Q&A · 2:43:33-2:44:57

Designing a County-class cruiser around 9.2-inch guns

Heavier guns would enlarge the County class and could change its secondary battery.

Question

What qualities would a 9.2-inch-gunned County class retain or change?

Short answer

It would remain recognizably a County but become larger and might adopt a heavier dual-purpose secondary battery.

Notes

A 9.2-inch County would probably retain broadly similar qualities but grow to around 12,000-14,000 tons. Its anti-aircraft battery could remain as it was historically. A larger main battery might nevertheless encourage heavier secondary weapons, especially the available 4.7-inch gun with an anti-aircraft version. That choice would replace the relationship between the historical 8-inch main armament and 4-inch secondaries with a similar proportion between larger guns. The decision could affect later armament development.