Atlantic Wall
Location Commander Garrison strength Notes Surrender
Alderney Maximilian List 3,200 Fortifications of Alderney 16 May 1945
Antwerp Gustav-Adolf von Zangen 90,000 Battle of the Scheldt 8 November 1944
Boulogne Ferdinand Heim 10,000 Operation Wellhit 22 September 1944
Brest Hermann-Bernhard Ramcke 38,000 Battle for Brest 19 September 1944
Calais / Cap Gris-Nez Ludwig Schroeder 7,500 Operation Undergo 30 September 1944
Cherbourg Karl-Wilhelm von Schlieben 47,000 Battle of Cherbourg 27 June 1944
Dunkirk Friedrich Frisius 12,000 Allied siege of Dunkirk 8 May 1945
Guernsey Rudolf Graf von Schmettow then Friedrich Hüffmeier 11,700 German fortification of Guernsey 9 May 1945
Jersey Rudolf Graf von Schmettow then Friedrich Hüffmeier 11,600 German occupation of the Channel Islands Liberation of the German-occupied Channel Islands 9 May 1945
La Rochelle / La Pallice Ernst Schirlitz 11,500 Allied siege of La Rochelle 9 May 1945
Le Havre Hermann-Eberhard Wildermuth 14,000 Operation Astonia 12 September 1944
Le Verdon-sur-Mer Otto Prahl 3,500 - 20 April 1945
Lorient Wilhelm Fahrmbacher 25,000 - 10 May 1945
Ostend Erich Julius Mülbe , Oberst 60,000 - 7 September 1944
Royan Hans Michahelles 5,000 - 17 April 1945
Saint-Malo / Dinard Andreas von Aulock 12,000 - 17 August 1944
St. Nazaire Hans Junck 35,000 - 11 May 1945
Zeebrugge Knut Eberding 14,000 - 1 November 1944
Fortresses
See also : Festung Norwegen Many major ports and positions were incorporated into the Atlantic Wall , receiving heavy fortifications . Hitler ordered all positions to fight to the end , and some of them remained in German hands until Germany 's unconditional surrender . Several of the port fortresses were resupplied by submarines after being surrounded by Allied Forces . The defenders of these positions included foreign volunteers and Waffen-SS troops . [ 22 ]
The Atlantic Wall () was an extensive system of coastal defence and fortifications built by Nazi Germany between 1942 and 1944, along the coast of continental Europe and Scandinavia as a defence against an anticipated Allied invasion of Nazi-occupied Europe from the United Kingdom, during World War II. The manning and operation of the Atlantic Wall was administratively overseen by the German Army, with some support from Luftwaffe ground forces. The Kriegsmarine (German Navy) maintained a separate coastal defence network, organised into a number of sea defence zones. Hitler ordered the construction of the fortifications in 1942. Almost a million French workers were drafted to build it. The wall was frequently mentioned in Nazi propaganda, where its size and strength were usually exaggerated. The fortifications included colossal coastal guns, batteries, mortars, and artillery, and thousands of German troops were stationed in its defences. When the Allies eventually invaded the Normandy beaches in 1944, most of the defences were stormed within hours. Today, ruins of the wall exist in all of the nations where it was built, although many structures have fallen into the ocean or have been demolished over the years.