The following is a list of German naval ports during World War II. Ports operated by the

Kriegsmarine The (, ) was the navy of Germany from 1935 to 1945. It superseded the Imperial German Navy of the German Empire (1871–1918) and the inter-war (1919–1935) of the Weimar Republic. The was one of three official branches, along with the a ...

were divided into two classes - major and minor. For most major ports, a port commander (''Hafenkommandanten'') was the senior most officer in charge of the port. Ports in the same geographical area were grouped together under administrative units known as ''Hafenkommandanten im Bereich''. Vessels assigned within German ports were organized into harbor defense flotillas. Smaller ports were overseen by "Port captains" (''Hafenkapitäne''); however, in some larger ports this title was also used for the port commander. Both major and minor port commanders reported to a naval area commander (''Der Kommandant im Abschnitt''), who in turn administratively reported to a Navy district commander. For operational military defense, ports were also assigned to one of several sea defense zones.

Major German Ports

For major ports within Germany, a position of "Naval Superintendent" (''Marineintendantur'') served as the port commander and answered directly to the commanders of the Navy regions. Naval superintendent positions established during World War II included

Bremen Bremen (Low German also: ''Breem'' or ''Bräm''), officially the City Municipality of Bremen (german: Stadtgemeinde Bremen, ), is the capital of the German state Free Hanseatic City of Bremen (''Freie Hansestadt Bremen''), a two-city-state consis ...

, Wilhelmshaven,

Kiel Kiel () is the capital and most populous city in the northern Germany, German state of Schleswig-Holstein, with a population of 246,243 (2021). Kiel lies approximately north of Hamburg. Due to its geographic location in the southeast of the J ...

, and

Hamburg (male), (female) en, Hamburger(s), Hamburgian(s) , timezone1 = Central (CET) , utc_offset1 = +1 , timezone1_DST = Central (CEST) , utc_offset1_DST = +2 , postal ...

. The superintendent at Kiel also possessed a deputy port captain. Naval superintendents were allocated a staff of various department heads to oversee activities in the various German ports. These include a building superintendent (''Marine-Baudirektion''), naval arsenal (''Kriegsmarinearsenal''), personnel office (''Kriegsmarinedienststelle''), and communications unit (''Marinenachrichtenabteilung''). The larger German ports also typically maintained a naval brig (''Prisenhof'').

North Sea and Baltic Sea

Kriegsmarine ports in the

North North is one of the four compass points or cardinal directions. It is the opposite of south and is perpendicular to east and west. ''North'' is a noun, adjective, or adverb indicating Direction (geometry), direction or geography. Etymology T ...

and

Baltic Sea The Baltic Sea is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that is enclosed by Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden and the North and Central European Plain. The sea stretches from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from ...

s were organized into the following two geographical areas. Hafenkommandanten im Bereich der Nordsee ''Port commanders'' * Hafenkommandant Delfzijl * Hafenkommandant

Groningen Groningen (; gos, Grunn or ) is the capital city and main municipality of Groningen province in the Netherlands. The ''capital of the north'', Groningen is the largest place as well as the economic and cultural centre of the northern part of t ...

* Hafenkommandant Harlingen ''Port captains'' * Hafenkapitän

Emden Emden () is an independent city and seaport in Lower Saxony in the northwest of Germany, on the river Ems. It is the main city of the region of East Frisia and, in 2011, had a total population of 51,528. History The exact founding date of E ...

* Hafenkapitän

Helgoland Heligoland (; german: Helgoland, ; Heligolandic Frisian: , , Mooring Frisian: , da, Helgoland) is a small archipelago in the North Sea. A part of the German state of Schleswig-Holstein since 1890, the islands were historically possessions ...

Hafenkommandanten im Bereich der Ostsee ''Port commanders'' * Hafenkommandant

Eckernförde Eckernförde ( da, Egernførde, sometimes also , nds, Eckernför, sometimes also ) () is a German town in Schleswig-Holstein, Rendsburg-Eckernförde, on the coast of the Baltic Sea approximately 30 km north-west of Kiel. The population is ...

* Hafenkommandant Mürwik * Hafenkommandant Neustadt * Hafenkommandant

Stralsund Stralsund (; Swedish: ''Strålsund''), officially the Hanseatic City of Stralsund (German: ''Hansestadt Stralsund''), is the fifth-largest city in the northeastern German federal state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania after Rostock, Schwerin, Neub ...

