Tourville's later appearance reflected a major addition of anti-aircraft weapons after wartime experience made the original fit inadequate. The United States and Royal Navy declined a comprehensive modernisation of these ageing treaty cruisers, so the refits concentrated on weapons that could practically be removed and added. French leadership might have performed better than Italian command arrangements, but the available evidence cannot settle how the thinly protected ships would have fared. The upgrades adapted the ships to a changed war without overcoming the structural compromises chosen at launch.
Notable Point · 29:38-31:17
Wartime modernisation could not erase the design limits
Later anti-aircraft improvements made the elderly cruisers more useful, but their original lack of armour remained a serious Mediterranean concern.