Dutch 1913 battleship proposal
Encyclopedia
A Dutch
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
proposal to build new battleship
Battleship
A battleship is a large armored warship with a main battery consisting of heavy caliber guns. Battleships were larger, better armed and armored than cruisers and destroyers. As the largest armed ships in a fleet, battleships were used to attain command of the sea and represented the apex of a...
s (Dutch: slagschip) was originally tendered in 1912, after years of concern over the expansion of the Imperial Japanese Navy
Imperial Japanese Navy
The Imperial Japanese Navy was the navy of the Empire of Japan from 1869 until 1947, when it was dissolved following Japan's constitutional renunciation of the use of force as a means of settling international disputes...
and the withdrawal of allied British warships from the China Station
China Station
The China Station was a historical formation of the British Royal Navy. It was formally the units and establishments responsible to the Commander-in-Chief, China....
. Only four coastal defense ships were planned, but naval experts and the Tweede Kamer (lower house of the parliament) believed that acquiring dreadnoughts would provide a stronger defense for the Nederlands-Indië
Dutch East Indies
The Dutch East Indies was a Dutch colony that became modern Indonesia following World War II. It was formed from the nationalised colonies of the Dutch East India Company, which came under the administration of the Netherlands government in 1800....
(Netherlands East Indies, abbr. NEI), so a Royal Commission was formed in June 1912.
In August 1913 the Royal Commission reported back. It recommended that the Koninklijke Marine
Royal Netherlands Navy
The Koninklijke Marine is the navy of the Netherlands. In the mid-17th century the Dutch Navy was the most powerful navy in the world and it played an active role in the wars of the Dutch Republic and later those of the Batavian Republic and the Kingdom of the Netherlands...
(Royal Navy) acquire nine dreadnought
Dreadnought
The dreadnought was the predominant type of 20th-century battleship. The first of the kind, the Royal Navy's had such an impact when launched in 1906 that similar battleships built after her were referred to as "dreadnoughts", and earlier battleships became known as pre-dreadnoughts...
-type battleships to protect the NEI from attack and help guarantee the country's neutrality in Europe. Five of these would be based in the colony, while the other four would operate out of the Netherlands. Seven foreign companies submitted designs for the contract; naval historians believe that the 26,850-long-ton
Long ton
Long ton is the name for the unit called the "ton" in the avoirdupois or Imperial system of measurements, as used in the United Kingdom and several other Commonwealth countries. It has been mostly replaced by the tonne, and in the United States by the short ton...
(27,280 tonnes) ship, whose design was submitted by the German firm Friedrich Krupp Germaniawerft
Friedrich Krupp Germaniawerft
Friedrich Krupp Germaniawerft was a German shipbuilding company, located in the harbour at Kiel, and one of the largest and most important builders of U-boats for the Kaiserliche Marine in World War I and the Kriegsmarine in World War II.-History:The company was founded in 1867 by Lloyd Foster, as...
, would have been eventually selected.
The Royal Commission's proposal led to a debate between senior officers in the Navy and the Koninklijke Landmacht
Royal Netherlands Army
The Royal Netherlands Army is the land forces element of the military of the Netherlands.-Short history:The Royal Netherlands Army was raised on 9 January 1814, but its origins date back to 1572, when the so-called Staatse Leger was raised...
(Royal Army) over how to best protect the NEI, while the question of how the cost of the ships should be split between the Netherlands and the NEI also was not settled until July 1914. After considering the recommendations, the Dutch Government decided to acquire four battleships, and a bill seeking funding for them was introduced into the Dutch parliament in August 1914. However, this was withdrawn following the outbreak of the First World War
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
that month. A new royal commission into Dutch defense needs held after the war did not recommend that battleships be procured and none were ever ordered.
