Chapter 18: Preparations for Columbus
Marin's mint is now quite large, using hundreds of spiral mints, each of which can press at least 1,200 silver coins per day. The pen "Fun" Pavilion www.biquge.info100 too coin press machine is started together, and it can press more than 12,000 silver coins per day.
Originally, Marin set a plan to suppress the counterfeit of 2 million Danish silver coins, and he felt that it was a lot. But if you calculate, 2 million fennigh is worth 33,300 gold coins, although it is a lot, but it is not much, and it will not cause a huge blow to the Danish economy.
It just so happened that Marin also imported dozens of tons of lead and tin, including a lot of copper. The total weight of the 2 million Danish finnighs, which weighs less than 1.5 grams, is only 3 tons, and only a small part of the raw materials are spent. As a result, Marin simply increased the number of counterfeit coins to 10 million.
That's a lot. After all, it would take a lot of effort to pour 10 million silver coins into Denmark and the Schleswig-Holstein region.
To this end, Marin once again used the same Jews who had gone to the Duchy of Saxony to buy supplies disguised as merchants, and sent them to Denmark and the Schleswig-Holstein region to do business, buying large quantities of supplies, so that the 10 million counterfeit silver coins could be spent there.
At the same time, many of the people selected by Marin are people who live in the Frisian region and speak Frisian language very much like English. Marin could have made this group of people who spent fake silver coins pretend to be British merchants, so that even if one day they were exposed, Denmark would only look for the bad luck of the British...... It just so happened that Marin wanted to weaken and attack the British, and use the powerful Viking to do this, and he could also reap the benefits of the fisherman...... It just so happened that the Danish Navy was also too powerful, with dozens of warships. Take advantage of this opportunity to ask the British to help consume some ......
In order to convince people that it was the British who were fighting Denmark, Marlin specially arranged for his subordinates to register a chamber of commerce in England, the John Bull Chamber of Commerce. When the time comes, the merchants who use these 10 million fake silver coins will all use the identity of the British John Bull Chamber of Commerce and use real British passports...... Oh no, it's paperwork, I don't have a passport these days......
Once the counterfeit silver coin incident broke out, these people naturally "disappeared from the world" and went into hiding, but when the Danes investigated, they would find out that these people were all members of the British John Bull Chamber of Commerce......
And in this era, the Danish Navy is unique in the world. Even Portugal, which has been on the Great Voyage for decades, is slightly inferior. Because, Portugal's sea power is more in the form of caravans and expeditions. Denmark, on the other hand, aimed solely at controlling the straits leading to the Baltic Sea, has built the most powerful fleet in Europe at present, 50 warships......
It's just that in this era, the Danish warships were still Kirk galleons. Moreover, the density of the ribs of its ships is still about the same as that of armed merchant ships, which does not reach the level of the "Hoffman-class" battleships built by Marin, and the side sides are not thick enough.
This is mainly due to the fact that naval warfare has not yet entered the era of artillery warfare. Therefore, the Danes are also not paying attention to the reinforcement of the hull structure at the moment. The great role of artillery in naval warfare would not be taken seriously in Europe until the outbreak of the "Battle of Diu" (1509) between the Portuguese and the combined Indo-Egyptian fleets of India and India. At that time, the shipbuilders paid attention to the density of the ribs of the battleship and the reinforcement of the side to prevent the hull from being easily pierced by artillery......
As far as the present situation is concerned, most of the thinking of naval warfare in Europe is still in the stage of "jumping ship to help cut people." Only the Portuguese began to study the tactics of artillery firing from warships, but it was still in its infancy, and only a few people, such as Vasco da Gama, supported this new tactic. Only Marin, the traverser, began to develop shipborne naval guns with great determination and began to strengthen the hull. It's just that Marin now only has a professional warship in his hands and 10 armed merchant ships (250 class), although he has the prototype of a maritime power, but he can't challenge countries like Denmark and Portugal with "many ships". Unless, Marin has ten professional "Hoffman-class" warships, and then has the capital to challenge the traditional maritime powers......
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Calculating the time, Marin felt that Columbus's Spanish spice trade fleet as the "Belt and Road Party" was almost coming back. Columbus set off at the beginning of last year, and now it has been more than half a year, and the time to return is not far away. In this trade, Marin only had a trade quota of tens of thousands of pounds of spices, which was completely incomparable to the amount of the Spaniards.
However, Marin doesn't value that either. For he had already instructed Columbus, and Draka, who had also gone to India to preside over trade, to take care to buy and collect spice seeds for future cultivation in Grenada......
