Two German men made history on Sunday as they got married and becoming the first same-sex  couple to marry in German.

The two are identified as 60-year-old Bodo Mende and 59-year-old Karl Kreile who exchanged vows in Berlin, 38 years after meeting.

The couple got wedded in a civil ceremony, surrounded by a crush of photographers and television cameras eager to capture the historic moment.

The couple was seen exchanging a long kiss after they were pronounced husband and husband.

The dash to exchange vows comes three months after lawmakers voted to give Germany’s roughly 94,000 same-sex couples the right to marry, following a shift in position by Chancellor Angela Merkel.

Germany becomes the 15th European nation to legalise gay marriage.

The Netherlands led the way in 2000, followed by other European countries including Spain, Sweden, Britain and France.

Same-sex relationships have become so normalised that polls show around 75 per cent of Germans are in favour of gay marriage.

By extending existing law to same-sex pairs, Germany’s gay couples automatically gain the same tax advantages and adoption rights as heterosexual families.