Bismarckclass

The Bismarck class was a pair of fast battleships built for the Kriegsmarine, the navy of Nazi Germany. The first ship, Bismarck, was launched in 1939 and commissioned in 1940. Her sister ship, Tirpitz, was launched in 1939 and commissioned in 1941. These ships were the largest and most powerful warships ever built by Germany.

The Bismarck class ships were designed for commerce raiding, intended to disrupt Allied shipping lanes. They were heavily armed with eight 15-inch guns in four twin turrets and twelve 5.9-inch guns in six twin turrets. Their armor was also substantial, designed to withstand naval gunfire.

Bismarck's operational career was short and ultimately fatal. In May 1941, during her first sortie into the Atlantic, she sank the British battlecruiser HMS Hood but was herself sunk by British naval forces after a prolonged chase. Tirpitz, while never engaging in a major surface action like her sister, spent much of the war as a threat in Norwegian waters, forcing the Allies to commit significant naval resources to counter her presence. She was eventually sunk by Allied aircraft in 1944. The Bismarck class represented a significant, albeit ultimately unsuccessful, effort by Germany to challenge Allied naval supremacy during World War II.