Summary
In World War II, the Atlantic pockets were locations along the coasts of the Netherlands, Belgium and France chosen as strongholds by the occupying German forces, to be defended as long as possible against land attack by the Allies.
The locations are known in German as Atlantikfestungen (lit. "Atlantic strongholds") but are known in English as "Atlantic pockets".
Six of the Atlantic pockets were captured by the Allies between June and October 1944. Others were placed under siege. Three surrendered in April 1945, and the remainder in May 1945.
Designation as fortresses edit
On 19 January 1944 Adolf Hitler declared eleven places along the Atlantic Wall to be fortresses (Festungen), to be held until the last man or the last round, calling them Atlantikfestungen (lit. "Atlantic strongholds").[1]
The ports were: IJmuiden, the Hoek van Holland, Dunkirk, Boulogne-sur-Mer, Le Havre, Cherbourg, Saint-Malo, Brest, Lorient, Saint-Nazaire and the Gironde estuary.[1]
In February and March 1944 three more coastal areas were declared to be fortresses: the Channel Islands, Calais and La Rochelle.[1]
Other fortresses were added after D-Day on 6 June 1944 in further directives of 17 August and 4 September.[citation needed]
Purpose edit
As well as concentrating men and matériel to control the surrounding area, the fortresses' purpose was to deny the use of port facilities to the Allies and to secure their continued use by German submarines in the Battle of the Atlantic. In addition, as long as they remained in German hands, they had propaganda value.
Fate of the pockets edit
In France, six pockets were captured by the Allies between the initial invasion of Normandy in June 1944, and October 1944, and others brought under siege. Three were liberated by French forces in April 1945, while the remainder surrendered after the capitulation of Germany in May 1945.
List of Atlantic pockets edit
The Atlantic pockets, with the date any Allied assault began and date the defenders surrendered, are shown below.
| Place | Garrison | Allied assault began | Surrendered | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cherbourg pocket | Cherbourg | 15,000 men | 6 June 1944 | 30 June 1944 |
| Saint-Malo pocket | Saint-Malo | 12,000 men | 3 August 1944 | 14 August 1944[2] |
| Le Havre pocket | Le Havre | 14,000 men | 10 September 1944 | 12 September 1944 |
| Brest pocket | Brest | 37,000 men | 7 August 1944 | 19 September 1944 |
| Boulogne pocket | Boulogne-sur-Mer | 10,000 men | 17 September 1944 | 22 September 1944 |
| Calais pocket | Calais | 7,500 men | 25 September 1944 | 30 September 1944 |
| Royan pocket | Royan | 5,000 men | 12 September 1944 | 17 April 1945 |
| Pointe de Grave pocket | Pointe de Grave | 3,500 men | 12 September 1944 | 20 April 1945 |
| Île d'Oléron | 2,000 men | 12 September 1944 | 30 April 1945 | |
| La Rochelle pocket | La Rochelle | 11,500 men | 12 September 1944 | 7 May 1945 |
| Dunkirk pocket | Dunkirk | 10,000 men | 15 September 1944 | 9 May 1945 |
| Occupied Channel Islands | Channel Islands | 28,500 men | No assault | 9 May 1945 |
| Lorient pocket | Lorient | 24,500 men | 12 August 1944 | 10 May 1945 |
| Saint-Nazaire pocket | Saint-Nazaire | 30,000 men | 27 August 1944 | 11 May 1945 |
See also edit
Notes edit
References edit
- Rémy Desquesnes. Les poches de résistance allemandes sur le littoral français: août 1944 – mai 1945. Rennes: Éd. Ouest-France, 2011. ISBN 978-2-7373-4685-9; (in French).
- (fr) Stéphane Simonnet (2015), Les poches de l'Atlantique: Les batailles oubliées de la Libération Janvier 1944 - mai 1945, Tallandier, ISBN 979-10-210-0492-4
- Sortir de la Seconde Guerre mondiale (3/5): La libération des poches de l'Atlantique (in French), France culture - La fabrique de l'histoire, 6 May 2015, retrieved 14 Aug 2015
- Wilt, Alan (2004). The Atlantic Wall 1941–1944: Hitler's Defenses for D-Day. Enigma Books.