* Hafenkommandant Swinemünde ''Port captains'' * Hafenkapitän Danzig-Neufahrwasser * Hafenkapitän Gotenhafen * Hafenkapitän Hela * Hafenkapitän Kiel * Hafenkapitän Libau * Hafenkapitän Memel * Hafenkapitän Pillau * Hafenkapitän

Travemünde Travemünde () is a borough of Lübeck, Germany, located at the mouth of the river Trave in Bay of Lübeck, Lübeck Bay. It began life as a fortress built by Henry the Lion, Duke of Saxony, in the 12th century to guard the mouth of the Trave, an ...

* Hafenkapitän Warnemünde * Hafenkapitän

Windau Ventspils (; german: Windau, ; see #Other names, other names) is a state city in northwestern Latvia in the historical Courland region of Latvia, and is the sixth largest city in the country. At the beginning of 2020, Ventspils had a population ...

Hafenkommandanten im Bereich des Marinebefehlshabers Dänemark ''Port commanders'' * Hafenkommandant

Esbjerg Esbjerg (, ) is a seaport town and seat of Esbjerg Municipality on the west coast of the Jutland peninsula in southwest Denmark. By road, it is west of Kolding and southwest of Aarhus. With an urban population of 71,698 (1 January 2022)

* Hafenkommandant Tyborön ''Port captains'' * Hafenkapitän

Aalborg Aalborg (, , ) is Denmark's fourth largest town (behind Copenhagen, Aarhus, and Odense) with a population of 119,862 (1 July 2022) in the town proper and an urban population of 143,598 (1 July 2022). As of 1 July 2022, the Municipality of Aalb ...

* Hafenkapitän

Aarhus Aarhus (, , ; officially spelled Århus from 1948 until 1 January 2011) is the second-largest city in Denmark and the seat of Aarhus Municipality. It is located on the eastern shore of Jutland in the Kattegat sea and approximately northwest ...

* Hafenkapitän

* Hafenkapitän Frederica * Hafenkapitän

Frederikshavn Frederikshavn () is a Danish town in Frederikshavn municipality, Region Nordjylland, on the northeast coast of the Jutland peninsula in northern Denmark. Its name translates to "Frederik's harbor". It was originally named Fladstrand. The town h ...

* Hafenkapitän Gjedser * Hafenkapitän Helsingör * Hafenkapitän Hirtshals * Hafenkapitän

Kalundborg Kalundborg () is a Danish city with a population of 16,211 (1 January 2022),Kopenhagen Copenhagen ( or .; da, København ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a proper population of around 815.000 in the last quarter of 2022; and some 1.370,000 in the urban area; and the wider Copenhagen metropolitan ar ...

* Hafenkapitän Korsör * Hafenkapitän Nyborg (Ryborg) * Hafenkapitän Skagen * Hafenkapitän Tyborön

Norway

German ports in occupied Norway were among the more numerous of sea ports outside of Germany's given Norway's direct access to the North Sea.Kersaudy, Francois, Norway 1940 (World War II), Bison Books (November 1998) Hafenkommandanten im Bereich des Kommandierenden Admirals Norwegen ''Port commanders'' * Hafenkommandant

Haugesund Haugesund () is a municipality on the North Sea in Rogaland county, Norway. While the population is greater in the neighboring Karmøy municipality, the main commercial and economic centre of the Haugaland region in northern Rogaland and southern ...

* Hafenkommandant

Kirkenes Kirkenes (; ; Skolt Sami: ''Ǩeârkknjargg;'' fi, Kirkkoniemi; ; russian: Киркенес) is a List of towns and cities in Norway, town in Sør-Varanger Municipality in Troms og Finnmark county, in the far northeastern part of Norway. The town ...

''Port captains''

France and the Low Countries

German ports in the occupied Netherlands and

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

are listed below. Hafenkommandanten im Bereich des Marinebefehlshabers der Niederlande ''Port commanders'' * Hafenkommandant

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the Capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population ...

* Hafenkommandant

Antwerp Antwerp (; nl, Antwerpen ; french: Anvers ; es, Amberes) is the largest city in Belgium by area at and the capital of Antwerp Province in the Flemish Region. With a population of 520,504,

en * Hafenkommandant

Den Helder Den Helder () is a municipality and a city in the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland. Den Helder occupies the northernmost point of the North Holland peninsula. It is home to the country's main naval base. From here the Royal TESO fe ...

* Hafenkommandant Hoek van Holland * Hafenkommandant

Ijmuiden IJ_(digraph).html" ;"title="n IJ (digraph)">n IJ (digraph) and that should remain the only places where they are used. > IJmuiden () is a port city in the Netherlands, Dutch province of North Holland. It is the main town in the municipality ...

