Jeune École: torpedo boats as a substitute for a fleet

The Jeune École offered France a way to threaten British battleships and trade without matching Britain ship for ship. That economy mattered because France also needed a major army against continental neighbours and could not direct unlimited resources to a naval race. The concept expected torpedo boats to defeat a British battle force or break a blockade, after which cruisers could attack global trade. Blockading vessels could instead be converted merchantmen backed by battle forces, while rapid-firing guns and manoeuvre made a torpedo-boat breakthrough hazardous. The doctrine recognized a real strategic constraint. It failed when it assumed an opponent would remain static and use its fleet in the most convenient way.