You know, in later generations, Grenada was the famous production base of nutmeg, and the production volume was the second in the world (the first was Indonesia). If Marin was able to grow spices directly in Grenada, why send a ship to India to buy them? In addition, it is possible to circumvent the trade limit agreement with the Spanish crown.
Among them, pepper and nutmeg seeds are the best obtained. Because, pepper and nutmeg, when they were shipped to Europe, were bean-shaped, and they could be used as seeds and were not easily spoiled. Lilacs are similar, and female cloves (the seeds of cloves, male cloves are the buds of cloves) can also be used as seeds for cloves.
But cinnamon is different, cinnamon uses its sun-dried skin, also known as cinnamon. If you take cinnamon, you can't grow it at all. So, if you want cinnamon seeds, you have to go to Sri Lanka, where it originated, to buy them. Fortunately, Sri Lanka is not far from Kalicut, the trading point of Columbus and others. Anyway, going to India to buy spices will also have to stay in Kalicut for a long time. After all, buying too large quantities of spices requires the transfer of goods from all over India. Taking advantage of this time, Columbus and Draka could have taken the opportunity to send someone to Sri Lanka to buy some cinnamon seeds.
It's just that even if you get cinnamon seeds, you have to plant them for a few years and grow into a big tree before you can peel them and make cinnamon bark.
It's just that Marin thinks about the long-term, not the immediate interests. So, it doesn't matter at all. In addition, what Marlin values most is actually ginger seeds.
Ginger and brown sugar boiled in water, can treat colds. Moreover, ginger is also very flavorful when cooked. Marlin doesn't like pepper, cloves, cinnamon, etc., but likes to use ginger in large quantities.
Therefore, this time, Columbus and Draka need to pay attention to the acquisition of ginger seeds. Ginger has no seeds, only root pieces. Similar to potatoes, they are propagated by cutting small pieces of rhizomes. Therefore, ginger itself, is a seed.
However, ginger is not easy to preserve. In temperate regions, it is fine, but in hot and humid places like India, fresh ginger is easy to sprout and spoil. Therefore, in tropical areas, ginger is often dried or roasted to facilitate long-term preservation.
However, roasted and dried ginger often loses its life and no longer has the ability to reproduce. So, if you want to reproduce, you can only use sun-dried ginger. Of course, it's even better to use fresh ginger.
It's just that even sun-dried ginger can't be left for a long time. If it is left for a long time, it will lose its vitality and no longer have the function of being a seed.
Therefore, Marin asked Draka to buy a batch of freshly dried ginger for use as seeds to be planted on the island of Grenada. If the drying time is not long, it can still sprout when you soak it in warm water. Once germinated, it is ready to be planted in pieces......
In fact, when it comes to pepper, nutmeg, cinnamon, and cloves, Marlin doesn't value much. This time, it was only incidental to let Columbus and Drakar get the seeds. What Marin really values is ginger seeds.
Ginger is not suitable for cultivation in northwest Europe, where summer temperatures are not high, but it can be grown in Grenada, and even in the twin islands of North America. (Note: Ginger is suitable for growing in subtropical regions.) But in our country, because the temperature in most areas is hot in summer, therefore, the north can also be planted, but it can only be planted in the season to avoid winter, grow in the frost-free period, and the field will definitely freeze to death in winter. )
Marin loves ginger, and ginger is also a healthy thing. When cooking, put some minced ginger, which can be seasoned and healthy. Therefore, Marin needed a base for the production of ginger, located in Grenada or the twin islands of North America. When the time comes, a large supply to Europe......
Even, Marin intends to build a glass greenhouse dedicated to the cultivation of ginger. Because, there is a great demand for cooking ginger. Although the cost of glass greenhouse is high, compared with the expensive price, the seeds of your own glass greenhouse are still very cost-effective. Moreover, ginger has a short growth cycle and is also suitable for greenhouse cultivation. Unlike cinnamon, which grows for several years, greenhouse cultivation will make you vomit blood.
However, it is really not necessary to bring the seeds of Columbus and Draka back to East Friesland, it is better to send them directly to Grenada for planting. Of course, you can keep some of the ginger seeds and take them back to East Friesland for greenhouse cultivation.
Therefore, Marin specially sent a ship to the port of Las Palmas in the Canary Islands to wait for Columbus and others to return to the voyage. Just wait for Columbus and them, get the spice seeds, and go straight to Grenada. After all, the Canary Islands are much closer to Grenada. Just cross the Atlantic, and you're there.
