Why all-forward gun arrangements appealed

Why choose a Nelson-style all-forward arrangement for a triple-turret battleship?

It maximizes forward firepower, a preference tied here to long-running Royal Navy thinking and Dreadnought's design.

Concentrated forward batteries fit an older Royal Navy preference for having six guns able to engage ahead. The discussion reaches back to the battle associated with Admiral Tegetthoff and the perceived viability of the steam ram to trace that line of thought. The preference helps explain Dreadnought's arrangement and shows that the Nelson-style concept had earlier roots. Fisher might have preferred as many as eight forward-firing guns if superfiring had been available. A later comment adds distrust of superfiring turrets as another reason for Dreadnought's five-twin layout.