Hitler's Gateway to the Atlantic: German Naval Bases in France, 1940-1945

Employing new research from both German and French sources, the author examines the role that the French Atlantic ports played for the Kriegsmarine during the Second World War. When the Wehrmacht overran France in May and June of 1940, the German Navy's dream of access to the Atlantic was realized, and Brest, Lorient, St Nazaire, La Pallice and Bordeaux were converted into naval bases for surface, U—boat and auxiliary cruiser operations, though it is only the heavily fortified U—boat bunker...