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Text Chapter 858 A new round of arms race

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    ¡ñ"Pawn your underwear?" After hearing this word, the cabinet members all wrinkled up.  However, they had to admit that although the words of Commerce Secretary Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill were a bit vulgar, they were actually very correct.  The strength of the United Kingdom is based on the strength of the Royal Navy. Without a powerful navy, the United Kingdom will simply not be able to maintain its huge overseas colonies. Once its overseas colonies collapse, Britain will not be far from falling!

    The Lord of the Admiralty, John Fisher, glanced at Churchill gratefully. He was very touched that Churchill was the first to stand up and support him.  However, the funds required this time will probably cost tens of millions of pounds. It is difficult to say whether it can be approved by the cabinet!

    "Gentlemen, since we were defeated by the Chinese in the South China Sea battle ten years ago, the British Empire has begun to decline. The Chinese's epoch-making Zhonghua-class battleships have turned all the old battleships of the British Empire into useless  Iron and defeated us in the naval battle. Other countries also took this opportunity to challenge the status of the British Empire. Since then, the British Empire has gradually begun to lose its status as a maritime hegemon! The British Empire can no longer remain silent, we  We need to respond to the Chinese challenge with a strong attitude. Only by keeping the navy strong can we ensure the glory of the empire on which the sun never sets!" Churchill said loudly!

    Prime Minister Asquith nodded.  The decline of the British Empire is inseparable from the defeat in the naval battle of the South China Sea.  When the British Empire lost its position as maritime hegemon, it began to collapse.  If the British Empire wants to safeguard its huge overseas interests, a powerful navy is essential!

    "What do you think?" Prime Minister Asquith asked.

    "Your Excellency Prime Minister, I agree! The army's military expenditure is now barely enough, and there is no need to increase it. The extra money should be used for the navy to build battleships! After all, if a war breaks out in Europe, the French will still be the most responsible for the land war.  In front!" Secretary of War Paul Stafford Methuen said!

    Other cabinet members also agreed. Now that it has been mentioned, they have no reason to refuse.  However, when it comes to the actual issue, how to solve the source of funds?  This is a big problem!

    "Sir George, is there any way to provide an appropriation for the Admiralty?" Prime Minister Asquith asked.

    "How much funding does the Admiralty need?" Finance Minister David Lloyd George first asked!

    "The Admiralty plans to add five more Iron Dukes, and the battleship construction plan will cost 20 million pounds. In addition, the design of new battleships and the construction of more than six new battleships will cost at least 50 million pounds. This does not include the follow-up  An improved model!" Sir John Fisher said quickly!

    "His!" When Lord Admiral John Fisher said this number, everyone took a breath of cold air.  The design and construction cost of the additional 'Iron Duke' class battleships plus new battleships totaled 70 million pounds.  Including the construction of subsequent improved models, I am afraid it will cost hundreds of millions of pounds!  This is almost the UK¡¯s fiscal revenue for a year.  Such a large sum of money is enough to make the British finance unable to afford it!

    "Sir Fisher's Iron Duke class, the additional construction plan of the battleships should be reduced to three ships! In addition, the new battleships do not need to be built six at a time. Four ships will be enough!" Prime Minister Asquith said.

    "Your Excellency Prime Minister, the additional construction plan of the Iron Duke-class battleships can be reduced to three, but the new battleships must be at least five. After all, the Chinese have six Tang-class battleships, and we must have at least five.  ." Sir Fisher said.

    ¡°Your Excellency, Prime Minister, Sir Lord Fisher, I have a suggestion.

    China is not only our enemy, but also the enemy of the United States. Can the design of new battleships bring Americans in?  "Business Secretary Churchill said.

    "Americans? Apart from copying the design drawings we gave them, what else can they do? Letting them join in the design will not bring any benefit to the design of the new battleship!" Sir Fisher shook his head.

    "Jazz will be beneficial. At least the Americans can provide part of the design funds to alleviate our lack of funds. If the Americans want the design drawings of new battleships, we can also sell them to them at a reasonable price.  These funds are very important to us!" Churchill suggested.

    John Sir Fisher hesitated for a moment, but finally nodded.  The Americans have deep pockets. If they are asked to pay some funds, they will not refuse.  If the Chinese Tang-class battleships are put into service, the first threat will be the Americans.  Therefore, Americans will definitely accept??British kindness!

