The German Navy: from world power to alliance power

Download
Author
McCarty, Benjamin I.
Date
2013-12Advisor
Abenheim, Donald
Second Reader
Woehlermann, Hans
Metadata
Show full item recordAbstract
This paper is a case study of the German Navy. The analysis centers on the role of naval institutions within state and society, the interplay between naval strategy and statecraft, and the factors affecting civil-military relations. The progression from first a young empire driven by Weltpolitik and navalism, to ultimately a compact and multilaterally focused naval institution operating within alliance collective security systems, demonstrates the limits and potentials of naval strategy under widely disparate statecraft. Unlike the long-established maritime democracies, such as Britain, France, or the United States, Germanys naval experience is rife with discontinuities and in many ways can be viewed as infant in its contemporary form. To the professional naval officer serving in a democracy, the failures and successes of the various iterations of the German Navy provide myriad universal, timeless lessons that can be applied toward the effective conduct of ones duties. More then a handy reference of narrowly focused operational naval tales, this paper offers the aspiring naval officer an understanding of the imponderable aspects of navies: The importance of melding strategic purpose with long range construction planning, the role of tradition in fostering a healthy naval cadre, or the importance of respecting geostrategic and economic realities.
Rights
This publication is a work of the U.S. Government as defined in Title 17, United States Code, Section 101. Copyright protection is not available for this work in the United States.Collections
Related items
Showing items related by title, author, creator and subject.
-
Suspended draft: effects on the composition and quality of the military workforce in the German Armed Forces
Koenigsmark, Stefan (Monterey, California: Naval Postgraduate School, 2016-06);In 2011, the German Armed Forces became an All-Volunteer Force for the first time since 1955. Less than one year after first proposed, the end to mandatory conscription became official, giving insufficient time to consider ... -
The perfect sturm innovation and the origins of Blitzkrieg in World War I
O'Kane, John F. (Monterey California. Naval Postgraduate School, 2006-12);What are the origins of tactical innovation in large, bureaucratic, military systems? This study will provide a detailed analysis of how the German Army in World War One took advantage of innovative tactical methods developed ... -
Re-inventing German security and defense policy: a struggle to be understood
Hill, Kevin L. (Monterey California. Naval Postgraduate School, 2004-06);There has been much speculation and editorializing over the deterioration of trans-Atlantic relations, specifically between the United States and Germany, primarily as a result of the US-led war against Iraq beginning in ...