The Washington Naval Treaty , also known as the Five-Power Treaty , was a treaty signed during 1922 among the major Allies of World War I , which agreed to prevent an arms race by limiting naval construction. It was negotiated at the Washington Naval Conference in Washington, D.C. from November 1921 to February 1922 and signed by the governments of the British Empire (including the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and India), United States , France , Italy , and Japan . It limited the construction of battleships , battlecruisers and aircraft carriers by the signatories. The numbers of other categories of warships, including cruisers , destroyers , and submarines , were not limited by the treaty, but those ships were limited to 10,000 tons displacement each.
105-948: David Beatty , Beattie , or Beaty may refer to: David Beatty, 1st Earl Beatty (1871–1936), British admiral David Beatty, 2nd Earl Beatty (1905–1972), British politician, eldest son of the 1st Earl Beatty David Beatty, 3rd Earl Beatty (born 1946), eldest son of the 2nd Earl Beatty David L. Beatty (1798–1881), American politician, fifth mayor of Louisville, Kentucky (1841–1844) David R. Beatty (born 1942), Canadian businessman David Beattie (1924–2001), 14th Governor-General of New Zealand (1980–1985) David Beattie (businessman) (born 1955), chairman of Partick Thistle F.C. and Chief Executive of Enterprise Foods Ltd. David Beattie (footballer) (1903–?), Scottish footballer David Beaty (American football) (born 1970), American football coach See also [ edit ] David Beaty (disambiguation) [REDACTED] Topics referred to by
210-585: A force of 2,400 defending Tientsin from 15,000 Chinese troops plus Boxers. On 16 June 1900 the Taku forts were bombarded and captured to ensure ships could still reach the port. Fierce fighting broke out throughout the foreign areas and railway station, and Beatty was injured. He later took part in the successful relief of the naval brigade and was promoted to captain on 8 November 1900. Beatty returned to Britain, where he required an operation to restore proper use of his left arm. Beatty had returned from leave after
315-558: A fortune teller, Mrs. Roberts, who predicted a fine outcome to the match. Ethel wrote to Arthur, telling him that it was her firm intention never to live with him again as his wife, though not naming any particular person or reason. Arthur agreed to co-operate, and filed for divorce in America on the grounds of desertion, which was granted 9 May 1901. Beatty and Ethel married on 22 May 1901 at the registry office, St. George's, Hanover Square, London, with no family attending. Although Arthur Tree
420-407: A gentleman. Beatty had a close relationship with his elder brother Charles, who became his ally against their oppressive and overbearing father. They remained close throughout life, so much so that the only time Beatty felt despair was at his brother's death. Beatty later wrote to his wife about Charles, we lived together, played together, rode together, fought together. His brothers would later join
525-502: A marked degree, initiative, resource, determination, and no fear of accepting responsibility". He went on "...as a rule instructions will be of a very general character so as to avoid interfering with the judgement and initiative of captains...The admiral will rely on captains to use all the information at their disposal to grasp the situation quickly and anticipate his wishes, using their own discretion as to how to act in unforeseen circumstances..." The approach outlined by Beatty contradicted
630-688: A ratio of 5:5:3, with France and Italy maintaining smaller fleets. During the First Labour Government of 1924, with Japan increasingly hostile to the UK, Beatty lobbied the Clynes Committee for construction of the Singapore Naval Base to continue. Beatty wrote out, but did not send, a threat of resignation. The government were trying to cut back on the numbers of cruisers constructed; the other Sea Lords attributed
735-554: A strength ratio of approximately 5:5:3:1.75:1.75 for the UK, the United States, Japan, Italy, and France, respectively. The qualitative limits of each type of ship were as follows: The treaty also detailed by Chapter II the individual ships to be retained by each navy, including the allowance for the United States to complete two further ships of the Colorado class and for the UK to complete two new ships in accordance with
840-843: A tour in HMS ; Nile from 19 January 1892. Beatty joined the Royal Yacht Victoria and Albert in July 1892 while Queen Victoria was holidaying in the Mediterranean: Victoria was in mourning for her grandson, Albert Duke of Clarence , who had died January 1892. Promoted to lieutenant on 25 August 1892, he rejoined HMS Ruby in August 1892 and then transferred to the battleship HMS Camperdown in September 1893 (which had only recently been involved in
945-520: A week later on 28 June 1919, imposed strict limits on the sizes and numbers of warships which the newly-installed German government had the right to build and maintain. The Americans, British, French, Italians, and Japanese had been allies during World War I, but with the German threat seemingly finished, a naval arms race between the erstwhile allies seemed likely. US President Woodrow Wilson 's administration had already announced successive plans for
1050-479: Is different from Wikidata All article disambiguation pages All disambiguation pages David Beatty, 1st Earl Beatty Boxer Rebellion First World War Admiral of the Fleet David Richard Beatty, 1st Earl Beatty , GCB , OM , GCVO , DSO , PC (17 January 1871 – 12 March 1936) was a Royal Navy officer. After serving in
1155-588: Is reported to have remarked (to his Flag Captain, Ernle Chatfield , later First Sea Lord in the early 1930s), "there seems to be something wrong with our bloody ships today," after two of them had exploded within half an hour during the battle. In any case Beatty's actions succeeded in drawing the German High Seas Fleet into action against the British Grand Fleet . Beatty succeeded Admiral John Jellicoe as commander-in-chief of
