The Austro-Hungarian Navy was the naval force of Austria-Hungary. Its official name in German was kaiserliche und königliche Kriegsmarine (Imperial and Royal War Navy), abbreviated as k.u.k. Kriegsmarine.This navy existed under this name after the formation of the Dual Monarchy in 1867 and continued in service until the end of the First World War in 1918. Prior to 1867, the empire's naval forces were those of the Austrian Empire. By 1915 a total of 33,735 naval personnel served in the k.u.k.