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59-531: Carl Friedrich Heinrich Reinhard Scheer (30 September 1863 – 26 November 1928) was an Admiral in the Imperial German Navy ( Kaiserliche Marine ). Scheer joined the navy in 1879 as an officer cadet and progressed through the ranks, commanding cruisers and battleships , as well as senior staff positions on land. At the outbreak of World War I , Scheer was the commander of the II Battle Squadron of

118-494: A bombardment by the I Scouting Group battlecruisers under the command of Vice Admiral Franz von Hipper . Scheer planned the operation for 17 May, but damage to the battlecruiser SMS  Seydlitz from the previous month, coupled with condenser trouble on several of the battleships of III Battle Squadron caused the plan to be delayed, ultimately to 31 May. Admiral Scheer's fleet, composed of 16 dreadnoughts, six pre-dreadnoughts, six light cruisers, and 31 torpedo boats departed

177-570: A colony would only function as an economic drain. This perspective would change in the early 1880s, due to a variety of internal pressures. The two key factors motivating this change were pressure from economic interests in Germany, and concerns about missing out on what would later be called the Scramble for Africa . On the political side, colonies became a point of national pride, as Germans saw that other nations had colonies, and thought they should too as

236-555: A directly administered colony, opted to instead grant the companies already involved in Cameroon a "Chartered" status. As such, initial government fell to large German trading companies and concession companies who had already established themselves in the colony. Eventually, however, it was revealed that the companies were not performing their administrative duties very well. A variety of factors contributed to their failure, but foremost among them were ongoing conflicts with local traders as

295-416: A last attempt being made to bring help to the hard-pressed Wiesbaden , or at least of rescuing her ship's company. This maneuver again put Scheer in a dangerous position; Jellicoe had turned his fleet south and again crossed Scheer's "T." A third 16-point turn followed, which was covered by a charge by Hipper's mauled battlecruisers. Scheer then ordered the fleet to adopt the night cruising formation, which

354-501: A matter of national prestige. Several government officials took this stance, and it seemed to enjoy public support as well. On the commercial side, the companies already operating in Cameroon (represented by the likes of Adolph Woermann) wanted the protection and support an official German colony would provide, and many German producers sought new markets for their excess goods. These pressures would eventually culminate in Bismarck allowing

413-413: A number of tribes of the regions around the rivers, where trade was already well established. This would establish a trend of using treaties as one method of expanding German control. As mentioned above, one of the primary motivations for the colony was German corporations seeking to expand their economic interests in Cameroon. Bismarck, being aware of this fact and concerned about the substantial costs of

472-546: A six-month-long special training program for gunnery, torpedo warfare, and infantry training. Afterward, he was assigned to the gunnery training ship SMS  Renown . Scheer was for a short time assigned to the armored frigate SMS  Friedrich Carl . For his last year in cadet training, he was assigned to the frigate SMS  Hertha , which conducted a world tour. The ship sailed to Melbourne , Australia, Yokohama , Kobe , and Nagasaki in Japan, and Shanghai , China during

531-548: A weaker British squadron, Scheer remarked, "[Ingenohl] had robbed us of the opportunity of meeting certain divisions of the enemy according to the prearranged plan, which was now seen to be correct." Following the loss of SMS  Blücher at the Battle of Dogger Bank in January 1915, the Kaiser removed Ingenohl from his post on 2 February. Admiral Hugo von Pohl replaced him as commander of

590-613: The Queen Elizabeth -class battleships of the 5th Battle Squadron . By 18:30, the Grand Fleet had arrived on the scene, and was deployed into a position that would cross Scheer's "T" from the northeast. To extricate his fleet from this precarious position, Scheer ordered a 16-point turn to the south-west. At 18:55, Scheer decided to conduct another 16-point turn to launch an attack on the British fleet; he later explained his reasoning: It

649-618: The Allies , a move the Kaiser eventually permitted. In August 1918, Scheer was promoted to the Chief of Naval Staff; Admiral Franz von Hipper replaced him as commander of the fleet. Together they planned a final battle against the British Grand Fleet , but war-weary sailors mutinied at the news and the operation was abandoned. Scheer retired after the end of the war. A strict disciplinarian, Scheer

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708-680: The GDR State Council from March 25, 1982, the rank Flottenadmiral was introduced. Kamerun Kamerun was an African colony of the German Empire from 1884 to 1920 in the region of today's Republic of Cameroon . Kamerun also included northern parts of Gabon and the Congo with western parts of the Central African Republic , southwestern parts of Chad and far northeastern parts of Nigeria . The first German trading post in

