First World War German Battle Fleet

Even before there was, a "Germany", there had been support within
the states that would become Germany for building an ocean going
navy. Calls for building a "German" navy had come for all quarters,
many only tangentially related to military planning; for instance, in the
1830s the prominent German economist Friedrich List had argued for a
"German" fleet. Arguments from leading "Germans" such as List
provided further grounds for German nationalists seeking to build a
greater German challenge to the then status quo dominated by the
other great European powers. The domestic clamor for a German fleet
only grew with German unification and Germany's strident emergence
on the global stage as a colonial power late in the nineteenth century.

The combination of nationalism and militarism inherent in the push for
a greater German naval capability quickly found its greatest patron
after the German unification; in the form of one Alfred von Tirpitz
(1849-1930). After joining the Prussian navy in 1865 Tirpitz had
steadily risen through the ranks. By 1897, as the Secretary of State
of the Imperial Navy Department, Tirpitz had gained considerable
access to Kaiser Wilhelm II - access Tirpitz used to launch the
Imperial German Navy on a breathtaking expansion primarily focused
on building a modern and powerful battle fleet. An effort leading to
the 1897 Navy Bill and its elevation of the battle fleet to the
pre-eminent place in German naval policy and as a top instrument of
German foreign policy - a place the battle fleet would occupy in
German maritime strategy for the next half century.

Picture Courtesy of US National Archives, local identifier no.
165-GP-3001