German capital-ship projections helped justify the Admiral class, but the Admiralty could test those claims against unusually detailed economic evidence. The Royal Navy's blockade made it responsible for monitoring the coal and other supplies reaching Germany. That information connected sea control directly to intelligence about the enemy's remaining industrial capacity. Senior planners could therefore distinguish an announced building programme from ships Germany was realistically able to complete. Blockade administration became a procurement tool as well as an instrument of economic warfare.
Notable Point · 15:13-16:36
Blockade intelligence tests German shipbuilding claims
Because the Royal Navy tracked Germany's coal and imports through the blockade, it could judge whether projected capital-ship construction was industrially credible.