German Red Prince

Page 88

The above are the problems he listed, involving fields such as economy, education, science and technology, politics, and transportation. To solve these problems, it is necessary to ensure that the government maintains absolute power.

Only by concentrating our efforts on major tasks and removing all obstacles hindering the country's progress can we truly move forward without any worries.

In Port Madeline, Soto was anxiously waiting for something when, after a short while, someone seemed to have seen something and suddenly cheered.

"They're here! They're here! Chairman, look, the ship is here!"

Soto, of course, saw it too. After Joseph's last letter, Thorne began making arrangements. No matter how bold Argentina was, they wouldn't dare to block the German ship.

What if they go to Emperor Wilhelm to protest? The Rhine royal family just likes to eat Patagonian beef and mutton, why are you being so nosy?

To be on the safe side, all the ships were flying four flags: the German flag, the Royal Rhine flag, the Rhine royal flag, and the Rhine naval flag. They were even escorted by a warship. With so many advantages, I don't believe the Argentine Navy would dare to fire.

Soto hadn't expected Joseph to bring him so many surprises; he had only mentioned the trade issues in Patagonia at the time.

Joseph said he could find a way to solve it, and at the time I thought he was just joking, but now that I see those transport ships, I realize he was serious.

Unfortunately, Joseph was still away on an inspection tour and couldn't share the joy with them. Soto had a premonition that Joseph's arrival would bring surprises to the socialist movement throughout South America.

After a long, harsh winter, Patagonia has finally welcomed spring.

Chapter 137 William's Subsidy Funds

"So, according to this report, a breakthrough from the Ardennes is possible?"

King Otto, holding the report, looked at the several military staff officers standing in front of him and asked them a question.

"Yes, Your Majesty. According to Lieutenant Colonel Guderian's analysis, it is entirely possible to attack the French Commune from the Ardennes, but the risks are extremely high."

"If we can break through from here, is it possible for the commune to break through from here as well?"

“That’s right, the Commune also has the capability to break through the Ardennes, and their chances of success are higher than ours.” The officer next to him took out another report.

"Although the Commune's overall strength was weaker than Germany's, France's armor research was far more advanced than ours."

"They began research on tank mobility after the war, and it is conservatively estimated that there are one or two armored divisions of considerable size along the French border today."

"What about us?"

"us......"

The officer glanced to the side, looking as if he wanted to say something but hesitated. The military thinking of the Kingdom of Rhine had always been ahead of its time.

Of course, that was during Charlemagne's reign. After Charlemagne's death, the Rhine Kingdom's strategies and tactics gradually stagnated.

Moreover, after being incorporated into Germany, the kingdom's military doctrine began to unify with Prussia's.

Prussia initially learned from the Rhine Kingdom, but in the process, it became the master itself, and the kingdom's military theories gradually became rigid.

Although not as rigid as Prussia, the kingdom has indeed not made many innovations. Now, according to the analysis, if this method is feasible, France will definitely take the risk and try it.

If they are unaware of the situation and are still foolishly building defensive lines, they will still be stuck in trenches when the war starts, while the enemy simply bypasses them, and tens of millions of marks will be wasted.

"Your Majesty, the Kingdom of the Rhine does not have any organized armored divisions, and even in the entire German Empire, there is not a single decent armored division."

Listening to the report, Otto felt a pang of sorrow. When did the Kingdom of Rhine become like this? The kingdom was now just an empty shell; its original core had completely disappeared.

He had heard stories of his ancestors' struggles when he was a child. During the great war, the Rhineland was almost wiped out. If another great war were to break out, the kingdom would probably become history.

“Your Majesty, although the kingdom does not have a fully-fledged armored division, Lieutenant Colonel Guderian is organizing one. He has been training students at the academy, and Prince Thorne has also recently developed some new tanks.”

"New tanks? Why didn't anyone report this to me?"

"His Highness said those tanks were just experimental models. The military's tank mobilization was too troublesome, so he paid out of his own pocket to develop and produce them for testing the latest tactics."

