Washington Naval Treaty
Japan was spared the possibly ruinous expense of following through on this construction plan by the Washington Naval Treaty of 1922. Under the terms of the treaty all the ships still being built - which meant all ships started after Nagato, the first ship of the 1916 building program - had to be broken up or converted into aircraft carriers. A special exemption was made for the battleship Mutsu, which was nearing completion and which had a special place in many Japanese hearts, with many of the funds for her construction raised by public subscription.
The treaty established a maximum tonnage for the Japanese navy as 60% of the U.S. Navy and the British Royal Navy. For this reason, it was vociferously opposed by many Imperial Japanese Navy officers, including Admiral Satō Tetsutarō. This group formed the influential Fleet Faction which later achieved Japan's withdrawal from the treaty. Ironically, the treaty probably restricted British and especially American ship building much more than Japanese.
Although Japanese Navy procurement still proceeded along the lines of initial "Eight-Eight Fleet" plans for several years, changes in naval strategy and the development of naval aviation made the term an anachronism by the 1930s.
Read more about this topic: Eight-eight Fleet
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