Background
During the early years of the 20th century, the Dutch became concerned about their ability to defend their colonial empire in the NEI from foreign aggressors. Fears of an eventual Japanese attack developed following the total defeat of the Russian Pacific and Baltic FleetBaltic Fleet
The Twice Red Banner Baltic Fleet - is the Russian Navy's presence in the Baltic Sea. In previous historical periods, it has been part of the navy of Imperial Russia and later the Soviet Union. The Fleet gained the 'Twice Red Banner' appellation during the Soviet period, indicating two awards of...
s in the Russo–Japanese War. Moreover, the withdrawal of most of the British China Station's
China Station
The China Station was a historical formation of the British Royal Navy. It was formally the units and establishments responsible to the Commander-in-Chief, China....
warships in 1905 meant that there was no credible force in the Pacific to deter the Imperial Japanese Navy
Imperial Japanese Navy
The Imperial Japanese Navy was the navy of the Empire of Japan from 1869 until 1947, when it was dissolved following Japan's constitutional renunciation of the use of force as a means of settling international disputes...
, which had been victorious over the Russians and was building cruisers with 300 mm (11.8 in) guns.
At the time, the Dutch naval force in the NEI, the Dutch Squadron in the East Indies, was widely seen as inadequate. It comprised a small number of destroyer
Destroyer
In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast and maneuverable yet long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy or battle group and defend them against smaller, powerful, short-range attackers. Destroyers, originally called torpedo-boat destroyers in 1892, evolved from...
s, ironclads and armored cruiser
Armored cruiser
The armored cruiser was a type of warship of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Like other types of cruiser, the armored cruiser was a long-range, independent warship, capable of defeating any ship apart from a battleship, and fast enough to outrun any battleships it encountered.The first...
s, most of which were not battle-worthy. In response to the perceived threat of Japanese attack, the Dutch laid down a coastal defense ship, , and eight destroyer
Destroyer
In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast and maneuverable yet long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy or battle group and defend them against smaller, powerful, short-range attackers. Destroyers, originally called torpedo-boat destroyers in 1892, evolved from...
s of the , while beginning plans for other ships. In addition, a submarine for the colony was approved in 1911. Four coast defense ships were projected in one of the two major bill
Bill (proposed law)
A bill is a proposed law under consideration by a legislature. A bill does not become law until it is passed by the legislature and, in most cases, approved by the executive. Once a bill has been enacted into law, it is called an act or a statute....
s to come before the House of Representatives in 1912. Specifications for these ships included an armament of four 280-mm (11-inch) and ten 102-mm (4-inch) guns and three torpedo tubes and they would have been armored with a belt
Belt armor
Belt armor is a layer of heavy metal armor plated on to or within outer hulls of warships, typically on battleships, battlecruisers and cruisers, and on aircraft carriers converted from those types of ships....
of 152-mm (6-inch) and turret
Gun turret
A gun turret is a weapon mount that protects the crew or mechanism of a projectile-firing weapon and at the same time lets the weapon be aimed and fired in many directions.The turret is also a rotating weapon platform...
armor of 203 mm (8 inches). Two triple-expansion engines generating 10,000 indicated horsepower would drive the ships through the water at 18 kn (21.9 mph; 35.3 km/h). One ship of this design was very close to being authorized in 1912, but it was felt by experts and the House of Representatives that the Netherlands would be better served by constructing dreadnought
Dreadnought
The dreadnought was the predominant type of 20th-century battleship. The first of the kind, the Royal Navy's had such an impact when launched in 1906 that similar battleships built after her were referred to as "dreadnoughts", and earlier battleships became known as pre-dreadnoughts...
s of a type similar to the Spanish . Further plans for coast-defense ships were shelved pending the findings of a Royal Commission
Royal Commission
In Commonwealth realms and other monarchies a Royal Commission is a major ad-hoc formal public inquiry into a defined issue. They have been held in various countries such as the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and Saudi Arabia...
, formed on 5 June 1912. Its goal was to evaluate what steps the Dutch should take to improve the defenses of the East Indies.
Meanwhile, in September 1912 the Navy Minister, Hendrikus Colijn
Hendrikus Colijn
Hendrikus Colijn was a successful Dutch soldier, businessman and politician.-Early life:He was born in 1869 in the Haarlemmermeer to Antonie Colijn and Anna Verkuil, who had migrated to the Haarlemmermeer polder from the Land of Heusden and Altena for religious reasons...
