Holy Roman Empire

Chapter 1029: Chapter 43, Subsequent Impact
 

The customer is king, and it doesn’t matter if the weapons they purchase are suitable or not; that’s their freedom.

As the saying goes, “Money can’t buy happiness.” On this matter, Shinra’s military industries are quite clear-headed, never forcing customers to buy products they don’t like.

There are no technology embargoes or export restrictions. It’s the 19th century, and even if you gave away all the weapon blueprints, very few countries could replicate them.

Reverse-engineering from weaponry is even more unlikely. Perhaps only the British could manage it, but even if other countries deciphered the technology, they wouldn’t be able to mass-produce it anytime soon.

So the question arises, what could the British do with a bunch of new army equipment?

Surely they’re not planning to compete with Shinra for the arms market?

Keep in mind, we are in a great era of weapons renewal. Today’s advanced technology could be obsolete tomorrow.

To maintain a lead, continuous investment is essential. No matter how hard one tries, the current international arms market won’t sustain many gold-eating behemoths during peacetime.

Shinra’s military industries can afford continuous investment because the Holy Roman Empire is the biggest arms buyer in the world. Its military spending alone accounts for over a third of the global total.

British military expenses are indeed significant, but that requires the London Government to willingly allocate funds to the army. Regrettably, this is unlikely.

To maintain the dominant position of the Royal Navy, the British Government is already working hard enough. Competing with Shinra in an army arms race would be a death wish.

As for the air force, in this era, it’s still playing catch up. No matter how much Franz values it, the air force remains far behind the army and navy.

The same goes for other countries. For many, the symbolic significance of owning a few aircraft far exceeds their practical value.

Despite the air force showing impressive combat strength in the anti-France war, aircraft’s destructive power was mainly directed at airships, with limited threats to ground troops.

Many believe the greatest strategic value of planes lies not in bombing but in reconnaissance and undermining the enemy’s ground troops’ morale.

To change this, we would need another breakthrough in engine technology to increase aircraft payload. Only then will dropping more and larger bombs from the sky truly become strategically meaningful.

Of course, if engine technology were to advance, not only would planes benefit, but ground tanks and armored vehicles would too, and the internal combustion engine industry would also encounter new development opportunities.

For Shinra, this is a project that benefits multiple areas with one expense. For the British, it would be mainly for the benefit of planes, and at most, the automobile industry would see some advantage.

There’s no way around it; British capitalists are used to making easy money and just can’t let go of the steam engine.

Britain was once the leading industrial power, but it fell behind quickly with the onset of the second industrial revolution.

Whether it’s technological R&D and innovation or the application and promotion of new technologies, the British are lagging.

One step behind leads to falling further behind. If they were earnest in catching up, it would be fine, but if they complacently wait there, that gap will only widen with time.

Well, you can’t blame the British Government. The British Isles are so small, the population is merely over thirty million, and even if they wanted to surge forward, there’s a cap on how high they can go.

It’s already quite remarkable that they could surpass other nations and become the master of the seas with such inherent limitations.

…

Inside Downing Street Prime Minister’s Office in London, Robert Cecil was watching a “movie” with the senior government officials.

Though it was a silent film with less than clear pictures, its content still stunned everyone.

Following the end of the documentary, Prime Minister Robert Cecil asked, “What do you think of the performance of the Austrian army?”

“It looks well-trained and spirited. However, unlike the army, the navy values technical skill more, and mere individual bravery can hardly form power; these do not reflect naval combat capability,” replied the Naval Minister Flora nonchalantly.

Of all those present, he felt the least pressure. The advantages accumulated by the Royal Navy over a century were not something rivals could catch up with overnight.

Unless the Vienna Government recklessly splurged on the navy, attempting to stack up in numbers, which is clearly impossible for a land-centric nation.

It’s evident from the military spending of the Holy Roman Empire, with the army first, navy second, and air force third, a decidedly muddled hierarchy.

Even though the Empire’s military spending is the highest in the world, the share allocated to its navy pales in comparison to the Royal Navy.

