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{{Short description|Naval warfare branch of Germany's armed forces (1935–1945)}}
{{For|the Austro-Hungarian {{lang|de|Kaiserliche und Königliche Kriegsmarine|nocat=y}}|Austro-Hungarian Navy}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2020}}
{{DISPLAYTITLE:{{lang|de|Kriegsmarine|nocat=y}}}}
{{Infobox military unit
| unit_name                     = {{lang|de|Kriegsmarine}}
| native_name                   = 
| image                         = Kriegsmarine insignia casco.svg
| alt                           = 
| caption                       = 
| start_date                    = {{start date and age|21 May 1935}}
| dates                         = 
| disbanded                     = {{end date and age|20 September 1945}}
| country                       = {{flagcountry|Nazi Germany|size=23px}}
| allegiance                    = {{Flagicon image|Standarte Adolf Hitlers.svg|size=23px}} [[Adolf Hitler]]
| branch                        = {{lang|de|[[Wehrmacht]]}}
| type                          = [[Navy]]
| role                          = 
| size                          = 810,000 peak in 1944<ref>{{Cite web | url=http://ww2-weapons.com/wehrmacht/ | title=Wehrmacht > WW2 Weapons| date=28 June 2019}}</ref><br /> 1,500,000 (total 1939–45)
| command_structure             = {{lang|de|[[Wehrmacht]]}}
| garrison                      = 
| garrison_label                = 
| nickname                      = 
| patron                        = 
| motto                         = 
| colors                        = <!-- or | colours = -->
| colors_label                  = <!-- or | colours_label = -->
| march                         = 
| mascot                        = 
| anniversaries                 = 
| equipment                     = 
| equipment_label               = 
| battles                       = {{nowrap|[[Spanish Civil War]] (1936–1939)}}<br />[[World War II]] (1939–1945)
| decorations                   = 
| battle_honours                = 
| battle_honours_label          = 
| flying_hours                  = 
| website                       = <!-- Commanders -->
| current_commander             = 
| commander1                    = ''See list''
| commander1_label              = [[Oberkommando der Marine|OKM]]
| commander2                    = 
| commander2_label              = 
| notable_commanders            = [[Erich Raeder]]<br />[[Karl Dönitz]]
<!-- Insignia -->| identification_symbol         = [[File:War Ensign of Germany (1935-1938).svg|100px|border]]
| identification_symbol_label   = War ensign<br />(1935–1938)
| identification_symbol_2       = [[File:War Ensign of Germany 1938-1945.svg|100px|border]]
| identification_symbol_2_label = War ensign<br />(1938–1945)
| identification_symbol_3       = [[File:Marinefahne links.svg|100px]]
| identification_symbol_3_label = Land flag
}}
The '''{{lang|de|Kriegsmarine}}''' ({{IPA|de|ˈkʁiːksmaˌʁiːnə}}, {{Literal translation|War Navy}}) was the [[navy]] of [[Nazi Germany]] from 1935 to 1945. It superseded the [[Imperial German Navy]] of the [[German Empire]] (1871–1918) and the inter-war {{lang|de|[[Reichsmarine]]}} (1919–1935) of the [[Weimar Republic]]. The {{lang|de|Kriegsmarine}} was one of three official [[military branch|branches]], along with the {{lang|de|[[German Army (Wehrmacht)|Heer]]}} and the {{lang|de|[[Luftwaffe]]}}, of the {{lang|de|[[Wehrmacht]]}}, the German armed forces from 1935 to 1945.

In violation of the [[Treaty of Versailles]], the {{lang|de|Kriegsmarine}} grew rapidly during [[German rearmament|German naval rearmament]] in the 1930s. The 1919 treaty had limited the size of the German navy and prohibited the building of [[submarine]]s.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://net.lib.byu.edu/~rdh7/wwi/versa/versa4.html|title=Peace Treaty of Versailles, Articles 159-213, Military, Naval and Air Clauses|website=net.lib.byu.edu}}</ref>

{{lang|de|Kriegsmarine}} ships were deployed to the waters around Spain during the [[Spanish Civil War]] (1936–1939) under the guise of enforcing [[non-intervention in the Spanish Civil War|non-intervention]], but in reality supporting the [[Francoist Spain|Nationalists]] against the [[Second Spanish Republic|Spanish Republicans]].

In January 1939, [[Plan Z]], a massive shipbuilding programme, was ordered, calling for surface naval parity with the [[United Kingdom|British]] [[Royal Navy]] by 1944. When [[World War II]] broke out in September 1939, Plan Z was shelved in favour of a crash building programme for submarines ([[U-boat]]s) instead of [[capital ship|capital]] surface warships, and land and air forces were given priority of strategic resources.

The Commander-in-Chief of the {{lang|de|Kriegsmarine}} (as for all branches of the armed forces during the period of absolute Nazi power) was [[Adolf Hitler]], who exercised his authority through the {{lang|de|[[Oberkommando der Marine]]}} ('High Command of the Navy').

Among the {{lang|de|Kriegsmarine}}'s most significant ships were its U-boats, most of which were constructed after Plan Z was abandoned at the beginning of World War II. [[Wolfpack (naval tactic)|Wolfpacks]] were rapidly assembled groups of submarines which attacked British convoys during the first half of the [[Battle of the Atlantic]], but this tactic was largely abandoned by [[Black May (1943)|May 1943]], when U-boat losses mounted. Along with the U-boats, surface [[Commerce raiding|commerce raiders]] (including [[Armed merchantman|auxiliary cruisers]]) were used to disrupt Allied shipping in the early years of the war, the most famous of these being the heavy cruisers ''[[German cruiser Admiral Graf Spee|Admiral Graf Spee]]'' and ''[[German cruiser Admiral Scheer|Admiral Scheer]]'' and the battleship ''[[German battleship Bismarck|Bismarck]]''. However, the adoption of [[Escort Group|convoy escorts]], especially in the Atlantic, greatly reduced the effectiveness of surface commerce raiders against convoys.

Following the end of World War II in 1945, the {{lang|de|Kriegsmarine}}'s remaining ships were divided up among the [[Allies of World War II|Allied powers]] and were used for various purposes including [[naval mine#Mine sweeping|minesweeping]]. Some were loaded with superfluous [[chemical weapon]]s and scuttled.<ref>[https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/decaying-weapons-world-war-II-threaten-waters-worldwide-180961046/ Chemical Weapons Dumped in the Ocean After World War II Could Threaten Waters Worldwide] smithsonianmag.com November 11, 2016</ref>
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==History==
===Post–World War I origins===
Under the terms of the 1919 Treaty of Versailles, Germany was only allowed a minimal navy of 15,000 personnel, six capital ships of no more than 10,000 tons, six [[cruiser]]s, twelve [[destroyer]]s, twelve [[torpedo boat]]s, and no submarines or [[aircraft carrier]]s. Military aircraft were also banned, so Germany could have no [[naval aviation]]. Under the treaty Germany could only build new ships to replace old ones. All the ships allowed and personnel were taken over from the ''Kaiserliche Marine'', which was renamed the {{Lang|de|[[Reichsmarine]]}}.

From the outset, Germany worked to circumvent the military restrictions of the Treaty of Versailles. The Germans continued to develop U-boats through a submarine design office in the Netherlands (''[[NV Ingenieurskantoor voor Scheepsbouw]]'') and a torpedo research program in Sweden where the [[G7e torpedo]] was developed.<ref>[http://digitalcommons.georgiasouthern.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1599&context=etd Wolves Without Teeth: The German Torpedo Crisis in World War Two] p. 24</ref>

Even before the [[Adolf Hitler's rise to power|Nazi seizure of power]] on 30 January 1933 the German government decided on 15 November 1932 to launch a prohibited naval re-armament program that included U-boats, airplanes, and an aircraft carrier.

The launching of the first [[Deutschland-class cruiser|pocket battleship]], {{ship|German cruiser|Deutschland||2}} in 1931 (as a replacement for the old [[pre-dreadnought battleship]] {{SMS|Preussen|1903|2}}) was a step in the formation of a modern German fleet. The building of the ''Deutschland'' caused consternation among the French and the British as they had expected that the restrictions of the Treaty of Versailles would limit the replacement of the pre-dreadnought battleships to [[coastal defence ship]]s, suitable only for defensive warfare. By using innovative construction techniques, the Germans had built a heavy ship suitable for offensive warfare on the high seas while still abiding by the letter of the treaty.

===Nazi control===
[[File:Bundesarchiv Bild 146-1980-128-63, Erich Raeder.jpg|thumb|upright|[[Erich Raeder]], commander of the ''Kriegsmarine'' until 1943]]
When the Nazis came to power in 1933, Hitler soon began to more brazenly ignore many of the Treaty restrictions and accelerated German naval rearmament. The [[Anglo-German Naval Agreement]] of 18 June 1935 allowed Germany to build a navy equivalent to 35% of the British surface ship tonnage and 45% of British submarine tonnage; battleships were to be limited to 35,000 tons. That same year the ''Reichsmarine'' was renamed as the ''Kriegsmarine''. In April 1939, as tensions escalated between the United Kingdom and Germany over [[Second Polish Republic|Poland]], Hitler unilaterally rescinded the restrictions of the Anglo-German Naval Agreement.

The building-up of the German fleet in the time period of 1935–1939 was slowed by problems with marshaling enough manpower and material for ship building. This was because of the simultaneous and rapid build-up of the German Army and Air Force which demanded substantial effort and resources. Some projects, like the [[D-class cruiser (Germany)|D-class cruiser]]s and the [[P-class cruiser]]s, had to be cancelled.

