At the naval treaty negotiation meeting between the Thai and Spanish countries, representatives from most countries breathed a sigh of relief after the discussion on the tonnage and size limit of capital ships finally came to an end.
The capital ships are the most critical, and the rest are auxiliary ships such as cruisers and destroyers, which should be easy to get by.
But this does not include Britain and France...
There is currently no recognized aircraft carrier as a ship type.
European and Western countries still treat cruisers carrying aircraft as cruisers.
Although in the capital ship negotiations, the British suggestions have been followed to allow the construction of cruisers using the capital ship tonnage share.
However, the total tonnage share of the cruiser itself, as well as the tonnage limit of a single ship, still have to be completed during the cruiser negotiations.
Nelson demanded that aircraft-carrying cruisers be as large as possible, so Britain pursued no restrictions on the tonnage and size of cruisers.
So Grenville followed Nelson's advice and spoke first when the cruiser discussion meeting began:
“We all know that cruisers are the most complex ships in the navy.
"The large-scale ones are first the traditional armored cruisers, and then the aircraft-carrying cruisers that are being studied by various countries recently.
“Their tonnage starts at least 10,000 tons, and may exceed 20,000 tons or even 30,000 tons.
"The smaller ones are various colonies and escort cruisers, with a tonnage of only two to three thousand tons.
"So, we in the United Kingdom believe that the single-ship tonnage limit for cruisers is meaningless."
When the Frenchman Talleyrand heard the British suggestion, he subconsciously wanted to stand up and oppose it directly.
But thinking about his status as the host now, he restrained himself for a moment.
First, I took a look at the reactions of representatives from other countries.
Most of the representatives frowned and may not have immediately realized what the British's purpose was.
But a few seem to have figured it out.
If there is no limit on the tonnage of a single cruiser, wouldn't it be possible to use the cruiser's tonnage share to build capital ships?
Named a cruiser, it is actually designed and built according to the standards of a battleship.
Lucia's representative immediately glanced at the British man, with deep doubts rising in his heart.
Shouldn't this be our request?
Don’t the British even want a 320,000-ton high-speed capital ship?
But no matter what the British have in mind, this suggestion is definitely beneficial to Lucia.
So the Lucians directly expressed their approval.
Then the Prussian Hardenberg glanced at the Lucian again.
Hardenberg also understood the problem with this suggestion and was equally suspicious of the British's purpose.
Prussia pursues the relative balance of power among the navies of the European and Western countries, but actually does not want any other country to stand out too much.
So Hardenberg directly expressed his opposition and made his words clear:
“This will lead some countries to build capital ships in the name of cruisers, which is equivalent to returning to the discussion of capital ship tonnage.
“We have confirmed the tonnage limit for capital ships and all countries have accepted it.
“It is impossible to deliberately leave such loopholes now!
"Prussia firmly opposes it!"
Metternich, the representative of Austria, followed closely:
"We in Austria are equally opposed to it."
Talleyrand saw that the situation was almost over, and expressed that the French were also opposed to it, and gave restrictive suggestions:
"Armored cruisers have been included in the tonnage of capital ships, so the upper limit of the tonnage of a single cruiser should not exceed the conventional standards for armored cruisers.
"So the tonnage of a single cruiser should not exceed 10,000 tons, and the caliber of the artillery should not exceed 160 millimeters."
Prussia and Austria, as well as France, directly opposed it and gave very strong reasons.
Other countries did not have many shipbuilding plans, so Luci also expressed their opposition.
A proposal supported only by the British and Lucians was unlikely to pass.
Grenville also anticipated that this might happen, and originally thought that the request would be passed easily.
But it felt like a loss not to give it a try, so I gave it a try.
After being rejected by the coalition, Grenville immediately proposed a backup plan:
“Then let’s discuss the type and tonnage of aircraft-carrying cruisers separately from conventional cruisers.
"Because we believe that the aircraft carrier cruiser should be at least the tonnage of an armored cruiser."
This time, representatives from most countries immediately fell into deep thought.
Warships carrying aircraft can now be considered a popular project in the navy.
It's just that there is no unified standard yet. Each country's navy is doing its own thing and trying to figure it out.
And the degree of importance that countries attach to it is also completely different.
