The power and ultimate underwriter of the British Empire was not the British Army, it was the Senior Service, the Royal Navy.

And in 1914 it had reigned supreme as the unchallenged master of the sea and guarantor of the Empire's lines of trade and communication for a century.

Whenever colonial, brush wars sprang up, such as against the Boer's, the army might send a force, and supplement it with generous helpings of Imperial volunteer units, some militia or yeomanry, and reserve or newly recruited formations. So long as the navy controlled the way, Britain could eventually bring sufficient force to bear to retake anything she might lose.

And while prior to 1905 the RN had in many ways lapsed into the long twilight of Nelson's dominance, and allowed true fighting standards to slip, there simply was no real threat to her dominance.

Then came Jackie Fisher and his new warship designs and the age of the Dreadnought. Suddenly the gap in numbers wasnt so large and Britain had to work, to try to build 2, or 3, or 4 ships per year to match the ever more assertive Germans, and the upstart Americans, and their erstwhile proteges in Japan.

And while the attempts at reaching a true "2 Power standard" were hit or miss, what cannot be denied is that in August of 1914 the Home Fleet(soon to be renamed Grand Fleet) represented the largest single concentration of strength of arms anywhere on the planet, and was the ultimate protector of Britain as an Imperial power, and the final barrier to German ambitions on a global scale.

In her ranks when she first set out for her lonely anchorages at Scapa Flow, with the Battlecruisers down in the Firth of Forth, she had 20 Dreadnoughts, with 2 more fitting out and many under construction. And then 5 Battlecruisers, with 3 more in the Med and another in the Pacific, and 1 more finishing construction. As well as dozens of Pre-Dreadnought battleships, and smaller craft of all descriptions and vintages.

Against this the High Seas Fleet could muster 12 Dreadnoughts and 2 Battlecruisers with 1 more of each fitting out, and another BC in the Mediterranean. To make up the difference Pre-Dreads remained an integral part of the HSF battle line even at Jutland, nicknamed the "5 Minute Squadron" for their life expectancy in the face of modern heavy, fast, all big gun warships.

And while the numbers were decidedly in Britain's favor, they would only increase as construction programs and blockade continued, regardless of battle losses. At the cost though of damn near bankruptcy the nation in the run up to war and incurring massive debt during the conflict.