Kaiserliche Marine
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Kaiserliche Marine or Imperial Navy was the German Navy created by the formation of the German Empire. It existed between 1871 and 1919, growing out of the Prussian Navy and Norddeutsche Bundesmarine. Kaiser Wilhelm II greatly expanded the Navy, causing a naval arms race between Germany and the British Empire. The navy was largely destroyed at Scapa Flow in 1919 by its own officers after the loss of the land war on the Western Front of World War I.
Capital ships of the Kaiserliche Marine were designated SMS, for Seiner Majestät Schiff (His Majesty's Ship).
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[edit] Achievements
The Kaiserliche Marine achieved some important operational feats. It inflicted the first major naval defeat on the Royal Navy in over 100 years at the Battle of Coronel. It also emerged from the fleet action of the Battle of Jutland having destroyed more ships than it lost. It is a common misconception that the High Seas Fleet never again came out from port after Jutland. In fact it performed several sweeps and actions, although the Germans never planned, either before or after Jutland, on confronting the whole Grand Fleet.
It was the first navy to successfully operate submarines on a large scale at war (375 submarines had been commissioned by the end), and also operated zeppelins. It was never able to match the numbers of the Royal Navy, but it did have better shells and propellant for much of WWI, meaning that it never lost a ship to a catastrophic magazine explosion from an above-water attack (the old Pre-dreadnought Pommern sank rapidly at Jutland after a magazine explosion caused by underwater attack).
[edit] History
[edit] 1871 to 1890
The imperial admiralty was formed on 1 February 1872, its first chief being General der Infanterie Albrecht von Stosch. The Emperor held the supreme command. Kiel at the Baltic Sea and Wilhelmshaven at the North Sea served as primary naval bases.
Initially the main tasks of the new Imperial Navy were coastal protection and the protection of German maritime trade routes. This soon involved the setting up of some overseas supply stations, and in the 1880s the Imperial Navy played a part in helping to secure the establishment of German colonies and protectorates in Africa, Asia and Oceania.
[edit] 1890 to 1914
With the support of Wilhelm II, in 1897, the new Minister of the navy, Admiral Alfred von Tirpitz began the building of a large modern navy consisting of both battleships and submarines. He later became the commander of the Navy. The main fighting forces of the navy were to become the High Seas Fleet, and the U-boat fleet.
[edit] World War I
Notable battles fought by the Navy were:
- Battle of Heligoland Bight (Rear Admiral Leberecht Maass)
- Battle of Coronel (Vice Admiral Maximilian von Spee)
- Battle of the Falkland Islands (Vice Admiral Maximilian von Spee)
- Battle of Dogger Bank (Vice Admiral Franz Hipper)
- Battle of Jutland (Vice Admiral Reinhard Scheer; Vice Admiral Franz Hipper)
- First Battle of the Atlantic - U-boat warfare
Minor engagements included the commerce raiding carried out by the SMS Emden, SMS Königsberg, and the sailing ship and commerce raider SMS Seeadler.
After the end of WWI, the bulk of the Navy's modern ships (74 in all) were interned at Scapa Flow where the entire fleet (with a few exceptions) was scuttled by its crews on 21 June 1919 on orders from its commander, Rear Admiral Ludwig von Reuter.
