| High Seas Fleet | |
|---|---|
 German battlecruisers steaming to Scapa Flow |
|
| Active | 1914-1918 |
| Country |  German Empire |
| Branch | Kaiserliche Marine |
| Type | Fleet |
| Garrison/HQ | Wilhelmshaven |
| Commanders | |
| Notable commanders |
Friedrich von Ingenohl, Hugo von Pohl, Reinhard Scheer, Franz von Hipper |
The High Seas Fleet (German: Hochseeflotte) was the main battle fleet of the Kaiserliche Marine (Imperial German Navy) during World War I. Scapa Flow ( Old Norse: Skalpaflói) is a body of water in the Orkney Islands, Scotland, United Kingdom, sheltered by the islands Year 1914 ( MCMXIV) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year Year 1918 ( MCMXVIII) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common The German Empire is the name commonly used in English to describe Germany from 1871 to 1918 when it was a semi- Constitutional monarchy: beginning with the Unification The Kaiserliche Marine or Imperial Navy was the German Navy created by the formation of the German Empire. Wilhelmshaven (vɪlhɛlmsˈhaːfən is a town in Lower Saxony, Germany. Gustav Heinrich Ernst Friedrich von Ingenohl ( 30 June, 1857 &ndash 19 December, 1933) was a German Admiral from Hugo von Pohl ( August 25, 1855 &ndash 23 February, 1916) was a German Admiral who during the First World War Reinhard Scheer ( September 30, 1863 &ndash November 26, 1928) was an Admiral in the German Imperial Navy Franz Ritter von Hipper ( September 13, 1863 - May 25, 1932) was a German admiral during the First World War The German language (de ''Deutsch'') is a West Germanic language and one of the world's major languages. The Kaiserliche Marine or Imperial Navy was the German Navy created by the formation of the German Empire. World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All The fleet was based at Wilhelmshaven in the Jade estuary, and commanded by Admirals Friedrich von Ingenohl (1913–1915), Hugo von Pohl (1915–1916), Reinhard Scheer (1916–1918), and Franz von Hipper (1918). Wilhelmshaven (vɪlhɛlmsˈhaːfən is a town in Lower Saxony, Germany. Jadebusen, formerly Jade or Jahde, is a bay on the North Sea coast of Germany. Gustav Heinrich Ernst Friedrich von Ingenohl ( 30 June, 1857 &ndash 19 December, 1933) was a German Admiral from Year 1913 ( MCMXIII) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Year 1915 ( MCMXV) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year Hugo von Pohl ( August 25, 1855 &ndash 23 February, 1916) was a German Admiral who during the First World War Year 1916 ( MCMXVI) was a Leap year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Leap year Reinhard Scheer ( September 30, 1863 &ndash November 26, 1928) was an Admiral in the German Imperial Navy Year 1918 ( MCMXVIII) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Franz Ritter von Hipper ( September 13, 1863 - May 25, 1932) was a German admiral during the First World War It posed such a threat to the Royal Navy's control of the seas around Britain that the British Grand Fleet had to remain concentrated in the North Sea for the duration of the war, even as many urgent tasks in other theatres of war went undone for lack of ships. The Royal Navy of the United Kingdom is the oldest of the British armed services (and is therefore known as the Senior Service) The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland was the formal name of the United Kingdom from 1 January 1801 until 12 April 1927 The Grand Fleet was a Fleet of the British Royal Navy during the First World War. The North Sea is a marginal, Epeiric sea of the Atlantic Ocean on the European Continental shelf.
The High Seas Fleet was outnumbered three to two by the British Grand Fleet; however, during some periods in the first year of the war an equalization of forces in the North Sea was almost achieved not by Germany's will but by the British dispersal of ships to numerous other parts of the world. In the latter part of the war the ratio tipped in the British favour. The German navy was unwilling to risk a head-to-head engagement of fleets, preferring a strategy of raids into the North Sea with the aim of drawing out a section of the British fleet that could be cut off and destroyed. However, the battles at Heligoland Bight (28 August 1914), Dogger Bank (24 January 1915) and Jutland (31 May 1916) were inconclusive and did not change the strategic position. The First Battle of Heligoland Bight was the first Naval battle of the First World War, fought on 28 August 1914 after the British planned to attack Events 475 - The Roman General Orestes forces western Roman Emperor Julius Nepos to flee his Capital Year 1914 ( MCMXIV) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year The Battle of Dogger Bank was a naval battle fought near the Dogger Bank in the North Sea on 24 January 1915, during the First World War Events 41 - Gaius Caesar (Caligula, known for his eccentricity and cruel Despotism, is Assassinated by his disgruntled Year 1915 ( MCMXV) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year fix various bugs per WikipediaHow to fix bunched-up edit links --> Events 1279 BC - Rameses II (The Great (19th dynasty becomes pharaoh of Ancient Egypt. Year 1916 ( MCMXVI) was a Leap year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Leap year
As the British blockade caused increasing economic hardship in Germany, the German Imperial Navy concentrated its resources on unrestricted submarine warfare in an effort to win the First Battle of the Atlantic and strangle the British war effort. A blockade is any effort to prevent supplies Troops information or aid from reaching an opposing force Unrestricted submarine warfare is a type of Naval warfare in which Submarines sink merchant ships without warning as opposed to attacks per prize regulations The First Battle of the Atlantic ( 1914 &ndash 1918) was a naval campaign of World War I, largely fought in the seas around the British Aside from two sorties in August 1916 and April 1918, the High Seas Fleet languished in dock for the remainder of the war.
