Distance as armour and the magazine risk

Queen Mary's sinking raises the question of why a battlecruiser with nine inches of armour was engaging at roughly 13 kilometres when its guns could reach about 21 kilometres. Battlecruisers were meant to use speed and distance as part of their protection, so fighting below about two-thirds of maximum range surrendered much of that advantage. Queen Mary nevertheless followed Beatty and supported Lion exactly as ordered, making the criticism one of tactical employment rather than shipboard obedience. A direct magazine hit can destroy almost any capital ship unless its crew floods the magazines quickly enough. Tactical employment created one risk, while a magazine detonation remained almost universally lethal.