"The Army Ministry also sent people to inspect this tank. Although it is highly mobile, its armor thickness and artillery power are far inferior to the tanks we are equipped with. The General Staff believed that this tank was not of much value, so it was not reported."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Ludwig Beck, who was standing nearby, added, "Your Highness's tanks are like toys in terms of protection and firepower compared to the tanks in the army's equipment. I guarantee that one of our infantry tanks can hold off ten of them."

What is the current status of these tanks?

"It is said that His Highness Thorne is researching a new type of tank. The current tank is no longer planned to be equipped. The next tank to be produced will be mainly for export. His Highness recently visited the military headquarters to explain the situation."

Hearing this, Otto couldn't help but sigh. Why did this kid always seem to be avoiding him? It wasn't like he was talking about something shameful. Why was he doing tank research in such a secretive way?

Thorne used his own money to research and produce tanks. Otto knew that he had made some money before, but military industry is very expensive. If all his money was invested, it might not even make a splash. Although Rhine's economy has not been doing well in recent years, there is no need to be so frugal.

Otto was actually partly right. Thorne was indeed struggling to make ends meet. Although he was expanding his businesses, they were still in the growth stage and couldn't bring him much income. He was spending money like water, and he had to stretch every mark he earned.

As for why he's doing this so secretly, it's because Thorne needs to develop his strength cautiously for a while, at least enough to equip his people with the gear he's created, since he'll be planning a rebellion later.

Although he is a prince, although the entire royal family regards him as their hope, and although he currently enjoys a good reputation among the people of the Rhine, it is uncertain how many people would support him if he were to actually rebel.

Now that the research is being conducted publicly, what will happen when the entire army is equipped with the new gear? Will I be a revolutionary or not? Revolutions inevitably involve bloodshed, and Thorne wants to minimize casualties. He doesn't want his own people to be wiped out before even leaving the Rhine, which would just benefit old man William.

"Where are the others, Thorne?"

"His Highness has gone to Darmstadt."

“Darmstadt?” Otto paused for a moment before recalling that Darmstadt was a place Thorne had investigated before. What he found there surprised Otto; he hadn’t expected something like this to happen in a place so close to Frankfurt.

The impact of this incident lasted for a long time. The simplest consequence was the replacement of many people in the government, so Otto was deeply impressed. What impressed him most was the efficiency of the handling of the incident. A young man named Heydrich performed exceptionally well throughout the entire event.

Heydrich and Thorne's former assistant, Dudmann, performed exceptionally well in handling the aftermath of this incident, especially Heydrich, who seemed born for the job.

He also knew that Heydrich had been a naval officer before. Otto had seen the young man at a previous naval celebration. At that time, he was just an unknown young man who stood in a corner during the celebration. He never expected that he would be able to shoulder such an important responsibility now.

It's as if Thorne possessed some kind of magic; no matter how low a person's birth, as long as they were chosen by Thorne, they would definitely achieve great things in the future. This is very similar to Charlemagne; both of them were very good at "predicting," just like how Charlemagne could predict the French army's marching formation.

"He's probably in Darmstadt something right now. Let's go check on Lieutenant Colonel Guderian first. I'm also very interested in that new type of tank and the theories Guderian has put forward."

The reports now available indicate that the French army may be able to break through the Ardennes. If they can break through from the Ardennes, then even the strongest defenses they build will be useless.

Otto recalled what Thorne had said before: if building the defensive line wasn't so necessary, William's money could indeed be used for other things. France had already formed an armored division, so why couldn't Rhine form one?

Thorne brought Guderian back to the Rhineland specifically for this purpose. Now that we have Guderian and his theories, the theoretical and technical requirements for forming an armored division have been met. All that's left is the material condition.

William's first batch of subsidies should arrive in the next few days...

Chapter 138 Transitional Tank No. 2

After fulfilling Guderian's training needs, the Panzer I finally generated a surplus, which meant that it could finally start making money through foreign trade. Thorne was now not far from bankruptcy.

Previously, Guderian could only use trucks to simulate tank tactics. During his time in Berlin, things were even worse. There, Guderian was completely ignored and had to use people to carry paper tanks to simulate the tactics.

At least Thorne actually managed to build a tank, so Guderian no longer needed to borrow trucks. The Panzer I was cheap enough to be affordable for Thorne now.

