Under the Nazi Occupation of France, La Pallice was used as a U-boat base () from October 1941 when the 3rd U-boat Flotilla was moved there from its base in Kiel. La Pallice was subject to the allied siege of La Rochelle in 1944–45, which ended with the capitulation of Germany. The large submarine base built at that time still stands largely is not in use. It was used as a backdrop for the film Das Boot (1981) and Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981).