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#17327810300211260-566: Is the insurance company of the economic unity of the Empire. Under the Naval Treaty of London the Navy will be totally and entirely inadequate to provide that insurance". Beatty's old commander Admiral John Jellicoe died on 19 November 1935. Already suffering from heart failure, and sick with influenza , Beatty defied doctors' orders and left his bed to act as a pallbearer, saying, "What will
1365-456: Is to disarm". The ambitious slogan received enthusiastic public endorsement and likely abbreviated the conference while helping ensure his proposals were largely adopted. He subsequently proposed the following: The proposals for capital ships were largely accepted by the British delegation. However, they were controversial with the British public. Britain could no longer have adequate fleets in
1470-494: The Furutaka class . The suggestion was adopted with little debate. A major British demand during the negotiations was the complete abolition of the submarine, which had proved so effective against them in the war . That proved impossible, particularly as a result of French opposition, which demanded an allowance of 90,000 tons of submarines, and the conference ended without an agreement to restrict submarines. Article XIX of
1575-707: The British Army , but early on young David developed an interest in ships and the sea and expressed a desire to join the Royal Navy . In 1881 Beatty's grandfather died and David Longfield succeeded to the 18th century mansion, ' Borodale ', outside Enniscorthy , in County Wexford . After retiring from the army David Longfield established a business training horses first in Cheshire and then at 'The Mount', near Rugby , Warwickshire. On inheriting and following
1680-821: The Falkland Islands . He faults Beatty for having learned too much from his earlier experience leading troops on land, and Churchill and others for being too impressed with Beatty as the supposed second coming of Horatio Nelson to see that unlike Nelson Beatty did not appreciate the value of newer naval technology. (ribbon bar, as it would look today) [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] Beatty
1785-480: The Fourth Hussars where he formed a relationship with Katrine, the wife of another officer. After the affair between David Longfield and Katrine became known, David Longfield's father (Beatty's grandfather), David Vandeleur Beatty (1815–1881), arranged for his son to be posted to India in the hope that the scandalous relationship might end. David Longfield resigned from the regiment on 21 November 1865, with
1890-678: The Home Fleet . As the Atlantic Fleet post was a major command, the Admiralty were very unimpressed and his attitude nearly ruined his career. Beatty, as a rapidly promoted war hero, with no financial worries and with a degree of support in Royal circles, felt more confident than most naval officers in standing firm on requesting a posting nearer home. He was approaching two years on half pay (which would trigger automatic retirement from
1995-818: The Invergordon Mutiny of 1931. Beatty spent much of his life (when not at sea) in Leicestershire , and lived at Brooksby Hall and Dingley Hall . In July 1930 he denounced the London Naval Treaty in the House of Lords as "a great and deplorable blunder to which we are about to be committed by signing away the sea power by which the British Empire came into being". Beatty also claimed: "If any sane man erects an edifice, or has great possessions, he protects them by insurance. The Navy
2100-687: The Mahdist War and then the response to the Boxer Rebellion , he commanded the Battle Cruiser Fleet at the Battle of Jutland in 1916, a tactically indecisive engagement after which his aggressive approach was contrasted with the caution of his commander Admiral Sir John Jellicoe . He is remembered for his comment at Jutland that "There seems to be something wrong with our bloody ships today", after two of them exploded. Later in
2205-694: The North Sea , the Mediterranean and the Far East simultaneously, which provoked outrage from parts of the Royal Navy. Nevertheless, there was huge demand for the British to agree to the limits and reductions: the risk of war with the Americans was increasingly regarded as merely theoretical as there were very few policy differences between the two Anglophone powers; continued naval spending
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#17327810300212310-663: The Second World War became a link between the British and United States governments, lending his country house, Ditchley Park near Oxford , to Winston Churchill for weekend visits when the official residences were considered unsafe. Beatty and Ethel set up home at Hanover Lodge in Regent's Park, London. The couple had two sons, David Field Beatty, 2nd Earl Beatty (1905–1972) born at the Capua Palace in Malta , and
2415-407: The U.S. Pacific Fleet and then with the U.S. Atlantic Fleet . It calculated that a 7:5 ratio in the first battle would produce enough of a margin of victory to be able to win the subsequent engagement and so a 3:5 ratio was unacceptable because a 3:5 total fleet size ratio would imply a 6:5 ratio in the first battle. Nevertheless, the director of the delegation, Katō Tomosaburō , preferred to accept
2520-542: The attack of Pearl Harbor , argued that Japan should remain in the treaty. His opinion was more complex, however, in that he believed the United States could outproduce Japan by a greater factor than the 5:3 ratio because of the huge American production advantage of which he had expert knowledge since he had served with the Japanese embassy in Washington. After the signing of the treaty, he commented, "Anyone who has seen
