The battlecruiser Scharnhorst was commissioned early 1939, but returned to the shipyards in mid-1939 for a new main mast and a new bow that was more fitting for North Atlantic duties. Her first operation was a sweep into the Iceland-Faroes passage in Nov 1939 along with her sister ship Gneisenau; she sank the British Armed Merchant Cruiser Rawalpindi. On 9 Apr 1940, the two sister battlecruisers engaged the British battlecruiser Renown, but the engagement was inconclusive. Two months later, the pair sank the British carrier Glorious and her escorting destroyers Arcasta and Ardent off Norway, but Scharnhorst incurred torpedo damage and was under repairs until late Dec 1940. As soon as her repairs were completed, she paired up with Gneisenau once again to raid the merchant shipping in the North Atlantic, but was turned back by heavy seas. She continued to participate in the raider role in early 1941, avoiding British capital ships and air power while preying on lightly escorted convoys in the North Atlantic off Iceland, Greenland, and Newfoundland. She ported in Brest on the French coast on 22 Mar after a successful run sinking 8 ships totaling 49,300 tons.
While in Brest, Scharnhorst and the other German ships were subjected to British air attacks, keeping her unavailable for operations until late 1941 or early 1942. In Feb 1942, she left Brest along with Gneisenau and heavy cruiser Prinz Eugen for Germany through the English Channel. Much to the embarrassment of the British, the ships were unable to stop the fleet; however, Scharnhorst and Gneisenau were damaged by mines.
