On 30 April 1945 Adolf Hitler committed suicide. Dönitz succeeded him as head of state and "Führer". Admiral Hans-Georg von Friedeburg succeeded Dönitz as commander-in-chief of the "Kriegsmarine". On 4 May 1945 the German surrender at Lüneburg Heath took place. Dönitz issued an order to all U-boats to cease combat operations and return to port or surrender to Allied naval vessels. The order was obeyed with a handful of notable exceptions—the Actions of 5–6 May 1945, and Actions of 7–8 May 1945 occurred after the surrender. The surrendered U-boats numbered into the hundreds and were destroyed in the postwar Operation Deadlight. The U-boat war finally came to an end on 8 May 1945, the date of the German Instrument of Surrender.