It only costs a few thousand marks to leave the factory, which is a bargain compared to the tanks used by the army.

It didn't even have a main cannon; its firepower consisted of only two machine guns on the vehicle. The armor was also a thin layer, easily pierced with chopsticks. No wonder others looked down on it, and Thorne was helpless about it.

If he had the money, he would start working on the Leopard and Tiger models right now. It's a pity there are no secrets in the real world. Otherwise, Thorne could just use a "~" followed by "research all" and then "add-latest-equipment 50K" to crush the whole world in a day and take a giant leap towards communism. In the face of absolute power, everything else is superfluous.

It's a good thing that there's a surplus of tanks. With the world in such turmoil, there's no shortage of buyers. The situation in North Africa is escalating rapidly, and Thorne certainly doesn't recommend getting involved.

He suddenly began to understand why the United States was running all over the world: war meant business, and the profits from the arms trade were enormous.

After the French Republic failed to receive a response from the German Emperor, the Kingdom of the Rhine proactively extended an olive branch.

Provided that sufficient troops are deployed to Corsica and enough pressure is exerted on the French Commune in the south, the Kingdom of the Rhine is willing to sell weapons to the French Republic and aid its "just cause."

The French envoy, who had been rebuffed by the Kaiser, was quite moved and immediately agreed to the Rhine Kingdom's request after receiving a reply.

After France sent additional personnel and patrolling warships to Corsica, the Kingdom of the Rhine officially began supplying them with weapons. The arms trade could be very profitable, and Thorne would not miss this opportunity.

While the French envoy was still there, Thorne began to promote his tanks. The intensity of the war in Africa was certainly not as high as in Europe, so France did not need those heavy weapons, and the prices of those big machines were too high for France to bear.

Although France's economic level has improved considerably after recovery, war with the Ottomans is not the same as war with the Communes, so they have no need to buy these things.

The Panzer I tank perfectly met France's requirements. Compared to tanks developed by the French Republic itself, these tanks had advantages. Although they lacked protection and firepower, they could strengthen them after purchasing them. Such a thing would be a godsend for fighting the Ottomans.

France had been preparing for war for a long time before it started. The situation of the Ottomans was very complicated. To put it simply, they had overreached and didn't want to let go of anything.

The Ottoman Empire was situated between Eurasia, making it a very important strategic location. It's no surprise that many people coveted this chosen land. Keeping a low profile would have been fine, but some people just couldn't resist courting disaster.

With relations between the Ottomans and Greece in the west remaining unchanged for so long, the Ottomans seemed to have regained their former confidence overnight, relying on their status as the victors of the great war.

The territory controlled by the Ottomans had shrunk considerably, and their strength was far less than before. Logically, they should have maintained good relations with their neighbors and perhaps even formed a "defense alliance." However, the Ottomans had no goodwill towards those "territories" that had broken away from them.

The surrounding countries already had some grievances against the Ottomans, and with all the turmoil, their resentment only intensified, thus effectively cutting off all their own escape routes.

Ottoman relied on his limited influence to cling to interests in various regions, but this also greatly weakened his control. If Ottoman had given up some territories, he might have had a better chance of winning the war against France.

There were not many Ottoman troops stationed in Africa because of the Egyptian Sultanate. The Ottomans could only send reinforcements by sea. And to send reinforcements by sea, there was only one port in their African territories. If they could quickly occupy that port, they could end the war quickly.

The Ottoman army stationed in Africa numbered around 5,000 men. With auxiliary troops and reinforcements, they could muster a force of up to 20,000. France was confident in its ability to deal with such a force.

The Panzer I tank displayed by Thorne also piqued the interest of the French envoy; it was inexpensive enough and fast enough.

The Ottomans couldn't muster many anti-tank forces, so if they could equip themselves with some of these tanks, they might be able to quickly capture the port.

The price is also acceptable; compared to tanks that cost tens of thousands of dollars, this little guy is indeed very good value for money.

After reviewing the tank's performance, the French Republic ordered forty tanks from Saône and expressed its willingness to continue cooperation.

After all, this kind of tank, besides being used against the Ottomans, also served as a deterrent to the indigenous Africans, and might even be used in future counter-offensive operations.

