Britain built a large share of the world's dreadnoughts during the roughly ten years before the First World War. Some British yards capable of building them still lacked enough orders and faced bankruptcy. Ship totals therefore understate the depth of unused industrial capacity. Germany would have faced the ships Britain had ordered and the additional construction Britain could mobilize under greater pressure. The passage invites comparison of each rival's ability to sustain capital-ship construction over time.
Notable Point · 2:08:43-2:09:13
British shipbuilding capacity in the dreadnought race
A short reflection on Britain building roughly a third of the world's dreadnoughts points to the industrial imbalance behind the Anglo-German naval race.