Chapter 641: The Future of the French Navy
Joseph declared immediately:
"Your excellent work has made the navy's strength soar! Starting this month, your ratings on the Talent Committee will be raised by one level, and the Brest Shipyard will issue special allowances."
Murdoch and the other two men beamed, bowing in unison:
"Thank you, Your Royal Highness the Crown Prince!"
It was well known that a one-level promotion from the Talent Committee meant a larger villa, a more luxurious carriage, more servants, higher income, and a highly esteemed social status. By regulation, His Majesty the King would regularly meet all talents rated C or higher each year and host a reception for them – a privilege many great nobles could only dream of.
After distributing his "sweets," Joseph spoke seriously:
"Next, the development of the super high-pressure steam engine will be in your hands! I promise you, on the day the 200 horsepower steam engine is completed, I will personally apply for titles of nobility for you."
Murdoch and the others promptly bowed again in deference:
"Your Highness, please rest assured! We will certainly not disappoint you!"
Not far away, the "Light of the Mediterranean" sounded its whistle. The black smoke billowing from its funnel thickened, clearly indicating it was ready to set sail.
First up was a speed demonstration between the "Light of the Mediterranean" and a galleass.
Previously, a test vessel with only one steam engine could easily leave a galleass far behind, so a new warship equipped with two steam engines was a truly crushing force.
In less than 15 minutes, the "Light of the Mediterranean" had opened a distance of over 600 meters from its opponent. This already exceeded the maximum range of a 24-pounder cannon.
This meant that if the "Light of the Mediterranean" passed by an enemy ship, in just 15 minutes at most, the enemy's cannon fire would no longer reach it.
This was still against a galleass; if it were a pure sailing warship with a slow startup speed, it could probably escape the opponent's firing range in 10 minutes.
It was worth noting that the smoothbore cannons of this era were highly inaccurate, and a naval battle often dragged on for hours before an enemy ship could be sunk.
Ten minutes could almost be considered an instant.
Joseph clapped with satisfaction for the steam warship. What he hadn't expected was that the next vessel to spar with the "Light of the Mediterranean" would be a massive third-rate battleship, the "Valiant."
The steam frigate, compared to the third-rate ship more than twice its size, looked like a mere toy.
Joseph looked at Marquis Castelli:
"What is this meant to demonstrate?"
"Actual combat, Your Highness," the Minister of the Navy replied. "As you predicted, with appropriate tactical support, our new frigates are more than capable of engaging battleships in the Mediterranean."
"You've done exceptionally well," Joseph praised. While he had proposed the concept, the navy had completed the specific tactical designs and trained the sailors to execute them in less than half a year, a truly astonishing level of efficiency. A long whistle blast pierced the sky, and the "Light of the Mediterranean" surged forward, almost instantly leaving the massive battleship behind, out of sight.
It took the "Valiant" a long time to point its bow toward the "enemy ship," its sails fully unfurled, but the weak winds here caused them to hang limply.
The "Light of the Mediterranean" maintained sufficient distance, leveraging its superior maneuverability to quickly turn and position itself ahead of the "Valiant," then crossed directly, presenting its broadside precisely to the enemy's bow.
This was the classic "Crossing the T" tactic – warships of this era were heavily armed on their broadsides, while only a few cannons were mounted at the bow and stern. Therefore, if one could align their broadside against the enemy ship's bow or stern, it would create a situation of one-sided firepower.
The cannons of the "Light of the Mediterranean" began to thunder. The "Valiant," in turn, frantically tried to pivot its hull. However, just as the latter's broadside was about to turn, the steam frigate instantly unleashed full power and sped away.
Subsequently, the steam frigate circled around, used its absolute speed advantage to once again cross the "Valiant's" bow, and fired its cannons anew.
The exercise lasted over half an hour. The "Light of the Mediterranean" maintained a dominant position throughout, forming a "Crossing the T" four times and completing its firing, while the "Valiant" never managed a single broadside volley.
At the end of the exercise, the "Light of the Mediterranean's" funnel belched a thick plume of smoke, and it sped away. The third-rate battleship desperately gave chase but couldn't even catch its exhaust trail.
Joseph stood up again and led the applause. Other naval officers and shipyard personnel excitedly joined in the cheers and clapping.
Everyone understood clearly that, at present, third-rate battleships were the absolute backbone of the fleet – first and second-rate warships were expensive and difficult to deploy their firepower effectively, so they served more as symbols of the fleet or were used to ram enemy formations with their robust hulls. This meant that France only needed to heavily arm itself with cheap and easily constructed steam frigates to contend with the main British fleet in the Mediterranean!
At the Brest Shipyard's current pace, approximately twenty "Light of the Mediterranean"-class frigates could be built in about a year.
Of course, with a frigate's firepower, it would be difficult to sink a battleship, at most damaging it. However, the British fleet faced severe supply difficulties in the Mediterranean – currently, the entire North African coast, except for western Algiers, was under French control. The British would have to return to Gibraltar to resupply, whereas the French Navy could resupply virtually anywhere.
Thus, if France simply waged a war of attrition against the British fleet, the latter would soon be forced to withdraw from the Mediterranean Sea due to ships needing to return to port for repairs and a lack of supplies.
With the maiden voyage ceremony concluded, the naval officers animatedly discussed the future prospects as they departed the harbor with the Crown Prince.
As Joseph listened to Borda, the Inspector General of Naval Construction, describe the construction plans for the steam frigates, his gaze suddenly caught sight of a uniquely shaped small boat docked in a narrow channel on the north side of the harbor.
The boat had only a few sparse sails, but on each side of its hull, it was fitted with a waterwheel-like wooden paddlewheel, while a funnel stood prominently in the center of its body.
'A steam paddleboat?' Joseph wondered, gesturing curiously towards the small vessel and asking Borda, "Is that an experimental prototype from the shipyard?"
The Inspector General of Naval Construction paused for a moment, then smiled:
"Your Highness, that was built by a gentleman named Jouffroy. Two months ago, he came to the shipyard with that boat and a design blueprint, claiming he had designed a new type of warship.
"We reviewed his design and realized it was merely a steam paddleboat, so we didn't adopt it.
"However, Monsieur Jouffroy possesses considerable design talent and unique insights into steamships, so I hired him as a designer at the shipyard.
"Oh, and after he saw the steam warships you invented, he never mentioned his little boat again."
'Jouffroy?'
Joseph vaguely recalled that a Frenchman named Jouffroy had been mentioned in a documentary about Robert Fulton, the father of the steam paddleboat. Jouffroy had built a steam-powered boat over a decade before Fulton, but due to the abysmal quality of French steam engines, he was ultimately forced to abandon his efforts.
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