The Rise of the Empire

"In addition to the capital ships, let's get a dozen submarines first." When Cemal Pasha, the Ottoman Navy Minister, came to Munich in person to discuss the construction of the Turkish Navy with Ruprecht, the prince opened his mouth and asked Turkey to prepare first. A dozen submarines.

"Well, shouldn't we arrange the surface ships properly first?" Jemal said with some embarrassment. He had witnessed the grand occasion when Ruprecht led the German fleet into Istanbul. The fleet was like a forest of rafts and oars, the ships were strong and the guns were powerful, and the majestic fleet was the navy in the mind of the Minister of the Navy. As for those hidden in the Underwater, the submarine moves at a snail's pace and does some sneaky things all day long, but it is still not in Jemal's eyes.

"First of all, your Excellency should believe in the friendship between the German Empire and the Ottoman Turkish Empire. Your country trusts us and has entrusted me with the naval construction that is related to the prosperity and decline of the country. Then I will naturally build a practical navy for your country that is in line with your country's National Day and A fleet that is needed, not a flashy fleet.”

"Believe me, the fleet I plan for your country is definitely a fleet that can form combat effectiveness in the shortest time, spend the least money, and have the strongest combat effectiveness. As for the issue of submarines, I think 12 submarines are the minimum requirement, and there can only be more It cannot be less, because it is determined by the environment of your country.”

"In the direction of the Black Sea, after the Turkish Navy has two German-built super-dreadnoughts, plus a few light cruisers and destroyers, it can completely suppress the Russian Baltic Fleet without dreadnoughts. This has also achieved the first goal of your country's naval construction. Purpose."

"The second purpose is to enable your country to resist the Allied fleet coming from the Mediterranean. It can be expected that once the war begins, Britain, France and other countries will definitely launch a large-scale landing operation in the Dardanelles Strait in order to Open up direct contact with Russia."

"With the British and French navies going all out, it is impossible for the Turkish fleet to block the opponent's offensive in the Aegean Sea, so the fleet can only withdraw to the Black Sea. Then it will cooperate with land-based forts, mines and submarines to block the opponent." Historically, in Darfur When the Battle of the Darnell Strait broke out, Britain and France concentrated a total of 18 dreadnoughts and pre-dreadnoughts to participate in ground-to-sea operations. Although most of them are pre-dreadnoughts, two super-dreadnoughts simply cannot compete with so many battleships simply based on quantity, right? What's more, there is a ruthless character like the Queen in it! Conduct a fleet battle? What are you thinking about?

"So we can only use an asymmetric combat method to deal with the British and French fleets in the narrow Dardanelles Strait, and submarines, minelayers and mines are the most important means." The Dardanelles Strait can be said to be this The place where the most severe losses were suffered by the pre-dreadnoughts in World War I. On March 18, 1915, the British pre-dreadnoughts HMS Unstoppable and HMS Oceanic and the French pre-dreadnought HMS Bouvet were sunk by mines laid by the Turkish minelayer Nusret.

Moreover, the mines laid by this minelayer also damaged the battlecruiser Indomitable. Such a brilliant achievement in one day is definitely one of the miracles in the history of the world's navy. Even worse than the famous U9 number in history.

However things are not over yet. The behemoths of the British and French fleets continued to be bullied by various little guys including submarines and destroyers in this narrow sea area. On the evening of May 13, the British pre-dreadnought HMS Goliath was sailing in the Dardanelles Strait under the cover of five destroyers, and was sunk by the Turkish destroyer Pillar of the Nation! In myths and legends, the giant Goliath died from a stone. This time, how well the myth and reality fit together!

On May 25, the British second-class battleship Triumph was sunk by the German submarine U21.

And this battleship happens to be the second ship of the famous Agility class. Two days later, on May 27, the German submarine U21 launched again and sank the pre-dreadnought ship Dignity! As a result, in the narrow Dardanelles Strait, the British and French navies abandoned 6 dreadnoughts! The power of submarines and mines is evident!

However, while the Allied submarines were killing people, the British also overcame many difficulties such as anti-submarine nets, mines and unfamiliar terrain, and launched a crazy counterattack! Seven British submarines and one French submarine sank a Turkish pre-dreadnought, a torpedo ship, 5 gunboats, 11 transport ships, 44 ships and 148 sailing ships in the Sea of ​​Marmara! And it caused Turkey's maritime transportation in the Sea of ​​Marmara to almost be paralyzed, especially the two destroyers E14 and E11, which entered and exited three times, with brilliant results.

The bloody history told Ruprecht that in the Dardanelles Strait, submarine warfare and mine warfare were the keys to victory. If you want the Allied fleet to save more blood, you must work hard on these two issues! Therefore, while asking Turkey to purchase 12 submarines, Ruprecht also asked Turkey to invest more funds and personnel in the issue of mine stocks, minelayers and minesweepers.

"Submarine officers can be provided by the German Navy, and minelayers and minesweeper personnel can be trained by the empire. In addition to 2 dreadnoughts, the German Imperial Navy can also build 2 light cruisers and 12 destroyers for your country, plus The overall price of the supporting weapons and accessories is 1 million pounds."

"At the same time, in order to allow your country to maintain these precious warships, the German Empire and the Austro-Hungarian Empire will jointly fund and help Turkey establish large-scale shipping, machinery plants and other supporting facilities to support the fleet in Istanbul. "

"In order to allow your naval personnel to familiarize themselves with the performance of German warships as soon as possible. I can prepare some old pre-dreadnought ships for your country to use as training ships. Of course, there will be no shortage of weapons and equipment on them. Once a war starts, it will be very difficult. You can regain your fighting strength soon."

"I am very grateful to the German Empire and His Highness for their support of the Ottoman Turkish Navy. I am here to express my most sincere gratitude to you on behalf of the Ottoman Empire and His Majesty the Sultan." Cemal Pasha said.

"In addition, the Austro-Hungarian Empire is the most powerful maritime power of the Allied Powers in the entire Mediterranean. The joint operations of the Austro-Hungarian fleet and the Turkish fleet will also be put on the agenda. In this regard, the German Empire will send naval officers to coordinate the three countries' operations in the Mediterranean. If one day, the Austro-Hungarian fleet needs to enter Turkish territorial waters and ports, I hope Sir Cemal can make it convenient." Finally, Ruprecht said.

Historically, the Minister of the Navy agreed to the battleship Goben's entry into Turkey. Therefore, in this case, Ruprecht first said hello to the other party and laid the foundation for the future establishment of the Allied Mediterranean Fleet.

"The Turkish Empire is duty-bound to respond to the reasonable requests of its allies." Cemal Pasha assured, patting his chest.

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