The final, desperate three-week act of the Nazi regime in a naval school

Art · Published 3 October 2026 Swipe more like this →

In short: Following Hitler's suicide in 1945, a rump government emerged in Flensburg, Germany. Led by Grand Admiral Karl Dönitz, this administration attempted to navigate a collapsing nation while desperately seeking to split the Allies. It was a bizarre, short-lived final chapter for a regime that had already lost control of its territory.

Formed on May 3, 1945, the Flensburg Government operated from a sports school at the Mürwik Naval Academy. This administration, often called the Dönitz Government, lacked any constitutional legitimacy. While the Weimar Constitution remained technically in force, the cabinet was never elected, and its formation bypassed established legal processes. By the time it began, the regime's effective reach was limited to a narrow corridor of German land, as Allied forces had already severed the country in two.

The cabinet was a collection of holdovers and new appointees, including figures deeply complicit in the regime's atrocities. Herbert Backe, the architect of the 1941 Hunger Plan, remained in his post, while others like Wilhelm Stuckart, a participant in the 1942 Wannsee Conference, were brought in to fill roles. Despite Dönitz's later claims that his government was unpolitical, his selections were heavily influenced by a shared, virulent opposition to Bolshevism. The administration maintained Nazi protocol, including the use of the 'Heil Hitler' greeting, until its final days.

Dönitz’s primary objective was to negotiate partial surrenders with Western Allies while continuing the war against the Soviet Union, hoping to create an anti-Bolshevik front. This strategy failed, as the Allies demanded total capitulation. The government's existence was marked by internal chaos, including the presence of SS leaders who remained loyal to Heinrich Himmler until Dönitz dismissed him on May 6. The administration ceased to function after the May 8 surrender and was formally dissolved on May 23, 1945, when British troops arrested the cabinet members as prisoners of war.

The legacy of this period is also defined by the tragic fate of concentration camp prisoners. Around 10,000 inmates were held on ships in the Bay of Lübeck under SS control. Despite being aware of their presence, the Flensburg government took no action to secure their release. On May 3, 1945, the Royal Air Force mistakenly bombed the flotilla, resulting in the deaths of over 7,000 prisoners, an event the government subsequently avoided acknowledging.

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