On January 18, 602 in the Holy Light Calendar, Claude quietly boarded the armored cruiser Angry Shark, the new flagship of the armored fleet, and returned to the overseas autonomous territories. It was supposed that in another month, in the overseas autonomous territories of the royal capital,
The congressmen would return to the overseas autonomous territories after completing the ceremony of granting territory by His Majesty the King. Claude really didn't want to stay in the royal capital, so he took the first step with his adjutants and guard squadron under the pretext that he was busy with military affairs.
The armored cruiser Furious Shark, the armored destroyer Swordfish, the armored destroyer Flying Fish, and the armored armed transport Bullhead Whale formed a small team and galloped on the sea. More than ten sail warships with black flags appeared on the sea in the distance.
, but the armored squadron acted as if they hadn't seen it. They blew the whistle twice, puffed out black smoke, and passed in front of the sailing fleet, quickly leaving the sailing fleet with the black flag in the distance.
left behind...
"Is that the Black Sails Pirate?" Claude asked.
"Yes, they should be heading to the waters of the Nubal Islands." Murield replied, holding a thick cigar in his hand.
Claude had heard from Colonel Bockal before that the leader of the Black Sails Pirates was one of their teenage friends, Erikson. Back then, Erikson rebelled against the Storm Fleet and established the Black Sails Pirates in order to find his father.
, and discovered an uninhabited archipelago in the depths of the Silent Ocean, and regarded this archipelago with three large islands and more than ten small islands as the home of the Black Sails Pirates.
It is said that Erikson's parents and the family members of the Black Sails pirates all live on this archipelago, which can accommodate more than 200,000 people. Erikson also wanted to use this archipelago to establish an independent country. To this end, he was still in the kingdom during the civil strife.
They plundered the coastal areas of the kingdom and recruited craftsmen and other technical talents. Usually, the Black Sail Pirates carried out plunder in the waters of the Nubali Islands, a pirate paradise, and only rotated a group of men back to their nests to rest every three months...
Because of Colonel Bock'al's help, the relationship between the Black Sails Pirates and the overseas dominions is neutral and friendly, and they have not invaded the coastal areas of the overseas dominions. Sometimes they even lower black flags and pretend to be smuggling merchant ships coming to purchase supplies and resell what they have robbed.
Trophies or something.
"Are the Black Sails pirates still purchasing supplies from our Dominion?" Claude asked.
Murield shook his head: "I don't know about this. Their business should be handled by Colonel Boker of the Military Intelligence Department. Basically, when they come to purchase and resell supplies, they contact the Buffalo Trading Company. Even when they go ashore, they always go to Cobichu.
Si Port will not come to our Patres Military Port.
However, three years ago, the Buffalo Trading Company asked us to purchase iron-clad battleships on their behalf, but I rejected it. Then I heard that they asked the Buffalo Trading Company to purchase a lot of steam engines and firepower engines from our Dominion, probably because they wanted to develop their own iron-clad battleships.
....”
Claude nodded. He believed that with Erikson's keen vision, he would naturally discover the role of armored battleships early. He also understood that it was impossible to get permission from the Dominion Military District to purchase armored battleships, so he tried but was rejected.
Then I decided to develop it myself.
However, with his power as a black-sail pirate, it is simply an impossible task. The most he can do is to put a layer of iron plate on his sail warship. As for acquiring so many steam engines and fire engines, he wants to change it to
Moving the marine type to his pirate ship is a huge and difficult technical improvement project. Claude is not optimistic that Erikson can succeed unless he has three or four five-ring level rune mages at his disposal.
.
"Do you often encounter black sail pirates at sea?" Claude asked again.
"Not often, just occasionally." Murray Ed laughed: "When I went to the ocean cruising fleet, I met them during missions and training at sea. Sometimes the warships were parallel, and their pirate members would laugh at us loudly.
.But they have no ill intentions, they are just out of boredom, and they even ask us for a few packs of cigarettes to smoke.
