I want to be emperor

Chapter 503 Offensive Navy

The development of the warships of the Great Chu Empire Navy has a very clear path. When the big shipbuilding plan was finalized a few years ago, the divisions of frigates, cruisers, and battleships had already been delineated.

The classification of warships of the Great Chu Empire Navy is not based on tonnage or the number of artillery, but on the use of warships.

The frigate's positioning is offshore patrol, escort, and low-intensity combat missions. To put it bluntly, it is a handyman.

It is required to be able to do everything, and it is also required to control costs.

The Daye-class frigate is such a warship, with a tonnage of only 350 tons and 22 artillery pieces, including twelve fourteen-pound cannons and ten nine-pound naval guns. As a result, the per capita living space is relatively small, and the daily necessities carried are relatively small, so it will be more troublesome for this kind of warship to perform ocean-going missions.

Of course, it's just troublesome, it doesn't mean it can't be done.

In any case, the Daye-class frigate is a very typical Galen-type sea ship. It is not a type of offshore inland river ship like Guangzhou Ship or Sand Ship. The ship type itself has the conditions for oceangoing navigation, but the supply will be relatively It's just a hassle.

To be honest, if this tonnage was placed more than 100 years ago, it would be considered a big ship, and it could even be used to sail around the world... Columbus's ship was only two to three hundred tons.

Even decades ago, a warship of this tonnage could serve as the main force in the fleet.

It's just that in recent decades, warships have become bigger and bigger, which has gradually prevented warships of this tonnage from becoming the main force of naval warfare.

With the development of shipbuilding technology, the current ships can be built bigger and bigger.

At the same time, over the past century, naval guns have gradually become the most important maritime weapon, and line tactics have gradually been developed. Today, line tactics have replaced gang-jumping operations and become the main method of naval warfare.

The addition of many factors has led to the fact that today's battleships are getting bigger and bigger. The tonnage of the main battleships is basically running at thousands of tons. Even some cruise ships that cooperate with battleships often have as many as six or seven hundred tons. .

Today's more than 300-ton warships can only be reduced to odd jobs.

In the positioning of the Great Chu Empire Navy, the warships that really conduct ocean-going operations are cruisers and battleships.

Cruisers are usually used for ocean cruising and escorting. During wartime, they serve as the reconnaissance ships of the main fleet. They go forward to provide reconnaissance and perform auxiliary combat missions.

Considering the needs of ocean-going cruise escort and combat, the tonnage of this kind of cruiser must be large enough. After all, the tonnage of the ship must be large enough to be able to sail in the deep sea and be safer when encountering wind and waves.

At the same time, sufficient tonnage can also carry more supplies, making the continuous capability of maritime operations longer.

At the same time, for higher speed, the hull is built more slender with a larger aspect ratio.

The large aspect ratio, in turn, can carry more artillery.

Taken together, this is the Xiangyang-class cruiser and the Songjiang-class cruiser currently under construction.

The Great Chu Empire is currently quite satisfied with these three new types of warships that are already in service.

The cheap and large number of Daye-class frigates can effectively maintain the size of the navy, train more experienced sailors, and compliment the empire's long sea frontier.

The Xiangyang-class cruiser and its improved Songjiang-class cruiser, these two types of cruisers that are similar in nature, can also effectively perform ocean-going cruises and escort missions, and will cooperate with battleships and enemy fleets in line decisive battles in the future.

However, there have been some debates within the Great Chu Empire Navy about what to do with the main force of the planned naval battle, that is, the battleship.

When the Great Chu Empire Navy first designed battleships, it was when the Great Chu Empire controlled the south of the Yangtze River. At that time, the Great Chu Empire set off a wave of naval construction.

At that time, the aim was to fight against Zheng Zhilong's troops.

Therefore, at that time, the Navy's warship administrator considered more about carrying more powerful firepower and thicker protection.

But shipbuilding is often a trade-off, and it is impossible for you to have everything.

After all, the funds are limited, and the shipbuilding technology is also limited. It is impossible for you to demand unrestrained firepower, protection, seaworthiness and speed.

In the case of ensuring firepower and protection, other aspects must be sacrificed, such as airworthiness, living space, endurance and even speed.

To put it simply, what the Navy wanted to build at that time was a main battleship that operated and fought in offshore waters, which meant an offshore battleship.

But before the design was completed, Zheng Zhilong's troops surrendered.

As a result, Zheng's fleet, the biggest imaginary enemy of the Great Chu Empire Navy, became one of his own overnight... and then the Great Chu Empire Navy Fleet Administrator fell into confusion...

