Who were Scharnhorst and Gneisenau designed to fight?

Who were the Scharnhorst-class ships designed to fight?

Probably French warships; their 11-inch-gun configuration was not considered designed to fight the named British capital ships.

French warships are offered as the probable intended opponents for Scharnhorst and Gneisenau. The exact French opponent is left unspecified. A later follow-up rejects the idea that their 11-inch-gun configuration was designed to fight British capital ships such as the Queen Elizabeths, R-class battleships, Renown, or Hood.