The Rise of the Empire

"Excessive tolerance cannot guarantee the overseas interests of the empire. This has been proved by history. Doesn't the empire even have the courage to fight hard?" Tirpitz asked.

"This is not a question of courage, but a question of strategy and tactics. Bravery can't solve my problem! After all, the empire is still a land power country. How to build an efficient navy while ensuring the army's superiority in two aspects is the most worthwhile The problem of concern is that it is not advisable to pursue the strength of sea power one-sidedly. What else can you do besides asking Congress for money? Have you thought about how to use this fleet?" Bismarck did not back down, and the tone in his tone The ironic element is also becoming more and more obvious.

"No, but according to the tradition of the British in history, they will try to blockade the enemy's fleet near the coast. If we rely on torpedo boats, fleets and coastal defense facilities, we can gradually consume the opponent. 70% of the opponent, then in the end we will obtain a situation of close strength through consumption, and finally, we will decide the national fate of the two countries through a decisive battle."

Tirpitz was a little hesitant when he said it. After all, before the war in history, Tirpitz himself expressed doubts about the plan formulated by the Navy General Staff. He also raised the question of "what if the British don't come", and the last word became a prophecy, the British did not play the near-shore blockade, and the German navy was caught blind at once.

"What if the British don't come? Are you God? The British fleet will definitely block the German coast?" This time it was Bismarck who raised this fatal question!

"This is not an issue that we should discuss at this meeting, you are off topic!" Frederick III said dissatisfiedly. After speaking, he glanced at Crown Prince William who was sitting aside. The latter was expressionless, quietly watching what happened in front of him.

"There is a reason why Tirpitz was able to reign for 19 years. This is obviously the thug of Prince William. It is a pity that Bismarck was alone in this meeting, and Hoffmann was neutral and had no helpers. The prime minister can only go into battle by himself, and after the meeting was reprimanded by the Kaiser, he is at a disadvantage. How to develop later depends on the opinion of Crown Prince William. William's hand is really beautiful." Ruprecht said in his heart.

However, Frederick III was not a fuel-efficient lamp. In order to prevent all parties from connecting in series at the beginning of the meeting, the meeting was held very suddenly, and Hoffman was called back directly from the port of Kiel. Tirpitz just came back from the Far East, and he had a meeting within 2 days of coming from Bavaria, and he hadn’t even had time to meet the crown prince. This is an unprepared battle for any party participating in the meeting , and the Kaiser seems to understand. These are people's original thoughts, not thoughts under the influence of external forces.

The current situation makes the old emperor a little dissatisfied. On the one hand, the topic is off topic. On the other hand, His Majesty wants to get a technical answer, such as how many warships to build, how many of each type of warship to build, what tasks need to be performed, and why? However, everyone has been talking about it for a long time, and they can't come up with a solution! Is there no capable person in the empire's navy?

certainly. This can't be blamed on the people below. The Kaiser made a sudden attack, and none of us were prepared! How is it possible to come up with a complete plan under such circumstances? Of course, Prince Ruprecht is an exception. This buddy has been thinking about this matter for a long time!

"Ah? What do you mean?" Prince Ruprecht, who had been watching from the sidelines, watched the Kaiser and Crown Prince's goals focus on himself. There was a glance at General Hoffman, who was also silent beside him.

The prince finally realized that it was time to fuck himself!

"To formulate a fleet expansion plan, you must first select a suitable imaginary enemy. At present, the most likely enemy of the empire is France. Then the empire's battleship formation must be able to compete with the French battleship formation after the plan is completed."

"If France is used as the standard. Since 1889, France has a total of 9 new battleships on the slipway and completed, and we only have 2 Brandenburg-class battleships under construction on the slipway. The French The fleet is expected to be completed before 1900, of course. From now until 1900, the French may start building new warships, but considering the economic capacity of the empire, we cannot expect to catch up in the field of pure battleships in just 4 years Opponents, that's unrealistic."

"Our new Caesar-class battleship has six 12-inch L40 main guns with a higher rate of fire, and its firepower is stronger than that of the French battleships. But in order to maintain a basic balance of power, by 1900, the number of battleships in our service must be at least More than 6 ships, which means that in addition to the Brandenburg-class battleships, we need at least 4 battleships. 6 ships is an upper limit."

"According to the fastest construction cycle of the German shipyards, it will take us about 30 months to complete a warship like this. In order to ensure that the fleet can be put into service as soon as possible, we will start construction of at least one ship by the end of this year, two in 1897, and two in 1898. Start construction of at least one ship, in this case, we hope to get four battleships in 1900, as for the number of start-ups in 1899 and 1900, it will depend on the situation."

"Well, it's a very good idea, reasonable and restrained." Frederick III nodded in satisfaction. Select an opponent, assess needs, and then formulate a warship development plan that fits the domestic economy. This TM is science! This level is much better than a bunch of guys from the Ministry of the Navy.

Likewise, Crown Prince Wilhelm and Bismarck were pleased with this statement. For the crown prince, what Ruprecht proposed is only a minimum requirement, which means that the fleet size can be increased in due course. Moreover, according to His Highness the Crown Prince's understanding of Ruprecht, in the latter's thinking, capital ships include battleships and large cruisers, and the shortage of battleships can be made up for by cruisers.

For Bismarck, this is also within an acceptable range. After all, the German Navy now only has two battleships, and it would be embarrassing to say it. Even after the completion of the four new ships, it can only maintain a general balance with France. To the extent that it can arouse the vigilance of the United Kingdom, it also ensures a minimum deterrence.

"The imperial battleship force pursues the suppression and balance of the French battleship formation. Then the imperial cruiser formation also requires that it can suppress potential opponents other than the United Kingdom in a certain range of waters." As the prince expected, the battleship plan was extremely successful. Most people agree, so now the next step is the issue of maritime rights and interests that everyone is concerned about, how to ensure the safety of the German colonies, and how to ensure the interests of the open sea. Who might be the enemies of Germany? What should the ocean-going fleet do? This problem is ten times more complicated than the problem of offshore defense!

Thanks to book friends Anzhehu and Qiangu Qiyuan for their rewards~~~, please subscribe~~~, please give me a reward~~~.