The Admiral Hipper, lead ship of her class, was a key heavy cruiser for the German Kriegsmarine during World War II. Displacing around 14,000 tons standard, she was a substantial warship, armed with eight 20.3 cm (8-inch) guns housed in four twin turrets, supported by a significant secondary armament of 10.5 cm anti-aircraft guns and various smaller AA weapons, along with torpedo tubes. This firepower, combined with a top speed of 32 knots, made her a formidable surface raider.

Commissioned shortly before the outbreak of war in April 1939, the Admiral Hipper quickly became involved in wartime operations. Her service history spanned a range of activities, from commerce raiding in the North Sea and Atlantic to participation in major operations such as the invasion of Norway in 1940 (Operation Weserübung). She also saw action in the Arctic, most notably in the Battle of the Barents Sea in December 1942, where she engaged British destroyers and cruisers.

As the war progressed, her role shifted, and she found herself operating in the Baltic Sea, providing gunfire support to German ground forces and playing a crucial part in the evacuation of refugees from the advancing Soviet Red Army.

However, despite her powerful armament and involvement in numerous operations, the Admiral Hipper's combat record was somewhat mixed. In the final stages of the war, she was heavily damaged by British bombing raids while in Kiel during April 1945. To prevent her capture by the Allies, she was scuttled in Kiel the following month. The wreck was eventually raised and scrapped after the war concluded.