Germany might have gained more by increasing the speed of its battle line than by maintaining separate battleship and battlecruiser programs. Britain would still have needed long-range battlecruisers to police an empire and counter commerce raiders, while also paying to keep its main fleet competitive with faster German battleships. A German fast-battleship policy could therefore have pressured two distinct Royal Navy requirements at the same time. The proposal is less about a perfect German ship than about imposing additional procurement costs on a larger opponent.
Notable Point · 25:39-26:43
Could a fast German battle line have strained the Royal Navy?
A German shift from separate battleships and battlecruisers to faster battleships might have forced Britain to accelerate two expensive capital-ship requirements at once.