, contacted the German firm Friedrich Krupp Germaniawerft
Friedrich Krupp Germaniawerft
Friedrich Krupp Germaniawerft was a German shipbuilding company, located in the harbour at Kiel, and one of the largest and most important builders of U-boats for the Kaiserliche Marine in World War I and the Kriegsmarine in World War II.-History:The company was founded in 1867 by Lloyd Foster, as...
and asked them to prepare a design for dreadnought battleships suited to the NEI. Germaniawerft submitted their design to the Royal Netherlands Navy on 25 September 1912. The proposed ships were similar to the German Kaiser class, though they mounted eight 343 mm (13.5 in) L/50 guns in four turrets mounted en echelon rather than ten 305 mm (12 in) guns in five turrets, had two less 150 mm (5.9 in) medium guns, were 1 knots (2 km/h) faster and had a longer range. The proposed ships' armor protection was lighter than that of the Kaiser class, and was similar to that used in contemporary German battlecruiser
Battlecruiser
Battlecruisers were large capital ships built in the first half of the 20th century. They were developed in the first decade of the century as the successor to the armoured cruiser, but their evolution was more closely linked to that of the dreadnought battleship...
s. By the time the design was proposed the Dutch authorities had decided that mounting the armament en echelon was inferior to superfiring
Superfire
The idea of superfire is to locate two turrets in a row, one behind the other, but with the second turret located above the one in front so that the second turret could fire over the first...
turrets, and asked Germaniawerft to submit a revised design incorporating this armament, enhanced ammunition storage and other minor improvements.
Proposal
Torpedo boat
A torpedo boat is a relatively small and fast naval vessel designed to carry torpedoes into battle. The first designs rammed enemy ships with explosive spar torpedoes, and later designs launched self-propelled Whitehead torpedoes. They were created to counter battleships and other large, slow and...
s (also already completed, though they were old), eight large submarine
Submarine
A submarine is a watercraft capable of independent operation below the surface of the water. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability...
s and two large minelayer
Minelayer
Minelaying is the act of deploying explosive mines. Historically this has been carried out by ships, submarines and aircraft. Additionally, since World War I the term minelayer refers specifically to a naval ship used for deploying naval mines...
s. This ambitious plan was estimated to cost nearly ƒ17,000,000 each year for the next 35 (until 1949), adding up to about ƒ595,000,000; this would triple the Navy's budget. The Commission recommended that the cost of the fleet be partially offset by reducing the size of the Koninklijk Nederlands Indisch Leger (Royal Dutch East Indies Army) as the Navy would provide a stronger defense from attack than the Army could.
The requirement for nine battleships was determined by the defense needs of both the Netherlands and NEI. The Commission recommended that four battleships be active at all times in the NEI, with a fifth ship held in reserve there. The remaining four battleships would be based in the Netherlands. Ships sent to the NEI would return to Europe after twelve years in the tropics and complete another eight years service before being scrapped.
The Dutch Navy would need a significant manpower expansion of 2,800 sailors to crew all of the proposed battleships. The Commission believed that it was unlikely that sufficient Dutch citizens would volunteer, and that as a result Indonesian sailors should be recruited and trained for service in the NEI. Strong segregation
Racial segregation
Racial segregation is the separation of humans into racial groups in daily life. It may apply to activities such as eating in a restaurant, drinking from a water fountain, using a public toilet, attending school, going to the movies, or in the rental or purchase of a home...
between white and Indonesian sailors was to be maintained to the extent possible.
One member of the Commission, the chief accountant of the Ministry of Finance, A. van Gijn, objected to the report's conclusions. He provided a note to Queen Wilhelmina
Wilhelmina of the Netherlands
Wilhelmina was Queen regnant of the Kingdom of the Netherlands from 1890 to 1948. She ruled the Netherlands for fifty-eight years, longer than any other Dutch monarch. Her reign saw World War I and World War II, the economic crisis of 1933, and the decline of the Netherlands as a major colonial...
, which argued that advocates of building large warships had forced their views on the other members of the commission. Moreover, he believed that the proposed fleet would be inadequate given the rapid naval expansion being undertaken by the major powers, and that if it was adopted there would be a requirement to buy further dreadnoughts in order to keep pace. This note was included as an appendix to the report.
