German Imperial Admiralty


The German Imperial Admiralty was an imperial naval authority in the German Empire. By order of Kaiser Wilhelm I the Northern German Federal Navy Department of the North German Confederation, which had been formed from the Prussian Navy Department, became on 1 January 1872 the German Imperial Admiralty. The head of the Admiralty administered the Imperial Navy under the authority of the imperial chancellor and the supreme command of the Emperor. It lasted until 1889, undergoing several reorganizations, but proved an impractical arrangement given the constant growth and the expansion of the Imperial Navy. Finally it was abolished in April 1889 and its duties divided among three new entities: German Imperial Naval High Command, the Imperial Naval Office, and the Imperial Naval Cabinet. The Imperial Naval High Command was, on 14 March 1899, replaced by the German Imperial Admiralty Staff, which simply transferred over most of the personnel of the Admiral Staff detachment of the former Naval High Command.

Heads of the Admiralty (''Chef der Admiralität'')