767-679: The High Seas Fleet . He then took command of the III Battle Squadron , which consisted of the newest and most powerful battleships in the navy. In January 1916, he was promoted to Admiral and given control of the High Seas Fleet. Scheer led the German fleet at the Battle of Jutland on 31 May – 1 June 1916, one of the largest naval battles in history. Following the battle, Scheer joined those calling for unrestricted submarine warfare against

826-460: The Kaiser -class battleships were to maintain a state of readiness just outside Wilhelmshaven. After the battle was finished, Scheer wrote an assessment of the engagement for the Kaiser; in it, he strongly urged for the resumption of the unrestricted submarine warfare campaign in the Atlantic. He argued that it was the only option to defeat Great Britain. Scheer spent the majority of the remainder of

885-478: The dreadnoughts of the Kaiser and König classes . Scheer advocated raids on the British coast to lure out portions of the numerically superior Royal Navy so they could be overwhelmed by the German fleet. He was highly critical of Admiral Friedrich von Ingenohl , who he felt was overcautious. Following the bombardment of Scarborough, Hartlepool and Whitby , during which Ingenohl had withdrawn instead of attacking

944-555: The 1930s. Scheer was born in Obernkirchen , present-day Lower Saxony . He came from a middle-class background, which initially hampered his naval career, as the Kaiserliche Marine was dominated by wealthy families. Reinhard Scheer entered the navy on 22 April 1879 aged 15 as a cadet. His first sea assignment was aboard the sail-frigate SMS  Niobe . His first cruise aboard Niobe lasted from June to September 1879. During

1003-625: The Austro-Hungarian K.u.K. Kriegsmarine , admiral was an OF-8 three-star flag officer rank. The official manner of formal addressing of military people with the rank Admiral (OF-9) is "Herr/Frau Admiral". However, as to German naval traditions the addressing in seamen's language of military people with any flag officer rank (OF-6 to OF-9) is "Herr/Frau Admiral". In the Imperial German Navy, an admiral would be addressed as "Eure Exzellenz" (Your Excellency) Its rank insignia, worn on

1062-505: The British navy, to achieve a better bargaining position for Germany regardless of the cost to the navy. The plan involved two simultaneous attacks by light cruisers and destroyers, one on Flanders and another on shipping in the Thames estuary ; the five battlecruisers were to support the Thames attack while the dreadnoughts remained off Flanders. After both strikes, the fleet was to concentrate off

1121-1043: The Duala area on the Kamerun River delta was established in 1868 by the Hamburg trading company C. Woermann  [ de ] . The firm's primary agent in Gabon , Johannes Thormählen, expanded activities to the Kamerun River delta. In 1874, together with the Woermann agent in Liberia , Wilhelm Jantzen, the two merchants founded their own company, Jantzen & Thormählen there. Both of these West Africa houses expanded into shipping with their own sailing ships and steamers and inaugurated scheduled passenger and freight service between Hamburg and Duala. These companies and others obtained extensive acreage from local chiefs and began systematic plantation operations, including bananas. The Cameroon territory

1180-547: The Dutch coast, where it would meet the Grand Fleet in battle. While the fleet was consolidating in Wilhelmshaven, however, war-weary sailors began deserting en masse. As Von der Tann and Derfflinger passed through the locks that separated Wilhelmshaven's inner harbor and roadstead, some 300 men from both ships climbed over the side and disappeared ashore. On 24 October 1918, the order was given to sail from Wilhelmshaven. Starting on

1239-618: The German behaviors that lend them a reputation of brutality and harshness as colonizers. During his time, he oversaw a number of military campaigns against local peoples like the Bali, forcing those who rebuffed German attempts at a "treaty" that supposedly justified German expansion. Oftentimes, he would not act directly against these people, instead relying on empowering other rival local powers and establishing them as "protected by Germany" and arming them. These groups would then use their newfound power and armaments to conquer dissenting peoples, without

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1298-486: The Germans themselves actually ever getting involved. When the Germans did become involved, however, it was brutal, often going out of their way to punish those who surrendered to them if their leader still refused, and taking a tithe of people from conquered peoples as essentially slaves, though they did not call them such. This leads into the second prominent feature of Puttkamer's governorship, his expansion and support for

1357-505: The Grand Fleet out. In this case, however, Scheer's reconnaissance worked as intended, and warned him of the Grand Fleet's approach in time to retreat back to Germany. In later 1917, Scheer began to use light elements of the fleet to raid British convoys to Norway in the North Sea. This forced the British to deploy battleships to escort the convoys, which presented Scheer with the opportunity to attempt to isolate and destroy several battleships of

