Holy Roman Empire - Chapter 238:

Chapter 238: 125th Chapter: Ironclad Ship
When the Near Eastern War broke out, other regions of the world were also in turmoil. England, France, and Russia started fighting, which made the Americans across the ocean feel like an opportunity had arrived.

First, there was trouble in Cuba, which received a slap from the Spaniards, suffered a rebuff, and then faced warnings from England and France, forcing it to shrink back and lie low.

However, the Americans were not disheartened. In July 1853, they created the Black Ships incident in Japan, using force to intimidate and coerce the Shogunate government into accepting their terms and signing the Japan-US Kanagawa Treaty.

According to the nature of great powers, naturally, they wouldn’t just watch the United States swallow Japanese interests alone. So, they all joined in one after the other, with countries like England, France, and the Netherlands taking the lead in forcing the Shogunate to sign similar treaties.

The news reached Vienna, and the Austrian colonial faction saw an opportunity, wanting to join in. The Vienna Government was discussing whether to take advantage of the situation to loot amidst the chaos.

Prime Minister Felix spoke, “Your Majesty, Japan is too far away for us to reach, and besides, our interests there are not substantial. It is not necessary to expend too much effort.

Our focus should still be on domestic development, especially tidying up the South German Region. Rather than taking action in the East Asian region, it is more in line with our interests to infiltrate the German Federation Empire.

Minister of the Navy Filkos disagreed, “Prime Minister, taking action in the Near Eastern region wouldn’t cost us much, and if the Dutch can force the Japanese Government to make concessions, it would not be difficult for us to obtain similar interests.

The Japanese Government is already a scared bird, and they dare not refuse our proposals at all.

Even if diplomatic measures fail, we have agreements with the Dutch, Spaniards, and Portuguese to receive supplies from their colonies. Sending a fleet to Asia to intimidate Japan would not be difficult.”

In the quest for overseas colonies, Austria had not done nothing. Signing supply treaties for overseas ports with declining colonial empires was one of the measures, at the cost of Austria not scheming for other countries’ overseas colonies.

In the short term, it was a mere promissory note. Austria had no overseas colonies, but no one doubted Austria’s capability to establish them.

As usual, when a new empire entered the scene, it was bound to encroach on the spheres of influence of established empires. The Vienna Government expressed goodwill for peaceful coexistence, and naturally, no one opposed it.

Metternich analyzed, “There are many countries coveting Japan, and now that they have opened their doors, I fear everyone will rush in.

Actually, the Russians had long planned to colonize Japan. If it weren’t for the outbreak of the Near Eastern War, the Americans might not have gotten the opportunity to jump in first.

Under the current international situation, it is not a big problem for us to join in and get a share. But if we want to gain more substantial benefits, we must deploy a naval fleet.”

Austria’s navy was not that impressive, even after Franz ascended and carried out some expansion.

However, weaknesses are always relative. Compared to the naval powerhouses of England and France, theirs was not worth mentioning; intimidating Japan at this time would be pressure-free.

However, this was not a reason for Austria to send a naval fleet to the Far Eastern region; the key was still the interests involved.

After hesitating for a moment, Franz made a decision, “The Far Eastern region is not the focus of our expansion. Even if we proceed with overseas colonization, we must avoid conflicts with the European countries as much as possible.

For now, let’s set our sights on no man’s land, even if it is a bit barren, as a start and to accumulate experience.

What we should do now is send out more exploration teams to survey lands not yet occupied by other countries. As long as the area is easy to rule, we can take it to practice. There’s no need to chase after immediate benefits excessively.

On the issue of Japan, we’ll just follow in the footsteps of the other countries, satisfied with securing a portion of the interests for ourselves, without pursuing further expansion.”

Franz’s words may have sounded casual on the surface, but deep down, his heart was bleeding. It was not easy to catch the last train of the Colonial Empire, but because of the navy’s strength, they could only pick up the scraps left by England and France.

If they blindly tried to snatch the fattest pieces, not to mention England and France, old colonial empires like Spain and the Netherlands could make Austria bite off more than it could chew.

Overseas colonization wasn’t just about strength; it was also about the methods of rule. As a newcomer, the old empires didn’t even need to use force to intervene; they could simply set a trap that would leave you bankrupt.

Even the Americans, who had seemingly emerged victorious by taking over the Philippine Islands, knew their own suffering. The land, once flowing with wealth under the Spaniards, turned into a money-losing venture in their hands.

And that was with the wealthy Philippine Islands; if it had been a poor and remote area, the loss would likely have been even worse.

