Kriegsmarine was the official name of the German Navy during the Nazi era, operating from 1935 to 1945 as one of the three main branches of the Wehrmacht alongside the Heer and Luftwaffe. Constrained by the Anglo-German Naval Agreement and vastly outnumbered by Britain’s Royal Navy, the Kriegsmarine could not build a balanced surface fleet capable of traditional fleet engagements. Instead, under Grand Admiral Erich Raeder and later Grand Admiral Karl Dönitz, its strategic focus shifted toward commerce raiding (Handelskrieg) to sever Allied maritime supply lines. While impressive surface units like the battleships Bismarck and Tirpitz, the pocket battleships Lützow (formerly Deutschland) and Admiral Graf Spee, and heavy cruisers like Prinz Eugen achieved notable individual successes and tied down significant Allied naval assets, the true backbone of German naval strategy became the Submarine Arm (U-Boot-Waffe). Operating in coordinated “wolfpacks” (Rudeltaktik), German U-boats waged the grueling Battle of the Atlantic, sinking millions of tons of Allied merchant shipping before advanced Allied radar, sonar, long-range air patrols, and Enigma codebreaking turned the tide in 1943. Beyond oceanic surface ships and U-boats, the Kriegsmarine also operated extensive coastal forces—including fast attack E-boats (Schnellboote), minesweepers, and coastal artillery units—until its remaining vessels were captured or split among the victorious Allied powers at the end of World War II.
