Wild North America 1846

Chapter 529 Naval Development Long-Term Strategy
As a rising star among the world's great powers, Datang Empire is developing very fast, leading the second wave of industrial revolution represented by electrification and chemical industry, and is at the forefront of the world in this field, with great potential for development.

But the British Empire stuck to the rules, and still clings to the glory of the world's first steam technology revolution era, rejecting new technologies represented by electrification and chemical industry.

In related fields, it lags behind countries such as Germany and France, not to mention the far-leading Datang Empire.

However, the strength of the British Empire cannot be underestimated because of this. After all, it is the Seven Seas Overlord who has been on the throne of the world's hegemon for nearly two centuries. Peak) a vast colony with a population of 3 million (including colonies and protectorates).

In terms of military expenditure alone, the British Empire allocated 1869 million pounds in 9941, equivalent to 5 million Tang Yuan, and the Royal Navy accounted for a little more than 3/4 of the military expenditure.

compared with

The military expenditure of the Tang Empire is about 7500 million Tang yuan a year, which is equivalent to about 1500 million pounds. The military allocation of the Royal Army and the Royal Navy is 6:4. The Royal Army still accounts for the majority of the allocation, which is used to maintain the total amount of about 37. Human Army and a series of overseas military operations.

The annual military budget of the United Kingdom is more than 6.5 times that of the Tang Empire. In terms of the military allocation of the Royal Navy alone, the Royal Navy of the United Kingdom is 14 times that of the Royal Navy of the Tang Empire, which is a huge gap.

This is the basis for Britain to maintain the largest Royal Navy in the world, with more than 680 ships of various types and a total force of more than 36.7, more than the British Army.

Among the capital ships equipped by the United Kingdom, large ocean-going capital ships of 5500 tons to 1.2 tons are the main ones. Its naval strength is the sum of France, the Tang Dynasty, the Kingdom of Prussia, the Austrian Empire, and the Ottoman Empire, especially in the Mediterranean, Atlantic and Indian Oceans. naval superiority.

Although the Royal Navy is still equipped with a large number of sailing battleships and sailing frigates, it is undergoing the largest wave of replacement in history.

In the past 10 years, the British Royal Navy has launched more than 17 new steam ironclad warships into service on average every year, and the peak reached 23 ships.

From 1860 to 1869

The UK's annual military allocation is no less than 9000 million pounds, and it has invested heavily in updating equipment for the Royal Navy to maintain its maritime supremacy.

By comparison
The Royal Navy of the Tang Empire is nothing compared to the big one. In recent years, the military appropriation has gradually increased, reaching an average annual scale of about 3000 million Tang Yuan, worth about 600 million pounds.

Among them, equipment maintenance costs and personnel costs, 37 overseas naval bases and local fortress construction costs account for more than half, leaving less than 550% of the cost of adding weapons and equipment, which is 110 million Tang yuan, worth about [-] million pounds.

The scale of the Royal Navy is not small. It has two marine divisions with a total of 2.76 people, 16 coastal fortress garrison regiments with about 4.15 people, and a total of 2.36 officers and soldiers on main ships and military auxiliary ships (including naval officers and soldiers). There are a total of 1.31 staff in subordinate institutions, various naval academies, naval stations and naval warehouse logistics personnel, and more than 7600 armed officers and soldiers stationed in naval bases abroad, totaling about 11.3 officers and soldiers.

As the main military force of the Tang Empire to maintain sea power, the Royal Navy is a proper high-tech arm. Its salary level is on par with that of the United Kingdom, which is about 8% of the income of the Royal Navy of the same position in the United Kingdom. The annual personnel maintenance costs are close to 1900 Wan Tangyuan is the bulk of military expenditure.

some of

The annual salary of a major admiral is about 2400-3000 Tang Yuan, which is about 450-500 pounds, which fluctuates depending on the position.Its salary is lower at the Royal Navy Headquarters and higher at overseas bases because of the additional cost of overseas subsidies.

The annual salary of a colonel-level naval officer is about 1300~1500 Tang Yuan. Most naval officers at this level are captains of capital ships or commanders of overseas bases. Their powers are very important and they are also the backbone of the Royal Navy;
The annual salary of a lieutenant colonel-level naval officer is about 850-1100 Tang Yuan, and the annual salary of a major-ranking officer is less, almost at the level of 550-700 Tang Yuan, which is about 6 to 8 times the annual salary of ordinary workers, and a proper middle-class income level.

