Rise of Empires: Spain.

Chapter 400 Beautiful Imaginations of the Future

At the airship landing site in Valladolid, journalists from newspapers across Europe were eagerly awaiting the arrival of the airship.

They looked up at the sky eagerly, and even the fact that the azure sky was empty of anything could not dampen their enthusiasm for the airship.

There was no way around it; the airship being tested was a completely new and amazing object for everyone.

Before the invention of airships, there was never any object that could carry people into the sky and fly for hours or tens of kilometers.

Current airships have already achieved this, and are constantly being improved, something that no European could have imagined before the invention of the airship.

The airships represent a huge change in the future of life in Europe, as people will be able to choose airships as a mode of transportation, which is why so many journalists are excited.

Because Madrid and Valladolid are 162 kilometers apart as the crow flies, even if the airship could successfully conduct this test, it would be impossible to reach Valladolid in just a few hours.

Reporters gathered at the airship landing site were prepared to stand by for a long time. As soon as they spotted a black dot resembling an airship in the sky, they would frantically raise their cameras and take a few pictures.

Even if it's ultimately determined that the black dot is just a bird, the journalists will still be thrilled. Because what they're documenting isn't just a simple photograph, but a crucial part of human history in flight.

Just as the reporters were enthusiastically discussing when the airship would arrive in Valladolid, a huge black dot suddenly appeared in the distance.

"Airship, it's an airship, the airship is here!" With a German reporter's surprised cheer, the reporters all turned their attention to the huge black dot in the distant sky.

That's right, it's definitely an airship.

This huge black dot couldn't possibly be a bird or any other animal; the only possibility is an airship heading towards Valladolid.

As the airship drew closer, some reporters were able to make out its shape using binoculars. Those reporters who didn't have binoculars could only wait until the airship got even closer before they could see its size and appearance clearly.

While the reporters were excited and cheering, the experimental personnel at the landing site were already preparing the necessary instructions.

Since airships fly in the sky, to ensure a smooth landing, the pilots on board must be given directions so they know exactly where to land.

The good news is that the sky was quite clear at the time, with no clouds or wind, making the landing conditions quite perfect.

Following instructions from the personnel at the landing site, the airship began to slowly land at the designated location.

Reporters watching from the sidelines eagerly snapped photos, their faces beaming with excitement as they documented this important moment in human history.

The airship landed smoothly on the ground, signifying the complete success of this flight experiment. For the reporters who had witnessed it, they had personally recorded a major news event and were already eager to write news reports, take all the articles and photos back home, and then rush to print them and sell newspapers to make a fortune.

For Spain, such a successful airship test not only fulfilled Carlo's plan but also temporarily replaced airplanes as a reliable mode of air transportation.

The successful flight tests of the aircraft and airships were just one piece of good news for Spain; another piece of good news was the achievements of the water tank project team.

The Sky Project team was responsible for developing aircraft, while the Water Tank Project team was responsible for developing tanks.

The development of previous tanks was hampered by insufficient power from their propulsion systems.

At that time, tanks were simply cars with a thin layer of sheet metal added and a machine gun mounted on top.

Such a car cannot even be fitted with artillery, because the enormous recoil would cause problems with the connection between the artillery and the car, and could even cause the entire car to fall apart.

Even if the experts on the water tank project wanted to improve the recoil problem of the artillery, they could not make modifications to the existing tanks.

Unfortunately, due to power limitations, there's no way to add anything to the current armored tanks. Otherwise, the tank's power system would simply stop working, making it difficult for the tank to even move, let alone be deployed on the battlefield.

After establishing the National Power Laboratory, Carlo ordered Diesel, the laboratory's chief engineer, to develop a more powerful diesel engine to solve the tank project's biggest problem.

It must be admitted that Diesel's research and development of diesel engines was indeed world-leading. In less than two months, Diesel manufactured a more refined diesel engine based on the data and equipment that had been delivered.

Over the next few months, Diesel continued to improve the existing diesel engine, eventually nearly doubling its power.

A more powerful diesel engine is clearly a more suitable choice for tank engines.

With the help of diesel engines provided by the National Power Laboratory, the water tank project team quickly began improvements and research on the tank.

With a more powerful engine, the project team can now confidently make various modifications and additions to the tank.

For example, the armor protection of tanks, which was originally just a thin layer of iron, was immediately transformed into an ultra-thick steel armor covering all sides after the advent of the new engine.

Despite the tank's weight having doubled, the fact that it can still maintain an average speed of 15 kilometers per hour or even faster is clearly very good news.

Although a speed of 15 kilometers per hour is not fast, tanks don't need to compete on speed; what matters is their ability to overcome obstacles and conduct assaults.

Currently, car tires are made of rubber. The advantage of this is that they provide strong grip, allowing the car to reach higher speeds.

However, rubber is clearly unsuitable for the battlefield. Rubber tires will be damaged upon contact with sharp objects, which will severely impair the tank's mobility.

To prevent tanks from becoming immobile due to damaged tires, similar to how cars can be, the water tank project team specifically developed iron tracks for tanks.

Although these tracks make tanks much slower than cars, speed is the least important thing for tanks going to the battlefield.

With these iron tracks, tanks can easily cross trenches and other obstacles. Soldiers can also safely take cover inside the tank and use the machine guns or cannons mounted on it to attack the enemy.

According to the current development progress of the water tank project team, the first true tank is expected to be unveiled this year, which means that Spain will soon have its own tank force.

Of course, even with improvements in power, current tanks still have various problems. Firstly, current engines are not reliable, and coupled with the tank's large size and weight, there is a high risk of them breaking down.

