Why the small Dutch Navy trained adaptable officers

The Dutch Navy's small size required officers who could move between different ships and duties. Harmsen's varied experience illustrates a training culture that favoured broad understanding and cross-training. The Reichsmarine provides the contrast in this account, with a stronger emphasis on keeping officers closely specialized. Dutch officers were expected to study the demands of a new appointment and change their approach accordingly. An aggressive destroyer commander could therefore place greater emphasis on balanced gunnery exchanges when given a cruiser. The comparison with British and American officers concerns a tendency to retain a destroyerman's temperament even in senior command, rather than a claim that no other navy produced adaptable officers.