a much more improved 100 mm belt, instead of 50–80 mm. The armored deck was improved as well, and some places had up to 70 mm thickness.<ref>Whitley, M.J. German Capital Ships of World War Two, Arm and armour press, London 1989</ref> Classification The Kriegsmarine initially classified the ships as "Panzerschiffe" (armored ships), but in February 1940 it reclassified the two survivors of the class as heavy cruisers. Due to their heavy armament of six 28 cm (11 in) guns, high speed and long cruising range, the class was more capable of high seas operation than the old pre-dreadnought battleships they replaced; for this reason, they were referred to as "pocket battleships", particularly in the British press. In 1938 Jane's Fighting Ships stated the Deutschland-class "[a]re officially rated as 'Armoured Ships' (Panzerschiffe) and popularly referred to as 'Pocket Battleships'. Actually, they are equivalent to armoured cruisers of an exceptionally powerful type." Construction Deutschland was laid down at the Deutsche Werke shipyard in Kiel on 5 February 1929, under the contract name Panzerschiff A, as a replacement for the old battleship Preussen. Work began under construction number 219. The ship was launched on 19 May 1931; at her launching, she was christened by German Chancellor Heinrich Brüning. The ship accidentally started sliding down the slipway while Brüning was giving his christening speech. After the completion of fitting out work, initial sea trials began in November 1932. The ship was commissioned into the Reichsmarine on 1 April 1933. Serious political opposition to the ships continued after the authorization for Deutschland, and a political crisis over the second ship, Admiral Scheer, was averted only after the Social Democrats abstained from voting. As a result of the opposition, Panzerschiff B was not authorized until 1931. A replacement for the old battleship , her keel was laid on 25 June 1931 at the Reichsmarinewerft shipyard in Wilhelmshaven, under construction number 123. The ship was launched on 1 April 1933; at her launching, she was christened by Marianne Besserer, the daughter of Admiral Reinhard Scheer, after whom the ship was named. She was completed slightly over a year and a half later on 12 November 1934, the day she was commissioned into the German fleet.Admiral Graf Spee, the third and final member of the class, was also ordered by the Reichsmarine from the Kriegsmarinewerft shipyard in Wilhelmshaven. She was ordered under the contract name Panzerschiff C to