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In addition, Marin also had a task, which was to send someone to ask the governor of the Canary Islands, Baron Sandro, who had a good relationship with Marin, whether he could bribe the Moroccan royal family to buy the land of Laayoune in Western Sahara through him......
Spain and Morocco are bitter rivals, however, sometimes they do work together. Because, it was not only Spain that invaded Morocco, but also Portugal. The two teeth are mortal enemies in the expansion of Morocco, and they don't want each other to sit big. Therefore, whether it is Spain or Portugal, it is both a blow and a co-optation to Morocco, and there are also trade contacts in private. After all, they had gained a foothold on the coast in Morocco, not for that land, but for trade with the natives.
At present, Morocco is in power, and the Vattas dynasty, a branch of the Moroccan Marin dynasty, is in a period of weakness. Marin knew that around 1510, the Arabs of the Saad tribe of Taroudant, on the banks of the Souss River at the southern foot of the famous Atlas Mountains, would rebel and spend decades completely overthrowing the Marin dynasty established by the Berbers and establishing the Saad dynasty (also known as the Saadi dynasty).
For the Moroccan Marin Dynasty, Marin in the previous life was a little interested. Because, the name of this dynasty is the same as his own name, so Marin also checked some information in his previous life and knew something about the situation. However, by 1501, the Vatas dynasty, a branch of this dynasty, was almost out of the mix, and there were Spanish and Portuguese colonies in many places along the coast. If it weren't for the fact that Spain and Portugal were wary of each other and demolished, perhaps they would have hit the capital of the Wattas dynasty directly to the city of Fez.
In fact, the Wattas dynasty currently has a weak grip on Morocco. At present, it is the powerful Saad tribe that controls southern Morocco, mainly the southern Atlas Mountains.
Water is scarce in both West Asia and North Africa. It was on the Sousse River that the Saad tribe developed into the most powerful tribal power in southern Morocco.
Laayoune, on the other hand, is the southernmost point controlled by the Saad tribe. In fact, the Laayoune region is already in the Sahara Desert and is the southernmost inhabited region of Morocco.
If it weren't for the fact that Laayoune has a long oasis lake that overflows with fresh groundwater, it would not be inhabitable at all. Currently, it is controlled by a small clan that is subordinate to the Saad clan. Locals survive on the fresh water of this oasis lake, where sheep, sheep and camels are herded.
Marin is not interested in these sheep and camels, but because there is a large phosphate mine with 800 million tons of apatite reserves to the south of Laayoune, and 100 kilometers to the south, Bukhara, there is an even larger phosphate rock with reserves of 2 billion tons......
The first large-scale phosphate mine in China, Jinping Phosphate Mine in Jiangsu Province, has a total reserve of only tens of millions of tons......
The importance of phosphate rock is self-evident, and phosphate fertilizer is one of the three major chemical fertilizers. Before, Marlin had no choice, so he went to get a fish bone and fishmeal instead of phosphate fertilizer. However, fish bones and fishmeal are troublesome to fish, difficult to process, high overall cost, and labor-intensive.
Not only that, but the phosphorus content of fish bones and fishmeal is not high, only a single-digit percentage of phosphorus (12 percent). Apatite, on the other hand, has a phosphorus content of 10-digit percentages, which is several times that of fish bones and fishmeal.
The most important thing is that those apatites can be used as phosphate fertilizer in the field as phosphate fertilizer when they are dug up......
Although it is said that apatite is not processed and treated, it is not absorbed quickly as fertilizer. However, when it is used as a base fertilizer, it is slowly absorbed, and there is no big difference between it and phosphate fertilizer that absorbs quickly. Absorb slowly, as long as it's effective.
Marin has little interest in the apatite mines deep inland. Because, it is too difficult to get to the sea to load a ship in this era, and the cost of land transportation is too high, and it is still used in horse-drawn carriages, and the transportation volume is also limited.
But the phosphate mine in Laayoune is different, it is just south of the city, close to the sea, and it is an open-pit mine. Dig it up and load it, "take two steps" to the beach, and load it directly on the ship. Moreover, it is on the edge of the Canary Islands, and it is also close to Europe.
Therefore, it is simply intolerable not to control this seaside phosphate mine......
It just so happened that now that Morocco was in internal chaos, Marin planned to take the opportunity to buy the small oasis of Laayoune. Under the pretext of the outside world, it is said that it is used to raise Arabian horses......
Arabian horses do love the dry desert climate, and there is a freshwater oasis lake. There is no flaw in using this kind of excuse to fool people. Because, people of this age would not have thought that Marin was actually interested in the blue-gray stones (apatite) that were everywhere on the barren hills south of the Laayoune Oasis......