P-class cruiser
| Class overview | |
|---|---|
| Operators: |
 Kriegsmarine
|
| Preceded by: | Deutschland-class cruiser |
| Succeeded by: | O-class battlecruiser |
| Planned: | 12 |
| Completed: | 0 |
| Cancelled: | 12 |
| General characteristics | |
| Type: | Heavy cruiser |
| Displacement: | 23,700 t (23,300 long tons; 26,100 short tons) design |
| Length: | 230 m (754 ft 7 in) |
| Beam: | 26 m (85 ft 4 in) |
| Draft: | 7.20 m (23 ft 7 in) |
| Installed power: | 165,000 PS (121,000 kW; 163,000 shp) |
| Propulsion: | 12 MAN 9-cylinder diesels |
| Speed: | 33 knots (61 km/h) maximum |
| Range: |
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| Armament: |
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| Armor: |
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| Aircraft carried: | 2 × Arado 196 seaplanes |
| Aviation facilities: | 2 × steam catapults |
The P class was a planned group of twelve heavy cruisers of Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine; they were the successor to the Deutschland-class cruisers. Design work began in 1937 and continued until 1939; at least nine designs were considered. The final design was armed with six 28 cm (11 in) quick-firing guns in two triple turrets, as in the preceding Deutschland class. The ships were designated as Panzerschiff (armored ship), and given the preliminary names P1–P12. They were an improved design over the preceding planned D-class cruisers, which had been canceled in 1934. Although the ships were already assigned to shipyards, construction never began on the P-class ships after the O-class battlecruiser design superseded them.
In the early 1930s, Adolf Hitler began a rearmament program in Germany. He signed the Anglo-German Naval Agreement, which allowed Germany to build up its navy to 35 percent of the strength of the British Royal Navy and effectively repudiated the restrictions of the Treaty of Versailles on the German fleet. This led to a decision in 1937 to build ships to an improved Deutschland-class cruiser design. Design work on the new class of armored ships began that year. After more than twenty designs were considered to meet the navy's specifications, one was chosen; it was designated as cruiser "P". It called for a 20,000-metric-ton (20,000-long-ton) with a maximum speed of 34 to 35 kn (63 to 65 km/h; 39 to 40 mph), armed with six 28 cm (11 in) guns in two triple turrets.
By 1938, it became clear to Admiral Erich Raeder that Hitler's aggressive foreign policy would bring conflict with Britain. He therefore decided that a significantly larger force of armored ships would be necessary to execute an effective commerce raiding campaign against the British. Raeder's intention to fight a commerce war against Britain was the basis for Plan Z, which included twelve ships of the P-class design. The design work on the new ships proceeded in parallel with work on the O-class battlecruiser design. Experiments were conducted on at least nine different design proposals between March 1938 and December 1939. The designs varied somewhat in terms of dimensions as well as armament; some of the designs featured three 28 cm triple turrets.
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