The Netherlands is the only country in the world whose colonial army is stronger than its native army. This shows the importance of East India to the Netherlands.
Since the Fourth Anglo-Dutch War, the Dutch Navy has been in decline and has continued to lag behind in the naval construction of European countries. At the end of the last century, due to a shortage of manpower, the Dutch Navy had to recruit colonial soldiers to serve in the army. The total number of naval personnel in 1900 was barely enough.
It can exceed 10,000 people.
Even this naval force of just over ten thousand people is divided into two parts: the Home Fleet and the Colonial Fleet. The warships of the Netherlands Home Navy are mainly offshore gunboats. Although the Far East Fleet has cruisers, they were all built in the last century.
Since entering the new century, the Dutch Navy has not added any new ships for ten years. Most of the warships are still old wooden sail warships, and some warships are even unable to move.
The ten years of the new century also coincided with the rapid development of science and technology. In 1905, the main battleships during the Russo-Japanese War were armored ships. The next year, Britain began to build a new class of "Dreadnought-class" battleships. Until now, the Dreadnought-class battleships
It has become a symbol of the naval strength of various countries, but the Dutch do not even have a heavy cruiser.
Affected by the European arms race, the Dutch government proposed a shipbuilding plan two years ago, hoping to build new warships to enhance its naval strength. However, due to the opposition of the Minister of the Navy, the plan was ultimately not implemented.
The reason for the objection of the Lord Admiralty is very simple. The shipbuilding plan proposed by the government not only does not have a dreadnought, but also does not even have a heavy cruiser. It only plans to build offshore gunboats to enhance its strength, which cannot meet the needs of the Home Fleet and the Far East Fleet.
What's even worse is that the Netherlands has lost the ability to design warships because it has not built warships for many years. Even the design of warships has to be entrusted to other countries, which is really unacceptable to the Minister of the Navy.
This is also where Rock's confidence lies. No matter how big a crisis the East Indies encounters, the Netherlands will not be able to provide effective support at all. Even the offshore defense gunboats in the Netherlands have no ability to sail across the ocean.
Of course, there are problems. The biggest problem of Umbrella Company is that it does not even have offshore gunboats. The Nile Crocodile is only equipped with four army-type 75mm rapid-fire cannons. Its combat effectiveness is probably about the same as that of an armed merchant ship. The warships of the Dutch Far East Fleet
No matter how old the model is, its combat effectiveness is still a level higher than that of an armed merchant ship.
Fortunately, the Dutch still place their hopes on the British government's regulation and have not dispatched a fleet to blockade the Port of Medan.
Landing is impossible. The colonial troops of East India are no match for mercenaries. This is very clear to the Governor-General of East India. However, it can still be done by dispatching a fleet to blockade the Port of Medan. As long as the logistic support of the mercenaries is cut off, then the Port of Medan will be blocked.
Sooner or later the mercenaries will fall apart.
This is the benefit of the colonial single economy. In order to better control East India, the Netherlands implemented a forced supply system and physical land rent in East India, forced plantations to grow coffee, rubber, sugar cane, and spices, and implemented a trade monopoly policy. Therefore, East India basically
Without an industrial base, even gunpowder cannot be produced.
Rock was well prepared for this situation. Although the mercenaries did not have cruisers, they did have aircraft. Pilots from southern Africa would not serve Italy and the Ottoman Empire, so there would be no pressure to accept employment from the Umbrella Company.
At the same time that the Far East Fleet left the port, the "Phoenix Flower" transport ship of the Nyasaland Ocean Shipping Company arrived at the Port of Medan. In addition to six "Strong Wind" fighter jets, there were also twelve "Albatross" transported on board.
torpedo bomber.
It was only at this time that Benson Toherty learned what the purpose of the airport built next to the Port of Medan was.
Don't be surprised, the Dutch in the Dutch East Indies were so ignorant. Before this, Benson Toherty had never even seen an airplane and had only seen reports about air shows in newspapers.
Benson Toherty never expected that an aircraft that was originally similar to a circus could actually be a powerful weapon used against cruisers in the hands of mercenaries.
"The Albatross was successfully developed two years ago. This time it is put into use for the first time to deal with Dutch talents. The Albatross can carry a 350kg torpedo with a combat radius of 180 kilometers. We have two facilities in Batavia Port and the Lion City.
Observation station, as long as the Dutch fleet leaves the port, we have enough warning time." Captain Ethan who led the team couldn't wait. As long as the Dutch dare to come, Ethan will teach the Dutch a profound lesson.
"Is this the best aircraft we have now?" Benson Toherty was quite curious. Nyasaland always has an endless stream of new weapons. Even David didn't know the depth of Nyasaland's military potential.
.
"I hope the Dutch will take action soon. Our cruiser will be launched next month. Will your umbrella company consider buying one?" Ethan kept silent and had a strong sense of confidentiality.
With the help of Portsmouth Naval Dockyard, the Southern African Navy has made rapid progress. In any case, Britain in this era is the most powerful country in the world in terms of naval power. As long as Rock makes a request, the Portsmouth Navy
Engineers from the shipyard can come up with corresponding design plans.
