nashuaworldcup Chapter 167 Ocean Strategy
Chapter 167 Ocean Strategy
"Burnia? Interesting~"
Alice read the diplomatic letter that had been sent from Hilla to Trian and carefully savored its meaning.
For the next twenty years, the ocean will definitely be an important strategic node. With the stabilization of Imellane, industrial development is rapid, the domestic market is developing rapidly, and the demand for raw materials and markets is increasing day by day.
Moreover, that's not all. The colonies of New Town and Long Island across the ocean are developing rapidly, and the Colonial Affairs Administration's new policy, the Reclamation Promotion Act, is driving a large number of colonists to the more expansive areas of the New World.
With the end of the Amerinsky Wars and the dust settling, there was a great deal of old class that needed to be purged. However, not everyone deserved to die, so many of the old vested interests were exiled to the colonies, which led to rapid development in those areas and consequently increased trade between the two sides.
The existence of two ancient wasteland islets has also dramatically increased the importance of the ocean. In order to learn about the past, archaeological and expedition teams must rely on ships to enter these places.
“Burnia is the main maritime power in the south, without a doubt, gentlemen.”
The Amerlane Navy is unparalleled in the world; that's an indisputable fact. If anyone dares to refute it, let's show them the 305mm MKII naval gun.
But apart from the warships, the sailors of Burnia were not inferior in quality. Every sailor on those large sailing ships was a first-rate expert. Alice put down the report.
However, since it is a diplomatic letter, it means that the other party does not have much malice. For the demon nation, the relationship with the church circle is basically negative, and they can only rely on cannons to speak, while the great empires in the east are basically their opponents.
As one of the southernmost countries, Burnia has no borders with any other country and no conflict of interest, making it a potential long-term ally, at least for now.
"Your Excellency, Burnia is a potential neighbor and a potential partner. After all, their maritime disputes with the Church have a long history. Hundreds of years ago, the Church and Burnia's predecessor, Britannia, waged a century-long war that ended with the split of Britannia and the birth of Tuscany."
"At present, the church is taking a strategic retreat, and they may believe that this is the best time for them to reclaim their homeland."
"Yes."
Alice nodded. Tuscany and Burnia were once one country, but the spread of the Church's faith and wars permanently changed some of the beliefs on the island of Tuscany. In the continuous century-long conflict, the number of believers on Tuscany continued to increase, which in turn led to the growth of separatist sentiment and the resulting split.
In recent years, Burnia and Tuscany have engaged in frequent diplomatic activities. Burnia's resurgence and historical reconciliation with Tuscany have led them to continuously extend goodwill to their former homeland.
The destruction of the church's naval power further strengthened the alliance between the two sides.
"So Burnia is a great henchman and ally, isn't she? And doesn't the navy have a batch of ships it wants to sell?"
Alice refers to the earliest wooden Type 90 gunboats and auxiliary vessels of the Navy. These ships were typical motor-sail ships, all made of wood, and were only about 4 years old. However, the Navy is now building modern ships like the Novik-class destroyers on a large scale. If it weren't for the small total tonnage of the ships, the Navy would even be considering retiring the Hiun-class fast cruisers, which were once the mainstay ships.
The Dahlgren gun, a muzzle-loading cannon, has a slow rate of fire and low power. The newly commissioned Dreadnought-class MKII 305mm guns use a single-stage ammunition hoist, enabling automated loading. The Dreadnought A variant, which underwent a second modification after training, is planned to have its two twin-mounted main guns on both sides of the ship removed and replaced with 150mm breech-loading secondary gun groups and 30mm multi-barreled pom-pom turrets.
After all, the Amerlane Navy has no naval rivals.
You mean...?
"Well, those Type 90 gunboats are warships with advanced guns after all, which is a good choice for those dilapidated ships. Besides, doesn't the navy want more new capital ships?"
"Of course!"
"We can arrange for the people from Burnia to tour our fleet. They can't tow it away anyway. Well, if the price is fair, we can even sell the Flying Cloud-class or the Minotaur."
Alice shook her head, looking at the jubilant naval officers. The navy had been suffering from old ships for a long time. Without combat missions, these old ships could only be used until they were ruined. But if they were sold, they could place orders with shipyards under the pretext of a shortage of ships.
"Leaving aside the North Carolina-class, if we sold those fifty-odd Class 90 and Feiyun-class ships, as well as the Minotaur, we could build three Dreadnought A-class ships and dozens of Novik-class ships, right?"
There are three Dreadnought-class and ten Novik-class ships under construction on the naval slipway, and one Dawn-class light cruiser is being fitted out and is expected to be assigned to the Southern Fleet.
Of course, the Navy has a lot of blueprints, including the Marseille-class (La Gallisoni-class light cruisers), the North Carolina-class, the Helena-class, the Fletcher-class, and even the concept blueprints for the Hosho-class aircraft carrier.
The Amerindian Republican Navy currently possesses:
A Dreadnought-class battleship (RNS Dreadnought BB-06)
Three Sovereign-class battleships (RNS Royal Sovereign BB-03, RNS Alicia BB-04, RNS Glory BB-03)
Two Minotaur-class ironclad battleships (RNS Minotaur BB-01, RNS Storm BB-02)
Nine Flycloud-class clipper cruisers (RNS Flycloud SC-01.......)
Three Novik-class destroyers (RNS Novik DD-01, RNS Flying Snow DD-02, RNS Lonely Traveler DD-03)
And nearly fifty Type 90 escort gunboats.
These ships were distributed among the three naval fleets in Amelia, including the Western Fleet, the Southern Fleet, and the New World Fleet. Except for the Western Fleet, the flagships of the other fleets were all Sovereign-class battleships.
The warships on the slipway will definitely be launched within two years, at which time Amelanxi's naval position will be extremely solidified.
Alice advocated selling most of the current old-fashioned sailing warships on the market, since the Type 90 escort ships and the Hiun-class ships were outdated by today's standards. Apart from converting some into training ships, handing some over to the Coast Guard, and sending some to museums, the rest could be sold.
All the proceeds from the sales were used to build ships. Alice could also give the infrastructure department an explanation, since a large portion of the money for garden and house repairs had been diverted to building the naval hull.