* Hafenkommandant

Rotterdam Rotterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Rotte'') is the second largest city and municipality in the Netherlands. It is in the province of South Holland, part of the North Sea mouth of the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta, via the ''"N ...

* Hafenkommandant

Vlissingen Vlissingen (; zea, label=Zeelandic, Vlissienge), historically known in English as Flushing, is a Municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality and a city in the southwestern Netherlands on the former island of Walcheren. With its strategic l ...

''Port captains'' * Hafenkapitän Harlingen * Hafenkapitän

Hafenkommandanten im Bereich des Kommandierenden Admirals Frankreich bzw. ''Port commanders'' ''Port captains'' * Hafenkapitän

Cannes Cannes ( , , ; oc, Canas) is a city located on the French Riviera. It is a communes of France, commune located in the Alpes-Maritimes departments of France, department, and host city of the annual Cannes Film Festival, Midem, and Cannes Lions I ...

* Hafenkapitän La Ciotat * Hafenkapitän

Le Tréport Le Tréport () is a commune in the Seine-Maritime department in Normandy, France. Geography A small fishing port and light industrial town situated in the Pays de Caux, some northeast of Dieppe at the junction of the D 940, the D 78 and th ...

* Hafenkapitän

Les Sables d'Olonne Les Sables-d'Olonne (; French meaning: "The Sands of Olonne"; Poitevin: ''Lés Sablles d'Oloune'') is a seaside town in Western France, on the Atlantic Ocean. A subprefecture of the department of Vendée, Pays de la Loire, it has the administ ...

* Hafenkapitän Lezardieux * Hafenkapitän Nizza * Hafenkapitän St. Louis de Rhone * Hafenkapitän

Royan Royan (; in the Saintongeais dialect; oc, Roian) is a commune and town in the south-west of France, in the department of Charente-Maritime in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region. Its inhabitants are known as ''Royannais'' and ''Royannaises''. Capi ...

* Hafenkapitän St. Malo * Hafenkapitän

St. Tropez , INSEE = 83119 , postal code = 83990 , image coat of arms = Blason ville fr Saint-Tropez-A (Var).svg , image flag=Flag of Saint-Tropez.svg Saint-Tropez (; oc, Sant Tropetz, ; ) is a commune in the Var department and the region of Provence-Alp ...

Channel Islands

The following German ports on

the Channel Islands The Channel Islands ( nrf, Îles d'la Manche; french: îles Anglo-Normandes or ''îles de la Manche'') are an archipelago in the English Channel, off the French coast of Normandy. They include two Crown Dependencies: the Bailiwick of Jersey, ...

were the only occupied British ports that the Kriegsmarine controlled during the course of the Second World War. * Hafenkommandant

Alderney Alderney (; french: Aurigny ; Auregnais: ) is the northernmost of the inhabited Channel Islands. It is part of the Bailiwick of Guernsey, a British Crown dependency. It is long and wide. The island's area is , making it the third-largest ...

* Hafenkommandant

Guernsey Guernsey (; Guernésiais: ''Guernési''; french: Guernesey) is an island in the English Channel off the coast of Normandy that is part of the Bailiwick of Guernsey, a British Crown Dependency. It is the second largest of the Channel Islands ...

* Hafenkommandant

Jersey Jersey ( , ; nrf, Jèrri, label=Jèrriais ), officially the Bailiwick of Jersey (french: Bailliage de Jersey, links=no; Jèrriais: ), is an island country and self-governing Crown Dependencies, Crown Dependency near the coast of north-west F ...

* Hafenkommandant Kanalinseln or Channel Islands

Belgium ports

The following Belgium ports were overseen by the port authorities in occupied France * Hafenkommandant Nieuport (

Flanders Flanders (, ; Dutch: ''Vlaanderen'' ) is the Flemish-speaking northern portion of Belgium and one of the communities, regions and language areas of Belgium. However, there are several overlapping definitions, including ones related to culture, ...

) * Hafenkommandant

Ostend Ostend ( nl, Oostende, ; french: link=no, Ostende ; german: link=no, Ostende ; vls, Ostende) is a coastal city and municipality, located in the province of West Flanders in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It comprises the boroughs of Mariakerk ...

e * Hafenkommandant

Zeebrügge Zeebrugge (, from: ''Brugge aan zee'' meaning "Bruges at Sea", french: Zeebruges) is a village on the coast of Belgium and a subdivision of Bruges, for which it is the modern port. Zeebrugge serves as both the international port of Bruges-Zeeb ...

