SMS Gneisenau
SMS "Gneisenau" was an armored cruiser of the German navy, part of the two-ship . She was named after August von Gneisenau, a Prussian general of the Napoleonic Wars. The ship was laid down in 1904 at the AG Weser dockyard in Bremen, launched in June 1906, and completed in March 1908, at a cost of over 19 million goldmarks. She was armed with a main battery of eight guns, had a top speed of , and displaced at full combat load.
SMS Prinz Heinrich
SMS "Prinz Heinrich" was a unique German armored cruiser built at the turn of the 20th century for the German "Kaiserliche Marine" (Imperial Navy), named after Kaiser Wilhelm II's younger brother Prince Heinrich. The second vessel of that type built in Germany, "Prinz Heinrich" was constructed at the "Kaiserliche Werft" (Imperial Shipyard) in Kiel, being laid down in December 1898, launched in March 1900, and commissioned in March 1902. "Prinz Heinrich"s design was a modification of the previous armored cruiser, , and traded a smaller main battery and thinner armor for higher speed. All subsequent German armored cruisers were incremental developments of "Prinz Heinrich".