DEFENCE OF THE EMPIRE.

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXXV, Issue 8, 4 January 1913, Page 2

DEFENCE OF THE EMPIRE.

ADMIRALTY’S MEMORANDUM

FULL TEXT OF THE DOCUMENT

IMPRESSIVE SURVEY OF FACTS

A copy of the statement prepared by the Admiralty, at the request of the Canadian Government, regarding the present and immediately prospective requirements of the naval defence of the Empire,, was laid on the table of the Commonwealth House of Representatives lash week. “The ■ Admiralty,” the document reads, “set the greatest store by the important material, and still more important moral assistance which it is within the power of Canada to give towards maintaining British naval supremacy on the high seas, hut they think it necessary to disclaim any intention, however indirect, of putting pressure upon Canadian public opinion or of seeking to influence the Dominion Parliament in a decision which clearly belongs solely to Canada. The Admiralty, therefore, confine themselves in this statement exclusively to facts, and it is for the Dominion Government and Parliament to draw their own conclusions therefrom.

“The power of the British Empire to maintain the superiority on the sea, which is essential to its security, must obviously he increased from time to time by reference to the other naval forces of the world, and such a comparison does not imply any unfriendliness, in intention or in spirit to any Power or group of Powers. German Naval Development. “From this point of view, the development of the German Fleet during the last 15 years is the most striking feature of the naval situation to-dajri That development has been authorised by five successive legislative enactments, viz., the Fleet Laws of 1898, 1900, 1906, 1908, and 1912. Those laws cover the period up to 1920. Where as in 1898 the Gorman Fleet consisted of nine battleships, excluding coast defence vessels, 3 large cruisers, 28 small cruisers, 113 tor-pedo-boats, and 25,000 men, maintained at an dnnual cost of six millions, the full'fleet of 1920 will consist of. 41 battleships, 20 large cruisers, 40 small cruisers, 144 . torpedoboats, 72 submarines, and 101,500 men;, estimated to be maintained at an annual cost (|f £23,000,000. “These figures;, bowery,Lgive no real idea of the advance,: for Ithe cost of ships has iriahh contimudli? during the period, and, apart from increasing the total numbers, Germany has sysreplaced the old and small ships, which couuted'as units in her earlier fleet, by the most powerful and costly modern vessels. Neither does the by the estimates represjjit thq, increase in cost properly attributable Jto the German Navy, for ' many charges borne by British naval funds are otherwise defrayed in Germany, and the Geiman Navy comprises such a large proportion of new ships that the cost of maintenance and repair is considei - ably less than in ndvies which have been longer established. , “Unprovoked Expansion.”

“The naval expansion of Germany has not been provoked by British naval increases. The German Governmeni naval policy has not been influenced by British action, and the following figures speak for themselves Ir. 1905, Great Britain was building four capital * hips and Germany two. In 1906, Great Britain reduced to three capital ships, and .Germany increased to three; in 1907 Great Britain, built three capital ships and Germain built three; in 1908 Great Britain further reduced to two capital ships, and Germany further increased to four.

“It was not until the efforts of Great Britain to procure the abatement of retardation of naval rivalry had failed for three successive years that the Admiralty were forced, in 1909. upon a general review of the naval situation, to ask Parliament to take exceptional measures to , secure against all possible hazards the safety of the Empire. In that year eight capital ships were laid down in Great Britain and two others were provided by the Commonwealth of Australia and the Dominion of Now Zealand respectively, a total of ten. “In the spring of the present yeas the fifth German Navy Law was assented to by the Reichstag. The main feature of that law is not the increase in the new construction of capital ships, hut rather the increase in the striking forces of the ships oi all classes. A third squadron of eight battleships will ho created and maintained in full commission as part of the active fleet.

