I had planned to get this out before Christmas, but I was side-tracked writing replies to other threads. It's intended to be a bit of fun for the holiday season so please don't pick too many holes in it.
Austria-Hungary Becomes a First Class Naval Power
Introduction
In history I've always found when it went wrong more interesting than when it went right. Furthermore I've always felt sorry for the Austro-Hungarian Empire. This essay doesn't prevent its collapse at the end of 1918, but it goes out with a bang instead of a whimper.
IOTL the Navy was a coast defence force consisting of ships that were well-designed considering the budget limitations, but inferior to the ships of the first class naval powers. ITTL the Empire maintained a sea going navy of the first rank, whose ships were in terms of quality comparable to contemporary Royal Navy warships.
The POD is 1867 when Dalmatia became part of the Kingdom of Croatia, which gave Hungary a much longer coastline. That gave Hungarian politicians a reason to support greater naval expenditure. There were Dalmatian votes in it for them. Furthermore the Ganz group diversified into shipbuilding (Ganz, Danubis) and naval armaments (guns and armour built in factories around Budapest) which created a Hungarian naval-industrial complex.
Therefore more ships are completed from the middle 1890s onwards, but just as important is the improvement in the quality of the ships because increased funding allows better ships to be built as well as more ships.
Capital Ships
ITTL 4 rather than 3 Monarch class battleships to be completed 1897-98. The fourth ship was the first major warship to be built at Ganz, Danubis ITTL. Furthermore these ships were ocean going battleships displacing 11,570 tons (which is still smaller than the contemporary Majestic class) rather than the coast defence ships of 5,785 tons that were built IOTL.
The next battleship class was the Hapsburg class completed 1903-04. ITTL their displacement was increased from 8,232 tons to 12,348 tons, which made them comparable to the contemporary British Duncan class battleships. 4 ships were built ITTL instead of 3 and the extra ship was built by Ganz, Danubis.
The Erzerzog Karl class battleships completed 1906-07 also had their displacements increased by 50%, which in their case was from 10,472 to 15,708 tons. This made them equal to the contemporary British King Edward VIII class battleships. 4 were completed 1906-07 instead of 3 and the fourth ship was built by Ganz, Danubis.
IOTL the last Austro-Hungarian pre-dreadnought battleships were the Radetzky class, which displaced 14,508 tons and were completed 1910-11. ITTL the Austro-Hungarian legislature authorised 4 dreadnought battleships displacing 21,762 tons. They the Tegetthoff class of OTL, but the larger displacement allowed better underwater protection. IOTL the designers of the Tegetthoff class knew it was vulnerable to mines and torpedoes, but tight naval budgets prevented them from correcting the fault. In terms of quality this Improved Tegetthoff class was about equal to the contemporary British Orion class of super-dreadnoughts. In common with the pattern established by the 3 previous battleship classes, the fourth ship was built by Ganz, Danubis.
So far Austro-Hungarian capital ship design was effectively a generation ahead of the real world, but that did not happen with the next class. Had all other things being equal the Erstaz Monarch class would have been built in place of the Tegetthoff class. However, a second quartet of Improved Tegetthoffs was built instead. The second group incorporated detail improvements and in terms of quality were equal to the contemporary British Iron Duke class. In the real world the fourth ship, Szent István, was the first battleship to be built by Ganz, Danubis and was completed a year and a half later than Prinz Eugen which was laid down the same month at Stabilimento Tecnico Triestino, Trieste. However, ITTL the yard had been building battleships for nearly 10 years when she was laid down in January 1912 and she was completed in the summer of 1914.
If the Italians had not jumped from 12" to 15" for their next class of dreadnoughts, the Austro-Hungarians would have built the Erstaz Monarch class to a further refinement of the Improved Tegetthoff design. However, they replied with an enlarged version of the design prepared IOTL. The increase in size was mainly to allow better protection, especially against mines and torpedoes, however it also allowed the main armament to be increased from ten to twelve 14" in four triple turrets and the secondary battery to be increased from fourteen to sixteen 5.9" guns. As the admirals and naval constructors had decided that protection was more important than speed this design had more in common with the American standard battleships than the British Queen Elisabeth class.
More preparatory work would have been done by August 1914 on the Erstaz Monarch class ITTL and they would have at least reached the laying down stage. Furthermore ITTL Austria-Hungary had a more efficient conscription system that allowed skilled workers to be recalled from the armed forces once it was clear that the empire was fighting a long war. However, they would only be completed if Italy joined the Central Powers or remained neutral.