===Spanish Civil War===
{{see also|German involvement in the Spanish Civil War#Maritime operations}}
The first military action of the ''Kriegsmarine'' came during the Spanish Civil War (1936–1939). Following the outbreak of hostilities in July 1936 several large warships of the German fleet were sent to the region. The heavy cruisers ''Deutschland'' and {{ship|German cruiser|Admiral Scheer||2}}, and the light cruiser {{ship|German cruiser|Köln||2}} were the first to be sent in July 1936. These large ships were accompanied by the 2nd Torpedo-boat Flotilla. The German presence was used to covertly support [[Francisco Franco|Francisco Franco's]] Nationalists although the immediate involvement of the ''Deutschland'' was humanitarian relief operations and evacuating 9,300 refugees, including 4,550 German citizens. Following the brokering of the [[Non-intervention in the Spanish Civil War|International Non-Intervention Patrol]] to enforce an international arms embargo, the ''Kriegsmarine'' was allotted the patrol area between [[Cabo de Gata]] (Almeria) and [[Oropesa del Mar|Cabo de Oropesa]]. Numerous vessels served as part of these duties including {{ship|German cruiser|Admiral Graf Spee||2}}. On 29 May 1937 the [[Deutschland incident (1937)|''Deutschland'' was attacked]] off [[Ibiza]] by two bombers from the [[Spanish Republican Air Force|Republican Air Force]]. Total casualties from the Republican attack were 31 dead and 110 wounded, 71 seriously, mostly burn victims. In retaliation the ''Admiral Scheer'' [[Bombardment of Almería|shelled Almeria]] on 31 May killing 19–20 civilians, wounding 50 and destroying 35 buildings.<ref>Thomas, Hugh. ''The Spanish Civil War''. Penguin Books. London. 2006. p.665</ref> Following further attacks by Republican submarines against the {{ship|German cruiser|Leipzig||2}} off the port of [[Oran]] between 15 and 18 June 1937 Germany withdrew from the Non-Intervention Patrol.

U-boats also participated in covert action against Republican shipping as part of [[Operation Ursula]]. At least eight U-boats engaged a small number of targets in the area throughout the conflict. (By comparison the Italian ''[[Regia Marina]]'' operated 58 submarines in the area as part of the ''Sottomarini Legionari''.)

===Plan Z===
{{Main|Plan Z}}
The ''Kriegsmarine'' saw as her main tasks the controlling of the [[Baltic Sea]] and winning a war against [[French Third Republic|France]] in connection with the German army, because France was seen as the most likely enemy in the event of war. But in 1938 Hitler wanted to have the possibility of winning a war against Great Britain at sea in the coming years. Therefore, he ordered plans for such a fleet from the ''Kriegsmarine''. From the three proposed plans (X, Y and Z) he approved Plan Z in January 1939. This blueprint for the new German naval construction program envisaged building a navy of approximately 800 ships during the period 1939–1947. Hitler demanded that the program be completed by 1945. The main force of Plan Z were six [[H-class battleship proposals|H-class battleships]]. In the version of Plan Z drawn up in August 1939, the German fleet was planned to consist of the following ships by 1945:
* 4 aircraft carriers
* 10 [[battleship]]s
* 15 armored ships (''[[Deutschland-class cruiser|Panzerschiffe]]'')
* 3 [[battlecruiser]]s
* 5 [[heavy cruiser]]s
* 44 [[light cruiser]]s
* 158 destroyers and torpedo boats
* 249 submarines
* Numerous smaller craft
Personnel strength was planned to rise to over 200,000.

The planned naval program was not very far advanced by the time World War II began. In 1939 two {{sclass2|M|cruiser|1}}s and two H-class battleships were laid down and parts for two further H-class battleships and three {{sclass2|O|battlecruiser|1}}s were in production. The strength of the German fleet at the beginning of the war was not even 20% of Plan Z. On 1 September 1939, the navy still had a total personnel strength of only 78,000, and it was not at all ready for a major role in the war. Because of the long time it would take to get the Plan Z fleet ready for action and shortage in workers and material in wartime, Plan Z was essentially shelved in September 1939 and the resources allocated for its realisation were largely redirected to the construction of U-boats, which would be ready for war against the United Kingdom more quickly.<ref>Siegfried Breyer: ''Der Z-PLAN.'' Podzun-Pallas-Verlag. Wölfersheim-Berstadt 1996. {{ISBN|3-7909-0535-6}}</ref>

===World War II===
{{Main|Baltic Sea Campaigns (1939–1945)|Battle of the Atlantic|Commerce raiding|Merchant raiders|Operation Sea Lion|Battle of the Mediterranean|Black Sea Campaigns (1941–44)}}
[[File:WW2 German Navy U-boat submarines (Kriegsmarine Unterseeboote U-boote) etc wartime contemporary photo U-boat photos. (57).jpg|thumb|U-boat crew ]]
The ''Kriegsmarine'' took part in the [[Battle of Westerplatte]] and the [[Battle of Danzig Bay|Battle of the Danzig Bay]] during the [[invasion of Poland]]. In 1939, major events for the ''Kriegsmarine'' were the sinking of the British aircraft carrier {{HMS|Courageous|50|6}} and the British battleship {{HMS|Royal Oak|08|6}} and the loss of {{lang|de|Admiral Graf Spee}} at the [[Battle of the River Plate]]. Submarine attacks on Britain's vital maritime supply routes ([[Battle of the Atlantic]]) started immediately at the outbreak of war, although they were hampered by the lack of well placed ports from which to operate. Throughout the war the ''Kriegsmarine'' was responsible for [[coastal artillery]] protecting major ports and important coastal areas. It also operated anti-aircraft batteries protecting major ports.<ref name = "Feldgrau38">{{Cite web|url=https://www.feldgrau.com/ww2-german-navy-kriegsmarine-western-front/|title=Organization of the Kriegsmarine in the West 1940-45|date=4 August 2020|website=Feldgrau}}</ref>

In April 1940, the German Navy was heavily involved in the [[Operation Weserübung|invasion of Norway]], where it suffered significant losses, which included the [[heavy cruiser]] {{ship|German cruiser|Blücher||2}} sunk by artillery and torpedoes from Norwegian shore batteries at the [[Oscarsborg Fortress]] in the [[Oslofjord]]. Ten destroyers were lost in the [[Battles of Narvik]] (half of German destroyer strength at the time), and two light cruisers, the ''[[German cruiser Königsberg|Königsberg]]'' which was bombed and sunk by Royal Navy aircraft in Bergen, and the ''[[German cruiser Karlsruhe|Karlsruhe]]'' which was sunk off the coast of Kristiansand by a British submarine. The ''Kriegsmarine'' did in return sink some British warships during this campaign, including the aircraft carrier {{HMS|Glorious}}.

The losses in the [[Norwegian campaign|Norwegian Campaign]] left only a handful of undamaged heavy ships available for the planned, but never executed, invasion of the United Kingdom ([[Operation Sea Lion]]) in the summer of 1940. There were serious doubts that the invasion sea routes could have been protected against British naval interference. The [[Battle of France|Fall of France]] and the conquest of Norway gave German submarines greatly improved access to British shipping routes in the [[Atlantic Ocean|Atlantic]]. At first, British [[convoy]]s lacked escorts that were adequate either in numbers or equipment and, as a result, the submarines had much success for few losses (this period was dubbed the [[First Happy Time]] by the Germans).

[[Fascist Italy (1922–1943)|Italy]] entered the war in June 1940, and the [[Battle of the Mediterranean]] began: from September 1941 to May 1944 some 62 German submarines were transferred there, sneaking past the British naval base at [[Gibraltar]]. The Mediterranean submarines sank 24 major Allied warships (including 12 destroyers, 4 cruisers, 2 aircraft carriers, and 1 battleship) and 94 merchant ships (449,206 tons of shipping). None of the Mediterranean submarines made it back to their home bases, as they were all either sunk in battle or [[Scuttling|scuttled]] by their crews at the end of the war.<ref>[http://uboat.net/ops/med-ove.htm Uboat.net], U-boats in the Mediterranean – Overview</ref>

[[File:Bundesarchiv Bild 101II-M2KBK-245-12, Frankreich, M-Boot im Hafen.jpg|thumb|The crew of a minesweeper in France, 1941]]

In 1941, one of the four modern German battleships, {{ship|German battleship|Bismarck||2}} sank {{HMS|Hood|51|6}} while breaking out into the Atlantic for commerce raiding. The ''Bismarck'' was in turn hunted down by much superior British forces after being crippled by an air-launched torpedo. She was subsequently scuttled after being rendered a burning wreck by two British battleships.

In November 1941 during the Battle of the Mediterranean, German submarine ''[[German submarine U-331|U-331]]'' sank the British battleship ''[[HMS Barham (04)|Barham]]'', which had a magazine explosion and sank in minutes, with the loss of 862, or 2/3 of her crew.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Battleship HMS Barham - Militär Wissen|url=https://www.militaer-wissen.de/battleship-hms-barham/?lang=en|access-date=2021-07-21|language=en-US}}</ref>

During 1941, the ''Kriegsmarine'' and the [[United States Navy]] became ''[[de facto]]'' [[belligerent]]s, although war was not formally declared, leading to the sinking of the {{USS|Reuben James|DD-245|6}}. This course of events were the result of the American decision to support Britain with its [[Lend-Lease]] program and the subsequent decision to escort Lend-Lease convoys with US war ships through the western part of the Atlantic.