Black Sea and Aegean sea

German ports in the

Black Sea The Black Sea is a marginal mediterranean sea of the Atlantic Ocean lying between Europe and Asia, east of the Balkans, south of the East European Plain, west of the Caucasus, and north of Anatolia. It is bounded by Bulgaria, Georgia, Roma ...

and the Aegean were organized into two geographical areas Hafenkommandanten im Bereich des Admirals Schwarzes Meer ''Port commanders'' * Hafenkommandant Berdjansk * Hafenkommandant Genitschesk * Hafenkommandant Feodosia * Hafenkommandant

Jalta Yalta (: Я́лта) is a resort city on the south coast of the Crimean Peninsula surrounded by the Black Sea. It serves as the administrative center of Yalta Municipality, one of the regions within Crimea. Yalta, along with the rest of Crimea ...

* Hafenkommandant Kertsch * Hafenkommandant

Mariupol Mariupol (, ; uk, Маріу́поль ; russian: Мариу́поль) is a city in Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine. It is situated on the northern coast (Pryazovia) of the Sea of Azov, at the mouth of the Kalmius River. Prior to the 2022 Russian i ...

* Hafenkommandant Nikolajew * Hafenkommandant

Odessa Odesa (also spelled Odessa) is the third most populous city and municipality in Ukraine and a major seaport and transport hub located in the south-west of the country, on the northwestern shore of the Black Sea. The city is also the administrativ ...

* Hafenkommandant Otschakow * Hafenkommandant Sewastopol * Hafenkommandant Taganrog ''Port captains'' * Hafenkapitän Ak Metschet * Hafenkapitän Balaklawa * Hafenkapitän Cherson * Hafenkapitän Eupatoria * Hafenkapitän Nogaisk * Hafenkapitän Nowo-Petrowskoje * Hafenkapitän Otschakow-Nord * Hafenkapitän Skadowsk Hafenkommandanten im Bereich des Admirals Ägäis ''Port commanders'' ''Port captains'' * Hafenkapitän Skopelos * Hafenkapitän Koupho

Baltic sea ports

The Baltic sea ports of

Latvia Latvia ( or ; lv, Latvija ; ltg, Latveja; liv, Leţmō), officially the Republic of Latvia ( lv, Latvijas Republika, links=no, ltg, Latvejas Republika, links=no, liv, Leţmō Vabāmō, links=no), is a country in the Baltic region of ...

Lithuania Lithuania (; lt, Lietuva ), officially the Republic of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Respublika, links=no ), is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea. Lithuania ...

, and

Estonia Estonia, formally the Republic of Estonia, is a country by the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, a ...

were under the command of the ''Hafenkommandanten im Bereich des Admirals Ostland''. Two more major harbors, under port commanders, were at

Riga Riga (; lv, Rīga , liv, Rīgõ) is the capital and largest city of Latvia and is home to 605,802 inhabitants which is a third of Latvia's population. The city lies on the Gulf of Riga at the mouth of the Daugava river where it meets the Ba ...

and Reval. Smaller harbors, under port captains, were as follows. * Hafenkapitän Baltischport * Hafenkapitän Krivorutschi * Hafenkapitän Libau * Hafenkapitän Lowkolowo (

Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...

) * Hafenkapitän Peipa * Hafenkapitän Pernau * Hafenkapitän Rutschi * Hafenkapitän

Mediterranean Sea

German ports in the

Mediterranean Sea The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the ea ...

were overseen by a single command encompassing all Italian,

Albania Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and shares ...

n, and

Dalmatia Dalmatia (; hr, Dalmacija ; it, Dalmazia; see #Name, names in other languages) is one of the four historical region, historical regions of Croatia, alongside Croatia proper, Slavonia, and Istria. Dalmatia is a narrow belt of the east shore of ...

n harbors. The Italian naval area was the only one of the three regions to maintain smaller harbors at the port captain level. Hafenkommandanten im Bereich Italien, Dalmatien und Albanien * Hafenkommandant

Ajaccio Ajaccio (, , ; French: ; it, Aiaccio or ; co, Aiacciu , locally: ; la, Adiacium) is a French commune, prefecture of the department of Corse-du-Sud, and head office of the ''Collectivité territoriale de Corse'' (capital city of Corsica). ...

* Hafenkommandant

Ancona Ancona (, also , ) is a city and a seaport in the Marche region in central Italy, with a population of around 101,997 . Ancona is the capital of the province of Ancona and of the region. The city is located northeast of Rome, on the Adriatic S ...

* Hafenkommandant Cattaro * Hafenkommandant Cherso * Hafenkommandant

Dubrovnik Dubrovnik (), historically known as Ragusa (; see notes on naming), is a city on the Adriatic Sea in the region of Dalmatia, in the southeastern semi-exclave of Croatia. It is one of the most prominent tourist destinations in the Mediterran ...

