Archduke Ferdinand
In 1854, Archduke Ferdinand (Maximilian I), who was only 22 years old, became the commander-in-chief of the Austrian Imperial Navy, the youngest commander-in-chief after Archduke Frederick.
In the minds of the Austrian Empire's top leaders at the time, sea power was never the core of policy, so the country's navy did not receive support from the royal family, the military, and most of the public. However, with the efforts of Archduke Ferdinand, the navy began to attract the attention of the people and received a large amount of funding.
He threw himself enthusiastically into the work of the Austrian Navy, further promoting modernization, and during his tenure he established the Trieste naval base and a powerful combat fleet.
The Archduke began to carry out drastic reforms to the Imperial Navy. He successively supported the Trieste Shipyard and the Pola Shipyard, which later became the most important shipyards in the Austro-Hungarian Empire.
He also sent a large number of talents to study in countries with advanced shipbuilding technology such as Britain, France, and Denmark, and strongly supported capable military talents.
Admiral Tegerhof, who later dominated the Battle of Lissa, was one of them.
Archduke Ferdinand also launched large-scale scientific expeditions. During his tenure, the Austrian Navy completed the first circumnavigation of the world. It can be said that the Austrian Navy's subsequent glory in the Battle of Lissa was laid by the Archduke.
(End of this chapter)
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