Once a tank breaks down on the battlefield, it instantly becomes a sitting duck. Enemy artillery will show no mercy to tanks; they will prioritize destroying these powerful weapons of war.

The progress in airplanes, airships, and tanks can be considered three pieces of good news for Spain, but the outside world is only aware of the airships.

It cannot be denied that flying in the sky is indeed a wonderful dream for people.

When the news that the Spanish airship had successfully flown 162 kilometers and landed safely in Valladolid was spread to European countries, it immediately caused a sensation throughout Europe.

The word "airship" instantly became a hot topic of discussion among Europeans, and some capitalists even set up companies related to airships and made a fortune after issuing stocks on the stock market.

At that time, stock markets in various countries did not have very strict listing regulations. Basically, once a company was established, as long as it wanted to issue its own shares on a stock exchange, it could do so after a simple review.

Even in some poorly managed stock exchanges, the review mechanisms become quite chaotic. This is also a reason for the historical rubber crisis. These stock exchanges did not conduct any review of shell rubber companies at all. People bought large amounts of stock in these shell rubber companies, which eventually led to the rapid collapse of the rubber stock market after a period of prosperity, ultimately causing many families to be ruined and destroyed.

With Europeans' growing interest in airships, and with the year 1899 fast approaching and a new century about to begin, the year was drawing near.

A wave of imagination about the future suddenly swept across Europe.

First, the Spanish newspaper El Soleil stirred up the controversy. El Soleil reported in detail on Spain's airship experiments and published a news article in its newspaper the following day entitled "The Future of the 20th Century".

In this news article, The Sun imagined various wonderful lifestyles for people in the 20th century, including but not limited to everyone owning a car, people traveling long distances mainly by airship, and people communicating by wireless telegraph machines, etc.

Such a wonderful vision is still quite realistic, after all, whether it is cars, airships, or wireless telegraph technology, there are already signs of progress.

Such a wonderful vision quickly became a craze in Europe, with newspapers and media outlets across the country reprinting The Sun's report and adding their own imaginings of the future in the 20th century.

The reason people dream about the future is simple: the 20th century is not far away, and next year will be 1900.

As the 19th century drew to a close, looking back at the entire century, one can instantly realize the enormous progress that human technology has made in the past 100 years.

Before the 19th century, in the 18th century, the Industrial Revolution was only just beginning, and the steam engine was still a very novel technology.

Trains were invented in the 19th century. For people at the end of the 18th century, their only means of transportation was by horse, while those living near the sea could use boats.

While horses are still widely used today, their market share is declining.

Cars are no longer a foreign concept to people, and some middle-class families already own them.

Trains, of course, need no introduction. Trains experienced rapid development in the 19th century. They began to emerge at the beginning of the century and, after decades of development, have become an indispensable and important means of transportation in European countries.

Given the enormous technological leap of the 19th century, it's no wonder that people have high hopes for 20th-century technology.

While people are envisioning a bright future, the headquarters of Royal Mercedes-Benz in Spain is already planning for the automotive market in the new century.

Newspapers and media outlets across Europe have different visions of their future, with one widely mentioned being car ownership in every household.

It is clear that people across Europe want to own a car, because, like trains at the beginning of the century, cars are about to become the most commonly used means of transportation.

Benz astutely recognized that this was a huge news topic and also a crucial opportunity for Royal Mercedes-Benz to raise its profile.

Since the first generation of cars from Royal Mercedes-Benz was introduced, the automotive market has been expanding every year.

To date, Royal Mercedes-Benz has sold over one million vehicles across all models, achieving a market share of over 90%.

Other brands of cars either cannot match Mercedes-Benz in terms of performance, or they can match it, but their prices are far higher than Mercedes-Benz.

By establishing itself in the automotive market early and rapidly reducing costs through assembly line production, Mercedes-Benz has become a leading company in the global automotive industry, unmatched by any other automaker.

Although the results achieved so far are already quite good, Benz is not complacent in the slightest.

At a meeting held within the Royal Mercedes-Benz company, he mentioned the company's plans for the new century, which included the wonderful vision of making cars available to everyone.

With the development of the automotive industry, cars are no longer a luxury item.

When cars were first introduced, their cost was as high as 1.2 pesetas. After such a long period of development, the cost of cars has decreased significantly.

By 1892, the cost of each car had been reduced to around 4200 pesetas, and Mercedes-Benz cars produced in other countries could also have their costs reduced to around 4500 pesetas.

Now, the cost of each Mercedes-Benz produced in Spain can be controlled at 1700 pesetas, and the cost of cars produced in other European countries is also below 2000 pesetas.

Due to the continuous reduction in car costs, the current price of cars in Spain has reached around 2500 pesetas, and the price of cars sold in other European countries will not exceed 3000 pesetas.

For most middle-class people, such a car price is already a product they can afford.

Even for ordinary people, a family can afford to buy a car if they save up their income for several years.

Currently, the average annual income per capita in Spain has reached 337.86 pesetas, and the average annual income per capita for the working class is approaching 400 pesetas.

In order to achieve the goal of making cars affordable for everyone as soon as possible, Benz specifically stated at a meeting of the automobile company that he would strive to reduce the cost of automobiles to below 1500 pesetas throughout 1899.

Between 1900 and 1905, the goal was to reduce the cost of automobiles to below 1200 pesetas. If the plan was successfully implemented, it was estimated that around 1905, the price of each Mercedes-Benz would be between 1500 and 1800 pesetas, enough for a family of four to earn in a year to purchase a car.

(End of this chapter)