The Japanese [[attack on Pearl Harbor]] and the subsequent [[German declaration of war against the United States]] in December 1941 led to another phase of the Battle of the Atlantic. In Operation Drumbeat and subsequent operations until August 1942, a large number of Allied merchant ships were sunk by submarines off the US coast as the Americans had not prepared for submarine warfare, despite clear warnings (this was the so-called [[Second Happy Time]] for the German Navy). The situation became so serious that military leaders feared for the whole Allied strategy. The vast American ship building capabilities and naval forces were however now brought into the war and soon more than offset any losses inflicted by the German submariners. In 1942, the submarine warfare continued on all fronts, and when German forces in the [[Soviet Union]] reached the [[Black Sea]], a few submarines were eventually transferred there.

In February 1942, the three large warships stationed on the Atlantic coast at [[Brest, France|Brest]] were evacuated back to German ports for deployment to Norway. The ships had been repeatedly damaged by air attacks by the [[Royal Air Force|RAF]], the supply ships to support Atlantic sorties had been destroyed by the Royal Navy, and Hitler now felt that Norway was the "zone of destiny" for these ships. The two battleships {{ship|German battleship|Scharnhorst||2}} and {{ship|German battleship|Gneisenau||2}} and the heavy cruiser {{ship|German cruiser|Prinz Eugen||2}} passed through the English Channel ([[Channel Dash]]) on their way to Norway despite British efforts to stop them.<ref>{{cite book| last1 = Garzke| first1 = William H.| last2 = Dulin| first2 = Robert O.| year = 1985| title = Battleships: Axis and Neutral Battleships in World War II| publisher = Naval Institute Press| location = Annapolis| isbn = 978-0-87021-101-0|pages=145–146}}</ref><ref>{{cite book| last1 = Koop| first1 = Gerhard| last2 = Schmolke| first2 = Klaus-Peter| year = 1999| title = Battleships of the Scharnhorst Class| publisher = Naval Institute Press| location = Annapolis| isbn = 978-1-55750-045-8|page=111}}</ref><ref>{{cite book| last = Hellwinkel| first = Lars| year = 2014| title = Hitler's Gateway to the Atlantic: German Naval Bases in France 1940-1945| publisher = Seaforth Publishing| location = Barnsley|edition= Kindle, English Translation| isbn = 978-184832-199-1|page= Kindle location 731 of 4855 }}</ref> Not since the [[Spanish Armada]] in 1588 had any warships in wartime done this. It was a tactical victory for the ''Kriegsmarine'' and a blow to British morale, but the withdrawal removed the possibility of attacking allied convoys in the Atlantic with heavy surface ships.

With the German attack on the Soviet Union in June 1941 Britain started to send [[Arctic convoys of World War II|Arctic convoy]]s with military goods around Norway to support their new ally. In 1942 German forces began heavily attacking these convoys, mostly with bombers and U-boats. The big ships of the ''Kriegsmarine'' in Norway were seldom involved in these attacks, because of the inferiority of German [[radar]] technology,<ref>{{cite web| last =Sieche| first =Erwin| title =German Naval Radar to 1945| publisher =Naval Weapons of the World| date =4 May 2007| url =http://www.navweaps.com/Weapons/WNGER_Radar.htm| access-date = 23 December 2012}}</ref> and because Hitler and the leadership of the ''Kriegsmarine'' feared losses of these precious ships. The most effective of these attacks was the near destruction of [[Convoy PQ 17]] in July 1942. Later in the war German attacks on these convoys were mostly reduced to U-boat activities and the mass of the allied freighters reached their destination in Soviet ports.

The [[Battle of the Barents Sea]] in December 1942 was an attempt by a German naval surface force to attack an Allied Arctic convoy. However, the advantage was not pressed home and they returned to base. There were serious implications: this failure infuriated Hitler, who nearly enforced a decision to scrap the surface fleet. Instead, resources were diverted to new U-boats, and the surface fleet became a lesser threat to the Allies.

[[File:Tirpitz altafjord 2.jpg|thumb|The battleship {{ship|German battleship|Tirpitz||2}} in Norway, 1944]]

After December 1943 when {{lang|de|Scharnhorst}} had been sunk in an attack on an Arctic convoy in the [[Battle of the North Cape|Battle of North Cape]] by {{HMS|Duke of York|17|6}}, most German surface ships in bases at the Atlantic were blockaded in, or close to, their ports as a ''[[fleet in being]]'', for fear of losing them in action and to tie up British naval forces. The largest of these ships, the battleship {{ship|German battleship|Tirpitz||2}}, was stationed in Norway as a threat to Allied shipping and also as a defence against a potential Allied invasion. When she was sunk, after several attempts, by British bombers in November 1944 ([[Operation Catechism]]), several British capital ships could be moved to the Far East.

From late 1944 until the end of the war, the surviving surface fleet of the ''Kriegsmarine'' (heavy cruisers: {{lang|de|Admiral Scheer}}, {{ship|German cruiser|Lützow|1940|2}}, {{ship|German cruiser|Admiral Hipper||2}}, {{lang|de|Prinz Eugen}}, light cruisers: {{ship|German cruiser|Nürnberg||2}}, {{lang|de|Köln}}, {{ship|German cruiser|Emden||2}}) was heavily engaged in providing artillery support to the retreating German land forces along the Baltic coast and in ferrying civilian refugees to the western Baltic Sea parts of Germany ([[Mecklenburg]], [[Schleswig-Holstein]]) in large rescue operations. Large parts of the population of [[Former eastern territories of Germany|eastern Germany]] fled the approaching [[Red Army]] out of fear for Soviet retaliation (mass rapes, killings, and looting by Soviet troops did occur{{Citation needed|reason=This claim needs a reliable source|date=June 2023}}). The ''Kriegsmarine'' evacuated two million civilians and troops in the [[evacuation of East Prussia]] and [[Gdańsk|Danzig]] from January to May 1945. It was during this activity that the catastrophic sinking of several large passenger ships occurred: {{MV|Wilhelm Gustloff||2}} and {{MV|Goya||2}} were sunk by Soviet submarines, while {{SS|Cap Arcona||2}} was sunk by British bombers, each sinking claiming thousands of civilian lives. The ''Kriegsmarine'' also provided important assistance in the evacuation of the fleeing German civilians of [[Pomerania]] and [[Szczecin|Stettin]] in March and April 1945.

A desperate measure of the ''Kriegsmarine'' to fight the superior strength of the Western Allies from 1944 was the formation of the ''[[K-Verband|Kleinkampfverbände]]'' (Small Battle Units). These were special naval units with [[Frogman|frogmen]], manned torpedoes, motorboats laden with explosives and so on. The more effective of these weapons and units were the development and deployment of [[midget submarine]]s like the ''[[Molch]]'' and ''[[Seehund]]''. In the last stage of the war, the ''Kriegsmarine'' also organised a number of divisions of infantry from its personnel.<ref name = "Feldgrau38"/>

Between 1943 and 1945, a group of U-boats known as the [[Monsun Gruppe|''Monsun'' Boats]] (''Monsun Gruppe'') operated in the [[Indian Ocean]] from Japanese bases in the occupied [[Dutch East Indies]] and [[British Malaya|Malaya]]. Allied convoys had not yet been organised in those waters, so initially many ships were sunk. However, this situation was soon remedied.<ref>[http://uboat.net/ops/monsun.htm Uboat.net], U-boat Operations – The Monsun U-boats</ref> During the later war years, the ''Monsun'' Boats were also used as a means of exchanging vital war supplies with Japan.

During 1943 and 1944, due to Allied [[Anti-submarine warfare|anti-submarine tactics]] and better equipment, the U-boat fleet started to suffer heavy losses. The turning point of the Battle of the Atlantic was during [[Black May (1943)|Black May]] in 1943, when the U-boat fleet started suffering heavy losses and the number of Allied ships sunk started to decrease. Radar, longer range air cover, [[sonar]], improved tactics, and new weapons all contributed. German technical developments, such as the [[Submarine snorkel|''Schnorchel'']], attempted to counter these. Near the end of the war a small number of the new ''[[Elektroboot]]'' U-boats (types [[Type XXI submarine|XXI]] and [[Type XXIII submarine|XXIII]]) became operational, the first submarines designed to operate submerged at all times. The ''Elektroboote'' had the potential to negate the Allied technological and tactical advantage, although they were deployed too late to see combat in the war.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=yD3eSRfUIesC&pg=PA39 Submarines: an illustrated history of their impact] Paul E. Fontenoy p.39</ref>

===War crimes===
[[File:Nazi orders against Jews Liepaja 1941 01.jpg|thumb|right|Anti-Jewish measures ordered by the German naval commander in Liepāja, 5 July 1941<ref name = KzV_070541/>]]
{{See also|German occupation of Latvia during World War II|Liepāja massacres}}
Following the capture of [[Liepāja]] in [[Latvia]] by the Germans on 29 June 1941, the town came under the command of the ''Kriegsmarine''. On 1 July 1941, the town commandant ''[[Korvettenkapitän]]'' Stein ordered that ten hostages be shot for every act of sabotage, and further put civilians in the zone of targeting by declaring that Red Army soldiers were hiding among them in civilian attire.

