The Oberkommando der Marine (OKM) was Nazi Germany

Nazi Germany

Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...

's Naval High Command and the highest administrative and command authority of the Kriegsmarine

Kriegsmarine

The Kriegsmarine was the name of the German Navy during the Nazi regime . It superseded the Kaiserliche Marine of World War I and the post-war Reichsmarine. The Kriegsmarine was one of three official branches of the Wehrmacht, the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany.The Kriegsmarine grew rapidly...

. It was officially formed from the Marineleitung ("Naval Command") of the Reichswehr

Reichswehr

The Reichswehr formed the military organisation of Germany from 1919 until 1935, when it was renamed the Wehrmacht ....

on 11 January 1936. In 1937 it was combined with the newly formed Seekriegsleitung

Seekriegsleitung

The Seekriegsleitung or SKL was the high command of the Kaiserliche Marine and the Kriegsmarine of Germany during the World Wars.It led planning and execution of naval combat and directed the distribution of naval forces...

(SKL). There were two major re-organisations, in November 1939 and May 1944.

The Commanders-in-Chief (Oberbefehlshaber der Marine, or OBdM for short) of the Kriegsmarine were:

• Grossadmiral Erich Raeder
  Erich Raeder
  Erich Johann Albert Raeder was a naval leader in Germany before and during World War II. Raeder attained the highest possible naval rank—that of Großadmiral — in 1939, becoming the first person to hold that rank since Alfred von Tirpitz...
  
   (1 June 1935–30 January 1943) (previously Commander-in-Chief of the Reichsmarine
  Reichsmarine
  The Reichsmarine 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 1918 to 1935...
  
  from October 1928)
• Grossadmiral Karl Dönitz
  Karl Dönitz
  Karl Dönitz was a German naval commander during World War II. He started his career in the German Navy during World War I. In 1918, while he was in command of , the submarine was sunk by British forces and Dönitz was taken prisoner...
  
   (30 January 1943–1 May 1945)
• Generaladmiral Hans-Georg von Friedeburg
  Hans-Georg von Friedeburg
  Hans-Georg von Friedeburg was the deputy commander of the U-Boat Forces of Nazi Germany and the last Commanding Admiral of the Kriegsmarine....
  
   (1–23 May 1945)
• Generaladmiral Walter Warzecha
  Walter Warzecha
  Walter Wilhelm Julius Warzecha was a German naval commander and high-ranking officer of the Kriegsmarine. Serving in the rank of General Admiral he succeeded General Admiral Hans-Georg von Friedeburg as the last Oberbefehlshaber der Kriegsmarine after the end of World War II.-Biography:Walter...
  
   (23 May–22 June 1945)

Organisation

The OKM was broadly divided into six sections:

• At the top was the Oberbefehlshaber der Marine (OBdM) - the Commander-in-Chief and his staff, with responsibility for liaison with the OKW
  Oberkommando der Wehrmacht
  The Oberkommando der Wehrmacht was part of the command structure of the armed forces of Nazi Germany during World War II.- Genesis :...
  
  , and including planning, technical, engineering, medical, economic, research, propaganda and personnel departments.

• The Seekriegsleitung
  Seekriegsleitung
  The Seekriegsleitung or SKL was the high command of the Kaiserliche Marine and the Kriegsmarine of Germany during the World Wars.It led planning and execution of naval combat and directed the distribution of naval forces...
  
  (SKL) ("Naval Warfare Command") was formed on 1 April 1937. Originally closely linked with both the OBdM and the Marinekommandoamt, with the Commander-in-Chief (OBdM) also the Chief of the SKL, and the Chief of the Marinekommandoamt doubling as the SKL Chief of Staff. From 23 August 1939 the offices were split and the Marinekommandoamt became subordinate to the SKL with its own Chief and staff. The SKL led the planning and execution of naval warfare and directed the distribution of naval forces, though during the war its authority was limited to non-domestic sea-areas, and in February 1943 when Dönitz was appointed OBdM it also lost control over U-boat operations. In 1 May 1944 the Chief of Staff of the SKL was re-designated the Chef der Seekriegsleitung. The office was then tasked with the command of fleet units operating as transports, blockade runners, auxiliary cruisers and supply shipping.