1416-413: The Grand Fleet. On 23 April 1918, Scheer sent the entire High Seas Fleet to intercept one of the convoys. However, Hipper's battlecruisers crossed the convoy's path several times without sighting any ships; it was later discovered that German intelligence had miscalculated the date the convoy would depart Britain. The German fleet turned south and reached their North Sea bases by 19:00. In June 1918, Scheer

1475-467: The Great War in 1919, which were translated into English the following year. In October 1920, an intruder broke into Scheer's house and murdered his wife, Emillie, his maid, and injured his daughter Else. The man then committed suicide in the cellar. Following the incident, Scheer retreated into solitude. He wrote his autobiography, entitled Vom Segelschiff zum U-Boot ( From Sailing Ship to Submarine ), which

1534-674: The High Seas Fleet. During the assignment, in December 1884, Scheer participated in a landing party that suppressed a pro-British indigenous chieftain in Kamerun . After his return to Germany in 1886, Scheer took part in torpedo training aboard SMS  Blücher , from January to May 1888. In May 1888, Scheer returned to the East Africa Squadron as a torpedo officer aboard the corvette SMS  Sophie . This tour lasted until early summer 1890, at which point Scheer returned to Germany, where he

1593-477: The Jade early on the morning of 31 May. The fleet sailed in concert with Hipper's five battlecruisers and supporting cruisers and torpedo boats. The British navy's Room 40 had intercepted and decrypted German radio traffic containing plans of the operation, and so sortied the Grand Fleet, totaling some 28 dreadnoughts and 9 battlecruisers, the night before in order to cut off and destroy the High Seas Fleet. At 16:00 UTC,

1652-471: The North Sea , which outlined his strategic plans. His central idea was that the Grand Fleet should be pressured by higher U-boat activity and zeppelin raids as well as increased fleet sorties. The Grand Fleet would be forced to abandon the distant blockade and would have to attack the German fleet; the Kaiser approved the memorandum on 23 February 1916. Now that he had approval from the Kaiser, Scheer could use

1711-520: The Torpedo Section. After promotion to Korvettenkapitän , Scheer commanded the light cruiser SMS  Gazelle . Scheer was promoted to Kapitän zur See in 1905 and took command of the battleship SMS  Elsass in 1907, a command he held for two years. A report dated 1 December 1909 recommended Scheer for promotion; he became chief of staff to the commanding officer of the High Seas Fleet, Admiral Holtzendorff, under whom Scheer had served on

1770-469: The agricultural industry, and efforts were taken to expand further into the landlocked areas of Cameroon to better trade opportunities and German access to the African interior. The most notable of the German governors, and the man who would come to define the German legacy in Cameroon, would be Jesko Von Puttkammer , who governed from 1895–1906 (and for a few shorter times before). It was Puttkammer who began

1829-628: The cruise he was trained in navigation and engineering. Following his return to Germany in September, Scheer was assigned to the Naval School in Kiel to continue his officer training. He received only a "satisfactory" rating on his cadet evaluation in 1879, but received the second highest grade in his class for the Sea Cadet's Exam the following year. Following his graduation from the Naval School, Scheer embarked on

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1888-516: The cruiser SMS Prinzess Wilhelm . Scheer reached flag rank less than six months after taking his post on Holtzendorff's staff, at the age of 47. He held the Chief of Staff position until late 1911, when he was transferred back to the RMA under Tirpitz. Here, he held the position of Chief of the General Naval Department through 1912. Following this appointment, Scheer returned to a sea command, in

1947-405: The cutting of hands, genitals, gouging of eyes and decapitations. Severed limbs were often collected and shown to local authorities as proof of death. These practices, which continued even after Puttkammer retired from his position, would define the German colonial legacy. In German Cameroon the indigenous slave trade were banned in 1902 and all slaves born after 1902 declared born free; however

2006-489: The deteriorating war situation. The three agreed that the U-boat campaign would be the sole hope for a German victory, as the German army had been pushed to the defensive. Scheer then called for a crash program to build a vastly increased number of U-boats. He stipulated that, at a minimum, at least 16 additional U-boats be constructed per month in the last quarter of 1918. This was to increase to at least an additional 30 per month by

2065-655: The early 20th century as part of a build-up and mobilization in preparation for the First World War . The rank again saw a resurgence during the Second World War . Admiral was the second highest flag officer grade of the Volksmarine, equivalent to the three-star rank Generaloberst . In the GDR Volksmarine there have been the three flag officer ranks Konteradmiral , Vizeadmiral , and Admiral . By decision of

