German Imperial Admiralty Staff
Agency overview | |
---|---|
Formed | 14 March 1899 |
Preceding agency | |
Dissolved | 15 September 1919 |
Superseding agency | |
Jurisdiction | German Empire |
Headquarters | Bendlerblock, Berlin |
Agency executive |
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The German Imperial Admiralty Staff (
The Admiralty Staff had, in principle, overall operational authority over the navy during wartime. In practice this was diluted by the ability of subordinate station commands (such as the High Seas Fleet[1]) to execute control over their own ships, and the ability of the Kaiser to override their directives.[2]
History
After the
In the course of the Anglo-German naval arms race, the Reichstag parliament in 1898 passed a new Naval Law, according to which the High Command was, on 14 March 1899, replaced by the Admiralty Staff responsible for planning, officer training, and naval intelligence. In time of war the Admiralty Staff was to assume overall command of the Imperial Navy, although in peacetime it acted only in an advisory capacity. Direct control of the various elements of the fleet was subordinated to officers commanding those elements, accountable to the Kaiser.[3]
This reorganization suited Wilhelm II, who wanted to maintain direct control of his ships. A disadvantage was that it split apart the integrated military command structure, which before had balanced the importance of the navy within overall defense considerations. It also suited Tirpitz, because it removed the influence of the admiralty staff from naval planning, but it left him the possibility, in wartime, to reorganise command around himself. Wilhelm II, however, never agreed to relinquish direct control of his fleet.[4]
During WWI, under the successive control of Admirals Hugo von Pohl, Gustav Bachmann and Henning von Holtzendorff, the Admiralty Staff closely directed German efforts at submarine commerce raiding, pushing strongly and repeatedly for unrestricted submarine warfare. The decisions made by the Admiralty Staff in the conduct of the campaign, which was a major factor leading to the American entry into World War I, has been strongly criticized by postwar German authors.[5] The Admiralty Staff would eventually be reorganized under Reinhard Scheer with the creation of a single supreme naval command in August 1918, shortly before the end of the war.[6]
Chiefs of the Admiralty Staff
(Chefs des Admiralstabs der Kaiserlichen Marine)
No. | Portrait | Chief of the Admiralty Staff | Took office | Left office | Time in office |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Felix von Bendemann (1848–1915) | Admiral14 Mar 1899 | 31 Dec 1899 | 292 days | |
2 | Otto von Diederichs (1843–1918) | Vice-Admiral1 Jan 1900 | 19 Aug 1902 | 2 years, 230 days | |
3 | Wilhelm Büchsel (1848–1920) | Vice-Admiral20 Aug 1902 | 28 Jan 1908 | 5 years, 161 days | |
3 | Friedrich Graf von Baudissin (1852–1921) | Admiral29 Jan 1908 | 5 Sep 1909 | 1 year, 219 days | |
4 | Max von Fischel (1850–1929) | Admiral6 Sep 1909 | 11 Mar 1911 | 1 year, 187 days | |
5 | August von Heeringen (1855–1927) | Vice-Admiral12 Mar 1911 | 31 Mar 1913 | 2 years, 19 days | |
6 | Hugo von Pohl (1855–1916) | Admiral1 Apr 1913 | 1 Feb 1915 | 1 year, 306 days | |
7 | Gustav Bachmann (1860–1943) | Admiral2 Feb 1915 | 3 Sep 1915 | 213 days | |
7 | Henning von Holtzendorff (1853–1919) | Grand Admiral4 Sep 1915 | 10 Aug 1918 | 2 years, 340 days | |
8 | Reinhard Scheer (1863–1928) | Admiral11 Aug 1918 | 14 Nov 1918 | 95 days |
References
- Holger H. Herwig (1980). 'Luxury Fleet', The Imperial German Navy 1888-1918. London: The Ashfield Press. ISBN 0-948660-03-1.
- Lundeberg, Philip K. (1963). "The German Naval Critique of the U-Boat Campaign, 1915-1918". Military Affairs. 27 (3): 105-118.