If the Lion-class battlecruisers survived as interwar training or accommodation ships, would they be considered for recommissioning before the Second World War?
Short answerRecommissioning is judged unlikely, beginning with the difficulty of retaining useful hulls under the treaties. Rapid conversion to carry twin 14-inch turrets is entertained only as a conditional possibility.
NotesThe first difficulty is explaining how the ships survive the treaty system in a condition useful for reconstruction. Even with that assumption, recommissioning is judged unlikely. A possible route would use the twin 14-inch turret available for the King George V class if it could be fitted quickly enough. The Lion hulls had been worked hard in the First World War, although they were not especially old when discarded. Their survival alone would therefore leave substantial questions about the cost and practicality of returning them to service.