diff --git a/server/regions.test.ts b/server/regions.test.ts
index 0859ed6..05ce09d 100644
--- a/server/regions.test.ts
+++ b/server/regions.test.ts
@@ -1,5 +1,8 @@
-import { afterAll, beforeEach, describe, expect, it } from 'vitest';
+import { afterAll, afterEach, beforeEach, describe, expect, it } from 'vitest';
 import { fileURLToPath } from 'node:url';
+import { copyFileSync, mkdirSync, mkdtempSync, rmSync } from 'node:fs';
+import { tmpdir } from 'node:os';
+import path from 'node:path';
 import {
   allTerritoryKeys,
   expandCountriesToKeys,
@@ -101,3 +104,50 @@ describe('regions (region-key loader, v0.19 #16 P1)', () => {
 
   afterAll(() => resetRegions());
 });
+
+describe('loadRegions resolves the manifest per environment (dev public/ vs prod dist/)', () => {
+  const realRoot = root;
+  // A root that mimics the prod Docker image: no public/, the region files live
+  // in dist/ (where Vite copies public/* at build). This is the exact layout that
+  // broke v0.19.0 in prod (the loader only looked in public/).
+  const base = mkdtempSync(path.join(tmpdir(), 'history-regions-'));
+  const prodRoot = path.join(base, 'prod');
+
+  beforeEach(() => {
+    mkdirSync(path.join(prodRoot, 'dist'), { recursive: true });
+    copyFileSync(
+      path.join(realRoot, 'public', 'region-keys.json'),
+      path.join(prodRoot, 'dist', 'region-keys.json'),
+    );
+    copyFileSync(
+      path.join(realRoot, 'public', 'regions.geo.json'),
+      path.join(prodRoot, 'dist', 'regions.geo.json'),
+    );
+  });
+
+  afterEach(() => resetRegions());
+
+  afterAll(() => {
+    rmSync(base, { recursive: true, force: true });
+  });
+
+  it('loads from dist/ when public/ is absent (the prod container layout)', () => {
+    expect(loadRegions(prodRoot)).toBe(true);
+    expect(hasRegionData()).toBe(true);
+    expect(validKeys().size).toBe(1796);
+    expect(expandCountriesToKeys(['FRA'])).toHaveLength(42);
+  });
+
+  it('still loads from public/ (the dev layout, the first candidate)', () => {
+    expect(loadRegions(realRoot)).toBe(true);
+    expect(validKeys().size).toBe(1796);
+  });
+
+  it('returns false and no data when neither public/ nor dist/ holds the files', () => {
+    const emptyRoot = path.join(base, 'empty');
+    mkdirSync(emptyRoot, { recursive: true });
+    expect(loadRegions(emptyRoot)).toBe(false);
+    expect(hasRegionData()).toBe(false);
+    expect(validKeys().size).toBe(0);
+  });
+});
diff --git a/server/regions.ts b/server/regions.ts
index e5ab90a..9774a5d 100644
--- a/server/regions.ts
+++ b/server/regions.ts
@@ -1,7 +1,9 @@
 // Region-key data access (server). Loads the deterministic region-key manifest
-// (public/region-keys.json: stable feature id -> region key) and the sub-national
-// geo (public/regions.geo.json: feature id -> { name, parent }), then joins them
-// into the lookups the region-level ownership model (v0.19, #16 P1) needs:
+// (region-keys.json: stable feature id -> region key) and the sub-national geo
+// (regions.geo.json: feature id -> { name, parent }) — from public/ in dev (Vite
+// serves it) or dist/ in prod (Vite copies public/* -> dist/ at build, and the
+// Docker image keeps only dist/) — and joins them into the lookups the
+// region-level ownership model (v0.19, #16 P1) needs:
 //
 //   - expand a nation's ISO_A3 country list -> the region keys of all its sub-regions
 //   - build the LLM "regions" reference table (key -> "name (parent ISO_A3)")
@@ -35,18 +37,29 @@ interface RegionData {
 let data: RegionData | null = null;
 
 /**
- * Load (or reload) the region-key manifest + geo from `root`. Idempotent.
- * Returns true when both files loaded cleanly. A missing/broken file clears the
- * data and returns false, so the server still boots and degrades gracefully
- * (expansion becomes a no-op, ownership falls back to the raw input keys).
+ * Load (or reload) the region-key manifest + geo. Idempotent. The two files are
+ * served to the client from `public/` in dev (Vite serves it directly) and from
+ * `dist/` in prod (Vite copies `public/*` → `dist/` at build and the Docker image
+ * keeps only `dist/`), so probe `public/` then `dist/` (plus the root as a last
+ * resort) and use the first directory that holds both files. Returns true when
+ * both loaded cleanly; a missing/broken pair clears the data and returns false
+ * so the server still boots and degrades gracefully (expansion becomes a no-op,
+ * ownership falls back to the raw input keys).
  */
 export function loadRegions(root: string): boolean {
-  const keyPath = path.join(root, 'public', 'region-keys.json');
-  const geoPath = path.join(root, 'public', 'regions.geo.json');
-  if (!existsSync(keyPath) || !existsSync(geoPath)) {
+  const keyFile = 'region-keys.json';
+  const geoFile = 'regions.geo.json';
+  const base = [
+    path.join(root, 'public'), // dev: Vite serves public/ at /
+    path.join(root, 'dist'), // prod: Vite copies public/* -> dist/ (== clientDir)
+    root, // last resort
+  ].find((d) => existsSync(path.join(d, keyFile)) && existsSync(path.join(d, geoFile)));
+  if (!base) {
     data = null;
     return false;
   }
+  const keyPath = path.join(base, keyFile);
+  const geoPath = path.join(base, geoFile);
   try {
     const idToKey = JSON.parse(readFileSync(keyPath, 'utf8')) as Record<string, string>;
     const geo = JSON.parse(readFileSync(geoPath, 'utf8')) as {