Colonial rule also depended on cost. Without experience in managing colonies, blindly joining the colonial forces meant preparing to lose disastrously!

In comparison, Franz would rather plant the flag on uninhabited islands and claim sovereignty just by stationing a few soldiers there, without worrying about anyone trying to snatch it away.

Of course, these islands were either geologically harsh or too small to expect any significant benefits; at best, they could only serve as reserve areas for resources.

Navy Minister Filkos suggested, “Your Majesty, we have been developing on the European Continent without making our voice heard in the world, which is very disadvantageous for us to open up overseas colonies in the future.

Why not organize a global naval cruise to visit various countries, and take the opportunity to claim some ownerless lands as our first step out of Europe?”

Almost every rise of a naval power has been inseparable from a large-scale naval battle. Clearly, Austria didn’t have such an opportunity and couldn’t find a stepping stone like that.

They couldn’t beat England and France, and even with twenty years of development, they still couldn’t win. Franz had no intention of courting death or challenging the maritime hegemons.

Setting their sights lower, it’s regrettable that the remaining countries weren’t worth Austria’s challenge. A look at the map showed that they were out of reach and didn’t have sufficient conflicts of interest.

Unless they attacked the Ottoman Empire, which historically ranked fifth in naval strength, barely qualifying as a worthy opponent.

But according to the current situation, Franz seriously doubted whether the Ottoman Government still had the finances to build such a fleet.

Without a suitable rival, they had to take another path. After all, Austria was an old empire and didn’t need to solidify its status as a great power through war—it was already part of the game, so why bother fighting for a ticket in?

As a civilized person, Franz hated war. In his eyes, war meant risk. Any fool who recklessly started a war without sufficient benefits wouldn’t survive in this era.

The current proposal from the Minister of the Navy was actually based on the international political environment. Since Austria adopted a conservative colonization strategy, a show of military might was very important.

Even if they couldn’t intimidate England and France, they at least needed to display their strength to deter other countries, to avoid unnecessary trouble when colonizing overseas.

Historically, at the beginning of the 20th century, the Americans had established their status as a naval power through an intimidating global voyage.

The idea was feasible, but the precondition was that the Austrian Navy needed to have the strength for it. Franz had serious doubts about this. A transoceanic voyage was not so simple, and circumnavigating the world at that time was still challenging.

If something went wrong along the way, showing off could backfire, and the resulting spectacle would be enormous. The Austrian Navy had no experience with global voyages; whether the warships could endure it was a question in itself.

If a ship malfunctioned en route, where would they repair it? How would they secure logistical support for long ocean voyages? How could naval officers and sailors withstand the prolonged maritime life? All these issues had to be considered.

Franz directly asked, “Filkos, are you certain that our navy can accomplish this without becoming an international laughingstock?”

This matter being of great importance, Filkos naturally did not dare to make a guarantee. Not to mention the Austrian Navy, even the English and French navies wouldn’t dare guarantee a circumnavigation without any issues.

Filkos encouraged, “Your Majesty, this is a mid-term strategic concept, which definitely cannot be realized at the outset. We can first select a long-distance sailing route to accumulate experience, and when the time is ripe, we can then undertake a global circumnavigation.

Furthermore, our Ministry of the Navy is not unprepared. In order to narrow the gap with the strong naval powers of England and France, the technology for our self-developed ironclad ships has matured.

We have already placed orders, and it is expected that within two years, the first ironclad ship will be able to enter service with the navy.

This epoch-making warship will rewrite the history of naval warships, rendering obsolete all the current naval ships of other nations.”

As a pursuer aiming to gain an advantage in naval power, the best method is to promote technological innovation, to phase out old-fashioned warships, and to bring everyone back to the same starting line.

In history, the explosion of the German Navy was due to the advent of the era of dreadnoughts, which gave them the opportunity to catch up with the British.

The Austrian Navy is no exception. If they were to develop sailing warships to catch up with England and France, no one has the confidence to do so; the gap is simply too large.

Ever since Franz proposed the concept of ironclad ships three years ago, it has garnered significant attention from the Austrian Navy. After careful study by shipyard engineers, they found that theoretically, ironclad ships are feasible.

Since it’s feasible, it is natural to proceed with research and development. The increased military spending of the Austrian Navy over the past few years has mostly been invested in warship research and development, and it is finally about to bear fruit.

No matter how many sailing warships the British and French possess, once the ironclad ship is launched, these warships will have to be phased out.