Therefore Austria-Hungary had a fleet of 20+0+4 battleships in August 1914 instead of 15+1+4 in the real world. However, the improvement in quality was just as important because the 20 battleships consisted of 8 dreadnoughts and 12 large pre-dreadnoughts rather than the 3 dreadnoughts, 9 small pre-dreadnoughts and 3 coast defence ships that made up the force of 15 battleships IOTL.
Cruisers
ITTL each class of 4 battleships was complemented by one armoured cruiser and a trio of second class protected cruisers.
The armoured cruiser Maria Theresa, completed in 1894, was built to scout for the Monarch class. However, ITTL its displacement was doubled from 5,250 long tons to 10,500 tons, which was larger than the biggest contemporary British cruisers.
Karl VI, completed in 1900, was the armoured cruiser built to scout for the Hapsburg class. It had its displacement doubled to 12,138 tons, which made her superior to the contemporary British Diadem class which were first class protected cruisers, rather than armoued cruisers.
The armoured cruiser Sankt Georg, completed in 1905, had its displacement doubled from 7,174 tons to 14,348 tons and was the equal of the last generation of British armoured cruisers (Duke of Edinburgh, Warrior and Minotaur classes). It was built alongside the Erzerzog Karl class battleships and was the last armoured cruiser built by Austria-Hungary.
IOTL the Empire built no battle-cruisers, but ITTL they built 2 alongside the 8 Improved Tegetthoff class super-dreadnoughts built in place of the Radetzky and real Teggetthoff classes. They would have been battle-cruiser editions of the Improved Tegetthoff design with the main armament reduced to eight 12" in four twin turrets to compensate for the more powerful machinery. In terms of quality they would have been better than the contemporary British Lion class and the German Von Der Tann-Moltke-Seydlitz design because of their superior turret arrangement.
Erstaz Maria Theresa was the battle-cruiser version of the Erstaz Monarch and mounted eight 14" guns in four twin turrets, which made her equal to the contemporary British Tiger, Japanese Kongo and German Derfflinger classes. She was laid down at Danubis, Fiume in 1913 and completed in the second half of 1915.
Therefore Austria-Hungary had 2+1+0 battle cruisers backed up by 3 large armoured cruisers in August 1914 instead of the 3+0+0 small armoured cruisers it possessed in the real world.
15 second class protected cruisers were built in 5 classes of 3 analogous to the 5 battleship classes. The first class was an improved Franz Joseph I class displacing 4,000 tons and the subsequent classes evolved from this design. All carried the same main armament of eight 5.9" guns, but were progressively larger, faster and better protected. The last 6 had turbine machinery and displaced about 5,000 tons. An improved class of 3 ships was to be built alongside the Erstaz Monarch class. In terms of quality the first 9 ships were equal to the British Highflyer class of second class protected cruisers and the last 6 were equivalent to the British Town class light armoured cruisers.
IOTL the Austro-Hungarians had 7 light cruisers in August 1914. That is 4 new scout cruisers of the Admiral Spaun class and 3 obsolete Zenta class third class protected cruisers completed at the turn of the century. 3 Erstaz Zenta class light cruisers of 5,000 tons were to be built alongside the Erstaz Monarch class battleships.
Thus ITTL the Austro-Hungarians had a mix of 15+0+3 second class protected cruisers and light cruisers which is a great improvement on the mix of 7+0+3 third class protected cruisers and scout cruisers possessed IOTL. In both timelines the Austro-Hungarians also had the older and obsolete 2nd class protected cruiser Kaiserin Elisabeth, which was completed in 1892, on the China Station.
Destroyers and Torpedo-Boats
Prior to the middle 1890s torpedo craft development was as OTL.
However, between 1900 and August 1914 they completed 30 torpedo-boat-destroyers and had another 6 under construction, that is 6 for every 4 battleships. I typed torpedo-boat-destroyer in full because that was their primary role, unlike German contemporary destroyers, which were sea going torpedo-boats. Therefore a powerful gun armament and the ability to keep their speed in realistic sea conditions was more important that the best possible maximum speed in ideal conditions. The 12 built alongside the Monarch and Hapsburg classes were similar to the British River class. The 6 built alongside the Erzherzog Karl class were turbine driven versions of the previous class. The next 18 built alongside the Radetzky, Tegetthoff and Erstaz Monarch classes were of a 1,000 tonne type armed with three 4.1" guns and 4 torpedo tubes. It was divided into 3 sub-classes of 6 with each succeeding class having more powerful machinery. Qualitatively the 1,000 tonne type was equal to the contemporary British G to S class family of destroyers.
