Naval Historywith Dr. Alex

Q&A · 1:17:37-1:19:01

Bayern and Queen Elizabeth solved different fleet problems

The Bayern class was not simply inferior to Queen Elizabeth; it was a line-of-battle counterpart closer in role to the Revenge class.

Bayern Class BattleshipsFast BattleshipsQueen Elizabeth Class BattleshipsRevenge Class BattleshipsShip Design
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Question

What made the Bayern class inferior to the Queen Elizabeth class?

Short answer

The premise is misleading: Bayern was a strong line battleship comparable to Revenge, while Queen Elizabeth paid for extra speed and future growth space.

Notes

Queen Elizabeth spent more machinery, hull, and internal volume on speed for the fast wing of the fleet, while Bayern and Revenge prioritized the battle line. Germany could fund a strong 15-inch-gun line battleship but lacked the budget for a Queen Elizabeth equivalent. Revenge receives the stronger armour-scheme assessment in this comparison, while Queen Elizabeth offers more speed and space for later modernization. The fast wing was intended to prevent an enemy turning the battle line or crossing its T. The British fast battleships' larger hulls later made extensive modernization easier.