Black Corporation: Joseon [EN]: Chapter 1103

1103. Overture to Disaster (10)

“I repeat, this plan is an adventure, a gamble. Have you not considered the military might of the Empire?”

“Our France is also powerful!”

The official who submitted the plan strongly protested Charles VIII’s words, listing his evidence:

– “Our French muskets are as powerful and accurate as those of the Empire. The Imperial muskets load five shots? Our muskets also load five shots!”

– “The Empire boasts that its gunpowder is powerful and smokeless. Now, almost all gunpowder used in European countries is like that.”

– “The Empire’s Hwachas [Korean rocket artillery]? We have them too. The Empire’s assault vehicles? We have those as well. The Empire’s ironclad ships? We also have them, and their numbers are increasing.”

– “The Empire often says:

‘Ten cannons are better than ten muskets.’

And they have that many cannons. But our France now has as many powerful cannons as the Empire!”

“The old Empire was the ‘Walls of Jericho’! Your Majesty! The Walls of Jericho eventually fell! If we prepare properly, the Empire can be overcome!”

“So, you propose to attract as much private capital as possible to counter Suez, and focus state finances on military expansion?”

“That is correct.”

“Hoo… But I am still afraid of the Empire.”

“Yes, the Empire is certainly powerful. But the Empire has a fatal weakness.”

“A fatal weakness?”

“It has much land, but not many people. This is its fatal weakness.”

“Even though it already exceeds 50 million and is approaching 60 million?”

“Have you forgotten how vast the Empire’s territory is?”

The official continued his explanation.

– “The Empire’s territory is too vast. But the forces to defend it are still insufficient.”

– “The Empire’s military strength stems from this weakness. They compensate for the lack of numbers with the power of firearms.”

– “Looking at this from another perspective, we can discover a surprising fact.”

– “The Empire severely lacks the forces to project outwards!”

“Hoh? What is the basis for this?”

As Charles VIII began to show a positive reaction, the presenter put more strength into his voice.

“First, let’s examine the past Italian Unification War.”

– “Even in the last Italian Unification War, the first thing the Empire did was to sign an exclusive contract with Switzerland.”

– “After that, they grew the Florentine army and gathered the forces of the continuously joining cities, using them as their strength.”

– “The Empire only fought with its own troops as the main force in the early stages.”

– “After that, the Imperial ground forces mainly focused on artillery support and logistics.”

– “The same goes for the Imperial Navy. After suffering unexpected damage in the Battle of Corsica, the Imperial Navy focused on blockading and destroying ports rather than actively engaging in naval warfare.”

– “This is evidence that the Empire did not have the *yoyu* [Japanese: leeway, room to spare] to dispatch troops.”

“…Of course, the Italian Unification War is already in the past. However, the Empire’s lack of troops has been proven once again through the case of Persia this time.”

The presenter, after taking a moment to quench his thirst, continued his explanation.

– “As a result of analyzing information related to the events in Persia this time, the cavalry was mainly composed of Imperial troops, but the general infantry was mainly composed of Ming [Chinese dynasty] and Japanese troops.”

– “Even the reinforcements that were later sent were mostly units sent from Ming and Japan.”

“Judging from these situations, the Empire lacks the troops to send outside the Empire. Therefore, if we use this well, France has a good chance of gaining control of Persia’s interests.”

“Have you not considered that Ming and Japan will send soldiers?”

“The armaments of the Ming and Japanese armies are not superior to those of our France. Moreover, it takes a long time to supply them. Both troops and supplies.”

“Hmm…”

As Charles VIII pondered the answer, Louis XII, who was next to him, asked a question on Charles’s behalf.

“Doesn’t the supply problem also affect us? The supply route to Persia seems to have many problems? Isn’t getting into the Mediterranean Sea a problem right away? Have you forgotten Gibraltar?”

At Louis XII’s point, the reporter walked to the map, pointed to one place, and answered.

“We can use Savoy. Since the last Italian Unification War, Savoy has been under our influence.”

“Let’s say the port is okay. What about the ships? They will be blocked from Gibraltar?”

“We can prevent the Imperial Navy from coming out of Gibraltar.”

“Ha! Do you think that’s possible? The opponent is the Imperial Navy!”

At Louis XII’s skeptical question, the presenter gestured to his colleagues who were waiting. The colleagues who saw the gesture brought in a large table after a while.

The presenter lifted the cloth covering the table and said to Louis XII.

“This is the solution to deal with the Imperial Navy’s battleships.”

“Huh?”

“Uh?”

Charles VIII and Louis XII, who saw the model placed on the table, jumped up from their seats. On the table was a model of a small steamship. The steamship had a long rod extending forward, and a barrel was attached to the end of the rod.

“‘Spar torpedoes’ and assault ships.”

“Spar torpedoes? Assault ships?”

“Explain in more detail.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

The presenter, who received Charles VIII’s order, began to explain this new secret weapon.

– “A small ship, slightly larger than a regular boat, is equipped with a high-output steam engine. This allows for faster movement than regular battleships.”

– “The mast, which is no longer needed as the steam engine runs, is made into a spar. This spar is usually raised upwards, but when deployed in an operation, it is lowered forward and placed like a spear.”