The Royal Commission's proposals were extensively debated. Hendrick Van Kol, who was one of the leaders of the Social Democratic Workers' Party
Social Democratic Workers' Party (Netherlands)
The Social Democratic Workers' Party was a Dutch socialist political party and a predecessor of the social-democratic PvdA.-1893-1904:...
, argued that building up a strong fleet would hinder Dutch neutrality by making it impossible to avoid battle with foreign fleets which passed through NEI waters en-route to other destinations. Other critics of the plan believed that it would be unwise for the Netherlands to join the naval arms race
Arms race
The term arms race, in its original usage, describes a competition between two or more parties for the best armed forces. Each party competes to produce larger numbers of weapons, greater armies, or superior military technology in a technological escalation...
which was taking place in Europe at the time, and that competition between the major powers would mean that none of them would allow another nation to occupy either the Netherlands or NEI. The Dutch Army also opposed the development of a strong fleet in the NEI, arguing that a land force centered on Java
Java
Java is an island of Indonesia. With a population of 135 million , it is the world's most populous island, and one of the most densely populated regions in the world. It is home to 60% of Indonesia's population. The Indonesian capital city, Jakarta, is in west Java...
would be better able to mount a prolonged resistance against a large invasion force and that reducing the size of the Army to fund the fleet would leave it unable to suppress insurrections. The Governor-General of the NEI
Governor-General of the Dutch East Indies
The Governor-General of the Dutch East Indies represented the Dutch rule in the Dutch East Indies between 1610 and Dutch recognition of the independence of Indonesia in 1949.The first Governors-General were appointed by the Dutch East India Company...
, Alexander Willem Frederik Idenburg
Alexander Willem Frederik Idenburg
Alexander Willem Frederik Idenburg was a Dutch politician of the Anti Revolutionary Party who served as Governor-General of the Dutch East Indies....
, argued that both a stronger Army and Navy were necessary, and advocated for seven battleships to be stationed in the Indies. He believed that the cost of this alternative could be managed by reducing the planned battleship force in European waters to three small ships. Other supporters of the proposal, led by the Onze Vloot ("Our Fleet") naval advocacy association, argued that it was necessary to build a strong fleet which was capable of defending the NEI as the loss of the colonial empire would greatly damage the Dutch economy and reduce the country's prestige.
After considering the Royal Commission's recommendations the Dutch Government decided to purchase four battleships. All the ships were to be permanently stationed in the NEI, and none would be used in European waters. The ships were larger than those proposed by the commission, however. Idenburg opposed this decision, and unsuccessfully argued for at least a fifth battleship to be built. In October 1913 it was rumored that the Government was about to order the first ship, and that it would be paid for by a loan borne by NEI.
Design
Germaniawerft submitted a revised battleship design (designated Project No. 753) to the Dutch Navy on 4 March 1913, well before the Royal Commission reported back to the Government. As requested, the new design mounted its main armament in superfiring turrets. Other changes included an increase in the number of 150 mm (5.9 in) guns to sixteen, a 0.5 knot (0.979919999216064 km/h) faster maximum speed, different armor protection, replacement of two of the side-launching torpedoTorpedo
The modern torpedo is a self-propelled missile weapon with an explosive warhead, launched above or below the water surface, propelled underwater towards a target, and designed to detonate either on contact with it or in proximity to it.The term torpedo was originally employed for...
tubes with a single stern tube and an increase in the number of rounds carried for each gun from 60 to 100 for the main armament and 100 to 150 for the medium guns. The new design also had a single funnel and a tripod mast that supported a director tower. Displacement was increased from 19,535 tons to 20,040 tons. Germaniawerft submitted a modified version of this design later in the year which increased the ships' displacement to 20,700 tons and substituted eight 343 mm (13.5 inch) L/45 guns mounted in two quadruple turrets which were better protected than the four double turrets in the Project No. 753 proposal. This design was not accepted, however.
A meeting chaired by the Navy Minister, Jean Jacques Rambonnet
Jean Jacques Rambonnet
Jean Jacques Rambonnet was a Dutch, naval officer, politician and Scouting official.-Scouting:...
