Eric? Sèvres remembered what happened at Chen Wei's first birthday party, understood it, and couldn't help but smile, "You should go and have a look, madam, I think you will gain a lot." ”

"After I'm gone, I'll leave the affairs of this place to you, Mr. Sèvres." Sara nodded, "If there's anything in Lin there, and you think you need to know about it, just send a coded telegram." ”

"Yes, ma'am."

Fujian, Xiamen, Navy Shipyard.

It's winter, and although it's not snowing, it's still cold, and despite the cold weather, the workers are still working intensively, building slipways and digging docks.

There was originally a small shipyard run by the British, which is famous for having the first 1,000-ton granite dock in Qianguo. After Lin Yiqing determined the site, the shipmaster funded the acquisition of this small shipyard, and used it as a basis for large-scale expansion to prepare for the construction of large ironclad ships in the future.

Lin Yiqing was inspecting the construction site, and a personal entourage walked briskly with an Englishman, and Lin Yiqing recognized it at a glance, it was a messenger from the Rothchild family.

In order to keep the lines of communication convenient, the Rothchild family set up messengers around the world to send important letters, this ancient tradition has been going on since the Napoleonic era, and it still maintains a unique efficiency and high speed, and even Queen Victoria sometimes used the Rothchild family messengers to deliver confidential letters.

Since returning to Qianguo, Lin Yiqing has maintained frequent and close contact with the British Rothchild family headed by Sarah. Sarah's letters to him were basically sent to Fuzhou by courier, and these days because of the establishment of a new shipyard. There were many things, and he himself had been in Xiamen, so the messenger naturally forwarded the letter to Fuzhou.

Lin Yiqing took the letter from the messenger's hand, and when he saw the English words on the envelope, he couldn't help but raise his eyebrows.

The letter was not written by Sarah, but by Chen Wei.

He was very clear about Chen Wei's participation in the attack on Alexandria with the "Indomitable". I also worried about the safety of this talented young man who was both civil and military - after all, war is cruel. But after receiving Chen Wei's letter today, his previous worries disappeared, and this child must be safe. That's why he was in a hurry to write to himself and tell himself his opinion.

Lin Yiqing opened the envelope, took out the letter paper and looked at it, and sure enough, it was as he expected. This long letter from Chen Wei. Told him what he desperately wanted to know

“…… During the assault on Alexandria, I had the privilege of participating in the battle with the Indomitable and witnessed first-hand how the Royal Navy's most advanced and powerful ironclad ships fought, and I thought that if the Indomitable had smaller and more main guns and more powerful shells, the firepower would have been stronger. Inflicting blows on the enemy will be more effective. I have submitted a report on this to my superiors in the hope that it will be brought to the attention of the Admiralty. Beneficial improvements to the Royal Navy's newly-built ironclads. ”

"Your letter has repeatedly asked for knowledge about ironclads, and as far as I know, in just half a century, the era of ironclads has witnessed the development of the world's naval forces and the advancement of tools, and these changes are mainly reflected in three aspects: the design and construction of the hull, the choice of power, and the weapons equipped. To put it more simply, the process evolved from a combination of wood, sails, and spherical projectiles to a combination of steel, steam, and modern artillery shells. To be sure, this development means that anyone who wants to start a discussion about naval power will have to start with the armament side. As the saying goes, the army equips its soldiers with weapons and equipment, while the navy provides personnel for their armaments. This old saying aptly sums up the scene of naval battles in the era of ironclads. It's not that we don't think that personnel and organizational factors are unimportant for the Navy. The actual situation is that the quality and training of the combatants, the actual combat experience, the way in which they are deployed, the strategic planning of the generals in the war, and the vigorous fighting of the troops in peacetime are all key factors affecting the combat efficiency. However, whether the foundation of the naval cause is solid or not is determined by the state of armaments. ”

"The relevant documents I was able to find dealt with the details of the battleship's hull and construction, the use of armor, the main and auxiliary mechanical tools, the guns and later the torpedoes. Many times, numbers alone are enough to breathe a breath away. During this period, there was an unusually fierce competition among the world's major countries, both within and among themselves. I have purchased some books for you and mailed them to you, I hope it will be helpful to you. ”

"We often don't have enough records of the war to put the latest technology to use. Under normal circumstances, the Royal Navy's numerical and technological superiority is enough to create a huge psychological deterrent, so the actual war will either have nothing to do with Britain, or even if Britain intervenes, it will be too small for the warring parties to use the most advanced weapons. Those dedicated designers and planners carefully and truthfully recorded the drills of weapons and equipment according to the actual situation, but most of their work was inevitably only to describe peacetime exercises, and because of the lack of experience in confrontation between the two armies, it was simply impossible to improve the technology from actual combat. ”

