The Construction of Dreadnoughts

From the end of the 19th century onwards, the major European nations had been working to bolster their military positions. Britain and Germany in particular became fierce competitors in an expansion of naval power. The construction of Dreadnought warships by both countries, exemplified in this memorandum, was evidence of this. The German Kaiser Wilhelm II was determined to rival the naval supremacy of his cousin, King George V. Britain's lead in the naval arms race can be seen in the comparative statistics recorded in this document.