The North German Federal Navy (''Norddeutsche Bundesmarine'' or ''Marine des Norddeutschen Bundes''), was the Navy of the

North German Confederation The North German Confederation (german: Norddeutscher Bund) was initially a German military alliance established in August 1866 under the leadership of the Kingdom of Prussia, which was transformed in the subsequent year into a confederated st ...

, formed out 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 ...

in 1867. It was eventually succeeded by 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 ...

in 1871. In the war against France, in 1870–1871, the navy encountered enemy forces on a few occasions. These included several minor skirmishes in the

North North is one of the four compass points or cardinal directions. It is the opposite of south and is perpendicular to east and west. ''North'' is a noun, adjective, or adverb indicating Direction (geometry), direction or geography. Etymology T ...

and

Baltic Sea The Baltic Sea is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that is enclosed by Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden and the North and Central European Plain. The sea stretches from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from ...

s between German coastal forces and the French

blockade A blockade is the act of actively preventing a country or region from receiving or sending out food, supplies, weapons, or communications, and sometimes people, by military force. A blockade differs from an embargo or sanction, which are le ...

fleet, along with the Battle of Havana between the

gunboat A gunboat is a naval watercraft designed for the express purpose of carrying one or more guns to bombard coastal targets, as opposed to those military craft designed for naval warfare, or for ferrying troops or supplies. History Pre-steam ...

and the French

aviso An ''aviso'' was originally a kind of dispatch boat or "advice boat", carrying orders before the development of effective remote communication. The term, derived from the Portuguese and Spanish word for "advice", "notice" or "warning", an '' ...

. In general, due to its small size and frequent mechanical problems with most of the

ironclad warship An ironclad is a steam-propelled warship protected by iron or steel armor plates, constructed from 1859 to the early 1890s. The ironclad was developed as a result of the vulnerability of wooden warships to explosive or incendiary shells. T ...

s then in service, the navy did not play a significant role in the war. On the other hand, the French navy found it difficult to employ its far superior fleet for a landing operation at the Prussian coasts, owing to the decisive defeats the French suffered on land.

References

* Naval history of Germany North German Confederation Disbanded navies 1860s in Germany 1870s in Germany 1867 establishments in Germany 1871 disestablishments in Germany Military units and formations established in 1867 Military units and formations disestablished in 1871 {{navy-stub

See also

References