Answer:
As modern technology allowed warships to be built it was extremely important to keep other navies in check.
Explanation:
The geography of the German Empire and even still today shows their main water access lies within the Baltic Ocean. If Germany was at war with no navy, countries like Britain can easily put a naval blockade on German merchant/ cargo ships. This would hurt the German economy severely and would not allow them to import natural resources from their colonies or trading partners across seas. It is important to have a navy to intimidate other countries at war that want to either, naval invade, economic blockade, or bombarded the country. Also referring to colonies, it would be extremely difficult to expand one's empire without any sea access if the enemy navy is superior.
