Jacky Fisher's revolution in fleet concepts rested on technology he considered proven. Dreadnought retained a wing turret because Fisher would not risk a superfiring arrangement, even though a narrower and slightly longer layout might have produced a 24-knot ship. Yarrow had already developed promising small-tube boilers, but they had not yet won the same confidence. The Royal Navy later adapted this boiler lineage into the Admiralty three-drum system in the 1920s. Fisher could support a radical operational concept while remaining cautious about its component technology.
Notable Point · 8:30-10:21
Fisher's revolutions relied on conservative technology
Dreadnought's wing turret and the reluctance to use small-tube boilers reveal how Fisher paired radical fleet concepts with machinery and layouts he considered proven.