List of U-boat regions

The following list of U-boat regions pertains to the higher echelon commands for the U-boat flotillas during World War II. The regions were organized between 1941 and 1944 and were commanded by an officer known as the Führer der Unterseeboote for his particular region. Regions could contain as few as two flotillas with as many as ten.

Before the outbreak of World War II, individual U-boat flotillas were under the direct command of a single Führer der Unterseeboote (F.d.U.) in the person of Karl Dönitz. who had also acted as commander of the 1st U-boat Flotilla. In 1939, Dönitz's title was renamed as the Befehlshaber der Unterseeboote (B.d.U.) to which all the flotillas directly reported.

The first U-boat region was created in Italy in November 1941 to provide local command authority for the U-boat flotillas operating in the Mediterranean Sea. The largest region, "Region West" headquartered in Paris, was established in 1942 to oversee U-boat activity during the Battle of the Atlantic.

Later war U-boat regions were created between 1943 and 1944 due to the various operational needs of the U-boat flotillas. The standard rank for a U-boat region commander was either Fregattenkapitän or Kapitän zur See. Towards the end of the war, a new office known as Kommandierender Admiral der Unterseeboote, was established by the Kriegsmarine to direct overall submarine operations. An office known as the Operationsabteilung (b.d.U.op) coordinated specific u-boat tactics.

In the last weeks of the war, when U-boat operations were mostly restricted to the North Sea around Norway, the Oberkommando der Marine (OKM) became the direct commander for the U-boat regions. Some flotillas overlapped between regions due to shifting base assignments and operational tasking.

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