tween the years 1900 and 1902. Their motive power was heavier,
being 13,500 horsepower, and their speed was almost a knot faster.
Increase in the power of naval guns had made unnecessary any increase in
the thickness of their armor, and consequently ranged from 6 to 12
inches in thickness. Their armament was about the same as that of the
older class, but each carried two more torpedo tubes.

[Illustration: Map of German and English Naval positions.]

Discussion in naval circles throughout the world turned then to the
question of whether it were better to build heavier ships with heavier
armament, or to build lighter and faster ships designed to "hit and get
away." The British authorities inclined toward the former view, and
between 1901 and 1904 the British navy was augmented with the
_Implacable_, _London_, _Bulwark_, _Formidable_, _Venerable_, _Queen_,
_Irresistible_, and _Prince of Wales_--each of the heretofore unheard-of
displacement of 15,000 tons. In spite of their size they were
comparatively fast, having an average speed of 18 knots; they did not
need, and were not equipped with heavier armor, having plates as thin as
3 inches and as thick as 12. They were built to "take punishment," and
therefore they had no greater armament than the vessels previously
named. The naval program of 1908 and 1904 also included the _Duncan_,
_Albemarle_, _Russell_, _Cornwallis_, and _Exmouth_, each 1,000 tons
lighter than the ships of the _Implacable_ type, but with the same
equipment, defensive and offensive, and of the same speed. And in the
same program, as if to offset the argument for heavier and stronger
ships, there were included the lighter and faster ships, _Swiftsure_ and
_Triumph_, displacing only 11,500 tons, but making 19 knots. Their speed
permitted and necessitated lighter armor--10 inches through at the
thickest points--and their armament was also of a lighter type, for
their four largest guns were capable of firing 10-inch shells.

Germany was becoming a naval rival worthy of notice, and the insular
position of England came to be a matter of serious concern by 1906.
Britain has never considered the building of land forts for her
protection--her strength has always been concentrated in floating war
machines. She now began to build veritable floating forts, ships of
16,350 tons displacement. By the end of 1906 she had ready to give
battle eight ships of this class, the _King Edward VII_, _Commonwealth_,
_Dominion_