ABSTRACT

In July-August 1909 the British Government convened an imperial conference in London to discuss the naval and military defence of the empire. The gathering had been urged by the two principal dominions, Canada and Australia, in the wake of widespread public anxiety, albeit largely unjustified, concerning Britain’s ability to maintain superiority over Germany in modern battleships. As such, the conference aimed to determine some definite measure of coordinated response amid a confusion of separate schemes forwarded by the diverse territories of the British Empire.