Q&A · 7:35:03-7:41:00

A three-dreadnought Turkish fleet and its regional arms race

Returning two British-built dreadnoughts to Turkey would create both a formidable fleet core and a severe financial burden.

Question

How would the Turkish navy develop if Britain returned the two seized dreadnoughts after the war?

Short answer

Turkey gains major firepower but also high upkeep costs, while neighboring and great powers respond with new construction and deployments.

Notes

Returning Erin and Agincourt after the Turkish War of Independence would give Turkey a powerful fleet core alongside Yavuz, formerly Goeben. Their upkeep would also absorb money otherwise available for naval development, creating a strong reason to preserve each ship carefully. Greece could respond with purchases from Britain, including a proposed order for treaty-compliant Nelson-type battleships. In the Black Sea, the Soviet navy would face pressure to concentrate its existing battleships or build more. Additional Soviet construction could then affect German planning in the Baltic and Japanese calculations farther east. A stronger British Mediterranean fleet and further Italian and French responses complete the counterfactual chain.