Rise of Empires: Spain.

Chapter 406 M1897 75mm Gun
The Spanish government acted swiftly. After Carlos decided to establish an industrial base in Asturias, the cabinet quickly began taking action.

In less than a month, the preliminary work for the construction of the industrial base was completed, and construction of the industrial base officially began.

Similar to the previous Barcelona industrial base, the Asturias industrial base will be divided into three phases. The first two phases will take one year and one and a half years respectively, and the third phase will take two and a half years, for a total of five years.

Once the construction of the Asturias industrial base is completed, it will become Spain's most important steel production and heavy industry base, providing Spain with an annual output of at least 50 to 100 million tons of pig iron.

It is no exaggeration to say that once the Asturias industrial base is completed, its steel production will exceed that of both the Austro-Hungarian Empire and Italy.

The Spanish government will spend at least 35 million pesetas annually on this industrial base, totaling 1.75 million pesetas over five years.

Once the Asturias industrial base is completed, most of the steel production growth mentioned in the industrial development plan can be achieved instantly.

While Spain's industrial base was under construction at a feverish pace, nothing major was happening in Europe.

Britain was busy dealing with the Irish and Indian issues, France and Germany were busy building their own navies, Russia was busy managing its Far East situation, and Austria-Hungary and Italy were just playing a minor role.

A year passed in the blink of an eye, and soon it was 1901.

Just like in 1900, a major event occurred at the beginning of 1901: the death of Queen Victoria of England.

Queen Victoria was not only a national symbol for Britain, but also a witness to Britain's glorious history.

Since Queen Victoria became Queen of England, Britain has firmly established itself as the world's dominant power and has expanded its colonies across the globe.

This period, also known as the Victorian era, was the most glorious, prosperous, powerful, and flourishing period of British colonialism.

But a country cannot remain strong forever, just as a person cannot remain young forever.

This queen, born in 1819, is now almost 82 years old.

In an era when the average life expectancy in Europe was only 40 years, living to the age of 82 was extremely rare. Because Queen Elizabeth II had not yet been born, Queen Victoria remains the longest-reigning monarch in British history.

The death of such a great monarch, a symbol of Britain, has drawn attention in Britain and even throughout Europe.

Even though relations between Spain and Britain are not good, Spain still has to send a diplomatic representative of sufficient standing to Britain.

There was no reason to hesitate; only the current Prime Minister, Angelo Orcajo, could travel to the UK to attend Queen Victoria's funeral.

Queen Victoria held a very high position in European royal families. Because her daughters married into several European kingdoms, Queen Victoria was also known as the "Grandmother of Europe" and was one of the most powerful and influential monarchs in Europe.

Although Spain and the United Kingdom are not related by blood, they are both members of the European royal family and should be treated with the respect due to them.

The poor relationship between Spain and Britain is a matter between the two governments. Before things completely fall apart, the two royal families should maintain a facade of friendship.

In addition to Prime Minister Lord Angelo Orcahoe personally traveling to the UK, the diplomatic mission also included important cabinet ministers such as Foreign Secretary William and Lord Chancellor Grant Jerevos, demonstrating the high regard the British government had for the country.

This is already a very high level of importance. Under normal circumstances, only Carlo could go to England in person to exceed this level of importance, but it is impossible for Carlo to go to England at this juncture.

After all, there is no connection between the Spanish royal family and the British royal family. They are both kings, so why should Carlos personally attend Queen Victoria's funeral?

The king's personal visit would not only fail to demonstrate his importance, but would also lower his own status.

Unless it was a country like Italy or Austria-Hungary that had kinship ties with Spain, Carlo would never condescend to personally attend the funerals of royal families.

Moreover, Carlo himself had absolutely no interest in going to England, even though London is currently the world's largest, most prosperous, and most advanced city.

However, because Britain did not pay attention to the environment during the Industrial Revolution, London is also a world-famous foggy city.

Luxury cars, fine wines, and the stench of London – this is the best way for people from all over the world to describe London, the capital of the United Kingdom. The streets and alleys of London are filled with wealthy people and cars, and wines from France and other parts of Europe are readily available.

However, London also suffered from severe smog. Coupled with the lack of hygiene awareness among Europeans at the time, excrement could be seen throughout the streets and alleys of London.

With smog and excrement everywhere, if you're unlucky, you might even step in poop.

Unlike Madrid, which places great emphasis on hygiene, London's hygiene is appalling.

Carlo wouldn't want to go to London like that unless he wanted to suffer.

The reason for sending such a high-profile diplomatic mission, including the Prime Minister's family, the Foreign Secretary, and the Secretary of State for Royal Affairs, was not only to attend Queen Victoria's funeral, but also because Carole intended for them to make a series of visits to European countries.

As the year 1901 approached, World War I drew ever closer.

In recent years, both military blocs have made extensive efforts to win over Britain and Spain, each wanting to strengthen their own forces and gain a military advantage over their rivals.