Readiness in German Waters. “Whereas, according to the unamended law, the active battle fleet consisted of 17 battleships, four large armoured cruisers, and twelve small cruisers, it will in the near future consist of fifteen battleships, eight battle or large armoured cruisers, and eighteen small cruisers, and whereas at present, owing to the system of recruitment which prevails in Germany, the German Fleet is less fnl'y manned during the winter than during the summer months, it will, through the operation of this law, not only be .increased in strength, but rendered more readily available. .Nine-ty-nine torpedo boat destroyers, instead of 06, will be maintained in full commission, out of a total of 144. Seventy-two new submarine will be built within the currency of the new law, and of these it is apparently proposed to maintain 54, with full permanent crews. Taking a general view

the effect will ho that nearly fourfifths of the entire German Navy will he maintained in full permanent commission and constantly ready for war. “So great a change in the development of the German Fleet involves important additions to its personnel. In 1898 the officers and men of the German Navy numbered 25,000; today that figure has reached 66,000., The new* law’ adds 15,000 officers and men, and makes a total in 1920 of 104,500. The new construction under the law prescribes the building of three additional battleships, one to he begun next year, one in 1916, and two small cruisers, the date of whose construction has not yet been fixed. The date for the building of the third battleship has not yet been fixed. The cost of these increases in men and in material during the next six years is estimated at £10,500,000, spread over that period, above the previous estimate.

“The facts sot forth above wore laid before the House of Commons on July 22nd, 1912, by the First Lord of the Admiralty. “The effect of the new German Navy Law is top reduce a remarkable expansion of strength and readiness. The number of battleships and large armoured cruisers which will be kept constantly ready and in full commission will he raised by the law from 21, the present figure, to 33, an addition of 12 or an increase of about 57 per cent. The new fleet will, in tho beginning, include about 20 battleships and large cruisers of the older type, hut gradually, as new vessels are built, the fighting power of the fleet will rise until, in tho end, it will consist completely of modern vessels. Tactical Objects of the German Fleet. “The complete organisation of the German Fleet, as described by the latest law, will he five battle squadrons, and a fleet flagship, comprising 41 battleships in all, each attended by a battle or armoured cruiser squadron, complete with small cruisers and auxiliaries of all kinds, and accompanied by numerous flotillas of destroyers and submarines. This full development will he realised only step by step, hut,, in 1914, two squadrons will, according to the Admiralty information, he entirely composed of what are called Dreadnoughts, and tho third will he made up of good ships like tho Dcutschlands and the Braunschwoigs, together with five Dreadnought battlecruisers. This great fleet is not dispersed all over the world for the duty of commerce protection or in the discharge of colonial responsibilities, nor are its composition and character adapted to those purposes. It is concentrated and kept concentrated in close proximity to the German and British coasts. Attention must he drawn to the tactical objects for which the German Fleet exists, a<s set forth in the preamble to tho Naval Law of 1900 as fellows:—

In order to protect German trade and commerce under existing conditions, only one thing will suffice. Germany must possess a battle fleet of such strength that, even for tho most powerful naval adversary, a war would involve such risks as to make that Power’s own supremacy doubtful. For this purpose it is not absolutely necessary that the German Fleet should he as strong as that of the greatest naval Power, for, as a rule, a great naval Power will not he in a position to concentrate all its forces against us. Looking Three Years Ahead.

“It is now necessary to look forward to the situation in 1915. In the spring of the year 1915 Great Britain will have 23 Dreadnought battleships, and two Lord Nelsons. Germany will have 17 Dreadnought battleships. Great Britain will have six battle cruisers. Germany will have six battle cruisers. These margins in new ships are sober and moderate, 11 1 e\ do not err on the side of excess. Iho reason they suffice for the present is that Great Britain possesses a good superiority in battleships, and especially in armoured cruisers of the preDreadnought era. The reserve of strength will steadily diminish every year, actually because the ships ol which it is composed grow old, and relatively because the now ships are more powerful. It will diminish more rapidly as new construction in Germany is increased or accelerated. As this progress continues, greater exertions will he required by the British Empire. Four battle cruisers and four armoured cruisers will he required to support British interests in the Mediterranean during the years 1913 and 1914. During these years the navies of Austria and Italy will gradually increase in strength until in 1915 they will each possess a formidable fleet of four and six Dreadnought battleships respectively, together with strong battleships of the Dreadnought type and other units such as cruisers and torpedo craft. It is evident, therefore, that in tho year 1915 our squadron of four battle cmisers and four armoured cruisers v, ill not suffice to fulfil our requirements, and its whole composition must he reconsidered.

