The Dreadnought race amongst the European powers ran at such a pace that a new ship could be obsolete in less than 12 months. Gun sizes did the same, from 2xtwin 12" to 4xtriple 12", 8/10x13.5" and 14". eight or nine 15" in twins or triples then the 16" armed ships with eight or more guns. Then General George Washington got out his axe and chopped everyone down. The huge ships with 16" and 18" guns disappeared into the history books of never were designs and the worlds Navies had to come to terms with 16" guns and a 35,000 ton limit. Before that came into being, the Navies had to complete their last World War One battleship classes.
The Dido class followed the Malchus class with four twin turrets, but the size went from 14" to 16". The other thing that changed was the Greenland Navy went from two ship classes to a three ship class. The ships would displace over 32,000 tons, almost 25% bigger than the Malchus type. They were to be the pinnacle of Greenland's Naval designs. The ships arrived at the Grand Fleet anchorage at Scapa Flow too late for Jutland, and spent the rest of the war doing not much. The ships made a very good impression, dwarfing the Queen Elizabeth class ships. There was no doubt these ships would be kept and refurbished through the 1930's.
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After a complete 'B' to 'X' rebuild, the three ships looked brand new. The biggest changes were what couldn't be seen. A new 7" armoured deck. New machinery to produce slightly more power to increase the speed by two knots. By 1940 the first signs of Radar control for the different directors controlling the main, secondary and tertiary armaments appeared all over the ship. Search radars for air and sea also appeared on the masts. It was in this guise the ships joined the Allied Fleet on the outbreak of World War Two.
And there we have to leave the Dido class as they have the GNS Hannibal as their divisional leader, which is my next drawing. Then we might explore some battles.
