Chapter 5

With some original settings and interpretations:

It was packed to the brim.

It wasn't supposed to be like this...

Early August, 1905

"Our boss is either crazy or the world's best investor."

Henry Ford announced this bluntly at the board meeting.

Technically, Werner was the CEO on paper, but in reality, it was Ford who held the reins.

To Ford, it was a job thrust upon him, and he was deeply dissatisfied, but he found joy in automobile racing.

Various manufacturers like Fiat, Panhard, and Daimler-Benz used auto racing as a means of advertising and showcasing technology, so Ford also formed a dedicated racing team and became deeply involved.

Mass production technology was already in place, and it was at a stage where only minor adjustments were needed.

It was then that Werner, on vacation, brought a proposal to enter the shipbuilding industry.

The production lines were already full with automobiles and aircraft, and entering a completely different field like shipbuilding was the reason for Ford's comment.

"What do you mean?"

One of the board members asked.

"There's no other way to put it. It seems we're going to start building ships too."

The board members were stunned.

At the same time, they understood Ford's words.

Immediately, objections began to pour in.

While aircraft also lacked expertise, there were individuals like the Wright brothers and Jato who were building them privately.

However, no one in the company had any experience in shipbuilding.

"You're right. That's why I refused, saying it was impossible."

The board members breathed a sigh of relief.

They were convinced that expanding the current business was the key to profit and national development.

And they were right.

By focusing on just two areas—aircraft and automobiles—they were able to concentrate capital and manpower to a degree that no other company could match.

For Werner, the proposal was also about wanting to establish connections with the navy, and there was a somewhat romantic notion of Germany maintaining a large fleet throughout the 20th century.

"Well, if by any chance, the boss acquires a company and wants to apply our existing technology, I told him we could make it a division of our company."

Ford's words elicited a laugh.

If that were the case, there would be no damage if it failed, and if it succeeded, the entire company would benefit.

Despite being rejected, Werner did not give up.

Taking advantage of his vacation, he visited major shipyards across Germany, offering loans to those in financial difficulty.

However, most shipyards were expanding and building cargo and passenger ships with government subsidies, so there were almost no financially troubled companies.

Among them, a small company called Nordseewerke in Emden—translated to Japanese as the North Sea Works—raised its hand.

This company, established in 1903 with the support of the mayor of Emden, was a new and small company, and thus received relatively little government funding.

There were many orders, but the shipyard was insufficient, and there was no capital, so Werner immediately decided to support this shipyard.

He immediately flew to Emden and held talks with the president of Nordseewerke and the mayor of Emden.

Werner secured large loans from banks through Schacht.

The amount, reaching tens of millions of marks, astonished the president of Nordseewerke and the mayor of Emden.

While they were still in shock, Werner had his friendly journalists write articles about Nordseewerke and placed them on the front page, spreading money around.

At the same time, he began a general recruitment of shipbuilders and workers, but the shipbuilders who came were all impressed by the scale of Emden Port.

Emden Port was the oldest port in Germany, but it was small and unsuitable for building large ships.

Even if it were to be expanded, there were limits, so Werner took action.

With the approval of the mayor of Emden, he purchased dozens of acres of land in Kiel and Rostock, facing the Baltic Sea, and decided to build new shipyards there.

Of course, the Emden shipyard would continue to be used for local employment, specializing in small vessels, and plans were made to expand the port and dredge and expand related waterways.

With these expansions, Werner proposed the development of construction machinery to Ford of RFR.

He was convinced that with bulldozers and other construction machinery, they could make tremendous profits.

Ford had been aware of construction machinery from Werner's previous remarks but had no interest.

However, he was building a new factory to mass-produce the Ford A, and with other manufacturers like Daimler-Benz advancing their technology and starting large-scale production, Ford needed to get his factory up and running quickly.

Therefore, Ford began to seriously consider construction machinery.

Fortunately, Werner had provided illustrations.

These illustrations, described as amateurish but depicting future construction vehicles, were sent to Ford, who began to study the peculiar caterpillar mechanism.

Caterpillar tracks, or continuous tracks, were already being developed and patented in various countries.

But when Ford decided to proceed, he paid large licensing fees to the inventors, obtained the rights to manufacture the vehicles, and began development.

Coincidentally, the army had also requested the development of various automobiles and aircraft, as per Werner's suggestions, including tanks, aircraft, self-propelled anti-aircraft guns, self-propelled artillery, and trucks.

If the appearance was known, the rough internal structure could be inferred.

Why it was designed that way would become clear during the manufacturing process, and Werner had been successful with this approach.

In fact, Ford and the Wright brothers thought he might be a wizard, but they were satisfied as long as he could produce automobiles and aircraft.

Around the same time, a letter arrived for Werner.

