An American 16-inch treaty limit would be difficult to impose if Britain already operated 18-inch-gun ships, especially when Japan also had to accept the agreement. American leverage after the First World War was weaker than its position after the Second. British designers in this counterfactual might retain the 18-inch weapon or compromise at 16.5 inches for a higher rate of fire. That choice would then affect American construction, including whether the Colorado and South Dakota classes moved to 18-inch guns in response. The exercise follows one altered design into treaty bargaining and later naval procurement.
Chapter · 2:45:37-2:50:05
18-inch guns and a Washington Treaty counterfactual
A counterfactual asks whether a British 18-inch battleship would have made a 16-inch Washington Naval Treaty limit politically and strategically untenable.