The income of junior sailors in the Royal Navy is also much higher than that of ordinary workers. The torpedo hand is about 230 Tang yuan a year, the gunner is 260 Tang yuan, the first-class sailor is 130 Tang yuan, the second-class sailor is 110 Tang yuan, and the third-class sailor is 82 Tang yuan. The annual salary of sailors, marine division soldiers, and ordinary garrison soldiers is 22 Tang yuan.

This is because marine divisions and garrison soldiers are all conscripts, and they only receive a symbolic allowance every month. They do not belong to the ranks of professional non-commissioned officers and officers, and their income is naturally much meager.

Except for the third-class sailor 82 Tang Yuan's annual salary, which is about equal to the annual income of ordinary workers, there is not much difference between them.

Other high-level sailors and technical arms are about 2 to 3 times the family income of ordinary workers, worthy of the title of noble arms.

Average down
The median annual salary of the Royal Navy is 172 Tang Yuan (including marine divisions and garrison soldiers with low income), and the annual personnel expenditure is close to 1800 million Tang Yuan, which almost eats up a little less than 2/3 of the Navy's budget allocation.

Comprehensive calculation

Of the Royal Navy's annual weapons purchase cost of 550 million, less than half can be used for the purchase of new ships, because a considerable number of shells are purchased every year for training and storage, which is a large expenditure.

The service life of naval gun barrels is generally around 200 to 300 rounds. New gun barrels must be purchased for replacement, and some necessary military auxiliary ships must be purchased. This is a force multiplier for ocean-going operations, and investment is essential.

Lin Lin finally figured out that the naval budget that can be used to purchase the main new ships every year is between 250 million and 300 million Tang yuan, a little more if you are crowded, and a little less if you are loose, roughly within this range.

The purchase of an 8500-ton advanced iron-clad steam battleship like the "Zhenyang" class cost 230 million Tang yuan, or about 46 pounds.

In other words, the purchase of such a capital ship will almost eat up the purchase cost of the Royal Navy for one year.

Coupled with the need to supplement new ships of the light cruiser class, the Royal Navy's annual weapon purchase costs are very tight.

However, Emperor Richard did not allocate additional funds from the Royal Office of the Interior, and the generals of the Royal Navy Department did not make any additional requests. After the imperial meeting, they went their separate ways happily.

The reason
But the Royal Navy is not as poor as it appears on the surface, and there are a lot of ways to make money without violating regulations or breaking the law. Therefore, as long as His Majesty the Emperor grants permission to start construction of two "Zhenyang" class steam ironclad battleships a year, there is no problem. question.

for example;

The Royal Navy performs the task of patrolling the sea all the year round, and it is the best choice for the major banks, telegraph offices, shipping companies, and oil companies of the empire to transport large amounts of cash.Whether it is to escort a huge amount of cash back to the empire from overseas, or to escort cash from various overseas provinces, it is the easiest and safest way to transport it by the Royal Navy warship.

To date
The Royal Navy has a very high reputation in this regard, and no money has been lost. It is even more favored by banks and large overseas companies.

For example, the major oil companies that make huge profits overseas every year basically need to escort large sums of gold, pounds, francs, and German marks back to the mainland of the empire from Europe, worth hundreds of millions of Tang Yuan.

These precious goods are small in size and high in value. The naval warship can be put down by freeing up two or three officer cabins. The escort warship can get a lot of benefits from top to bottom. known things.

It is a matter of course that one-third of the escort income flows into the small treasury of the Ministry of the Navy to make up for the lack of equipment costs.

In addition, the Royal Navy's anti-smuggling and robbery on weekdays, the spoils of ships captured in overseas operations, and the convenience of goods circulation in overseas bases, etc., all have some benefits that can be shared.

How much money was in the Admiralty coffers?
This is also a secret matter. Only a few senior officials of the Ministry of the Navy, the main chief of the Audit Office and the court know about it, and outsiders don't know the depth.

Therefore, naval officers and soldiers do not get such a small salary on the surface, but in fact it is much higher, and they have become the aristocratic arms that everyone envies and earns a lot of money.