This diplomatic visit is meant to convey Spain's stance to the outside world: at least for now, Spain has no plans to join any of the military blocs.

Maintaining neutrality for the time being is the most advantageous for Carlos and Spain, as it means that Spain can do business with both sides simultaneously.

Of course, being a fence-sitter and swaying between two sides is the most shameful thing to do. When the time is right, Carlo will not hesitate to choose the side he prefers most and will not remain neutral for long.

As for which side should choose, it depends on which of the two military blocs is more sincere.

Everyone understands that Britain and Spain have gradually become adversaries. Showing more sincerity towards Britain will make one's sincerity towards Spain seem somewhat lacking.

Conversely, the same logic applies: if one wants to bring Spain into their alliance, then one must abandon the effort to win over Britain.

Germany and France had considered trying to win over both Britain and Spain at the same time, but Spain decisively rejected such an idea.

Spain could not become an ally of Britain unless Britain was willing to cede Gibraltar directly and allow Spain to annex Portugal.

But this scenario simply doesn't exist. Britain couldn't possibly lose both Portugal and Gibraltar at the same time, much less simply concede to Spain without doing anything.

The fact that Queen Victoria's successor was Prince Edward was a delicate matter for Spain.

Because starting with Prince Edward, Britain will officially enter the Saxe-Coburg-Gotha dynasty.

The family's background is self-evident; they are a long-established noble family in Germany. Does this mean that Germany will make even greater efforts to cultivate a closer relationship with Britain after Crown Prince Edward becomes King?

After all, historically, even when World War I was about to break out, the Germans did not give up the idea of ​​winning over Britain.

However, Britain at the time considered Germany to be the biggest threat, so it chose to side with France, which posed a smaller threat.

As it turned out, the British choice was quite wise. If they had chosen to side with Germany, France would have been no match for Britain and Germany should Russia have withdrawn from the war.

If Germany defeats France, it will be the undisputed hegemon of Europe. No matter how strong Britain's industrial base is, they will never be a match for Germany.

Having absorbed the essence of French industry, Germany would undergo a complete transformation. Given sufficient time to develop, Britain would be unable to gain enough advantage to suppress Germany, whether in the navy or the army.

Things really did turn out exactly as Carlo had predicted.

According to Prime Minister Angelo Orcajo, following Queen Victoria's funeral, Kaiser Wilhelm II and King Edward VII of Great Britain engaged in close conversation.

Unlike Carole, Wilhelm II was related to Queen Victoria, which is why he personally came to London to attend her funeral. Given the growing rapprochement between Britain and Germany, Carole didn't mind putting some pressure on the Germans.

Immediately after Queen Victoria's funeral, Carlo ordered the Spanish diplomatic delegation to visit Paris, the French capital, and stressed that the visit must be conducted publicly.

Following Carlo's orders, the Spanish diplomatic mission quickly departed from London, England, for Paris, the capital of France.

The French government attached great importance to the arrival of the Spanish diplomatic mission.

The diplomatic corps received a personal meeting with French President Émile François Loubey, and the French side also sent a high-profile delegation including the president, prime minister, and foreign minister, giving Spain ample face.

In the presence of newspapers and media from France, Spain, and other European countries, French President Émile François Lube and Spanish Prime Minister Angelo Orcajo had a pleasant and friendly exchange, followed by several hours of secret talks.

Although journalists from various countries were unclear about the specifics of the discussions between Spain and France, they were nonetheless very curious about the pleasant scene of the meeting between the two governments' leaders.

Combined with the pleasant meeting between the King of England and the Emperor of Germany, does this indicate that the confrontation between the two major military blocs in Europe is about to enter a more intense phase?

England, Germany, Austria, Italy vs. France, Russia, Spain – this looks pretty exciting!
Although the former had four major powers, only Britain and Germany were considered superpowers, while Austria-Hungary and Italy were relatively weak.

Although the latter only has three major powers, France, Russia, and Spain are all considered superpowers, with very strong industrial, economic, and military capabilities.

It's hard to say who will win the war when these seven countries clash, but the war will certainly be extremely fierce and brutal.

Regardless of what other countries' governments and people think, Karu is quite satisfied at this point.

France demonstrated its sincerity in its diplomatic visit to Spain. Although the diplomatic negotiations did not explicitly establish an alliance between Spain and France, the two sides reached agreements on closer cooperation in various areas, including the military industry.

Spain also obtained the blueprints for the famous French M1897 75mm cannon, which was actually the Italian cannon featured in a famous TV series later on.

It was called the Italian cannon because it was actually a French cannon imported by Italy at the time. After serving for a period of time, it was sold to the East. It was called the Italian cannon because it was engraved with Italian text.

This cannon is famous entirely because of its superior performance.

As the world's first artillery piece with a flexible carriage, the M1897 75mm gun was renowned for its rate of fire, accuracy, and mobility, and was one of the most powerful artillery pieces during World War I.