, was held on 10 November 1913 to finalize the battleships' specifications. It was decided that the ships would be armed with eight 343 mm (13.5 inch) L/45 guns in four superfiring turrets mounted on the centerline, a secondary armament of sixteen 150 mm (5.9 inch) and twelve 75 mm (75 inch) guns and at least two, possibly four, 533 mm (21 inch) side-launching submerged torpedo tubes and a single stern torpedo tube. The ships were to have a speed of at least 21 knots (41.2 km/h) and an endurance of more than 5000 nautical miles (9,260 km) at 12 knots (23.5 km/h). They would be propelled by oil-fired boilers powering turbines and three or four propeller shafts. Armor protection would comprise a main belt
Belt armor
Belt armor is a layer of heavy metal armor plated on to or within outer hulls of warships, typically on battleships, battlecruisers and cruisers, and on aircraft carriers converted from those types of ships....
at least 250 mm (9.8 inches) thick and at least 300 mm (11.8 inches) over the gun turrets and conning tower
Conning tower
A conning tower is a raised platform on a ship or submarine, often armored, from which an officer can con the vessel; i.e., give directions to the helmsman. It is usually located as high on the ship as practical, to give the conning team good visibility....
. A crew of 110 officers and petty officers and 750 ratings
Naval rating
A Naval Rating is an enlisted member of a country's Navy, subordinate to Warrant Officers and Officers hence not conferred by commission or warrant...
was envisioned, and designers were permitted to reduce the armor protection at ships' bow and stern to save weight for improvements to crew living conditions if necessary.
On 13 March 1914 the Dutch Government altered the battleships' specifications to require a displacement of 25,000 tons, main armament of 356 mm (14 inch) guns, speed of 22 kn (26.8 mph; 43.1 km/h) and endurance of 6000 nmi (6,904.7 mi; 11,112 km). The specified speed was faster than normal for contemporary battleships and their belt armor protection was relatively thin. These characteristics were meant to aid the ships in fighting on the Java Sea
Java Sea
The Java Sea is a large shallow sea on the Sunda Shelf. It was formed as sea levels rose at the end of the last ice age. The Java Sea lies between the Indonesian islands of Borneo to the north, Java to the south; Sumatra to the west, and Sulawesi to the east...
; with the good visibility common in that area, naval battles could—and most likely would—be fought at a longer range than would be feasible in other areas like the North Sea
North Sea
In the southwest, beyond the Straits of Dover, the North Sea becomes the English Channel connecting to the Atlantic Ocean. In the east, it connects to the Baltic Sea via the Skagerrak and Kattegat, narrow straits that separate Denmark from Norway and Sweden respectively...
, meaning that more shells would strike the deck rather than the belt.
Eleven firms or groups of firms were invited to tender to build the ships, with proposals due on 4 June 1914. Proposals were received from seven firms; Germaniawerft
Friedrich Krupp Germaniawerft
Friedrich Krupp Germaniawerft was a German shipbuilding company, located in the harbour at Kiel, and one of the largest and most important builders of U-boats for the Kaiserliche Marine in World War I and the Kriegsmarine in World War II.-History:The company was founded in 1867 by Lloyd Foster, as...
, Blohm & Voss
Blohm + Voss
Blohm + Voss , is a German shipbuilding and engineering works. It is a subsidiary of ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems; there were plans to sell 80% of Blohm + Voss to Abu Dhabi Mar Group, but talks collapsed in July 2011.-History:It was founded on April 5, 1877, by Hermann Blohm and Ernst Voss as a...
, AG Vulcan in cooperation with Bethlehem Steel
Bethlehem Steel
The Bethlehem Steel Corporation , based in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, was once the second-largest steel producer in the United States, after Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania-based U.S. Steel. After a decline in the U.S...
and AG Weser
AG Weser
Aktien-Gesellschaft Weser was one of the great German shipbuilding companies, located at the Weser River in Bremen. Founded in 1873 it was finally closed in 1983. Altogether, AG Weser built about 1400 ships of different types, including many war ships...
from Germany as well as the British firms Sir W G Armstrong Whitworth & Co
Armstrong Whitworth
Sir W G Armstrong Whitworth & Co Ltd was a major British manufacturing company of the early years of the 20th century. Headquartered in Elswick, Newcastle upon Tyne, Armstrong Whitworth engaged in the construction of armaments, ships, locomotives, automobiles, and aircraft.-History:In 1847,...