Originally, Viscount Glaston wanted Edward Shipyard to try a dreadnought, but after careful consideration, Rock gave up this unrealistic idea.
Let’s not talk about whether Edwards Shipyard has the ability to build dreadnoughts. With the help of Portsmouth Naval Dockyard, Edwards Shipyard will probably be able to build them.
The key is that the Southern African Navy has no demand for dreadnoughts. In the entire Africa, except for Southern Africa, the colonies of other countries cannot even build a single destroyer. Even if Southern Africa builds dreadnoughts, there will be no use for them.
Therefore, cruisers became Rock's first choice, and they were not heavy cruisers comparable to battleships. A light cruiser of about 5,000 tons was enough.
As a result, Viscount Glaston still looked down upon it and stated that he wanted to build an armored cruiser similar to the British Invincible-class battlecruiser. The 5,000-ton class was only slightly larger than a destroyer and would be of no use if a world war broke out.
Rock also looked down upon battlecruisers. This type of armored cruiser, later called a fast battleship, was not armored enough compared to a battleship, and was not fast enough compared to a destroyer. The British battlecruiser HMS Invincible was defeated on May 31, 1916.
During the Battle of Jutland in Japan, it was hit by artillery shells from the German fleet. As a result, the ammunition depot exploded and sank. The shortcomings of weak armor protection were fully exposed.
What Southern Africa needs is light cruisers, because they don’t need to face powerful opponents. Southern Africa’s light cruisers don’t need thick armor or heavy firepower. What they need is fast speed, agile response, and certain anti-submarine capabilities. When necessary,
It also has a certain firepower strike capability, so the light cruiser is the most suitable for the actual needs of southern Africa.
In the end, Portsmouth Naval Shipyard and Edwards Shipyard jointly designed a new type of light cruiser. This cruiser has a displacement of 6,500 tons and is equipped with six 152mm fifty-fold naval guns. Because it uses the latest engines, the maximum
The speed can reach an astonishing 32 knots. The ship can also carry two seaplanes at the same time, which can be used for reconnaissance and fire correction. This type of cruiser is named Cape Town class. The first ship Cape Town will be launched next month.
Edward Shipyard was launched and is expected to be completed before the end of the year.
"No, what we want to buy is a destroyer, but it's a pity that the Lord won't sell it." David was still a little regretful. Don't think that destroyers are not good. In terrain like the Strait of Malacca, destroyers are the most suitable.
In order to cope with the use of Cape Town-class cruisers, Port Edward Shipyard and Beira Shipyard are building new destroyers equipped with torpedoes.
Compared with the previous North Sea, the biggest improvement of the new Salisbury-class destroyer is that it is finally equipped with a 533mm torpedo, which makes it capable of attacking large battleships. At the same time, the new destroyer's firepower is not weak, and the ship is equipped with
It has a 125mm naval gun and a large number of anti-aircraft weapons, all of which are prepared for future aircraft carriers.
The destroyers produced in Southern Africa use the latest steam engines and can reach a maximum speed of 35 knots. Simply speaking from the caliber of artillery, the destroyers in Southern Africa may not be as good as the cruisers of the Dutch Far East Fleet. However, the destroyers rely on their high speed and high maneuverability to survive in situations like the Strait of Malacca.
Narrow waters pose a greater threat to cruisers.
It doesn't take much, as long as David now has two Salisbury-class destroyers in his hands, it is enough to deal with the threat of the Dutch Far East Fleet.
The names of Southern African naval warships are based on the names of cities in Southern Africa. For example, the highest-level cruisers are named after the three capitals of Cape Town, Bloemfontein, and Pretoria.
The naming of the destroyer is the same. Salisbury does not refer to the former British Prime Minister, the Marquess of Salisbury, but the city of Salisbury, the capital of Rhodesia, so there may be Little Rock-class and Johannesburg-class ships in the future.
Level, this is normal.
As for future aircraft carriers, they will definitely be named after states. Cape, Transvaal, and Nyasaland are among the options.
The arrival of the flying brigade indicates that Medan Port has initially acquired defensive capabilities. In fact, there is still more work to be done. Only 3,000 mercenaries will definitely not be able to drive away the Dutch, so the Umbrella Company must also form Edom.
The servant army, dominated by native Indians, launched an all-out attack on the Dutch.
Just across the strait on Langkawi Island, a large base for the Umbrella Company is under construction, which will become the headquarters of the Far East Branch of the Umbrella Company in the future.
Langkawi is the main island of the Langkawi Islands. This archipelago consists of 99 islands and covers an area of 526 square kilometers. The straight-line distance from Medan is less than 300 kilometers.
Langkawi Island is British territory and the Dutch have no right to interfere, so the base construction on Langkawi Island is progressing smoothly, and British Malaya has provided a lot of help in this regard.
Therefore, it is not Roque who wants the Dutch to get out the most, but the British Empire.
