Franz Hipper?! That Franz Hipper, who led the reconnaissance detachment in a decisive assault on the British in the Battle of Jutland?! That Franz Hipper, who ate three battlecruisers of the British Empire?! Didn't this guy already be an alternate officer in the Imperial Navy in 1881, and should have received the official rank of second lieutenant to serve in the North Sea next year? How did you get to the Naval Academy for three years?

In the ensuing conversation, Jochen was sure that this was indeed Franz Hipper, the Englishman who had beaten the English all over the place, and was born on September 13, 1863 in Wilhelm, Bavaria, to a family that made a living. However, unlike history, he only became a naval officer in 1882, and then because of his outstanding appearance, he was recommended to enter the Kiel Naval Academy, although it is not known what he did to affect the trajectory of Hipper's life, and Jochen can only classify it as the influence of the butterfly effect. Luckily, Hipper joined the navy, and if he ran back to inherit the family business, then Yochen really didn't know what to say.

And it's also a good thing to be roommates with Hipper, firstly, he can also subtly instill some of his own naval ideas into Hipper, and Hippel starts from a grassroots officer, let him slowly experiment with these ideas, as long as Hipper can continue to be excellent, there will not be much resistance to his promotion, so that he will have enough powerful help within the navy at that time; Second, Hipper is young and aggressive enough, and when the time comes, let him join the Imperial Navy as a fresh blood, which should be able to play a catfish effect to stimulate and stimulate those old stubborns; Thirdly, Hipper's decisiveness is even higher than that of Schell, and if Schaere really can't meet his own requirements and makes Hipper the commander of the High Seas Fleet, then maybe the German Navy will be able to fight more decisively in Jutland, and then tear off a large piece of flesh from the British. In the conversation with Hipper, Jochen also found that this future reconnaissance detachment did have some characteristics of future success, and in the face of his own imperial grandson, he could talk on an equal footing without being humble or arrogant, and when he talked about his life and the experience of becoming a naval officer, he could see his attention and dedication to various things.

Although Hipper was a little puzzled as to why His Royal Highness the Imperial Emperor was in the same dormitory as a commoner like him, Jochen, who was only 15 years old now, made a very good impression on him, gentle, peaceful, polite, and elegant in conversation, completely different from the Junker nobles he saw in his hometown.

The two made a good first impression on each other in a casual conversation, and then Jochen invited Hipper to the cafeteria with him, and Hipper did not refuse. After lunch, 107 new naval cadets (Note 1) gathered at the school auditorium for the opening ceremony. The headmaster, Rear Admiral Paul von Reibnitz, lured the cadets to drowsiness without a tirade. After a simple speech and encouragement full of military atmosphere, the opening ceremony ended, and then the cadets began to prepare for the next seven weeks of basic training.

Obviously, what awaits these new trainees is the adjustment of the instructors. Teach.

At the Kiel Naval Academy in August, the scorching sun shone on the black cadet uniforms, and although there was a gust of sea breeze, there was no coolness. The 36 cadets lined up in a phalanx, with Jochen standing on the far right of the front row because he was the youngest and shortest.

And the first dismount that the instructors gave to these rookies was to bask in the sun, ah no, it was a military posture.

This year's 107 cadets are divided into 3 classes (here refers to the class, not the squad platoon company in the army), and the instructor of Jochen's 1st class is a tall soldier, although his name is Erich Hartmann, but Jochen can't see the shadow of the handsome blonde guy super ace in World War II in him, but sees the appearance of the temperamental gun sergeant major in "Full Metal Jacket". Now, our Hartman instructor is giving a lecture to the rookies: "I don't care where you come from or what your previous identity is, you are just a bunch of recruits in my place. In the future, I only want to hear 'yes', 'no' and 'understand'! And then no matter what you say, you always add 'sir' to me after you finish speaking, do you understand? ”

"Yes, sir."

"Didn't you eat? I can't hear you! ”

"Yes! Sir! ”

"Every Navy cadet who has ever stood here has left their footprints here. They all survived the rigors of training and became independent naval officers. I can't guarantee that you recruits will become Navy soldiers. On the contrary, if you want to become an excellent naval officer, then give me a qiē illusion and do a good qiē enlightenment! Do you understand? ”

"Yes! Sir! ”

"Over there, who just wanted to object?! Even if you don't say anything, I can still know what you're thinking, instructor! ”

It's getting more and more like an all-metal shell. Looking at the instructor who was suddenly furious, Jochen thought.