2625-564: The non-interventionalism of the prewar era, with little enthusiasm for continued naval expansion. Britain also could ill afford the exorbitant cost of capital ships. In late 1921, the US became aware that Britain was planning a conference to discuss the strategic situation in the Pacific and Far East regions. To forestall the British plan and to satisfy domestic demands for a global disarmament conference, Warren Harding 's administration called
2730-547: The Americans and the British to construct equivalent ships. Hughes proposed to limit secondary ships ( cruisers and destroyers ) in the same proportions as capital ships. However, that was unacceptable to both the British and the French. The British counterproposal, in which the British would be entitled to 450,000 tons of cruisers in consideration of its imperial commitments but the United States and Japan to only 300,000 and 250,000 respectively, proved equally contentious. Thus,
2835-587: The Bath and promoted to acting vice-admiral in February 1915 and given command of the Battle Cruiser Fleet a month later. He was confirmed in the rank of vice-admiral on 9 August 1915. He led the 1st Battlecruiser Squadron at the actions at Heligoland Bight (1914), Dogger Bank (1915) and Jutland (1916). Jutland proved to be decisive in Beatty's career, despite the loss of two of his battlecruisers . Beatty
2940-523: The British force. This battle marked the effective end of resistance to the expeditionary force, but the gunboats were called into service to transport troops to Fashoda , 400 miles (640 km) south along the White Nile, where a small force of French troops had made a difficult land crossing and staked a claim to the area. Despite the ensuing crisis , the French were persuaded to withdraw without incident. Kitchener commended Beatty for his efforts in
3045-517: The Chinese government. The Empress Dowager Tzu-hsi partly encouraged the Boxer's opposition to foreigners in an attempt to turn their attention away from herself. The name was derived from ritual exercises supposed to make their users immune to bullets, which resembled boxing. In the summer of 1900 the rebellion reached Peking , where the German legation was attacked and foreign nationals withdrew to
3150-608: The Grand Fleet and received promotion to the acting rank of admiral in December 1916. With his dashing style, he was the antithesis of his predecessor. Beatty's marriage was failing disastrously at the time, and the result was to be a decade-long love affair between Beatty and Eugénie Godfrey-Faussett, wife of Captain Bryan Godfrey-Faussett . Under Beatty's command the Grand Fleet maintained its dominance of
3255-471: The Hon. Peter Randolph Louis Beatty (1910–1949). His marriage to a very wealthy heiress allowed Beatty an independence that most other officers lacked. She is reputed to have commented after he was threatened with disciplinary action following the straining of his ship's engines, "What? Court-martial my David? I'll buy them a new ship." In May 1902 Beatty was passed fit for sea duty and was appointed captain of
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3360-707: The Japanese government gave formal notice that it intended to terminate the treaty. Its provisions remained in force formally until the end of 1936 and were not renewed. What was unknown to the participants of the Conference was that the American " Black Chamber " (the Cypher Bureau, a US intelligence service), commanded by Herbert Yardley , was spying on the delegations' communications with their home capitals. In particular, Japanese communications were deciphered thoroughly, and American negotiators were able to get
3465-662: The Japanese had a greater force concentration than the US Navy or the Royal Navy. The terms also contributed to controversy in high ranks of the Imperial Japanese Navy between the Treaty Faction officers and their Fleet Faction opponents, who were also allied with the ultranationalists of the Japanese army and other parts of the Japanese government. For the Treaty Faction, the treaty was one of
3570-615: The King on 5 November 1908, he became captain of the battleship HMS Queen in the Atlantic Fleet in December 1908. At the request of Alfred Winsloe , the Fourth Sea Lord , he was promoted to rear-admiral on 1 January 1910 by a special order in council since he had not completed the requisite time as a captain. He was offered the post of second-in-command of the Atlantic Fleet , but declined it and asked for one in
3675-589: The London Naval Treaty of 1930. It was not until the mid-1930s that navies began to build battleships once again, and the power and the size of new battleships began to increase once again. The Second London Naval Treaty of 1936 sought to extend the Washington Treaty limits until 1942, but the absence of Japan or Italy made it largely ineffective. There were fewer effects on cruiser building. The treaty specified 10,000 tons and 8-inch guns as
3780-588: The Mediterranean Fleet, where she became part of the island's high society. Beatty took command of the cruiser HMS Arrogant in the Mediterranean Fleet in November 1903 and then commanded the cruiser HMS Suffolk in the Mediterranean Fleet from October 1904. He then became the naval advisor to the Army Council in 1906 and, after having been appointed a naval Aide-de-Camp to
3885-462: The Mediterranean fleet was considerably easier than cadet life, with visits to friendly ports all around the Mediterranean, but Beatty was concerned to work diligently towards naval examinations, which would determine seniority and future promotion prospects. Beatty was promoted to midshipman on 15 May 1886 and assigned to assist Lieutenant Stanley Colville on watchkeeping duties: Colville
3990-655: The Navy say if I fail to attend Jellicoe's funeral?" He was so obviously ill that, as the funeral procession passed up Fleet Street, a bystander sent a glass of brandy out to him. He also insisted on attending the funeral of King George V in January 1936. These acts hastened his own death. Beatty died at around 1 am on 12 March 1936. At Beatty's funeral his coffin was draped in the Union Flag flown by his flagship HMS Queen Elizabeth in 1919. The Archbishop of Canterbury , Cosmo Lang , said "In him something of
