"Germany insisted on becoming a naval power in its own right rather than depending upon Britain's permission to sail the seas..."
by Gary Wassermann, Class of 1998

Germany's desire for naval independence from Britain clashed with Britain's history and policy of marine dominance and precipitated WWI. Britain gained its vast empire through the strength of its navy and therefore assumed the position of policeman of the seas. Germany insisted on becoming a naval power in its own right rather than depending upon Britain's permission to sail the seas. When Britain saw Germany building up its navy, Britain feared Germany's attempt at world domination. To protect against such a threat, Britain secured itself by pursuing friendships with France and Russia. When Germany attempted to take actions which Britain or France viewed as antagonistic, the other was ready to assist in the mutual defense against the Teutonic aggressor.
Britain's naval control had been its most valuable asset for over 100 years, and Britain intended to maintain its dominance. One quarter of the land and the people on Earth in 1897 gave their allegiance to the British Empire because of the acquisitions that Britain's navy brought the mother country. Because Britain ended the slave trade, believed in free trade, and allowed all nations to do business on the seas it had opened and then policed, it saw itself as a benefactor of the world. Alfred Thayer Mahan articulated the value of naval power in his book The Influence of Sea Power upon History, in which he noted that the state which controlled the seas controlled its own fate. The potential vulnerability Britain would experience when bereft of its naval power further motivated Britain to maintain control of the seas; its colonies would become vulnerable to anyone with the mind to take them, it would rely upon imported food, and it would be exposed to the dangers of starvation and invasion. In 1889, Britain adopted the policy that its navy had to equal in size the second and third most powerful navies combined. Seven years later, Britain launched the world's first Dreadnought class battleship, a new, almost invincible ship which soon dominated the seas. Under no circumstances would Britain allow anyone else to approach its naval strength.
Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany saw in his country the potential to become the top power in the world and reached for such a goal. Germany already possessed a formidable army, but it depended upon Britain's approval for its use of the seas. Wilhelm knew the potential danger to Germany lay pending the arrival of war with Britain. Britain could easily blockade German seaports and severely limit German power beyond its neighboring fronts. After his enraptured reading of The Influence of Sea Power upon History, Wilhelm sought for independence at sea. To accomplish this, Wilhelm enlisted Prince Bernhard von Bulow to handle the diplomatic aspect of Germany's new naval policy and Admiral Alfred von Tirpitz to direct the construction of the massive new fleet. Under Tirpitz's command, Germany boasted eighteen Dreadnoughts in 1914 plus nine under construction compared with Britain's 29 plus thirteen under construction. Germany's power was on the rise.
This situation, left unchecked, dictated an inevitable conflict between the two powers. Germany's naval route to the rest of the world passed by Britain. The main purpose of the German fleet, to protect German shipping and colonies, required that it be able to defend against the most formidable potential threat, the British navy. Germany's navy could not be just pretty good, it had to be the best. Britain, for its own safety, had to possess the most powerful navy.
Unfortunately, the two powers did not see eye to eye regarding the outcome of Germany's new navy. Britain tried to tell Germany of this conflict of interests, but Germany believed that the two could coexist peacefully. History showed that challenging Britain at sea always lead to defeat, but Germany did not view its expansion of power as a challenge. Both Wilhelm and Tirpitz believed that Britain would respect them for their new found power and Britain and Germany would develop a friendship. Britain, on the other hand, saw no reason that Germany should want a fleet to challenge its own, which Britain always used benevolently, unless Germany intended to seek world domination. Germany's poor estimation of the outcome of its actions drove it unstoppably forward to a climax of war.
Germany's naval expansion and attemp at independence pushed its enemies to prepare to confront it. Britain knew that it no longer possessed the vastly overshadowing dominance it once did, so it became friends with France and Russia in 1904 and 1907 respectively. These were the countries with which the British Director of Military Intelligence in 1887 warned that Britain was most likely to go to war. By eliminating that threat, Britain could fully focus on war with Germany. As Winston Churchill, Britain's prime minister years later, noted, "[Germany's actions] closed the ranks of the Entente." War between the Triple Alliance, of which Germany was part, and the Triple Entente was only a matter of time.
Essay by Gary Wassermann (Class of 1998) for Brett Silva's IB History course at Pleasant Valley High School