Chapter 416 Different Positioning
Regarding the purchase of warships in East Africa, Ernst himself would not do business at a loss. This time, Archduke Ferdinand went to Austria for inspection, mainly to add the products he liked in East Africa to the shopping cart.
Ernst will not start purchasing until the economic crisis breaks out. Historical changes have made Ernst unsure when this global crisis will break out. However, the cyclical nature of economic crises determines that this crisis will definitely break out within the current period of time.
Ernst then said to Archduke Ferdinand: "There is no rush to buy ships. There are no vacancies now. We can wait. After all, my requirement is to complete the expansion of the East African Navy before 1880, which means seven years is enough time. I just want you to work harder, father-in-law, and do more work on the selection of warships.
We cannot blindly order warships produced by Austria-Hungary, but we need to make more requirements based on the characteristics of the East African waters. These require sufficient demonstration work. Father-in-law, you can discuss this issue more with your former subordinates and the current Austrian Navy senior officials. After all, the situation in our East African waters is different from that in the Adriatic Sea, which means that the strategic positioning of the two countries' navies will be somewhat different. "
The Austro-Hungarian Navy was blocked in the Adriatic Sea by the Strait of Otranto. Even if it could break out of the Adriatic Sea, it would face the Mediterranean Sea next. Although the Mediterranean Sea is large, it is still a closed sea. At the same time, the strength of Britain and France in the Mediterranean Sea is still stronger than that of the Austro-Hungarian Navy.
Of course, this geographical condition also has advantages. The Austro-Hungarian Navy cannot go out, and it is difficult for other countries' navies to come in. The Italian Navy, which was previously the biggest threat to the Austro-Hungarian Navy, completely said goodbye to the Adriatic Sea after losing Venice, the coast of the Papal States, and the Kingdom of Naples. The biggest threat to the Imperial Navy no longer exists.
Therefore, the Austro-Hungarian Navy was not strategically proactive, and its ship design was more inclined towards defense and counterattack. It was a complete surprise that it defeated the Italian Navy under the command of outstanding generals. Therefore, the strategic and tactical vision of the senior officials of the Austro-Hungarian Navy can be guaranteed at present.
If they were to argue for the development direction of the East African Navy, it would be of great benefit to the East African Kingdom. The scenario faced by the East African Navy was completely different from that of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Although Ernst emphasized the establishment of a defensive navy, the eastern part of East Africa faced the vast Indian Ocean, so the East African Navy should naturally be more proactive in strategy and tactics. It would be impossible to just wait for the enemy to come at the door.
Archduke Ferdinand: "Okay! What you said makes sense. I was a little impatient. After all, the current East African Navy is really not up to par. It seems that I am not strong enough."
As the former commander-in-chief of the Austrian Navy, he fell to the position of commander-in-chief of the East African Navy. The gap between them was indeed too big. Most people would probably give up on themselves. But Archduke Ferdinand was different. The blow from Mexico was even greater for him. Now he changed track and got back on track with the navy. In fact, Archduke Ferdinand was eager to try, especially after East Africa proposed to expand its navy. Ferdinand wished that the East African Navy would surpass his former employer, at least in terms of scale.
Ferdinand went on to say: "In fact, when it comes to purchasing warships, we don't have to focus solely on Austria. We can also consider other countries. France and the United Kingdom are also good choices."
Ernst: "That being said, I personally think it would be better if the navy's standards were more unified. After all, our navy and the Austrian navy are of the same origin, which would also facilitate the connection between logistics and technology."
To say this is to say one thing and mean another. Ernst's continued support for the Austrian shipbuilding industry was not entirely based on economic considerations, but more on military needs and political considerations.
After all, if the East African Navy can make demands on Austria, it can also make demands on French and British shipyards and ask them to build ships according to East African standards.
If you are looking for the most cost-effective ships in this era, especially warships, the first choice is definitely Britain. The quality is absolutely impeccable, and military products are not just for the sake of being usable.
But from a personal perspective, Ernst felt that if the British took the money, it would be more painful than killing himself. Ernst was the most active in the three things of opposing Britain, betraying the United States, and resisting Japan.