Thus Austria-Hungary had 30 effective destroyers in August 1914 instead of 18 and ship for ship they were of better quality than the real world's 12 Huzar and 6 Tatra class destroyers.
The number of torpedo boats built between 1895 and 1914 was the same as OTL. The only improvement in their design was that turbines were introduced about 5 years sooner.
Submarines
In the real world Austria-Hungary did not acquire any submarines until the middle 1900s when it was decided to buy 3 different foreign types (2 boats of each from Germania, Holland and Lake), which were to be competitively evaluated, to formulate the particulars of a submarine suitable for the special needs of the Austrian Navy. Based on the results of these trials, a double-hulled submarine of about 500 tons, with diesel propulsion for 16-18 knots surface speed and 3 to 5 45cm (17.7”) torpedo tubes was envisaged for the next generation of Austro-Hungarian U-boats. After a series of design presentations one Whitehead and one Germania design reached the final round, after which the Germania design 506d (German designation UD) was ordered because a better price was offered. Laid down in 1913 they were to become U-7 to U-11, but were sold back to Germany and commissioned as U-66 to U-70, as a transfer to Pola by sea was considered to be impossible given the war situation.The Austro-Hungarian submarine force entered the war with 6 more or less experimental boats, of which U-1 and U-2 were not operational, because they were drydocked to receive diesels instead of their dangerous gasoline engines. [Copied from Conway's]
ITTL the Austro-Hungarian Government bought a licence to built 6 Holland submarines at the turn of the century which were completed by the end of 1905. Half of them were built by Whitehead and the rest at the Pola Navy Yard. An improved class of 6 double-hulled boats with capabilities similar to the 2 Germania boats purchased IOTL was built in the second half of the 1900s. Again 3 were built at Pola and the rest by Whitehead. More generous funding allowed 12 submarines to be ordered in 1910 to be completed by the end of 1915 and built to the specification for a 500 ton submarine issued IOTL. The Whitehead design won ITTL and in common with the earlier classes they built 6 and the Pola Navy Yard built the others. Another 12 submarines of the 500 ton type were included in the 1916-1920 plan to replace the 12 boats built in the 1900s.
But in August 1914 the only submarines available to the Kaiserliche und Königliche Kriegsmarine only were the 12 boats completed in the 1900s albeit refitted with diesel engines, but all of them were still more or less experimental designs.
Summary
The real Kaiserliche und Königliche Kriegsmarine had 20,000 personnel according to Jane's Fighting Ships 1914, which in this version of history was increased to 30,000. That happens to be the same as the personnel strength for the Regia Marina, but ITTL the Italians are likely to have expanded their navy in reply to the larger Austro-Hungarian Fleet.
In service were 12 experimental submarines, 20 battleships, 2 battle-cruisers, 3 armoured cruisers, 15 smaller cruisers and 30 destroyers. In numbers this was a substantial improvement over the fleet that existed in the real world, which consisted of 6 experimental submarines, 15 battleships, no battle-cruisers, 3 armoured cruisers, 7 smaller cruisers and 18 destroyers. The number of older large warships and the number of torpedo boats of all ages was the same in both timelines.
However, the increase in fighting power was even greater than the numbers suggested due to the ships being built to larger and more battle-worthy designs. For example in this version of history the 20 battleships consisted of 8 dreadnoughts and 12 large pre-dreadnoughts rather than the 3 dreadnoughts, 9 small pre-dreadnoughts and 3 coast defence ships that made up the force of 15 battleships IOTL. The 2 Austro-Hungarian battle cruisers backed up by 3 large armoured cruisers that existed in August 1914 ITTL were a massive improvement over 3 small armoured cruisers possessed in the real world.
Correction dated 26.08.23
The real Ersatz Monarch class would have been armed with 13.8in guns, not 14in guns as I've written above. Similarly, the ALT-Ersatz Monarch class and the complimentary Erstaz Maria Theresa class battle cruiser in this thread would have been armed with 13.8in guns, not 14in guns as I've written above.
