Q&A · 8:45:46-8:47:20

A 15-gun Dreadnought from early triple turrets

A favored alternate timeline begins with Vickers triple turrets and Elswick 14-inch guns reaching the Royal Navy before Dreadnought.

Question

Which alternate-history timeline is a favorite?

Short answer

One where the Royal Navy adopts an early Vickers triple turret and 14-inch gun, leading to a superfiring, fifteen-gun Dreadnought and a transformed naval arms race.

Notes

The scenario adopts an experimental Vickers triple turret for the Lord Nelson class and pairs it with an Elswick 14-inch gun. To satisfy Fisher's demand for forward fire, the mountings become superfiring, producing a radically more heavily armed Dreadnought with fifteen 14-inch guns. Historically, the director of naval construction handled the relevant meeting without Fisher becoming directly involved. That small change to a sales and design encounter could have redirected the opening move of the dreadnought race.