The Rise of the Empire

The coastal areas of the Austro-Hungarian Empire need the most basic defense forces, which will inevitably disperse the already weak fleet. At the same time, the British will never allow the French Navy to be defeated in the Mediterranean, and the British are suppressing the German High Seas Fleet. At the same time, it is still possible to separate a fleet to station in the Mediterranean. In the end, the prince underestimated the determination and perseverance of the British. The number of warships they produced was too large. The prince even believed that the size of the British fleet when the war started in 1912 on this plane might even exceed the historical British fleet in 1914. scale!

And now the Russians have also reported the news of purchasing dreadnoughts, and Germany should also be careful in the direction of the Baltic Sea, which means that it is not easy for Germany to seek a breakthrough at the beginning. At the same time, it also means the direction of the Mediterranean Sea. The possibility of aid for the French is very high. Of course, there is another problem that is Italy. The prince really does not know how Italy will make a choice this time. If it still relies on the Allies as in history If so, then even if the Allied Mediterranean Fleet can be formed, I am afraid the situation will be very difficult.

"Actually, if it is not for more confusing, I think it is more appropriate for the Allied Mediterranean Fleet to be called the Allied Black Sea Fleet. The most important and core issue of the entire fleet is how to completely destroy the Russian Black Sea Fleet, and how to destroy the Russian Black Sea Fleet at the right time. And the landing in the Caucasus! This is the most important issue, not how to take the entire Mediterranean, because this is not realistic, or it is difficult to achieve at the beginning."

"So, I hope that the two generals can keep this center in mind. I am the person in charge of the entire German-Austrian naval cooperation plan, and I have the right to suspend all matters related to cooperation. So I hope everyone can remember this." Rupre Hitt even emphasized in an almost tough stance.

In the end, on the issue of the Mediterranean Fleet, Germany and Austria reached the following consensus. First, Germany provides Austria-Hungary with technology and no less than 20% of funds to help Austria-Hungary build a first-class super dreadnought modeled on the Helgeland-class battleship, with a total of 4 ships, and all warships will be in Work started between 1908 and 1909.

Second, before the war, the Austro-Hungarian Empire took out at least two super-dreadnought ships, 1 quasi-dreadnought ship, 2 armored cruisers, plus a certain amount of auxiliary battleships, and submarines to join the Allied Mediterranean Combined Fleet during the war. Constantinople in Turkey is the home port.

Third, the main combat mission of the fleet is to ensure the suppression of shipping in the eastern Mediterranean region of the Allies, to ensure the safety of the Aegean Sea and the Dardanelles, and to suppress the Black Sea Fleet in preparation for possible future landings.

In fact, this plan only formed a rough framework and was not finalized. After all, the construction of super dreadnoughts in the Austro-Hungarian Empire has not yet started, the construction of the naval base in Constantinople has not yet started, and the Turkish Navy has no construction plans. … Judging from the current situation, it is still far from the size of the fleet that the prince had in mind. Yes, it is like that.

"Actually, we are somewhat optimistic about our situation. The Turks may not build a powerful navy. Even the construction of dreadnoughts is a question mark. The strength of the fleet is the foundation. If the foundation cannot be achieved, The fleet of the Allied Powers will do nothing in the Mediterranean or in the Black Sea. Therefore, I hope that the imperial government can help Turkey build a fleet, or simply send a Mediterranean squadron directly." Ruprecht in the letter to the Kaiser wrote in.

And while the three parties were still discussing the future Allied Mediterranean Fleet, a piece of news from the UK immediately changed the atmosphere of the talks! The Royal Navy plans to readjust the size of the British Mediterranean Fleet in Malta within the next four years,

In this adjustment plan, the Royal Navy will deploy at least one battlecruiser formation and one armored cruiser formation in the Mediterranean!

"What should come will come back!" After receiving the news, the prince said darkly and seriously. Then he pushed back the others and began to reconsider the layout. Originally, the prince was worried about the British maintaining a continuous military presence in the Mediterranean, but now it seems that the British really intend to continue the historical deployment, at least at the beginning. This made the whole situation at sea very bad for the Allies.

If the Turkish navy has not made great progress, then the Austro-Hungarian fleet will definitely not be able to defeat the French and British fleet. After all, the British deployed a second battlecruiser division composed of indomitable, indomitable, and tireless on the island of Malta in history. In the fleet, there are 4 10,000-ton armored cruisers, Defense, Black Prince, Duke of Edinburgh, and Warrior. If you add the French fleet, there are at least 7 warships of Dreadnought and above to fight 2 to 4 ships of the Austro-Hungarian Empire! If you add quasi-dreadnoughts, then you can't fight!

More importantly, the strength of the British and French navies in the Mediterranean Sea will also affect Italy politically. In terms of Italy's current situation, joining the Allies may not be able to overwhelm Britain and France, but joining the Allies is tantamount to giving Adriatic The last coffin nail is nailed at sea! Just like the captain of the Goeben in history, Rear Admiral Su Xiong of the German Navy said back then, entering the Adriatic Sea to seek refuge in Austria-Hungary is to be blocked forever.

Soon, General House and Earl Spey also got the news, which really surprised them. After the reconciliation between Britain and France in 1904, the British had begun to shrink their power from the world, and the same was true for the Mediterranean. Once upon a time, the British Empire The strength of the Mediterranean Fleet is the highest in the entire army, and the part-time job of the commander of the Mediterranean Fleet is the only way for the future leader of the navy. But now, cutting-edge battleships are being taken away from the Mediterranean Sea one by one. When everyone thinks that the British are about to hand over the defense of the Mediterranean to France and are about to leave, who would have thought that the British would once again update the Mediterranean Sea? fleet! Three or even four dreadnoughts directly gave the Allies an absolute advantage in the Mediterranean.

"Maybe this is the Allied Powers' response to the Empire's new battleship?" Admiral House said with a frown. It is no secret that the Austro-Hungarian Empire plans to start construction of 4 battleships. In fact, once construction starts, although the performance of the battleships may not be clear, the number and size can still be determined. The British move was directly aimed at the Austro-Hungarian naval expansion plan.

"It seems that you two are under a lot of pressure." The prince said with a wry smile and shook his head.

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