On March 26, 1861, the Austrian Navy set off from the port of Venice on a global tour, with the Ottoman Empire as the first stop.

The Sudanese government can move its capital to the interior, or they can feel what the pressure is. Even so, the Government of the Sudan was shaken.

Seven ironclad ships plus a dozen auxiliary warships, this is the largest fleet in the world, and it is not at all comparable to sail warships.

This time Franz was not prepared to make a fuss, and after scaring the Sultan government, he visited the Mediterranean countries again and went straight to Asia.

Paris

Stimulated, Napoleon III announced at a government meeting: "We will build a larger ironclad fleet and let the world know the power of France." ”

Napoleon III had no way not to react violently, and the navy was inferior to the British. He can also comfort himself that the British are purely sea powers, and France is amphibious on land and sea.

It's one thing to hear about it, it's another thing to see it with your own eyes. Now the superiority of the French Navy over the Austrian Navy is only in tonnage and combat experience.

It's a pity that these experiences have stayed in the era of sail battleships, and many things have fallen behind in the era of ironclad ships, and the tactical concepts have also changed. Even if there is a multi-fold advantage in tonnage, the sail battleship will not be able to defeat the ironclad ship.

There is no way, the sail battleship artillery is also used against the sail battleship, and suddenly the enemy becomes an ironclad is not enough.

Admiral Dick replied confidently, "Your Majesty, please rest assured. We have already started to build an ironclad fleet, and we already have two ironclads in service, and three more will be in service by the end of the year.

The Admiralty plans to build ten ironclad ships, all of which will be completed in two years at most, so that the world will know our strength. ”

The technical level has been crossed, and building ironclad ships is no longer a problem. This is still the speed of building ships in peacetime, and if you are willing to rush the work, the construction time of a warship will only take a few months.

During this period, the tonnage of ironclad ships had not skyrocketed. The large ones are only eight or nine thousand tons, and the small ones are only two or three thousand tons. The dock does not need to be modified, and it can basically meet the needs of shipbuilding.

Napoleon III said with satisfaction: "Good! ”

The name of the world's No. 1 Navy cannot be obtained, and the No. 2 Navy in the world cannot be lost again, and the French also want to save face.

At present, according to the ranking of military power in the world, the French army and navy are the second, followed by Austria, and the army and navy are all third, and the military strength of the two countries is very close on the surface.

Before the advent of the ironclad era, the strength of the Austrian navy was still hovering in six, seven or eight. As a result, the ironclad ship overtook the car at the moment of arrival, jumped up and threw off Spain, Portugal, the Netherlands, and the United States.

Now there are many people who believe that the Austrian Navy can compete with the French Navy. This concept was very popular in the Mediterranean, and Napoleon III did not know it.

In terms of naval tonnage, the Austrian Navy is close to seventy percent of the French Navy, and considering the bonus to the combat effectiveness of ironclad ships, this statement is very marketable.

Therefore, the French Admiralty followed the explosion of ironclad ships, and when these warships were put into service, the naval strength of the two countries would be pulled apart again.

As for Spain, the Netherlands, and Portugal, they were already left behind at this time and could not afford to participate in this naval feast.

After a pause, Admiral Dick added: "Your Majesty, our navy is not enough to build so many ironclad ships, and the government needs to increase the appropriation. ”

Obviously, it was not for nothing that Napoleon III personally looked at the strength of the Austrian Navy. On the surface, the French Navy is losing face, but in fact it is still for the cost of building ships.

Without bothering with the small calculations of the Admiralty, Napoleon III asked: "How much is missing?" ”

Admiral Dick replied solemnly: "At least another 120 million francs will be allocated before we can complete the plan." ”

It is certainly not enough money to build a ship alone, but also to take into account basic training, staffing, and research and development of new technologies......

The current appropriation is only an upfront cost, and once the construction is completed, the follow-up maintenance costs of the Navy will also increase in the future, in other words, the military expenditure of the Navy will increase.

Before Napoleon III could reply, Chancellor of the Exchequer Monier jumped out and said, "No, you are opening your mouth."

How much is it to build an ironclad ship? How could it be 120 million francs, at most it would not exceed 80 million francs, and if you save a little money, 70 million francs may be enough. ”

Now the financial revenue of the French Empire has reached 1.72 billion francs (about 68.8 million pounds), the French have the confidence of bulls, and the British have 70 million pounds of fiscal revenue at the same time.

(Note: Check the statistical chronology, it seems that only the local is calculated)

However, no matter how high the fiscal revenue is, the money will never be enough to spend. The Ministry of Finance still has to be provincial, and it must resolutely crack down on this kind of lion's opening of its mouth.

