RAF, RN, Fleet Air Arm Svalbard (1941–1945) Lapland War Associated articles Operation Arctic Fox (German: Unternehmen Polarfuchs; Finnish: operaatio Napakettu; Russian: Кандалакшская операция)[a] was the codename given to a World War II campaign by German and Finnish forces against Soviet Northern Front defenses at Salla, Murmansk Oblast, in July 1941.

The principal goal of Operation Arctic Fox was to capture the town of Salla and then to advance in the direction of Kandalaksha (Finnish: Kantalahti) to block the railway route to Murmansk.

They managed to capture Salla after fierce fighting, but the German troops were unable to overcome the old, pre-war Soviet border fortifications further east.

Because of the escalating situation further south in Central Russia, the Germans were unwilling to assign more units to this theatre, calling an end to their offensive.

The German High Command (OKW) included Finland in its plan for its major offensive against the Soviet Union: Operation Barbarossa.

A joint Finnish-German offensive named Operation Silver Fox was planned to support the Germany's main effort in central Russia.

The goal of Silver Fox was to capture or disable the port of Murmansk, which was to be a major destination for Western Allied shipping aid to the Soviet Union, by executing a pincer attack against it.

[3][4] The southern pincer of the attack was named Operation Arctic Fox and was launched from the Kemijärvi region of Central Finland against the defenses at Salla.

Conscripts and volunteers joined the newly formed 1st Polar Rifle Division, while sailors from the Northern Fleet enlisted in a marine infantry brigade.

The Soviets proceeded to launch an air raid on 25 June, bombing all major Finnish cities and industrial centers including Helsinki, Turku and Lahti.

During a night session, the Finnish parliament voted to go to war against the Soviet Union and Operation Arctic Fox would begin within a week.

SS Nord staff panicked and some of the division routed, forcing Feige and the XXXVI Corps command to intervene to restore order.

With a combined effort by all the German forces, extensive air-support by Luftflotte 5, as well as a supportive flanking attack by the Finnish 6th Division, they finally broke through the Soviet defenses on 6 July and captured Salla.

Due to the grim situation, and mounting losses (5,500 men in just one month), AOK Norwegen finally ordered Feige to halt the offensive.

Group F advanced very quickly through 64 km (40 mi) of rough terrain to the Vyonitsa River, where it encircled and destroyed several Soviet units from 10 to 19 July.

Reacting to the Finnish advance on the Murmansk railway, the Soviets transferred additional troops (the 88th Rifle Division as well as the independent Grivnik brigade) into the region.

However, instead of giving him the requested reinforcements to overcome the strong Soviet defenses and reach the goal of Kandalaksha, Falkenhorst was transferring more and more units south to bolster the Finnish III Corps' advance.

While AOK Norwegen indeed saw the greatest chance of success within III Corps, nevertheless it ordered Feige to resume his offensive towards the east, leaving him in a very difficult situation.

XXXVI Corps attempted another flanking attack similar to Kayrela, with one German regiment trying to circumvent the Soviet defenses in the south.

After days of fighting, the Germans were finally able to push behind the Voyta River only to be confronted by another even stronger Soviet defense line.

[32][33][42] With the Germans mostly unable to operate and advance without the support of the experienced Finnish units, their hope now lay on a continuation of the attack led by the Finns themselves.

Field Marshal Carl Mannerheim, supreme commander of the Finnish forces, insisted on delaying further offensive operations, citing military and logistical reasons.

On 17 November, Siilasvuo ordered an immediate stop to the Finnish III Corps' offensive, despite positive feedback from his field commanders that further ground could be taken.

The United States enacted the Lend-Lease pact in which they vowed to supply the Soviet Union with large quantities amounts of food, oil, and war materiel.

The German High Command did not regard it as an important theatre and therefore refrained from transferring the substantial reinforcements needed for a renewal of the offensive.

In September 1944, following a series of devastating German defeats, the Finns sued for peace with the Soviet Union and had to give up all their territorial conquests.

In October 1944, the Red Army conducted the Petsamo-Kirkenes Operation and achieved a decisive victory over the German forces in the Arctic by completely expelling them from Finland.

[48][49] Despite exhaustive efforts by Finnish historians, it is so far proven impossible to pinpoint the exact date on which Finland was taken into confidence about Operation Barbarossa.

Joint operations were discussed, all during the spring of 1941, in purely hypothetical terms, and neither the Finns nor the Germans were entirely candid with one another as to their national aims and methods.

The euphoria caused by the same German victories which produced this Soviet offer misled the Finns into disregarding it and continuing in the war for expansionist objectives in eastern Karelia and in the far north.