| 19th U-boat Flotilla | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Active | October 1943– May 1945 |
| Country |  |
| Branch |  |
| Type | U-boat flotilla |
| Garrison/HQ | Pillau (October 1943–February 1945) Kiel (February–May 1945) |
| Commanders | |
| Notable commanders | Korvettenkapitän Jost Metzler |
The 19th U-boat Flotilla (German 19. Unterseebootsflottille) was a unit of Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine during World War II.
German is a West Germanic language that is mainly spoken in Central Europe. It is the most widely spoken and official or co-official language in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, South Tyrol in Italy, the German-speaking Community of Belgium and Liechtenstein. It is one of the three official languages of Luxembourg and a co-official language in the Opole Voivodeship in Poland. The languages that are most similar to the German are the other members of the West Germanic language branch, including Afrikaans, Dutch, English, the Frisian languages, Low German/Low Saxon, Luxembourgish, and Yiddish. There are strong similarities in vocabulary with Danish, Norwegian and Swedish, although those belong to the North Germanic group. German is the second most widely spoken Germanic language, after English.
Nazi Germany is the common English name for Germany between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and his Nazi Party (NSDAP) controlled the country through a dictatorship. Under Hitler's rule, Germany was transformed into a totalitarian state where nearly all aspects of life were controlled by the government. The official name of the state was Deutsches Reich until 1943 and Großdeutsches Reich from 1943 to 1945. Nazi Germany is also known as the Third Reich, meaning "Third Realm" or "Third Empire", the first two being the Holy Roman Empire (800–1806) and the German Empire (1871–1918). The Nazi regime ended after the Allies defeated Germany in May 1945, ending World War II in Europe.
The Kriegsmarine 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 It superseded the Imperial German Navy of the German Empire (1871–1918) and the inter-war Reichsmarine (1919–1935) of the Weimar Republic. The Kriegsmarine was one of three official branches, along with the Heer (Army) and the Luftwaffe of the Wehrmacht, the German armed forces from 1933 to 1945.
It was founded in October 1943 as a Training Flotilla (Ger. Ausbildungsflottille) where future commanders received their basic training (Kommandanten-Vorschule), under the command of Korvettenkapitän Jost Metzler. Originally based at Pillau, it relocated to Kiel in February 1945. It was disbanded in May 1945 when Germany surrendered. [1]
Korvettenkapitän, short: KKpt / in lists: KK, is the lowest senior officer rank in the German Navy / armed forces of Germany (Bundeswehr).
Jost Metzler was a Korvettenkapitän with the Kriegsmarine during World War II, commander of the U-boats U-69 and U-847, and recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross.
Kiel is the capital and most populous city in the northern German state of Schleswig-Holstein, with a population of 249,023 (2016).