On 5 July 1941 ''Korvettenkapitän'' Brückner, who had taken over from Stein, issued a set of anti-Jewish regulations<ref name = Ezer_209>Ezergailis, ''The Holocaust in Latvia'', at page 209</ref> in the local newspaper, ''[[Kurzemes Vārds]]''.<ref name = KzV_070541>{{in lang|lv}} [http://data.lnb.lv/nba01/KurzemesVards/1941/KurzemesVards1941-004.pdf ''Kurzemes Vārds'', 5 July 1941, page 1, at website of National Library of Latvia.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181030164347/http://data.lnb.lv/nba01/KurzemesVards/1941/KurzemesVards1941-004.pdf |date=30 October 2018 }}</ref> Summarized, the regulations were as follows:<ref name = Ezer_233n26>Ezergailis, ''The Holocaust in Latvia'', at page 233, n.26 and page 287</ref>
* All Jews were to wear the [[Yellow badge|yellow star]] on the front and back of their clothing;
* Shopping hours for Jews were restricted to 10:00&nbsp;a.m. to 12:00 noon. Jews were only allowed out of their residences for these hours and from 3:00&nbsp;p.m. to 5:00&nbsp;p.m.;
* Jews were barred from public events and transportation and were not to walk on the beach;
* Jews were required to leave the pavement if they encountered a German in uniform;
* Jewish shops were required to display the sign "A Jewish-owned business" in the window;
* Jews were to surrender all radios, typewriters, uniforms, arms, and means of transportation

On 16 July 1941, ''[[Fregattenkapitän]]'' Dr. Hans Kawelmacher was appointed the German naval commandant in Liepāja.<ref name = Vestermanis_224>Dribins, Leo, Gūtmanis, Armands, and Vestermanis, Marģers, Latvia's Jewish Community: History, Tragedy, Revival (2001) at page 224</ref> On 22 July, Kawelmacher sent a telegram to the German Navy's Baltic Command in [[Kiel]], which stated that he wanted 100 [[Schutzstaffel|SS]] and fifty ''[[Schutzpolizei (Nazi Germany)|Schutzpolizei]]'' (protective police) men sent to Liepāja for "quick implementation Jewish problem".<ref name = Anders_126>Anders and Dubrovskis, ''Who Died in the Holocaust'', at pages 126 and 127</ref> Kawelmacher hoped to accelerate the killings, complaining: "Here about 8,000 Jews... with present SS-personnel, this would take one year, which is untenable for [the] pacification of Liepāja."<ref>{{Cite web |title=Liepāja |url=https://www.liepajajews.org/LGhetto.pdf |website=Liepāja Jews in WWII}}</ref> Kawelmacher telegram on 27 July 1941 read: "Jewish problem Libau largely solved by execution of about 1,100 male Jews by Riga SS commando on 24 and 25.7."<ref name = Anders_126/>

In September 1939, U-boat commander [[Fritz-Julius Lemp]] of [[German submarine U-30 (1936)|''U-30'']] sank [[SS Athenia (1922)]] after mistaking it for a legitimate military target, resulting in the deaths of 117 civilians. Germany did not admit responsibility for the incident until after the war. Lemp was killed in action in 1941. U-247 was alleged to have shot at sunken ship survivors, but as the vessel was lost at sea with its crew, there was no investigation.

In 1945, U-boat Commander [[Heinz-Wilhelm Eck]] of {{GS|U-852||2}} was tried along with four of his crewmen for shooting at survivors. All were found guilty, with three of them, including Eck, being executed. In 1946, [[Hellmuth von Ruckteschell]] was sentenced to 10 years in prison, reduced to 7 years on appeal, for the illegal sinking of ships and criminal negligence for failing to protect the downed crew of the [[SS Anglo Saxon (1929)|SS Anglo Saxon]]. Ruckteschell died in prison in 1948.

===Post-war division===
After the war, the German surface ships that remained afloat (only the cruisers {{lang|de|Prinz Eugen}} and {{lang|de|Nürnberg}}, and a dozen destroyers were operational) were divided among the victors by the [[Tripartite Naval Commission]]. The US used the heavy cruiser {{lang|de|Prinz Eugen}} in [[nuclear testing at Bikini Atoll]] in 1946 as a target ship for the [[Operation Crossroads]]. Some (like the unfinished aircraft carrier {{ship|German aircraft carrier|Graf Zeppelin||2}}) were used for target practice with conventional weapons, while others (mostly destroyers and torpedo boats) were put into the service of Allied navies that lacked surface ships after the war. The training [[barque]] SSS ''Horst Wessel'' was recommissioned [[USCGC Eagle (WIX-327)|USCGC ''Eagle'']] and remains in active service, assigned to the [[United States Coast Guard Academy]]. The British, French, and Soviet navies received the destroyers, and some torpedo boats went to the Danish and Norwegian navies. For the purpose of mine clearing, the Royal Navy employed German crews and minesweepers from June 1945 to January 1948,<ref>[http://www.janmaat.de/m_gesch0.htm German Mine Sweeping Administration (GMSA)] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080420121039/http://www.janmaat.de/m_gesch0.htm |date=20 April 2008 }} (in German), accessed: 9 June 2008</ref> organised in the [[German Mine Sweeping Administration]] (GMSA), which consisted of 27,000 members of the former ''Kriegsmarine'' and 300 vessels.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=8Uczn3-3F34C&dq=GMSA+mine+sweeping&pg=PA41 Google book review: ''German Seaman 1939–45''] Page: 41, author: Gordon Williamson, John White, publisher: Osprey Publishing, accessed: 9 July 2008</ref>

The destroyers and the Soviet share light cruiser {{lang|de|Nürnberg}} were all retired by the end of the 1950s, but five escort destroyers were returned from the French to the new West German Navy in the 1950s and three 1945 scuttled type XXI and XXIII U-boats were raised by [[West Germany]] and integrated into their new navy. In 1956, with West Germany's accession to [[NATO]], a new navy was established and was referred to as the ''Bundesmarine'' (Federal Navy). Some ''Kriegsmarine'' commanders like [[Erich Topp]] and [[Otto Kretschmer]] went on to serve in the ''Bundesmarine''. In [[East Germany]] the ''[[Volksmarine]]'' (People's Navy) was established in 1956. With the [[German reunification|reunification of Germany]] in 1990, it was decided to use the name ''Deutsche Marine'' ([[German Navy]]).

==Major wartime operations==
* [[Operation Wikinger|''Wikinger'']] ("Viking") (1940) – foray by destroyers into the North Sea
* [[Operation Weserübung|''Weserübung'']] ("Operation [[Weser]]") (1940) – invasion of Denmark and Norway
* [[Operation Juno|''Juno'']] (1940) – operation to disrupt Allied supplies to Norway
* [[Operation Nordseetour|''Nordseetour'']] (1940) – first Atlantic operation of ''Admiral Hipper''
* [[Operation Berlin (Atlantic)|''Berlin'']] (1941) – Atlantic cruise of ''Scharnhorst'' and ''Gneisenau''
* ''[[Operation Rheinübung|Rheinübung]]'' ("[[Rhine]] exercise") (1941) – breakout by ''Bismarck'' and ''Prinz Eugen''
* [[Operation Doppelschlag|''Doppelschlag'']] ("Double blow") (1942) – anti-shipping operation off [[Novaya Zemlya]] by ''Admiral Scheer'' and ''Admiral Hipper''
* [[Operation Sportpalast|''Sportpalast'']] (1942) – aborted operation (including ''Tirpitz'') to attack Arctic convoys
* [[Operation Rösselsprung (1942)|''Rösselsprung'']] ("[[Knight (chess)|Knights]] Move") (1942) – operation (including ''Tirpitz'') to attack Arctic [[convoy PQ 17]]
* [[Operation Wunderland|''Wunderland'']] (1942) – anti-shipping operation in Kara Sea by ''Admiral Scheer''
* ''[[Second Happy Time|Paukenschlag]]'' ("Drumbeat" ("Beat of the Kettle Drum"); "Second Happy Time") (1942) – U-boat campaign off the United States east coast
* [[Operation Neuland|''Neuland'']] ("New Land") (1942) – U-boat campaign in the Caribbean Sea; launched in conjunction with Operation Drumbeat
* [[Operation Regenbogen (Arctic)|''Regenbogen'']] ("Rainbow") (1942) – failed attack on Arctic convoy JW 51B, by ''Admiral Hipper'' and ''Lützow''
* ''[[Channel Dash|Cerberus]]'' (1942) – movement of capital ships from Brest to home ports in Germany (Channel Dash)
* [[Operation Ostfront|''Ostfront'']] ("East front") (1943) – final operation of ''Scharnhorst'', to intercept [[convoy JW 55B]]
* [[Operation Domino|''Domino'']] (1943) – second aborted Arctic sortie by ''Scharnhorst'', ''Prinz Eugen,'' and destroyers
* [[Operation Zitronella|''Zitronella'']] ("Lemon extract") (1943) – raid upon Allied-occupied Spitzbergen (Svalbard)
* [[Operation Hannibal|''Hannibal'']] (1945) – evacuation proceedings from [[Courland]], [[Reichsgau Danzig-West Prussia|Danzig-West Prussia]], and [[East Prussia]]
* [[Operation Deadlight|''Deadlight'']] (1945) – the British Royal Navy's postwar scuttling of ''Kriegsmarine'' U-boats

==Ships==
{{See also|List of Kriegsmarine ships}}
[[File:Bundesarchiv Bild 101II-MW-1956-30, Frankreich, Kanal, R-Boote.jpg|thumb|[[R boat]]s operating near the coast of occupied France, 1941]]
By the start of World War II, much of the ''Kriegsmarine'' were modern ships: fast, well-armed, and well-armoured. This had been achieved by concealment but also by deliberately flouting World War I peace terms and those of various naval treaties. However, the war started with the German Navy still at a distinct disadvantage in terms of sheer size with what were expected to be its primary adversaries – the navies of France and Great Britain. Although a major re-armament of the navy (Plan Z) was planned, and initially begun, the start of the war in 1939 meant that the vast amounts of material required for the project were diverted to other areas. The sheer disparity in size when compared to the other European powers navies prompted Raeder to write of his own navy once the war began "The surface forces can do no more than show that they know how to die gallantly." A number of captured ships from occupied countries were added to the German fleet as the war progressed.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Captured Ships |url=http://www.german-navy.de/kriegsmarine/captured/index.html |website=German Naval History}}</ref> Though six major units of the ''Kriegsmarine'' were sunk during the war (both ''Bismarck''-class battleships and both ''Scharnhorst''-class battleships, as well as two heavy cruisers), there were still many ships afloat (including four heavy cruisers and four light cruisers) as late as March 1945.

