Treaty limits below the capital-ship category compressed destroyer, heavy-cruiser, and light-cruiser design into artificial ceilings. A little more armor, power, and fuel could have produced a more useful general-purpose ship without abandoning high speed. Instead, four lightly protected cruisers faced six French large destroyers whose 5.5-inch guns could exploit the Italian ships' weak hull protection. Large machinery spaces and limited subdivision also removed the damage tolerance that normally compensates a cruiser for being less maneuverable than a destroyer.
Notable Point · 16:08-18:54
Treaty ceilings distorted the cruiser design space
Treaty ceilings encouraged a specialized destroyer hunter that lacked the armor and subdivision needed to survive the weapons carried by its intended targets.