2124-516: The establishment of a Cameroonian colony, among others. The official beginning of the German "Protectorate of Cameroon" was on 17 August 1884. Gustav Nachtigal had arrived in Duala in July and negotiated a treaty with a number of rulers local to the region around Duala, at that time the center of Germany's trading operations. From there, he would go on to other parts of Cameroon, securing further treaties with

2183-522: The establishment of a colony. For many years prior to the 1880s, Bismarck had resisted the idea of colonial ventures in Africa. This was primarily due to Bismarck's focus on shoring up German interests in Europe itself, especially given the lack of a military infrastructure able to protect colonial interests. Moreover, Germany had no need for the resources that a colony might provide, being largely self sufficient, so

2242-515: The fleet more aggressively. Following the Kaiser's order forbidding unrestricted submarine warfare on 24 April 1916, Scheer ordered all of the U-boats in the Atlantic to return to Germany and abandon commerce raiding. Scheer intended to use the submarines to support the fleet by stationing the U-boats off major British naval bases. The U-boats would intercept British forces leaving the ports when provoked by

2301-413: The fleet. Pohl was exceedingly cautious; in the remainder of 1915, he conducted only five ineffective fleet actions, all of which remained within 120  nautical miles of Helgoland . Vice Admiral Scheer became Commander in chief of the High Seas Fleet on 18 January 1916 when Pohl became too ill to continue in that post. Upon promotion to the position, Scheer wrote Guiding Principles for Sea Warfare in

2360-531: The form of squadron commander for the six battleships of the II Battle Squadron of the High Seas Fleet in January 1913. On 9 December 1913, Scheer was promoted to Vizeadmiral . He remained with the II Battle Squadron until January 1915, by which time World War I had begun. He thereafter took command of the III Battle Squadron, which consisted of the most powerful battleships in the German fleet:

2419-495: The night of 29 October, sailors on several battleships mutinied ; three ships from the III ;Squadron refused to weigh anchors, and acts of sabotage were committed on board the battleships Thüringen and Helgoland . In the face of open rebellion, the order to sail was rescinded and the planned operation was abandoned. In an attempt to suppress the mutiny, the High Seas Fleet squadrons were dispersed. Scheer wrote his memoirs of

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2478-460: The plantations. This became a problem, as the plantations had more fields than they did workers, so there was a labor shortage. To address this, Puttkamer instituted the "man tithes" mentioned above, in addition to just taking people whenever they conquered new territories or had to put down a rebellion. These people would then be made to do harsh forced labor, with extremely high rates of death. Extreme forms of discipline were practiced too, including

2537-520: The port city of Duala to bring agricultural products to market. The Northern line extended 160-kilometre (99 mi) to the Manenguba mountains, and the 300-kilometre (190 mi) mainline went to Makak on the river Nyong . An extensive postal and telegraph system and a river navigation network with government ships connected the coast to the interior. The Cameroon protectorate was enlarged with New Cameroon (German: Neukamerun) in 1911 as part of

2596-814: The settlement of the Agadir Crisis , resolved by the Treaty of Fez . At the outbreak of World War I , French , Belgian and British troops invaded the German colony in 1914 and fully occupied it during the Kamerun campaign . Following Germany's defeat, the Treaty of Versailles divided the territory into two League of Nations mandates (Class B) under the administration of the United Kingdom and France. French Cameroon and part of British Cameroon reunified in 1961 to form present-day Cameroon . Notably, this did not end German involvement in Cameroon, as many former German plantation owners bought their plantations back in

2655-612: The single word skagerrak (the German name for the Battle of Jutland). The heavy cruiser Admiral Scheer was named after Reinhard Scheer and christened by his daughter Marianne. The ship was ordered and funded by the Reichsmarine of the Weimar Republic and launched in 1933. Admiral (Germany) However, in other German speaking naval forces, e.g. Imperial German Navy , Reichsmarine , Kriegsmarine , Volksmarine , and

2714-466: The slave trade supplied by slave raids in Northern German Cameroon were, in practice, tolerated the entire German colonial period. After Puttkamer left his position, aggressive expansion was less common (though more territory would be added via diplomatic means), and the colony began to focus more on development. With subsidies from the imperial treasury, the colony built two rail lines from

2773-550: The sleeves and shoulders, are one five-pointed star above a big gold stripe and three normal stripes (without the star when rank loops are worn). The rank is rated OF-9 in NATO , and equivalent to general in Heer , and Luftwaffe . It is grade B10 in the pay rules of the Federal Ministry of Defence . Admiral as a rank first appeared in Germany in the 19th century and was expanded in

