ABSTRACT
Naval operations were planned in the High Command, headed from 1889 to 1895 by Vize-Admiral Max von der Goltz and from then until its dissolution by Admiral Knorr. In the summer of 1889 there also appeared a possibility of war between France and Italy, which raised the question of naval operations. The German naval tasks would consist of preventing the exit of the Russian cruisers, blockading the southwest coast of Finland, the Gulf of Finland, and the coasts of Livonia and Courland, and, if necessary, supporting the land forces. From January 1892 to 1895 the Chief of Staff Kapitan-zur-See Alfred Tirpitz and his collaborators from the Torpedo Inspection brought to the High Command new energy and clearer views concerning strategy, tactics, and ship construction. As before he saw his task as avoiding conflict with Russia, not seeking it.” The German navy was to be concentrated in the Baltic Sea and proceed to an offensive.
