British officers saw more in the German escape after Jutland than proof that darkness enabled withdrawal. They also saw a missed German opportunity to use confusion for an attack. A more numerous fleet had more friendly ships to misidentify and therefore more reasons to hesitate before firing. As the interwar Royal Navy contemplated simultaneous threats in several theatres, night training offered a way for a locally inferior force to exploit the same asymmetry.
Notable Point · 2:05:40-2:07:27
Darkness could turn a smaller fleet's weakness into an opportunity
The difficulty of distinguishing friend from foe could constrain a larger fleet more than a smaller opponent willing to attack aggressively.