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At the end of World War I, the Treaty of Versailles was introduced. Under this Treaty, Germany was only permitted a basic naval force along with other restrictions for the armed forces. The Reichsmarine was formed on 1 January 1921 which replaced the Imperial Kaiserliche Marine. Due to the restrictions of the Treaty and the self destruction of their Naval Fleet, this was a new beginning for the Navy. Following the slow political rise of Adolf Hitler, he rejected the Treaty in early 1935. National conscription was reintroduced and slowly Germany's military might increased. Due to the Allies' own internal affairs at the time, they took no notice to what was happening in Germany. On 21 May 1935 the Reichsmarine name was dropped and the new Kriegsmarine (War Navy) was born.
At the start of the Second World War on 3rd September 1939, the Kriegsmarine was not prepared for War. Grand Admiral Erich Raeder (superseeded in Jan 1943 by Admiral Karl Donitz) knew that the German Navy was not ready for War and would in no way be a match for their Allied counterparts. In part of a plan to rebuild the Navy (Plan 'Z') the Naval Force would be increased and strengthened over a period of ten years reaching full strength in 1948. As was the case throughout, the Kriegsmarine was always at the end of the line when it came to rearming. The Reich would always feel that resupply and technology would be better spent on Land based Campaigns and could not see the importance of a stong and successful Naval Force. Hitler's War machine stretched to the far reaches of Europe, while the Navy struggled for great success in the Sea.
In the early years of the War the U-boats were successful in helping to create a strangle hold on the shipping lanes, which supplied the Allied War effort. The U-boats were one of the most feared and are still one of the most memorable images of the War. Allied propoganda painted the picture of the Ubootwaffe, as cold blooded Nazi hunters of the sea. Unfortunately the U-boat Arm suffered the same prejudice that was generally given to the SS. In reality, only a small percentage of U-boats ever had any success against the enemy. Hollywood has not helped the image of the U-boats and the Men that served on them. The movie U-571 does nothing to help their cause, but alters people's perceptions of what actually happened. In truth, only a handfull of Men that served in the Kriegsmarine supported the National Socialists. The fact is, the Kriegsmarine was Politically neutral. The Navy was exclusive in that it did not have to salute using the raised arm (they used the same salute that is still used today), but this became compulsary after the failed assassination attempt on Hitler in July 1944. The Men of the Kriegsmarine were as much a victim of propaganda as most people in these troubled times.
War at Sea is a totally different War, to that on Land!
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