German Navy The Deutsche Marine ( ) is the navy of Germany and is part of the unified " Bundeswehr " ( the German Armed Forces ) . It is deeply integrated into the NATO alliance . Its mission is protection of German and Allied territories as well as peace - keeping and peace enforcement operations . The Marine traces its roots back to the " Reichsflotte " ( Imperial Fleet ) of the revolutionary era of 1848 – 52 . The Reichsflotte was the first German Navy to sail under the black - red - gold flag . Founded on 14 June 1848 by the orders of the democratically elected Frankfurt Parliament the Reichsflottes brief existence ended with the failure of the revolution and was disbanded on 2 April 1852 ; thus , the modern Marine celebrates its birthday on 14 June . From 1945 to 1956 , the German Mine Sweeping Administration and its successor organizations , made up of former members of the " Kriegsmarine " , became something of a transition stage for the Marine , allowing the future " Marine " to draw on experienced personnel upon its formation . In 1956 , with West Germany ' s accession to NATO , the Marine was formally established in the name of Bundesmarine . With the reunification of Germany in 1990 the Marine took over the former East German " Volksmarine " ( “ People ’ s Navy ” ) and became the current Deutsche Marine . History . The German navy has operated under different names . See Current operations . German warships permanently participate in all four " NATO Maritime Groups " . The German Navy is also engaged in operations against international terrorism such as Operation Enduring Freedom and NATO Operation Active Endeavour . Presently the largest operation the German Navy is participating in is UNIFIL II off the coast of Lebanon . The German contribution to this operation is two frigates , four fast attack craft , and two auxiliary vessels . The naval component of UNIFIL has been under German command . Equipment . Ships and submarines . In total , there are about 84 commissioned ships in the German Navy , including 4 submarines and 22 auxiliary ships . The displacement of the navy is 220 , 000 tonnes . In addition , the German Navy and the Royal Danish Navy are in cooperation in the " Ark Project " . This agreement made the Ark Project responsible for the strategic sealift of German armed forces where the full - time charter of three roll - on - roll - off cargo and troop ships are ready for deployments . In addition , these ships are also kept available for the use of the other European NATO countries . The three vessels have a combined displacement of 60 , 000 tonnes . Including these ships , the total ships ' displacement available to the Deutsche Marine is 280 , 000 tonnes . A total of five Joint Support Ships , two JSS800 and three JSS400 , were planned during the 1995 - 2010 period but the programme appears now to have been abandoned , not having been mentioned in two recent defence reviews . The larger ships would have been tasked for strategic troop transport and amphibious operations , and were to displace 27 . 000 to 30 . 000 tons for 800 soldiers . Aircraft . The naval air arm of the German Navy is called the Marineflieger . The Marineflieger operates approx . 50 aircraft . Structure . The German Navy is commanded by the Inspekteur der Marine in the Federal Ministry of Defence in Bonn . The major commands are the Fleet Command at Glücksburg near Flensburg and the Naval Office at Rostock . The Fleet is commanded by the " Befehlshaber der Flotte " ( Commander - in - Chief German Fleet or CINCGERFLEET ) and comprises all combat vessels , aircraft , helicopter s and other combat forces , while schools , naval bases and test installations are under the purview of the Naval Office . The strength of the Navy is about 17 , 000 men and women . The navy as a part of the " Bundeswehr " is responsible for developing and providing the maritime capabilities of the German armed forces . Therefore it is operating a number of development and testing installations as part of an inter - service and international network . Personnel . The German Navy has a strength of 15 , 600 personnel .