How would Italian and Austro-Hungarian dreadnought designs respond to a superfiring 24-knot HMS Dreadnought?
Short answerItaly would probably pause while testing whether Dante Alighieri could reach the new speed, while Austria-Hungary would confront the same demanding benchmark.
NotesA 24-knot Dreadnought would raise the baseline against which other early dreadnoughts were judged. Italy could not simply continue unchanged if Dante Alighieri appeared slow at the moment of introduction. Austria-Hungary would face a similar requirement to reconsider its plans and machinery. One navy's design choice can impose delay and cost across an arms race even without a battle being fought.