"The first advance in the design of the hull of a warship was to cover the warship hull with iron armor plates. This design was first used on warships used to shell Russian batteries during the War of 9055. At that time at the entrance to the Dnieper, the French unexpectedly developed new warships ahead of the British, and they threw three 'floating batteries' into battle. The shells of these warships were covered with iron armor plates, which allowed them to travel close to the Russian coastal fortifications, and the bullets and shells fired by the Russians were either blocked by the armor plates or exploded without causing any damage. This kind of protection is beyond the reach of a sail warship. The use of French ironclad ships contributed to the eventual defeat of the Russian army, and in terms of losses, both in terms of weapons destruction and casualties, the cost was very small. Shortly thereafter, the French Navy, at the behest of Emperor Napoleon III, began to challenge British maritime supremacy. They began the construction of the first large ironclad ship 'Glorious', by the great naval designer Deep? Morality? Loma Design. The British side is in the case of John Brown, a visionary who worked with Brunel to design the giant merchant ship "Great Eastern". Stu? Russell's pout. Planning began on the construction of a bigger and better warship: the Warrior. The ship is still moored majestically in the historic heritage area of Port Portsmouth, England. She had an illustrious history, and when it was completed in 9061, the Warrior had a fighting power that no other warship could match at the time. The skeleton of the battleship was made of iron. The sides were wrapped in 4-inch-thick iron armor, which itself was held up by two layers of teak. In chief designer Isaac? In the eyes of Watt and the architects from the Thames Iron Works in Blackwall, she is a monument. The design and construction of battleships at that time was such that Watt was a civil servant in the Admiralty, he was appointed chief designer, and the architect came from a private enterprise, and all the mechanical equipment and services were also provided by the engineering contractor. Although in the late part of the ironclad era. The Royal Shipyards built a number of ships, including the largest ships of the time, but most of the Navy's warships came from private shipyards. ”

"Later history proves that the Warrior can withstand the rigors of the sea. She has great horsepower and fast speed, and can also sail with a three-masted sail, of course, due to the laying of armor. Increased water discharge. Sailing on sails alone is not so handy. In the early '60s, the Warrior was followed by a series of outstanding capital ships built to essentially the same design (although they were inexplicably classified as 'frigates' because the British Navy's partial approach to the number of guns could not keep up with technological developments), and they continued to use the characteristic bow and stern gun decks. Since the new chief designer Edward? After Mr. Reed took office, he began to refine the design and develop the centerline gun emplacement, which moved the gun positions arranged on both sides of the ship's side to the middle of the battleship, so that the gun emplacements could be fully protected by the increasingly thickened armor layer. ”

"At this time. On the other side of the Atlantic, there is a very different picture. In 9061, the American Civil War broke out. Although it was primarily a land battle, it was no less intense, even though both sides from politicians to ordinary soldiers did not fully appreciate the importance of naval warfare. The Northern Army managed to blockade and eventually succeeded in taking control of the coastal areas of the southern region, while the Southern Army could only focus its efforts on breaking through the blockade and commercial raids. There are three types of new ships that have emerged in naval battles: the first are fast ships that can break through the blockade, they are not considered battleships, and the other two are armored ships. The former was essentially an armored sideboard gun warship, represented by the Confederate Army's 'Virginia' and later the Northern Army's 'New Valiant'; Designed by a Swedish inventor named Eriksen, the Monette was a low-lying battleship with heavy ironclad jackets, and its most striking feature was its armored turret. The Northern Army had an absolute advantage in industrial resources, and they produced non-stop low-board shallow-water gunboats like the 'Monette', totaling 40 by 9065. The industrial base of the Yugoslav army was weak and shrinking, and at best it was refitting existing ships, so it could not form a climate. ”

"The design of warships, whether Southern or Northern, was largely influenced by the belligerent environment at the time. Surface battles in the American Civil War were mostly fought along the coast or inland waterways. This means that with the exception of ships smuggling into the blockade or commercial raiders, the ability of warships to navigate the ocean is not too important to the outcome of the engagement. Therefore, the 'Monit' could have designed the waterline to be very low, regardless of the danger of capsizing when sailing on high winds and high seas. And on the river, all the innovative or head-slapping ideas can be tried. ”