They don't know what kind of battleship to design, whether to continue the previous design and make an offshore battleship, or change the design to make a real ocean-going battleship.

In the end, His Majesty Luo Zhixue personally set the tone: the navy is an offensive service, and the construction and development of the navy should be based on active offense and keep the enemy out of the country.

In short, as the Imperial Navy, you can't just wait for the enemy to come to your doorstep, and then fight a defensive battle with the enemy in your own offshore waters.

The navy must take the initiative to kill any enemy ships that dare to leave the port, including the fleet, block the enemy's navy in the port, prevent the enemy fleet from running out and threaten its own transport ships, bombard the enemy's port to attack the enemy, and cover the army's landing on the enemy's land .

What defensive navy, there is a fleet and the like, this kind of fleet may be very suitable for those small and medium-sized countries, because of their limited national strength, it is naturally feasible to build a navy based on self-protection and limited counterattack capabilities.

But what kind of country is the Great Chu Empire?
This is a country whose annual fiscal revenue is tens of millions of taels, and its annual military expenditure alone can rival that of the whole of Europe. If you ask him to build a regional defensive navy, that's not nonsense!
The navy is shameless, but he, Luo Zhixue, is even more shameless.

Therefore, battleships, as the core combat power of the navy, are designated as ocean-going warships.

As a result, the original design was overturned and redesigned. During this process, many European ships were referred to. Foreigners also bought two large Galenic armed merchant ships at a high price for reference. A group of foreigners or Nanyang indigenous craftsmen and various people with scientific knowledge came.

Foreigners come here to make money, but the Great Chu Empire is not short of money, especially when hiring various craftsmen, they are all direct money.

Under such a fierce silver bullet attack, no barbarian craftsman could resist.

Until now, in fact, the Great Chu Empire has been recruiting a wide range of craftsmen, especially craftsmen in shipbuilding and guns. …

Well, in recent years, when many merchant ships operating in the Asia-Pacific-Indian waters go to the Great Chu Empire for trade, they often use various illegal or legal means to bring some craftsmen to earn money from the Great Chu Empire. Referral fee.

At the end of last year, there was a daring armed sea merchant from England who took a small broken ship and more than 100 desperadoes, all the way from India to the east, and looted several coastal strongholds controlled by the Portuguese. In addition to plundering property, A group of craftsmen and those who were literate and skilled, including missionaries and low-level nobles, were also packaged and shipped to the Great Chu Empire.

Made a fortune.

Of course, after these people arrived in the Great Chu Empire, as long as they were not too stubborn, their basic treatment would not be bad.

After all, the Great Chu Empire banned slaves, and human trafficking was illegal.

After most people arrived in the Great Chu Empire, they were often willing to work for a period of time because of the high salaries offered by the Great Chu Empire. If they couldn't do it, they could just leave.

It's just that it's not so easy to go home from the sea. There are not always ships that set sail. Even if they do, they may not necessarily take you with them. Even if they take you, the ticket is not a small amount.

Therefore, these people who want to leave can often only work for the Great Chu Empire for a year or so to earn travel expenses...

In fact, the Great Chu Empire never thought of keeping these people, as long as they keep what they have learned, they can leave at any time...

What the Great Chu Empire wanted was the knowledge of technicians, the experience of craftsmen, and some small skills.

Recruit technicians and craftsmen through internal excavation; and excavate technicians and craftsmen from outside. At the same time, a group of people from the Royal Institute of Technology will also participate with some immature modern technology theories.

In this way, the design and construction of the battleships of the Great Chu Empire is considered feasible.

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As for the specific design, even though it was decided to build an ocean-going battleship, there were still some differences.

Some people think that since battleships are the main force in naval battles, they should pay more attention to firepower, get hundreds of cannons, and equip more heavy artillery to destroy any enemy warships with firepower in naval battles, so as to control the sea and put the enemy fleet Blocked directly in the port.

However, some people think that warships are built for war, and since they are for war, you must first be able to reach the battlefield, or you must be able to catch up with the enemy, so seaworthiness and speed are more important than firepower.

After all, if the ocean-going suitability is not good, you can't go to the ocean, and you can only stay at home to fight, and this kind of warship fighting at home is not the offshore battleship that was abandoned before.

Not to mention the speed of the ship. When encountering an enemy on the sea, if the speed is not good, you will not be able to catch up with the enemy, and you will not be able to run away when you encounter a strong enemy. It is more difficult, so that it will be seized the upper hand and the T prefix in naval battles.

As for protection...it's also quite controversial.

(End of this chapter)