Trading an R-class battleship for Tribal destroyers

Which capital ship would you exchange for its weight in destroyers available in 1939?

He would choose one R-class battleship for roughly two Tribal flotillas, while retaining the rest because their presence still discouraged surface raiders from attacking convoys.

The proposed exchange is one R-class battleship for roughly two additional Tribal flotillas, while retaining the Royal Navy's other capital ships. The Tribals would add fast general-purpose escorts and some of the fleet's best destroyer-based air defence at the beginning of the war. If a second R-class ship had to go, L- or M-class destroyers would be another option. The older battleships still mattered as convoy deterrents: a raider had to reckon with 15-inch guns even when the escort could not chase it. The choice separates the value of modern destroyers from the specific strategic work of a convoy battleship.