Without a technological or experiential advantage and unwilling to pour money into it, surpassing the Royal Navy with limited funds is wholly impractical.

“You in the navy receive such ample military funding every year; obviously, you aren’t worried. We in the army, on the other hand, are suffering—eating coarse bread daily and unable to afford even a cup of coffee.

Judging by the content of the film, I seriously wonder if we and the Austrians are living in the same era.

Sadly, reality brutally informs me: yes, we are!

Now I don’t need to doubt anymore; I can directly conclude that the army is more than just an era behind the Austrians.

If we don’t increase military spending soon, we might not perform any better than the defeated French on the battlefield one day.”

Seizing every opportunity for military funding has been a century-old tradition of the British Army. As a neglected child, they had to learn to cry out or risk starving.

Clearly, Skye Bruce, the Army Minister, qualifies. He appropriately used rhetorical techniques to emphasize the disparity between the two forces.

If this had been a group of impassioned youths, they might already be looking for ways to fundraise for the army.

Unfortunately, everyone present was a seasoned politician. The lagging behind of the British Army was not a one-off occurrence. With frequent experiences, everyone gradually got used to it.

The British Army’s every advancement has been forced by external pressures, usually marked by societal backlash.@@novelbin@@

For example, after defeats in the First Near East War, the South African War, the British Army experienced a brief golden age.

Once the politicians emerged from the shadow of defeat, their attitudes quickly shifted again. They’d rather squander funds on the navy than spend another penny on the army.

Against this backdrop, Bruce had to act swiftly and decisively. While everyone was still reeling from the film and hadn’t collected their thoughts, he aimed to establish a foregone conclusion.

Foreign Minister Cameron: “Rest assured, Sir. We have bought back samples, and it won’t be long before we can realize domestic production.

However, the Austrians really are merciless, selling airplanes only in batches of a hundred and directly packaging five hundred tanks and armored vehicles.

Apart from a small number needed for corporate research and technology, the rest will all be equipped to our troops. You will have all the aviators, tank divisions, and armored divisions you desire.”

The idea of increasing one’s strength through the assistance of rivals is unbelievable, yet it actually happened.

As an old industrial powerhouse, the UK’s technology is not inferior. Even though it fell behind during the second industrial revolution, British enterprises could still produce these pieces of equipment.

But this required a significant amount of R&D time and a large investment of funds.

The problem is that everyone knows the British Army is broke; building planes and tanks costs tens of thousands, and even if these pieces of equipment were developed, the Army wouldn’t be able to purchase them in large quantities.

Without the Army purchasing them, the colonial armies could afford them even less. Without a domestic market and facing competition from Shinra internationally, securing orders would be equally difficult.

Spending a considerable cost to develop a product only to end up with sales in the triple digits. If things go poorly, not even the R&D costs could be recouped.

Capital seeks profit; without enough profit, naturally, British military enterprises lack motivation. Although they are also conducting related technological research, the intensity of investment there simply cannot compare.

But from the perspective of the nation, Britannia cannot be without these advanced pieces of equipment. Even if they are possibly not needed on the battlefield, they have to be there.

This relates to the face of The Empire on Which the Sun Never Sets. As the world’s hegemon, any weapons that can showcase power and intimidate others are a must-have.

Not only must they have them, but they also must be able to produce them themselves. If enterprises are unwilling to develop them, the government must create the conditions for them, helping them to achieve technological breakthroughs.

After all, during peacetime, the days for military enterprises are quite ordinary; they must strictly control costs to maintain profitability.

If it weren’t for governmental demands, many military enterprises would probably have axed the Army equipment R&D and production departments.

With Parliament watching closely, big orders couldn’t be given out. However, providing sample models for enterprises to reverse engineer and help them save on R&D costs was still an option.

This was the reason why the British Government placed an order immediately after discovering the Vienna Government’s weapon fire sale.

Although the price seemed a bit high, considering the cost of technology transfer, it was actually quite reasonable.