4095-797: The North Sea until the end of the War. Beatty escorted the German High Seas Fleet to internment at Scapa Flow in November 1918 giving the order from his flagship HMS Queen Elizabeth that "the German Flag will be hauled down at sunset and will not be raised again without permission". This was not a lawful order, as the fleet remained the property of the German Government having been interned rather than having surrendered, but nevertheless Beatty enforced it. Beatty
4200-701: The Royal Navy. In 1926 Beatty was considered for the post of Governor General of Canada but was rejected by the Colonial Secretary Leo Amery as he had "no manners and an impossible American wife". By the time of his retirement from the Royal Navy in July 1927 a great deal of time was being spent preparing for the Coolidge Conference in Geneva, although Beatty did not himself attend as he had to remain in London to supervise
4305-525: The Sudan campaign, but finding life in Ireland at the family home not to his taste, stayed instead with his brother at Newmarket, Suffolk . The location allowed him good hunting, and access to aristocratic houses where his recent heroic reputation from the campaign made him an honoured guest. Out hunting one day he chanced to meet Ethel Tree , daughter of Chicago department store founder Marshall Field . Beatty
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4410-576: The Washington Naval Conference in November 1921. The Conference agreed to the Five-Power Naval Treaty as well as a Four-Power Treaty on Japan and a Nine-Power Treaty on China. At the first plenary session held November 21, 1921, US Secretary of State Charles Evans Hughes presented his country's proposals. Hughes provided a dramatic beginning for the conference by stating with resolve: "The way to disarm
4515-531: The auto factories in Detroit and the oil-fields in Texas knows that Japan lacks the power for a naval race with America." He later added, "The ratio works very well for Japan – it is a treaty to restrict the other parties." He believed that other methods than a spree of construction would be needed to even the odds, which may have contributed to his advocacy of the plan to attack Pearl Harbor. On December 29, 1934,
4620-510: The battle, while Jellicoe wrote two memoirs. A number of serious errors have been identified in Beatty's handling of the Battle Cruiser Fleet at the Battle of Jutland: After the war a report of the battle was prepared by the Admiralty under First Sea Lord Rosslyn Wemyss . Before the report was published, Beatty was himself appointed First Sea Lord, and immediately requested amendments to
4725-634: The battle. Besides encouraging the publication of books and articles designed to praise his role at the Battle of Jutland and denigrate Jellicoe's, after his retirement Beatty assisted with the preparation of a 5,200 line poem "The Epic of Jutland" by Shane Leslie . In 2022 U.S. Air Force Academy military historian Chuck Steele found Beatty's failures to improve communications between vessels before Jutland more glaring in light of his own personal awareness of how that had kept earlier victories at Heligoland Bight and Dogger Bank from being as overwhelming as they could have been. Gordon Moore , Steele writes,
4830-406: The bitter end... To me always a Queen, if not always mine, Good-bye." Despite this estrangement, the couple again met foxhunting and resumed a discreet relationship. Marshall Field was at first unimpressed by the impecunious Beatty as a future son-in-law, but was persuaded by his heroic reputation, impressive record of promotion and future prospects. There was the possibility that Field might revoke
4935-440: The building of the Kent class to Beatty's lobbying, but government desire to alleviate shipyard unemployment was probably a more important factor. Despite further rumours that he would resign, Beatty remained in office when the Conservatives took power in the autumn of 1924. Supported by the First Lord of the Admiralty William Bridgeman , he clashed with the new Chancellor of the Exchequer, Winston Churchill, once again over
5040-485: The campaign and as a result Beatty was promoted to commander , ahead of 400 other lieutenants, on 15 November 1898. Beatty was appointed executive officer of the small battleship HMS Barfleur , flagship of the China Station , on 20 April 1899. The first year of his tour of duty was uneventful, but unrest against foreigners was growing in China. The Boxer movement was a secret Chinese peasant society committed to resisting oppression both from foreigners and from
5145-407: The classes that they were replacing. The 1921 British Naval Estimates planned four battleships and four battlecruisers, with another four battleships to follow the subsequent year. The new arms race was unwelcome to the American public. The US Congress disapproved of Wilson's 1919 naval expansion plan, and the 1920 presidential election campaign resulted in politicians in Washington resuming
5250-413: The cruiser HMS Juno on 2 June, spending two months in exercises with the Channel Fleet under Admiral Sir Arthur Wilson before joining the Mediterranean Fleet . Beatty worked hard to raise efficiency so that she was highly rated in gunnery and other competitions by the time he left the ship 19 December 1902. Ethel decided not to be left behind so rented the Capua Palace on Malta, home port of
5355-517: The death of his wife at 'The Mount', David Longfield returned to Ireland abandoning the training business. Beatty was educated at Kilkenny College and in 1882 entered Burney's Naval Academy at Gosport , which was a 'crammer' for boys wishing to take the entrance examinations for the Royal Navy. Beatty joined the Royal Navy as a cadet passing into the training ship HMS Britannia tenth out of ninety-nine candidates in January 1884. During his two years at Britannia , moored at Dartmouth , he
