War Army Command, The Norwegian Parliament prepared a draft for a new defence organisation, with Parliamentary Proposition no. 2 (1953) “The Organisation of the Armed Forces”, which has enormous significance for the Army in the post-war period. Two of the proposed three division commands were approved. Already in the autumn of 1952, 1st Division Command was operational. The 6th Division Command was organised by the
Norwegian Army Command Germany, and the Independent Norwegian Brigade was converted into a combat formation called
Brigaden i Nord-Norge. There were many logistical challenges in the process of moving the German Brigade to Northern Norway. One challenge was deciding in which garrison to place the different brigade detachments. Another urgent challenge was that not all the establishments were ready to accommodate the battalions. In 1951, the Norwegian Parliament adopted a three-year building program, in order to be able to house the brigade soldiers and officers. This national building program had a price tag of 735 million kroner, of which 60 million went to the newly established brigade in Northern Norway.
Operational brigade in the Cold War on an exercise in summer of 1988. The brigade was formally declared operational on September 1, 1953. As a result of the parliaments's introduction of a new army system in 1953, the standing brigades were to be made up of conscripted soldiers in their initial service. Unlike the German Brigade, the young men now served one year in their respective detachments. The brigade in Northern Norway had two main functions: As a standing unit, it was an essential part of the land military invasion defense in Northern Norway; as a complete brigade, with all types of weapons and troops, it was an important training institution for the field army. During the
Cold War, the brigade was central to the defense against a possible invasion from the
Soviet Union. The brigade was stationed in the eastern valleys of Troms, which was defined as the defensive center of gravity for the territorial defense. Here, the brigade was to ensure that the opponent would be stopped and hold out until allied reinforcements could arrive. For a long time, defense planning was based on the assumption that the region of
Finnmark could not be held, and that Norway had to be prepared for invasion from the east, both into Finnmark and through
Finland. Parts of the brigade were therefore on high alert for long periods of time, down to 30 minutes, in order to meet an attack. A parliamentary decision from July 1953 stipulated that the two standing brigades in the new army structure should act as standing contingency forces in exposed areas, until mobilisation was initiated. Throughout its existence, the brigade was central to the training and education of Norwegian army soldiers and units, from all types of troops. The soldiers were trained in basic military skills while practicing under the special and demanding conditions in Northern Norway. ==References==