100438 | GERMANY. Großadmiral von Tirpitz zinc Medal. PCGS SP64.

100438 | GERMANY. Großadmiral Alfred Peter Friedrich von Tirpitz zinc Medal. Issued 1916. World War I series (34mm, 12h). By B. H. Mayer in Pforzheim.

 

GROSSADMIRAL VON TIRPITZ, uniformed bust facing slightly left / HEIL DIR, OB SOLCHER WEHR, MEIN VATERLAND!, naval ship sailing left upon the seas; in foreground, u-boat sailing left; above, zeppelin flying left; below, vignette containing crowned coat-of-arms between anchors and canons.

 

Cf. Zetzmann 2171b (metal unspecified). Graded PCGS SP64 Matte. Enchanting deep gray surfaces. An extremely rare piece in any metal or module, this attractive specimen lacks the typical corrosion found with this composition. For cert verification, please follow this link.

 

Tirpitz is known for his 'Tirpitz Plan,' which aimed to make the German Empire a world power on par with the British Empire through the growth of the navy and the domination of the seas. Various Fleet Acts during the early part of the 20th century increased the size of the German navy so that it was then the second largest in the world, behind only that of the Brits. His calculation was that Britain needed her navy so vitally that she could not risk engagement with Germany and possibly lose control over an empire so connected through the seas.

 

In the end, the Tirpitz Plan created a naval arms race between the two, with Britain easily increasing her size faster than the Germans could keep up. By strategically relocating some of her fleet in home waters, it became clear that the Plan had only ensured that Britain would remain the most powerful navy rather than she being supplanted by the Germans. In 1916, over the dismal failure of his efforts, Tirpitz fell out of favor with the Kaiser and resigned his post.

 

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