Some ship types do not fit clearly into the commonly used ship classifications. Where there is argument, this has been noted.

===Surface ships===
The main [[List of Kriegsmarine ships|combat ships of the ''Kriegsmarine'']] (excluding U-boats):

====Aircraft carriers====
Construction of [[German aircraft carrier Graf Zeppelin|Graf Zeppelin]] was started in 1936 and construction of an [[Graf Zeppelin-class aircraft carrier|unnamed sister ship]] was started two years later in 1938, but neither ship was completed. In 1942 conversion of three German passenger ships ([[German aircraft carrier I (1942)|''Europa'']], [[Jade-class aircraft carrier|''Potsdam'', ''Gneisenau'']]) and two unfinished cruisers, the captured French light cruiser {{ship|French cruiser|De Grasse|C610|2}} and the German heavy cruiser {{ship|German cruiser|Seydlitz||2}}, to auxiliary carriers was begun. In November 1942 the conversion of the passenger ships was stopped because these ships were now seen as too slow for operations with the fleet. But conversion of one of these ships, the ''Potsdam'', to a training carrier was begun instead. In February 1943 all the work on carriers was halted because of the German failure during the Battle of the Barents Sea, which convinced Hitler that large warships were useless.

All engineering of the aircraft carriers like catapults, arresting gears and so on were tested and developed at the ''Erprobungsstelle See [[Travemünde]]'' (Experimental Agency Sea in Travemünde) including the airplanes for the aircraft carriers, the [[Fieseler Fi 167]] ship-borne biplane torpedo and reconnaissance bomber and the naval versions of two key early war ''Luftwaffe'' aircraft: the [[Messerschmitt Bf 109]]T fighter and the [[Junkers Ju 87]]C Stuka dive bomber.

====Battleships====
[[File:Bundesarchiv Bild 146-1984-055-14, Schlachtschiff Bismarck, nach Seegefecht.jpg|thumb|The {{lang|de|Bismarck}} after the [[Battle of the Denmark Strait]]]]
The ''Kriegsmarine'' completed four battleships during its existence. The first pair were the 11-inch gun {{sclass|Scharnhorst|battleship|4}}, consisting of the {{lang|de|Scharnhorst}} and {{lang|de|Gneisenau}}, which participated in the invasion of Norway in 1940, and then in commerce raiding until the ''Gneisenau'' was heavily damaged by a British air raid in 1942 and the ''Scharnhorst'' was sunk in the [[Battle of the North Cape]] in late 1943. The second pair were the 15-inch gun {{sclass|Bismarck|battleship|4}}, consisting of the {{lang|de|Bismarck}} and {{lang|de|Tirpitz}}. The ''Bismarck'' was sunk on her first sortie into the Atlantic in 1941 ([[Operation Rheinübung]]) although she did sink the battlecruiser ''Hood'' and severely damaged the battleship ''Prince of Wales'', while the ''Tirpitz'' was based in Norwegian ports during most of the war as a fleet in being, tying up Allied naval forces, and subject to a number of attacks by British aircraft and submarines. More battleships were planned (the H-class), but construction was abandoned in September 1939.

====Pre-dreadnought battleships====
[[File:Bundesarchiv Bild 101II-MN-1585-09A, Linienschiffe "Schlesien", "Schleswig-Holstein".jpg|thumb|{{lang|de|Schlesien}} (background) and {{lang|de|Schleswig-Holstein}} (right side-foreground) in [[Westerplatte]] following the occupation of the port|alt=Two large ships bristling with guns moored close to shore.]]
The World War I-era [[pre-dreadnought battleship]]s {{SMS|Schlesien||2}} and {{SMS|Schleswig-Holstein||2}} were used mainly as training ships, although they also participated in several military operations, with the latter bearing the distinction of firing the opening shots of World War II. {{SMS|Zähringen||2}} and {{SMS|Hessen||2}} were converted into radio-guided target ships in 1928 and 1930 respectively. {{SMS|Hannover||2}} was decommissioned in 1931 and struck from the naval register in 1936. Plans to convert her into a radio-controlled target ship for aircraft was cancelled because of the outbreak of war in 1939.

====Battlecruisers====
Three O-class battlecruisers were ordered in 1939, but with the start of the war the same year there were not enough resources to build the ships.

====''Panzerschiffe'' and Heavy cruisers====
The [[Deutschland-class cruiser]]s were the {{lang|de|Deutschland}} (renamed ''Lützow''), {{lang|de|Admiral Scheer}}, and {{lang|de|Admiral Graf Spee}}. Modern commentators favour classifying these as "heavy cruisers" and the ''Kriegsmarine'' itself reclassified these ships as such (''Schwere Kreuzer'') in 1940.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://german-navy.de/kriegsmarine/ships/panzerschiffe/deutschland/history.html|title=Deutschland History|website=german-navy.de}}</ref> In German language usage these three ships were designed and built as "armoured ships" (''Panzerschiffe'') – "pocket battleship" is an English label.

The ''Graf Spee'' was scuttled by her own crew in the Battle of the River Plate, in the [[Río de la Plata|Rio de la Plata]] estuary in December 1939. ''Admiral Scheer'' was bombed on 9 April 1945 in port at Kiel and badly damaged, essentially beyond repair, and rolled over at her moorings. After the war that part of the harbor was filled in with rubble and the hulk buried. ''Lützow'' (ex-''Deutschland'') was bombed 16 April 1945 in the Baltic off Swinemünde just west of Stettin, and settled on the shallow bottom. With the Red Army advancing across the Oder, the ship was destroyed in place to prevent the Soviets capturing anything useful. The wreck was dismantled and scrapped in 1948–1949.<ref>E. Gröner, Die Schiffe der deutschen Kriegsmarine. 2nd Edition, Lehmanns, München, 1976. C. Bekker, Verdammte See, Ein Kriegstagebuch der deutschen Marine. Köln, Neumann / Göbel, no date.1976,</ref>

The [[Admiral Hipper-class cruiser]]s in active service were {{lang|de|Admiral Hipper}}, {{lang|de|Blücher}}, and {{lang|de|Prinz Eugen}}. Cruisers {{lang|de|Seydlitz}}, and {{ship|German cruiser|Lützow|1939|2}} were never completed.

====Light cruisers====
[[File:Konigsberg h80970.jpg|thumb|''Königsberg'' visiting Gdynia, Poland]]
The term "[[light cruiser]]" is a shortening of the phrase "light [[Armored cruiser|armoured cruiser]]". Light cruisers were defined under the [[Washington Naval Treaty]] by gun calibre. Light cruiser describes a small ship that was armoured in the same way as an armoured cruiser. In other words, like standard cruisers, light cruisers possessed a protective belt and a protective deck. Prior to this, smaller cruisers tended to be of the [[protected cruiser]] model and possessed only an armoured deck. The Kriegsmarine light cruisers were as follows:
* {{ship|German cruiser|Emden||2}}
* {{ship|German cruiser|Königsberg||2}}
* {{ship|German cruiser|Karlsruhe||2}}
* {{ship|German cruiser|Köln||2}}
* {{ship|German cruiser|Leipzig||2}}
* {{ship|German cruiser|Nürnberg||2}}

Never completed: three M-class cruisers

Never completed: KH-1 and KH-2 (''Kreuzer'' (cruiser) Holland 1 and 2). Captured in the Netherlands 1940. Both being on the stocks and building continued for the ''Kriegsmarine''.

In addition, the former ''Kaiserliche Marine'' light cruiser {{SMS|Niobe||2}} was captured by the Germans on 11 September 1943 after the capitulation of Italy. She was pressed into ''Kriegsmarine'' service for a brief time before being destroyed by British MTBs.

