White's phrase "adjuncts to battleships" meant more than escort duty. British planners expected foreign fleets to bring cruisers into a battle line, where extra quick-firing guns and a lucky hit could alter an apparently even contest. Armoured cruisers therefore gave the Royal Navy a way to add hulls, heavy gunfire, and torpedoes beside its battleships. One tactical example places two mixed lines around six enemy battleships, forcing the central ships to fight on both beams. It explains why the Cressys' broadside and torpedoes were designed for fleet action even though their independent cruising role is often more familiar.
Notable Point · 25:57-28:31
How armoured cruisers could reinforce a battle line
The fleet-adjunct requirement envisioned armoured cruisers adding hulls, gunfire, and torpedoes when an enemy also committed cruisers beside its battleships.