Why the Allied fleet became so closely managed

Was Franco-Spanish micromanagement traditional, or did conflict and politics degrade the fleets?

It was a mixture: internal politics and inherited command habits mattered, but wartime losses and reduced experience also weakened effective delegation.

The Allied command problem arose from institutional habits and wartime degradation. Internal politics complicated delegation, while conflict and revolution reduced the pool of experienced personnel. The fleet still contained capable officers, so the explanation is not simple incompetence. The difficulty was converting individual talent into a practiced and trusted command system throughout the fleet.