====Auxiliary cruisers====
[[File:Bundesarchiv Bild 146-1985-074-27, Hilfskreuzer Kormoran.jpg|thumb|The auxiliary cruiser ''Kormoran'' meeting a U-boat, 1940]]
During the war, some [[Armed merchantman|merchant ships]] were converted into "auxiliary cruisers" and nine were used as [[Commerce raiding|commerce raiders]] sailing under false flags to avoid detection, and operated in all oceans with considerable effect. The German designation for the ships was '''Handelstörkreuzer''<nowiki/>' thus the HSK serial assigned. Each had as well an administrative label more commonly used, e.g. Schiff 16 = Atlantis, Schiff 41 = Kormoran, etc. The auxiliary cruisers were:
* {{ship|German auxiliary cruiser|Orion||2}} (HSK-1, Schiff 36)
* {{ship|German auxiliary cruiser|Atlantis||2}} (HSK-2, Schiff 16)
* {{ship|German auxiliary cruiser|Widder||2}} (HSK-3, Schiff 21)
* {{ship|German auxiliary cruiser|Thor||2}} (HSK-4, Schiff 10)
* {{ship|German auxiliary cruiser|Pinguin||2}} (HSK-5, Schiff 33)
* {{ship|German auxiliary cruiser|Stier||2}} (HSK-6, Schiff 23)
* {{ship|German auxiliary cruiser|Komet||2}} (HSK-7, Schiff 45)
* {{ship|German auxiliary cruiser|Kormoran||2}} (HSK-8, Schiff 41)
* {{ship|German auxiliary cruiser|Michel||2}} (HSK-9, Schiff 28)
* {{ship|German auxiliary cruiser|Coronel||2}} (HSK number not assigned, Schiff 14, never active in raider operations.)
* {{ship|German auxiliary cruiser|Hansa||2}} (HSK not assigned, Schiff 5, never active in raider operations, used as a training ship)<ref>E. Gröner, Die Schiffe der deutschen Kriegsmarine. 2nd Edition. 1976, München, Lehmanns Verlag.</ref>

====Destroyers====
[[File:Maas-1.jpg|thumb|Destroyer {{ship|German destroyer|Z1 Leberecht Maass||2}}]]
{{Main|German World War II destroyers}}
Although the German World War II destroyer (''Zerstörer'') fleet was modern and the ships were larger than conventional destroyers of other navies, they had problems. Early classes were unstable, wet in heavy weather, suffered from engine problems, and had short range. Some problems were solved with the evolution of later designs, but further developments were curtailed by the war and, ultimately, by Germany's defeat. In the first year of World War II, they were used mainly to sow offensive minefields in shipping lanes close to the British coast.{{Citation needed|date=January 2010}}

====Torpedo boats====
{{Main|German torpedoboats of World War II}}
[[File:Wolf-1.jpg|thumb|''[[German torpedo boats of World War II|Raubtier]]''-class torpedo boats]]
These vessels evolved through the 1930s from small vessels, relying almost entirely on torpedoes, to what were effectively small destroyers with mines, torpedoes, and guns. Two classes of fleet torpedo boats were planned, but not built, in the 1940s.

====E-boats (''Schnellboote'')====
{{Main|E-boat}}
The E-boats were [[fast attack craft]] with [[torpedo tube]]s. Over 200 boats of this type were built for the ''Kriegsmarine''.

====Troop ships====
{{SS|Cap Arcona|1927|2}}, ''Goya'', {{SS|General von Steuben||2}}, {{MV|Monte Rosa||2}}, ''Wilhelm Gustloff''.

====Miscellaneous====
Thousands of smaller warships and auxiliaries served in the ''Kriegsmarine'', including [[minelayer]]s, [[minesweeper]]s, mine transports, netlayers, floating AA and torpedo batteries, command ships, decoy ships (small merchantmen with hidden weaponry), [[gunboat]]s, monitors, escorts, patrol boats, sub-chasers, landing craft, landing support ships, training ships, test ships, torpedo recovery boats, dispatch boats, aviso, fishery protection ships, survey ships, harbor defense boats, target ships and their radio control vessels, motor explosive boats, weather ships, tankers, colliers, tenders, supply ships, tugs, barges, icebreakers, hospital and accommodation ships, floating cranes and docks, and many others. The ''Kriegsmarine'' employed hundreds of auxiliary ''[[Vorpostenboot]]e'' during the war, mostly civilian ships that were drafted and fitted with military equipment, for use in coastal operations.

===Submarines===
{{Main|U-boat}}
[[File:Bundesarchiv Bild 101II-MW-3491-06, St. Nazaire, Uboot U 94, Karl Dönitz.jpg|thumb|Admiral [[Karl Dönitz]] inspecting the [[Saint-Nazaire submarine base]] in France, June 1941]]
The Submarine Arm of the ''Kriegsmarine'' was titled the ''U-bootwaffe'' ("submarine force"). At the outbreak of war, it had a fleet of 57 submarines.<ref>{{cite book
 | last = Ireland
 | first = Bernard
 | author-link = Bernard Ireland
 | title = Battle of the Atlantic
 | publisher = Pen & Sword Books
 | year = 2003
 | location = Barnsley, UK
 | pages = 32
 | isbn = 1-84415-001-1 }}</ref> This was increased steadily until mid-1943, when losses from Allied counter-measures matched the new vessels launched.<ref>{{cite book
 | last = Ireland
 | first = Bernard
 | author-link = Bernard Ireland
 | title = Battle of the Atlantic
 | publisher = Pen & Sword Books
 | year = 2003
 | location = Barnsley, UK
 | pages = 225
 | isbn = 1-84415-001-1 }}</ref>

The principal types were the [[Type IX submarine|Type IX]], a long range type used in the western and southern Atlantic, Indian and Pacific Oceans; the [[Type VII submarine|Type VII]], the most numerous type, used principally in the north Atlantic; and the small [[Type II submarine|Type II]], for coastal waters. [[Type X submarine|Type X]] was a small class of minelayers and [[Type XIV submarine|Type XIV]] was a specialised type used to support distant U-boat operations – the "''Milchkuh''" (Milkcow).

Types XXI and XXIII, the "''Elektroboot''", could have negated much of the Allied anti-submarine tactics and technology, but only a few of this new type of U-boat became ready for combat at the end of the war. Post-war, they became the prototype for modern conventional submarines, such as the Soviet {{sclass2|Zulu|submarine|4}}.

During World War II, about 60% of all U-boats commissioned were lost in action; 28,000 of the 40,000 U-boat crewmen were killed during the war and 8,000 were captured. The remaining U-boats were either surrendered to the Allies or scuttled by their own crews at the end of the war.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://uboat.net/fates/after-dl.htm|title=U-boats after World War Two - Fates - German U-boats of WWII - Kriegsmarine - uboat.net|website=uboat.net|access-date=2018-05-08}}</ref>

{|class="wikitable sortable"
|+Top 10 U-boat aces in World War II
! Name
! Shipping sunk
|-
| [[Otto Kretschmer]] || 274,333 tons (47 ships sunk)
|-
| [[Wolfgang Lüth]] || 225,712 tons (43 ships)
|-
| [[Erich Topp]] || 193,684 tons (34 ships)
|-
| [[Karl-Friedrich Merten]] || 186,064 tons (29 ships)
|-
| [[Viktor Schütze|Victor Schütze]]|| 171,164 tons (34 ships)
|-
| [[Herbert Schultze]] || 171,122 tons (26 ships)
|-
| [[Georg Lassen]] || 167,601 tons (28 ships)
|-
| [[Heinrich Lehmann-Willenbrock]] || 166,596 tons (22 ships)
|-
| [[Heinrich Liebe]] || 162,333 tons (30 ships)
|-
| [[Günther Prien]] || 160,939 tons (28 ships), <br />plus the British battleship {{HMS|Royal Oak|08|6}} inside [[Scapa Flow]]
|}

==Captured ships==
The military campaigns in Europe yielded a large number of captured vessels, many of which were under construction. Nations represented included Austria (riverine craft), Czechoslovakia (riverine craft), Poland, Norway, Denmark, the Netherlands, Belgium, France, Yugoslavia, Greece, the Soviet Union, the United Kingdom, the United States (several landing craft), and Italy (after the armistice). Few of the incomplete ships of destroyer size or above were completed, but many smaller warships and auxiliaries were completed and commissioned into ''Kriegsmarine'' during the war. Additionally many captured or confiscated foreign civilian ships (merchantmen, fishing boats, tugboats etc.) were converted into auxiliary warships or support ships.

==Major enemy warships sunk or destroyed==
The first warship sunk in World War II was the destroyer {{ORP|Wicher|1928|6}}, of the [[Polish Navy]], by Junkers Ju 87 [[dive bomber]]s from the carrier air group of aircraft carrier {{lang|de|Graf Zeppelin}} on 3 September 1939. This carrier air group (Trägergeschwader 186) was part of the ''[[Luftwaffe]]'', but at that time under command of the ''Kriegsmarine''.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://german-navy.de/kriegsmarine/victorys/battleships.html|title=Battleships sunk by the Kriegsmarine|website=german-navy.de}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://german-navy.de/kriegsmarine/victorys/carrier.html|title=Carriers sunk by the Kriegsmarine|website=german-navy.de}}</ref>

