alternatehistory.com

Been done many times before, but recently i found a fascinating timeline and artwork, namely those by Ijnfleetadmiral. Basically in his TL the japanese, while signing the treaties, they completely disregard them in secret and built everything they were intending to and some more (many more) up to and into WW2, especially a large series of large cruisers (ships with 10 and 12 inch guns), this without any major reaction from the US and UK (because the japanese kept everything secret somehow). However to my mind it is pushing it a bit too much as far as realism is concerned, so i was thinking of a bit more realistic way of wanking the heck out of the IJN.

Yesterday i just read a bit on the www saying that intially the japanese were pushing for a 5:5:4 ratio, but the representatives were instructed to accept 5:5:3 if necessary. Of course, the secret messages were intercepted by the americans as you know, and the rest is history.

But suppose that didn't happen, the japanese change their codes or whatever. I have read that prior to that (reading the japanese messages) the other powers were willing to consider giving Japan the 5:5:4 ratio they wanted. Is this true? If so that's my POD.

Another idea i was exploring, both with and without the above scenario, to obtain this result was to make the British and US (and France, Italy etc.) more war weary and more willing to get a deal, any deal, by making WW1 more protracted because the germans were a tougher nut to crack, ending in say 1919. (This is also a nudge to another one of my ideas, i.e. having at least part of the magnificent High Seas Fleet survive and fire guns in anger yet again two decades later - imagine Kriegsmarine with 4 Bayerns, 2 Mackensens, AND four Tirpitz, that kind of stuff).

Anyway so yeah we have a 5:5:4 WNT. Regarding the japanese cheating and doing things in secret part, what mechanisms were in place to actually check that all signatories abide by it, did they had commissions physically inspecting every ship in all the signatory countries to check that the guns are not bigger than allowed, ship size is within limits etc.? How was the enforcing done? How much the japanese could realistically get away with if they wanted to while technically still claiming and considered to be abiding the treaty?

Note: in the second version (more protracted WW1), UK builds all four Admiral class, and the US builds two battlecruisers of 35,000 tons with ten 14 inch guns earlier than OTL (this is the initial Lexington design), this because i want IJN to have as many of the 16 inch ten-gunners (Tosas, Amagis etc.) without going into G3/N3s, South Dakotas and Lexingtons etc.; however my Nelsons are a bit bigger and faster, basically i want the N3 machinery coupled with the 16 inch gunned hull.

Thanks for any input.
Top