Gustav Bachmann (July 13, 1860 in Cammin, Rostock – August 31, 1943 in Kiel) was a German naval officer, and an admiral in World War I.

He headed the German Imperial Admiralty Staff briefly from February 1915, before being forced out in September 1915 over the failure of the first round of unrestricted submarine warfare.

[1] After his completion of high school in Rostock, Bachmann joined the German Imperial Navy as a cadet on April 21, 1877.

Shipyard division, and was stationed on the armored frigates Kronprinz, Friedrich Carl, and Preussen.

From January 1, 1887, until April 1887, he served as adjutant first in Berlin and then worked at the Kaiserliche Werft Wilhelmshaven until October 5, 1890.

[1] From October 1903 to September 29, 1905, Bachmann worked as an instructor at the Naval Academy and here became a sea captain on April 1, 1904.

[1] On February 2, 1915, Bachmann was made Chief of the Naval Staff, where his main task was to run his predecessor Hugo von Pohl's recently approved campaign of unrestricted submarine warfare.

He advocated for no restrictions on the submarine war, even after the sinking of the RMS Lusitania, and bombing of civilian targets.