{|class="wikitable"
|-
!Ship
!Type
!Date
!Action
|-
| {{HMS|Courageous|50|6}} ([[Royal Navy]])
| Fleet aircraft carrier
| 17 September 1939
| Torpedoed by submarine {{GS|U-29|1936|2}}
|-
| {{HMS|Royal Oak|08|6}} (Royal Navy)
| Battleship
| 14 October 1939
| Torpedoed at anchor by submarine {{GS|U-47|1938|2}}
|-
| {{ship|HNoMS|Eidsvold||6}} ([[Royal Norwegian Navy]])
| [[Coastal defence ship]]
| 9 April 1940
| Torpedoed in Narvik harbor by destroyer {{ship|German destroyer|Z21 Wilhelm Heidkamp||2}}
|-
| {{ship|HNoMS|Norge||6}} ([[Royal Norwegian Navy]])
| Coastal defence ship
| 9 April 1940
| Torpedoed in Narvik harbor by destroyer {{ship|German destroyer|Z11 Bernd von Arnim||2}}
|-
| {{ship|French destroyer|Jaguar||2}} ([[French Navy]])
| Large destroyer
| 23 May 1940
| Torpedoed by torpedo boats (E-boats) ''S21'' and ''S23''
|-
| {{HMS|Glorious}} (Royal Navy)
| Fleet aircraft carrier
| 8 June 1940
| Sunk by battleships {{ship|German battleship|Gneisenau||2}} and {{ship|German battleship|Scharnhorst||2}}
|-
| {{HMS|Hood|51|6}} (Royal Navy)
| Battlecruiser
| 24 May 1941
| Sunk by the battleship {{ship|German battleship|Bismarck||2}}
|-
| {{HMS|Ark Royal|91|6}} (Royal Navy)
| Fleet aircraft carrier
| 14 November 1941
| Torpedoed by submarine {{GS|U-81|1941|2}} on 13 November, sank while under tow to Gibraltar
|-
| {{HMAS|Sydney|D48|6}} ([[Royal Australian Navy]])
| Light cruiser
| 19 November 1941
| Sunk by the auxiliary cruiser {{ship|German auxiliary cruiser|Kormoran||2}}. The [[Sinking of HMAS Sydney|''Kormoran'' was also sunk in the battle]].
|-
| {{HMS|Dunedin}} (Royal Navy)
| Light cruiser
| 24 November 1941
| Torpedoed by submarine {{GS|U-124|1940|2}}
|-
| {{HMS|Barham|04|6}} (Royal Navy)
| Battleship
| 25 November 1941
| Torpedoed by submarine {{GS|U-331||2}}. While the attack on the ship was recorded, the ''Kriegsmarine'' were unaware that it had been sunk until 27 January 1942 when the [[British Admiralty|Admiralty]] admitted ''Barham''{{'s}} loss.
|-
| {{HMS|Galatea|71|6}} (Royal Navy)
| Light cruiser
| 14 December 1941
| Torpedoed by submarine {{GS|U-557||2}}
|-
| {{HMS|Audacity|D10|6}} (Royal Navy)
| Escort carrier
| 21 December 1941
| Torpedoed by submarine {{GS|U-751||2}}
|-
| {{HMS|Naiad|93|6}} (Royal Navy)
| Light cruiser
| 11 March 1942
| Torpedoed by submarine {{GS|U-565||2}}
|-
| {{HMS|Edinburgh|16|6}} (Royal Navy)
| Light cruiser
| 2 May 1942
| Torpedoed by {{GS|U-456||2}} and destroyers {{ship|German destroyer|Z7 Hermann Schoemann||2}}, {{ship|German destroyer|Z24||2}} and {{ship|German destroyer|Z25||2}}, abandoned and scuttled
|-
| {{HMS|Hermione|74|6}} (Royal Navy)
| Light cruiser
| 16 June 1942
| Torpedoed by submarine {{GS|U-205||2}}
|-
| {{HMS|Eagle|1918|6}} (Royal Navy)
| Aircraft carrier
| 11 August 1942
| Torpedoed by submarine {{GS|U-73|1940|2}}
|-
| {{HMS|Avenger|D14|6}} (Royal Navy)
| Escort carrier
| 15 November 1942
| Torpedoed by submarine {{GS|U-155|1941|2}}
|-
| {{HMS|Welshman|M84|6}} (Royal Navy)
| Minelaying cruiser
| 1 February 1943
| Torpedoed by {{GS|U-617||2}}
|-
| {{HMS|Abdiel|M39|6}} (Royal Navy)
| Minelaying cruiser
| 10 September 1943
| Sunk by mines in Taranto harbor while operating as a transport. The mines were laid by torpedo boats (E-boats) ''S54'' and ''S61.''
|-
| {{HMS|Charybdis|88|6}} (Royal Navy)
| Light cruiser
| 23 October 1943
| Torpedoed by torpedo boats {{ship|German torpedo boat|T23||2}} and {{ship|German torpedo boat|T27||2}}
|-
| {{HMS|Penelope|97|6}} (Royal Navy)
| Light cruiser
| 18 February 1944
| Torpedoed by submarine {{GS|U-410||2}}
|-
| {{USS|Block Island|CVE-21|6}} ([[United States Navy|US Navy]])
| Escort carrier
| 29 May 1944
| Torpedoed by submarine {{GS|U-549||2}}
|-
| {{HMS|Scylla|98|6}} (Royal Navy)
| Light cruiser
| 23 June 1944
| Mine hit, declared a constructive total loss
|-
| {{ORP|Dragon}} ([[Polish Navy]])
| Light cruiser
| 7 July 1944
| Torpedoed by a ''[[Neger (torpedo)|Neger]]'' [[manned torpedo]], abandoned and scuttled
|-
| {{HMS|Nabob|D77|6}} (Royal Navy)
| Escort carrier
| 22 August 1944
| Torpedoed by {{GS|U-354||2}}, judged not worth repairing, beached and abandoned
|-
| {{HMS|Thane|D48|6}} (Royal Navy)
| Escort carrier
| 15 January 1945
| Torpedoed by {{GS|U-1172||2}}, declared a constructive total loss
|}

==Organisation==

===Command structure===
{{main|Organization of the Kriegsmarine}}
[[File:Bundesarchiv Bild 183-V00538-3, Karl Dönitz, Adolf Hitler.jpg|thumb|[[Karl Dönitz]] meeting with [[Adolf Hitler]] in 1945]]
Adolf Hitler was the Supreme Commander of all German forces, including the ''Kriegsmarine''. His authority was exercised through the ''[[Oberkommando der Marine]]'' (OKM) with a Commander-in-Chief (''Oberbefehlshaber der Kriegsmarine''), a Chief of Naval General Staff (''Chef des Stabes der Seekriegsleitung''), and a Chief of Naval Operations (''Chef der Operationsabteilung'').<ref>{{cite web | last = Pipes | first = Jason | title = Organization of the Kriegsmarine | work = Feldgrau.com | date = 1996–2006 | url = https://www.feldgrau.com/WW2-German-Navy-Kriegsmarine-Organization/ | access-date = 2007-08-31 }}</ref> The first Commander-in-Chief of the OKM was [[Erich Raeder]] who was the Commander-in-Chief of the ''Reichsmarine'' when it was renamed and reorganised in 1935. Raeder held the post until falling out with Hitler after the German failure in the Battle of the Barents Sea. He was replaced by [[Karl Dönitz]] on 30 January 1943 who held the command until he was appointed [[President of Germany (1919–1945)|President of Germany]] upon Hitler's suicide in April 1945. [[Hans-Georg von Friedeburg]] was then Commander-in-Chief of the OKM for the short period of time until Germany surrendered in May 1945.

Subordinate to these were regional, [[Squadron (naval)|squadron]], and temporary [[flotilla]] commands. Regional commands covered significant naval regions and were themselves sub-divided, as necessary. They were commanded by a ''[[General admiral|Generaladmiral]]'' or an [[Admiral (Germany)|Admiral]]. There was a ''Marineoberkommando'' for the Baltic Fleet, ''Nord'', ''Nordsee'', ''Norwegen'', ''Ost/Ostsee'' (formerly Baltic), ''Süd'', and ''West''. The ''Kriegsmarine'' used a form of encoding called ''[[German Naval Grid System|Gradnetzmeldeverfahren]]'' to denote regions on a map.

Each squadron (organised by type of ship) also had a command structure with its own [[Flag officer|Flag Officer]]. The commands were Battleships, Cruisers, Destroyers, Submarines (''[[Führer der Unterseeboote]]''), Torpedo Boats, Minesweepers, Reconnaissance Forces, Naval Security Forces, Big Guns and Hand Guns, and Midget Weapons.

Major naval operations were commanded by a ''Flottenchef''. The ''Flottenchef'' controlled a flotilla and organized its actions during the operation. The commands were, by their nature, temporary.

The ''Kriegsmarine''{{'s}} ship design bureau, known as the ''Marineamt'', was administered by officers with experience in sea duty but not in ship design, while the [[Naval architecture|naval architects]] who did the actual design work had only a theoretical understanding of design requirements. As a result, the German surface fleet was plagued by design flaws throughout the war.<ref>{{cite web| last =Lienau| first =Peter| title =The Working Environment for German Warship design in WWI and WWII| publisher =Naval Weapons of the World| date =22 October 1999| url =http://www.navweaps.com/index_tech/tech-044.htm| access-date = 23 December 2012}}</ref>

Communication was undertaken using an eight-rotor system of [[Enigma machine|Enigma]] encoding.

===Air units===
The ''Luftwaffe'' had a near-complete monopoly on all German military aviation, including naval aviation, a source of great [[interservice rivalry]] with the ''Kriegsmarine''. Catapult-launched spotter planes like [[Arado Ar 196]] twin-float seaplanes were manned by the so-called ''[[Bordfliegergruppe 196]]'' (shipboard flying group 196).<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.feldgrau.com/ww2-german-bordfliegergruppe-196/|title=Bordfliegergruppe 196|date=4 August 2020|website=Feldgrau}}</ref> ''Trägergeschwader 186'' (Carrier Air [[Wing (military unit)|Wing]] 186) operated two ''Gruppen'' (''Trägergruppe I/186'' and ''Trägergruppe II/186'') equipped with navalized Messerschmitt Bf 109T and Junkers Ju 87C Stuka; these units were intended to serve aboard the aircraft carrier {{lang|de|Graf Zeppelin}} which was never completed, yet provided the ''Kriegsmarine'' with some air-power from bases on land.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.feldgrau.com/ww2-german-trägergruppe-186/|title=Trägergruppe 186|date=4 August 2020|website=Feldgrau}}</ref> Five coastal groups (''Küstenfliegergruppen'') with [[reconnaissance aircraft]], [[torpedo bomber]]s, [[Minesweeper (ship)#Minesweeping aircraft|''Minensuch'' aerial minesweepers]], and [[air-sea rescue]] seaplanes supported the ''Kriegsmarine'', although with lesser resources as the war progressed.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.wlb-stuttgart.de/seekrieg/lw/see.htm|title=Seefliegerverbände 1939-45|website=www.wlb-stuttgart.de}}</ref>

