La Pallice 'Mitte' U-Boote Pen, K.V.Gr Süd La Rochelle, AOK 1 / KVA D, Charente Maritime

Here is a plan of La Pallice, the red line is the roads we drove on and the yellow line where we walked.
We started in the north of the SK Schleusenanlage overlooking the sea.
We (John and I) were very lucky as this whole area has now n=been sealed off and strict security is in operation.
There are many bunkers still around.
3. Unterseebootsflottille.
Also known as Lohs Flotilla its first commander Kapitänleutnant Hans Eckermann in 1937.
 It was named in honour of Oberleutnant zur See Johannes Lohs, a U-Boote commander during World War I, who died on 14 August 1918 after his submarine UB-57 was sunk by a mine.
The actual site 'Mitte' was ringed with Wn's numbered Ro and a letter. We did not get time to visit all the defences, but I have named the ones I can.
The bunkers and casemates around here were:
3. Unterseebootsflottille.
1 x R613 artillery observation post with a cupola.
7 x R621 group shelter.
2 x R622 twin group shelter.
1 x R625 casemate for a 7.5cm Pak 40.
2 x R626 casemate for a 7.5cm Pak with roof canopy.
4 x R633 emplacement for an M19 mortar.
1 x R664 emplacement for a light howitzer in turret.
2 x R668 small six man bunker.
2 x 3.7cm KwK144(f).
3 x 7.5cm Pak40.
1 x 4.7cm Pak36(t).
10 x U-Boote Pens.
There was also a dedicated hospital and at least two Torpedo bunkers.
1 x SK Schleusenanlage protected lock gate.
1./Res.Flak.Abt.195 'gemischte' (mixed). In December 1944, it was surrounded by the in the fortress of La Rochelle.

Nord Mole with L to R, the port control bunker and the Mole's outer defence bunker.
The outer defence bunker was a double 8.8cm casemate in Vf strength.

These (arrowed) have concrete protective blast walls.

Ls8 is still here, Ls9 has been removed. R501 removed and the Kommando bunker still sits proud next to the old port Authority building.

A good aerial photo of this bunker, showing railway lines entering the front.

Plan.

Note the hurriedly constructed light Flak positions. They may have used machine-guns or 2cm Flak Oerlikons.

Plan of the Trafo Nord bunker, adjusted from P Paich original.
No's. 1 to 7 are the generator sets. . The large square tanks on the left are for diesel fuel for the generators.

Ro230L?
SK/Trafo Trafo bunker Nord.
Transformer bunker. Steel ladder rungs going up the end wall.

Air photo taken on the 09 August 1944 by a RAF 542Sqn aircraft.

RAF Benson, Oxford around 1938.

U-Boote Pens The basin with the pens all along the eastern end.
History : built between 1941 and 1943 and able to take 13 U-Bootes, with 7 dry docks and 3 wet docks.

The rear quarter under construction.

Plan of this part.

Plan Trafo bunker SUD re drawn from original Dirk Peeters 1995.
The numbers I do not know what they are for, the two red arrows are the defence bunker added onto the rear of the Trafo bunker.

This area in 1946, still has a lot of building detritus laying around.

South wall.
History : U-378, 3rd Flotilla, La Pallice.  Sailed on the 06/09/43 commanded by Erich Mader and sank the Polish Naval destroyer Orkan, escorting convoy SC-143 in the north-Atlantic.

No9 & No10 pen, were dry dock & ten had a sea gate. These were added on after the original construction.
History : La Rochelle / La Pallice started in 1940 as a base for some Italian submarines and then the 3rd Flotilla took over in 1941.

No10 a double pen.
History : originally the 3rd Flotilla was based in Kiel, Germany and moved down to the Atlantic coast to be closer to the Atlantic convoy routes to & from Great Britain.

No.9 pen.
History : the flotilla was disbanded in October 1944 and fought as ground troops, 'Regiment Zapp' (Korvkpt. Richard Zapp) in and around Festung La Rochelle until the armistice in 1945. One U-Boote was left here and was commissioned into the French Navy after the war.

This is the three pens being built. The original build was done inside the basin and was made to fit, When these were added the Todt Org. had to excavate not only the new area, but also widened the whole basin. A very big extra job.