ed 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 1903 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, Hindustan, Africa, Hibernia, Zealandia_, and _Britannia_.
Speed was not sacrificed to weight, for they were given a speed
of 18.5 knots, developed by engines of 18,000 horsepower. Their
thinnest armor measured 6 inches, and their heavy guns were protected
with plates 12 inches thick. The 12-inch gun was still the heaviest
piece of armament in the British navy, and these eight ships each
carried four of that measurement, as well as four 9.2-inch guns,
ten 6-inch guns, fourteen rapid-fire guns of 3 inches, two machine
guns, and four torpedo tubes.

Now that it was seen that ships of enormous displacement could also
be swift, England committed herself to the building of ships of even
greater size. In 1907 came the first of the modern dreadnoughts,
so-called from the name which was given to the ori