The Anglo-German Naval Agreements of 1935 and 1937
Wed 14 Oct, 11:00 am - 12:00 pm
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Overview: –
The Anglo-German Naval Agreements of 1935 and 1937 are among the most misunderstood and misrepresented elements of the interwar naval arms control architecture. Far from being the short-sighted acts of appeasement they are commonly portrayed to be, these agreements represented a logical and sensible approach by Britain to resolve the seemingly impossible strategic dilemmas facing the British Empire at that time, and to shape their environment by directing German naval development in a direction least-threatening to British interests.
This presentation will explore the history of the agreements, starting with the breakdown of the Versailles restrictions following the failure of the 1932 World Disarmament Conference. It will include the extensive negotiations that took place following the 1935 agreement to convert a brief and ambiguous Exchange of Notes into a practical arrangement, as well as the protracted negotiations conducted with Germany (and the parallel interdependent talks with the USSR) to reach a compromise that would allow the extension of the 1936 London Naval Treaty provisions to Germany. Finally, this presentation will address the progressive deconstruction of the agreements as Europe descended towards World War Two.
Along the way, this presentation will explore a number of other aspects of the agreements, such as why, after the ravages wrought by U-boats in World War I, Great Britain allowed an exception which permitted Germany to build up to parity in submarines, what these potential enemies hoped to achieve from the agreements, and how the agreements contained the seeds of their own demise.
Presenter –
Dr David Chessum served for 23 years as a Weapon Engineering Officer in the Royal New Zealand Navy, including two tours of duty as a Head of Department on Leander class frigates, and attendance at the Australian Command and Staff College in Canberra. Since leaving the RNZN David has been employed as a Chartered Professional Engineer in both consulting and Government roles, with a key focus on naval engineering and system safety.
In parallel with his engineering career, David has compiled a comprehensive academic record, completing five degrees in a variety of disciplines. Since 2004, David has focused on research into the Interwar Naval Arms Control process, and the interactions between that process and naval strategy, naval architecture, and force structure. This research, which has included extensive archival research in the United Kingdom, US, France, Australia and New Zealand, is the foundation of his PhD thesis completed at the University of New South Wales. His current major project is the transformation of that thesis into a book for publication.
David is Vice-President of the Nepean Naval and Maritime Museum, and a volunteer tour guide on ex-HMAS Vampire, and ex-HMAS Onslow at the Australian National Maritime Museum.