Bidding farewell to the fragrant Istanbul, the German Navy training ship "Charlotte" returned to the calm and beautiful Mediterranean. Pen Fun Pavilion www.biquge.info it rode the wind westward, sailed across the Aegean and Ionian Seas, and turned into the Adriatic Sea.

Geographically, the Adriatic Sea is a cigar-shaped bay in the northern Mediterranean, nearly 800 kilometers long and about 160 kilometers wide, with most of the coastal territory belonging to Austria-Hungary and Italy, and only 72 kilometers wide at the entrance to the bay under the control of Italy and the Ottoman Empire. As a result, the calm Adriatic Sea is regarded as the "inner lake" of the German-Austrian-Italian Triple Alliance, where Austrian and Italian ships can roam without restrictions, but the reality is not as simple as it seems.

From the 15th century to the end of the 18th century, Italy, once a glorious past, came under the control of the Habsburgs, and after the defeat of Napoleon, the short-lived kingdom of Italy fell into fragmentation again, and it was not until 1870 that the Italians succeeded in reuniting the country. Austria's Habsburg dynasty was always the number one threat to the consolidation of national independence and even the restoration of the glory of the Roman Empire, and the geopolitical conflict of interests made their alliance inextricable from the outset.

In the First World War, in order to win Italy into the war, Austria-Hungary offered to hand over French ****** to Italy after victory, and Italy finally accepted the offer of the Entente to get Austro-Kharid Istria and Dalmatia after victory. With the imminent defection of Italy, the Austro-Hungarian naval fleet was trapped in the Adriatic Sea, except for the submarine forces, which were able to slip through the blockade and enter the Mediterranean, and the surface fleet, including four dreadnoughts, was ineffective throughout the war......

When the Charlotte arrived in the northeastern Adriatic Sea, it was running into the Austro-Hungarian Navy for maritime training. by Rudolf. The Austro-Hungarian fleet, of which Count Montecukoli was commander-in-chief, dispatched more than twenty warships, including four battleships. The ships with red and white flags flying on the masts formed battle arrays on the rippling sea, the rumbling cannons sounded like thunder on a sunny day, and when the fleet turned or changed formation, the bow of the ships shook white waves, the stern swept out streaks of water, and the smoke and dust emitted from coal-fired boilers formed a spectacular artificial cloud of smoke.

The scene of the fleet's training was quite ornamental, and the quality of the officers and men was also remarkable, but this could not hide the reality that the strength of the Austro-Hungarian navy was relatively weak. Throughout history, whether it was the Holy Roman Empire, the Germanic people, which dominated Europe, that is, the First German Empire, or the successor of the orthodox mantle of the Holy Roman Empire, the Austrian Empire, and even the Austro-Hungarian Empire, which evolved from the Austrian Empire to the present, they all belonged to the traditional land power states. In comparison with current data, the Austro-Hungarian Empire, which has a territory of nearly 700,000 square kilometers and a population of 50 million, has an area of 550,000 square kilometers and a population of 40 million in mainland France during the same period, Italy has an area of less than 300,000 square kilometers and a population of about 35 million, and Germany has an area of 540,000 square kilometers and a population of 65 million, while the total tonnage of ships in Austria-Hungary is only a little more than 200,000 tons, which is equivalent to 1/4 of the German Navy, 1/3 of the French Navy, and 1/1 of the Italian Navy. 5. The naval power is the weakest among the European powers.

In the Middle Ages, when the sense of nationality was weak, the Habsburg royal family ruled over a large number of territories, from the banks of the Rhine to Western Ukraine, and the royal family ruled over this vast land and its subjects of different nationalities with a long list of titles such as "king, prince, grand duke, duke, count". This medieval structure of government was outdated even in the 17th century, with the rise of single-ethnic monarchies such as France, England, and Prussia, in stark contrast to the decline of the Habsburgs. After heavy defeat in the Austro-Prussian War, the Habsburgs had to accept Hungary on an equal footing with Austria, forming a unique dual monarchy, the alliance between the Austrian Empire and the Kingdom of Hungary. Within the Alliance, Hungary was a more traditional land-based country than Austria, and the construction and development of the navy was mainly driven by Austria, and only a small group of members of the royal family and dedicated naval officials were enthusiastic about it.

Until the end of the 18th century, there was not even a navy in the Austrian army, until 1797, when the Austrians partitioned the Republic of Venice with Napoleonic France under the Treaty of Campo Formio, and received the maritime power of the country, which had a decent fleet, and for the first four decades of the 19th century, it was a "Venetian fleet with the Austrian flag". In the eyes of the Austrian public, the navy was a "money-burning machine far from itself", and it was able to achieve the scale it is now, and the proud example of the Battle of Lissa depended entirely on the support of three members of the royal family: Archduke Friedrich, Commander-in-Chief of the Navy from 1844 to 1847, and Ferdinand, Commander-in-Chief of the Navy from 1854 to 1864. Grand Duke Maximilian and Archduke Ferdinand, who became Crown Prince of Austria-Hungary in 1889.

