The post of ''Führer der Unterseeboote (FdU)'' ("Leader of the U-boats") was the senior commanding officer of

U-boat U-boats are Submarine#Military, naval submarines operated by Germany, including during the World War I, First and Second World Wars. The term is an Anglicization#Loanwords, anglicized form of the German word , a shortening of (), though the G ...

forces in a theatre of war. The submarine service in the

Kaiserliche Marine The adjective ''kaiserlich'' means "imperial" and was used in the German-speaking countries to refer to those institutions and establishments over which the ''Kaiser'' ("emperor") had immediate personal power of control. The term was used partic ...

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

and the

Kriegsmarine The (, ) was the navy of Nazi 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 It superseded the Imperial German Navy of the German Empire (1871–1918) and the inter-war (1919–1935) of the Weimar Republic.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 military branch, branche ...

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, used the title for several senior commands during those conflicts. It was senior to Flotilla chief (''Chef'') and was introduced as U-boat forces in an area expanded beyond flotilla size. In 1917 the posts of FdU were themselves subordinated to an overall "Commander of the U-boats" (''

Befehlshaber der Unterseeboote The ''Befehlshaber der Unterseeboote'' or BdU (Eng: "Commander of the U-boats") was the supreme commander of the German Navy's U-boat Arm (''Ubootwaffe'') during the First and Second World Wars. The term also referred to the Command HQ of the U ...

'', or BdU). Tarrant p56 The post of FdU was revived in the 1930s with German re-armament and was held from January 1936 and until 17 October 1939 by

Karl Dönitz Karl Dönitz (; 16 September 1891 – 24 December 1980) was a German grand admiral and convicted war criminal who, following Adolf Hitler's Death of Adolf Hitler, suicide, succeeded him as head of state of Nazi Germany during the Second World ...

. On that date he was named BdU, and two subordinate FdU posts were established, ''FdU West'' ("FdU West") and ''FdU Ost'' ("FdU East").
Lexikoneintrag FdU
' In the further course of the war, several further posts were created for the commanders of U-boat regions

World War I

World War II

In the further course of the war, several further posts were created for the commanders of U-boat regions. * ''F.d.U. Ausb. - Führer der U-Ausbildungsflottillen'': Head of the training flotillas: Viktor Schütze, 7 February 1942 – May 1945 * ''F.d.U. Italien - Führer der U-Boote Italien'': Head of the U-boats for Italy:

Hans-Rudolf Rösing Hans-Rudolf Rösing (28 September 1905 – 16 December 2004) was a German U-boat commander in World War II and later served in the Bundesmarine of the Federal Republic of Germany. He was a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross, of Nazi ...

, from July 1942 * ''F.d.U. Mitte - Führer der U-Boote Mitte'': Head of the U-boats for the central sector * ''F.d.U. Mittelmeer - Führer der U-Boote Mittelmeer'': Head of the U-boats for the

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea ( ) is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the east by the Levant in West Asia, on the north by Anatolia in West Asia and Southern ...

: Werner Hartmann, January – August 1944 * ''F.d.U. Nordmeer - Führer der U-Boote Nordmeer'': Head of the U-boats for the

North Sea The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Denmark, Norway, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, and France. A sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian Se ...

: Reinhard Suhren: January 1943 – May 1944 * ''F.d.U. Norwegen - Führer der U-Boote Norwegen'': Head of the U-boats for Norway * ''F.d.U. Ost - Führer der U-Boote Ostsee'': Head of the U-boats for the

Baltic Sea The Baltic Sea is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that is enclosed by the countries of Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden, and the North European Plain, North and Central European Plain regions. It is the ...

* ''F.d.U. West - Führer der U-Boote im Westraum'': Head of the U-boats for the West (France)

Notes

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Fuhrer Der U-Boote U-boats Kriegsmarine appointments