Chapter two hundred and sixty-three new gunboat construction
"That's right! The minister often stayed in the office all night to process documents. Every time he would let us take the first step and then handle the rest of the work alone. Sometimes he didn't take a break for several days. After that, we got used to it.
!”
The words of the State Secretary were full of respect. It seemed that the minister appointed by Jérôme Bonaparte had won the unanimous approval of the Admiralty in a very short period of time.
In the relatively closed Navy Department, it is really difficult for a person who is a semi-monastic to serve as the Navy Minister to coordinate the entire department. This requires both an iron fist and an attitude of leading by example.
Jean-Etienne Theodore Duco was born in a merchant family in the province of Bordeaux. When he came of age, he inherited the family business and became a shipyard owner in the port city where he lived. During his career as a merchant, he accumulated
A large amount of wealth has also established a certain prestige in the local area.
In France, any businessman who has gained prestige will choose a path to politics. Dicko seized the opportunity and became a representative of the Bordeaux Province during the revolutionary turmoil of 1848, and then devoted himself to Paris politics.
As a man with no clear political beliefs, Dicko first joined the Republicans, then switched to the Party of Order in June. Then, after Jérôme Bonaparte was elected President of the Republic, he decisively moved towards Jérôme Bonaparte.
He believed that with the connections of the Bonaparte family, as long as Bonaparte did not make decisive mistakes, everything would be very stable.
Of course, what really decided Dicko to become the minister was the strike from the cabinet last October. After Jerome Bonaparte decisively dismissed Odilon Barrot's cabinet members, Gérault suffered from the lack of a qualified navy minister.
M. Bonaparte began to look for candidates from within Bonaparte who could replace the Admiralty. Senator Dicko was selected as a shipowner by Jérôme Bonaparte.
Secretary of the Navy.
"Have you never complained that the Navy Minister I chose for you is not someone from your system?" Jérôme Bonaparte and the State Secretary of the Navy sat on the sky blue cushioned sofa specially provided for the Navy with great interest.
asked.
The Secretary of State smiled and said nothing. Seeing this, Jérôme Bonaparte encouraged him: "Don't worry! I won't tell you ministers, and I won't cause trouble for you! I just want to find out!"
Later, he swore another oath: "I guarantee it in the name of the Bonaparte family!"
At the end of the aristocracy in the 19th century, using the name of the family as a guarantee was also a strict oath, especially for a family as "prestigious" (in the eyes of non-royals) as the Bonaparte family.
"Actually... there is nothing that cannot be said!" After hesitating for a moment, the State Secretary reorganized his words and said: "When you issued the order to let Minister Dicko serve as the leader of our navy, we did have some doubts in our hearts. Some people
Thinking the Republic gave up on the navy, some work started to drag on!
When the minister first took office, he set an example and asked us to keep pace with his work. The entire department was running at high speed under his leadership. Even the previous minister was not as resolute as him."
"Are you feeling tired?" Jérôme Bonaparte asked next.
The State Secretary nodded and responded: "It did feel very tiring at first, but as time went by, I gradually became able to strengthen the minister's pace."
Immediately, the Secretary of State paused for a moment, looked at Jérôme Bonaparte with earnest eyes and said: "The minister told us before he took office that France must not only build the world's first-class army, but also build a world-class army that can keep pace with the army.
Only in this way can we ensure the interests of France and maintain the peace of the French region. This is our mission!"
"That's right!" Jérôme Bonaparte couldn't help but rely a little more on Dicko: "We must build a global navy, so that we can be more conducive to France safeguarding our own interests! This is also what I
The reason why I came here today!”
Just as Jérôme Bonaparte was speaking in a low voice, there was movement from the desk in the minister's office. Jérôme Bonaparte and the State Secretary simultaneously turned their gazes to the desk in the minister's office.
At this time, Dicko was waking up from his trance. He yawned and stretched.
When he got up from the chair, he suddenly realized that the people sitting on the sofa were not the president and his secretary of state.
"President!!!" Minister Dicko opened his mouth and looked at the president who appeared in his office in surprise.