, Fairfield Shipbuilding and Engineering Company
Fairfield Shipbuilding and Engineering Company
The Fairfield Shipbuilding and Engineering Company, Limited was a British shipbuilding company in the Govan area on the Clyde in Glasgow. Fairfields, as it is often known, was a major warship builder, turning out many vessels for the Royal Navy and other navies through the First World War and the...
and Vickers
Vickers
Vickers was a famous name in British engineering that existed through many companies from 1828 until 1999.-Early history:Vickers was formed in Sheffield as a steel foundry by the miller Edward Vickers and his father-in-law George Naylor in 1828. Naylor was a partner in the foundry Naylor &...
. It is believed that Armstrong submitted at least five different designs. As Dutch shipyards lacked the capability to build large battleships the ships would have been constructed abroad.
The proposal from Germaniawerft (designated Project No. 806) is regarded by both Conway's and historian Anthonie van Dijk as being the most likely to have been selected. This design envisioned 24,605 long ton ships with a length of 184 meters (604 ft), beam of 28 metres (91.9 ft) and draft of 9 metres (29.5 ft). The main armament of eight 356 mm guns was to be mounted in four superfiring
Superfire
The idea of superfire is to locate two turrets in a row, one behind the other, but with the second turret located above the one in front so that the second turret could fire over the first...
turrets, while the sixteen 150 mm guns would be placed in casemate
Casemate
A casemate, sometimes rendered casement, is a fortified gun emplacement or armored structure from which guns are fired. originally a vaulted chamber in a fortress.-Origin of the term:...
s about 6 metres (19.7 ft) above the waterline. Their machinery would include six double-ended boilers and one single-ended boiler and three turbine sets were to drive three propeller shafts. Armor would have included a belt
Belt armor
Belt armor is a layer of heavy metal armor plated on to or within outer hulls of warships, typically on battleships, battlecruisers and cruisers, and on aircraft carriers converted from those types of ships....
of 250 mm amidships and 150 mm to fore and aft. Germaniawerft reserved the right to subcontract Blohm & Voss to build some of the ships and offered a delivery time for the first ship of 28 months following the date the order was made.
Other major proposals included the ones from Blohm & Voss and Vickers. While both included the same armament as Germania, the former design had a smaller displacement—26,055 long tons (26,473 metric tons) versus 28,033 long tons (28,483 t)—and devoted a greater amount of weight to protection: 8,974 long tons (9,118 t, 34.8% of the displacement), versus 8,820 long tons (8,960 t, 31.77%). Blohm & Voss' design included a belt starting at 150 mm in the bow, increasing to 250 mm, then tapering to 100 millimetres (3.9 in) in the stern. It would have been powered by six double-ended coal boilers with oil burners alongside. These boilers would have generated 38,000 shaft horsepower (shp) to drive four propellers, giving the ships a maximum speed of 22 kn (26.8 mph; 43.1 km/h). Only one rudder would have been fitted. The Vickers design had a shorter belt of 250 mm amidships, and would have used 15 boilers with oil burners to provide 34,000 shp and the same 22 knots.
