The Washington treaty assigned different carrier totals to the United States, British Empire, Japan, France, and Italy while regulating armament and conversions. The 1930 London rules also distinguished genuine carriers from ships merely fitted with flying platforms. The definitions closed off attempts to disguise capital ships as carriers while leaving seaplane carriers outside the main totals. The 10,000-ton provision discouraged British escort or cruiser carriers, while the Royal Navy increasingly wanted more carrier tonnage by the mid-1930s.
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How naval treaties shaped interwar carrier fleets
Treaty definitions, national tonnage quotas, gun limits, and the 10,000-ton rule constrained both large carriers and possible escort-carrier development.