Austria-Hungary Becomes a First Class Naval Power
Introduction
In history I've always found when it went wrong more interesting than when it went right. Furthermore I've always felt sorry for the Austro-Hungarian Empire. This essay doesn't prevent its collapse at the end of 1918, but it goes out with a bang instead of a whimper.
IOTL the Navy was a coast defence force consisting of ships that were well-designed considering the budget limitations, but inferior to the ships of the first class naval powers. ITTL the Empire maintained a sea going navy of the first rank, whose ships were in terms of quality comparable to contemporary Royal Navy warships.
The POD is 1867 when Dalmatia became part of the Kingdom of Croatia, which gave Hungary a much longer coastline. That gave Hungarian politicians a reason to support greater naval expenditure. There were Dalmatian votes in it for them. Furthermore the Ganz group diversified into shipbuilding (Ganz, Danubis) and naval armaments (guns and armour built in factories around Budapest) which created a Hungarian naval-industrial complex.
Therefore more ships are completed from the middle 1890s onwards, but just as important is the improvement in the quality of the ships because increased funding allows better ships to be built as well as more ships.
Capital Ships
ITTL 4 rather than 3 Monarch class battleships to be completed 1897-98. The fourth ship was the first major warship to be built at Ganz, Danubis ITTL. Furthermore these ships were ocean going battleships displacing 11,570 tons (which is still smaller than the contemporary Majestic class) rather than the coast defence ships of 5,785 tons that were built IOTL.
The next battleship class was the Hapsburg class completed 1903-04. ITTL their displacement was increased from 8,232 tons to 12,348 tons, which made them comparable to the contemporary British Duncan class battleships. 4 ships were built ITTL instead of 3 and the extra ship was built by Ganz, Danubis.
The Erzerzog Karl class battleships completed 1906-07 also had their displacements increased by 50%, which in their case was from 10,472 to 15,708 tons. This made them equal to the contemporary British King Edward VIII class battleships. 4 were completed 1906-07 instead of 3 and the fourth ship was built by Ganz, Danubis.
IOTL the last Austro-Hungarian pre-dreadnought battleships were the Radetzky class, which displaced 14,508 tons and were completed 1910-11. ITTL the Austro-Hungarian legislature authorised 4 dreadnought battleships displacing 21,762 tons. They the Tegetthoff class of OTL, but the larger displacement allowed better underwater protection. IOTL the designers of the Tegetthoff class knew it was vulnerable to mines and torpedoes, but tight naval budgets prevented them from correcting the fault. In terms of quality this Improved Tegetthoff class was about equal to the contemporary British Orion class of super-dreadnoughts. In common with the pattern established by the 3 previous battleship classes, the fourth ship was built by Ganz, Danubis.
So far Austro-Hungarian capital ship design was effectively a generation ahead of the real world, but that did not happen with the next class. Had all other things being equal the Erstaz Monarch class would have been built in place of the Tegetthoff class. However, a second quartet of Improved Tegetthoffs was built instead. The second group incorporated detail improvements and in terms of quality were equal to the contemporary British Iron Duke class. In the real world the fourth ship, Szent István, was the first battleship to be built by Ganz, Danubis and was completed a year and a half later than Prinz Eugen which was laid down the same month at Stabilimento Tecnico Triestino, Trieste. However, ITTL the yard had been building battleships for nearly 10 years when she was laid down in January 1912 and she was completed in the summer of 1914.
If the Italians had not jumped from 12" to 15" for their next class of dreadnoughts, the Austro-Hungarians would have built the Erstaz Monarch class to a further refinement of the Improved Tegetthoff design. However, they replied with an enlarged version of the design prepared IOTL. The increase in size was mainly to allow better protection, especially against mines and torpedoes, however it also allowed the main armament to be increased from ten to twelve 14" in four triple turrets and the secondary battery to be increased from fourteen to sixteen 5.9" guns. As the admirals and naval constructors had decided that protection was more important than speed this design had more in common with the American standard battleships than the British Queen Elisabeth class.
More preparatory work would have been done by August 1914 on the Erstaz Monarch class ITTL and they would have at least reached the laying down stage. Furthermore ITTL Austria-Hungary had a more efficient conscription system that allowed skilled workers to be recalled from the armed forces once it was clear that the empire was fighting a long war. However, they would only be completed if Italy joined the Central Powers or remained neutral.
