How useful would the proposed Reina Victoria Eugenia-class battleships have been, and could ships ordered in 1914 receive Vickers 14-inch guns?
Short answerThey would be compact, hard-hitting coastal or regional deterrents; wartime supply constraints make Japanese-built 14-inch guns more plausible than British weapons if construction continued.
NotesThe ships are described as budget super-dreadnoughts that sacrifice range and some speed while retaining useful armor and heavy guns for Spanish waters. A three-active, three-reserve replacement cycle would give Spain a coherent long-term fleet plan. World War I would interrupt British supply and force machinery and ordnance sourcing through other industrial partners, making Japanese-built 14-inch guns and American machinery plausible. Domestic British-pattern 6-inch production could still support the secondary battery. The resulting squadron would give Spain compact regional capital ships suited to protecting coastal traffic and Moroccan commitments.