It's not surprising to think about it

Those armed militias in South America were able to eat a lot of oil in the colonial expansion war. How could the Royal Navy fleet, which was rampant off the coast of the Brazilian Empire, have no extra money to make?

Was the war for nothing?

A 600-ton merchant ship is loaded with cotton and coffee. How much is the ship and its cargo worth?
So... even if a 6000-ton cargo ship transports coal, the value of each ton of coal is between 2.5 and 2.8 Tang yuan, and the revenue from the cargo alone is tens of thousands of Tang yuan.

During the war, the imperial fleet on the expedition to South America sank and captured more than 210 ships of various types. The Royal Navy must have gained a lot of fat, and only part of it was handed over to the imperial treasury.

The only unlucky ones are the Brazilian Empire and those ship owners. Thank God for getting back the empty ship in the end.

As for the goods, there is no door.

It is precisely because of various benefits that the officers and soldiers of the Royal Navy and the Royal Army are eager for war. "Happy at hearing the war" is not a slogan or empty imagination, but the voice of the officers and soldiers of the Royal Navy and the Royal Army.

Britain's annual military expenditure is six and a half times that of the Tang Empire, but the economic scale of the Tang Empire is 6% of that of the United Kingdom. It seems that the gap is not that big. Why is there such a big gap in military expenditure?
Did the Tang Empire have no money to spend on armaments?

the answer is negative.

The imperial family of the Tang Empire is the wealthiest royal family in the world, with a huge surplus of hundreds of millions of Tang Yuan each year. The outside world guesses that it is between 2 and 3 million Tang Yuan, but no one knows the actual amount.

The government of the Datang Empire has ample finances. While investing heavily in the empire's infrastructure and important project expenditures, it also has surplus financial funds to invest in large-scale mining companies, reaping huge dividends in a rolling manner.

For domestic industrial enterprises that have sprung up like mushrooms after a spring rain, as long as they meet the standards of technological enterprises, they can receive tax relief and a series of other preferential policies, and get financial support, so as to grow rapidly.

The Tang Empire owns several of the world's top banks, the eight major oil giants that monopolize the world's petrochemical products, and the world's leading multinational telegraph office. The industrial economy is booming and there are many tax sources. There is no shortage of money.

Why self-limit the expansion of the Royal Navy?
This has to mention the "hide your strengths and bide your time" policy formulated by Emperor Richard of the Tang Dynasty. The size of the army and navy should be expanded to an appropriate level.

Based on the principle that enough is enough, the military development of the Datang Empire focuses on safeguarding the interests of the Americas, taking into account the existence of maritime military forces in the Western Pacific region, and has not developed ocean-going ships of more than 5000 tons for many years.

It was not until the main fleet of the Royal Navy of the British Empire developed to a certain scale that the "Zhenyang-class" steam ironclad ship was born.

It is clear

This is an intriguing message that the Royal Navy of the Tang Empire intentionally controlled the scale and tonnage of its ships when developing its main ships.

Some ethnic radicals will object to this approach, thinking that "the act of abolishing martial arts" and "our Tang Empire has been developed to the present, and the arts, governance and martial arts have reached their peak, so there is no reason to be partial to one corner" and "the empire should take the initiative to participate in the European stage. Competition, where is the core of the world" "You should not be timid, you should vigorously develop the Royal Navy and expand overseas colonial interests"...

in the press
There is no shortage of these radical remarks. Many "Great Chinaists" believe that the development of the empire is too conservative, and they should implement an aggressive expansionary colonial policy. They compete with world powers such as Britain and France for colonies all over the world. Vigorously developing the Royal Navy is the first condition.

actually look back

The strategy of "keeping a low profile" has ensured the stable and rapid development of the Tang Empire so far, maintained the close ally relationship between the Tang Empire and the United Kingdom, and fully guaranteed the interests of the empire in the Americas. It is the most suitable for the current development stage of the Tang Empire Strategy is undoubtedly an extremely correct choice.

current stage
What the Tang Empire pursued was to digest the achievements of colonialism and develop and strengthen its national power.And strive to surpass the world's largest economic scale in the next 10 years, so as to sit on the throne of the world's largest industrial economy and realize the goal of prosperity for the country and the people.

current stage
The Tang Empire did not seek transoceanic colonization, did not seek hegemony with Britain and France, did not seek to participate in the fierce competition in Europe, and did not seek to maintain the absolute security of the transatlantic trade line, so why should it stimulate Britain's sensitive nerves? Woolen cloth?

