|
It was of course, the Sami people who first knew of this strange hard black rock, but it was no use to them. Therefore, there was a great surprise when people came from afar and began asking for these strange pieces of rock. The year was 1902. At that time, Kirkenes was a settlement of a few houses and a church situated out on a peninsula. Here is where Kirkenes got its name: “Kirke” which means church, and “nes” which means peninsula. Earlier, the Sea Samis had their own name for Kirkenes: Akkalanjarga - The Porbeagle Pennisula.
It was this black rock that changed everything. In 1906, these visitors that came from afar said they could melt this rock and use this material to build railways, bridges and weapons. Within a short period, several thousand people settled in Kirkenes.
The destruction caused by World War I created a market for iron-ore from the mining town of Bjørnevatn. Kirkenes became a wealthy place. The business buildings in Kirkenes had onion shaped cupolas- inspired by Russian architecture. People were affluent, and one could hear a multilingual buzz on the streets.
But Kirkenes was also a town with conflicts. The industrial disputes at Sydvaranger Inc. gained nationwide fame.
Then there came WWII, and Kirkenes had to pay the price for being so close to the Soviet Union.
Murmansk was the only ice-free harbour in the European part of the Soviet Union not under control of Nazi Germany. Therefore, Murmansk became vital to the allies. Enormous supplies were sent from the United States and England across the Arctic Ocean to Murmansk. This acted as a guarantee to prevent Moscow’s fall. If Moscow had been conquered, there would have been a complete different ending to WWII. This is why Kirkenes was so important. The Nazi’s posted 30,000 men in Kirkenes, deployed the area for the battle at the Litza Front. Soviet planes bombed Kirkenes day and night - more than 1000 air raid alarms and more than 300 aerial bombings. After a gruesome war of exhaustion, during a winter season with several temperatures of minus 30-40 degrees below zero and with thousands of soldiers
killed or frozen to death on both sides, the Red Army succeeded in forcing the Nazi Forces to retreat. In October 1944, Kirkenes was liberated, but was first burnt to the ground during the retreat of the Nazi forces and left on Soviet hands. Nothing was left for the Russians; the Nazi’s burnt everything. Only some 20 homes remained standing. Thousands of people lived in their basements of their ruined houses during the following winter. It brings back a lot of memories for those who are old enough to remember. After the war the town was rebuilt, especially with help of the Marshall Plan from the United States. The war had damaged large parts of Europe, and again there began a demand for the iron-ore from Bjørnevatn. The 1950’s, 1960’s and 1970’s was a golden era. Kirkenes received asphalted streets before any other town in Finnmark, a large indoor swimming pool, hospital and airport. But then came the 1980’s. The price of the iron ore from Kirkenes was too high. From a work force of 1200 people, the gigantic mine was gradually scaled down. In 1996, the mining from AS Sydvaranger came to an end.
But that is a story we can tell you when you are visiting us!
|
