Why a delayed Washington Treaty could raise battleship limits

Would a Washington Naval Treaty signed in the mid-1920s have raised the battleship displacement limit?

Probably, because completed 49,000-ton G3s could push the negotiated ceiling toward 50,000 tons and increase total allowances.

The counterfactual assumes the Washington negotiations are delayed long enough for Britain's G3s to enter service. At roughly 49,000 tons normal displacement, those ships would make a 35,000- or 40,000-ton ceiling politically and operationally unrealistic. The United States might then have to accept a limit near 50,000 tons rather than demand that Britain discard brand-new ships. A higher per-ship limit would likely be accompanied by a much larger aggregate battleship allowance. Treaty timing therefore changes not only which ships survive, but the baseline from which every navy designs its next generation.