Admiral Dick explained solemnly: "Your Excellency, how can this be saved? In the era of ironclads, we were one step slower than the Austrians, mainly due to insufficient military spending.

Now, if we reduce military spending, how can we develop new technologies?

Ironclad ships are different from previous sail warships, and after service, our soldiers have to be retrained to be able to operate proficiently, which is another expense.

There are also ironclad ships with much larger tonnage than sail warships, and many of our original military ports need to be rebuilt, which costs money. ”

Chancellor of the Exchequer Monier disagreed: "Don't talk nonsense, except for research and development and the use of new technologies, other projects are funded every year, and don't think about repeating the budget."

Even if the Ministry of Finance allocates money to you, you will not be able to pass the audit of the government in the future. Let's go back to the detailed budget, and then we will discuss the issue of appropriation. ”

There is a lot of political art in this statement. The warship must have been built, this is the will of Napoleon III, but the cost of building the ship is still compressed, otherwise how can it reflect the seriousness and responsibility of the Ministry of Finance?

Knowing that the two quarreled and acted more, Napoleon III still watched the excitement as if nothing happened. Obviously, he is still qualified as an emperor in terms of power.

If the people below were huddled, the emperor's life would not be easy. This kind of small struggle, even if you know that this is just a routine, the contradictions will still be deeply rooted in the hearts of the people after a long time.

The power of the Ministry of Finance is too great, and all departments need their appropriations, and they cannot afford to offend the God of Wealth. If there is no contradiction and the treasury is sold around, the emperor will not be able to sleep.

……

As if seeing that the fire was coming, Napoleon III interrupted the argument between the two: "Okay, if you want to quarrel, go back to your office and quarrel slowly, don't affect my mood."

I remember that the United States seemed to be going to split, how did the Ministry of Foreign Affairs respond? ”

Foreign Minister Auvergne replied: "Your Majesty, our Minister in Washington has received news that we have now reached an agreement with the Anglo-Western and Austrian countries to be united in matters relating to the United States.

Now that we have persuaded the Southern government to agree to the abolition of slavery, the four countries have officially recognized the legitimacy of the Southern government, and are currently lobbying more slave states to join the Southern government.

If nothing else, the United States should be divided this time. If we're lucky, we could see a chance to return to North America. ”

Napoleon III asked suspiciously: "If the southern government is willing to abolish slavery, why did they become independent?" Didn't the northern government make concessions? ”

"Your Majesty, the main contradiction between the North and the South is the tariff, and in recent years the population of the northern states has grown rapidly, while the population of the south has grown slowly, and the gap in power between the two sides has been widened," explained Foreign Minister Auvergne.

The current government of the North is the spokesman for the interests of the capitalists, and the promises they give are not credible at all.

If the southern states do not act, their interests will be gradually eroded.

After the independence of the southern states, the Centrist proposed the addition of a slave state to balance the power gap between the two states, but the northern government refused.

There are also proposals for double tariff standards, which are trade barriers in the northern states and increase tariff rates; The southern states, on the other hand, implemented free trade and reduced tariff rates.

The person who made this suggestion has grass growing on his grave. The capitalists refused to compromise on this issue, they wanted access to cheap industrial raw materials and markets. ”

Napoleon III nodded, and this explanation was more plausible. There is no love and hate in the world for no reason, and if there is no profit, what can be expected of the capitalists to fight a civil war for the benefit of the black slaves?

If there is such a Virgin, why don't you see these people being kind to the workers? It's still like this for your own people, let alone ****.

"So, the Austrian Navy's global visit is also aimed at the Americans?"

Obviously, Napoleon III's political vision was still good, and Franz's true purpose was clear at a glance.

Under normal circumstances, even if there is an exchange visit, it is impossible to send such a large team, and it is very expensive for the navy to run.

"There should be an element of this, and there is also the readiness of the Vienna government to establish its authority.

In recent years, the Austrians have frequently opened up colonies overseas, and they have encountered many troubles, which may be resolved during this visit. Foreign Secretary Auvergne replied

After a moment of contemplation, Napoleon III decided: "We cannot be idle, the pace of overseas expansion has been somewhat slow in recent years.

This American Civil War was an opportunity for even the Austrians to fish in troubled waters. If we miss another opportunity, we're really falling behind.

Come up with a plan as soon as possible, and the interests of the Americas must be shared by France. ”

In fact, the pace of overseas expansion of the French has not been slow at all, but the strategic focus on the Kingdom of Sardinia in the last two years has slowed it down.

This slowness is only relative, and apart from Austria, the French are currently expanding the fastest on the continent.