===Coastal artillery, flak and radar units===
The coastal batteries of the ''Kriegsmarine'' were stationed on the German coasts. With the conquering and occupation of other countries coastal artillery was stationed along the coasts of these countries, especially in France and Norway as part of the [[Atlantic Wall]].<ref name="P. Mallmann-Showell p. 75-91">J. P. Mallmann-Showell: ''Das Buch der deutschen Kriegsmarine 1935–1945''. Publisher Motorbuch. Stuttgart 1995 {{ISBN|3-87943-880-3}} p. 75-91</ref> Naval bases were protected by [[anti-aircraft warfare|flak-batteries]] of the ''Kriegsmarine'' against enemy air raids. The ''Kriegsmarine'' also manned the [[Seetakt|''Seetakt'' sea radars]] on the coasts.<ref name="P. Mallmann-Showell p. 75-91"/>

===Marines===
{{Main|Seebataillon}}
At the beginning of World War II, on 1 September 1939, the ''[[Marinestosstruppkompanie|Marine Stoßtrupp Kompanie]]'' (Naval Shock Troop Company) landed in Danzig from the old battleship {{lang|de|Schleswig-Holstein}} for conquering a Polish bastion at Westerplatte. A reinforced [[platoon]] of the ''Marine Stoßtrupp Kompanie'' landed with soldiers of the German Army from destroyers on 9 April 1940 in [[Narvik]]. In June 1940 the ''Marine Stoßtrupp Abteilung'' (Marine Attack Troop Battalion) was flown in from France to the [[Channel Islands]] to occupy this British territory.

In September 1944 amphibious units unsuccessfully tried to capture the strategic island [[Gogland|Suursaari]] in the [[Gulf of Finland]] from Germany's former ally Finland ([[Operation Tanne Ost]]).

With the [[Operation Overlord|invasion of Normandy]] in June 1944 and the Soviet advance from the summer of 1944 the ''Kriegsmarine'' started to form [[regiment]]s and [[Division (military)|division]]s for the battles on land with superfluous personnel. With the loss of naval bases because of the Allied advance more and more navy personnel were available for the ground troops of the ''Kriegsmarine''. About 40 regiments were raised and from January 1945 on six divisions. Half of the regiments were absorbed by the divisions.<ref>Jörg Benz: ''Deutsche Marineinfanterie 1938–1945''. Publisher Husum Druck. Husum 1996. {{ISBN|3880427992}}</ref>

===Personnel strength===
{| class="wikitable"
|-
|+Personnel strength of the ''Kriegsmarine'' 1943<ref name="Gesamt">[http://www.geschichtsthemen.de/dtkriegsmarine09-Tabellen.htm Gesamtstärke der Kriegsmarine am 1. Mai 1943] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190208085803/http://www.geschichtsthemen.de/dtkriegsmarine09-Tabellen.htm |date=8 February 2019 }} 2012-09-27.</ref>
|-
! align="left" | Category
! align="left" | Strength
|-
|Commissioned officers ||22,000
|-
| Officials<br />(''Wehrmachtbeamte'') ||14,000
|-
| Petty officers and seamen ||613,000
|-
|}

===Ranks and uniforms===
{{main|Uniforms and insignia of the Kriegsmarine}}
[[File:Kriegsmarine uniforms and insignia.jpg|thumb|''Kriegsmarine'' uniforms and rank insignia]]
Many different types of uniforms were worn by the ''Kriegsmarine''; here is a list of the main ones:
* ''Dienstanzug'' (Service suit)
* ''Kleiner Dienstanzug'' (Lesser service uniform)
* ''Ausgehanzug'' (Suit for walking out)
* ''Sportanzug'' (Sportswear)
* ''Tropen-und Sommeranzug'' (Tropical and summer suit) – uniforms for hot climates
* ''Große Uniform'' (Parade uniform)
* ''Kleiner Gesellschaftsanzug'' (Small party suit)
* ''Großer Gesellschaftsanzug'' (Full dress uniform)

==See also==
* [[Glossary of German military terms]]
* [[List of Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross recipients of the Kriegsmarine|List of Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross recipients of the ''Kriegsmarine'']]
* [[List of naval ships of Germany]]
* [[List of World War II torpedoes of Germany]]
* [[Rolf Carls]]
* [[Wilhelm Canaris]]

==Notes==
{{Reflist}}

===Bibliography===
* Bird, Keith. ''Weimar, the German Naval Officer Corps, and the Rise of National Socialism.'' Amsterdam: Grüner, 1977.
* Bird, Keith. ''German Naval History: A Guide to the Literature.'' New York: Garland, 1985.
* Bräckow, Werner. ''Die Geschichte des deutschen Marine- Ingenieuroffizierskorps.'' Hamburg: Stalling, 1974.
* Breyer, Siegfried, and Gerhard Koop. ''Die deutsche Kriegsmarine,'' 7 vols., Friedberg: Podzun- Pallas, 1985.
* Dülffer, Jost. ''Weimar, Hitler, und die Marine.'' Düsseldorf: Droste, 1973.
* Dülffer, Jost. "Die Reichs- und Kriegsmarine, 1918-1939." In ''Deutsche Marinegeschichte der Neuzeit,'' 337–488. Munich: Bernard und Graefe, 1977.
* Güth, Rolf. "Bild einer Crew." ''Marine Rundschau'' 61, no. 3 (1964): 131–41.
* Güth, Rolf. "Die Organisation der deutschen Marine in Krieg und Frieden, 1913-1933." In ''Deutsche Marinegeschichte der Neuzeit,'' 263–336. Munich: Bernard und Graefe, 1977.
* Güth, Rolf.  "Die Organisation der Kriegsmarine bis 1939." In ''Wehrmacht und Nationalsozialismus, 1933-1939,'' 401–500. Munich: Bernard und Graefe, 1978. 
* Krüger, Peter. "Die Verhandlungen über die deutsche Kriegs-und Handelsflotte auf der Konferenz von Potsdam 1945." ''Marine Rundschau'' 63, no. 1 (1966): 10–19, 81–94. 
* Lohmann, Walter, and Hans H. Hildebrandt. ''Die deutsche Kriegsmarine, 1939-1945.'' 3 vols. Bad Nauheim: Podzun, 1956.
* Löwke, Udo F. ''Die SPD und die Wehrfrage, 1949-1955.'' Bonn and Bad Godesberg: Neue Gesellschaft, 1976. 
* Peifer, Douglas. ''The Three German Navies:  Dissolution, Transition, and New Beginning.'' Gainesville: University Press of Florida, 2002.
* Rahn, Werner, and Gerhard Schreiber, eds. ''Kriegstagebuch der Seekriegsleitung, 1939-1945.'' 68 vols. Herford: E.S. Mittler, 1988–1997.
*  Rohwer, Jürgen. ''Axis Submarine Successes 1939-1945.'' Annapolis: Naval Institute Press, 1983.
* Rohwer, Jürgen and Gert Hümmelchen. ''Chronology of the War at Sea, 1939-1945.'' Translated by Derek Masters. London: Ian Allan, 1974.
* Roskill, Stephen W. ''The War At Sea, 1939-1945.'' London: HMSO, 1954–61.
* Rössler, Eberhard. ''The U-Boat: The Evolution and Technical History of German Submarines.'' Translated by Harold Erenberg. Annapolis: Naval Institute Press, 1981.
* Salewski, Michael. ''Die deutsche Seekriegsleitung, 1935-1945,'' vol. 2, ''1942-1945.'' Munich: Bernard und Graefe, 1975.
* Tarrant, V. E. ''The Last Year of the Kriegsmarine: May 1944-May 1945.'' Annapolis: Naval Institute Press, 1994.
* Thomas, Charles S. ''The German Navy in the Nazi Era.'' Annapolis: Naval Institute Press, 1990.
* Thompson, Harold Keith, and Henry Strutz. ''Dönitz at Nuremberg: A Reappraisal: War Crimes and the Military Professional.'' New York: Amber, 1976.

==External links==
* [https://www.feldgrau.com/ww2-german-kriegsmarine-navy/ The Nazi German Navy 1935-1945 (Kriegsmarine)]
* {{cite web |url= http://www.uboataces.com/ |title= German U-Boats and Battle of the Atlantic |publisher= uboataces.com |access-date= 2007-01-20}}
* {{cite web |url= http://www.german-navy.de/kriegsmarine/ |title= Kriegsmarine History |publisher= german-navy.de |access-date= 2007-01-20}}
* {{cite web
| url = http://www.uboat.net/
| title = The U-boat War 1939–1945
| last = Helgason
| first = Guðmundur
| website = German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net
| access-date = 2007-01-20}}
* {{cite web |url= http://www.bismarck-class.dk/ |title= Bismarck & Tirpitz |publisher= bismarck-class.dk |access-date= 2007-01-20}}
* {{cite web |url= http://www.deutschland-class.dk/deutschland_luetzow/deutschland_luetzow_operation_hist.html |title= Deutschland in Spanish Civil War |publisher= bismarck-class.dk |access-date= 2007-01-20 |archive-date= 6 February 2007 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20070206061325/http://www.deutschland-class.dk/deutschland_luetzow/deutschland_luetzow_operation_hist.html |url-status= dead }}
* [http://photo-war.com/eng/archives/album2278.htm The photo album of Kriegsmarine minelayer 'Roland' crew member.] Photos of minelayers on combat missions and various ''Kriegsmarine'' vessels.
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{{German Navies}}
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[[Category:Military history of Germany during World War II]]
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