Holy Roman Empire

Chapter 1062: Chapter 76: Strategic Choices

The armies of the United Kingdom were competing for military funding, and Shinra was no exception. Outsiders didn’t know the parameters of the “Rome,” but the upper echelons of the Vienna Government did!

Displacement: 20,100 tons

Length: 169.6m

Width: 26.3 meters

Draught: 8.7m

Cruising speed: 20.5 knots

...

Endurance: 10 knots/hour, 6,500 nautical miles

Main engines: 2 sets of transmission-type steam turbines/4 shafts

Main boilers: 18 mixed-firing water boilers

Power: 23,000 horsepower

Armament: Six twin-mounted 305mm 45-caliber guns (one front, one rear, two on each beam, forming a hexagon), sixteen single-mounted 120mm 45-caliber guns, two 450mm underwater torpedo tubes

Armor: Side armor 255mm, deck 76mm, gun positions 230mm, front of gun turrets 280mm, command tower 280mm

Crew: 863 people

…

Compared to the traditional battleships, the firepower of “Rome” was much stronger. In the age of the big gun battleships, strong firepower equated to strong combat power.

Having finally gained an advantage in the race, the Navy Ministry naturally was not willing to let the British overtake them. To expand this advantage, the Ministry proposed an ambitious refitting plan.

That is: within five years, to construct 25 super battleships similar to the “Rome” and wrest maritime sovereignty from the hands of the Royal Navy.

Theoretically speaking, there were no issues. Indeed, 25 dreadnoughts could sweep the current Royal Navy. Even if reduced by half, they would still be capable.

The catch was the “current” part. The British weren’t fools; they wouldn’t just watch themselves being surpassed, and would certainly take countermeasures.

The birth of the dreadnought represented not so much a technological leap as a conceptual breakthrough.

In emerging fields of technology, Shinra indeed held advantages, but this did not include shipbuilding technology.

The Royal Navy’s annual military budget was not spent in vain; in the field of warship construction technology, the British remained at the forefront of the era.

As long as the London Government was willing to spend the money, in no more than two years they could produce their own “super battleships.” The Navy Ministry’s plan was simply a race against the British for speed.

Regardless, Shinra had a trial ship. Now, only minor technical improvements needed to be made on the foundation of the “Rome,” and it could be mass-produced industrially.

In terms of time, the Holy Roman Empire was at least a year and a half ahead of its competitors, and this advantage could be continually amplified in the subsequent competition.

Although British shipbuilding technology was advanced, warships involved not just shipbuilding but also industrial collaboration.

As the world’s leading industrial power, in terms of overall industrial strength, the Holy Roman Empire could definitely give the British a drubbing.

Once the industrial chain was in motion, even if the technology wasn’t much more advanced than the British, the production capacity definitely held an advantage.

It wouldn’t be accurate to say that if the British built one ship, Shinra could build two. However, with both countries’ shipbuilding industries operating at full tilt, the number of warships Shinra could produce would definitely exceed that of the British.

With the naval technology revolution now underway, everyone was brought to the same starting line, and Shinra was even slightly ahead – it was a great opportunity that nobody wanted to miss.

Undoubtedly, shipbuilding couldn’t proceed without money. As a trial ship, “Rome” encountered many detours during construction, and its final cost was 4.976 million Divine Shields.

If ships were mass-produced, the cost would definitely drop. However, warship technology was always advancing, and each shipbuilding project involved optimizing previous technologies, which also required costs.

This meant that even with mass shipbuilding, the cost per “super battleship” would still be no less than 4 million Divine Shields.

25 super battleships would cost at least 100 million Divine Shields. Just for shipbuilding alone, the Navy would need to increase its budget by 100 million Divine Shields. What about the Army and Air Force then?

Although military spending in the Holy Roman Empire was increasing annually, this increase was essentially linked to the economy, and military expenses were basically limited to around thirty percent of fiscal revenue.

This ratio was already not low. Even though the Holy Roman Empire had a dual financial system of central and sub-state governments, there were also a large number of directly administered regions.

The sub-states’ internal construction did not require much commitment from the Central Government, but infrastructure, public utilities, and administrative costs in the directly administered regions were indispensable.

Of course, Franz’s opinion was that the proportion was not low. Compared to other countries globally, Shinra’s military spending ratio was actually quite low, lower than ninety percent of countries worldwide.

Limited by productivity, many countries’ military spending reached over half of their fiscal income. Only countries that had completed industrialization could keep this ratio down.

