Chapter 509 Unrestricted Submarine Warfare
"Kitchener is prepared, Admiral," said the First Lord of the Admiralty. "He has been waiting for this moment."
Seeing that Charles was confused, the "Secretary of the Navy" further explained: "He supported me in launching the Dardanelles Campaign. This was a conspiracy."
"You mean, he knew long ago that the Battle of the Dardanelles would be lost?" Charles didn't quite believe it.
"No." The "Secretary of the Navy" shook his head: "But winning the Battle of the Dardanelles would have little impact on the Army, but losing would be a major benefit to the Army."
Ciel thought about it for a moment and nodded slowly.
The Battle of the Dardanelles was fought between the main force of the British Royal Navy and hundreds of thousands of colonial troops, but they were facing a weak Ottoman Empire.
We deserve to win.
If they lose the battle, the Royal Navy will lose face and the focus will naturally shift to the army.
"Besides." The "Secretary of the Navy" frowned and his face looked like a bitter gourd: "While we were thinking about how to defeat the Ottoman Empire, Kitchener had already started to obtain a loan from the Americans!"
"American loan?" Charles was puzzled. Does this have a lot to do with the war?
The next second he thought: supplies, supplies!
With American loans, one can obtain supplies, and with supplies, one can control the army and dominate the direction of the war, not only the French army, but also the British army.
The "Minister of the Navy" nodded slightly:
"I think you've guessed it."
"Americans have long been trying to maintain 'true neutrality' under the nourishment of the 'Monroe Doctrine' ideology."
“Therefore, in principle, the United States cannot provide loans to the Allies, let alone arms and supplies to the Allies.”
“But this line of defense was easily breached by Kitchener.”
The "Admiralty Minister" sighed softly and looked up at Charles: "Do you know how he did it?"
Charles shook his head. He found that his business intelligence was too scarce. As a capitalist who was about to enter the American market, he didn't even know this.
"He opened a breakthrough through the American consortium." Said the "Secretary of the Navy":
"It was a very smart move. For the first $500 million arms order, the commission given to the Morgan Consortium (Jewish Consortium) on Wall Street was as high as 2%, which is $10 million."
"As long as they can make this deal happen, they can get this huge commission."
The "Secretary of the Navy" spread his hands and said: "No one can resist the temptation of money, let alone capitalists who regard money as their life."
Ciel smiled bitterly, he had felt this deeply.
Needless to say, the capitalists will lobby the government with all their heart and will spread the word among the people:
"If you refuse to lend money and reject this deal, trade will not be formed, production will be restricted, and industry will be depressed."
"Then there will be idle labor and capital, financial chaos, insecurity among the working class, and a loss of employment!"
…
These are closely linked to American citizens and will affect their living standards and interests.
It didn’t take long for citizens to express their agreement:
“We should think about our own lives.”
"Why not make the money you can? No one will turn away business!"
"The war is far away on the other side of the Pacific Ocean. What does it have to do with us?"
So loans were made, and large quantities of war supplies were shipped from the United States to the Western Front and to Britain, but most of them were controlled by Kitchener.
The Lord High Lord went on to say:
"With these, Kitchener doesn't need to care about the Navy or even Parliament."
"Two months earlier, the House of Commons had rejected Kitchener's proposal to expand the army, but Kitchener ignored it and, citing 'wartime emergency' as an excuse, ordered a call for volunteers, quickly expanding the army to nearly one million men."
“You know what good this will do to Kitchener.”
Seeing Charles's confused face, General Winter added: "Kitchener hopes that the army will lead the final victory of this war, which will earn him enough political capital."
Charles suddenly realized that he was preparing to run for prime minister.
One of the benefits is the prestige that victory brings, and the millions of troops and their families will also become voters.
Charles looked at the "Secretary of the Navy" and said, "Is this one of the reasons why you are actively promoting the Battle of the Dardanelles?"
The "Secretary of the Navy" conceded generously: "Why not if we can win?"
However, what he thought was a sure victory ended in a miserable defeat, which gave Kitchener an opportunity to take advantage of.
The "Minister of the Navy" felt a little regretful that he should have considered the advice of the kid in front of him more.
Every word and every evaluation he made on the Battle of the Dardanelles was accurate and was later proven to be absolutely correct.
This guy is simply a prophet!
If we had seriously implemented any of what he said, the situation wouldn't be out of control like it is today!
Charles thought for a moment and said, "I don't quite understand. What does this have to do with me?"
"Of course it has something to do with you, Major General." General Winter leaned forward and moved closer to Charles. "The British Army is in power, allowing them to control the French Army and order you to fight according to the British plan, which will bring you danger..."
"I know that." Charles interrupted General Winter. "What I don't know is the significance of our cooperation. You want me to help the Royal Navy?"
"Yes." The "Secretary of the Navy" nodded: "Help the Royal Navy, let them regain the dominant position, and let Parliament play a role again."
"And then?" Charles asked, "What will this change?"
"Then we can limit Kitchener's power through Parliament." The "Secretary of the Admiralty" said: "And also give you freedom, Rear Admiral."
"Sorry." Charles laughed. "Maybe we would have been completely wiped out by then. Besides, I think Kitchener's power came from American loans and supplies. Parliament was succumbed to them, and the same was true for the French Parliament."
"You are right, Rear Admiral." The "Secretary of the Navy" said calmly, "But not long ago, the Germans announced the implementation of 'unrestricted submarine warfare'. They will launch indiscriminate attacks on merchant ships bound for Britain, including those from the United States."
(Note: Germany’s most well-known “unrestricted submarine warfare” policy was announced in 1917. In fact, it was announced as early as 1915, but it was abolished at the end of that year because of concerns about triggering an anti-German wave in Europe and the United States, especially fearing the United States’ entry into the war.)
Charles suddenly understood the intention of the "Secretary of the Navy".
If the Royal Navy could play a role in attacking German submarines, then the supplies would not be entirely controlled by Kitchener. The role of the Royal Navy could not be ignored, and the Royal Navy was even the truly decisive military force.
The "Secretary of the Navy" looked at Charles expectantly: "I'm not sure if you can solve this problem, but General Winter said that nothing can stop you."
(End of this chapter)
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