Historical labels are rough guides because naval development does not fall into neatly bounded eras. Dreadnought nevertheless offers useful shorthand for a distinct combat system: a heavily armoured, turbine-powered battleship able to hit hard at long range. The all-big-gun battery was one part of that capability. Machinery, protection, gun arrangement, and the means to direct long-range fire had to work together, which is why some earlier all-big-gun concepts do not satisfy the definition used here.
Notable Point · 17:01-18:49
Dreadnought as a bundle of combat capabilities
The term dreadnought is most useful when it describes a heavily armoured, turbine-powered ship able to strike at long range.