Naval Historywith Dr. Alex

Q&A · 2:09:03-2:09:18

The three-ship Canadian Queen Elizabeth proposal

Under contemporary economic conditions, completing even two of three proposed Canadian Queen Elizabeths would have been a surprising success.

British EmpireCanadaCapital ShipsNaval ProcurementQueen Elizabeth Class BattleshipsRoyal Navy
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Question

How likely was the proposal for three Canadian Queen Elizabeth-class battleships to succeed?

Short answer

Very unlikely; even two completed ships would have been surprising under the economic conditions of the period.

Notes

The proposal imagines three Canadian Queen Elizabeth-class battleships alongside Australian and New Zealand capital-ship support. Contemporary economic conditions make that scale implausible. Completing even two of the three ships would have been a surprising success. Financing places a firm constraint around an otherwise attractive imperial fleet plan.