Konigsberg and Leipzig expose design governance

Would the Germans have been better off basing the Konigsberg and Leipzig cruisers on a modernized Emden-style design?

Possibly, but German design governance was the larger problem because too many non-specialist voices could shape detailed warship requirements.

The prompt asks whether the Germans would have done better by deriving the Konigsberg and Leipzig designs from Emden with more modern machinery and simpler shaft arrangements. That approach was plausible in principle, but the deeper problem was German design procedure: too many departments and senior voices could interfere below the level where they had useful expertise. Their status also made constructive challenge difficult, allowing non-specialist direction to override the people qualified to design the ship. The exchange links cruiser layout and machinery choices to institutional control over technical decisions.