Therefore Austria-Hungary had a fleet of 20+0+4 battleships in August 1914 instead of 15+1+4 in the real world. However, the improvement in quality was just as important because the 20 battleships consisted of 8 dreadnoughts and 12 large pre-dreadnoughts rather than the 3 dreadnoughts, 9 small pre-dreadnoughts and 3 coast defence ships that made up the force of 15 battleships IOTL.
Cruisers
ITTL each class of 4 battleships was complemented by one armoured cruiser and a trio of second class protected cruisers.
The armoured cruiser Maria Theresa, completed in 1894, was built to scout for the Monarch class. However, ITTL its displacement was doubled from 5,250 long tons to 10,500 tons, which was larger than the biggest contemporary British cruisers.
Karl VI, completed in 1900, was the armoured cruiser built to scout for the Hapsburg class. It had its displacement doubled to 12,138 tons, which made her superior to the contemporary British Diadem class which were first class protected cruisers, rather than armoued cruisers.
The armoured cruiser Sankt Georg, completed in 1905, had its displacement doubled from 7,174 tons to 14,348 tons and was the equal of the last generation of British armoured cruisers (Duke of Edinburgh, Warrior and Minotaur classes). It was built alongside the Erzerzog Karl class battleships and was the last armoured cruiser built by Austria-Hungary.
IOTL the Empire built no battle-cruisers, but ITTL they built 2 alongside the 8 Improved Tegetthoff class super-dreadnoughts built in place of the Radetzky and real Teggetthoff classes. They would have been battle-cruiser editions of the Improved Tegetthoff design with the main armament reduced to eight 12" in four twin turrets to compensate for the more powerful machinery. In terms of quality they would have been better than the contemporary British Lion class and the German Von Der Tann-Moltke-Seydlitz design because of their superior turret arrangement.
Erstaz Maria Theresa was the battle-cruiser version of the Erstaz Monarch and mounted eight 14" guns in four twin turrets, which made her equal to the contemporary British Tiger, Japanese Kongo and German Derfflinger classes. She was laid down at Danubis, Fiume in 1913 and completed in the second half of 1915.
Therefore Austria-Hungary had 2+1+0 battle cruisers backed up by 3 large armoured cruisers in August 1914 instead of the 3+0+0 small armoured cruisers it possessed in the real world.
15 second class protected cruisers were built in 5 classes of 3 analogous to the 5 battleship classes. The first class was an improved Franz Joseph I class displacing 4,000 tons and the subsequent classes evolved from this design. All carried the same main armament of eight 5.9" guns, but were progressively larger, faster and better protected. The last 6 had turbine machinery and displaced about 5,000 tons. An improved class of 3 ships was to be built alongside the Erstaz Monarch class. In terms of quality the first 9 ships were equal to the British Highflyer class of second class protected cruisers and the last 6 were equivalent to the British Town class light armoured cruisers.
IOTL the Austro-Hungarians had 7 light cruisers in August 1914. That is 4 new scout cruisers of the Admiral Spaun class and 3 obsolete Zenta class third class protected cruisers completed at the turn of the century. 3 Erstaz Zenta class light cruisers of 5,000 tons were to be built alongside the Erstaz Monarch class battleships.
Thus ITTL the Austro-Hungarians had a mix of 15+0+3 second class protected cruisers and light cruisers which is a great improvement on the mix of 7+0+3 third class protected cruisers and scout cruisers possessed IOTL. In both timelines the Austro-Hungarians also had the older and obsolete 2nd class protected cruiser Kaiserin Elisabeth, which was completed in 1892, on the China Station.
Destroyers and Torpedo-Boats
Prior to the middle 1890s torpedo craft development was as OTL.
However, between 1900 and August 1914 they completed 30 torpedo-boat-destroyers and had another 6 under construction, that is 6 for every 4 battleships. I typed torpedo-boat-destroyer in full because that was their primary role, unlike German contemporary destroyers, which were sea going torpedo-boats. Therefore a powerful gun armament and the ability to keep their speed in realistic sea conditions was more important that the best possible maximum speed in ideal conditions. The 12 built alongside the Monarch and Hapsburg classes were similar to the British River class. The 6 built alongside the Erzherzog Karl class were turbine driven versions of the previous class. The next 18 built alongside the Radetzky, Tegetthoff and Erstaz Monarch classes were of a 1,000 tonne type armed with three 4.1" guns and 4 torpedo tubes. It was divided into 3 sub-classes of 6 with each succeeding class having more powerful machinery. Qualitatively the 1,000 tonne type was equal to the contemporary British G to S class family of destroyers.
