Submarine bunker in La Pallice

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Main structure of the submarine base, on the right the "cells" 8 to 10 added in 1942, on the left the pier (2016)
Main structure, view from the northeast, half-right the tower, in the center of the picture the protruding extension from the winter of 1943/1944

The La Pallice submarine bunker (also known as the La Rochelle submarine bunker ) is a WWII bunker complex in the La Pallice suburb of the French port city of La Rochelle . The third submarine flotilla of the German Navy was housed in this bunker complex, which was protected from the tides by two locks and had ten berths ("cells") for a total of thirteen submarines . The shipyard bunker was built in the old industrial port of La Rochelle.

history

Construction of the bunker in October 1942
Construction work in October 1942
Passage permit for workers 1942

In June 1940, Wehrmacht troops occupied northern France in the western campaign. After the lost Battle of Britain, a clear focus of the naval war on the supply routes of the British Isles took place. In April 1941 the construction of the submarine base in the industrial port of La Pallice began . The building project and its construction were carried out by the Todt Organization .

An exact number of people forced to work cannot be given, since foreign workers were listed as “volunteers” in the organization's files at that time. Nonetheless, a high percentage of local suppliers of building materials can be assumed to do their job. Individual sources assume 2143 workers, including 290 workers and 49 auxiliary workers from the Todt organization, as well as a further 632 workers and 1172 auxiliary workers, including forced laborers from Spain and North Africa, prisoners of war from Belgium and Luxembourg and young people from La Rochelle.

For reasons of secrecy and counter-espionage, it can be assumed that the actual construction work on the shipyard bunker was carried out exclusively by units of the Wehrmacht. The construction work was carried out without interruption, 24 hours a day, in alternating shifts.

The bunker covers an area of ​​3.5  hectares . Its walls are between 2 and 3.5 meters thick and its roof consists of two reinforced concrete slabs, each 3.50 m thick, which are separated from one another by a grate that served as explosion protection. The construction required a volume of 425,000 cubic meters of reinforced concrete. The bunker initially consisted of seven cells, which are protected by armored doors.

From November 1, 1941, the 3rd submarine flotilla of the Kriegsmarine was stationed at the base. From here the submarines of the flotilla drove their missions in the context of the battle in the Atlantic . In a second construction phase, the other cells 8 to 10 were added (start of construction in early April 1942, completion in 1943).

In 1944 the destroyers Z 23 and Z 24 were overhauled in the bunker . After removing the chimneys, they could back up to the main mast in one of the wider cells. From July 25th to August 7th, Z 23 provided emergency power for the shipyard.

On August 19, 1944, the bunker system was massively bombed by Allied air forces. Around 2500 tons of bombs were dropped over the area. Several bombs, including two Tallboy bombs , hit the bunker and caused great damage. As a result and because of the advance of the Allies in France, the 3rd submarine flotilla was moved to Norway .

Details of the structures

The main structure

U-boat bunker, view from the northwest, on the left the wider "cells" 1 and 2 for two submarines each, on the right the mole behind "cell" 7
Submarine bunker, view from the southeast

The German occupation forces used the eastern port basin of La Pallice for the submarine bunker. It was built in 1891 and was 600 by 200 meters (length by width).

In its final form, the main complex of the bunker was 192.25 meters wide, 159 meters deep and 19 meters high in a west-east direction. The core area were the submarine “cells”, which were numbered 1 to 10 from north to south. Between the “cells” 7 and 8, a mole protrudes 200 meters into the harbor basin. Behind the individual “cells” there is a five-meter-wide cross-corridor in a north-south direction, which separates the submarine basins from the storage rooms and workshops. This corridor had a rail connection and the entrances could be closed on both sides by armored doors.