– “A waterproof barrel is attached to the end of the spar, and this barrel is filled with about 200 Paris *livres* [historical French currency] (about 98 kg) of gunpowder. In addition, the barrel is equipped with a detonator and harpoon-shaped hooks.”

– “The assault ship rams into the enemy ship, attaches this bomb to the enemy ship, and explodes it to damage the enemy ship.”

– “There are two ways to explode it. One is to connect a string to the detonator on the barrel. After hooking the barrel on the enemy ship and retreating to a safe distance, the detonator is triggered through the string. The other is to activate the detonator as soon as the barrel is hooked.”

“Looks like a suicide attack, not an assault?”

“If trained properly, survival is possible.”

“…Let’s put that aside. It has no advantages other than being fast, but can it do its part in a battlefield where cannonballs are rampant?”

“We can use the weaknesses of the cannons on the Imperial battleships.”

“Weaknesses?”

“Yes. The Empire prefers to shoot from a distance. As a result, if an enemy ship comes within a certain distance, it becomes difficult to bombard. Of course, if the enemy ship is a large ship of similar size, it can be bombarded with direct fire, but that is impossible for a small ship like that.”

“Doesn’t the Empire also carry Hwachas with them because they know that?”

At Louis XII’s point, the presenter pointed to the bridge of the assault ship and answered.

“Therefore, armor plates are attached to the entire hull, starting with the bridge of this assault ship. The thickness of the armor will be enough to defend against the bullets and fragments of the Hwachas.”

“Are you trying to maximize speed?”

“That’s right.”

“Considering the size, it won’t be able to go out to the open sea.”

The presenter nodded at Louis XII’s assessment.

“That’s right. But considering the purpose of this assault ship, that’s enough. The purpose of this assault ship is only one: to prevent the Imperial Navy from leaving Gibraltar or entering the Mediterranean.”

At the presenter’s words, Charles VIII and Louis XII looked at the map. If they could block the narrow passage from the Atlantic Ocean to the Mediterranean Sea, the chances of France and the Ottomans winning would be very high.

And fortunately, there were a couple of French colonies on the North African coast. If they could make good use of them, they could block Gibraltar.

‘Of course, that’s based on the assumption that that suicide-guaranteed weapon does its part…..’

Knowing the feelings of Charles VIII and Louis XII, the presenter added an explanation.

“The cost of building one standard ironclad battleship is enough to build 14 of those assault ships. And even if you add up all the sailors on the 14 ships, it’s only 1/3 of the sailors on a battleship.”

At the presenter’s explanation, the expressions of Charles VIII and Louis XII changed at once. In other words, even if all 14 of those ships were lost in the process of sinking one Imperial battleship, it would still be a profit.

‘It’s a cruel calculation, but…..’

It was a calculation with no humanity at all, but it was a definite profit.

“Can 200 Paris *livres* of gunpowder sink an enemy ship?”

“According to our experiments and calculations, we can inflict serious damage even if we don’t sink it. And if three or more assault ships succeed in their mission, they can inflict very fatal damage.”

“Is that so? I understand. I’ll consider it. Let’s stop here today.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

“Everyone leave except for the Duke of Orléans.”

Once Charles VIII and Louis XII were alone in the conference room, Charles VIII revealed his inner thoughts to Louis XII.

“I want to accept his plan. What do you think, Duke?”

“It is an adventure.”

“The problem is Portugal and Italy. In the case of the Ottomans, they have joined hands with our France, but they have a long-standing friendship with the Empire.”

“If we use Persia as bait, we can tie their feet.”

“Huh? Haven’t both countries signed a mutual defense alliance with the Empire?”

At Charles VIII’s question, Louis XII took a moment to quench his thirst and answered.

“I remembered while listening to the presentation earlier. There was a prerequisite for the mutual defense alliance in question: ‘The Empire will only participate if Italy or Portugal is attacked first.’ However, the opposite case was not in the treaty.”

“The opposite case? Are you talking about the case where the Empire is attacked?”

“If I remember correctly, that’s right. The only treaty that stipulates the opposite case would be the treaty between the Empire and Switzerland.”

“Hmm…”

Charles VIII, hearing Louis XII’s answer, quietly calculated the number of cases.

‘If we shake Portugal and Italy appropriately with Persia as bait, as Louis said, we can tie them down. If we succeed in holding back the enemies behind us, Portugal and Italy….. If we block the Strait of Gibraltar properly, we won’t have to worry about the Mediterranean Sea. If that happens, we won’t have to worry about the supply problem. And…..’

“Although the Empire and Ming have joined hands, isn’t it famous that these two are deeply hostile?”

“That’s right. If the Empire’s troops become insufficient, Ming will not stand still.”

“Then the Empire won’t be able to pour all its strength into Persia?”

“That’s right.”

Charles VIII and Louis XII, who had analyzed this far, reached the same conclusion.

“If things go according to plan, not only Persia but also the interests of Suez will be ours, right?”

“If things go according to plan, that’s right.”

“Shall we give it a try?”

“It’s worth a try.”

“Then….. let’s do it!”