Article 4 caps capital ships at 35,000 tons and initially limits guns to 14 inches. If Washington Treaty powers failed to accept that caliber, the ceiling reverted to 16 inches. The cited text contains no general 40,000-ton escalator. The agreement also prohibited new capital ships below 7,500 tons or with main guns under ten inches until 1943. The practical target of those clauses remains unclear, since such small, lightly armed ships would be badly mismatched against contemporary battleships.
Chapter · 21:08-24:47
The 35,000-ton ceiling and puzzling gun clauses
The treaty paired a 35,000-ton ceiling with a conditional 14-inch gun limit and unusual restrictions on very small or lightly armed capital ships.