A Dutch proposal to build new battleships was originally tendered in 1912, after years of concern over the expansion of the Imperial Japanese Navy and the withdrawal of allied British warships from the China Station. Only four coastal defense ships were planned, but naval experts and the Tweede Kamer (lower house of the parliament) believed that acquiring dreadnoughts would provide a stronger defense for the Nederlands-Indië (Netherlands East Indies, abbr. NEI), so a Royal Commission was formed in June 1912.
The Royal Commission reported in August 1913. It recommended that the Koninklijke Marine (Royal Netherlands Navy) acquire nine dreadnought-type battleships to protect the NEI from attack and help guarantee the country's neutrality in Europe. Five of these would be based in the colony, while the other four would operate out of the Netherlands. Seven foreign companies submitted designs for the contract; naval historians believe that a 26,850-long-ton (27,280 tonne) ship, whose design was submitted by the German firm Friedrich Krupp Germaniawerft, would have been eventually selected.
The Royal Commission's proposal led to a debate between senior officers in the Navy and the Koninklijke Landmacht (Royal Netherlands Army) over how to best protect the NEI, and the question of how the cost of the ships should be split between the Netherlands and the NEI also was not settled until July 1914. After considering the recommendations, the Dutch Government decided to acquire four battleships, and a bill seeking funding for them was introduced into the Dutch parliament in August 1914. However, this was withdrawn following the outbreak of the First World War that month. A new royal commission into Dutch defense needs held after the war did not recommend that battleships be procured and none were ever ordered.
Background During the early years of the 20th century, the Dutch became concerned about their ability to defend their colonial empire in the NEI from foreign aggressors. Fears of an eventual Japanese attack developed following the total defeat of the Russian Pacific and Baltic Fleets in the Russo–Japanese War.van Dijk, The Netherlands Indies and the Great War 1914–1918, 73–75 Moreover, the withdrawal of most of the British China Station's warships in 1905 meant that there was no credible force in the Pacific to deter the Imperial Japanese Navy, which had been victorious over the Russians and was building powerful cruisers armed with guns.Sturton, "Netherlands", 363
At the time, the Dutch naval force in the NEI, the Dutch Squadron in the East Indies, was widely seen as inadequate. It comprised a small number of destroyers, ironclads and armored cruisers, most of which were not battle-worthy.van Dijk, The Netherlands Indies and the Great War 1914–1918, 95 In response to the perceived threat of Japanese attack, the Dutch laid down a coastal defense ship, , and eight destroyers of the , while beginning plans for other ships. In addition, a submarine for the colony was approved in 1911.van Dijk, The Drawingboard Battleships for the Royal Netherlands Navy. Part I., 359 Four coast defense ships were projected in one of the two major bills to come before the House of Representatives in 1912.Breyer, Battleships and battle cruisers, 452Claflin, ed., "Holland and Belgium", 322b Specifications for these ships included an armament of four 280-mm (11-inch) and ten 102-mm (4-inch) guns and three torpedo tubes and they would have been armored with a belt of 152-mm (6-inch) and turret armor of 203 mm (8 inches). Two triple-expansion engines generating 10,000 indicated horsepower would drive the ships through the water at . One ship of this design was very close to being authorized in 1912, but it was felt by experts and the House of Representatives that the Netherlands would be better served by constructing dreadnoughts of a type similar to the Spanish . Further plans for coast-defense ships were shelved pending the findings of a Royal Commission, formed on 5 June 1912. Its goal was to assess the steps needed to improve the defenses of the East Indies.
