HMS Dreadnought Launched: Naval Warfare Transformed
HMS Dreadnought launched in February 1906 and made every other warship on Earth obsolete overnight. Ten 12-inch guns, all centerline mounted. Steam turbines instead of reciprocating engines — faster than anything afloat. Britain built her in a year and four months, half the usual time, specifically to shock the world. It worked. Germany, France, Russia, Japan — everyone scrambled to build their own. The global arms race that helped trigger World War I started with a single hull sliding into Portsmouth Harbor. Britain had the world's largest navy when Dreadnought launched. By making their own fleet obsolete, they'd reset the count to zero and dared everyone to catch up.
February 10, 1906
120 years ago
Key Figures & Places
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