2024/07/19 by Tim Benbow · 1 voice
Arts and Humanities · Social Sciences · #Maritime and Coastal Archaeology #Military History and Strategy #World Wars: History, Literature, and Impact
paper · doi:10.1093/hisres/htae016
openalex publication_date 2024/07/19 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/29
Abstract Received wisdom suggests that a conservative, even sentimental Royal Navy clung to the battleship long after it ceased to have any strategic rationale; that the battleship finally disappeared due to its vulnerability; and that its withdrawal was imposed on a reluctant admiralty by more enlightened politicians. This article challenges each of these assertions to argue that the admiralty in fact had a reasoned case for temporarily retaining battleships; they departed because other capabilities could better perform their role; and the admiralty actively developed these replacements, while rapidly shrinking and retiring its battleship fleet in the face of some political resistance.