The aviator divisions, tank divisions, and armored divisions were all what the Army longed for, but Skye Bruce could not feel happy about it. There was no avoiding it; the key issue still came back to military spending.

Technical troops are not as cheap as infantry; combined, these aviator divisions, tank divisions, and armored divisions might even consume more than half of the Army’s meager budget.

If fiscal appropriations are not increased, how are the other branches supposed to get by?

Just as Skye Bruce was contemplating how to convince everyone to increase military spending, Prime Minister Robert Cecil delivered another blow.

“With the addition of aviator divisions, and the airship troops from before, our aerial power has greatly increased. Keeping them within the Army now seems inappropriate.

On this matter, we can draw from the successful experience of the Holy Roman Empire by establishing a separate branch of the military to manage these air forces.”

Upon hearing this terrible news, Skye Bruce’s face immediately turned pale.

Swapping the airship troops for armored troops might seem roughly equivalent. In reality, however, the interests hidden behind this were of significant magnitude.

The Army was already weak, and if another Air Force were established to vie for resources, Skye Bruce didn’t know how he would cope in the future.

After all, the Royal Navy is too dominant; if the flying corps becomes an independent military branch, it would lack the ability to compete with them for funds. The only budget they could vie for would be that of the Army.

Coupled with Britain’s longstanding tradition of suppressing the Army, Skye Bruce immediately felt as if there were “no prospects in sight.”

It wasn’t that the civil servant-born Skye Bruce had such deep feelings for the Army; the problem was that he was currently the Minister of the Army.

If he couldn’t fight for the Army’s rights, how could he gain the support of the military?

An Army Minister without military support was doomed to an unstable tenure. Skye Bruce figured the day the Air Force was established would be the day of his dismissal.

With a bitter look, Skye Bruce gazed at Prime Minister Robert Cecil, as if to say: We are political allies, do you have to undermine your teammate like this?

Perhaps realizing that the situation looked somewhat unsightly and detrimental to the unity of the leadership team, Prime Minister Robert Cecil quickly added: “Considering the actual circumstances, it would be too abrupt and perhaps unacceptable for many to establish an Air Force outright.

For the time being, the Air Force will still fall under the jurisdiction of the Army Department. But the flying corps must establish an independent leadership, to prepare for future separation.”

This amendment made Skye Bruce’s expression ease slightly, but the discontent was still visible on his face. Clearly, the Prime Minister had already made up his mind about splitting up the Army.

This could be deduced from the calm expressions of everyone present; evidently, they had already been consulted on the matter, leaving Skye Bruce, the Minister of the Army, the last to know.

“Your Excellency the Prime Minister, this move is too obvious. If a separate leadership is established, everyone will know the government intends to divide the Army.

The Air Force of the Holy Roman Empire was centered around airplanes; not all the airship troops were transferred to the Air Force, and a significant portion of airships remained with the Army.

As the country with the richest experience in using aerial forces, there must be a reason for the Holy Roman Empire’s approach.

Since we aim to draw from their success, we should fully learn from them and not just scratch the surface.

We could directly form the newly purchased airplanes into an aviator division and list it as a direct unit of the Army Department. This wouldn’t arouse external skepticism, nor would it impact the future separation process.”

With no way to go against the mightier force and no choice but to accept reality, what Skye Bruce could do now was to fight for the Army’s interests as much as possible.

If it were in Parliament, or on a public occasion, Skye Bruce would certainly argue his case vehemently. But in a high-level meeting with only a few participants, there was no need to keep up the show.

Important figures have their own dignity. Not every dispute needs to end in flushed anger and shouting – those behaviors are mostly for show to outsiders.

Coming from the same political party and being political allies, if they frequently engaged in heated arguments and slammed the table, that group would have been unable to continue long ago.

In fact, ever since Franz had taken the lead in establishing the tripartite military branches of land, sea, and air, many countries had followed suit. Inside the British Government, there were also many voices in support of emulating this.

As a smart man, Skye Bruce could see the advantages of an independent tripartite military. Yet, as the Minister of the Army, he did not want all this to happen during his tenure.