Convoy adoption in two world wars and the American escort gap

Did Britain adopt convoys much later in the First World War than in the Second World War?

Yes. Britain began the Second World War ready to convoy immediately, while the United States entered without enough escorts and later required British help and Flower-class corvettes.

Britain waited until well into the First World War before fully adopting convoys. The Second World War began differently: the Royal Navy implemented convoying from the start because the need was already understood. The United States, by contrast, lacked enough escorts for an effective system during its first months in the war. British assistance and Flower-class corvettes entering US Navy service reflected an urgent capability gap rather than an American preference for that ship type. Doctrine works only when suitable ships are ready to execute it.