"The Germans have come ahead of us, and their hostility to the British Empire has been fully revealed. The expansion of the High Seas Fleet has become inevitable. They will start construction of 4 battleships similar to the Longxing-class battleships within 2 years. This is

A total of 48 12-inch naval guns. The Royal Navy's warships have become obsolete overnight. I want to know, gentlemen, how many new warships can we start building in two years? 6 or 8?" the British Admiralty asked sternly.

road.

"Then we have to allocate at least 10 million to 12 million pounds to meet your needs, and this fund is very difficult for our current financial situation. You should know that we are fighting a war with Boer, and the Dutch are not just talking about it.

They condemned us and even provided support to the Boers through various channels.

Provide actual assistance. The Army is in a war stage, and we must invest limited funds in places where they are more needed." Facing the accusation of the First Lord of the Navy, the Finance Minister said carefully. At this time, his pressure did not only come from the Navy.

The ministry and government, as well as the pressure from the public, also frightened the finance minister.

The British have been in charge of the sea for so long that almost all British people believe that the ocean should have belonged to the British Empire. Not to mention that a country dares to challenge the British Empire's sea power, just because the other party has this idea.

Absolutely not allowed! As for the backwardness of naval armaments, it is even more unbearable! The Times even expressed the public's dissatisfaction and concern about the Admiralty with the title "The glory of Nelson's era is fading away from us"

!

"The strength of the British Empire's navy is not only because of its loyal and brave soldiers, but also because the British Empire has the most elite fleet in the world. Therefore, we can defeat the Spanish, defeat the Dutch, defeat Louis XIV, defeat Napoleon and

Spain's United Fleet, hundreds of years have passed

Today, the naval officers of the British Empire are still as brave and capable as their predecessors, but what about our fleet? Just a week ago! A land power built the most powerful warship in the world for another newly rising country in the Far East!

And at this moment, where are our dreadnoughts?"

In order to enhance the visual impact, The Times also posted several large photos of Longxing-class battleships next to the article. As soon as this report came out, it ignited the long-simmering public opinion! The British people’s dissatisfaction with the British government is here

It broke out completely in an instant, coupled with the successive setbacks in the Boer War. In the eyes of the people, the British government became

For the inaction of the government, the British Army has become a laughing stock. "General Wellington was so angry that he came to life!" "We defeated the most elite French regiment in the Battle of Waterloo. But we were defeated by a group of indigenous people.

A beating, this is unforgivable!" And all kinds of dissatisfaction ultimately fell on concerns about sea power and naval development.

"The Germans, French, Italians and even the Russians and Americans all have their own dreadnought plans. The British Empire does not have an advantage in this change. We are even slightly behind in progress. In order to ensure the British Empire's

Hegemony, for the territory of the empire

Being able to be under the sunshine all the time, I suggest that within the next two years, Imperial Britain starts construction of 6 Dreadnought battleships and 2 Dreadnought battlecruisers in order to continue to maintain the superiority of the Navy." When being questioned.

, said the British First Lord of the Admiralty.

As the saying goes, words are worse than words, and as the world's largest empire, the British Empire is at its peak. Its ability to act is still quite strong, especially when fundamental interests are threatened. The British Empire Parliament has no hindrance The naval armament expansion plan has been passed. In the next two years, eight dreadnought ships will be put on the slipway. The British Empire has shown its power and domineering power to the world with its indisputable strength and actions.

"Let the British spend money, we just need to take it slow and follow our own steps." When Tirpitz heard that the British wanted to build eight dreadnoughts at once, Tirpitz just smiled.

Facing the eager looks of Scheer, Sipper and others, Tirpitz said the following words.

"As a new type of warship, the dreadnought is just the beginning. With the advancement of technology, more advanced and powerful systems will be gradually applied to warships, such as the small boilers that the Navy is studying, such as the Krug

The 350mm heavy guns being planned by the Bo Artillery Factory, for example, the larger warships being designed by the Naval Design Bureau." Tirpitz paused, and then said meaningfully.

"The Longxing-class battleship indeed created a historical precedent, but it is still far from perfect. Mr. Xu Jie, the founder of the Chinese Navy and the current Prime Minister of the Republic of China, once expressed his dissatisfaction with the modified battleship in private.

In fact, he is not willing to install as many as 12 main doors on a battleship.

If possible, he would choose a heavier gun with a larger caliber. Although the battleship is equipped with the latest 4-meter rangefinder, Mr. Xu is not satisfied with the settlement and information transmission, which makes him most dissatisfied.

