Persian Empire 1845

Chapter 607 New Weapons

Even with the economic crisis's impact, the government has been quite lenient towards the military. While some new weapons development projects were cancelled, recruitment has never stopped.

Increasing the military force from the current 310,000 to 500,000 would require a 50% increase in military spending. This would be a test for the current finances, but who would dare disobey the Shah's orders?

More than half of the Iranian forces are deployed in the Caucasus region, primarily to defend against Russia. The Iranian General Staff's strategy is to use the Caucasus Mountains for defense while simultaneously transporting troops by sea to the Russian rear via the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea.

To incentivize its soldiers, Iran offers them generous salaries and benefits. In addition to wages, the entire army receives a daily ration consisting of naan bread, rice, mutton or chicken, beans, onions, tea, and sugar. This standard is higher than that of ordinary civilian families. Border guards and troops participating in field exercises receive additional meat and butter allowances.

Junior officers may apply for family apartments within the military barracks or receive housing subsidies. Officers of lieutenant colonel rank and above are typically provided with detached houses by the state.

Those who have served for 20 years are eligible for a lifetime retirement pension, amounting to 50% of their last month's salary. Those who have served for 30 years receive 75%. This measure aims to retain experienced veterans. Those disabled in combat or on duty receive a pension based on their disability level, supported by the state for life. Those with minor injuries may be transferred to civilian positions or become military academy instructors.

The families of those killed in action are entitled to a one-time compensation of 500 riyals, and their children receive state-sponsored education until adulthood.

In addition to these, there is a combat allowance: during the war, the salary is doubled.

Technical allowance: Those who possess special skills such as machine gun operation, surveying, telegraphy, and engineering will receive an additional allowance of 5-10 rials per month.

Medals and Rewards: Soldiers who receive medals not only receive honors but also cash rewards.

Children's education: Children of military officers can have priority to enter modern public schools or enjoy tuition reductions.

An Iranian soldier's income and social benefits are far above the social average, making military service an enviable profession and enhancing the army's sense of honor and cohesion. Of course, this also places a heavy financial burden on the military.

Officially, Iran's annual military expenditure is 8000 million rials, accounting for 40% of its total annual expenditure. In reality, royal enterprises provide over 4000 million rials in special subsidies annually. The Shah issued a strict order that even if it meant cutting back on his own enjoyment, the military must not be neglected. These funds collectively support the military's expenses. But as long as it can resist Russia, this money is well spent.

Russia has also deployed over 40 troops along the Iranian border, a financial burden that is unimaginable for St. Petersburg. However, this has also led to significant military reforms in Russia, dividing the country into fourteen military districts and establishing military schools to train personnel. The Volga Military District, bordering Iran, is of paramount importance, ranking only after the St. Petersburg Military District. This demonstrates its high level of importance. As for the Ottoman Empire, Russia has largely disregarded it; a mere wave of its hand and the Serbs and Greeks will be on its side.

Naserdin's itinerary for the past two weeks has been to visit military industrial enterprises across the country. It's worth mentioning that Iran's military industrial system is already mature. The Iranian Arms Industry Company is responsible for the research and development and production of firearms, the First Machine Factory is responsible for the production of ammunition, and the Tabriz Artillery Factory is cooperating with Krupp to be responsible for artillery research and development.

As for military uniforms, canteens, and other equipment, they are all manufactured by other companies. Many are purchased from civilian companies to reduce costs. In fact, the quality of products from private companies is quite good; as long as the testing is done properly, some private enterprises can produce just as good military supplies.

Chief of the General Staff Salami accompanied Shah to the arms industry company, where they are said to have developed the latest weapons.

“Welcome, Shah. We are honored by your presence,” said Aliyev, the company’s general manager, to Naserdin.

"Let's go check out the results first."

The general manager immediately led the way, saying, "Shah, Chief of the General Staff, this way please."

Led by him, the group arrived at the shooting range. Several tables were set up on one side of the range, with several prototype rifles on them. A middle-aged man in a white lab coat, somewhat balding, was waiting nearby. "This is our chief firearms designer, Mr. Tokayev, who is also the main designer of this rifle."

“Hello, Mr. Tokayev.” Shah extended his hand; he always showed great respect for technicians.

"It was a pleasure to meet Shah."

"Could you explain this gun to us?"

"Yes!"

Tokayev began to explain the gun he had developed: "I've tentatively named this gun the Sander rifle. It's 1250 mm long overall, with a 750 mm barrel, an empty weight of 4.5 kg, a muzzle velocity of 440 m/s, and an effective range of 600 m."

It abandons the traditional V-notch rear sight and adopts a peep sight, which can be finely adjusted for elevation with tools, greatly improving shooting accuracy. The connection method of the barrel, stock, and handguard is standardized, and parts can be quickly replaced in field workshops when damaged in battle.

It uses 11mm ammunition, balancing range, accuracy, power, and rate of fire, making it easy to mass-produce and equip infantry.

Tokayev's explanation was given by soldiers, except for the Shah, so they knew that just talking about it was useless; only the user could know whether it was good or not.

"You guys go and try out this gun."

Once the Chief of the General Staff gave the order, someone stepped forward, picked up the prepared rifles, and began test firing. Nasser al-Din and the military were naturally waiting for the results of the test firing.

Then, bursts of gunfire erupted from the shooting range. These were test shooters prepared by the military, testing the guns at different frequencies.

The firing proceeded quickly, and Shah only learned about the test firing from the test firing personnel after they reported back.

In terms of accuracy, it is no different from what they are currently using, and it is also relatively convenient to replace bullets. However, the muzzle jump is quite serious and needs to be modified.

The researchers present immediately took notes of the military's evaluation. They would then need to make modifications to address the areas where they were dissatisfied. However, Salami decided to purchase 4000 units for trial use first, just to see how it went.

In addition, Naserdin also saw other firearms under development. For example, the Kipchak large-caliber rifle specifically designed for Russia, with an overall length of 1300 mm, a barrel length of 800 mm, an unloaded weight of 5.2 kg, a muzzle velocity of 430 m/s, an effective range of 800 m, and skilled marksmen could conduct harassing fire at ranges exceeding 1000 m.

With a caliber of 12.5 mm, its large diameter ensures sufficient energy retention at long range and provides excellent stopping power for personnel and horses. It can be used to equip border fortress garrisons and elite snipers for long-range suppression and precision strikes, serving as a psychological deterrent weapon against the Russian army's "human wave tactics."

This is quite good; we can make some purchases. Russia must be in a real bind right now, and nobody knows how far Iran has developed. Having more people around is the only consolation.

(End of this chapter)