    "Well, just like that, Your Excellency George will borrow 30 million pounds from the Bank of England in the name of the Ministry of Finance as an additional appropriation for the Admiralty this year. The second batch of appropriations will be given next year. In any case, we must ensure the safety of the Admiralty's new battleships.  The construction plan is proceeding smoothly," said Prime Minister Asquith!

    "Yes, Your Excellency Prime Minister!" Finance Minister David Lloyd George nodded.

    Lord Admiralty Sir John Fisher was very happy. The allocation of 30 million pounds allowed the Admiralty's plan to proceed normally.  The additional three Iron Duke-class battleships can be ordered from the shipyard immediately and will be put into service in two years.  The design of the new battleship also started immediately, and we strive to start construction of the new battleship early next year!

    In fact, "The Times" was able to take photos of the construction of the Tang class battleship. This was deliberately allowed by China. Otherwise, with the tight security outside the Tianjin Shipyard, it would be impossible for the "Times" reporter to sneak into the shipyard.  .  China's goal has also been achieved.

    Britain was the first to respond, investing its already severely insufficient resources into the construction of battleships, setting off a new round of arms race.  Other countries in the world will also follow suit, which will further accelerate the consumption of national power that is already almost exhausted.  Once all countries are unable to continue to bear the arms race, it is time for war to begin!

    With the advent of the Chinese Navy¡¯s Tang-class battleships, the most fearful one is the United States.  Especially when it was learned from the United Kingdom that the Chinese Navy's Tang-class battleships were likely to have two, and that it would take two Iron Duke-class battleships to fight against one Tang-class battleship, the U.S. Navy was more cautious.  It's all gloom and gloom.  The US Navy's Nevada-class battleships were built based on the drawings of the Iron Duke-class battleships obtained from the British Navy.  Moreover, only four Nevada-class battleships were built.  Calculated in this way, just six Tang-class battleships are enough to offset the U.S. Navy's Wyoming-class battleships, New York-class battleships and Nevada-class battleships.  In addition, the Chinese Navy also has powerful Han-class battleships, as well as the Qin-class battleships and Zhonghua-class battleships that are still not outdated, as well as the Chinese Navy also has a large number of battlecruisers.  No matter which aspect you look at, the United States is already at a serious disadvantage.  Such consequences directly led to the rise of pessimism and disappointment in the U.S. Navy, making the U.S. government very uneasy!

    However, at this time, the British extended an olive branch to the United States and agreed that the U.S. Navy would join the British Navy in the design of new battleships.  However, the price the U.S. Navy needs to pay is a design budget of 10 million pounds, and after the warship is designed, it needs to spend 10 million pounds to purchase all the blueprints and production technology.

    The price of 20 million pounds is also a huge amount for the United States at this time.  U.S. President Taft knew very well that the British had no money, so they hoped to bring the United States in and earn a sum of money from the United States to build battleships.  But can the United States refuse?

    President Taft summoned Secretary of the Navy George von Lengelke Meyer and asked him whether, with the current capabilities of the U.S. Navy, he could independently develop a new battleship that could rival the Chinese Navy's Tang-class battleships.  However, what was obtained was a negative result.  Although it stole a lot from the British, the U.S. Navy still could not catch up with the British Navy in the design of battleships.  If the U.S. Navy designs a new battleship by itself, it may be able to design it, but it will take a long time.  By then, the Chinese Navy may have already arrived.  What's more, the Chinese Navy's Tang-class battleships use 381 mm main guns. To be able to compete with them, they must use main guns of the same caliber.  The United States is currently only able to build 343mm main guns. The 381mm main gun construction technology must be obtained from the UK!

    In the end, President Taft had to agree to the British request and join the design of a new battleship at a cost of 20 million pounds.  However, the U.S. government proposed that the United Kingdom should provide the design drawings of subsequent improved models of new battleships to the United States free of charge.  In this regard, the British government also agreed.  After all, 20 million pounds of funds can greatly alleviate the British Navy's current financial difficulties.  Even the cost of a new battleship is probably less than 10 million pounds. The 20 million pounds invested by the US government is equivalent to giving two new battleships to the United Kingdom.  In addition, after the United States builds a new type of battleship, it will definitely be used in the war with China. This is also a good thing for the United Kingdom!
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