In October 1918, with the army facing defeat and the civil population starving, Scheer decided to launch a do-or-die attack on the Grand Fleet. Knowing that the attack would be vetoed, he neglected to inform the government of Prince Max von Baden. Prince Maximilian Alexander Friedrich Wilhelm of Baden ( Max von Baden) ( 10 July 1867 6 November 1929) was the cousin and But when orders were given to sail from Wilhelmshaven on 29 October 1918, many sailors either refused to obey them or deserted. The Wilhelmshaven mutiny was a major Mutiny by sailors of the German High Seas Fleet in 29 October 1918. Events 437 - Valentinian III, Western Roman Emperor, marries Licinia Eudoxia, daughter of his cousin Theodosius II Year 1918 ( MCMXVIII) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common The plan was abandoned, but these events led to the Kiel Mutiny, to revolution in Germany, the fall of the Imperial government on 9 November and the Armistice on 11 November 1918. Events 694 - Egica, a king of the Visigoths of Hispania, accuses Jews of aiding Muslims sentencing all The armistice treaty between the Allies and Germany was signed in a railway carriage in Compiègne Forest on November 11, 1918 Events 308 - The Congress of Carnuntum: Attempting to keep peace within the Roman Empire, the leaders of the Tetrarchy declare Year 1918 ( MCMXVIII) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common
Under the terms of the Armistice, the High Seas Fleet went into internment at the Royal Navy's base at Scapa Flow in Orkney. The Royal Navy of the United Kingdom is the oldest of the British armed services (and is therefore known as the Senior Service) Scapa Flow ( Old Norse: Skalpaflói) is a body of water in the Orkney Islands, Scotland, United Kingdom, sheltered by the islands Orkney (also known as the Orkney Islands or incorrectly the Orkneys) is an Archipelago in northern Scotland, situated 10 miles (16 km north In "Operation ZZ" on 21 November 1918, sixty Allied battleships escorted eleven battleships, five battlecruisers, eight cruisers and forty-eight destroyers of the High Seas Fleet into captivity. Events 164 BC - Judas Maccabaeus, son of Mattathias of the Hasmonean family restores the Temple in Jerusalem. Year 1918 ( MCMXVIII) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common On 21 June 1919, Rear Admiral Ludwig von Reuter gave the order to scuttle the ships to prevent their falling into British hands. Events 524 - Godomar, King of the Burgundians defeats the Franks at the Battle of Vézeronce. Year 1919 ( MCMXIX) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Rear admiral is a Naval Commissioned officer rank above that of a Commodore and Captain, and below that of a Vice Admiral. Ludwig von Reuter ( 9 February 1869 - 18 December 1943) was a German Admiral during World War I, who commanded Fifty-three ships sank. Nine German officers and sailors were killed as the British attempted to prevent the sinkings, and were the last casualties of the First World War. The battleship SMS Baden, Germany's last and best battleship built, was successfully beached and extensively analysed. History Baden was one of four planned Bayern battleships the other three were the Bayern, Württemberg and Sachsen.
Swedish historian Alf W Johansson considers the creation of a German High Sea Fleet a prime example of a strategic blunder. Translated from his book Europas krig ("Wars of Europe"):
Admiral von Tirpitz's High Seas Fleet had proven to be a gigantic miscalculation; a product of vanity, conceit, and fuzzy military thinking. Alfred von Tirpitz (March 19 1849 &ndash March 6 1930 was a German Admiral, Secretary of State of the Imperial Naval Office the powerful administrative branch It proved useless as a means of exerting political pressure; instead of forcing Britain closer to Germany it drove them closer to France. This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics. When the war came, it was unfit as a military instrument.
It can be added that the final attempt to use it as a military instrument resulted in the overthrow of the political system that built it.
See also
External links
The Fleet Acts were four separate laws passed by the German Empire, in 1898 1900 1908 and 1912 The origins of World War I included many factors including the conflicts and antagonisms of the four decades leading up to the warDapyx Software network: MP3 Explorer | Ebook Manager | Zenithic