"Good morning, Minister Dicko!" Jérôme Bonaparte greeted Dicko with a kind expression.
Upon seeing this, Minister Dico hurriedly ran to Jérôme Bonaparte: "When did you come here!"
Jérôme Bonaparte took out his pocket watch and looked at the time. It was already around 8:30.
"About half an hour ago!"
"Why didn't you wake me up when the President came in?" A hint of anger appeared on Dicko's tough face. He angrily scolded the Secretary of State, not in the least making Jérôme Bonaparte an outsider.
.
"I didn't let him wake you up!" Jérôme Bonaparte saw this and hurried to the rescue. He patted Dicko on the shoulder and said sincerely: "Minister Dicko, the affairs of the Navy are indeed important, but the health
It’s also very important!”
"Your Excellency, I'm fine!" Dico had a flattering expression on his slightly swollen face.
"Minister Dicko, you have to serve the government for a long time! Don't be careless about your health!" Jérôme Bonaparte "reprimanded" Dicko with a straight face.
"I know!" Dico understood that this was the president's concern for him, and ordinary people would never have this kind of concern.
"Minister Dicko, the road ahead is still long, there is no need to rush!" Jérôme Bonaparte said in a soft tone.
"Yes!" Minister Dicko admitted his "mistake" very decisively, and then changed the topic and asked: "Your Excellency, why didn't you notify the Navy in advance when you came to the Navy, so that we could be prepared?"
"If we had notified him in advance, I might not have seen this scene!" Jérôme Bonaparte said to Dicko in a joking tone.
The State Secretary saw this and left the Navy Minister's office with good sense.
After all, the president is here to meet with the minister, he is just a state secretary.
After the Secretary of State left, Jérôme Bonaparte invited Dicko to sit down and asked: "How does it feel to be a minister? Have you encountered any difficulties?"
"Your Excellency, the entire Navy Department is united. We have followed the President's instructions and have not encountered any difficulties!" Minister Dicko immediately expressed his position to Jérôme Bonaparte.
"I know!" Jerome Bonaparte nodded.
After the two chatted for a while, Jerome Bonaparte gradually extended the topic to the construction of the navy and the escort of warships.
"If we have a force of 100,000 troops landing in the Near East, can the naval escort formation support it as soon as possible?" Jérôme Bonaparte tactfully asked Minister Dicko about his views on supplies in the Near East.
"Mr. President, my point of view is that it is entirely possible for the navy to complete the escort mission, and I have confidence in our fleet!" Dicko first stated his position firmly, and then revealed his own worries: "In terms of supplies, the navy currently has
I’m afraid it will be difficult for ships to complete this operation!”
"How much additional budget is needed?" Jérôme Bonaparte asked Dicko directly.
"It's not a matter of budget!" Dicko thought for a few seconds and said to Jerome Bonaparte: "I personally think that the navy's production of too many transport ships may cause the transport ships to be unable to handle it in the later stages of the war. We should allocate it appropriately to the private sector.
Transportation! At this point, I think the Navy Department should set up an agency that can coordinate with civilian ships!"
In order to avoid Jerome Bonaparte's suspicion, Dicko tried to speak as tactfully as possible.
"You mean to coordinate the mobilization of civilian ships to complete the supply mission during the war?" Jérôme Bonaparte asked Minister Dicko.
"That's right!" Dicko nodded and explained to Jérôme Bonaparte: "This can not only save unnecessary expenses, but also boost the French economy."
"You should try to solve this problem first! If you have any questions, you can report to me at any time!" Jerome Bonaparte continued to Dico: "Are there any questions?"
"We don't have enough iron for our ships..." Minister Dicko asked Jérôme Bonaparte.
"Iron?" Jerome Bonaparte suddenly remembered that the purpose of coming here was not to understand the problem of ironclad ships: "By the way, I heard that you have researched a new type of warship! I don't know,
Is the news true?"
Minister Dicko showed a surprised look, as if to say, President, how do you know this? He nodded and acknowledged Jérôme Bonaparte's statement: "That's right! We plan to build a batch of fleets with iron sheets in batches.