Under Nelson's strong promotion, the British were most concerned about the research and design of this new warship.
They were followed closely by the French and Spanish.
As for Lucia and Prussia, they are almost at the bottom...
They basically didn't put any thought into the aircraft-carrying cruiser, and they didn't specifically reserve tonnage in the treaty.
So this discussion is mainly about the French and the British.
Talleyrand saw that the representatives from other countries did not speak, so he spoke directly:
"Our view is exactly the opposite. Aircraft-carrying cruisers are still auxiliary ships and still belong to the category of cruisers.
“If the tonnage of this kind of ship is too large, it has no practical significance at all.
"So we don't think it's necessary to separate it out and it should be treated directly like a regular cruiser."
Grenville, of course, responded tit-for-tat:
“The construction and use of aircraft-carrying cruisers are still being studied by countries around the world.
"The standards you think are just your own standards, and your standards may not be correct.
“Limiting the aircraft carrier cruiser to 10,000 tons directly in accordance with your so-called standards is tantamount to destroying other possibilities for the future of the aircraft carrier cruiser.
“As politicians, we should not make this kind of decision for the Navy and related engineering personnel!
"There should be no direct limit on the tonnage of an aircraft-carrying cruiser. At least it should not be limited to 30,000 tons!"
When Grenville shouted 30,000 tons, the representatives at the scene were obviously surprised.
It’s okay if a battleship exceeds 30,000 tons, but a so-called aircraft-carrying cruiser also needs to exceed 30,000 tons?
What are the British paying attention to?
Representatives from several countries were thankful in their hearts that thanks to the negotiation of the naval treaty, some of the special plans of the navies of various countries were revealed.
First was Lucia's 400,000-ton high-speed capital ship plan, and now there is the British 30,000-ton aircraft-carrying cruiser.
At the same time, the parties involved in the dispute were a little over the top.
Because when the British and the French quarrel, both sides have a certain natural momentum bonus.
Talleyrand responded again without hesitation:
"Our standards are those that have been tested and verified. Our standards can prevent you from going astray!"
When Grenville wanted to continue his reply, Spanish Prime Minister Manuel interjected:
“Only the United Kingdom, France, and we are more concerned about aircraft carriers, and there is no need to directly and openly argue at such meetings.
"Why don't we adjourn the meeting temporarily and let the three countries resolve their differences on the design route of the aircraft-carrying cruiser first, and then continue the meeting."
Grenville was obviously taken aback when he heard these words, and suddenly realized that he seemed to have overlooked something.
Talleyrand's reaction was the same. He felt that the direction of his quarrel with the British seemed to be wrong.
The two did not immediately figure out what was wrong with them.
But in this case, pausing is the right choice.
Talleyrand immediately announced a temporary adjournment of the meeting.
Representatives from various countries left the venue with some doubts and their own thoughts.
Talleyrand immediately went to Charles, briefly explained the process of today's meeting, and then immediately expressed his concerns:
】
"Your Highness, I am now worried about whether our judgment about the aircraft carrier is correct."
After hearing the British reaction, Charles also asked thoughtfully:
"You mean, the British insist on relaxing the tonnage standard of aircraft carriers to more than 30,000 tons?
“Is it because the UK may have completed some kind of verification and believes that the tonnage of an aircraft carrier should reach 30,000 tons to be effective?
"Do you think the British experience is more accurate than my dear friend...than the Ming Dynasty's experience?"
Talleyrand immediately explained:
“Your Highness, the British experience may not be more accurate than that of the Ming Dynasty.
“But the problem is that we have not received accurate experience about aircraft carriers from Ming Dynasty.
"We only guess based on the information disclosed by Mr. Niu Jian that Ming Dynasty did not attach extreme importance to aircraft carriers.
"Neither Mr. Niu Jian nor His Highness Prince Dashi told us what tonnage the aircraft carrier should have is the most appropriate.
"Thinking about it now, although Ming Dynasty may not attach extreme importance to it, it should still attach great importance to it.
“While some information was revealed to us, nothing was disclosed, which is still higher than a high-speed battleship.
“The British experience may not be as accurate as the Ming Dynasty, but the British are not completely inaccurate.
"We have cooperated for more than ten years during the world war, and our navies have been operating together for nearly ten years.