2832-482: The third quarter of 1919. In total, the plan called for 376 to 450 new U-boats. However, German naval historian Holger Herwig suggested the program was "a massive propaganda effort designed to have an effect at home and abroad." In October, with the war largely lost, Scheer and Hipper envisioned one last major fleet advance to attack the British Grand Fleet. Scheer intended to inflict as much damage as possible on

2891-422: The traders began to move further inland. This got bad enough that it necessitated the German government stepping in and officially taking over. From thereon out the administration of the colonies would be at the hands of the German administrators. Regardless, the focus of the colony remained the same: to support the plantation industry and the trade of the German companies. As such, this time saw major expansion in

2950-485: The trip. Following his commission into the German navy, he was transferred to the East Africa Squadron ; his first tour with the unit lasted from 1884 to 1886. He was assigned to the crew of the frigate SMS  Bismarck . Here he was promoted to Leutnant . He also made important connections in Africa; among those he befriended was Leutnant Henning von Holtzendorff , who would later serve as commander of

3009-400: The two battlecruiser forces encountered each other and began a running gun fight south, back towards Scheer's battle fleet. Upon reaching the High Seas Fleet, Vice Admiral David Beatty's battlecruisers turned back to the north to lure the Germans towards the rapidly approaching Grand Fleet, under the command of Admiral John Jellicoe . During the run to the north, Scheer's leading ships engaged

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3068-528: The year debating the issue with the naval command. Ultimately, Scheer and his allies prevailed and the unrestricted submarine campaign was resumed in February 1917. Despite his conviction that only the U-boats could defeat Britain, Scheer continued to utilize the surface fleet. On 18–19 August 1916, the High Seas Fleet again sortied in an attempt to draw out and defeat Admiral Beatty's battlecruiser squadron. The Royal Navy again intercepted German communications and sent

3127-458: Was as yet too early to assume 'night cruising order.' The enemy could have compelled us to fight before dark, he could have prevented our exercising our initiative, and finally he could have cut off our return to the German Bight. There was only one way of avoiding this: to inflict a second blow on the enemy with another advance carried through regardless of cost...It also offered the possibility of

3186-421: Was completed by 23:40. A series of ferocious engagements between Scheer's battleships and Jellicoe's destroyer screen ensued, though the Germans managed to punch their way through the destroyers and make for Horns Reef . The High Seas Fleet reached the Jade between 13:00 and 14:45 on 1 June; Scheer ordered the undamaged battleships of the I Battle Squadron to take up defensive positions in the Jade roadstead while

3245-568: Was informed that the state of Admiral Holtzendorff's health would not permit him to remain in his post as chief of the naval staff much longer. On 28 July, Scheer was informed that Holtzendorff had submitted his resignation to the Kaiser. Two weeks later, on 11 August 1918, Scheer was promoted to the Chief of Naval Staff ; his subordinate Franz von Hipper succeeded him in command of the High Seas Fleet. The following day, Scheer met with Field Marshal Paul von Hindenburg and General Erich Ludendorff to discuss

3304-635: Was made an instructor at the Torpedo Research Command in Kiel. Thus far in his career, Scheer had made a strong reputation for himself as a torpedo specialist. While stationed in Kiel, Scheer met Alfred von Tirpitz , who took note of his expertise. In 1897, following Tirpitz's promotion to State Secretary of the Imperial Navy Office, he transferred Scheer to the Reichsmarineamt (RMA) to work in

3363-519: Was popularly known in the Navy as the "man with the iron mask" due to his severe appearance. In 1919, Scheer wrote his memoirs; a year later they were translated and published in English. He wrote his autobiography in 1925. Scheer died at Marktredwitz . He is buried in the municipal cemetery at Weimar . The admiral was commemorated in the renascent Kriegsmarine by the heavy cruiser Admiral Scheer , built in

3422-557: Was published on 6 November 1925. In 1928, Scheer accepted an invitation to meet his adversary from Jutland, Admiral of the Fleet Jellicoe, in England. However, at the age of 65, Scheer died at Marktredwitz before he could make the trip. He was buried in the municipal cemetery at Weimar. His tombstone reads: hier ruht admiral reinhard scheer [Here rests Admiral Reinhard Scheer] — with the dates of his life, his flag in metal applique and

3481-581: Was under the informal control of the British Empire throughout the years preceding 1884, with substantial British trading operations as well. Eventually, these companies would begin agitating for royal protection. By 1884, Adolph Woermann , as spokesman for all West African companies, petitioned the imperial foreign office for "protection" by the German Empire. This, among a number of other factors, led to Imperial Chancellor Otto von Bismarck approving

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