Britain could use distant blockade and its global bases to isolate French trade without charging into a coastal ambush. Distant blockade meant attacking routes and economic connections rather than stationing a battle fleet directly outside every French port. France therefore needed enough capital strength to contest sea control and compel the British fleet to concentrate within reach of the torpedo force. A battle fleet was a proposed means of creating the encounter on which the smaller craft depended. Hard-line advocates resisted that accommodation because supporting battleships would appear to weaken their position.
Notable Point · 1:20:39-1:23:48
A viable Jeune École still needs a battle fleet
Even a flotilla-based coastal strategy needs battleships to compel an enemy fleet to come close enough for the flotillas to matter.