"Another advance in the American Civil War was the appearance of turret ships for the first time. The idea of the turret was to place the main gun on a rotating turret, and as long as it did not injure itself, it could fire in either direction through the rotation of the turret. Coles coincided with him. Coles' design was to mount the turret on a rollerpath, which was much better than Erickson's idea of mounting the turret on the central axis. Coles' design influenced the Danish battleship 'Rolf?', built in the mid-60s of the century. 'Clark', and soon after, it was used for the overhauled British battleship 'Sovereign'. The British Navy gained valuable experience from this experimental ship that far exceeded their expectations. ”

"But that's not enough. A heated debate ensued between Coles and Admiralty officials about the best design for an all-turret warship, with one from both sides being shortlisted. But they each made similar mistakes to a certain extent, although the reliability of steam technology was increasing day by day. But the object of their improvement is still the sail battleship. Coles and the shipbuilder Realders' 'Captain' was even more wrong than Reed's 'Sovereign'. At the beginning of the design, the waterline of the Captain was very low, due to the increase in load during construction, the waterline had to be lowered when it was completed, and after calculation, the hull was slightly tilted (less than 40 degrees) and the stability of the hull disappeared. But Coles did everything he could to gain public support for the Captain. The first two or even the third launches seemed to be pretty good, but on September 6, 9070. The Captain capsized in the Bay of Biscay due to wind and waves. ”

"In contrast, the Monarch is relatively more stable and more suitable for long-distance voyages. But actually. Her designer, Reid, had never been a fan of the idea of improving sail ships, preferring his first mast turret battleship, the Doom, who joined the Royal Navy in 9071 after the Sovereign, but was soon retired from active service. Much later. It was only then that the world discovered that she was the prototype of the Victoria. It has a low deck, wide beams, thick armor, and the main guns mounted on twin turrets are pointed forward and rear, and there is only one 'military mast' for flag playing, and steam is its only power system. Even though the hull frame was set, the hull design was only improved intermittently in the following period, which is aptly called the 'exploration phase' of battleship design. This was partly due to the hesitant wait-and-see attitude of the military, who were not willing to entrust their future entirely to the steam engine, which they saw as too risky. Until the 70s of this century. Some of the newly built warships turned out to be fully sailed. We know of at least one battleship, the Indomitable, the pride of my Mediterranean Fleet, that has to lower all its sails when it enters battle. The fate of the turret was not necessarily much better. It was not considered wise to mount the gun on the turret, and many people still preferred to mount the cannon on both sides. Even with the birth of the Doom, the central gun emplacements waited several years for the battleship to enter service in the fleet. This wall-riding attitude and hesitation of the military was most evident in the Dreadnought, a sail battleship with both a central gun emplacement and two turrets, which entered service in 9077. The situation on the European continent is even greater. The French built only 8 warships in the 70s of this century, less than half of the same experimental design scheme in the British. The situation in Russia is ridiculous, full of warships of extreme design. And the Italian Navy in the great designer Benedito? Brin's leadership produced a number of fast-moving, high-powered warships that influenced the world's opinions, including the British. Brin had a penchant for armor, and he preferred to concentrate the armor in the middle of the battleship, while leaving no armor in the bow and stern, a model adopted by the British chief designer Mr. Barnabe in 9080. ”

"The navies of other countries were insignificant during this period. The United States in general has stopped building large ships, Germany does not even have the idea of building a fleet, and the fleets of Qianguo and Japan are even more in name only. In this environment of British fleet dominance, the Royal Navy's smaller ships had more freedom of movement, and their design features showed their impunity. As long as the cruisers and gunboats have the ability to sail long distances, abide by international conventions, and have sufficient ammunition, they dare to put aside the complicated objections and let themselves exercise their functions. ”

"Now is the period of renewal of the development of the Navy, and the mast battleship has begun to play a leading role. You asked me about the design and construction plan of the Qianguo ironclad ship, and showed me your design, I think this design is too advanced, there are many technical problems that cannot be solved, and I am worried that once it is completed, there will be a tragedy similar to the 'Captain': the design of the French-style inverted high freeboard and heavy turret will greatly reduce the stability of the battleship, and most of the Qianguo seaports are not dredged, and it is difficult to accommodate the entry and exit of such warships with a deep draftYou may think that I am recommending the design of the "Indomitable" to you, in fact, I think the design of the "Indomitable" has many shortcomings, my design is closer to the "Collingwood", and according to the actual needs of the Qianguo, certain improvements have been made, and strive to achieve a balance between speed, protection and armament, I have attached drawings and basic data to the letter, you can refer to the ...... first" (to be continued. )

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