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#17327810300215460-423: The defeated German High Seas Fleet in November 1918. The Allies had differing opinions concerning the final disposition of the Imperial German Navy , with the French and Italians wanting the German fleet divided between the victorious powers and the Americans and British wanting the ships destroyed. The negotiations became mostly moot after the German crews scuttled most of their ships on 21 June 1919. News of
5565-416: The delegation and represented the influential "big navy" opinion that Japan had to prepare as thoroughly as possible for an inevitable conflict against the United States, which could build indefinitely more warships because of its huge industrial power. Katō Tomosaburō was finally able to persuade the Japanese high command to accept the Hughes proposals, but the treaty was for years a source of controversy in
5670-429: The delights of London. Beatty scored a first-class examination pass in Torpedoes, but only seconds in Seamanship, Gunnery and Pilotage, and a third in Navigation. A biography states that "his cabin at Greenwich was full of photographs of actresses, some of which were signed in the most endearing terms". After attending the gunnery school, HMS Excellent , he undertook a posting to a torpedo boat in July 1891 and then
5775-412: The deployment of naval and marine forces against nationalist unrest in China and Egypt. On his last day in office (30 July) he attended a Cabinet at which Bridgeman reported the breakdown of the Geneva Conference as the Americans refused to accept any gun smaller than 8-inch for their cruisers, and after leaving office he congratulated Bridgeman that the Americans had not been able to achieve "command of
5880-418: The displacement of the vessels as being within the limits imposed by the treaty. The naval treaty had a profound effect on the Japanese. With superior American and British industrial power, a long war would very likely end in a Japanese defeat. Thus, gaining strategic parity was not economically possible. Many Japanese considered the 5:5:3 ratio of ships as another snub by the West, but it can be argued that
5985-476: The exchange of letters ceased but on Beatty's return she sent him a telegram and letter inviting him to resume their friendship. Beatty did not respond until after surgery on his arm in September 1900 when he wrote, "I landed from China with my heart full of rage, and swore I did not care if I ever saw you again, or if I were killed or not. And now I have arrived with the firm determination not to see you at all in my own mind... Unfortunately I shall go on loving you to
6090-492: The expansion of the US Navy from 1916 to 1919 that would have resulted in a massive fleet of 50 modern battleships. In response, the Japanese Diet in 1920 finally authorised construction of warships to enable the Imperial Japanese Navy to attain its goal of an "eight-eight" fleet programme , with eight modern battleships and eight battlecruisers. The Japanese started work on four battleships and four battlecruisers, all of which were much larger and more powerful than those of
6195-413: The factors that had contributed to the deterioration of the relationship between the American and the Japanese governments. Some have also argued that the treaty was one major factor in prompting Japanese expansionism by the Fleet Faction in the early 1930s. The perception of unfairness resulted in Japan's renunciation of the Second London Naval Treaty in 1936. Isoroku Yamamoto , who later masterminded
6300-513: The fleet accident where she had rammed and sunk the battleship HMS Victoria ). He transferred to the battleship HMS Trafalgar in September 1895. Beatty gained recognition during the Mahdist War for his actions in the campaign to recapture the Sudan . Stanley Colville was placed in command of the gunboats attached to the British expeditionary force in Egypt and as Beatty's former commander in HMS Trafalgar and superior in HMS Alexandra he requested that Beatty join him. Control of
6405-431: The gunboats were frequently in action advancing along the Nile ahead of the army and saw action at the Battle of Omdurman , where Beatty made the acquaintance of Winston Churchill who had become a cavalry officer in Beatty's father's old regiment, the 4th Hussars, and had there learnt his family history. In a few hours 10,000 Dervishes were killed by rifle and machine gun fire without any of them getting within 600 yards of
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#17327810300216510-499: The honorary rank of Captain . He took up residence with Katrine in Cheshire and in 1869 sold his commission . David Longfield was unable to marry Katrine until Katrine had obtained a divorce on 21 February 1871, after the birth of their first two sons. Beatty's birth certificate recorded his mother's surname as Beatty, and his parents' eventual marriage at St Michael's Church in Liverpool was kept secret. Beatty's early education concentrated on horsemanship, hunting and learning to be
6615-456: The idea of limiting total cruiser tonnage or numbers was rejected entirely. Instead, the British suggested a qualitative limit of future cruiser construction. The limit proposed, of a 10,000 ton maximum displacement and 8-inch calibre guns, was intended to allow the British to retain the Hawkins class , then being constructed. That coincided with the American requirements for cruisers for Pacific Ocean operations and also with Japanese plans for
6720-459: The latter to the prospect of an arms race with the United States, as the relative industrial strength of the two nations would cause Japan to lose such an arms race and possibly suffer an economic crisis. At the beginning of the negotiations, the Japanese had only 55% of the capital ships and 18% of the GDP of the Americans. His opinion was opposed strongly by Katō Kanji , the president of the Naval Staff College, who acted as his chief naval aide at
6825-432: The maximum size of a cruiser, but that was also the minimum size cruiser that any navy was willing to build. The treaty began a building competition of 8-inch, 10,000-ton " treaty cruisers ", which gave further cause for concern. Subsequent naval treaties sought to address that by limiting cruiser, destroyer and submarine tonnage. Unofficial effects of the treaty included the end of the Anglo-Japanese Alliance . Although it