The most stupid thing in the world is hubris, the most typical example is;
Decades later, Kaiser Wilhelm II brazenly challenged the hegemony of the British Royal Navy, which eventually triggered World War I, which spread throughout Europe and most of the world.

If the British want to speak well, they can speak well. If they don't speak well, they will really screw up.

But no matter you, France, Germany or anyone else, as long as Britain's maritime hegemony is threatened, it is a real ruthless role to launch an all-round containment without hesitation at all.

What are the serious consequences of the Tang Empire stimulating Britain at this stage?
The first is the complete interruption of transatlantic trade routes. Never doubt the ability of the British Royal Navy to rule the Atlantic Ocean. This is just a matter of effort.

The export of chemical products, machinery, grain and various food products that the Datang Empire was proud of was all interrupted, and the economy suffered an unprecedented blow.

And this will cause serious civil strife in the Tang Empire, the price of food will plummet, large and small enterprises and financial institutions will go bankrupt, and the oil company that is making money every day will become a huge burden, and the huge amount of kerosene, gasoline, diesel and other chemical products produced The product can only be dumped into the ocean for nothing.

What else?
There are not so many storage facilities that can accommodate hundreds of millions of barrels of petroleum products a year, so they can only be burned or dumped in vain.

Secondly, it will definitely trigger the European Allied Forces' cross-ocean expedition led by the United Kingdom. Its scale should be more than one million people, and the maximum number can reach tens of millions. This unprecedented war may last for 5 to 10 years or even longer. .

Unless the British Empire completely collapses and declines, and the entire European coalition forces cannot be fought, the war will never stop.

At a moment of stake for their own global supremacy, the British do not care about the price to pay.

History has proven that it doesn't matter if 100 million, 200 million or 1000 million people die in a war, one must fall before the end is counted.

The odds of winning against the whole of Europe, in other words against the whole world, with the power of the Tang Empire alone are not great.

The British and French colonies together cover more than 5 million square kilometers and have a population of more than 000 million. Adding in the war forces mobilized by European countries, the total population exceeds 5 million.

Such a balance of power was an unbearable burden for the Tang Empire.

never forget
The 19th century was a period when white people dominated the world. Europeans who had not experienced the first and second world wars were brave and good at fighting, but they were not as peace-loving as later generations.His temper is like a firecracker, and the threshold for starting a war is so low that it is negligible.

The Tang Empire's attempt to fully develop the Royal Navy is a naked provocation, not only against the British global hegemony, but also against the white world, so launching a transoceanic jihad is a matter of course.

Once does not work twice, twice does not work three times, just as the Europeans once did in the Middle East, sparking endless wars in North America.

Just to satisfy the arrogant dream of some ethnic radicals to dominate the world, they brazenly challenged the bottom line that the British Empire could not touch, thus causing major setbacks in the development of the entire country, which can no longer be described as "stupid".

Richard clearly knew how the British dealt with Kaiser Wilhelm II who challenged their bottom line?
Even if the First World War, which spread across Europe and most of the world, caused tens of millions of casualties, the Germans would never be allowed to rise.

The British did not accept any explanation, and resolutely killed the German nation in the bud.After World War I, the development of the German nation was heavily handcuffed and fettered, doomed to a tragic fate of being besieged in the future.

Even if Kaiser Wilhelm II was the grandson of Her Majesty Queen Victoria, it did not affect Britain's determination to attack Germany and completely destroy the ruling foundation of the German Empire. This is the ruthlessness of the British.

How similar are historical developments?

From the end of the 18th century to the beginning of the 19th century, when the French Emperor Napoleon dominated Europe, Britain took the lead in organizing seven anti-French alliances, gathering almost all European forces to deal with the powerful French Empire, and won the final victory.

To challenge the British supremacy of the seas in this day and age is a mortal hatred with no moderation.

In the development strategy formulated by Emperor Richard

In the next few decades, the empire will focus on developing economic and political influence, supplemented by developing military power, until the First World War kicks off as scheduled...

The long road to world dominance will not be accomplished overnight.

(End of this chapter)