Three panzerschiff (armoured ship), which symbolise the German Navy’s rising up from its ashes following the First World War, is widely known as “pocket ships.” These ships inscribed their name in history as the protagonists of naval warfare at the early stages of the Second World War. As Germany realigned its naval strategy towards submarines mainly on the basis of requirements, their bright years came to an end although they acquired their rightful place among the legends.

The naval rivalry between Britain and Germany had an indisputable effect on the outbreak of the First World War. The Empire on which the sun never sets, had set as main strategy to control the seas in order to control the land in the Mahanist perspective. Thus, it could have never condoned the rise of a rival power.