Hull dimensions were a strategic question as well as a naval-architecture detail. A ship that could enter many established dry docks could be maintained and deployed across an imperial network. Facilities in Britain, Gibraltar, Malta, Bermuda, Simon's Bay, Hong Kong, and elsewhere show the breadth of that support. Larger battlecruisers had fewer docking options and therefore less flexibility.
Notable Point · 9:47-11:38
Dockyard access as a design constraint
The cruiser’s dimensions mattered because Royal Navy dry docks from home waters to Malta, Gibraltar, Bermuda, and Hong Kong could accommodate it.