Plan Z: The Nazi Bid for Naval Dominance

by David Wragg

Except for the strength of the U-boat fleet at the height of the Battle of the Atlantic, the German Navy, or Kriegsmarine, was never a match for the Royal Navy, even though the latter was overstretched and fighting in the Atlantic, Pacific, the Mediterranean and the Arctic. It was not meant to be that way. Hitler and his naval staff had a vision for a large and well-balanced fleet, including aircraft carriers.

PLAN Z was the name given for the massive fleet that Germany intended to build, However the Plan relied on the outbreak of the war not occurring at least until 1942. This book examines the way in which such a fleet could have influenced the major battles between the Royal Navy and the Germans.

Plan Z starts by looking at Germany’s history and ambitions as a maritime power. The relationships between the three armed forces and between them and the Fuhrer are also examined, along with the country’s economic and industrial position.

Thanks to the author’s detailed research, PLAN Z considers whether the Nazis’ ambitions could ever have been realized even if the war had been delayed due to the resource and manpower limitations. It also considers what the Royal Navy’s response could have been.

224 pages, Hardcover

First published September 22, 2008

Reviews

[David Szabo · Rating 3 out of 5]

Misleading Title. I expected to read about the possible naval assets Plan Z would have produced and their characteristics and expected performance in combat against the Allied navies. Instead, I got a detailed description of most of the actual naval engagements in the North Atlantic Theatre and the Med between the Allies and Axis navies, focusing heavily on convoys and carrier escorts and where the Germans fell short in missing mainly a carrier based fleet.

We also get a well explained background of Germany's economy prior to the outbreak of the war which helps the reader to understand how they simply could not afford all the military assets they needed to win the war.

[Luis Belisario · Rating 4 out of 5]

Based only on assumptions (there is no other way) because Nazi naval force was so weak (except u-boats) that a real confrontation between capital ships like in Jutland never occurred.