Restart Spain

The next day, Arsenio and Giorgos, who had been appointed by Alfonso as Ministers of the Army and Navy, came to the meeting room of the Royal Palace of Madrid early to wait.

As the direct heads of the army and navy, they naturally learned the purpose of coming today from the Chancellor of the Exchequer Fear Rashids.

Even if it is a comrade-in-arms who can be entrusted to the back during the war, when faced with the issue of military expenditure distribution, the two of them are staring at each other with bad expressions.

At this time, Alfonso had just been served by the maid to wash up and came here. As soon as he opened the door, he saw two people who were arguing with swords.

"Good morning, gentlemen!" Alfonso greeted them with a smile, and he was more than happy to see this situation.

"Good morning, Your Majesty." The two of them gave a military salute and said in agreement.

"I called the two of you today, mainly because I want to make some allocations on the planning of military spending in 1875." Alfonso tucked the corner of his clothes and sat on the main seat.

"Please take a seat."

"This year's navy and army budget is much higher than in the past few years, mainly because last year there was basically no investment in all walks of life because of the war, so the total budget of the navy and army this year is as high as 300 million pesetas." Alfonso said.

"Among them, the Army plans to complete the replacement by the end of 1875, including rifles, cannons, and new weapons and machine guns, with a total budget of 80 million match towers."

Alfonso finished talking about the army's budget in one breath, then turned to look at Giorgos.

"Ghiorgos, I have a drawing of a battleship here, which I designed with great concentration during my time in England."

"This battleship is 125 meters long and 22.9 meters wide; the average draft is 8.4 meters, and the displacement at full load is 22.9 meters."

"In terms of firepower, four 343mm guns and ten 152.4mm rapid-fire guns are used."

"In terms of protection, the thickness of the main armor is not less than 457 mm."

"And considering that the low freeboard of the traditional ironclad fleet often makes the artillery unusable, this time we will use a high freeboard design."

After Alfonso finished speaking, he looked like Giorgos and wanted to see his reaction.

"Your Majesty, if this battleship is really what you said, then it will be the most powerful battleship in the world." Giorgos looked excited, if this battleship really joined the Spanish Navy, That would be a huge boost for the Spanish Navy.

"Quickly bring the drawings to the Navantia shipyard, let the designers inside improve it, and then plan the construction." Giorgos told the entourage outside the door that the Navantia shipyard was a native of Spain in the 18th century. The continuation of the three major shipyards is also the only shipyard in Spain that can handle it later.

"The cost of this warship is estimated at 2.1 million pesetas, plus the cost of shells, personnel, and the above. The budget is 2.5 million pesetas. If it is feasible, then I will approve 12.5 million pesetas and use To build 5 ships, and allocate 10 million pesetas to build various auxiliary fleets.”

Alfonso said in a deep voice.

"Next year, all shipyards will be on full fire, and the new tonnage should be 120,000 tons in the next three years. Shipbuilding must try their best to conceal it." Although there is no way to hide the fact that shipyards across the country start construction together, it can be delayed for one day.

"In addition, we will step up the recruitment of the navy to ensure that the battleship can quickly become combat power when it is launched."

After Alfonso finished speaking, he looked like Arsenio. The army's training was originally planned to invite Germans to train.

But with the birth of smokeless gunpowder weapons, it is obviously not suitable for queuing to be shot.

"The army will soon bring in a new batch of weapons, and the tactics of queuing to kill are no longer suitable for us. This book records some of my experience in training the new army. This time our army will also be at the forefront of the world."

This book is Alfonso's soldier training based on World War I and World War II and some classic tactics, such as trenches, barbed wire, artillery washing and so on.

The steps can't be too big, it's easy to get involved, and the weapons and equipment are obviously more suitable for World War I and World War II.

Strengthening the combat effectiveness of the army is an urgent matter, and the previous Spanish army did not benefit much from the battle of the colonial army.

Perhaps among the major European powers, only the legendary Italian Army has a lower combat effectiveness than him. That is a top-level army that even the African natives with big swords and spears can't beat.

And more importantly, the colony needed a strong and shrewd army to deal a fatal blow to the colony's rebels.

Although Spain's mainland has been pacified, the two largest overseas colonies, Cuba and the Philippines, are still in chaos.

Cuba's War of Independence is in a stalemate. Historically, in early 1877, A.M. de Campos led 25,000 reinforcements to Cuba, and barely ended the war in 1878.

And in the Americas in the northern part of Cuba, they are already salivating, ready to pounce on the once-big empire and bite a piece of meat.

The current Cuban Independence Army would not have been able to last for so long without the support of the Americans behind it.

The Philippines in Asia is also full of riots. After the end of the Spanish-American War in history, the United States won the Philippines, and the Philippine insurgents immediately fought against the US military.

The Philippines is different from Cuba. Cuba, like most of the former Spanish colonies, has a majority of Hispanic descendants, so the country speaks Spanish. In addition to Brazil, Spanish is also recognized as the first language in South America.

The Philippines is different. It has a long journey and a large indigenous population. They say that the indigenous people who need it are the majority, and independence has always been their goal.

And too many indigenous people have also caused poor management. Although the Philippines is rich in natural resources and brings extremely high benefits, the high management expenditure also makes this money not very impressive.

"The army and navy must become stronger as soon as possible. The resistance of the colonies has intensified. We need the army to silence these voices, and this time is destined to not be too long."

After Alfonso finished speaking, he took a deep look at the two of them. The inside was weak, and there were wolves staring at you from the outside, ready to take a bite of meat on you. Now the army and navy really need to grow up quickly to solve this dilemma.

And Arsenio and Giorgos are also solemn, they are naturally aware of the foreign and internal troubles of the motherland.

"Yes, Your Majesty, we will complete the training of the troops in the shortest time, and then wait for the arrival of new equipment to quickly form combat effectiveness."

"Then go get ready, your task is very arduous, and you can't make mistakes for a minute."

After the two retreated, Alfonso stared at the map expressionlessly. The huge Spanish ship had ushered in the most suitable helm for her.

The general blueprint has been drawn, and the follow-up only needs to be tinkered with this framework. Alfonso believes that in the near future, in this epic era of great powers competing for hegemony, his Spain and him will definitely be the brightest page.

……

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