It was from Christian Hülsmeyer, who worked in a laboratory at the University of Karlsruhe, stating that he had developed a groundbreaking device to ensure safe navigation using radio waves.

He had been supported by Werner's science and technology promotion fund, but his invention was not widely recognized at the research presentation, and Werner had received reports that it had only limited success.

However, Christian was confident that his invention was not limited, and he continued to improve it in the laboratory, writing to Werner to seek more support.

Upon reading the letter, Werner visited him, and after hearing a detailed explanation from Christian, he immediately promised 10 million marks in support.

Christian's invention was an early radar, and Werner was surprised that the concept of radar existed at this time.

In addition to financial support, Werner promised to provide as much assistance as possible.

He did not know that in reality, Christian's invention would be forgotten because its effectiveness was not understood.

Nevertheless, Werner gave Christian illustrations of various antennas, including the Yagi and parabolic antennas, that he remembered.

Christian, intrigued by the strange shapes of the antennas, respected his sponsor's opinion and decided to investigate whether they could be used for something.

---

Early September, 1905

"...Sigh."

Wilhelm II sighed as he looked at the garden from a balcony in the Berlin Palace.

He had not given up on Germany's expansion abroad.

However, the reports from the General Staff, Moltke, and the Navy Minister, Tirpitz, were sources of worry.

The General Staff reported that the increasing demand for automobiles and aircraft required the development of new weapons and the urgent need to secure various natural resources, including oil.

Similarly, Tirpitz proposed that the Navy switch to oil as fuel for its ships.

Tirpitz's reasoning was simple: the best coal for the world's best ships came from Cardiff, Wales, in the hypothetical enemy country.

It was not pleasant to have the best fuel produced by a hypothetical enemy, so it might be better to switch to internal combustion engines that burn oil, which has recently attracted attention.

The oil would be imported from relatively friendly countries like the United States and Russia.

"Import, import..."

Wilhelm II wanted to secure such resources domestically.

Any ruler would wish for that, but it was not always possible.

At the time, self-sufficiency in food and resources was considered essential for a nation.

This led to the concept of a survival sphere, which was a common idea not only in Germany but also in other countries.

Incidentally, the large-scale development of this survival sphere concept in reality became the Nazi's Lebensraum in the East, but the core of this concept was to secure food and resources to sustain the nation and to provide an outlet for surplus labor.

"...Can't we find it in our colonies?"

Wilhelm II muttered and ordered his secretary, who was waiting outside the room, to bring materials on the overseas colonies.

He spread the maps on the table and tried to read the reports on the conditions of each colony.

However, what he wanted to know was not there.

The local industries were described as agriculture using native labor.

Are there resources? Have they not been investigated?

Wilhelm II immediately checked his schedule and found that a meeting on colonial affairs was scheduled in a few days.

Coincidentally, the meeting was to address the rebellion in East Africa—the Maji Maji Rebellion—and to review colonial policies.

Thinking that anything could happen, Wilhelm II gathered the materials and hurried out of the room.

---

Time passed, and it was October 1905.

"...What's wrong with His Majesty?"

Werner looked up from the newspaper and turned to Manstein, who was sitting next to him.

Manstein seemed to share the same thought and was looking at Werner.

Guderian was frozen, still holding the newspaper.

The top article in the newspaper announced the promotion of investment in overseas colonies, the recruitment of settlers, the establishment of a new Imperial Colonial Office, and the improvement of relations with Britain and the strengthening of relations with America.

Werner, who knew the historical facts, was naturally shocked, and Manstein and others were also astonished by the emperor's 180-degree change in approach.

However, this was indirectly influenced by Werner.

Thanks to him, automobiles were rapidly spreading in Germany, and road construction and gas stations were rapidly developing in various regions.

The demand for gasoline was increasing exponentially, and the Vernadoktrin also required a large number of automobiles.

Therefore, securing oil became an urgent matter for the army.

At the time, Germany had several colonies: New Guinea, Southwest Africa, East Africa, Cameroon, Togo, Samoa, and Tsingtao.

Among these, New Guinea and parts of Africa would produce crude oil in the future.

Namibia produced uranium and diamonds, Tanzania produced gold, nickel, and cobalt, and Rwanda produced tin and tungsten.

In other words, Germany could obtain most of the resources it would need in the future.

Wilhelm II's decision was nothing short of brilliant.

"Nevertheless... there are still many problems."

Werner sighed and stared at the stack of documents on the shelf.

These documents were the problems that had been resolved so far.

The biggest problem was supply.

This affected both the military and civilians. In addition to expanding the existing railway network, it was decided to lay double-track broad-gauge railways for freight transport, as well as double-track standard roads and highways. Moltke was determined to push this through, as the expansion of the logistics network would contribute to the development of domestic industries.

"For a while, we might not have to worry about a war with Britain."