6930-409: The mid-1920s. However, by the Zara -class cruisers in the late 1920s and early 1930s, it had abandoned all pretense and built ships that topped 11,000 long tons (11,000 t) by a wide margin. The violations continued with the Littorio -class battleships of the mid-1930s, which had a standard displacement in excess of 40,000 long tons (41,000 t). The Italian Navy nevertheless misrepresented
7035-423: The mid-1930s, Japan and Italy renounced the treaties, while Germany renounced the Treaty of Versailles which had limited its navy. Naval arms limitation became increasingly difficult for the other signatories. Immediately after World War I, Britain still had the world's largest and most powerful navy, followed by the United States and, more distantly, by Japan, France and Italy. The British Royal Navy interned
7140-402: The naval disarmament clauses of the Treaty of Versailles . German naval rearmament threatened France, and according to the French perspective, if Britain freely violated treaty obligations, France would similarly not be constrained. Italy repeatedly violated the displacement limits on individual ships and attempted to remain within the 10,000-ton limit for the Trento -class cruisers built in
7245-560: The navy) when on 8 January 1912 his career was saved by the new First Lord of the Admiralty , Winston Churchill . Churchill had met Beatty when Beatty was commander of a gunboat on the Nile supporting the army at the Battle of Omdurman , in which Churchill took part as a cavalry officer. A "probably apocryphal " story relates that as Beatty walked into Churchill's office at the Admiralty, Churchill looked him over and said, "You seem very young to be an Admiral." Unfazed, Beatty replied, "And you seem very young to be First Lord." Churchill – who
7350-445: The navy. The French delegation initially responded negatively to the idea of reducing their capital ships' tonnage to 175,000 tons and demanded 350,000, slightly above the Japanese limit. In the end, concessions regarding cruisers and submarines helped persuade the French to agree to the limit on capital ships. Another issue that was considered critical by the French representatives was the Italian request of substantial parity, which
7455-410: The number of cruisers required by the Royal Navy. At this stage of his career Churchill was opposed to what he saw as excessive defence spending. This may seem odd in light of his previous and subsequent reputation, but in the 1920s no major war seemed to be on the horizon. Beatty also at this time pressed hard for the return of responsibility for naval aviation from the newly formed Royal Air Force to
7560-827: The relative safety of the Legation Quarter. Government troops joined forces with the rebels and the railway to the Treaty Port of Tientsin was interrupted. Admiral Sir Edward Seymour , then the Commander-in-Chief of the China Station, sent reinforcements to Peking, but they were insufficient to defend the legation. An attempt was therefore made to send more troops from Tientsin, where British ships had been joined by French, German, Russian, American, Austrian, Italian and Japanese. The international naval brigade force of naval marines placed itself under
7665-449: The report. When the authors refused to comply, he ordered it to be destroyed and instead had prepared an alternative report, which proved highly critical of Jellicoe. Considerable argument broke out as a result, with significant numbers of servicemen disputing the published version, including Admiral Reginald Bacon , who wrote his own book about the battle, criticising the version sponsored by Beatty and highly critical of Beatty's own part in
7770-480: The river Nile was considered vitally important for any expedition into Egypt and the Sudan. Beatty was seconded to the Egyptian government on 3 June 1896 and appointed second in command of the river flotilla. Colville was wounded during the operation, leaving Beatty in command of the gunboats for the successful attack on Dongola . The campaign halted at Dongola to regroup and Beatty returned to Britain on leave. He
7875-406: The same term This disambiguation page lists articles about people with the same name. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=David_Beatty&oldid=1059710436 " Category : Human name disambiguation pages Hidden categories: Short description
7980-538: The scuttling angered the French and the Italians, with the French particularly unimpressed with British explanations that the fleet guarding the Germans had then been away on exercises. Nevertheless, the British joined their allies in condemning the German actions, and no credible evidence emerged to suggest that the British had collaborated with the Germans with respect to the scuttling. The Treaty of Versailles , signed
8085-482: The sea at any cost". Beatty was appointed a member of the Privy Council on 25 July 1927. Stephen Roskill wrote that whilst Beatty and his disciple Chatfield deserve some praise for the Royal Navy's comparative readiness in 1939, his main achievement was to maintain the morale of the Navy at a time of serious defence cuts, and that without his strong leadership the Royal Navy might have suffered more events like
8190-551: The senior officer present, which was Seymour. After an urgent call for help from the legation, Seymour set out on 10 June 1900 with 2,000 troops to attempt to break through to Peking in the Seymour Expedition . The force got about halfway before abandoning the attempt because the railway line had been torn up. By now rebels had begun destroying the track behind the force, cutting it off from Tientsin. On 11 June 1900, Beatty and 150 men from HMS Barfleur landed as part of