Interest of Oversea DaiFiPfons. “It lias been necessary, within the pact decade, to concentrate the licet mainly in Home waters. in 1962 there were 160 British vessels on the oversea stations, against <6 to-dav. Naval supremacy is of two kinds, general and local. General naval supremacy consists in the power In defeat in battle and drive from the seas th G strongest hostile navy or combination of hostile navies, wherever they may ho found. Local supremacy consists in the power to send, in good time, to, or maintain permanently in. some distant theatre, forces adequate to defeat the enemy or hold him in check until tho main decision has been obtained in the decisive theatre. .11 is the general naval supremacy ol Great Britain which is the primary safeguard of the security and interest

of the great Dominions of the Crown, and which, for all these years, lias been the deterrent upon any possible designs prejudicial to their polity and safety. Canadian Responsibilities. “The rapid expansion of Canadian sea-borne trade, and the immense value of Canadian cargoes always afloat in British and Canadian bottoms, require consideration on the basis of the figures supplied by the Board of Trade to the Imperial Conference of 1911. The annual value of the overseas trade of the Dominion of Canada in 1909-10 was no less than 7*2 millions, and the tonnage of Canadian vessels was 718,000 tons. And these proportions have already increase ed, and are still increasing. For the whole of the trade, whether it may be about the distant waters of the world, as well as for the maintenance of her communications, both with Europe and Aisia, Canada is dependent, and has always depended, upon the Imperial Navy without a corresponding contribution of the cost. “Further, at the present time and in the immediate future, Great Britain still has the power, by making special arrangements, and mobilising a portion of the reserve, to send, without courting disaster at Home, an effective fleet of battleships and cruisers to unite with the Royal Australian Navy and the British squadrons in China and the Pacific, for the defence of British Columbia, Australia, and Non Zealand; and these communities are also protected and their interests safeguarded by the power and authority of Great Britain, so long as her naval strength is unbroken. This power, both specific and general, will be diminished, not only by the growth of the German Navy, but by the simultaneous building by many Powers of

great modern ships of war. Whereas pi the present year Great Britain possesses 18 battleships and Battle cruisers of the Dreadnought class, against 19 of that class possessed by the other Powers of Europe, and will possess in 1913 21 to 21, the figures in 1914 will be 31 to 33, and in the year 1915 35 to 51. “The existence of a number of navies, all comprising ships of high quality, must be considered, in so far as it affects the possibilities of adverse combinations being suddenly formed. Larger margins of superiority at Home would, among other things, restore a greater freedom to the movements of the British squadron in every sea, and directly promote the security of the Dominions.

“Whatever may lie the decision of Canada at the present juncture, Great Britain will not, in any circumstances, fail in her duty to the Oversea Dominions of the Grown. She has before now successfully stood unaided against the most formidable combinations, and she has not lost her capacity, following a!wise policy and making strenuous exertion to watch over and preserve the vital interests of the Empire. The Admiralty are assured that » Jjfc Qpyermncpt , I jviU lil no,t m hesitate to ask the House of Commons for whatever provision the circumstances of each year may require, but the aid which Canada could give at the present time is not measured only in ships or money. Any action on the part of Canada to increase tab power and mobility of the Imperial Navy, and thus widen the margin of our common safety, would be recognised ■ everywhere as a most significant witness to the united strength of the Empire, and to the renewed resolve of the Oversea Dominions to take thenpart in maintaining its Integrity.”