The King George V, North Carolina, and Yamato classes were laid down in the same broad period but embodied very different political and technical choices. Britain already possessed experience relevant to triple 15- or 16-inch arrangements. The novel quadruple turret became one source of delay and difficulty, including problems affecting Prince of Wales. Treaty politics and institutional decisions made a nominally smaller weapon harder to deliver than a more familiar larger one.
Notable Point · 2:07:45-2:08:40
How gun politics complicated the King George V class
Choosing new 14-inch quadruple turrets added development trouble to the King George V class when established 15- or 16-inch arrangements might have entered service more smoothly.