Admiral, short Adm, (german: Admiral) is the most senior

flag officer A flag officer is a commissioned officer in a nation's armed forces senior enough to be entitled to fly a flag to mark the position from which the officer exercises command. The term is used differently in different countries: *In many countries ...

rank in the

German Navy The German Navy (, ) is the navy of Germany and part of the unified ''Bundeswehr'' (Federal Defense), the German Armed Forces. The German Navy was originally known as the ''Bundesmarine'' (Federal Navy) from 1956 to 1995, when ''Deutsche Mari ...

. It is equivalent to

General A general officer is an officer of high rank in the armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colonel."general, adj. and n.". O ...

in the

German Army The German Army (, "army") is the land component of the armed forces of Germany. The present-day German Army was founded in 1955 as part of the newly formed West German ''Bundeswehr'' together with the ''Marine'' (German Navy) and the ''Luftwaf ...

German Air Force The German Air Force (german: Luftwaffe, lit=air weapon or air arm, ) is the aerial warfare branch of the , the armed forces of Germany. The German Air Force (as part of the ''Bundeswehr'') was founded in 1956 during the era of the Cold War as ...

. In the

Central Medical Services The Joint Medical Service (german: Zentraler Sanitätsdienst der Bundeswehr, ''short form:'' Zentraler Sanitätsdienst, ) is a part of the ''Bundeswehr'', the armed forces of Germany and serves all three armed services (Army, Navy and Air Force ...

there is no equivalent. In the German Navy ''Admiral'' is, as in many navies, a

four-star rank A four-star rank is the rank of any four-star officer described by the NATO OF-9 code. Four-star officers are often the most senior commanders in the armed services, having ranks such as (full) admiral, (full) general, colonel general, army ge ...

with a NATO code of OF-9. There is currently one admiral in the German Navy,

Admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in some navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force, and is above vice admiral and below admiral of the fleet ...

Manfred Nielson, serving as Deputy Supreme Allied Commander Transformation in

Norfolk, Virginia Norfolk ( ) is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. Incorporated in 1705, it had a population of 238,005 at the 2020 census, making it the third-most populous city in Virginia after neighboring Virginia B ...

. However, in other German speaking naval forces, e.g.

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 ...

Reichsmarine The ''Reichsmarine'' ( en, Realm Navy) 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 1919 to 1935. In 1935, it became known as the ...

Kriegsmarine The (, ) was the navy of Germany from 1935 to 1945. It superseded the Imperial German Navy of the German Empire (1871–1918) and the inter-war (1919–1935) of the Weimar Republic. The was one of three official branches, along with the a ...

Volksmarine The ''Volksmarine'' (VM, ; en, People's Navy) was the naval force of the German Democratic Republic (GDR) from 1956 to 1990. The ''Volksmarine'' was one of the service branches of the National People's Army and primarily performed a coasta ...

, and the Austro-Hungarian K.u.K. Kriegsmarine, Admiral was an OF-8 three-star flag officer rank.

Address

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)

Rank insignia and rating

Its rank insignia, worn on 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-9STANAG 2116
/ref> in

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two N ...

, and equivalent to

in Heer, and

Luftwaffe The ''Luftwaffe'' () was the aerial-warfare branch of the German '' Wehrmacht'' before and during World War II. Germany's military air arms during World War I, the '' Luftstreitkräfte'' of the Imperial Army and the '' Marine-Fliegerabt ...

. It is grade B10 in the pay rules of the

Federal Ministry of Defence The Federal Ministry of Defence (german: Bundesministerium der Verteidigung, ), abbreviated BMVg, is a top-level federal agency, headed by the Federal Minister of Defence as a member of the Cabinet of Germany. The ministry is headquartered at ...

History

German navies until 1945

Admiral as a rank first appeared in Germany in the 19th century and was expanded in the early 20th century as part of a build-up and mobilization in preparation for the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

. The rank again saw a resurgence during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

National People's Army

Bundesarchiv Bild 183-U1007-0049, Rostock, 30

Admiral was the second highest flag officer grade of the Volksmarine, equivalent to the three-star rank

Generaloberst A ("colonel general") was the second-highest general officer rank in the German ''Reichswehr'' and ''Wehrmacht'', the Austro-Hungarian Common Army, the East German National People's Army and in their respective police services. The rank was ...

. In the GDR

there have been the three flag officer ranks ''Konteradmiral'', ''Vizeadmiral'', and ''Admiral''. By decision of the GDR State Council from March 25, 1982, the rank ''Flottenadmiral'' was introduced.

Insignia

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Admiral Naval ranks Naval ranks of Germany Admirals Three-star officers of Nazi Germany Four-star officers of the Bundeswehr de:Admiral