8295-445: The settlement he had made on his daughter at the time of her first marriage and the new couple would have no means of support. Beatty's father was also unhappy about the match, fearing a repeat of the difficulties he had faced with his own relationship with a married woman, but with the added risk of publicity because both Beatty and Ethel were famous and the risk that Beatty's illegitimacy might be exposed. Beatty went so far as to consult
8400-428: The ships to be scrapped to comply with the treaty and when the remaining ships could be replaced. In all, the United States had to scrap 30 existing or planned capital ships, Britain 23 and Japan 17. The treaty marked the end of a long period of increases of battleship construction. Many ships that were being constructed were scrapped or converted into aircraft carriers . Treaty limits were respected and then extended by
8505-514: The spirit of Nelson seemed to have come back". The Prime Minister, Stanley Baldwin , called in the House of Commons for a public memorial to Beatty to be erected, but no action was taken until after the Second World War , when busts of Beatty and Jellicoe were unveiled in Trafalgar Square on 21 October ( Trafalgar Day ) 1948. Beatty had requested in his will that he would like to be buried next to his wife Ethel at Dingley: however he
8610-547: The total tonnage over the 70,000-ton limit on new French battleships until the expiration of the treaty. The keel laying of Jean Bart in December 1936, albeit less than three weeks before the treaty expired, increased the magnitude of France's violation by another 35,000 tons. The French government dismissed British objections to the violations by pointing out that Britain had signed the Anglo-German Naval Agreement in 1935, which unilaterally dismantled
8715-600: The treaty also prohibited the British, the Japanese and the Americans from constructing any new fortifications or naval bases in the Pacific Ocean region. Existing fortifications in Singapore , the Philippines and Hawaii could remain. That was a significant victory for Japan, as newly-fortified British or American bases would be a serious problem for the Japanese in the event of any future war. That provision of
8820-492: The treaty essentially guaranteed that Japan would be the dominant power in the Western Pacific Ocean and was crucial in gaining Japanese acceptance of the limits on capital ship construction. The treaty strictly limited both the tonnage and construction of capital ships and aircraft carriers and included limits of the size of individual ships. The tonnage limits defined by Articles IV and VII (tabulated) gave
8925-402: The treaty limits. Chapter II, part 2, detailed what was to be done to render a ship ineffective for military use. In addition to sinking or scrapping, a limited number of ships could be converted as target ships or training vessels if their armament, armour and other combat-essential parts were removed completely. Some could also be converted into aircraft carriers. Part 3, Section II specified
9030-733: The views of many within the navy, who felt that ships should always be closely controlled by their commanding admiral, and harked back to reforms attempted by Admiral George Tryon . It is argued that Tryon had attempted to introduce greater independence and initiative amongst his captains, which he believed would be essential in the confusion of a real war situation, but had ironically been killed in an accident caused by captains rigorously obeying incorrect but precise orders issued by Tryon himself. Beatty chose Lieutenant Ralph Seymour as his flag lieutenant, despite Seymour being unknown to him. Seymour had aristocratic connections, which may have appealed to Beatty since he sought connections in society, but it
9135-622: The war he succeeded Jellicoe as Commander in Chief of the Grand Fleet , in which capacity he received the surrender of the German High Seas Fleet at the end of the war. He then followed Jellicoe's path a second time, serving as First Sea Lord —a position that Beatty held longer (7 years 9 months) than any other First Sea Lord. While First Sea Lord, he was involved in negotiating the Washington Naval Treaty of 1922 in which it
9240-531: Was Commander-in-Chief of the Mediterranean Squadron . This proved an excellent social opening for Beatty, who established a longstanding relationship with the Duke's eldest daughter, Marie , and with other members of the court. Alexandra was a three-masted sailing ship with auxiliary steam power, nonetheless, remaining flagship in a navy which was steadily transitioning from sail to steam. Life in
9345-460: Was actually buried at St Paul's Cathedral and therefore the double grave at Dingley Church contains only his wife's body. The outcome of the Battle of Jutland was inconclusive, leading to controversy and a search for someone to blame, especially since the British lost more ships. Beatty was particularly unhappy with the official account of the battle and other historians took sides in support of him or Jellicoe. Beatty did not publish his analysis of
9450-574: Was agreed that the United States, Britain and Japan should set their navies in a ratio of 5:5:3, with France and Italy maintaining smaller ratio fleets of 1.75 each. Beatty was born into an Anglo-Irish family at Howbeck Lodge in the parish of Stapeley , near Nantwich , Cheshire, on 17 January 1871. He was the second son of five children born to Captain David Longfield Beatty and Katherine (or Katrine) Edith Beatty (née Sadleir), both from Ireland: David Longfield had been an officer in
9555-581: Was also the case that Seymour's sister was a longstanding close friend of Churchill's wife. Appointments by influence were common in the navy at this time, but the significance of Beatty's choice lay in Seymour's relative inexperience as a signals officer, which later resulted in difficulties in battle. On the eve of the First World War in 1914, Beatty was appointed a Knight Commander of the Order of