The most important thing is the power system, and not using the small boiler under development is his biggest regret."

"Dear Marshal, but the Navy is a military that needs accumulation. The construction and service cycle of each warship can be described as long. Without sufficient foundation, our numbers will be greatly disadvantaged in future wars.

, and the North Sea is small, and the space for guerrilla warfare is very small. At least once the fleets of both sides are dispatched, it will be a decisive battle, a head-on collision without any fancy!" Scheer said carefully.

"Whether it is the German Empire, the British Empire, or France and Italy, we are all waiting for the same thing, waiting for a standardized warship that truly suits our own national conditions. This warship must not only have strong combat effectiveness, but also must be a national strength

It's bearable. You must know that our enemies are not only Britain, France and Russia, we also have an enemy called the budget! The German Empire is a

As a large country with land power, this determines the primary status of the army. Although we have strong industry and strong technology, we can't do anything without money. We must spend every mark well!" Tirpitz said.

He very patiently explained the future naval development strategy to his proud subordinates. In his opinion, an excellent naval officer must not only know how to fight, but also understand the strategy of a country's development!

As long as anything can be standardized, its cost will definitely be reduced, and because the standards are unified, logistics, supply and maintenance will be very comprehensive. This is true for freewheels, aircraft, and warships. In history, there were

Two countries finally found this way, one is the United States, and the result of small steps is to create a large number of 14-inch iron turtles, these are equipped with 10 to 12-door 14

The slow-moving guys with huge 13.4-inch guns were definitely at the top of their game in World War I. The other country was the United Kingdom. The 1909 standard battleships were a group of battleships equipped with 10 13.4-inch naval guns. Starting from Orion, the United Kingdom

A total of 12 battleships of three levels were built. The George V and Iron Duke behind them were just minor modifications of the Orion. Although their performance was average, they were cheaper and had a shorter construction period!

Now that Xu Jie has decided to strengthen Germany, changing the layout and ship type of Germany's historical "Hundred Ghosts at Night" has been put on the agenda. Xu Jie's purpose is very simple. Germany must hit Britain hard and be better than history.

The previous one was even more serious. After the First World War, Xu Jie’s ultimate goal was to make Britain no longer able to take care of the Far East!

Compared with the constant overt and covert actions of Britain and Germany, other countries in the world did not react so strongly to this crazy naval armament game. As the third largest country in the world, France is only completing the Dandong class step by step.

battleships, without releasing a new naval plan, which makes people feel very low-key. The reason is very simple. In the conflict with the British

After reaching an understanding, France's naval pressure disappeared almost overnight. France is also a land-power country. Especially when facing a Germany that has a feud with itself and is far more powerful than itself, France needs a powerful army even more.

To ensure that their territory is not invaded, instead of continuing to spend money on the navy. Especially after having Britain as an ally.

As for the Russians, both the Russian Navy and the government have ignored this competition. The reason is very simple. Britain and Germany have plenty of time to engage in this protracted competition, but at this time, the Russians have no time, let alone

Money has to go into this race, and in the next few years, Russia

The empire will inevitably have a fateful decisive battle with the Chinese Republic in the Far East. Whoever wins this war will be the king of the Far East! At this time, for this war, the Russians have written the last ruble into their arms budget.

It's good to be able to complete the previous plan, so naturally there will be no new plans.

What really makes people curious is the Italian Navy. The Italians can be said to have faintly surpassed the French in this arms race. The Italian Navy has approved the plan for three new dreadnoughts in the future. After completing the order from the Chinese Republic

, Italy decided to start construction of three dreadnought battleships for itself, and did not rule out the possibility of adding new battleships.

"The Mediterranean should belong to the Italians." In the Italian Parliament, someone shouted these extremely hateful words! But it doesn't matter. With the rise of the German Navy, it has become a foregone conclusion that the British Navy will gather the main force of its fleet on the mainland.

Austria-Hungary is an ally, so the Italians have a certain degree of confidence in suppressing the last maritime power in the Mediterranean!

As for the Americans? At this time, the United States was even more low-key. The reason was very simple. Since the Spanish-American War, Americans had a certain degree of doubt about their own warships.

Before the battleships completed by the Russians were tested in actual combat, the United States

The navy must limit its pace. It is not that the Americans cannot afford the huge construction costs. The fundamental reason is that the Americans have no enemies in the Americas for the time being, and if they want to go on an expedition to the ocean, the United States is very suspicious of its own navy. Therefore, the Americans can only use

Develop the navy in a relatively conservative manner.
Chapter completed!