"Listen to me! Keep your heels together, raise your head and chest, look ahead, clench your hands into fists, close your thighs, and stand with your soles in a 45-degree V! Listen to me! For the next 7 weeks, I'm going to you hard! Don't think it's the Kiel Naval Academy, so you don't have basic training like the Army! For the rest of the time, I will ask you to do my best in the queue, physical fitness, duty, swimming, fighting, shooting, everything! If you can't, I'll kick you out! It doesn't matter who you are! Do you understand? ”

"Yes! Sir! ”

"From today onwards, I hope you can do your best, of course, as your instructor, I will also accompany you to do your best, so if you are not motivated, I will make up for you anytime and anywhere, so don't worry." Instructor Hartman said chilling words with a grim smile on his face.

"If you have any problems, you have to report them immediately, if there is a bad situation, ignoring it will not make the situation better, so if there is a problem, speak up immediately, don't try to hide it, even if you hide it, it will be discovered immediately! Do you understand? ”

"Yes! Sir! ”

In this way, Jochen began his life in a military school.

The first 3 weeks of basic training are really not much different from participating in the ordinary army, every morning before dawn the instructors are rushed to get up, and then it takes 1 minute to complete the washing, and then all of them are pulled out for a 10-kilometer run, and then start a new day in the rising morning light. This is followed by the basic training of queues and guns, as well as the skills training of fighting and stabbing, and then the weight-bearing long-distance running to end the daytime training, and at night, the spiritual education of the instructors and the duty assessment. In the fourth week, he boarded the Medusa to receive basic training on the ship, and in the fifth week, he began a swimming training course, although it did not require armed swimming like the later marines of various countries, but the standard of towing teammates still existed. Shooting training begins in the 6th week. Week 7 is the final assessment and proofreading.

Jochen wasn't the best of the seven weeks of basic training, but at just 15 years old, he was still good. This is not only because he has been trained since he was a child to have a good body that can withstand high-intensity physical torture, but also Jochen understands that although he doesn't know how many of these students will really survive in the end, even if there is only one Hipper, he must not admit it in front of him. This will affect his future evaluation of the excellent admirals of the Imperial Navy, and it will also cause dissatisfaction with his plan to use it as an arm to strengthen the control of the navy. Benign influence. With the mentality of never admitting defeat, Joheng has achieved quite excellent results with a 15-year-old body, although he is slightly inferior in physical fitness, long-distance running, swimming and other events, but the queue, gun handling, shooting, fighting, stabbing and other items are outstanding. This also made everyone look at this young imperial grandson with admiration. And the best of Jochen's class is Hipper, who is at the peak of his body at the age of 20 and has the training experience of a naval officer candidate. Because of this, some people who have complained about His Royal Highness the importance of a commoner are closed.

The German Army was invincible across Europe, and the glory of the Franco-Prussian War was still at hand. However, the vast majority of this glory belonged to the Junker aristocracy. Within the Imperial Army, the Prussian officer corps, as the main body, acted as a combination of the interests of the Junker aristocracy in the military field, excluding outsiders. In their opinion, the bourgeois liberals and ill-intentioned are not. How can a good Social Democrat infiltrate the army and become an officer, so how can the officer corps, which is not pure, be loyal to the emperor and the empire? As a result, within the Army, it was far easier for nobles to gain the favor of commanders, military academies, and promotions than commoners, while civilians struggled. The navy, on the other hand, was a newly developed military force of the German Empire, and was not dominated by the Junker aristocracy like the army, and did not have as many dusty and conservative unspoken rules as the army. In the Navy, the title of nobility can only represent personal glory, but this does not make the officers look up to you, and the only criteria for personal strength and team quality are the measurements.

And this is also the reason why Jochen chose to come to the Kiel Naval Academy, compared to the army controlled by the Junker nobles who may overthrow the emperor for their own interests in the future, the navy will undoubtedly be more loyal to its direct forces, and with the status of a graduate of the Naval Academy, although it will not be as senior as the future naval officers produced by Etajima in Japan, but it will also make the young officers of the navy feel cordial. And when the navy can be fully controlled, then it has the means to strengthen the influence of the navy and the ability to intervene militarily. When the time comes, Kiel, Hamburg, and Wilhelmshaven will put a few Marine divisions, and the army would do well to weigh whether the main combat forces on the front line can withstand the military counterattack of the marines directly under the emperor.

And the first step, naturally, is to let everyone know that His Royal Highness the Crown Prince Joachim is an excellent naval officer. So far, it's not bad, is it?

Note 1: I don't know how many students were enrolled at the Kiel Naval Academy in 1883, so I had to average the total number of cadets from 1867 to 1914, and over the course of 47 years, the Kiel Naval Academy accepted 5,009 cadets. Although there will definitely be a small number of students enrolled in the Prussian period, and there will be a lot of students in the future during the great development of the navy, but I really can't find the information, so please forgive me.