The Treasury wanted four new ships while the Royal Navy asked for six, producing a conditional compromise in the account given here. Four would be funded immediately, with another four authorized if Germany ordered even one more capital ship. Germany did so, giving Britain eight rather than the six originally requested by the Admiralty. The discussion then moves to Britain's later Queen Elizabeth and R-class orders and the judgment that the naval race was effectively won by 1913. These examples present British financial and industrial capacity as the reason a German increase could trigger a larger British response.
Notable Point · 3:38:10-3:40:55
How one German order unlocked four British battleships
Conditional funding could turn one additional German capital-ship order into four more British ships, illustrating how Britain's larger financial and industrial base punished German escalation.