Admirals of Germany have existed since the founding of German sea forces, first with the Reichsflotte and then most predominantly that of the

Prussian Navy The Prussian Navy (German: ''Preußische Marine''), officially the Royal Prussian Navy (German: ''Königlich Preußische Marine''), was the naval force of the Kingdom of Prussia from 1701 to 1867. The Prussian Navy was created in 1701 from the f ...

. German admirals led the German Navy through

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, as leaders of the

Imperial German Navy The Imperial German Navy or the Imperial Navy () was the navy of the German Empire, which existed between 1871 and 1919. It grew out of the small Prussian Navy (from 1867 the North German Federal Navy), which was mainly for coast defence. Wilhel ...

, as well as through the inter-war years of the

Reichsmarine The ''Reichsmarine'' ( en, Realm Navy) was the name of the German Navy during the Weimar Republic and first two years of Nazi Germany. It was the naval branch of the ''Reichswehr'', existing from 1919 to 1935. In 1935, it became known as the ''K ...

. Flag officers of the Kriegsmarine were the leadership of the Germany Navy during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

under the authority of

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...

. The modern day

Germany Navy The German Navy (, ) is the navy of Germany and part of the unified ''Bundeswehr'' (Federal Defense), the German Armed Forces. The German Navy was originally known as the ''Bundesmarine'' (Federal Navy) from 1956 to 1995, when ''Deutsche Mari ...

exists after the navies of Germany being separated into the West German Navy and the Volksmarine of

East Germany East Germany, officially the German Democratic Republic (GDR; german: Deutsche Demokratische Republik, , DDR, ), was a country that existed from its creation on 7 October 1949 until its dissolution on 3 October 1990. In these years the state ...

Großadmirale

The rank of

Grossadmiral Grand admiral is a historic naval rank, the highest rank in the several European navies that used it. It is best known for its use in Germany as . A comparable rank in modern navies is that of admiral of the fleet. Grand admirals in individual n ...

(Grand admiral) was introduced in 1905 as the naval equivalent to the five-star rank of the Generalfeldmarschall (general field marshal)

OF-10 A five-star rank is the highest military rank in many countries.Oxford English Dictionary (OED), 2nd Edition, 1989. "five" ... "five-star adj., ... (b) U.S., applied to a general or admiral whose badge of rank includes five stars;" The rank is t ...

in ''Heer'' (en: Army). ''Hans von Koester'' was the first German flag officer to hold this rank.

Wilhelm II. , house = Hohenzollern , father = Frederick III, German Emperor , mother = Victoria, Princess Royal , religion = Lutheranism (Prussian United) , signature = Wilhelm II, German Emperor Signature-.svg Wilhelm II (Friedrich Wilhelm Viktor ...

would wear the uniform of a Großadmiral on occasions. Since as Emperor he was Commander-in-Chief of the Navy and thus not subject to promotions.

Generaladmirale

Kriegsmarine Generaladmiral-Flag 1945 v2

Admirale

The rank of admiral was the highest rank until the rank of Großadmiral was introduced in 1905. Prince Adalbert of Prussia was the first and only admiral of the Prussian Navy and later the Navy of the North German Confederation. The rank was not used in the Imperial German Navy until 1892. In the Reichsmarine Admiral was again the highest of three flag officer ranks. With the creation of the Kriegsmarine and the expansion of the fleet a new rank, Generaladmiral, was introduced in 1936, followed by the rank of Großadmiral in 1939. Thus the rank of admiral became the third-lowest, roughly equivalent of a general in the Heer or Luftwaffe. When the Bundeswehr was formed in 1955 Admiral became the highest rank again. The Volksmarine of the National People's Army of the German Democratic Republic used ranks similar to those in the Soviet Navy. While technically there was a rank of Flottenadmiral (Fleet Admiral), Admiral was the highest rank any naval officer achieved.

Vizeadmirale

''Vizeadmiral'' was a flag officer rank introduced in the Prussian Navy in 1858 and used subsequently in all other German navies.

Vizeadmirale (Charakter)

Konteradmirale

Konteradmiral (Rear Admiral) has been a flag officer rank in the naval forces of Germany since 1849.

Konteradmirale (Charakter)

Flottillenadmirale

The rank of Flottillenadmiral (Rear Admiral, lower half) was newly established in 1955 as the naval equivalent to Brigadegeneral. The rank roughly corresponds to the position of Kommodore in earlier German naval forces. {{DEFAULTSORT:Admirals of Germany Lists of German military personnel

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...