The Rise of the Empire

Not counting Hyuga and Fuso after King Kong, just these battleships alone, the Japanese Navy had 2 dreadnoughts, 2 super-dreadnought battleships, and 4 battlecruisers at the beginning of the war in 1912. The strength of this fleet France has been completely destroyed, okay! Referring to the current French warship construction speed, four dreadnoughts can be completed, but it will be difficult for super-dreadnoughts to serve in the first year of the war! Not to mention Russia, Italy, Austria-Hungary and the like!

If it is because of the pressure from the United States, this cannot be justified. In fact, the Japanese already have a vote of quasi-dreadnoughts. The Satsuma-class battleships bought from the United Kingdom and the two captured Rurik II battleships can actually be converted into fearless ones. of. In addition, there is no problem at all with some new ships to fight against the United States, which has no foothold in the Far East. From an economic point of view, the scale of military expansion at this time is somewhat large, and the gains outweigh the losses. The current Japanese government is not the lunatics of World War II. It is still very smart in doing things. They can only do this for one reason, that is, they have received benefits from others and are ready to fight!

Where does this benefit come from? Fight with whom? Isn't this an obvious truth? The British must have convinced the Japanese, given certain benefits, and then made the Japanese work for the British! If this is the case, Japan's main fleet will probably appear in the Mediterranean or even the North Sea, right?

This is definitely not alarmist! In fact, historically the main force of the Japanese Navy has actively participated in the Allied Powers' operations in the Pacific and Indian Oceans, such as seizing German colonies in the Far East, besieging Count Spey, and working with the British to cover the arrival of the Australian and New Zealand Army. Europe. The Japanese Navy's minesweeping force even entered the Mediterranean to perform minesweeping missions, and received high praise. Moreover, the British historically hoped that Japan's Kongo-class battlecruisers could go to the North Sea, but later the Japanese refused. But this time, if some agreements are signed between the two sides and exchanges of interests are made, maybe these Japanese battleships He really will face off against the German High Seas Fleet!

One thing that is certain now is that as long as the Japanese really do their best to help the Allies, whether they appear in the North Sea or the Mediterranean, it will have a great impact on the entire situation! Don't say too much, even if 2 quasi-dreadnoughts and 2 dreadnoughts pass by, plus the French navy, they can crush the two weak navies of Austria-Hungary and Turkey. It doesn't matter whether there is Italy or not. And if the fleet arrives in the North Sea, a battle between the main fleets may not matter. After all, no matter whether the British fleet is joined by the Japanese fleet or not, the German fleet does not intend to fight head-on. But if 4 King Kong ships are added to Betty's fast fleet, the situation will be different. Hipper will probably be very, very difficult to fight. Even if the quality of the German fleet is slightly superior, they still can't fight if their numbers are twice yours!

And this is just considering these issues from the perspective of the navy. If we also consider the army, if the price offered by Britain and France to Japan is high enough, then it is possible for the Japanese army to appear in large numbers on the European battlefield. It is very simple to be willing. There are many Japanese. The government needs money very much, and the issue of restricting the equipment production of the Japanese Army is not a problem at all for Britain and France. Britain and France can arm hundreds of thousands of Americans, but can't they arm hundreds of thousands of Japanese? As for the issue of combat effectiveness? After all, they have fought against the Russians. Maybe they are not as good as the French and British on the same scale, but even if they are on par with the Russians, they are still better than Austria-Hungary! When he thought about this problem, Ruprecht became a little depressed. It seemed that he had to pay some price to win this war.

Ruprecht had to admit that the British made a good move, a very good move. At the end of the document compiled by Redl, Ruprecht himself added this sentence: "What if the Japanese navy and army appear in large numbers on the European battlefield?"

After returning to his temporary residence in Berlin,

Ruprecht did not relax. He immediately asked Count Schelling to collect all intelligence related to Japan. The content was not limited to military, but also included economic, diplomatic and civilian intelligence. He also asked the Prussian General Staff to also come together. Help get the job done.

In fact, Britain and Japan are currently in frequent contact to establish a closer cooperative relationship in the next step. Ruprecht still underestimated the changes he brought to history. This little butterfly that appeared in the tide of history flapped its wings and changed the whole world beyond recognition!

"When did Mr. Saionji pay so much attention to the Navy? He also visited the Navy Kure Factory in person. This really surprised me." Uemura Hikonoshima, who accompanied Mr. Saionji to visit the construction of the Navy's Kawachi battleship, was half serious and half joking. said.

"If we look at the current rate of expansion of the Imperial Navy, can we guarantee that the Americans will be kept out of the Western Pacific?" This top Japanese politician did not directly answer Uemura Hikonoshima, but put forward a question that should be made now This is a thorny issue for all Japanese naval leaders.

That’s right, it’s tricky! A very difficult question to answer, but a question that must be answered! After defeating the Russian Navy, the Japanese Navy finally became a veritable maritime overlord in the Far East. However, this does not mean that the Japanese can sit back and relax. On the contrary, when the British power gradually shrinks to the mainland, the Japanese need to independently face threats from across the ocean. The danger is that that huge, powerful country that never forgets the Far East is always the Sword of Damocles hanging over the heads of the Japanese!

The Japanese Navy defeated the U.S. Navy, but that is history, and various accidental factors were mixed into it, so that now the Japanese Navy executives, including Togo Heihachiro, have lingering fears about the last victory. If the Spaniards got 2 ships Armored cruisers, if two battleships had arrived late, the situation in the Battle of the Philippines would have been completely different. All in all, the top brass of the Japanese navy did not despise their opponents just because they had defeated the United States. The United States was different from Russia. After losing once, they could try again immediately, so they moved from the navy to politics. The Japanese have always been extremely wary of the United States!

But now, Xiyuanji Gongwang has asked this question, and it is obviously impossible for Uemura Hikouchi to fool him. However, he still asked tentatively: "You can actually ask Commander Dongxiang. He is the supreme commander of the Imperial Navy."

"I need to listen to your opinion now, use your brain to think, don't just follow others' opinions." Xiyuanji Gongwang glanced at Uemura Hikonoshima and walked straight forward. "Is half an hour enough?"

Here comes the second update~~~! Please subscribe and reward~~~! ! !