Q&A · 1:26:36-1:27:35

Reusing battleship names in a no-treaty fleet

Continuous interwar construction would probably recycle respected battleship names after replacing the aging Revenge and Queen Elizabeth classes.

Question

Would the names of the Queen Elizabeth- and Revenge-class battleships be reused after two decades of no-treaty construction?

Short answer

Probably; continuous construction would replace the old hulls and make their established names available for new capital ships.

Notes

Established Royal Navy battleship names would probably be reused after their old hulls were replaced. Continuous building would first expand the fleet to its desired strength and then turn to replacing its oldest capital ships. The Revenge class would likely leave service before the Queen Elizabeths, but the latter would still be around 30 years old and have wartime wear when their turn arrived. Replacement is therefore more likely than indefinite retention simply because treaty limits never intervened.