Modelling > Scenarios
Australia adopts Jellicoes Plan for the defence of Dominion.
Volkodav:
In 1920 then viscount Jellicoe toured the Dominions and reviewed their defences making predictions on the expected strategic environment (many subsequently proven correct) and recommendations on the size and type of forces required to counter these potential threats (Japan anyone?) as well as the industrial capacity that would be required to support the required capabilities. He was pretty much ignored with the British and Dominion government distancing themselves from him and his reports. On top of this the Washington Naval limitation treaty pretty much undermined much of the plan as many of the ships required either would not now be built or those deemed surplus would have to be retained by the RN due to the lack of replacements.
In a nut shell Jellicoe's recommendations for Australia were to form a second Fleet Unit to support the existing RAN Fleet Unit also consisting of a Battle Cruiser, a number of fleet cruisers, a destroyer squadron, a submarine squadron and a depot ship / tender. To this would be added one or more aircraft carriers while surplus older cruisers would be transferred from the RN for coastal patrol. In addition the RN would maintain a third Fleet unit of similar composition in Singapore. Australia would build their own aircraft and minor warships (destroyers and perhaps small cruisers).
The Washington Treaty limited the tonnage of ships available for the RN and dominion navies, therefore even if the money were available there just were not enough ships to go around. My premise is that Australia lobbied, unsuccessfully, to be permitted to crew a RN battlecruiser and aircraft carrier while maintaining the other elements of the Fleet Unit in home waters. Instead County Class Treaty Cruisers for the RAN were built in Australia and 6" gunned derivatives (designed to satisfy the requirements of the London Naval Treaty) were built in Australia to replace the old Town Class cruisers. Australian yards and factories were also upgraded to permit the construction of submarines, destroyer and cruiser turbines and guns up to 6" calibre.
When WWII appeared inevitable large orders were placed in Australian yards for Tribal Class destroyer (a flotilla of 8 was already in production for the RAN) and a request for a battle cruiser was made again, this time with more success. In exchange for the first flotilla already in build Tribals the UK agreed to transfer HMS Renown and HMS Furious to the RAN, with the onset of hostilities both ships, along with most of the RANs other models vessels were assigned to RN operational command.
With the cruisers and destroyers coming out of Australia (and Canada, which had followed a similar process to Australia's) for the RN, it was possible for the UK to continue construction of the Lion Class BBs and their armoured fleet carriers that would have been suspended or cancelled, as well as accelerating construction of Vanguard. Thus by the end of 1941 Australia was completing a Flotilla of improved tribal class destroyers in addition to a 6" gunned County a year. In addition the first of a new 8"cruiser, based on a scaled up County with four triple 8", was nearing completion......
Old Wombat:
Nice! We working on carriers in this scenario, too?
:)
Guy
Cliffy B:
I'm liking this A LOT!!! 8)
Would be neat to see that RAN Battlecruiser and some RAN CA/CLs alongside the USN Cru-Des groups during the night battles off Guadalcanal!
You ever seen anything about the "Cockatoo Island Heavy Cruiser" design? They deemed them to expensive to build in Australia and ordered the Kents instead. Some food for thought.
http://www.secretprojects.co.uk/forum/index.php/topic,19763.0.html
http://i22.photobucket.com/albums/b336/Bager1968/Cruisers/1924cruisercrop_zps0c4ec494.png
http://i22.photobucket.com/albums/b336/Bager1968/Cruisers/1929CockatooIslandsyddesign_zpsa4996c05.jpg
Volkodav:
--- Quote from: Cliffy B on August 20, 2013, 01:34:53 AM ---I'm liking this A LOT!!! 8)
Would be neat to see that RAN Battlecruiser and some RAN CA/CLs alongside the USN Cru-Des groups during the night battles off Guadalcanal!
You ever seen anything about the "Cockatoo Island Heavy Cruiser" design? They deemed them to expensive to build in Australia and ordered the Kents instead. Some food for thought.
http://www.secretprojects.co.uk/forum/index.php/topic,19763.0.html
--- End quote ---
Yes I have and unless my memory fails me it was an evolution of the Hawkins Class which was the ultimate expression of the Town Class (of which the RAN operated 4) and were the precursor of the County Class as well as the design the most influenced the Washington cruiser limits. The Cockatoo design was intended to be armed with 3 triple 8" and would have been a fine ship.
I still prefer the County in my scenario though as it was a more modern and capable design, the first of a new generation rather than the last of the older type. It would have been more of a stretch building a County but it would have better set up Australian ship building for the challenge to come.
A fantasy on mine is on 19 February 1942 Sea Hurricanes and Sea Eagles (navalized Hawker Henley dive / torpedo bombers) launched from HMAS Furious (recently upgraded in the US), HMAS Australia (converted WWI battle cruiser) and HMAS Endeavour (sister ship to Ark Royal ordered in 1938 for the RAN but on loan, with her crew, to the RN from commissioning) caught the carrier strike about to be launched against Darwin arrayed on the decks. The IJN were caught completely off guard believing Furious and Australia to be in the Mediterranean and Endeavour to have been sunk the previous November (the ship lost was in fact Ark Royal), they knew Indomitable was in dry dock in the US which permitted them to pick off Prince of Wales and Tiger in December, the appearance of three RAN carriers was completely unexpected. Even more devastating was the arrival of HMAS Renown and HMS Repulse leading a large force of Australian built cruisers and destroyers that systematically destroyed the entire, already crippled, IJN strike force. The shock was completed when the land based component of the raid reached Darwin and was met by a wing of the RAAFs new R-2800 powered Hawker Typhoons in addition to the Hurricanes they had been expecting.
Completely over the top but I am trying to work towards an Australian defence force that could rip the arm off an aggressor in 1942, pretty much as Jellicoe planned.
I am also thinking of an Australian Corps, consisting of a number of armoured divisions, being sent to the Middle East in exchange for the return of the AIF Infantry Divisions as well as Divisional strength Ghurkhas and Kings African Rifles. This armoured force would go on to fight in Italy and redeploy to France as reinforcements post D-Day. In honour of the Light Horse in WWI this force was known as the Australian Mounted Corps and units within it were titled Horse or Light Horse depending on role and scale of equipment.
Old Wombat:
Sentinels? ;)
:)
Guy
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