The Rise of the Empire

"Ruprecht, this is the document Tirpitz gave you. You have time to read it." Just after the meeting ended, after the army officers had almost left, the Kaiser stopped the prince and gave He a document.

"So I still have to manage the navy." At this time, the prince suddenly remembered that he still had the title of naval advisor. Although this advisor was not a permanent official position, he could contact the Kaiser at any time, so he had great rights. After all, except for the other three kingdoms, almost everyone's rights come from the emperor.

The first part of the document is a fleet overview of the German Navy. Naturally, Ruprecht first looked at the battleships of the High Seas Fleet. At present, the High Seas Fleet has a total of the following battleships: 6 dreadnoughts, the slow battleship Nassau equipped with 10 12-inch guns, 2 slow battleships Posen-class battleships equipped with 12 12-inch guns Fast battleship Rheinland with 12-inch guns. In addition, two pure-blood battlecruisers Von der Tann and Blücher were equipped with nine 12-inch guns.

There are a total of 6 first-generation super-dreadnoughts, all equipped with 8 350MM main guns. Among them, there are three Helgeland-class fast battleships and three Moltke-class pure-blood battlecruisers, namely Moltke, Goeben and Seydlitz. The speed of these pure-blooded battlecruisers is more than 27 knots.

Of course, the most eye-catching one is the last Bavaria-class battleship. Starting from 1907, Germany no longer produces other types of battleships, and all of them are used to produce Bavaria-class fast battleships equipped with 15-inch heavy guns. From 1907 to 1911 in May In the past year, Germany has started construction on an average of 2 to 3 ships per year! Based on a construction period of two and a half to three years for a battleship, Germany now has six 15-inch gun battleships!

These six battleships are Bavaria, Saxony, Württemberg, Baden, Hesse, and Mecklenburg. Almost all battleships of this class are based on all kingdoms and grand duchies of the German Empire except Prussia. named. Four of these six battleships have already been commissioned, and the other two are being outfitted.

In addition, there are 6 ships under construction on the slipway, 2 of which can be put into service within one year. All six warships can be put into service in two and a half years at most. The six battleships were Oldenburg, Weimar, Braunschweig, Dessau, Meiningen and Coburg. If nothing unexpected happens, before 1915, the total number of German High Seas Fleet fleets above the dreadnought fleet was 24, of which 16 were super-dreadnoughts and 12 were Bavaria-class battleships equipped with 15-inch guns.

This scale is actually not large. Historically, the German High Seas Fleet Dreadnought Fleet had a total of 21 battleships and 7 battlecruisers. A total of 28 battleships. In terms of quantity, it is definitely larger in history, but not necessarily in terms of tonnage. But in terms of combat effectiveness, well, if the two sides meet, then the High Seas Fleet in history would have better retreat. How can a fleet dominated by 12-inch artillery be possible? Can it compete with a fleet where half of the warships are equipped with 15-inch naval guns? Although the latter has 4 fewer ships than the former, in terms of unilateral firepower, the latter is several levels higher. And what's even more tragic is that even with the number of single-sided artillery tubes, the High Seas Fleet in history may not have an advantage. After all, the layout of Nassau and Helgeland in history was really deceptive.

And one thing that needs to be explained is that, except for the Nassau, the remaining five dreadnoughts can be upgraded to super-dreadnoughts! The triple 12-inch turret is going to be replaced with a twin 350MM gun. In terms of speed, in addition to the three slow battleships, there are a total of five pure-blooded battlecruisers with a speed of more than 27 knots.

All remaining battleships are fast battleships. The speed is above 25 knots. From a theoretical point of view, it can be considered a full-speed fleet.

At present, the British are in about the same condition as when the war began. The only difference is that the Queen Elizabeth-class battleships are in good condition, and 4 of them are now in service. There are more than ten battlecruisers and battleships, so in a short period of time, the British fast fleet still has a numerical advantage compared to Germany. But if there are losses, or if the remaining Bavaria-class battleships are delayed to serve, then there will be no numerical advantage. Unless the British realize the problem and immediately add fast battleships, it may not be too late. In a good situation, the fast fleet will have a crushing advantage!

The second part of the document introduces the recent action plan of the High Seas Fleet. Different from the Army's direct rashness, the High Seas Fleet is at a disadvantage, so it is natural not to jump too far at the beginning. If nothing else, at least start with the North Sea and the Baltic Sea. Let's set up mine nets in various ports. With these things, at least we can protect ourselves. No matter how strong the British fleet is, it will not be able to block the doorstep of the German fleet through mines.

In less than three weeks, the High Seas Fleet has laid tens of thousands of mines in the North Sea, forming five large minefields. During the minelaying process, a British light cruiser that penetrated too deeply was also sunk, which was also an unexpected gain. In the direction of the Baltic Sea, the German fleet acted more proactively. On the second day of the war, under the command of Fleet Commander Admiral Scheer, 6 super-dreadnoughts, 3 dreadnoughts, and more than 30 minelayers arrived at the door of the Russians. , and then under the cover of naval guns, German minelayers laid offensive minefields outside the Gulf of Riga. Then, what made the Russians even more angry was that the fleet even entered the Gulf of Finland. After shelling the port, it laid mines at the mouth of the Gulf of Finland.

After doing this, Scheer still felt unsafe and thought to himself, what if we move forward and someone else comes out and sweeps us away. So several submarine ambush areas were deployed near the minefields, and those submarines that were not suitable for long voyages were all thrown into the Baltic Sea...

While the surface fleet was making preparations, the submarine force had already begun to make its mark on the ocean. Even before the war began, the first batch of 50 submarines, escorted by the High Seas Fleet, entered the Atlantic Ocean from the English Channel and the North Sea respectively, and waited for opportunities near British ports. And move. Although the first batch of submarines that set sail have not returned yet, judging from the current situation, the submarine force has achieved at least a record of more than 150,000 tons. The specific results will have to wait until the other submarines return. The sea wolves of the German Empire had begun to bleed the British veins.

If the German Navy had done these things from the beginning, then the beginning could only be considered satisfactory, but then, when he saw what followed, he couldn't help but have some expectations in his heart. In the last part of the document, the situation after the start of Plan B is detailed!

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