Chapter 99 Coast Defense Artillery
“What you say makes sense, but I am still more optimistic about giving priority to the development of industry, especially since the current population in East Africa is small and the difficulty of industrialization is low, and the food problem is completely High-value industrial products can be exchanged for low-value agricultural products," Maximiliano I said.
“If you look at the actual situation in some European countries, what His Majesty said makes sense. After all, not every country is suitable for the development of agriculture. However, the natural conditions and land area of East Africa determine the development of agriculture. It’s his advantage, and he doesn’t panic when he has food in hand.”
Loss. The person in charge continued: "Prince Ernst often emphasized that agriculture is the easiest industry to become independent. After all, no one can live without food. To develop industry, various conditions must be met. The threshold is very high, especially for first-developing countries. With strong advantages, they constantly update technology, and the threshold for industrialization in backward countries continues to rise. High. ”
“For example, in East Africa, we currently lack the basic conditions for industrialization. Most of our residents come from rural areas and have basically no understanding of industry; our food production is not enough to support large-scale industrialization. Industrialization cannot provide sufficient raw materials; our transportation conditions are even worse. It is not even comparable to most backward countries, and the length and density of dirt roads are not comparable to those countries and regions with a little history. The most important thing for developing industry is to introduce machinery and equipment from Europe, but the Hechingen Consortium still wants to make a profit. East Africa is temporarily unable to introduce industrial facilities from Europe on a large scale.”
Maximilian I silently listened to the words of the person in charge of the sisal factory and fell into deep thought. He remembered his life experience.
I have always believed in liberalism. When I was in power in Milan (I was appointed Governor of Lombardy and Venice at the age of 25), I was like this. I implemented many policies that I thought were advanced and humane. In the end, my brother was dissatisfied. Deposed.
This was also one of the reasons why I chose to go to Mexico later, which was to prove that I was not utopian and that my policies could promote the development of the country.
Unfortunately, the reality is a slap in the face. The Mexicans do not accept their own blame at all, and even want to execute themselves in the end. Everyone has been offended by themselves.
Looking back now, Mexico is indeed not suitable for the development of a monarch. Mexicans are deeply influenced by republican ideas. At the same time, because the previous royal family’s consumption has overdrawn the trust of Mexicans, going to Mexico by yourself was a mistake from the beginning. Decide.
Of course, Maximilian I was also deceived. The French forged a Mexican opinion poll and deceived the confused Maximilian I into Mexico as the scapegoat.
Mexicans opposed to their own rule belong to the people who chose their own rulers, while Ernst's East African colonies belonged to the people Ernst chose to rule.
So the East African colonies can enforce orders and prohibitions, and Ernst can give full play to his talents, Maximiliano I thought so.
……
September 11, 1867.
Port of Mtwara.
"One, two, three, hey! One, two, three..."
Hundreds of dock workers at the dock were carrying artillery pieces unloaded from ships. These were all from Austria. The big guy brought over by the Hungarian Empire, the East African colonies lacked transportation tools and could only rely on manpower.
Recently, all the cement imported into East Africa has been used to build port defenses.
Affected by the Paraguay War, Ernst suddenly felt that the location of the East African colonies in Africa and Paraguay's location in South America were somewhat similar. They were both located in the east-central part of their respective continents. The difference was that Paraguay had no outlet to the sea. , and East Africa has a long coast.
This is also the advantage and disadvantage of East African colonies compared to Paraguay. The advantage is that East Africa has greater development potential with many ports, but the disadvantage is that East Africa faces greater maritime threats.
The East African colonies currently do not have a navy, which means that the door to the Indian Ocean is open, and they have to deal with enemies in the Indian Ocean.
There are only two ways, one is to form your own naval force, and the second is to build defenses along the coast, especially important facilities such as forts that can fight back. Navy! It's a money-burning thing, and it's completely useless on a small scale. At most, it can bully some fishing boats, and armed merchant ships are not easy targets.
Furthermore, the navy is a purely technical branch. Without accumulated experience and extensive training, it is difficult to perform its role.
Given the current economic situation of the East African colonies, there is no need to have any illusions. It is more practical to build some forts honestly.
There is now a good window period for purchasing large-caliber artillery on some decommissioned ships from Europe. The last battle of Lisa, the ironclad showdown between Austria and Italy, accelerated the upgrading of naval ships by various countries.
Many old warships are facing retirement, and the large-caliber artillery on the warships facing retirement will naturally also be retired.
In order to make the best use of the object, some countries may dismantle it and continue to serve it, such as serving as a coastal defense gun, while other countries may find a buyer to take over.
And Ernst got a batch of large-caliber artillery retired from warships from the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Although they were second-hand, they were still strong and durable, far better than the few left by the Zanzibar Sultanate. The "shelf" gun has a deterrent effect.
As the southernmost seaport in East Africa, Mtwara naturally enjoys convenience in advance. Ships from Europe to East Africa arrive first at Mtwara Port.
Mtwara Port, which had received the news early, had built the basic outline of the basic fort in advance. The design drawings were designed by professionals from the Austro-Hungarian Navy Ministry. It is definitely the most advanced in this era. of.
Now, just wait for the artillery to be in place and do the final calibration.
After exhausting all their efforts, the workers finally transported the artillery to the designated location. The Austro-Hungarian naval advisor who was on board the ship personally directed the ammunition filling and target selection.
After all preparation procedures were completed, the artillery was aimed at the prepared target on the sea, a wooden floating object marked with red paint.
"Let it go!"
"Coax..."
With a roar, accompanied by thick smoke from the muzzle, the shore defense artillery accurately fell to the designated area and exploded.
A huge wave of waves was instantly blown up on the sea, and together with the floating target, it flew into pieces and flew into the air.
Operators and observers on the shore near the launch point felt a roar in their ears, and felt obvious air waves at the moment the ammunition flew out.
From this point of view, the power of this batch of artillery is definitely enough, and it can be used to deal with some large armed ships of the current era.
However, the shortcomings are not without them. Ammunition still needs to be imported from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, and the price is not cheap, so you need to use it sparingly. On weekdays, you need to improve the professionalism of the gunners themselves to make up for the shortage of ammunition. Disadvantages.
(End of this chapter)