The Kriegsmarine, officially established in 1935 as the naval branch of the Wehrmacht following the renunciation of the Treaty of Versailles, served as Nazi Germany's primary maritime force until its dissolution in 1945. Under the command of Großadmiral Erich Raeder and later Karl Dönitz, it rapidly expanded from a modest fleet inherited from the Reichsmarine into a formidable navy focused on surface raiders and submarine warfare. Iconic capital ships such as the battleships Bismarck and Tirpitz, the pocket battleship Admiral Graf Spee, and the battlecruisers Scharnhorst and Gneisenau conducted high-profile operations, while the U-Bootwaffe waged a devastating but ultimately unsuccessful campaign in the Battle of the Atlantic against Allied convoys. Despite notable early successes like the sinking of HMS Hood, the Kriegsmarine faced overwhelming numerical superiority from the Royal Navy and United States Navy, compounded by fuel shortages and Allied air power. Its personnel earned distinctions such as the U-Boot-Kriegsabzeichen and the Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes for extraordinary bravery, yet by 1945 the force had been largely neutralized, with surviving elements surrendering at the end of the war in Europe.
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EICHENLAUBTRÄGER
Korvettenkapitän Günther Prien (1908-1941), one of the most celebrated commanders of the Kriegsmarine’s U-Bootwaffe, gained legendary status during the early years of World War II as the captain of U-47. On the night of 14 October 1939, Prien executed a daring penetration of the heavily defended British naval base at Scapa Flow, where he torpedoed and sank the battleship HMS Royal Oak, resulting in the loss of over 800 British sailors. This bold operation made him an instant hero in Germany and earned him the Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes on 18 October 1939, making him the first U-boat commander to receive the prestigious award, which was personally presented by Adolf Hitler. Prien continued his successful career in the Atlantic, sinking numerous Allied ships, and on 20 October 1940 he was further honored with the Eichenlaub (Oak Leaves) to his Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes for his outstanding achievements and a total tonnage exceeding 200,000 tons sunk. His career ended tragically when U-47 was lost with all hands on 7 March 1941, likely sunk by British escorts in the North Atlantic.
Source :
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kriegsmarine
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