Since the conclusion of the German-Austrian defense alliance in 1879, the two dominant German nations have been on the same side for 28 years, and the changing political landscape in Europe has given each other great support on major international issues, but this does not mean that the relationship between the two countries has become increasingly close. Germany regarded itself as the sole leader of the German nation, and Austria had always been excluded from the German question, which the Habsburgs in Vienna had always been concerned about, and in religion, Germany was predominantly Protestant, and the majority of Austrians were Catholic. The antagonism between Protestantism and Catholicism has led to fierce European wars on several occasions for centuries and remains a source of instability within and between some countries.

The German naval cadets were received very politely in Pula, the number one naval base in the Austro-Hungarian Empire, and the Austro-Hungarian naval officers behaved in such a polite manner that they felt as if they had arrived on a strange continent rather than their allies, and the local population, mainly Croats, kept a "friendly" distance from the German visitors.

Natsuki's history of the Austro-Hungarian Navy revolves around the four dreadnoughts equipped with four triple 305mm guns. Deterred by them, the main Italian fleet did not dare to enter the Adriatic seas, but dug out their hearts to deal with them, eventually sinking one by surprise attack by high-speed torpedo boats and one by time bombs carried by frogmen. It was the winter of 1906, and the British "Dreadnought" had been completed, but it had not yet been unveiled to the world, and the shipbuilding race between the great powers was quietly heating up. The Americans started construction of their USS Michigan as early as 1906, only the construction progress was far behind that of the Dreadnought; The Italians put forward the concept of "all-heavy artillery battleships" early on, and the first dreadnought of the Germans had already entered the stage of preparation and construction, but the Austro-Hungarian Empire rushed to start construction at this juncture - a battleship with outdated design ideas - Radesky class.

In the design displacement 1. Before the 450,000-ton Radesky class entered service, the Austro-Hungarian Navy consisted of three 1 ships. The 20,000-ton Karl-class and the three 8,300-ton Habsburg-class battleships served as the main force, objectively speaking, they were only equivalent to a battleship detachment of the British Royal Navy, and their ambitions and strength were limited to the Adriatic Sea, where strategic significance was extremely limited.

In contrast to its weak naval power, Austria-Hungary was a little more optimistic on land. It is one of the few domestic oil producing countries among European powers, and its oil fields in Croatia produce hundreds of thousands of tons of oil per year; It is a traditional manufacturing powerhouse, with a relatively developed machine and arms manufacturing industry, and Skoda's gun technology is world-class; In a one-on-one situation, the Austro-Hungarian army was capable of defeating Italy, Serbia, or any other Balkan state, but behind Serbia stood the Russian Empire, which was three times the size and military strength of Austria-Hungary, and twice the size of its industry and steel production......

Out of the etiquette of the upper class, the Commander-in-Chief of the Austro-Hungarian Navy, Count Montecukoli, hosted a banquet for Natsuki and Christian, who were royals. At the dinner table, the Count bluntly pointed out that Germany's sale of high-speed speedboat technology to Italy was a real threat to the Austro-Hungarian Navy, and that when making similar decisions, Germany should carefully consider the consequences, preferably with the advice of its allies in advance.

Two years earlier, shortly after the Friedrich shipyard had sold the Siren design to the Italians, Austrian Emperor Franz wrote to Kaiser Wilhelm II to euphemistically protest the far-reaching deal. If it weren't for Natsuki's "preventive injection" to the Kaiser in advance, he would have been severely criticized for this matter. Two years have passed since the incident, and the fact that Count Montecukoli is still indignant when he speaks of it is enough to show that it has indeed stimulated the sensitive nerves of the Austro-Hungarian navy. But even if they went back in time, the Austrians still wouldn't have the strength and courage to snap up the Kraken, and even without the Kraken, the Italians would have developed and produced high-speed speedboats with excellent performance - historically, the MAS boats of the Italian company Swann performed well in both world wars.

Natsuki has a very clear understanding of this.

Perhaps it was because he felt that the language of Count Montecukoli was a bit excessive, or perhaps it was the singing and harmony that had been agreed in advance, another general of the Austro-Hungarian navy, Anton. Feng. Baron House came out to play a round, and he asked Natsuki if the German side could provide the Austro-Hungarian Navy with the design drawings or prototype of the "Kraken" so that the Austro-Hungarian Navy could study countermeasures.

