Chapter 234 Brothers pulling together

Chapter 234 Brothers pulling together

Austria, Schönbrunn Palace.

"Humph, what! You are not satisfied with your job as the Commander-in-Chief of the Navy. Do you want to regret it? My silly brother."

Franz was sarcastic towards Ferdinand, the commander-in-chief of the East African Navy who had just returned to Vienna.

Ferdinand, who had long since become a veteran, immediately countered: "As the commander-in-chief of the navy in East Africa, although I don't have many ships under my command, I am still much stronger than the 'bathtub' navy of Austria. In the future, when the East African navy develops, I will He ordered the closure of the Gulf of Aden and prohibited Austrian ships from entering the Indian Ocean."

Franz did not respond to Ferdinand's joke.

Blockade the Gulf of Aden? It seems that the geographical location of East Africa is really feasible. Although East Africa has no ports on the Red Sea coast, Djibouti, or the northern coast of Somalia, its northernmost Mogadishu is not far from the Gulf of Aden, just like the North German region. Although there are A port facing the Atlantic Ocean, but if the British really wanted to use the navy to block Prussia in the Baltic Sea, it was entirely possible.

In fact, Franz has not thought of one thing. If East Africa really plans to blockade the Red Sea, it is impossible to use the so-called East African Navy. How high is the East African Navy compared with Great Britain? If you expect the East African Navy to block the Gulf of Aden, you will not be able to rely on the East African Army to block the Gulf of Aden. Spectrum.

According to the current military strength in East Africa, the army can rush directly to Djibouti and Somaliland at any cost, wipe out the British and French colonies in one fell swoop, and mount a few artillery pieces to pose a serious threat to the Bab el-Mandeb Strait. Dire Dawa, the latest planned northern province in East Africa, The military town is only more than 300 kilometers away from Djibouti.

The narrowest point of the Bab el-Mandeb Strait is only 26 kilometers. In the current era, most East African artillery can't reach such a long range. A few large-caliber coastal defense guns are possible, but it's a pity that they can't be moved. The current technology is not up to it, but the future is hard to say. .

This was also the reason why Ernst did not go to the Red Sea coast and the Gulf of Aden to occupy land. It would be too conspicuous and easily targeted. Britain, France, the Ottomans, and Egypt were not good enemies, but East Africa also had the ability to threaten this channel.

And even if East Africa really blocks the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, it is estimated that the British will be extremely happy. Originally, the British were reluctant to dig the Suez Canal, and it was all driven by the French. Seeing that France is likely to succeed, the British came out to take advantage, and later generations Moving in and out of the EU is a virtue.

Suez is gone. At best, the French are unlucky. Cape Town can return to its peak. In addition, the British Indian cavalry in the Far East is not easy to deal with. The British military in India is capable of attacking Abyssinia across the sea. The empire has won, and its ability is evident.

You must know that although Theodore II, the former emperor of the Abyssinian Empire, was arrogant, his vision was much broader than that of those idiots in the Far East. He expanded the authority of the monarch and restricted the possession of the Abyssinian Church, which had huge wealth. More real estate, paying soldiers, building roads, purchasing modern firearms and cannons, and trying to abolish slavery. These are the achievements of Theodore II. In the end, seeing the defeat, he had the courage to shoot himself. He did not choose to live an ignoble existence and was considered a hero in this era.

Of course, the fact that East Africa is currently incapable and unwilling to imitate Japan and gamble on its national destiny does not mean that there will be no opportunities in the future. Once East Africa becomes stronger, not to mention Suez, even the whole of Egypt will come to act as a licking dog. The climate and environment in Egypt are such that it cannot be used as a slave. The Vietnamese jungle is superhuman, and the geographical environment cannot be turned into an Afghan cemetery.

…

"How's it going? Are you scared by my words?" Ferdinand said, having regained the game.

"Humph, as far as the situation in East Africa is concerned, it will not be able to reach this level after another fifty years of development. Look at how many years it has been since the founding of the United States, and it is quite capable of bragging. You can't wait to replace it with the British. Don't you just dare to shout across the Atlantic? .”

"It's just a joke! Are you serious, Franz, it seems you are still so stubborn." Archduke Ferdinand said.

Franz was speechless and said: "Tell me! How come you have time to come back!"

"I wish I had been so serious earlier! Of course I came back this time to visit my mother and Karina."

"It should be on the way! I heard that I was at the Trieste Shipyard a few days ago to survey some gunboats that had just been completed!"

"It's just a side trip, so what? You should know that it's not easy to go back and forth on the sea like this, and how busy I am every day!"

Ferdinand was not lying about this. He was really busy. The East African Navy was founded. In order for these sailors from the river and lake forces to form combat effectiveness as soon as possible, many things required Ferdinand and the young Austrian naval officers who were "exiled" to East Africa. Do it yourself.

"Since you came back to visit your mother and Karina, why are you angry with me, my elder brother?" Franz was worthy of being the topic stopper.

"You think I do! It's not that boy Ernst who asked me to come and discuss cooperation with you."

"He told me about this a few days ago."

"Of course I know, but he only said the intention of cooperation, not the content, No! This is the cooperation list drawn up by our East African Kingdom. Take a look!"

