Chapter 49

"Design displacement of 10,000 tons..." William muttered, not continuing further. But Tirpitz, who had known him for seven years, understood the unspoken implications. The size of this armored cruiser was already comparable to that of the Brandenburg-class battleships, and its cost would undoubtedly skyrocket, unlike the 4,000-ton protected cruisers that could be acquired for just over 6 million marks.

As for why the Naval Design Bureau had made the displacement so large, Tirpitz had a vague idea: apart from satisfying their desire for grand designs, it was more important to leave ample room for future potential enemies.

At the time, the concept of armored cruisers was still in its infancy. The major powers knew they needed to add vertical armor to cruisers, but they didn't know what form these new cruisers should take. To achieve victory in future naval battles, the new armored cruisers had to be equipped with powerful guns and robust armor. Under the guidance of the "appropriate enlargement of displacement" philosophy, it was understandable that the designers had directly increased the displacement of the armored cruisers to 10,000 tons, on par with previous battleships.

Seeing a hint of displeasure on William's face, Tirpitz quickly said, "Your Majesty, I must say that although the cost per ship has increased, its combat effectiveness has been significantly enhanced! If we were to replace this 10,000-ton ship with two 5,000-ton ships, the overlapping protection of the propulsion systems would mean they could only be equipped with 2 240mm guns and 12 150mm guns, and their individual protection would be far inferior to this 10,000-ton armored cruiser. For the same cost, a 10,000-ton ship would be much more effective in reconnaissance fleet engagements than two 5,000-ton ships!"

William's somber expression did not ease at all; it only grew more severe. As a veteran enthusiast of warship design, William certainly knew the benefits of increasing displacement. However, if this design were to be built, there was an unavoidable hard factor: cost.

Tirpitz's armored cruiser design had a displacement of 10,000 tons. Due to the high-power propulsion system, even if domestic shipyards were as conscientious as possible, the procurement cost per ship would inevitably exceed 16 million marks. This would make the cost of a new cruiser exceed 75% of a battleship's cost. In naval battles, the new cruiser's role was merely to serve as a reconnaissance vanguard for the main fleet, not to play the role of an arbiter like a battleship. If too much funding were invested in a type of ship that could not engage in fleet battles, it would directly impact the number of battleships that could be built. The German Navy, due to its late start, was far behind Britain and France in terms of scale, and even Russia was a challenge. Its central European location also meant that it had to prioritize land defense, unlike Britain, which could devote all its financial resources to the navy. In this situation, Germany had to make its warships multifunctional to maximize naval combat effectiveness and compensate for the inherent numerical deficiencies of the German Navy.

William's expression was grave as he organized his thoughts and explained his philosophy to Tirpitz.

Tirpitz was taken aback. He had been so focused on urging the Navy Department to design good warships that he hadn't considered William's concerns. Upon reflection, the emperor's worries were not without merit: armored cruisers were not decisive weapons in naval battles, and spending too much on them was indeed a concern in terms of cost-effectiveness.

But if this were the case, who would deal with the enemy cruisers? Britain, for instance, had an alarming number of cruisers: in just the past five years, 7 Orlando-class cruisers of 5,600 tons, 2 Black-class cruisers of 9,150 tons, and 9 Edgar-class cruisers of 7,350 tons, totaling 18 large and medium cruisers, had been built and commissioned. Two super cruisers with an expected displacement of over 14,000 tons were also under construction. During this period, the German Navy had only one 6,000-ton "Augusta Victoria" cruiser completed and commissioned, and its performance was far from satisfactory. Even if Britain was not Germany's immediate adversary, Germany still needed to take action in the cruiser domain; otherwise, the gap in strength would be vast. Moreover, to pursue naval power, a country had to invest heavily in a naval fleet, and cruisers, though expensive, played an irreplaceable role in the fleet.

Hearing Tirpitz's thoughts, William's eyes showed a struggle, but then determination took over. He slowly said, "You are right. Building a fleet does require a significant investment, which I was prepared for when I decided to establish the navy five years ago. However, due to Germany's national conditions, our naval development cannot be as cost-insensitive as Britain's; we must be meticulous with every warship. Our main adversary is France, and we only need to defeat the French Navy. As for the British, let them spend their money as they wish."

William spoke calmly, but a strong sense of humiliation and frustration welled up inside him, making his voice slightly hoarse. Over the past two decades, despite Germany's rapid industrial, economic, and technological growth, its late unification meant it still lagged behind the century-old British Empire in many areas. If it were merely a matter of initial disadvantages, they could be overcome through development, but Germany's central European location subjected it to the dual pressure of the Franco-Russian alliance. In this situation, Germany could not focus solely on naval development like Britain. Watching Britain's warships launch one after another, William could only feel envy and resentment.

Tirpitz's lips parted, a "but" almost escaping, but he swallowed it when he saw the emperor's gaze. He nodded slowly and said, "If our main adversary is France, then our need for cruisers is much smaller. Currently, the French Navy has only four Charner-class protected cruisers from 1890 that can serve in frontline combat. They have a displacement of about 4,700 tons, equipped with 2 194mm main guns and 6 138mm secondary guns, with a speed of less than 19 knots. Apart from their firepower, they have few redeeming qualities. With Germany's current ship design capabilities, building a superior warship is not a problem. The only slightly noteworthy point is a protected cruiser the French began building in January last year, with a known displacement of 5,300 tons."

Hearing Tirpitz's revelation about France's naval strength, William was slightly surprised, then his expression relaxed. His greatest concern was that France might also build 10,000-ton cruisers like Britain, but it turned out that the French were declining. Although their navy ranked second in the world, it was far behind Britain. The glory of the Napoleonic era had been completely extinguished with the defeat at Trafalgar. If Germany built 5,000-ton cruisers, it could be done for 8 million marks, which was the ideal tonnage difference between cruisers and battleships in William's mind. He paused and said, "In that case, Alfred, have the Naval Design Bureau revise the cruiser design and bring it to me. Tell them that if the cost is too high, even if it can defeat the corresponding French warship, I will not approve it."

Tirpitz replied, "Your Majesty, rest assured, your will shall be carried out."

(William II's philosophy is not a fabrication by the author. Historically, with the construction of the Scharnhorst-class armored cruisers, the Kaiser was quite dissatisfied, believing that cruisers were becoming increasingly expensive and the price gap with battleships was narrowing, despite cruisers not being decisive in naval battles. Based on this, the Kaiser proposed that large cruisers should be able to join the battle line, designing them to be more like fast battleships. Here, due to the time difference, the author only has William identify the problem without finding a solution.)

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