"It's about the credibility of the shipyard, but also about the reputation of the individual, and we can't keep or redraw the drawings." Natsuki gave a very clear answer. At this moment, he probably became a demon in the eyes of the Austro-Hungarian officials, and a few seconds later, he appeared with the face of an angel:

"Just as swordsmiths know what kind of shields can withstand their own swords, so we have a way to keep them from attacking. In the event of a conflict or even a war between your country and Italy, we guarantee to provide you with effective defensive weapons at the first opportunity. Of course, how could there be a war between the allies? ”

Faced with Natsuki's rhetorical question, Count Montekukoli and Feng. Baron House and Horthy, who is silent. General Miklos (historically, the Austro-Hungarian admiral who became regent of the independent Kingdom of Hungary in 1920 and established a dictatorship in the country until 1944) responded with a self-evident smile. In the past few decades, every inch of Italy's territory has increased by an inch of Austro-Hungarian territory.

Natsuki was sure of the high-speed torpedo boats built on the basis of the "Kraken", and his vision of the direction of the development of the Austro-Hungarian Navy was clearer than that of the officials present. This was followed by a visit to the Royal Mechanical College in Pula, which only offers two majors: electrical engineering and electrical engineering. As the saying goes, "the all-powerful die, the specialized live", the history and scale of this school is not as good as those prestigious foreign colleges, but it is one of the best electrical engineering schools in Europe at the same time. Given the ability of the Škoda Arsenal in Bohemia to produce gasoline and diesel engines, the Bora shipyard in Fum to build first-class ships, and these electro-mechanical talents, the Austro-Hungarian Navy could have built a submarine force strong enough to influence the Mediterranean landscape in a more positive and efficient way, however, Natsuki's reasonable suggestion did not receive a positive response at the table. Neither the aged Count Montecucoli nor the shrewd Horty were optimistic about this ugly and insignificant "underwater shark hunting," but a few young junior officers listened to it with relish -- the fact that the lieutenant was able to dine at the same table with the marshal reflected the reality that it was by no means equal between officers and soldiers, but the decisive significance of the background.

Two days later, the Charlotte moved to another Austro-Hungarian naval base not far away, Fum (aka Rijeka). Just as the Kiel Naval Academy plays an important role in the German Navy's talent delivery system, the Royal Maritime Academy in Fum is also the "cradle of officers" of the Austro-Hungarian Navy. Here, the future naval officers of Germany and Austria had an interactive military exchange and played a friendly football match. The German naval cadets who were about to graduate were highly skilled, and the Austro-Hungarian naval cadets also proved their strength with good performances.

The "cold" of Pula, the "hot" of Fum, Austria-Hungary made a mixed impression on the young German naval cadets. Even at the peak of his life, Bismarck could only deal with German-Austrian relations with patience and careful conciliation, and the world may not find a solution to these contradictions once and for all.

Bidding farewell to Austria-Hungary, the "Charlotte" sailed into the adjacent Italian territorial waters. Somewhat unexpectedly, the Italian Navy specially sent a cruiser to meet and lead the way. In Venice and then in Taranto, the German naval cadets were treated with the courtesy they deserved, as they were allowed to go ashore for a visit, a vacation, a taste of the art and culture of Italy's ancient city, and a glimpse of the country's booming industrial economy under the rhetoric of Italian officials. Italy's industrial output and trade scale are much to praise compared to those of the independent countries of Asia or South America, but in Europe it is only more developed than the declining Spain and the small states of the Netherlands and Belgium, and the Apennine country's ambition to regain the glory of the ancient Roman Empire is simply a fantasy compared to the great powers that really have the strength to compete for world hegemony.

Because of its long coastline and thriving maritime trade, Italy was much more motivated to develop its navy than the Austro-Hungarian Empire. At a time when naval technology was changing from sail ships to ironclads, they were the first to build a top-of-the-line ironclad fleet, which was not inferior on paper to the British main fleet of the same period, but unfortunately, they achieved the prestige of the Austrian fleet in the Battle of Lissa and suffered a merciless blow to their good intentions to create a Mediterranean empire.

By the late 19th century, Italy had once again built a sizable fleet thanks to its high-tech heavy industry. Imaginative Italian engineers pioneered the design of cruisers with battleship guns, built in the 80s of the 19th century with a displacement of two Italian-class ships with a displacement of 1. 40,000 tons, they can be considered the ancestors of battle cruisers; Soon after, the Italians built the Alberto, the Philibert, and two Queen Margaret-class battleships, which were the fastest and strongest large warships in the Mediterranean at the time of their commissioning; By the beginning of the 20th century, the Italians had the ambition to start construction of four Victorials. The Emmanuel-class battleships, if not plagued by the drawbacks of too long construction periods, would have become dazzling stars at sea.

In terms of the "human" factor, based on what Natsuki saw and heard, the Italian navy was much inferior to its old rival, the Austro-Hungarian navy. Less rigorous, less professionally trained, and more arrogant and unscrupulous, such fleets were as flashy as the Ottoman cavalry, sometimes able to win unexpected victories, but more often than not, they were destined to fall victim to the glory of the strong.

******

Yesterday, I received a notice from the editor, and it will be on the shelves on September 2nd, and I hope that the brothers will come to cheer at that time!

(End of chapter)