Whether the ratio of military expenses was high or not did not change the fact that military spending of the Holy Roman Empire_was the highest in the world. The military expenditure Shinra consumed annually surpassed the gross national product of most countries in the world.

If this pace continued, Franz might not need ten years to feel like the United States in later generations, with his own country’s military expenditure surpassing the sums of the second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh, eighth, etc.

In fact, this feeling could emerge now. If nothing unexpected occurred, the Vienna Government’s military expenses from next year would surpass the total of the second, third, and fourth highest spenders combined.

No matter how much money there was, it couldn’t withstand the voracious appetite of the armed forces, a beast devouring gold. Traditionally, the ratio of military expenses among the Army, Navy, and Air Force was usually 4.6:3.7:1.7.

Clearly, this was now a thing of the past. Both the Navy and Air Force were dissatisfied with their share of the military budget, now banding together to bombard the Army.

…

Navy Minister Castaigne: “The French have already been discarded; even if we relaxed restrictions on them now, they wouldn’t pose a threat to us for a hundred years.

The Russians are our allies, and at the same time, we hold the lifeline of their economy in our hands. There is simply no threat from the eastern front.

From the time of our victory in the Anti-French War, we have had no enemies on land. Looking across the entire world, we have only one enemy – Britannia.

To counter the British, we need the Navy and Air Force. The Army continuing to hoard a vast amount of resources is simply wasting taxpayer’s money.”

Air Force Minister Conrad: “Your Excellency speaks truly; the resources occupied by the Army are too many and are severely hindering the Empire’s…”

Army Minister Feslav interrupted: “Gentlemen, please mind your words. Don’t forget that the Holy Roman Empire is a land-based power; our foundation lies upon the land.

What has always determined the rise and fall of the Empire is not the vast oceans but our homeland stretching across three continents – Asia, Europe, and Africa.

To defend such expansive territory, how could the Army not be strong?

On the contrary, your Navy and Air Force are already sufficient. Just keep the Mediterranean secure; leave the rest to us!

The Army Department has already devised a comprehensive plan. If the government decides to overturn British hegemony, we can cross Persia at any moment and strike into India.”

As a country prioritizing terrestrial sovereignty, focusing on the development of the army was without fault. The only problem was that the Holy Roman Empire had already lost any threat on land.

France was truly devastated. If history could be rewritten, it’s estimated that the French would rather die than surrender.

Compared to the post-war disaster, the harsh days during the European wars were nothing. Back then, the worst was poor food quality, but now, there was either not enough food or none at all.

The number of people who died in the battlefield over two years was far less than those who died due to the calamities caused by the Allied Forces afterward. To be precise, people were forced to wander and became homeless due to the destruction of production, eventually dying of disease or starvation along the way.

Other countries were also stirring troubles, such as the garrisons from Belgium, Sardinia, Tuscany, and others, whose actions were no less severe than that of the Russian Army.

Driven by the power of hatred, these anti-French vanguards often acted even more ruthlessly than the Russian forces.

However, since the areas they occupied were small and their presence was weak, their visibility was overshadowed by the Russians.

Looking at the direction the French fled highlights this. They either ran to Switzerland, Spain, or Shinra; no one dared to flee toward Belgium or the Italian Area.

The deep-seated hatred formed earlier made it impossible for any succor to be expected when fleeing there.

Including those running to Shinra, they all had to take detours, daring not to pass through Luxembourg, the Rhineland region, and other places.

The locals too were anti-French vanguards; previously, the Vienna Government had gathered some relief food intending to send it to France for disaster relief, but it was intercepted by the people in the Rhineland region.

Eventually, the Vienna Government changed its mind and decided to give it to the Russian Army as military provisions, and it was immediately unobstructed.

With so many seeking the downfall of France, post-war France was as miserable as could be imagined.

With the backing of the Anti-French Alliance from multiple countries, the international community did little more than verbally condemn; nothing followed after that.

Without France, the Holy Roman Empire lost any terrestrial threat. As for the Russian Empire, it had ceased to be a threat decades ago.

Not to mention starting a war with Shinra, even discontinuing trade could potentially collapse the Tsarist Government.

Without Shinra as a major buyer, the mining and agriculture of the Russian Empire would collapse.

Attempting to open new markets was unfeasible; no buyer as large could be found in the international market. In many areas, Shinra had already established a de facto monopoly.

Though Shinra too faced difficulties, there were alternatives after all. At worst, they could lift the mining restrictions and allow African food imports, ensuring the manufacturing industry would survive.