Meanwhile, in September 1912 the Navy Minister, Hendrikus Colijn, contacted the German firm Friedrich Krupp Germaniawerft and asked them to prepare a design for dreadnought battleships suited to the NEI. Germaniawerft submitted their design to the Royal Netherlands Navy on 25 September 1912.van Dijk, The Drawingboard Battleships for the Royal Netherlands Navy. Part II., 30 The proposed ships were generally similar to the German , but with eight L/50 guns in four turrets mounted en echelon rather than ten guns in five turrets, and two fewer medium guns. The proposed Dutch ships were faster and had a longer range, at the expense of lighter armor protection, similar to that used in contemporary German battlecruisers. By the time the design was proposed the Dutch authorities had decided that mounting the armament en echelon was inferior to superfiring turrets, and asked Germaniawerft to submit a revised design incorporating this armament, enhanced ammunition storage and other minor improvements.van Dijk, The Drawingboard Battleships for the Royal Netherlands Navy. Part II., 35
Proposal
The Royal Commission handed its findings and recommendations to the government in August 1913. It concluded that international relations were deteriorating in the Pacific and there was an increased risk of the NEI becoming involved in a war between western and Asian powers. As a result, the Commission argued that the Netherlands should develop a powerful fleet of warships to enforce Dutch neutrality and offer a credible defense should any nation attack the NEI or the home country itself.van Dijk, The Netherlands Indies and the Great War 1914–1918, 100–101 The Commission was very specific in its call for nine dreadnoughts, stating that they should be ships of , possessing a speed of , and mounting eight guns, sixteen , and twelve guns.Sturton, "Netherlands", 366 It was also recommended that the fleet include six "torpedo cruisers"—believed by Conways to be closer to large destroyers—eight destroyers (a role which would be filled by the Fret class), eight torpedo boats (also already completed, though they were old), eight large submarines and two large minelayers. This ambitious plan was estimated to cost nearly ƒ17,000,000 each year for the next 35 (until 1949), adding up to about ƒ595,000,000; this would triple the Navy's budget. The Commission recommended that the cost of the fleet be partially offset by reducing the size of the Koninklijk Nederlands Indisch Leger (Royal Dutch East Indies Army) as the Navy would provide a stronger defense from attack than the Army could.van Dijk, The Netherlands Indies and the Great War 1914–1918, 103–105
The requirement for nine battleships was determined by the defense needs of both the Netherlands and NEI. The Commission recommended that four battleships be active at all times in the NEI, with a fifth ship held in reserve there. The remaining four battleships would be based in the Netherlands. Ships sent to the NEI would return to Europe after twelve years in the tropics and complete another eight years service before being scrapped.van Dijk, The Netherlands Indies and the Great War 1914–1918, 101
The Dutch Navy would need a significant manpower expansion of 2,800 sailors to crew all of the proposed battleships. The Commission believed that it was unlikely that sufficient Dutch citizens would volunteer, and that as a result Indonesian sailors should be recruited and trained for service in the NEI. Strong segregation between white and Indonesian sailors was to be maintained to the maximum extent practical for unit efficiency.van Dijk, The Netherlands Indies and the Great War 1914–1918, 102
One member of the Commission, the chief accountant of the Ministry of Finance, A. van Gijn, objected to the report's conclusions. He provided a note to Queen Wilhelmina, which argued that advocates of building large warships had forced their views on the other members of the commission. Moreover, he believed that the proposed fleet would be inadequate given the rapid naval expansion being undertaken by the major powers, and that if it was adopted there would be a requirement to buy further dreadnoughts in order to keep pace. This note was included as an appendix to the Commission's report.
The Royal Commission's proposals were extensively debated. Hendrick van Kol, who was one of the leaders of the Social Democratic Workers' Party, argued that building up a strong fleet would hinder Dutch neutrality by making it impossible to avoid battle with foreign fleets which passed through NEI waters en route to other destinations. Other critics of the plan believed that it would be unwise for the Netherlands to join the naval arms race which was taking place in Europe at the time, and that competition between the major powers meant that none of them would allow another nation to occupy either the Netherlands or the NEI. The Dutch Army also opposed the development of a strong fleet in the NEI, arguing that a land force centered on Java would be better able to mount a prolonged resistance against a large invasion force and that reducing the size of the Army to fund the fleet would leave it unable to suppress insurrections. The Governor-General of the NEI, Alexander Willem Frederik Idenburg, argued that both a stronger Army and Navy were necessary, and advocated for seven battleships to be stationed in the Indies. He believed that the cost of this alternative could be managed by reducing the planned battleship force in European waters to three small ships.van Dijk, The Netherlands Indies and the Great War 1914–1918, 106 Other supporters of the proposal, led by the Onze Vloot ("Our Fleet") naval advocacy association, argued that it was necessary to build a strong fleet which was capable of defending the NEI as the loss of the colonial empire would greatly damage the Dutch economy and reduce the country's prestige.van Dijk, The Netherlands Indies and the Great War 1914–1918, 111–112 The Dutch Naval staff also debated the relative merits of torpedo boats and battleships, and concluded that while small craft and submarines were suitable for defending the Netherlands, large warships were needed to effectively protect the sprawling East Indies.Abbenhuis, The Art of Staying Neutral : The Netherlands in the First World War, 1914–1918, 52–53
After considering the Royal Commission's recommendations the Dutch Government decided to purchase four battleships. All the ships were to be permanently stationed in the NEI, and none would be used in European waters. The ships were larger than those proposed by the commission, however. Idenburg opposed this decision, and unsuccessfully argued for at least a fifth battleship to be built. In October 1913 it was rumored that the Government was about to order the first ship, and that it would be paid for by a loan borne by NEI.van Dijk, The Netherlands Indies and the Great War 1914–1918, 108
Design