French planners saw mines as useful after the Russo-Japanese War. A defensive field was poorly suited to defeating British sea power because it could help blockade France inside its own ports. Germany and Italy were more plausible threats, with the Franco-Prussian War still shaping French strategic thought. France also could not assume that Britain would enter a future conflict on its side. The later sacrifice of British and French forces fighting together can make the Entente Cordiale look firmer in hindsight than it appeared to contemporaries.
Notable Point · 14:10-16:26
Why the Entente Cordiale did not remove French uncertainty
French interest in mine warfare reflected continental threats and uncertainty about whether Britain would intervene, despite the Entente Cordiale.