In detail, the following functions were assigned to the submarine cells (some with details of the department in Roman numerals and an additional code letter):

  • Cell 1: Internal locksmith shop
  • Cell 2: IVU: Mechanical repairs to the submarines
  • Cell 3: IIIU: Shipbuilding repair of the submarines
  • Cell 4: IIIU: Shipbuilding repair of the submarines
  • Cell 5: Torpedo Command
  • Cell 6: Gun workshop
  • Cell 7: IX: Logistics / IIT: Artillery / Technical Operations
  • Cell 8: Electrical systems and workshop / IIT: Artillery / Main warehouse management
  • Cell 9: Shipbuilding
  • Cell 10: IVE: Electrical systems / combi-container

Additional material stores and offices were located above the individual cells. The individual pools are between nine and eleven meters deep. The “cells” 1, 2 and 10 are wider and can each accommodate two boats at the same time. Bridge cranes can transport loads of up to three tons there. The narrower “cells” 3 to 9 are designed for one boat each, but the basins could be closed at the front and pumped out so that they could also be used as a dry dock . The load capacities of the two bridge cranes were 30 and 5 tons.

Extensions

On the back, towards the northeast, a tower was added to the main structure, and from the winter of 1943/1944 an extension on the east side with a length of 85, a width of 20 and a height of 19 meters.

Other buildings in the area

Submarine lock, view from the inside

Access from the sea into the harbor basin and vice versa was made possible by two locks, one of which was designed as a separate, covered bunker. Other bunker buildings were located spatially separated from the main structure. One was used as an ammunition store, four more for preparing the torpedoes, one for the central power supply and a few smaller ones for gas supplies and as a command bunker and to protect the staff.

Protection of the plant during the Second World War

Two rotating anti-aircraft towers above "cells" 1 and 2 were used to protect and defend the bunker. "Cells" 1 to 9 had armored gates, and above "cell" 8 there were machine gun positions. The port basin itself was secured by the 79-strong network blocking group West. Airships of the Air Force served to protect against low-flying attacks, from further air barrier section was used 102 with 56 soldiers on the ground. The air defense itself was incumbent on the naval anti-aircraft departments 159th (MFlA 159) and 812th (MFlA 812).

Use after the Second World War

At the end of the war, the French Navy took over the area as a base for the maintenance and upkeep of smaller warships. From 1964 to 1980 the pier in front of cells 7 and 8 served as a base for three patrol boats of the water police and the coast guard. The bunkers, namely the concrete and the iron reinforcement, have suffered for decades from the influence of salt water, the consequences of the bombing at the time and the consequent penetration of precipitation as well as vandalism. Since January 1st, 2006, unauthorized access has been strictly prohibited.

In December 2015 it was announced that a photovoltaic system would be installed on the roof of the submarine bunker to generate electricity. The French energy group IEL, which was founded in 2004 and specializes in renewable energies, is behind the project. By 2018, an area of ​​15,000 square meters had been fitted with solar modules , which are expected to deliver 2.3 million kilowatt hours of electricity annually.

Trivia

In 1980, scenes for the film Das Boot were filmed in the bunker and harbor basin . The bunker also served as a backdrop for the film Raiders of the Lost Treasure .

The emblem of the 3rd submarine flotilla was a black cat. You can still see them behind a steel door in the interior of the La Pallice submarine bunker.

literature

  • Lars Hellwinkel: Hitler's Gate to the Atlantic - The German Naval Bases in France 1940–1945. Ch. Links Verlag, Berlin 2012, ISBN 978-3-86153-672-7 .

Web links

Commons : Submarine base in La Pallice  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d e f g h Maurice Clement: Base Sous-Marine de La Pallice on the web portal u-boote.fr , accessed on January 5, 2019 (French).
  2. ↑ Details on the u-boote.fr web portal , accessed on January 9, 2019 (French).
  3. ↑ Details on the submarine cells on the u-boote.fr web portal , accessed on January 7, 2019 (French).
  4. ↑ Presentation of the project for energy generation with solar collectors on the roof of the submarine bunker in La Pallice on the web portal lechodusolaire.fr , accessed on January 5, 2019 (French).
  5. ^ Lothar Günther Buchheim: The film "Das Boot" . Goldmann, Munich 1981, ISBN 978-3-442-10196-2 , pp. 64, 76 and 246.
  6. ↑ Meinolf Rode: The Templars - An insight and overview . Lulu.com 2011, ISBN 978-1-4709-6920-2 , p. 245.

Coordinates: 46 ° 9 ′ 32.3 "  N , 1 ° 12 ′ 34.7"  W.