Ferdinand took out a large stack of cooperation lists from somewhere, and Franz took them and read them carefully.

Two hours later.

"Ernst, he is indeed suitable to be a shrewd businessman. He has hidden so many things for so long." Franz said with a smile.

"As long as any region is large enough, you can always find some resources. I think the resource situation in East Africa is much worse than that of the Austro-Hungarian Empire." Archduke Ferdinand said.

"It would be great to have such conditions. Austria is the land of choice for the Habsburg family. How can the conditions be comparable to a marginal place like East Africa." Franz said quite proudly.

Ferdinand despised his brother fiercely, but East Africa was indeed unsatisfactory. With a land of millions and only so few resources, it was no wonder that it had not been targeted by anyone.

As the Commander-in-Chief of the Navy of the Kingdom of East Africa, Ferdinand was relatively familiar with many situations in East Africa, so he naturally read the list of resources provided by the economic department of the Hechingen Consortium in advance.

Eastern East Africa has a land area of ​​more than two million people, which looks much larger than the Austro-Hungarian Empire, but its resource endowment is indeed at the same level as the Austro-Hungarian Empire. There is also a large area of ​​invalid territory in the desert in the north. Fortunately, although Somalia is also a tropical desert, Two large rivers, Shabelle and Juba, pass through it.

Even so, the resources in the eastern part of East Africa alone can reach the level of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, which should attract the attention of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Why is the effect so mediocre?

This is because the list was manipulated by Ernst. The list contains some detailed mineral resource analysis reports in East Africa and the mining plan of the East African Kingdom.

This list mainly discloses the distribution of coal and iron ore in southern Tanzania (eastern shore of Lake Malawi), as well as mineral resources in Kenya.

As for the gold mines in the Great Lakes region, they will naturally not be opened to the outside world. The copper mines on the Katanga Plateau have also been hidden by East Africa. That copper mine is so huge that it can change the pattern of the world's copper mining industry, just like the oil industry in the Middle East in the previous life. Like mold.

Copper, a scarce resource all over the world, is also one of the most important, most popular, most widely used and most used metals in the world.

Copper has been one of the most important metals since it was discovered and utilized by humans, especially before the Iron Age.

There are also many wars caused by copper mines. Ernst has thought about this issue in his previous life, that is, why did the Shang Dynasty in the Far East like to launch wars? Copper mines are an indispensable factor, just like mold likes oil. Likewise, copper mines were the most important strategic resource in that era.

Cooperation must also be guarded against. The resources of Kenya alone are enough to make Austria rich. As for the coal and iron minerals, to be honest, they are not very attractive to Austria. The major mineral resources of the Austro-Hungarian Empire are among the best in Europe. It is completely sufficient. If the value is not high, if you have the time, it is better to think of a way to ship it from the Balkans than from East Africa.

The East African government's idea is also very simple, that is, to develop the three provinces of South Kenya, namely Oriental Province, South Prussia Province and Western Great Lakes Province.

If you want to transport these resources to the port of Mombasa and export them to Austria, why don't you help build a railway in East Africa?

At the same time, it can also draw orders for the railway departments and companies of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. East Africa’s steel production capacity cannot support such a large project. At the same time, other equipment must be imported from Austria, and locomotives are also provided by Austria. East Africa uses mineral resources to repay account.

Now that the Suez Canal is open, transportation costs have also been reduced. The distance from Trieste to Mombasa is not far, and it is still very cost-effective. After all, no one will dislike too much ore. France, which lost the Lorraine iron ore, is an example.

At present, priority is given to developing the South Kenya area. As for what to do with Tanzania, there is actually no good way. Just farm the land well. In the previous life, Tanzania was an agricultural country, and its resource situation was not as good as Kenya. In this life, it will be stronger at most. Whether Tanzania can develop or not is still It depends on the development of Zambia. Once Zambia develops, Tanzania will not be a problem. After all, the ports are concentrated in the east. The geographical conditions of the East African plateau are very good. It is still possible to turn the traffic into East Africa's own crossroads like Germany in the previous life.

The basis of cooperation is to make money. Don't worry about this. The East African government itself is also a buyer. It can digest part of the minerals it produces, or even eat more than half of them. The rest can be shipped back to Austria to support Austria's development. .

The intention of cooperation is very clear, it is Austria, not the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Ernst has been thinking of ways to strengthen the German national advantages in Austria, especially the advantages of the Germans near the Adriatic Sea. There are many Italians in Trieste very dangerous.

Trieste is the channel connecting Germany and East Africa. Naturally, it is better to be in the hands of its own people. Therefore, the Hechingen Consortium has been committed to recruiting Italian immigrants in Trieste. The effect can only be said to be satisfactory. In Austria-Hungary, Trieste's economic situation under the rule of the empire was very good. It was the only excellent port and the entire Austro-Hungarian Empire was the economic hinterland, which could even radiate to Eastern Europe and South Germany.

Reducing the Italian population had little effect, so the German population was increased. The grain processing factory area in Trieste attracted a large number of Germans to work.

The fact that Trieste's population problem cannot be solved now does not mean that it cannot be solved in the future. Ernst had already thought about it. As an industrial city, Trieste should not be able to escape the sanctions of the economic crisis.