The Second Naval Law of 1900 authorized the class. AG Weser laid down Gneisenau on 28 December 1904, and Blohm & Voss laid down Scharnhorst on 22 March 1905. Scharnhorst launched on 23 March 1906 and commissioned on 24 October 1907. Gneisenau launched on 14 June 1906 and commissioned on 6 March 1908. AG Weser's longer schedule reflected congestion at a busy yard, and the ships still came from two capable builders. German yards were expanding their facilities while constructing a rapidly growing fleet, so every more complex vessel added pressure to the quantitative competition with Britain.
Notable Point · 6:34-9:01
Fleet expansion tested German shipyards
Second Naval Law construction dates reveal how Germany crowded increasingly complex warships into yards that were expanding at the same time.