Naval Historywith Dr. Alex

Q&A · 47:29-50:20

What an early end to naval treaties does to the 1930s fleet race

If the treaty system collapses in 1932, navies preserve more industrial capacity and move toward larger battleships and carriers before the historical rearmament cycle.

Aircraft CarriersBattleshipsInterwar PeriodLondon Naval TreatyNaval Arms RaceNaval ShipbuildingWashington Naval Treaty
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Question

What happens if the interwar naval treaties lapse in 1932 and no replacement limits are agreed?

Short answer

An earlier capital-ship race produces larger battleships and carriers while preserving shipyard and design capacity that treaties historically constrained.

Notes

In a scenario where the treaty limits lapse around 1932, each major navy's construction programme would provoke responses from the others. British and Japanese battleships could reach 18-inch guns by 1939 or 1940, with American adoption also considered possible. Britain could build the planned 27,000-ton carriers, including a larger Ark Royal, alongside destroyers, auxiliaries and sloops. Starting earlier would preserve industry and infrastructure otherwise lost over the following five years. Several new capital-ship classes could enter construction before the war, with refurbished R-class battleships potentially passing to the Dominions.