The Scharnhorst class were the first capital ships, referred to as either battleships or battlecruisers, built for Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine after World War I. The class comprised two vessels: Scharnhorst and Gneisenau. Scharnhorst was launched first,[6] and is considered to be the lead ship by some sources; they are also referred to as the Gneisenau class in some other sources,[7] as Gneisenau was the first to be laid down and commissioned.[6] They marked the beginning of German naval rearmament after the Treaty of Versailles.