Formidable visited the Aegean in September 1902 and joined combined Mediterranean Fleet manoeuvres near Nafplio in Greece. The deployment served more than a training purpose: visible British naval power reassured Greece amid concern about the Ottoman Empire. At the same time, the visit warned a friendly government against starting a confrontation on the assumption that Britain would automatically support it. Exercises, port visits, and battleship presence could communicate both commitment and restraint. Naval diplomacy here meant limiting losses and managing an ally's expectations as well as displaying friendship.
Notable Point · 24:23-25:19
Mediterranean exercises as naval diplomacy
Formidable’s 1902 exercises near Nafplio show how Mediterranean fleet movements could reassure Greece while also discouraging an unwanted crisis with the Ottoman Empire.