F3 design work began before the Washington negotiations, but it already anticipated the restrictions that the conference might produce. One participant therefore calls it technically a pre-Washington design, while another stresses that this chronology obscures its purpose. The work is placed about two months before negotiations began and continued while the treaty was being discussed. The design question concerned whether Britain should build a battleship or a battlecruiser under the expected constraints. Beatty's later preference for battleships is connected to the desire for strong units supporting the battle line.
Notable Point · 35:47-37:09
F3 and the timing of the Washington Naval Treaty
F3 began before formal treaty negotiations while already anticipating their likely limits, making the label pre-Washington contentious.