With no threats looming, the army’s continued monopoly over most resources seemed particularly glaring. If it weren’t for the army’s impressive military achievements and strong internal standing in the Empire, it probably couldn’t have withstood the pressure.

Even so, in the annual struggle for military expenses, the army faced frequent criticisms. Not only did the navy and air force lambaste them, but the government internally also had incessant criticisms.

Despite all the complaints and criticisms, the interests already in the hands of the army were not something they would relinquish.

On this matter, Franz often pretended not to see. Politics was never simply about right or wrong; the Emperor’s primary task was to balance the various forces.

The dominant position of the Sacred Shinra Army had continued for many years until only recent changes happened.

This could be specifically seen in the budget ratios during Franz’s early reign when the army’s budget accounted for over ninety percent of the total military expenses, gradually reducing to the present forty-six percent.

Since the navy and air force had emerged to make a fuss, why should he, the Emperor, play the villain? Once their quarreling settled down, he could decide the final allocation of military expenses based on the outcomes of their disputes.

Using a blunt knife to cut meat might not be a good choice, but sometimes it was the only choice. To abruptly slash the army’s budget would be truly irresponsible.

Whether it involves reducing the army’s strength or downsizing the organization, or finding a way to increase revenue and cut expenditure, it all requires time to buffer.

Therefore, the proportion of Army expenses in the national defense budget has been gradually decreasing each year, but the specific budgetary amounts have never been reduced; on the contrary, they’ve been increasing year by year. It’s just that the rate of growth is slower than that of the Navy or Air Force.

Don’t be fooled by the intense current disputes; what is truly being contested is the additional funding, not the nearly fixed costs from before.

To overcome this passive situation, the Army certainly won’t sit idly by. The Navy has its “Super Battleship Program,” the Air Force has its “Terminator Program,” and the Army can certainly have an “India Plan.”

No matter how difficult the implementation, having a plan is better than having none. After all, the success rates of the Navy and Air Force’s plans don’t seem to be much higher either.

With the strategic plans of all three services now laid out, it’s now headache time for the higher-ups in the Vienna Government. Who to support and who to oppose, that is a hair-pulling problem.

At first glance, any of the three major strategic plans could bring the British down; on closer scrutiny, these three plans are merely that—plans. To complete any of these plans requires a massive allocation of resources.

…

Seeing it was getting late, Franz rose impatiently, waving his hand, “Let’s stop here for today, and continue tomorrow.

I hope you can come up with a more comprehensive and responsible plan, not just a pie in the sky for me.”

In fact, Franz was secretly relieved that he hadn’t been lazy this time. Had he tossed this problem to Frederick, the struggle over strategic direction might have turned into an all-out brawl.

Clearly, the Army was no longer planning to back down this time. Trying to pressure it into concessions was simply unrealistic.

If pushed too far, the Army Department might leak the news and invite the entire public to join the discussion. That would be quite the spectacle.

Politics is unpredictable. Compared to the Air Force and Navy, the Army enjoys significantly higher public support.

Given the choice, probably eighty percent of the populace would support advancing from Persia to India to cut off the British lifeline.

Another nineteen percent are the cautious type; they would invite the Russians to join forces in India. As for less than one percent of the people, they might support the Navy or Air Force.

This is determined by military achievements. The Army, through numerous past victories, has given the people enough confidence.

Although the Air Force has shown some capability, the awe of the Air Force is not sufficient to instill confidence in everyone.

As for the Navy, there is no need to mention it; it has always played a minor role. Even Franz does not believe that the Shinra Navy could defeat the British Royal Navy.

Can’t we think of a way to maneuver rather than face direct confrontation?

After all, we’ve already secured the gate to the Mediterranean—the Shinra Navy could strike from both East and West, keeping the British stretched thin.

Running the inner circle in the Mediterranean, Shinra Navy would indeed be quicker than the British running the outer circle. Unless the Royal Navy could possess more than twice the tonnage of the Shinra Navy to block the entrance outright.

If that were the case, it still seems inadequate. At this time, the strategic value of the Strait of Gibraltar is once again emphasized.

The Vienna Government could deploy the Air Force in Morocco to complete a locking down the strait plan; the British could likewise turn Gibraltar into a giant aircraft carrier.

Planes in the sky, submarines in the water, occasionally laying a minefield—this too could lock down the Strait of Gibraltar.

Unable to exit the western door, only able to go East would be a passive move. At that point, it would be necessary to coordinate with the Army and rope in the Russians to strike India from both Afghanistan and Persia.

…