At that time, we were all sailing battleships. They would show us their side-sail pursuit and head-to-tail pursuit and outflanking tactics, which made us look like a group of novices at sea. At that time, we were all unconvinced. But to be honest, it was really
If there is a conflict with them, we are indeed no match for them in terms of the sailing battleship's control and combat capabilities.
But later, after our iron-clad warships began to enter the fleet, and when we met them at sea, we could see the strong envy and jealousy in the eyes of their pirate members. As the iron-clad fleet of our Dominion took shape, they saw it at sea.
We stayed away from them because they knew very well that no matter how powerful their sail warship maneuvering skills and tactics were, they were no match for our armored fleet."
This is probably the so-called technological crushing. As soon as the armored battleships came out, the sailing battleships fell behind. Claude then thought of the deal with the kingdom's armored fleet, and couldn't help but frowned. How should he use this deal to get this deal?
Fooled it over...
Muriel didn't notice that Claude was worried, and he continued to say enthusiastically: "By the way, boss, it just so happens that you are back this time, and I have a report that I need to apply to you."
"What's up?"
"It's like this. Didn't Mrs. Sonia develop another batch of armor-piercing bombs for our fleet? I want to decommission a few armored destroyers and use them as target ships to try whether the armor-piercing bombs are effective against armored warships. Armor-piercing bombs are effective against sailing warships.
One shot makes a big hole, but now all countries in Farea are developing iron-armored warships. We have to prepare in advance. If armor-piercing bombs can also be effective against iron-armored warships, we don't have to worry about the enemy having iron-armored warships in the future...
.." Muriel shook the ashes from his cigar.
Claude was stunned: "Sonia also developed armor-piercing bullets?"
"Yes," Muriel replied: "The last time we fought against the Sea King Fleet, I found that our high-explosive shells were extremely lethal only to the exposed personnel on the enemy warships, but not to those thick ships.
It was difficult for a cannon to penetrate the boards. So when I came back, I told Mrs. Sonia that I hoped the power of the cannonball could penetrate those thick boards and blast a big hole.
Mrs. Sonia agreed to develop this kind of artillery shells and shipped us about 200 armor-piercing shells a month ago. We tested it, and those sail warships were shot through the wall with one shot by us, blowing a big hole and sinking quickly. Now we want to try it
Is this armor-piercing projectile effective against armored battleships, but Master Bird said that decommissioning armored battleships requires approval from the military region, and I cannot be allowed to mess around."
"Master Bird is right. It costs about hundreds of thousands of gold crowns to build an armored battleship in our Dominion, and an armored battleship can serve for more than ten or twenty years. The earliest armored destroyer has only been in service for five years.
Six years, you want to decommission it and use it as a target ship so soon. You simply don’t regard gold crowns as money. It seems that I have to check carefully where the funds of your armored fleet have been wasted." Crowe
De very much agrees with Master Bird's opinion.
"No, boss. You don't know that after the Battle of St. Rusk Island, our armored fleet suffered heavy losses. It took more than three months to barely return to Patres Military Port, and another half a year.
It was just repaired. However, we also benefited a lot from this battle with the Hicks Kingdom's Sea King Fleet. The latest armored destroyers corrected many of the weaknesses we exposed in the war. It can be said that we are once again facing the armored destroyers and armored destroyers.
Cruisers were improved.
The armored destroyers and cruisers currently produced by the four major shipbuilding workshops in Patres Naval Port can be said to be the third generation. Have you ever felt that the Angry Shark you are riding now is faster than the Bald Eagle last time?
Is it faster and more stable? The armored destroyers Swordfish and Flying Fish, as well as the armored armed transport Bullhead Whale, are the latest armored warships built in the same batch, so the speeds can be kept consistent.
The thirty or so warships of the armored fleet that still stay in the kingdom and patrol the coastal areas are all built in the first and second generations. The ironclad warships built in the second generation can barely keep up with our third generation.
The latest iron-clad battleships, but those first-generation armored battleships have been repaired and now they can't catch up with the speed of our third-generation battleships no matter how hard they try.
Every time our armored battleship formation cruises, it is like leading a team to tow oil bottles. Whether it is executing flanking or surprise tactics training, it is always one step behind. In addition, the steam turbines they are equipped with are very noisy and have thick smoke. They are obsolete products.
