The HMS Dreadnought gives Britain the lead in the race for global naval supremacy
As Britain new warship HMS Dreadnought slid into the water at Portsmouth dockyard in 1906, the nature of the world's navies changed. All existing Battleships were now obsolete. Its design was so radical that it gives it name to a whole new style of ship. Inspired by the thinking of Admiral Fisher, once commander - in-chief of the Mediterranean fleet and now First Sea Lord, The professional head of the Royal Navy, the design brought together all the recent developments in propulsion, armor, and gunnery to create a fast, powerful ship capable of destroying any other ship. All future British warships would follow this model.
Other maritime nations - including the U.S,Japan,France,Italy and Russia - were obliged to follow this design if they were to project maritime power. But the major repercussions were felt in the new German Empire, where Kaiser Wilhelm II, supported by his navy minister, Admiral Tirpitz, had a policy of noval rivalry with Britain in the hope of challenging her predominance in the world's oceans. Both nations invested in more such ships with ever more sophisticated designs. The imperial German ship program was major worry for the British. In World War I, the two fleets would eventually face each other at the battle of Jutland, although although the outcome proved inconclusive.
The Dreadnought concept dominated the world's navies until the new technologies of submarines, aircraft and carriers. By the end of the World War II, the Dreadnought was obsolete.
As Britain new warship HMS Dreadnought slid into the water at Portsmouth dockyard in 1906, the nature of the world's navies changed. All existing Battleships were now obsolete. Its design was so radical that it gives it name to a whole new style of ship. Inspired by the thinking of Admiral Fisher, once commander - in-chief of the Mediterranean fleet and now First Sea Lord, The professional head of the Royal Navy, the design brought together all the recent developments in propulsion, armor, and gunnery to create a fast, powerful ship capable of destroying any other ship. All future British warships would follow this model.
Other maritime nations - including the U.S,Japan,France,Italy and Russia - were obliged to follow this design if they were to project maritime power. But the major repercussions were felt in the new German Empire, where Kaiser Wilhelm II, supported by his navy minister, Admiral Tirpitz, had a policy of noval rivalry with Britain in the hope of challenging her predominance in the world's oceans. Both nations invested in more such ships with ever more sophisticated designs. The imperial German ship program was major worry for the British. In World War I, the two fleets would eventually face each other at the battle of Jutland, although although the outcome proved inconclusive.
The Dreadnought concept dominated the world's navies until the new technologies of submarines, aircraft and carriers. By the end of the World War II, the Dreadnought was obsolete.
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