, this kind of fleet can effectively defend against enemy shore defense artillery, and at the same time, it can also effectively defend itself in close combat."
As he spoke, Minister Dico placed a pile of documents in his office in front of Jérôme Bonaparte, and said with a proud expression on his face: "This is the blueprint of our latest model fleet!"
Jérôme Bonaparte picked up the first drawing and looked at it. There were a large number of Latin numbers marked on the drawing, and there was a corresponding name written in French in the lower right corner of each number.
Judging from the style, it should be a type of small gunboat.
Jérôme Bonaparte pointed to the gunboat pattern on the drawing and asked Dico: "Have the things on the drawing been tested?"
"Not yet..." Minister Duco replied to Jérôme Bonaparte.
"Not tested... not tested..." Jérôme Bonaparte muttered in a low voice while flipping through the information.
Minister Dico looked at Jérôme Bonaparte anxiously, fearing that the president would accidentally veto what he had painstakingly worked out.
When Jérôme Bonaparte looked through the gunboats' gun emplacements, Jérôme Bonaparte suddenly discovered that even the armored ship in front of him, which was at the forefront of the times, was still a semi-finished product. It still used the 19th-century
The half-leaf all-through artillery deck and multi-layered artillery are indeed beneficial to the output of firepower, but they cause the combat effectiveness of the ironclad ship to be greatly reduced.
Jérôme Bonaparte, who was half an ironclad ship enthusiast, pointed to the main guns arranged on both sides of the drawing and suggested to Dicko: "Mr. Minister, can you make certain adjustments to the positions of the main guns and move them?"
Get to the center of the battleship! In this way, we can strengthen the fleet defense as much as possible and improve the survivability of our fleet."
The method used by Jerome Bonaparte was the central gun position method later used by the British designer Edward Reed.
Minister Dico seemed to have some thoughts. Increasing the survivability rate of the fleet was indeed an attractive option, but he still said with some concerns: "This may require sacrificing our firepower!"
"Firepower does not depend on the number of naval guns!" Jerome Friction explained to Dicko: "Besides, every outstanding naval personnel is an indispensable resource. I would rather sacrifice some firepower to improve their return.
Possibility of home!”
A ten-year army and a hundred-year navy, every maritime power needs a lot of accumulation.
The ship cannot be rebuilt, and the crew may collapse without the inheritance.
Jérôme Bonaparte, who had experienced this, knew all too well the pain of having a ship but no one. Even though the United States, the first industrial power in later generations, had a large fleet, their early artillery hit rate was still terrible.
Without Britain's help and their policies, the United States would never have become a real naval power in a short period of time.
Jérôme Bonaparte's "concern" for naval personnel warmed Dicko's heart. He believed that the president was indeed as willing as him to work hard for the construction of the French navy.
"You must also work hard on the selection of steam engines! Every fleet must become the pride of France!" Jérôme Bonaparte then ordered.
"Yes!" Minister Dicko responded.
"You have to take a step forward. After the experiment of gunboats like this is successful, they must be expanded! Try to replace the main fleet of the French fleet with this kind!" Jérôme Bonaparte continued to encourage the Admiralty: "If
If you need anything, you can tell me..."
"Actually, there are still some small problems!" said Jérôme Bonaparte, the Minister of 3G Department.
"What's the problem?" Jérôme Bonaparte asked Dicko.
Dicko told Jérôme Bonaparte about the shortage of skilled workers in the national shipyards, and Jérôme Bonaparte immediately said that he would definitely allocate a group of workers to work in the national shipyards.
"Yes, President!" Minister Dicko responded to Jérôme Bonaparte.
After encouraging Minister Dicko, Jérôme Bonaparte asked Minister Dicko: "Mr. Minister, actually I have something to trouble you with!"
"Please tell me!" Minister Dicko said humbly, knowing that this was just a polite word from the president.
Jérôme Bonaparte told the Chamber of Ministers about the situation of the Marquis of Allais and told him all the naval matters that the Marquis of Allais had discussed with him.