Weight distribution
| Component | Germaniawerft | Blohm & Voss | Vickers |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hull | 7554 long tons (7,675.2 t), 28.45% | 7510 long tons (7,630.5 t), 29.20% | 8535 long tons (8,672 t), 30.76% |
| Armor | 9310 long tons (9,459.4 t), 34.97% | 8974 long tons (9,118 t), 34.8% | 8820 long tons (8,961.6 t), 31.77% |
| Engines | 2160 long tons (2,194.7 t), 8.14% | 2074 long tons (2,107.3 t), 7.96% | 2406 long tons (2,444.6 t), 8.67% |
| Armament | 3565 long tons (3,622.2 t), 13.43% | 3699 long tons (3,758.4 t), 10.46% | 3415 long tons (3,469.8 t), 12.31% |
| Fuel | 2362 long tons (2,399.9 t), 8.89% | 2982 long tons (3,029.9 t), 11.55% | 2952 long tons (2,999.4 t), 10.64% |
| Equipment | 1624 long tons (1,650.1 t), 6.12% | 1555 long tons (1,580 t), 6.03% | 1625 long tons (1,651.1 t), 5.85% |
| Weight margin | 275 long tons (279.4 t) | 261 long tons (265.2 t) | 280 long tons (284.5 t) |
| Total displacement | 26850 long tons (27,280.9 t), 100% | 26055 long tons (26,473.2 t), 100% | 28033 long tons (28,482.9 t), 100% |
Debate over costs
There was an extensive debate over how to divide the cost of the proposed fleet between the Netherlands and NEI. The members of the Royal Commission were split on this question; while a minority preferred an equal division, the majority wanted the NEI to pay most of the costs. The public debate on this issue was centered around the questions of who should pay for the ships and who would make the greatest profits from the NEI remaining under Dutch rule. Arguments against the NEI paying for the ships included that the resources required were needed to fund economic and social development and that the cost of the ships would increase opposition to Dutch rule, thereby worsening the security situation in the NEI. Some critics of the plan also argued that it was unreasonable to expect the Dutch subjects in the NEI pay for ships intended to prolong colonial rule. In contrast, Onze Vloot published pamphlets which claimed that Dutch rule was seen as beneficial in the NEI and that both white and native residents of the islands would be willing to pay for the ships as they were necessary to guarantee its continuation. These pamphlets also argued that the cost of the ships was modest compared to the NEI's economic output.
Thomas Bastiaan Pleyte
Thomas Bastiaan Pleyte was a Dutch politician.Pleyte was minister of Colonies in the Cort van der Linden administration...
, believed that the NEI's population needed to be sheltered from the cost of the ships to the extent possible so that funding for welfare projects was not reduced or taxes increased from what were already high levels. In 1914 he settled on a plan under which the necessary revenue would be raised through increasing the taxes on export duties and freight moved by privately-owned railways and ships.
A bill setting out arrangements for funding and building the fleet was finalized in mid-July 1914. At this time the Navy had not yet settled on a final battleship design. It was planned that the first ship's keel
Keel
In boats and ships, keel can refer to either of two parts: a structural element, or a hydrodynamic element. These parts overlap. As the laying down of the keel is the initial step in construction of a ship, in British and American shipbuilding traditions the construction is dated from this event...
would be laid in December 1914 and fitting out be completed sometime in 1918. The bill was not immediately introduced into parliament, however, as Idenburg was given until 10 August to comment on it. The outbreak of the First World War
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
led to the bill being withdrawn due to the uncertain international circumstances and the fact that the war made it impossible to buy battleships from foreign shipbuilders. Instead, the Government ordered three s in 1915, though only two were completed.
A new Royal Commission into the defense of the Netherlands and NEI was held during 1920 and 1921. This Commission did not recommend that any battleships be constructed; instead it proposed that all ships under construction as at 31 December be completed along with a further two cruisers, twelve destroyers and sixteen submarines. This plan was considered unaffordable, however, especially given the strength of the disarmament
Disarmament
Disarmament is the act of reducing, limiting, or abolishing weapons. Disarmament generally refers to a country's military or specific type of weaponry. Disarmament is often taken to mean total elimination of weapons of mass destruction, such as nuclear arms...
movement internationally. A Navy Bill to fund a reduced version of the Royal Commission's proposal was introduced to parliament in November 1921, but was eventually defeated by a single vote in October 1923. Renewed Dutch concerns over Japanese aggression in the late 1930s led to a proposal to build three Design 1047 battlecruiser
Design 1047 battlecruiser
Design 1047, also known as Project 1047, was a series of plans for a class of Dutch battlecruisers prior to the Second World War. The ships were intended to counter a perceived threat posed by Imperial Japanese aggression to the Dutch colonies in the East Indies...
s for service in the NEI, but construction of these ships had not begun when the Netherlands was overrun by German forces
Battle of the Netherlands
The Battle of the Netherlands was part of Case Yellow , the German invasion of the Low Countries and France during World War II. The battle lasted from 10 May 1940 until 14 May 1940 when the main Dutch forces surrendered...
in May 1940.