9660-510: Was beaten three times for various infractions. He passed out of Britannia eighteenth out of the thirty-three remaining cadets at the end of 1885. Beatty's letters home made no complaint about the poor living conditions in Britannia , and generally he was extrovert, even aggressive, and resented discipline. However, he understood how far he could transgress without serious consequences, and this approach continued throughout his career. Beatty
9765-685: Was commended by Kitchener for his part in the campaign and as a result was awarded the Distinguished Service Order . Beatty was again seconded to the Egyptian government for the next phase of the campaign. This was now at Lord Kitchener 's specific request, for the Khartoum expedition. Beatty first commanded the gunboat El Teb but this was capsized attempting to ascend the Fourth Cataract. Beatty then took command of gunboat Fateh between October 1897 and August 1898:
9870-637: Was concluded on February 6, 1922. Ratifications of that treaty were exchanged in Washington on August 17, 1923, and it was registered in the League of Nations Treaty Series on April 16, 1924. Later naval arms limitation conferences sought additional limitations of warship building. The terms of the Washington Naval Treaty were modified by the London Naval Treaty of 1930 and the Second London Naval Treaty of 1936. By
9975-606: Was considered to be unsubstantiated; however, pressure from the American and the British delegations caused the French to accept it. That was considered a great success by the Italian government, but parity would never actually be attained. There was much discussion about the inclusion or exclusion of individual warships. In particular, the Japanese delegation was keen to retain their newest battleship Mutsu , which had been funded with great public enthusiasm, including donations from schoolchildren. That resulted in provisions to allow
10080-532: Was given orders to join the China Station in January 1886, but the posting did not appeal to his mother, who wrote to Lord Charles Beresford , then a senior naval officer, member of parliament and personal friend, to use his influence to obtain something better. Beatty was, in February 1886, instead appointed to HMS Alexandra , flagship of Admiral the Duke of Edinburgh , Queen Victoria's second son, who
10185-744: Was granted the Freedom of the City of London on 16 June 1919 at the same ceremony as Lord Haig . In June 1920, the Great Central Railway gave the name Earl Beatty to one of their newly built 4-6-0 express passenger locomotives, no. 1164 of class 9P (LNER class B3). It carried the name until withdrawal in September 1947. In 1925, he became the President of the Society for Nautical Research . Washington Naval Treaty The treaty
10290-456: Was himself from a wealthy American family, he now had to adjust to reduced circumstances without Ethel's support. He elected to remain in Britain and their son Ronald remained with him. Ronald and his mother were never reconciled from his perception that she had deserted his father, but he visited in later life and became friendly with Beatty. Ronald later became a member of parliament and, during
10395-520: Was himself only thirty-eight years old in 1912 – took to him immediately and he was appointed Naval Secretary . Beatty became Rear-Admiral Commanding the 1st Battlecruiser Squadron on 1 March 1913. Beatty was late taking up his new post, choosing not to cut short a holiday in Monte Carlo . On his eventual arrival, he set about drafting standing orders regarding how the squadron was to operate. He noted, "Captains...to be successful must possess, in
10500-463: Was immediately taken with her, for her good looks and her ability to hunt. The immediate difficulty with the match was that Ethel was married already to Arthur Tree, with a son, Ronald Tree . After the Boxer Campaign, the couple had at first exchanged letters, which Beatty signed 'Jack', as Ethel was still a married woman and discretion was advised. Ethel became involved with another man and
10605-565: Was not part of the Washington Treaty in any way, the American delegates had made it clear that they would not agree to the treaty unless the British ended their alliance with the Japanese. The 1921 Imperial Conference earlier in the year had already decided not to renew the Alliance. In 1935, the French Navy laid down the battleship Richelieu ; combined with the two Dunkerque -class battleships also under construction, which placed
10710-505: Was promoted to substantive full admiral on 1 January 1919 and to Admiral of the Fleet on 1 May 1919. He was created 1st Earl Beatty , Viscount Borodale and Baron Beatty of the North Sea and Brooksby on 18 October 1919. He became First Sea Lord on 1 November 1919. In this capacity he was involved in negotiating the Washington Naval Treaty of 1922 in which it was agreed that the United States, Britain and Japan should set their navies in
10815-563: Was to play an important part in Beatty's future career. Beatty left HMS Alexandra in March 1889 and joined the cruiser HMS Warspite in July 1889 for manoeuvres before joining the sailing corvette HMS Ruby in September 1889, in which he was promoted to sub-lieutenant on 14 May 1890. Next he attended courses at the Royal Naval College, Greenwich during which he was somewhat distracted from his naval career by
10920-552: Was transferred to the Canary Islands after the latter engagement not for his failures in it but for complaining about Beatty's poor communications to Churchill, then First Lord of the Admiralty and a strong supporter of Beatty's. Steele also argues that Beatty should also have known how to effectively use his battle cruisers due to the role they had played in smashing the German East Asia Squadron at
11025-434: Was unpopular in Britain throughout the empire; and Britain was implementing major budget reductions due to the post–World War I recession . The Japanese delegation was divided. Japanese naval doctrine required the maintenance of a fleet 70% the size of that of the United States, which was felt to be the minimum necessary to defeat the Americans in any subsequent war. The Japanese envisaged two separate engagements, first with
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