 00" guns in two quadruple turrets both mounted forward. This allowed all guns to fire forward during engagements to present the smallest possible silhouette to the enemy. They employed all or nothing armor protection ensuring the strongest protection over vital spaces with their armor designed to protect the ships against German 00" gunfire from the Pocket Battleships or the Scharnhorst Class Battlecruisers. They also mounted a powerful dual purpose armament 