Churchill's Baltic fortress proposal as a leadership test

Was Churchill's idea of turning R-class battleships into Baltic forts one of his worst naval schemes?

Not necessarily. It may have served partly as a leadership test: officers who returned with workable alternatives displayed more useful judgment than those who only rejected the idea.

The literal fortress plan was not a sound use of battleships. Churchill may instead have used the proposal to reveal how admirals responded under pressure. Officers who identified the flaws and developed better alternatives demonstrated initiative and fighting spirit, while those who supplied only objections were easier to sideline. The episode shows how a political leader might test military advice through an operational proposal that was unlikely to be adopted.