Named after Prince Eugene of Savoy, Prinz Eugen was a Hipper-class heavy cruiser. Prinz Eugen fought alongside the German super battleship Bismarck in the Battle of Denmark Strait (May 24, 1941). Together, they scuttled the Royal Navy ship HMS Hood, and mauled the Prince of Wales. Prinz Eugen separated with the Bismarck, and afterwards the Bismarck was sunk by HMS Dorsetshire and Sworfish torpedo bombers. After the loss of Bismarck, Adolf Hitler banned further surface raids (they used U-boats instead). Prinz Eugen was then assigned to defend Norwegian waters, along with battlecruisers Scharnhorst and Gneisenau. Her stern was destroyed by a torpedo from HMS Trident on February 23, 1942.

From 1944 onward, Prinz Eugen was assigned to the Baltic coast. There she met with the light cruiser Leipzig, and almost destroyed the ship.

On April 20, 1945 Prinz Eugen reached Copenhagen and never left the port again. Along with Nurnberg, they were the only two operational German cruisers left and surrendered on May 7, 1945.