* Hafenkommandant Durazzo * Hafenkommandant

Fiume Rijeka ( , , ; also known as Fiume hu, Fiume, it, Fiume ; local Chakavian: ''Reka''; german: Sankt Veit am Flaum; sl, Reka) is the principal seaport and the third-largest city in Croatia (after Zagreb and Split). It is located in Primor ...

* Hafenkommandant Genua * Hafenkommandant Gravosa * Hafenkommandant

La Spezia La Spezia (, or , ; in the local Spezzino dialect) is the capital city of the province of La Spezia and is located at the head of the Gulf of La Spezia in the southern part of the Liguria region of Italy. La Spezia is the second largest city ...

* Hafenkommandant

Livorno Livorno () is a port city on the Ligurian Sea on the western coast of Tuscany, Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Livorno, having a population of 158,493 residents in December 2017. It is traditionally known in English as Leghorn (pronou ...

* Hafenkommandant

Pola Pola or POLA may refer to: People *House of Pola, an Italian noble family *Pola Alonso (1923–2004), Argentine actress *Pola Brändle (born 1980), German artist and photographer *Pola Gauguin (1883–1961), Danish painter *Pola Gojawiczyńska (18 ...

* Hafenkommandant

Ravenna Ravenna ( , , also ; rgn, Ravèna) is the capital city of the Province of Ravenna, in the Emilia-Romagna region of Northern Italy. It was the capital city of the Western Roman Empire from 408 until its collapse in 476. It then served as the cap ...

* Hafenkommandant Sebenico * Hafenkommandant Senj * Hafenkommandant

Sestri Levante Sestri Levante ( la, Segesta Tigullorum/Segesta Tigulliorum) is a town and ''comune'' in the Metropolitan City of Genoa, Liguria, Italy. Lying on the Mediterranean Sea, it is approximately south of Genoa and is set on a promontory. While nearby ...

* Hafenkommandant Split * Hafenkommandant Triest * Hafenkommandant Valona * Hafenkommandant Venedig * Hafenkommandant Viareggio * Hafenkommandant Zara Hafenkapitäne im Bereich Italien * Hafenkapitän

Bonifacio Bonifacio may refer to: Places * Bonifacio, Corse-du-Sud, a town in Corsica, France * Strait of Bonifacio, separating Corsica from Sardinia * Bonifacio, Misamis Occidental, a municipality in the Philippines * Bonifacio Global City, a central bu ...

* Hafenkapitän Burano * Hafenkapitän

Caorle Caorle (; vec, Càorle) is a coastal town in the Metropolitan City of Venice, Veneto, northern Italy, located between the estuaries of the Livenza and Lemene rivers. It is situated on the Adriatic Sea between two other tourist towns, Eraclea and ...

* Hafenkapitän

Fano Fano is a town and ''comune'' of the province of Pesaro and Urbino in the Marche region of Italy. It is a beach resort southeast of Pesaro, located where the ''Via Flaminia'' reaches the Adriatic Sea. It is the third city in the region by popula ...

* Hafenkapitän

Imperia Imperia (; lij, Inpêia or ) is a coastal city and ''comune'' in the Regions of Italy, region of Liguria, Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Imperia, and historically it was capital of the ''Intemelia'' district of Liguria. Benito Muss ...

* Hafenkapitän

Pesaro Pesaro () is a city and ''comune'' in the Italian region of Marche, capital of the Province of Pesaro e Urbino, on the Adriatic Sea. According to the 2011 census, its population was 95,011, making it the second most populous city in the Marche, ...

* Hafenkapitän Porto Ferraie * Hafenkapitän Rimini * Hafenkapitän San Remo * Hafenkapitän Santa Margherita * Hafenkapitän

Savona Savona (; lij, Sann-a ) is a seaport and ''comune'' in the west part of the northern Italy, Italian region of Liguria, capital of the Province of Savona, in the Riviera di Ponente on the Mediterranean Sea. Savona used to be one of the chie ...

* Hafenkapitän

Senigallia Senigallia (or Sinigaglia in Old Italian, Romagnol: ''S’nigaja'') is a ''comune'' and port town on Italy's Adriatic coast. It is situated in the province of Ancona in the Marche region and lies approximately 30 kilometers north-west of the pro ...

* Hafenkapitän Senstri Lavante * Hafenkapitän Ventimiglia

References

{{German Navies Kriegsmarine

Naval A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval warfare, naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral zone, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and ...