The order for forty tanks was the first major customer Thorne had ever encountered, clearing out his entire inventory. With subsequent production following suit, Thorne was revitalized, and tank research and production could continue.

Guderian further clarified and systematized the "armored forces concept," and he and Thorne also discussed some specific requirements and areas of focus for tanks. He divided tanks into two types.

One type of tank has a speed of no less than 35 kilometers per hour, a weight of no more than 25 tons, and carries a high-velocity tank gun. This type of tank is used to destroy the enemy's main tanks. Another type is a support tank that carries a large-caliber gun and fires high-explosive ammunition.

Since a balance between mobility and protection could not be effectively achieved, Guderian chose to use two types of tanks, one for mobility and the other for support, to achieve his "blitzkrieg" objectives.

At the client's request, Thorne skipped the Panzer II and started researching the Panzer III, aiming to maintain a balance between firepower, armor, and mobility.

The Commune and Rheinland designed tanks with different ideas because they took different paths.

While the modern tank superpower, the French Commune, also employs mobile warfare, its approach differs somewhat from Guderian's theories.

If Guderian focused on how "fast" the punch was, the French Commune emphasized how "hard" the punch was. The Commune currently prioritizes high firepower and high protection, which makes their tanks too cumbersome and easy targets.

Therefore, the commune's thinking was to combine heavy tanks with light tanks, using light tanks to cover the firepower output of heavy tanks, and relying on this armored heavy fist to advance forward.

If war really broke out with the Commune, Thorne didn't know what would happen, after all, France had started tank research earlier than Germany at that time.

Thorne had never seen the Commune's tactics in his previous life, and France in this timeline was more willing to take risks. Perhaps after seeing better methods, the Commune would choose another route.

But no matter what, Thorne still had to deal with it honestly and conduct his research step by step.

My only advantage is my technical skills, which saves me a lot of time figuring things out and also helps me avoid mistakes to the greatest extent.

The newly designed tank was named the Panzer II, which Thorne defined as a transitional tank, marking the division of the Rhine Kingdom's tanks into two eras.

Chapter 139 The Enemy's Enemy is a Friend

The tense standoff in North Africa continues to irritate both the Ottoman Empire and the French Republic, and people along the border have begun packing their belongings and fleeing on the rumors.

The terrible memories of war were once again awakened in people's hearts. The last war directly took away 25 percent of the Ottoman Empire's population, and such a huge price was only paid for a bitter victory.

As people continued to flock to Tripoli, Kemal's expression turned grave, and it was unclear what he was thinking.

The pain of the last war taught Türkiye the cost of war, and the Ottomans gained nothing when the empire greedily divided up the world after the war.

They were fooled, treated like mere tools and discarded. Kemal felt a pang of sorrow as he watched the ever-growing crowd of refugees gather outside the city.

If another war breaks out, the Ottomans will absolutely not take sides, but if someone provokes them, the Ottomans will absolutely not be slaughtered; they are no longer the sick man of West Asia.

"Kemal Pasha, there are many people over there, which might be..."

Before he could finish speaking, Kemal interrupted him, "Those people are all subjects of the Ottomans, we cannot abandon them."

"Are they also subjects of the Ottomans?" the official behind him muttered quietly.

Since coming to power, Kemal has been promoting secularization. He was keenly aware of the various shortcomings of the Ottoman Empire, which was still only held together by religion and had very weak national cohesion.

He also witnessed the German people's sense of national identity during the war. Only when the strength of the whole country is united can it unleash great power. This is also the reason why he continued to promote secularization.

Kemal's actions were not without reason; he did so based on the domestic and international environment following the war.

When the war ended in 1918, the territory of the Ottoman Empire remained largely unchanged.

Kars and Ardahan were nominally recovered after being taken over by the Yerevan authorities, and the Italians in the Aegean were also driven out, albeit at a cost.

However, the apparent calm could not conceal the underlying tensions; within the Ottoman Empire, ethnic conflicts were becoming increasingly severe.

In an effort to address this problem, the United Progressive Committee employed extreme measures against other groups, particularly Jamal Pasha.

He used forced relocation and famine-inducing tactics to target Arab communities in the mountains of Eastern Anatolia and Lebanon.