Dún na nGall “the Fort of the Foreigners”– historically named after Viking invaders, but the word “Foreigners” could have inherited a terrifying modern meaning if the Nazis invaded Donegal during Operation Green in World War II. Please click on the arrows to go through the photographs and the rest of the story Operation Green was the Nazi military operations plan to invade Ireland and Britain in 1940-1941. Three areas in Donegal that were of targeted interest to the Nazis were Bundoran, Ballyshannon and Teelin. However shocking to believe – Hitler had Donegal in his crosshairs. I was aware of the photographs from Operation Green in 2012 after reading a Journal.ie article and was again reminded about them by historian Marc Mc Menamin in 2020. Marc’s books Code Breaker (2018) and Ireland’s Secret War (2022) are recommended reading for anyone wishing to gain insight into Nazi espionage and secret Irish counterespionage in Ireland during WWII. I was sent the booklet “Militärgeographische Angaben über Irland” (“Military Geographical data on Ireland”) that contains hundreds of tourist-like photographs and maps by one of my Irish Studies colleagues from Harvard.placeholder image
Dún na nGall “the Fort of the Foreigners”– historically named after Viking invaders, but the word “Foreigners” could have inherited a terrifying modern meaning if the Nazis invaded Donegal during Operation Green in World War II. Please click on the arrows to go through the photographs and the rest of the story Operation Green was the Nazi military operations plan to invade Ireland and Britain in 1940-1941. Three areas in Donegal that were of targeted interest to the Nazis were Bundoran, Ballyshannon and Teelin. However shocking to believe – Hitler had Donegal in his crosshairs. I was aware of the photographs from Operation Green in 2012 after reading a Journal.ie article and was again reminded about them by historian Marc Mc Menamin in 2020. Marc’s books Code Breaker (2018) and Ireland’s Secret War (2022) are recommended reading for anyone wishing to gain insight into Nazi espionage and secret Irish counterespionage in Ireland during WWII. I was sent the booklet “Militärgeographische Angaben über Irland” (“Military Geographical data on Ireland”) that contains hundreds of tourist-like photographs and maps by one of my Irish Studies colleagues from Harvard.

Dún na Naitsí: Fort of the Nazis - when Hitler had Donegal in his crosshairs

By Éamon Ó Caoineachán
Published 20th Feb 2025, 19:33 GMT

Operation Green was the Nazi military operations plan to invade Ireland and Britain in 1940-1941 - three areas in Donegal that were of targeted interest to the Nazis were Bundoran, Ballyshannon and Teelin

The Teelin photographs are letter labelled and suggest that these sites were considered for the secret U-boat submarine base. The first photograph of Teelin shows a view over the quay and shed.A: The harbour on the entrance to the bayB: Two striking rocks on the east bank of the entranceC: The bay has predominantly steep edges The second photograph shows a view of the 600 m high mountain from the village quay.A: The harbour lies in the estuary bay, which is filled with mudflatsB: The Glen River

5.

The Teelin photographs are letter labelled and suggest that these sites were considered for the secret U-boat submarine base. The first photograph of Teelin shows a view over the quay and shed.A: The harbour on the entrance to the bayB: Two striking rocks on the east bank of the entranceC: The bay has predominantly steep edges The second photograph shows a view of the 600 m high mountain from the village quay.A: The harbour lies in the estuary bay, which is filled with mudflatsB: The Glen River

The Teelin photographs are letter labelled and suggest that these sites were considered for the secret U-boat submarine base. The first photograph of Teelin shows a view over the quay and shed.A: The harbour on the entrance to the bayB: Two striking rocks on the east bank of the entranceC: The bay has predominantly steep edges The second photograph shows a view of the 600 m high mountain from the village quay.A: The harbour lies in the estuary bay, which is filled with mudflatsB: The Glen River

6.

The Teelin photographs are letter labelled and suggest that these sites were considered for the secret U-boat submarine base. The first photograph of Teelin shows a view over the quay and shed.A: The harbour on the entrance to the bayB: Two striking rocks on the east bank of the entranceC: The bay has predominantly steep edges The second photograph shows a view of the 600 m high mountain from the village quay.A: The harbour lies in the estuary bay, which is filled with mudflatsB: The Glen River

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