The Imperial Navy achieved some important operational feats. At the Battle of Coronel, it inflicted the first major defeat on the Royal Navy in … See more

In June 1888 Wilhelm II became Emperor after the death of his father Frederick III, who ruled for only 99 days. He started his reign with the intention of doing for the navy what his … See more

On 3 December 1906 the Royal Navy received a new battleship, HMS Dreadnought. She became famous as the first of a new concept in battleship design, using all big gun, single size of calibre armament. She used turbine propulsion for greater speed and … See more

Spending on the navy increased inexorably year by year. In 1909 Chancellor Bernhard von Bülow and Treasury Secretary … See more

The unification of Germany under Prussian leadership was the defining point for the creation of the Imperial Navy in 1871. The newly … See more

On 18 June 1897 Rear-Admiral Alfred von Tirpitz was appointed State Secretary of the Navy, where he remained for nineteen years. Tirpitz advocated the cause of an expanded navy … See more

German expenditure on ships was steadily rising. In 1907, 290 million marks was spent on the fleet, rising to 347 million marks or 24 percent of the national budget in 1908, with a … See more