"Although I am unwilling to accept it, and I will not admit it in public, the British are indeed better at the navy than us.
"Britain is an island country after all, and its navy is far more important than its army.
"British General Nelson is also recognized as the most talented naval admiral in the world today.
“The British will definitely refer to General Nelson’s suggestions in their naval ship development plan.
“Relaxing the tonnage of aircraft carriers to more than 30,000 tons should be General Nelson’s direct suggestion.
“Building a cruiser with a weight of more than 30,000 tons is absolutely an outrageous requirement.
"It should be difficult for other bureaucrats and military officers and naval engineers to push this toward a naval treaty."
Ciel's expression became more solemn.
Everything Talleyrand said is true and makes sense.
It is true that I have not received direct news from Ming Dynasty, and I don’t know the tonnage of Ming Dynasty’s own aircraft carrier.
There was silence for a while, and then Talleyrand proposed again:
"Your Highness, why don't you ask His Highness Prince Dashi directly?
"Based on your relationship with His Highness Prince Dashi, you should be able to get some special guidance, right?
"This is important information related to the future development of the navy..."
After hearing this, Charles subconsciously wanted to write a telegram, but gave up before his hand could fall.
If you directly ask for detailed information about Ming's aircraft carrier, your close friends will definitely feel uncomfortable whether you tell them or not.
Compared with whether a decision is correct or not, compared with the special relationship with Daming and the friendship with close friends, the latter is obviously more important.
Wrong decisions about aircraft carrier construction will at best be a waste of resources and money.
But once the relationship with Daming and his best friend is damaged, leaving knots and concerns in the other person's heart, it may never be recovered or eliminated.
This is not just a matter of personal friendship.
This special relationship between France and the Ming Dynasty can provide France with conveniences and guarantees that are definitely not comparable to those of throats building relatively correct aircraft carriers in advance.
In the end, Charles decisively gave up the idea.
Then he turned to Talleyrand and asked:
"What does General Villeneuve think? About our aircraft carrier plan, and about Nelson?"
Talleyrand recalled the previous meeting:
"General Villeneuve said that Nelson can be trusted unconditionally regarding naval matters...
“General Villeneuve’s own advice regarding our aircraft carriers is that there should be no obstructions on the deck.
"In terms of tonnage, he said that the deck should be as long as possible, and the corresponding tonnage should be larger.
"Villeneuve believed that an aircraft carrier should be a large high-speed cruiser with a slender hull and high freeboard.
"To be specific, it must be at least 20,000 tons, which is exactly in line with the British requirements..."
Charles was silent for a while after listening:
"Follow the Spanish suggestions and talk to the British and Spanish alone. We may have to modify the negotiation plan and goals for the aircraft carrier..."
On the other side, British Prime Minister Grenville and Talleyrand reacted in exactly the same way.
But the direction is completely opposite.
After Grenville returned to his residence, he immediately sent a telegram to Nelson:
"The French believe that the tonnage of an aircraft-carrying cruiser should not exceed that of a conventional cruiser. There is no point in having an aircraft-carrying cruiser with an excessive tonnage.
"The key is that the French were very decisive in their words, as if they had received a special reminder.
“Considering the special relationship between His Royal Highness Charles and His Highness Prince Dashi of France, we cannot rule out the possibility that the Ming Dynasty’s experience in researching aircraft carrier cruisers has been shared with France.
“Please ask General Nelson to start discussions and simulations with naval generals and engineering personnel as soon as possible based on this premise.
"Reassessing our goals regarding the tonnage and size of aircraft-carrying cruisers is problematic.
"Seriously consider the use and value of aircraft-launching cruisers below 10,000 tons."
George Canning, the British representative who came with Grenville, read Grenville's telegram:
“Your Excellency the Prime Minister is worried that the French have obtained the Ming Dynasty’s research experience in aircraft-carrying cruisers through His Highness Charles.
"Can't we also confirm through Her Majesty Charlotte..."
Grenville was obviously taken aback after hearing this:
"Your Highness Charlotte...is still in the United States...
“Before our direct cooperation with Daming began.
“Before His Highness’s joint venture with His Highness the Prince of Dashi opens on a large scale in the UK.
"I probably won't come back to London again.
"Now... he probably won't help us either."
