Chapter 102 Purchase of Warships

At this point, Constantine said to everyone: "This time the Congolese government will purchase warships, which will require a lot of crew members. My current plan is to let the British shipyard build them."

"How is Turkey's naval strength now?"

"The Turkish navy was severely damaged in the Sinop naval battle before the Crimean War and was almost completely lost," Emmanuel explained to everyone.

"Until 18 Aziz Sultan took the throne, the Sultan attached great importance to the construction of the navy. During his ten-year reign from 1861 to 1871, the Ottoman Navy built (assembled) and purchased 15 ironclad ships."

"However, since Aziz, especially after the last Russo-Turkish War (1878), the Ottoman finances were tight, and there were almost no new warships in service. The navy became an abandoned child of the empire."

Hearing this, Constantine roughly understood the naval strength of Ottoman Turkey, which was probably a third-rate level in Europe-there was a navy department.

The 19th century was an era of rapid development of naval warship technology, with various new technologies emerging one after another. A warship could be completely outdated after being launched for a few years. These outdated ironclad ships that had been in service for 20 to 30 years, according to the industrial capacity of the Ottoman Empire, backward maintenance methods, and scarce finances, it is hard to say whether these warships can still leave the port.

To be honest, poor countries like Greece and the Ottoman Empire would have a higher cost-effectiveness if they invested limited military funds in the army.

Why is Greece the weakest among the three Balkan powers, Greece, Serbia and Bulgaria, in the impression of European countries?

This is because Bulgaria and Serbia are both land countries, and they can invest all their military funds in the army, but Greece's special national conditions cannot do this: it is a peninsula (the Greek peninsula) and there are still a large number of islands in the Aegean Sea that they want to recover.

If it weren't for the Congo wallet, Constantine would not agree to let Greece get involved in the navy at present.

"In addition to building warships, I plan to select a group of people from the navy to go to the UK for modern naval training. Your Excellency, Chief of Staff, please arrange it," Constantine said.

Greece also currently has an Athens Naval School, although the Greek navy is just some small gunboats.

For a country like Greece with a developed shipping industry, the marine culture is almost imprinted in the blood, which is a major advantage for Greece to develop its navy.

"Prime Minister Trikoupis, you will go to the UK to discuss the purchase of warships," King George interrupted.

"Constantine, after all, it is Congo that is buying warships this time. Where do you plan to set up the home port of these warships?" King George asked.

"Congo," Constantine answered without hesitation.

The reason for this is that Constantine does not want to provoke the Ottoman Empire. The Aegean Sea is not large. Once the news that Greece has purchased new warships spreads, it is hard to say how the Ottoman Empire will react.

Secondly, the entire Mediterranean is like a large bathtub, with no waves. Since the money has been spent, it must reflect its value. What kind of elite navy can be trained by staying in the calm Mediterranean for a long time?

Naturally, these navies should be sent to the vast Atlantic Ocean to fight the wind and waves and temper the tenacious fighting spirit of the marines.

After telling everyone his ideas, Emmanuil questioned: "This can certainly train an elite navy, but once there is a war in the Aegean Sea, what should these crews who are accustomed to the Atlantic sea conditions do if they don't understand the Mediterranean sea routes and sea conditions?"

These warships must participate in the war when the conflict breaks out between Greece and the Ottoman Empire. If they are completely unaware of the geographical conditions of the Aegean Sea, accidents are likely to occur, such as stranding and hitting reefs.

"This is not difficult. It can be solved by allowing local Greek naval crews to closely exchange personnel with the Congolese fleet," said Minister of Armaments Yannis.

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After the military meeting, Constantine personally sent Prime Minister Trikoupis and the naval personnel accompanying him to the UK to the Port of Piraeus.

Purchasing warships is a very professional matter. These active personnel in the Greek Navy will help the Prime Minister decide on the purchase of warships.

The reason why King George asked Prime Minister Trikoupis to go was to consolidate and maintain the "friendly" relationship between Greece and the UK.

After all, the last time British warships blocked the waters near Athens, the Greek people's favorability towards Britain dropped sharply.

The British are arrogant, which is also the reason why Greece is so unimpressed with the British in the original time and space.

But as the world hegemon, the British were at their peak in the late 19th century. As a small country, Greece could only endure humiliation and could not completely ignore Britain because of this incident.

Secondly, this military purchase, to a certain extent, is actually paying protection fees.

Munitions are a special commodity. For some weak countries, advanced weapons are not something you can buy with money.

Therefore, it is most appropriate for Greek Prime Minister Trikoupis to go to buy the warship this time.

At the dock, Constantine took the royal carriage and personally saw Trikoupis off.

"Your Highness, do you have any instructions for this warship purchase?" Trikoupis asked.

After all, the owner of this warship purchase is nominally the Kingdom of Congo, and the opinion of the king Constantine should be taken seriously.

Looking at the young officer in a neat navy uniform next to Trikoupis, Constantine asked in confusion: "Who is this?"

"Pavlos Kontoriotis, who was previously a captain on a naval patrol boat, was personally selected by me from the Greek Navy. He will accompany me to the UK this time," Trikoupis replied.

"Then let this professional tell us what kind of warships we should purchase. After all, I am not a professional navy," Constantine said happily.

Seeing Constantine asking, Kontoriotis saluted solemnly, and then replied: "Your Highness, Prime Minister, I think a cruiser is more suitable."

Seeing that neither of them interrupted, he continued: "The Congo region is in a special location, far away in Africa, sandwiched between the colonies of various countries. If an ironclad ship is stationed here, it will be more conspicuous."

Ironclad ships are the main naval forces of various countries at this time, with heavy artillery and strong helmets. Due to the heavy armor and large-caliber artillery, which are all accessories of amazing weight, the speed of ironclad ships is relatively slow, like an iron turtle.

"Moreover, ironclad ships are expensive and slow, which does not meet the requirements for maintaining the safety of the Congo-Athens route."

"We in Greece are not as wealthy and powerful as the United Kingdom, and we do not have sufficient budgets to build warships. We cannot be as extravagant as the British Navy. In order to perform specific tasks, we need to build a special warship. Therefore, the Greek navy cannot be like the British Navy. Ironclad ships have fierce firepower and reliable armor, which are used for the main battle, and cruisers are auxiliary and have a faster speed."

"The Greek Navy cannot do this and let the warships perform their duties."

In the late 19th century, the annual naval expenditure of Britain was about the same as the annual fiscal revenue of the Qing Dynasty!

"Therefore, armored cruisers with a certain speed and reliable armor are the best choice for Greece, which can perform multiple duties"