The alternative gives Britain and the United States about twenty capital ships each and Japan fourteen. At 35,000 tons per ship, the illustrative Anglo-American allowance becomes 700,000 tons. Britain might build four or five Nelson-type ships, with three Nelsons and two F3 designs offered as one possibility. Another version uses five ships with nine 16-inch guns, less emphasis on armour, and machinery for about 28 knots; a later reconsideration allows as many as six new ships. The United States might complete all four Colorados and some Lexingtons as capital ships. France and Italy might each receive room for eight capital ships, with possible Italian completion of a couple of Francesco Caracciolo-class ships. French reconstruction would still depend on what its economy could support. Treating battleships and battlecruisers within the same allowance could favour fast battleships able to perform duties associated with both types. The changing examples are alternative designs within the counterfactual.
Notable Point · 3:29:28-3:33:52
What a 7:10 Japanese ratio might have built
A higher treaty ceiling becomes a fleet-design exercise in how extra ships could ease Japanese insecurity while preserving Anglo-American industrial capacity.