or ) is an island in

Troms og Finnmark Troms og Finnmark (; sme, Romsa ja Finnmárku ; fkv, Tromssa ja Finmarkku; fi, Tromssa ja Finnmark, lit. Troms and Finnmark in English), is a county in northern Norway that was established on 1 January 2020 as the result of a regional reform. ...

county,

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the ...

. The southern third of the island is part of

Tromsø Municipality Tromsø (, , ; se, Romsa ; fkv, Tromssa; sv, Tromsö) is a municipality in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the city of Tromsø. Tromsø lies in Northern Norway. The municipality is the 2 ...

while the northern (larger) portion of the island is part of

Karlsøy Municipality Karlsøy ( sme, Gálssa suohkan) is an island municipality in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Hansnes. Other villages include Dåfjord, Hessfjord, Karlsøya, Torsvåg, Vann ...

. There is a regular ferry connection from Bromnes on the eastern end on Rebbensøya to Mikkelvik on the northwestern end of the neighboring island of Ringvassøya. On Rebbenesøya, there are many mountains that are suitable for tourists who enjoy the outdoors and

hiking Hiking is a long, vigorous walk, usually on trails or footpaths in the countryside. Walking for pleasure developed in Europe during the eighteenth century.AMATO, JOSEPH A. "Mind over Foot: Romantic Walking and Rambling." In ''On Foot: A Histor ...

. The highest point on the island is Geittinden at a height of . There are also about 20 fishing lakes. The uninhabited island nature reserve of Sørfugløya lies off the north-west coast. The island's school is in Skogvika; it had six students in the 2012/2013 school year. The island also has a convenience store located in Engvika.

History

Twelve Norwegian commandos from

Company Linge Norwegian Independent Company 1 (NOR.I.C.1, pronounced ''Norisén'' (approx. "noor-ee-sehn") in Norwegian) was a British Special Operations Executive (SOE) group formed in March 1941 originally for the purpose of performing commando raids during ...

were attacked by a German

minesweeper A minesweeper is a small warship designed to remove or detonate naval mines. Using various mechanisms intended to counter the threat posed by naval mines, minesweepers keep waterways clear for safe shipping. History The earliest known usage of ...

in Toftefjord on the island of Rebbenesøya on 30 March 1943. The only man who escaped was

Jan Baalsrud Jan Sigurd Baalsrud, MBE (13 December 1917 – 30 December 1988) was a commando in the Norwegian resistance trained by the British during World War II. Biography Early life Jan Baalsrud was born in Kristiania (now Oslo), Norway and moved wi ...

. Over a period of three months and enduring harsh conditions, he was aided by patriots in escaping to Sweden. A monument to those killed is located in Toftefjord.

Representation in other media

*Baalsrud's escape is the subject of the book ''We Die Alone: A WWII Epic of Escape and Endurance '' (1955) by British author David Howarth. This was adapted as a Norwegian film, called ''Nine Lives'' (1957), directed by

Arne Skouen Arne Skouen (18 October 1913 – 24 May 2003) was a Norwegian journalist, author, film director and film producer. Biography Arne Skouen was born in Kristiania (now Oslo), Norway. His parents were Peder Nikolai Skouen (1883-1978) and Jenny ...

. It was nominated for an Oscar in 1958 for best Foreign Language Film. *The book ''Jan Baalsrud and Those Who Saved Him'' (2001), written by Tore Haug and Astrid Karlsen Scott, also recounted his remarkable survival. A Norwegian film based on the book, '' The 12th Man'' (2017), was directed by Harald Zwart. It was released on Netflix in 2020.

References

Karlsøy Islands of Troms og Finnmark {{TromsFinnmark-island-stub

History

Representation in other media

See also

References