• The Marinekommandoamt ("Naval Command Department") was formed on 11 January 1936 with the formation of the OKM, but had previously existed in the Marineleitung since 1920. Subordinate to the Oberbefehshaber der Marine, from April 1937 the Chef des Marinekommandoamt also served as the Chief of Staff of the SKL. In mid-1939 the two offices were split and the Marinekommandoamt received a new Chief who was subordinate to the Chief of Staff of the SKL. From 1942 the office was also known as the Quartiermeisteramt and from 20 April 1943 the Chief was re-titled Admiralquartiermeister
  Quartermaster general
  A Quartermaster general is the staff officer in charge of supplies for a whole army.- The United Kingdom :In the United Kingdom, the Quartermaster-General to the Forces is one of the most senior generals in the British Army...
  
  . On 1 May 1944 the office was officially re-designated the Quartiermeisteramt. As well as naval operations the Marinekommandoamt had responsibilities in manning, supply, intelligence, training, and in coastal and air defence.

• The Marinewaffenamt ("Naval Weapons Department") was formed in 1934, and was renamed the Marinewaffenhauptamt ("Naval Weapons Head Department") in 1939, and to Kriegsmarine-Rüstung ("Navy Armaments") in 1944, and oversaw the development, testing and production of naval weapons of all kinds, as well as electronic counter-measures and radio communications.

• The Allgemeine Marineamt ("General Navy Department") founded in January 1936, renamed Allgemeine Marinehauptamt ("General Navy Head Department") in November 1939, and again to Kriegsmarine-Wehr ("Navy Defense") in 1944, was concerned mainly with administrative matters; it included legal, medical, economic, construction and export departments.

• The Konstruktionamt ("Construction Department"), formed in 1936, was renamed Amt Kriegsschiffbau ("Department of Warship Construction") in 1939, and later the same year to Hauptamt Kriegsschiffbau ("Head Department of Warship Construction"), before reverting back to its previous designation in 1944. As its name suggests this department dealt with the construction of new vessels for the navy, dealing with the design and engineering of ships and U-boats, working with suppliers and shipyards, and liaising with the Ministry of Armaments and War Production.

Flags of the Commander-in-Chief

On 7 November 1935 a decree was issued by Werner von Blomberg

Werner von Blomberg

Werner Eduard Fritz von Blomberg was a German Generalfeldmarschall, Minister of War and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces until January 1938.-Early life:...

, the Reichskriegsminister

Ministry of the Reichswehr

In the history of Germany, the Ministry of the Reichswehr was the defence ministry of the Weimar Republic and the early Third Reich. The 1919 Weimar Constitution provided for a unified, national ministry of defence to coordinate the new Reichswehr, and that ministry was set up in October 1919,...

and Commander-in-Chief of the German Armed Forces

Wehrmacht

The Wehrmacht – from , to defend and , the might/power) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the Heer , the Kriegsmarine and the Luftwaffe .-Origin and use of the term:...

 ordering the introduction of a new pattern of flag for use by the Commander-in-Chief of the Kriegsmarine. The flag consisted of a white square on which was displayed a large black Iron Cross

Iron Cross

The Iron Cross is a cross symbol typically in black with a white or silver outline that originated after 1219 when the Kingdom of Jerusalem granted the Teutonic Order the right to combine the Teutonic Black Cross placed above a silver Cross of Jerusalem....

. Placed behind it were two straight bladed unsheathed swords in bright yellow, crossed at right angles to each other. The flag was modified when on 1 April 1939 Erich Raeder

Erich Raeder

Erich Johann Albert Raeder was a naval leader in Germany before and during World War II. Raeder attained the highest possible naval rank—that of Großadmiral — in 1939, becoming the first person to hold that rank since Alfred von Tirpitz...

 rose to the rank of Großadmiral. The flag continued to be in use when Karl Dönitz

Karl Dönitz

Karl Dönitz was a German naval commander during World War II. He started his career in the German Navy during World War I. In 1918, while he was in command of , the submarine was sunk by British forces and Dönitz was taken prisoner...

 came into this position on 30 January 1943. The swords were replaced by a pair of Admiral's batons crossed at right angles. Superimposed over both the crossed batons and the Iron Cross was a Wehrmachtsadler ("Armed Forces Eagle") in gold, facing towards the hoist

Flag terminology

Flag terminology is a jargon used in vexillology, the study of flags, to describe precisely the parts, patterns, and other attributes of flags and their display.-Description of standard flag parts and terms:...

. On 30 January 1943 a further special flag was introduced for Großadmiral Raeder in order to represent his position as Admiralinspekteur of the Kriegsmarine. It was in the same design as for the Commander-in-Chief of the Navy, but with the addition of a wide light blue border.