To blockade technology is impossible, in this era all the navies are just one conceptual breakthrough away from ironclad ships, and there are no significant technical problems.

During this period, the French navy also embarked on the development of ironclad ships. After obtaining information on the French ironclad ships, the British also had similar plans as of 1856.

Of course, from research and development to final commissioning, it will definitely take time. The adoption of new technology cannot be smooth sailing, and even if research and development had started a few years earlier, Franz was not certain who would be the first to build an ironclad ship.

What he demanded was the construction of ironclad ships, not iron-hulled ships encased with a layer of iron. If it were just to add a layer of iron, this would have emerged centuries ago and wouldn’t require research and development.

Prince Windischgrätz questioned, “Ironclad ships? Mr. Filkos, are you sure that an all-iron warship won’t sink after being equipped with cannons and can still be operational?”

This was the opinion of most people, with many’s first impression being that it would sink. Ironclad ships are definitely much heavier than wooden warships, and when you add cannons, ammunition, personnel, and so on, whether they can get moving is a question.

Filkos, dissatisfied, said, “Your Highness, please do not question my professionalism. If it’s the same tonnage, an ironclad ship certainly can’t compete with wooden warships in terms of load capacity due to its own weight.

But wooden warships are limited by raw materials, and with the current technology, the largest warship that nations can build is just over four thousand tons displacement, while ironclad ships do not have this limitation.

If we just increase the tonnage of the warships, we can compensate for this small issue.

The armor of the ironclad ships can withstand enemy gunfire, and even a 48-pound cannon at most would only cause a minor nuisance.

Moreover, because the ironclad ship’s hull is more robust, we can also equip explosive cannons. Against sailing warships, as long as we strike the vital points, one shot can take out the enemy.”

Ironclad ships employ steam engine power, and there is no need to worry about speed; they can be referenced to steamships.

On the battlefield, a single ironclad ship could easily destroy more than a dozen sailing warships.

These are the advantages of ironclad ships; the downside is, naturally, a surge in costs, which Fieldcoth would not mention.

Anyway, as long as Austria wants to undertake colonial expansion, seeing the power of ironclad ships, the Cabinet would not abandon the idea.

Prince Windischgrätz continued, “I apologize, Fieldcoth, I’m not questioning your expertise. I’m just puzzled, if ironclad ships have so many advantages, why haven’t other countries built them? Could it be that our shipbuilding technology has become the best in the world?”

Fieldcoth said confidently, “Your Highness, that statement isn’t quite accurate; we’re not the only ones interested in ironclad ships.

To my knowledge, the French also have similar designs, but they haven’t started implementing them.

Both England and France have a large number of sailing warships, and once the era of ironclad ships arrives, all these warships will become obsolete.

It’s not just an economic loss, what’s more significant is that their naval superiority would be lost to a great extent, and everyone would have to start from the same starting line and work hard again.

Therefore, even if they have plans in this regard, they must weigh the pros and cons. Rashly pushing for innovation in shipbuilding technology, would bring not just benefits but can also result in disaster.

As latecomers, we do not have this kind of pressure. Because we don’t have overseas colonies, our navy’s scale falls far behind theirs.

Even if we start from scratch, it’s we who would benefit. In fact, right now, just two ironclad ships would be equivalent to the total tonnage of the Austrian Navy.”

Finance Minister Karl exclaimed, “What, the displacement of an ironclad ship actually exceeds ten thousand tons; how much would that cost?”

There’s nothing surprising about it; in this era, naval warships are not large, and the total tonnage of the Austrian Navy is just so little.

The Finance Minister was surprised not by the size of the warships, but by a professional reflex, wondering how much it would cost to build such a ship.

Fieldcoth said calmly, “It’s not that much; I exaggerated a bit, the displacement of ironclad ships is around eight to nine thousand tons.

The specific data will be known once they are built; as you all know, the effect of new technology is full of uncertainties, and a little margin of error in the final displacement is acceptable.

The cost is indeed a bit higher than ordinary warships, but the excellent performance of the ironclad ships makes it worth the price. Including the weapons equipment, it’s roughly three to four million shields, and it won’t exceed five million.

This is the first ironclad ship; many technologies need experimentation, and the cost will decrease once we start building more.”

A warship, including weapons and equipment, takes up one-third of the navy’s annual budget. Franz knew the era of costly navies had arrived.

With this amount of money, one could build five or six first-rate flagships for sailing warships, which would inevitably bring about an even greater financial pressure on the colonial empire.

Everyone fell into deep thought, weighing the pros and cons, wondering whether to trigger a new round of naval arms race.