The Italian Navy decided that the smaller design was impractical, and that a larger design should be pursued. A design was then prepared, which mounted eight 343 mm guns in twin turrets. This was ultimately abandoned in favor of a 35,000 ton design to be armed with 406 mm guns. The 406 mm gun in turn was abandoned in favor of the 381 mm gun because there were no designs for the larger gun, which would delay construction; a 381 mm gun had already been designed for the canceled . Ultimately, nine 381 mm guns in three triple turrets were adopted as the primary battery for the ships, on a displacement in excess of , despite the fact that this violated the established naval treaties. Nevertheless, by the time these ships entered service, the international arms control system had fallen apart and the major naval powers had invoked the "escalator clause" that allowed for ships up to displacement.