The opening explains why history should be read forward instead of treated as a path to an inevitable outcome. A contemporary Brassey's annual survey provides a guide to what naval observers could see in guns, shells, armour, and warship design before the First World War. The source describes the period as one of marking time, yet devotes roughly ninety-six pages to arms and armour developments. Apparently quiet years could still contain dense technical and institutional change.
Chapter · 0:00-3:26
Reading prewar naval development forward
Contemporary Brassey's material presents pre-First World War naval arms and armour as people of the period encountered them.