So when the next economic crisis comes, Ernst certainly hopes that Britain will suffer as much damage as possible. If he sends an order, wouldn’t that be aiding the enemy?
As for France, like Britain, France poses a considerable threat to East Africa. Both countries are top players on the African continent and are inherently incompatible with the East African Kingdom.
Besides, it’s not like we don’t have goods at home, so there’s no need to let foreigners make money. “Our own” here refers to the entire German cultural circle.
Among them, the Austro-Hungarian Empire was Ernst's most trusted partner. The characteristic of the Austro-Hungarian Empire was that it was strong but not strong. Its industry, economy, diplomacy, military and other fields were among the best in the world, but it could not use its full strength.
From the naval perspective, although the Austro-Hungarian Navy is not taken seriously, its strength is not bad. In the last two world-class naval battles, the Austro-Hungarian Navy performed well.
Although the Hechingen Consortium has made great contributions to the development of Austria's shipbuilding industry, even without the efforts of the Hechingen Consortium, Austria's shipbuilding industry would still be among the best in the world, which is something that Germany cannot match at present.
What the Austro-Hungarian Navy lacked was the cost of trial and error. If the navy wanted to make progress, it had to pay the cost of trial and error. A large navy with ample funding like the British Navy could turn around in time even if it took the wrong path, but the Austro-Hungarian Navy could not do that.
Ernst was willing to share part of the trial-and-error cost with the Austro-Hungarian Empire, because a strong shipbuilding industry in the Austro-Hungarian Empire was equivalent to a strong shipbuilding industry in East Africa. Two of the four shipyards of the Hechingen Ocean Trading Company were located in the Austro-Hungarian Empire.
Moreover, if Ernst cooperated with a country like the Austro-Hungarian Empire, he could put 200 of his 100 hearts into his stomach. Not to mention the close relationship between the two countries, even if the Austro-Hungarian Empire wanted to interfere in the development of East Africa, it would be powerless.
Germany was almost there. Although both families were members of the Hohenzollern family, there were some conflicts in national interests. It was better when William I and Bismarck were in power, as they paid more attention to international relations and cooperation.
Looking back at Germany before World War I, driven by the entire national interest group, it eventually embarked on the path of colonizing Africa, and ultimately had to use force to break the world order under the siege of Britain and France.
Now that East Africa occupies less than one-third of Africa, it is possible that some people in Germany might have ill intentions towards East Africa, which would be a threat to national interests.
After all, German industry and commerce also need markets and sources of raw materials, which are not something that William I and Bismarck can suppress. Germany is surrounded by France on the left and Tsarist Russia on the right, neither of which is easy to deal with, so there is not much room for maneuver. The Austro-Hungarian Empire is stronger, and the Balkan Peninsula, a piece of fat meat that is juicy and juicy, is right next to it. After taking over the Balkan Peninsula, there is a great possibility that the Eastern Roman Empire will be revived. Although this is also the goal of Tsarist Russia, both feel that they have a great chance of winning.
Archduke Ferdinand: "Since you think so, I won't say anything. This will give the East African Navy fewer options. But we can still play the foreign card and let the Austro-Hungarian companies give us more profits."
Ernst exclaimed: "Father-in-law, you are really professional. I really didn't think of this level before."
In an economic downturn, companies around the world are having a hard time and the pursuit of orders will become more intense. If East Africa uses this as a bargaining chip, Austrian shipbuilders will definitely give further discounts.
The money that one would have invested in the navy might just be enough in a normal year, but if one took advantage of the economic crisis and waited for a good price to be offered, the funds would instantly become sufficient.
Of course, during an economic crisis, the governments of the great powers will certainly not do nothing. They will generally actively expand their armaments, solve employment problems, and be ready to go to war to shift the crisis. For example, the American Civil War was caused by the American economic crisis in 1857.
It seems that I still need to be vigilant about this kind of change, especially the construction of the army. However, there seems to be no need to make any major changes to the East African Army at present. I can only optimize some details on the current basis.
(End of this chapter)
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