Britain resisted limits on smaller warships because its economy and empire depended on maritime trade, shipping, and insurance. Protecting sea lines of communication required numerous ships spread across distant routes. Cruisers were intended to counter surface raiders and other large threats to trade. Sloops supplied the anti-submarine part of that protection. The refusal to accept a cumulative limit below 10,000 tons later left room for a cruiser-sized carrier programme.
Notable Point · 12:27-13:18
Why Britain protected cruiser and sloop numbers
Britain kept smaller warships outside a cumulative limit because cruisers and sloops were essential to protecting maritime trade and imperial communications.