, it is easy to expose the target, so I want to retire them or transfer them to the ocean cruising sailing fleet to serve as escort warships..."
"Then why not replace the first-generation ironclad destroyer with the latest steam turbine?" Claude asked.
He still doesn't understand the extent of the steam engines and firepower engines invented and improved by Master Bird. Anyway, it is said that the Dominion's current power workshop has become a giant machinery manufacturing industry, with various power plants
Machinery is emerging in endlessly. As Murray Ed said, the steam turbine is a special power mechanical system for battleships invented and manufactured by Master Bird, which is not sold to the outside world.
Muriel smiled bitterly: "It can't be replaced, because if you want to replace this steam turbine, you need to remove the entire bridge, and then disembowel the battleship to take out the old steam turbine, and then reset the engine room and cabin below.
The steam pipeline is equivalent to adjusting the cabins of the entire battleship, which is more expensive than building a new armored destroyer..."
"So how many first-generation armored battleships were there in total?" Claude began to touch the stubble that had just sprouted on his chin.
"Twenty-two ships, fourteen of which participated in the Great Battle of Saint-Rusque Island and have just undergone major repairs." As the admiral of the Ironclad Fleet, Murield is very aware of the warships under his command.
"Perhaps you can decommission all the first-generation iron-clad battleships, and then use the military district to allocate funds to rebuild the third-generation iron-clad battleships." Claude pondered.
Murray was overjoyed: "Is it true? The Dominion promised to allocate funds to our navy? The last five million gold crowns were said to be the last batch of naval shipbuilding allocations. One million of them was for Master Bird to conduct technical experiments.
As for the cost, one million was allocated to the four shipbuilding workshops to improve their technology, and another one million was for the maintenance of the armored fleet in the next three years. Of the remaining two million gold crowns, more than 400,000 were allocated for the last war.
The final cost of repairing the warships was only 1.5 million gold crowns to build eight ironclad warships..."
"The original plan of the Navy's ironclad fleet was to have forty-eight ironclad battleships, which could be arranged into four squadrons of twelve ironclad battleships. The plan was that each squadron had two ironclad cruisers, eight ironclad destroyers, and two ironclad
Armed ocean transport and supply ships. Now your armored fleet has a total of fifty-two armored warships. Are you still not satisfied?" Claude still remembered the report submitted by the navy.
Murield complained loudly: "Boss, you don't know that the first generation of armored battleships had many problems and often had to return to port for maintenance. It is difficult for a squadron of twelve armored battleships to go to sea at full strength. Every time
There are always a few battleships paralyzed in the military port in need of repair. Otherwise, I would not have only brought twenty armored battleships to ambush the Sea King fleet. Even the two squadrons should have twenty-four armored battleships, but those four
There is nothing I can do if something goes wrong with a battleship.
The second-generation iron-clad battleships have been improved and finalized, which has improved the duty rate, but they also need to be overhauled every six months. Each overhaul of a battleship takes a month. Our navy has eight maintenance workshops
The dock is never idle for a year, and there are always four or five warships parked in the military port waiting to enter the dock for repairs.
It is said that there are four armored squadrons, but the overseas autonomous regions need an armored squadron to patrol the coastal waters to guard against pirate attacks on the coastal areas of the autonomous regions. There is also a squadron to escort the ocean-going sailing cruising fleet. The other one
The squadron was divided into two halves. Six armored warships were stationed in the Beibu Gulf, and six more were patrolling the coastal waters of the Kingdom. The remaining squadron was waiting for repairs in the repair shop. After repairs, it would be rotated with other warships.
.....
So, boss, I, the admiral of the armored fleet, have no choice but to add a few more battleships to increase the rotation rate. Otherwise, if the enemy suddenly attacks me, I doubt whether I can draw two squadrons to form a mobile armored fleet.
To fight. Originally we had a plan to attack the military port of the Kingdom of Hicks, but it didn’t cease war with us anyway, but now we simply don’t have the mobile troops and warships..."