Thus Austria-Hungary had 30 effective destroyers in August 1914 instead of 18 and ship for ship they were of better quality than the real world's 12 Huzar and 6 Tatra class destroyers.
The number of torpedo boats built between 1895 and 1914 was the same as OTL. The only improvement in their design was that turbines were introduced about 5 years sooner.
Submarines
In the real world Austria-Hungary did not acquire any submarines until the middle 1900s when it was decided to buy 3 different foreign types (2 boats of each from Germania, Holland and Lake), which were to be competitively evaluated, to formulate the particulars of a submarine suitable for the special needs of the Austrian Navy. Based on the results of these trials, a double-hulled submarine of about 500 tons, with diesel propulsion for 16-18 knots surface speed and 3 to 5 45cm (17.7”) torpedo tubes was envisaged for the next generation of Austro-Hungarian U-boats. After a series of design presentations one Whitehead and one Germania design reached the final round, after which the Germania design 506d (German designation UD) was ordered because a better price was offered. Laid down in 1913 they were to become U-7 to U-11, but were sold back to Germany and commissioned as U-66 to U-70, as a transfer to Pola by sea was considered to be impossible given the war situation.The Austro-Hungarian submarine force entered the war with 6 more or less experimental boats, of which U-1 and U-2 were not operational, because they were drydocked to receive diesels instead of their dangerous gasoline engines. [Copied from Conway's]
ITTL the Austro-Hungarian Government bought a licence to built 6 Holland submarines at the turn of the century which were completed by the end of 1905. Half of them were built by Whitehead and the rest at the Pola Navy Yard. An improved class of 6 double-hulled boats with capabilities similar to the 2 Germania boats purchased IOTL was built in the second half of the 1900s. Again 3 were built at Pola and the rest by Whitehead. More generous funding allowed 12 submarines to be ordered in 1910 to be completed by the end of 1915 and built to the specification for a 500 ton submarine issued IOTL. The Whitehead design won ITTL and in common with the earlier classes they built 6 and the Pola Navy Yard built the others. Another 12 submarines of the 500 ton type were included in the 1916-1920 plan to replace the 12 boats built in the 1900s.
But in August 1914 the only submarines available to the Kaiserliche und Königliche Kriegsmarine only were the 12 boats completed in the 1900s albeit refitted with diesel engines, but all of them were still more or less experimental designs.
Summary
The real Kaiserliche und Königliche Kriegsmarine had 20,000 personnel according to Jane's Fighting Ships 1914, which in this version of history was increased to 30,000. That happens to be the same as the personnel strength for the Regia Marina, but ITTL the Italians are likely to have expanded their navy in reply to the larger Austro-Hungarian Fleet.
In service were 12 experimental submarines, 20 battleships, 2 battle-cruisers, 3 armoured cruisers, 15 smaller cruisers and 30 destroyers. In numbers this was a substantial improvement over the fleet that existed in the real world, which consisted of 6 experimental submarines, 15 battleships, no battle-cruisers, 3 armoured cruisers, 7 smaller cruisers and 18 destroyers. The number of older large warships and the number of torpedo boats of all ages was the same in both timelines.
However, the increase in fighting power was even greater than the numbers suggested due to the ships being built to larger and more battle-worthy designs. For example in this version of history the 20 battleships consisted of 8 dreadnoughts and 12 large pre-dreadnoughts rather than the 3 dreadnoughts, 9 small pre-dreadnoughts and 3 coast defence ships that made up the force of 15 battleships IOTL. The 2 Austro-Hungarian battle cruisers backed up by 3 large armoured cruisers that existed in August 1914 ITTL were a massive improvement over 3 small armoured cruisers possessed in the real world.
Correction dated 26.08.23
The real Ersatz Monarch class would have been armed with 13.8in guns, not 14in guns as I've written above. Similarly, the ALT-Ersatz Monarch class and the complimentary Erstaz Maria Theresa class battle cruiser in this thread would have been armed with 13.8in guns, not 14in guns as I've written above.
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