The significance of Royal Navy cruiser procurement for British naval policy, 1904-1914

Abstract

In this paper it will be argued that the process of cruiser procurement and deployment within the Royal Navy between 1904 and 1914 has far greater significance for the study of British naval policy than has been warranted previously. Whilst much academic research into this critical period in the development of British maritime power has focused on the contributions of the Dreadnought and flotilla defence, in its ubiquitous and varied roles within the fleet and Empire, the cruiser remained the ultimate, active expression of Britain's maritime predominance, as it had been in previous eras. Close study of the evolution of the type reveals not only milestones in the course of naval technology and surface warfare but the cruiser offers the ultimate embodiment of political, economic and strategic imperatives underpinning the nation's widest defence interests – concerns encoded within the procurement process which it is intended to explore here alongside the development of the ships themselves. As well as offering insight into the genesis of a new warship type, the light cruiser, which was to have a marked influence upon Britain's future fleet, the study seeks to provide a better understanding of the procurement process itself, focusing especially upon its importance in reflecting broader defence priorities and planning for both the short and longer term. Conclusions suggest that the cruiser remained central to Britain's distinct defence requirements both in peacetime and war and, in its modernised form, offered the Royal Navy the prospect of continuing maritime predominance.

Date of Award	1 Jun 2021
Original language	English
Awarding Institution	King's College London
Supervisor	Andrew Lambert (Supervisor)