Claude believed that Muriel was telling the truth, and there was no need to exaggerate in these aspects. Although ironclad battleships have been in the navy of overseas autonomous territories for five or six years, the problem still exists, and this is the first time in the world.
Having a maritime weapon like an ironclad battleship is bound to have many problems. Otherwise, Master Bird would not have reshaped and made technical improvements to the ironclad destroyers and armored cruisers one after another in the past few years.
"You need to recall the first-generation iron-clad destroyers and iron-clad cruisers to Patres Military Port. I will ask Master Bird to organize manpower to renovate and decorate the first-generation iron-clad warships. According to our Dominion and Wang Ting
According to the agreement reached, we need to provide the kingdom with a sixteen-ship iron-clad fleet within two years. This includes two iron-clad cruisers, ten iron-clad destroyers and four iron-clad armed ocean-going transport supply ships..."
Before Claude could finish his words, he saw Muriel's face changed drastically, and he even ignored the cigar in his hand and dropped to the floor: "Boss, who signed this agreement with the kingdom? He is simply
They are betraying our Dominion Navy! Iron-clad battleships are the unique maritime weapons of our overseas autonomous territories. If the Kingdom possesses iron-clad battleships, it means that the coastal countries of Farea Continent will soon be able to imitate the same armored battleships..."
Alas, Claude could only sigh and tell the story of the arms agreement reached between Marshal Bolognik and the Kingdom on behalf of the overseas dominions. It was written in black and white, and it was a foregone conclusion. The dominions could no longer go back on it. Because this arms deal was for
To offset the promotion fee and land selection fee, now that the hereditary territory has been obtained, this arms deal can only be accepted.
Murray Ed cursed...
"Because the agreement states that these sixteen armored warships must be consistent with our current warships, so I want to renovate and repair the first-generation armored warships and hand them over to the kingdom so that the kingdom can reorganize the navy's fearless fleet.
"Claude explained: "There are some key technologies that we don't want the Kingdom to know, such as the watertight cabin at the bottom of the ship. I plan to convert it into a warehouse at the bottom of the ship. I believe the Kingdom's Navy Department will be very happy, because the habit of the predecessor of the Dreadnought Fleet was to use warships.
Work as a transport ship to trade and earn extra money..."
In the great battle of Saint-Rusque Island, seven or eight iron-clad battleships withstood the bombardment of the heavy naval guns of the Sea King fleet, and several cracks were made in the walls of the ships. Precisely because of the watertight compartments at the bottom of the ships, these iron-clad battleships were still able to barely return.
The Port of Patres is undergoing major renovations. Without this watertight compartment, these seven or eight armored warships would have sunk to the bottom of the sea long ago.
"We will hand over the first-generation iron-clad warships to the Kingdom, and then re-allocate funds to you to build the third-generation iron-clad warships. This will also reduce the maintenance effort and cost of your navy and increase your actual combat capabilities. The sooner we
The less likely it will be criticized if the first-generation iron-clad warships are handed over to the kingdom. Otherwise, in two years’ time, this first-generation iron-clad warships will not be handed over even if they want to be handed over.” Claude made the decision.
"As the admiral of the armored fleet, you can cooperate with Master Bird to see what other key technologies need to be dismantled without affecting the surface combat capability of the battleship. We will try our best to provide the kingdom with an armored fleet that is both attractive and useless.
, let this armored fleet serve for five or six years before it will be eliminated.
The remaining first-generation armored warships can be used as target ships to test the effect of our armor-piercing bombs, so that even if something happens, we will have the ability to destroy the Kingdom's armored fleet..."
Muriel had calmed down, knowing that since Claude said this, the matter had become a foregone conclusion. He thought for a while and asked: "Can the newly approved funding from the military region be enough to build twenty-two third-generation ironclad battleships?"
The quantity requirement? Because it is a cutting-edge warship of the third generation that has been finalized and produced, the production and manufacturing costs have increased significantly. The cost that could previously be used to build two destroyers can now only be used to build one..."
Claude replied: "Don't worry, the funds allocated this time are sufficient, because in this arms deal, the overseas dominions reached an agreement at a high price of 380,000 gold crowns for an armored warship...