Naval Historywith Dr. Alex

Q&A · 1:49:34-1:50:28

Earlier 16-inch guns could redefine Dreadnought

If reliable 16-inch weapons were already common, Dreadnought might adopt them and force every rival's new standard upward at once.

16-inch GunsArms RacesHMS DreadnoughtNaval Gunnery
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Question

How would earlier successful heavy-gun development affect HMS Dreadnought?

Short answer

Dreadnought might begin with much heavier guns, immediately forcing rival all-big-gun ships to standardize at the new calibre.

Notes

Vickers was already pushing practical larger-gun designs when Dreadnought was conceived. A mature history of 16-inch manufacture would make that calibre a possible starting point rather than a later escalation. Rivals would then standardize their own all-big-gun ships around the heavier weapon. Dreadnought's revolutionary effect depended on both layout and the contemporary armament baseline.