Daming Military Empire

Chapter 293 Super Treasure Ship
In fact, in the history of the world, after the invention of steam power, the ship was the first to be built, because at that time it was at the peak of the colonial period, and the shipbuilding technology of all countries was quite developed, and it was as simple as adding a "wheel" to the ship As long as someone thinks of such a thing, it will naturally succeed.

The train is different. At that time, there was no prototype of the train, and it had to be imagined from scratch. Therefore, the steam train was invented decades after the steam ship appeared.

The Ming Dynasty was just the opposite. After steam power came into being, steam trains were not steam ships. Now that the technology of making steam trains in Daming is quite mature, it is natural for Bi Maokang and others to add a 'wheel' to the ship. It's extremely simple, so Zhu Cijiong doesn't even need to draw sketches, just explain it to them with the real thing and they will understand.

The next step is to discuss the issue of shipbuilding. With steam propulsion, the size of the hull is completely unlimited, which means that no matter how big a ship you build, you can sail on the sea, and you don’t need to look at the wind direction at all. Of course, the premise is that You have to be able to build a boat. It doesn’t mean that the boat can be as big as you want. If you can’t build it, it’s all fake.

The largest ship that can be built with the current shipbuilding technology of the Ming Dynasty is the large treasure ship that Zheng He built when he sailed to the West. The treasure ship was 44 feet long, 62 feet wide and 146 feet wide.If you use modern terms, it is that the large treasure captain is 62 meters long, 2 meters wide, and has a displacement of nearly [-] tons, which is almost as big as a small aircraft carrier!

There has always been controversy about the size of the large treasure ship. Many historical materials clearly record that the large treasure ship is 44 feet long, 62 feet wide and [-] feet wide. According to the power calculation, no matter how big the sail you build, you can't drive such a huge wooden boat!

Zhu Cijiong was also very curious about this question, and just now he thought of it, so he asked directly: "Menghou, I heard that during the Chengzu reign, the Sanbao eunuch supervised the construction of an extra-large 44 feet long and [-] feet wide when he was sent to the West. Treasure Ship, is it true?"

Bi Maokang nodded affirmatively and said, "Your Majesty, it's true. This matter has been recorded in detail in the Ministry of Industry."

Zhu Cijiong then asked: "Such a big treasure ship can't be moved after it is built. Why did he order it to be built?"

Hearing this, Bi Maokang immediately showed a weird expression, hesitating but didn't speak, even Wang Zheng and Song Yingxing next to him showed the same expression, the scene was extremely weird for a while.

What are the meanings of this, do you want to whet my appetite or what?Zhu Cijiong couldn't help urging: "If you know it, just say it, what kind of expression do you have!"

Seeing that the emperor was about to lose his temper, Bi Maokang had no choice but to stammer: "Well, your majesty, Zheng He is afraid of breaking a taboo."

Taboo?What does building a boat have to do with breaking the taboo? Zhu Cijiong became more and more confused the more he listened. He couldn't help asking curiously: "What's the taboo? Tell me the details, don't hesitate."

It is really difficult to say the emperor in front of the emperor, Bi Maokang thought for a while, and then said embarrassingly: "The emperor is the emperor of ninety-five years, and the courtiers naturally dare not offend. Zheng He dare not sit on the biggest treasure ship Offended Chengzu, so a bigger boat was built and placed there to show respect for Chengzu."

This is the reason for a long time. It turns out that this large treasure ship was not built for sailing, but just to show respect for Emperor Chengzu!

Zhu Cijiong didn't want someone to build a ship that couldn't drive and put it there just to show respect to him, so he asked directly: "Now that there is steam power, can a large treasure ship move after being built?"

Bi Maokang replied affirmatively: "This is definitely no problem. I estimate that after installing steam power, the large treasure ship will not only be able to move, but will also be much faster than the current warship."

Zhu Cijiong asked again full of hope: "Can we build bigger treasure ships?"

Now Bi Maokang shook his head, he said in a difficult way: "Your Majesty, I'm afraid this is not possible, because the strength of wood is limited after all, if we build treasure ships in Dali again, they may break from them as soon as they are launched into the water."

Hearing this, Zhu Cijiong said regretfully: "Well, let me build a ship according to the size of a large treasure ship, but it will be propelled by a propeller like a fan, no problem?"

Bi Maokang thought for a while and reported truthfully: "There is no problem in making it, but the propeller mentioned by the emperor may have to be replaced in a few years, because iron will eventually rust."

There is no stainless steel at the moment, and steel rusts faster when soaked in seawater. Zhu Cijiong knows this, and he said indifferently: "Then replace it regularly. Steam powered?"

Now Bi Maokang didn't dare to make a promise, he said awkwardly: "Your Majesty, I'm afraid this will be difficult, adding propellers to the warships that have already been built is definitely not possible, only paddle wheels can be added, and it can only be added at the back. If you add it rashly, I am afraid that the boat will capsize as soon as it is launched, because all boats have a center of gravity, and if the center of gravity is not stable, it is easy to capsize!"

This is a problem, Zhu Cijiong said unwillingly: "Isn't there a [-]-type howitzer at the tail of the battleship, and moving it to the bow will the center of gravity be unstable?"

Bi Maokang patiently explained: "This minister has also considered it. It is definitely not possible to make a paddle wheel as huge as a battleship with wood. It is not strong enough, so it can only be made of iron. The minister estimated that such a large iron wheel The wheels weigh at least tens of thousands of kilograms, and when this thing is installed on the stern, the bow of the ship will definitely tilt up, and a 1000-style howitzer weighs only more than [-] kilograms, and the bow of the ship cannot be held down!"

Zhu Cijiong thought for a while, and suggested: "Isn't there still a boiler and a chimney? These two things are also quite heavy. Isn't it enough to put the bow of the ship?"

Bi Maokang said in a difficult way: "The boiler and chimney are heavy enough, but they are too big. There is no room for the bow of the ship, so they can only be placed in the middle."

Zhu Cijiong thought for a while, and then suggested: "Then just put ten [-]-style howitzers on the bow, wouldn't that be enough?"

Bi Maokang said even more difficultly: "There are at most three [-]-style howitzers on the bow of the ship. If there are more, they will be crowded into a pile, and the cannons can't be fired. Are you sure you want to do this, Your Majesty?"

The [-]-type howitzer is very difficult to build. Just when Zhu Cijiong was at his wit’s end, he happened to see Song Yingxing’s hesitant expression, and he immediately encouraged him: “Chang Geng, you Do you have any suggestions? Say it boldly, and I won't blame you."

Song Yingxing then cupped his hands and said: "Your Majesty, please forgive me for offending me. This howitzer can't be added too much, but the base can be changed. It can be directly changed to the cast iron base on the fort. It is solid. It’s not a problem to cast a piece of iron lump into ten thousand kilograms.”

Hearing this, Zhu Cijiong suddenly realized that he was obsessed with the gun barrel, but he didn't think of using the base to counterweight. He couldn't help but praised: "Chang Geng is right, let's do it like this, Menghou, is it all right now?"

Bi Maokang also suddenly realized, and nodded repeatedly when he heard the words: "It's okay, it's okay."

Now that there is no problem, Zhu Cijiong immediately decided: "Let's do it this way. The Ministry of Industry made paddle wheel propellers and propeller propellers for experimentation a few years ago, and started building super treasure ships in the next year. Battleships, strive to convert all battleships into ships next year!"

(End of this chapter)