Greece to roman road

"Ten destroyers are currently in the construction process. Although we can refer to the British Royal Navy's destroyer development experience, Your Highness, your requirements are very high. Moreover, the Athens Shipyard lacks experience in building new destroyers. Currently, only two have been launched. Ship" Contoriotis heard Constantine asking about the progress of the navy's destroyers, and he did not dare to neglect and answered immediately.

Constantine sighed and encouraged: "Greece is still a small European country after all. It has less funds to build a navy. It cannot be like the navies of those big countries. They have great wealth and abundant funds. Specialized warships can be built specifically to complete specific maritime tasks. Torpedo boats are built for lightning strikes. Destroyers are built to deal with torpedo boats. Cruisers are built to deal with destroyers. Dreadnoughts (battleships) are used for duels with the main force of enemy battleships. The Greek Navy must spend its money on what matters”

Just like the British Navy, it has sufficient funds and builds warships in a bold style. Dreadnoughts, battlecruisers, cruisers, destroyers, frigates, and torpedo boats all have clear divisions of labor and each perform their own duties.

However, the British Navy is the world's largest navy at this time, with the financial support of the world's hegemon. Not any country's navy can be as wealthy as the British Navy and build a navy regardless of cost.

The Greek navy construction plan drafted by Kontoriotis is a generalist, whether it is a battle cruiser or a destroyer, and can do any chore required.

The Greek Navy does not have the financial resources to purchase a full range of warships.

The two Esmeralda-class cruisers, the "Congo" and the "Banning" are old ships that have been in service for more than ten years. Their hulls are seriously aged and their speed has shrunk significantly. Even the Greek Navy strictly follows the instructions given by the shipyard. User manuals, frequent maintenance and upkeep, and the ships are getting older. After the two battle cruisers are put into service, as expected, these two ships will be distributed to the second-line troops, and the possibility of participating in front-line operations is very slim.

Greek destroyers are responsible for the work of cruisers to a certain extent. Therefore, they cannot fully refer to the construction experience of British destroyers.

Under this situation, Greek destroyers are required to have ocean combat capabilities to perform the work of cruisers such as ocean patrols, protecting commercial routes, and disrupting enemy commerce.

Constantine's requirements for Greek destroyers are: a displacement of more than 1,000 tons, a speed of not less than 28 knots, equipped with artillery of more than 100 mm caliber, several torpedo launch tubes, and fuel-driven.

Although it has received help from the British Navy, due to Greece's weak shipbuilding and design capabilities, and the Greek Navy's high technical requirements for destroyers, Greece's plan to build its own destroyers has been progressing slowly.

According to the current development of naval destroyers in the world, the displacement of destroyers in various countries is less than 1,000 tons. This is not to say that they cannot build them, but that they do not have the need for large destroyers like Greece.

"The ship designers at Athens Shipyard have been working very hard and have been working overtime since receiving the task," Kontoriotis said with emotion.

"Since entering the new century, the destroyers of various navies have developed rapidly. The current destroyers are not only responsible for dealing with enemy torpedo boats, but also responsible for carrying out torpedo attacks before the decisive battle of the main fleet to weaken the enemy's forces."

Speaking of new destroyers, Naval Commander Kontoriotis was very interested, "I asked the designers to refer to the Beagle-class destroyers that the UK started building last year."

"The two destroyers currently launched have a displacement of 1,200 tons. They are equipped with three steam turbines produced by Tesla Power Group, with a horsepower of 18,000, a speed of 27 knots, four 105 mm guns, three torpedo launchers, and a range of 1,200 "nautical miles"

Having said this, Kontoriotis continued: "In this case, destroyers can completely cooperate with battlecruisers to form a quick response fleet."

"You can also carry out mine laying, patrolling, guarding and other tasks"

It was now the end of 1910. Constantine estimated the construction time of ten destroyers and urged: "You must seize the time and put them into service as soon as possible. In the next war, the navy will still shoulder important tasks."

While Constantine was chatting with Kontoriotis about the navy, Greek Foreign Minister Venizelos hurried to the dock to find the crown prince who was here to participate in the war patrol and join the Greek shipping ceremony.

"What's the matter? Mr. Venizelos?" Constantine felt frightened when he saw the anxious foreign minister and asked quickly.

"Your Highness, the Greek embassy abroad has received news that Kaiser Wilhelm II sent warships to Agadir, Morocco, and war in Europe is about to break out," Venizelos said eagerly.

Hearing this, Constantine secretly thought that his brother-in-law had made big news again.

Crown Princess Sophie on the side heard this and was also shocked, "How could William be like this..."

After losing his composure for a moment, it turned out that the person who had been in a high position for a long time immediately realized what he was doing.

Constantine asked: "What is going on?"

Venizelos looked at Constantine and the Crown Princess looking at him, took a deep breath, and said: "The Moroccan issue has caused conflicts and conflicts between Germany and France."

Morocco is located in northwest Africa, with the Strait of Gibraltar to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west. It has important strategic significance.

France and Germany thus launched a fierce competition in Morocco.

"France has been operating in Morocco for nearly a hundred years, and its strength is deeply rooted. Paris has a decisive influence on Morocco's internal affairs and diplomacy. French immigrants and businessmen are also located in the major cities of Morocco. The United Kingdom, which is very powerful, and France across the sea Spain also has its own interests in Morocco. As a result, Morocco as a whole has become a strategic location that affects the whole country," Venizelos explained.

"After the last Moroccan crisis, although on the surface Germany and France reached an agreement on the Moroccan issue, secretly the two sides are still engaged in a wrestling match."

"The Germans encouraged the Moroccan Sultan to resist French control. In 1905, William II paid a state visit to Morocco. This move indeed encouraged the local nobles in Morocco. They encouraged the Moroccan Sultan to stop bowing to France. The last time Morocco crisis (the first Moroccan crisis in 1906), the direct trigger was the Germans’ desire to lease a port in Morocco.”

"As for this time, it was because France sent troops stationed in North Africa into northern Morocco to help quell the armed rebellion." Venizelos shrugged and added: "According to the French, that's the case."

"William II was furious after hearing the news and ordered the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to inform the French to get out, otherwise Germany has the right to take all necessary actions. After that, he sent the "Leopard" gunboat into Morocco."

Sophie asked in confusion: "What about the attitude of the British? Are they still biased towards the French?"

As a princess of the German royal family, Sophie asked subconsciously.

Venizelos said of course: "The contradiction between Britain and Germany has become more and more intense in recent years, especially the naval competition between the two countries. The High Seas Fleet and the Ocean Fleet have successively invested huge sums of money to build cutting-edge warships."

"Moreover, Germany's idea of ​​acquiring a port in Morocco will definitely make the British wary. Once Germany has a naval port in Morocco, it will pose a great threat to Britain's overseas trade routes. Therefore, the British attitude is very fierce."

After a pause, Venizelos said with a serious face: "British Foreign Secretary Gray met with the German Ambassador to the UK this morning. According to the information our diplomats gathered, Gray warned that if Emperor William really tells the German people As the newspapers said, sending troops into Morocco would be tantamount to going to war against Britain and France at the same time."

The severity of the situation was beyond everyone's expectations. After Venizelos explained the detailed sequence of events, everyone fell silent.

No wonder everyone is so concerned about the diplomatic turmoil between Britain, France and Germany. It is really a war between major European countries that has a huge impact.

Once a war breaks out in Europe, it will have a direct impact on Greece. For example, Greece imports nearly one million tons of coal from Britain every year. Once Britain participates in the war, Greece's coal imports will be affected immediately, and Greece's steel industry will suffer due to coal shortages. In trouble.