Although its caliber is only 75 mm, its extremely high rate of fire allows it to provide extremely powerful fire support to field troops.

During World War I, many European countries copied this cannon, which shows just how excellent its specifications were.

Since it is the 1897 model cannon, it was naturally developed in 1897, which is less than 4 years ago.

The French government placed great importance on this superior artillery piece. The fact that they were willing to hand it over to Spain demonstrates the depth of France's sincerity.

Of course, Spain also has its own reasons for being sincere.

Although Spain did not form an alliance with France, it signed a five-year non-aggression pact with France and pledged not to send any additional troops to the Franco-Spanish border during the period the non-aggression pact was in effect.

For France, Spain was indeed valued more than Britain.

On the one hand, France and Britain have a long history of enmity, and this hatred stemming from history is not so easily eliminated.

On the other hand, Spain's geographical location is too important. If Spain becomes an enemy of France, France will be attacked from both sides and will find it difficult to defend against enemies from two directions.

It is precisely for this reason that France is willing to do anything to bring Spain into its alliance.

Let alone a small French lady's blueprint, France would be willing to cede even the Principality of Andorra, which France and Spain have been at odds over for a long time, directly to Spain.

After all, compared to the conflict with Germany, the small principality of Andorra was nothing.

This country is located in the Pyrenees Mountains, which form the border between France and Spain. Because it is situated in the heart of the mountains, it has a very poor geographical location, a small population, and no economic value whatsoever.

Although the Principality of Andorra has some strategic value, it is not much to France, which has a vast territory.

Carlo didn't care what other countries thought about the friendly talks between Spain and France. After obtaining the blueprints for the M1897 75mm cannon, Carlo immediately ordered the Royal Armory to begin mass production of the cannon.

One statistic alone can illustrate just how incredible the rate of fire of this cannon is.

Currently, the main equipment used by various countries is still the mainstream steel breech-loading cannon developed at the end of the 19th century, with an average rate of fire of 2 to 3 rounds per minute.

The M1897 75mm cannon has a minimum rate of fire of 15 rounds per minute and a maximum rate of fire of 30 rounds per minute, with an average rate of fire seven times that of ordinary steel cannons.

这代表着什么？一门M1897型75毫米火炮的火力就能够顶得上普通的7门火炮，而7门普通火炮的生产成本足以制造至少4门M1897型75毫米火炮。

If Spain were to equip itself with this cannon in large numbers, with the same investment of funds, the firepower of the Spanish artillery would be several times greater than before.

Although this will increase shell consumption and logistical costs, such a small increase is negligible compared to the advantages brought by the improved artillery firepower.

It is no exaggeration to say that Carlo planned to replace most of the artillery in the Spanish army with 75mm guns before the outbreak of World War I.

Only the artillery units will retain a small number of large-caliber cannons, while the rest of the infantry units will all be equipped with uniform French-style cannons.

There was no way around it; the performance of this cannon was simply too outstanding, so outstanding that Carlo wanted to abandon all other cannons.

In fact, Carlo wasn't the only one drooling over this cannon.

Historically, when the Germans discovered that France possessed such a powerful cannon, they tried every means to replicate it.

However, due to the animosity between France and Germany, France consistently refused to export this type of artillery to Germany. Even though France had sold its artillery to several other countries, it remained vetoed in its sale to Germany.

This also meant that the Germans spent several years researching using their own methods, but were still unable to develop a superior artillery piece similar to that of the French.

The artillery developed by the Germans had a limited rate of fire. Although it was an improvement over the original cannons, it could only maintain a rate of fire of 6 to 7 rounds per minute.

The rate of fire of this artillery was significantly lower than that of French artillery. However, France was unwilling to sell this artillery technology to Germany, which meant that Germany did not possess similar artillery during World War I and had to abandon the French rapid-fire theory to focus on developing its own large-caliber artillery.

This is why France was famous for its rapid-fire guns during World War I, while Germany was famous for its large-caliber, long-range cannons.

The famous German Wilhelm cannon had an astonishing range of 128 kilometers during World War I, which was dozens of times the range of ordinary cannons.

Of course, such an abnormally shaped cannon had huge problems. Due to its enormous size and exceptional length, the Wilhelm cannon only had a lifespan of 65 rounds, and the weight of a single cannon reached an astonishing 750 tons.

Although the Wilhelm cannon itself had many problems, it also showed how exaggerated the progress of military technology in European countries was during the war.

War is the best catalyst for technological advancement; this statement is an eternal truth.

Although World War I and World War II were brutal, they also saw rapid development in tanks and airplanes, laying a solid foundation for later technological advancements.

　Second update, 5200 words! Please support!

　　Today's daily target of 10,000 was successfully achieved. I still need to complete another 10,000 tomorrow. Please support me!
　　
　
(End of this chapter)