Guderian said.

Manstein and Werner nodded in agreement.

According to the newspaper, Britain also welcomed this, and the British government's statement suggested that they would not take any action as long as Germany did not provoke them.

This indicated that Germany's most cautious adversary was now just one country.

Russia, to the east, was embroiled in domestic turmoil before the Russo-Japanese War, and the General Staff predicted that it would not take action unless provoked.

Therefore, the one country was France.

However, France was also focusing on developing its domestic industries to compete with Germany, so there would be no war unless Germany provoked them.

"Peace is indeed a preparation period for the next war."

Werner was convinced that this was the time.

Manstein and Guderian also nodded in agreement.

"But... the Emperor seems very eager to suppress the rebellion."

Manstein's comment was met with nods from Werner and the others.

According to the newspaper, 1,000 troops would be sent at the end of October, and 3,000 more the following month.

What they did not know was that, historically, only 1,000 troops were to be sent.

However, Moltke argued that it was necessary to maintain the colonies and to get the troops accustomed to local combat, so an additional 3,000 were sent.

---

In German East Africa, where 4,000 regular troops were sent, the rebellion began to lose momentum from early December when the dispatched forces became active, and by May of the following year, it was completely suppressed.

During this time, the army not only received supplies from Germany but also relied on local supplies. However, they were plagued by the low port capacity, intermittent supply line cuts due to guerrilla attacks, and the poor road network.

Moltke, taking the situation seriously, established a task force and, after extensive discussions, concluded that the rapid expansion of ports and road networks required a significant strengthening of the engineering corps, as well as the transport of supplies by aircraft and airships.

Additionally, anti-guerrilla tactics were seriously considered.

---

The Colonial Office, established to address the rebellion, thoroughly exposed and arrested those involved in corruption and brutality in the colonies under Wilhelm II's initiative.

At the same time, administrative reforms were implemented to find ways to coexist with the native populations.

---

Werner had his own concerns.

One of them was the purchase of Heilongjiang Province—technically, the sale of lease rights, as the Qing Dynasty still existed.

Werner and German banks, who had taken on most of the Japanese government bonds, were well-received.

Thanks to his previous achievements, Schacht, who had risen to a certain position, flew to Japan about a month before the end of the war and began negotiations with the Japanese government, which proceeded smoothly.

Japan's finances were tight, and they had no room to expand into Manchuria or Korea.

Around the same time, American railroad tycoon Edward Harriman, who had underwritten 5 million dollars of the second Japanese war bonds during the Russo-Japanese War, visited Japan to negotiate the joint operation of the South Manchuria Railway with the Japanese.

Harriman, though not as welcomed as Schacht, was also well-received, and the negotiations proceeded smoothly.

Harriman and Schacht also met to discuss the sharing of interests, agreeing that if they acquired Heilongjiang Province, they would build railways with American and German capital.

Schacht was unaware of Werner's idea of joint governance, but, seeing the rapid growth of American economic power, he moved to prevent future conflicts.

In the midst of this, the chief Japanese negotiator at the Portsmouth peace conference, Katsura Taro, strongly opposed the agreement, threatening to break it off.

He used a simple but effective strategy, writing to newspapers and stirring public opinion to constrain the government's actions.

Schacht and Harriman were shocked.

They could not understand what benefits Japan would gain from this.

Moreover, before the Russo-Japanese War, Japan had advocated for the opening of Manchuria and Korea to secure funding.

Even if it was a pretext, it was a fact that they had made such claims.

Harriman and Schacht naturally expected Japan to use their countries as a counterbalance against Russia, and both had received clear approval from their respective governments.

Werner's blueprint had become an officially recognized plan by the German government and the emperor, but he had never discussed his plans with anyone.

The German government and the emperor simply did not want to miss the opportunity to acquire colonies.

In any case, the price was Heilongjiang Province and the South Manchuria Railway.

Japan, due to financial constraints, lacked confidence in operating and governing these areas, so they welcomed American and German capital.

The emerging powers of Germany and America, with few colonies, were eager for markets and resources.

This became a small catalyst that connected Germany and America.

---

Late October 1905

Harriman and Schacht held a meeting to secure their respective interests.

It had been only about a week since Katsura Taro's opposition, but the government and public opinion were beginning to lean against it.

"Mr. Schacht, it seems we have the same goal."

He was neatly dressed in a suit, looking like a capable businessman.

"It seems so. Although we come from the New World and the Old World, we are in agreement on what we most desire now."

Schacht was also well-dressed, matching Harriman's presence.

"My country and yours, despite different histories, are both emerging nations. We have only a few of what Britain, France, and the Netherlands have in abundance."

Harriman's words were met with a nod from Schacht.

However, Schacht knew that the financial conglomerates Kuhn, Loeb & Co. and