Chapter 243 Expansion of Assets
The Australasian military will expand one standing division and two colonial divisions. Naturally, their division commanders can only be drawn from the existing army.
Fortunately, the two former deputy commanders of the 1st and 2nd Divisions had made considerable contributions in the war and were promoted to brigadier general to command the two newly formed divisions.
Then the deputy commander of the third division was transferred to the remaining colonial division, and the commanders of the newly formed three divisions were selected.
As for the newly formed artillery regiment and infantry regiment of the Guards Division, there is a high probability that the two deputy division commanders of the Guards Division will serve as their regiments.
In fact, compared to the commanders of the Colonial Division, several deputy commanders of the 1st, 23rd and 3rd Divisions found the commander of the Guards Division more attractive.
Among other things, the Guards Division is Arthur's direct force. Not only does it enjoy weapons, equipment, ammunition, and logistical supplies that far exceed those of the conventional division, but the welfare system is also much better than that of the conventional division.
To give the simplest example, the current per capita income in Australasia is about A$41. According to regulations, the salary of ordinary soldiers in a standing division will barely exceed this level, generally reaching about 43 to 45 Australian dollars. Even if some holiday benefits and subsidies are added, the final annual income will not exceed 50 Australian dollars.
The salary of ordinary soldiers in the Guards Division reaches 48 Australian dollars, which is almost the sum of the salary, benefits and subsidies of soldiers in the standing division.
Moreover, the status of soldiers in the Guards Division is much higher than that of soldiers in the regular division. Almost every soldier from the Guards Division was selected from the regular divisions.
This investiture ceremony added a total of two major generals, two brigadiers, three colonels, two lieutenant colonels and four majors to the Australasian army. Many other non-commissioned officers and lieutenants were also added, further enriching the ranks. A reserve of lower-level officers in the military.
More importantly, taking the opportunity of this investiture ceremony, three new nobles were officially born in Australasia.
The first is Prime Minister Evan who worked hard in the previous government. After seven years of service to the Australasian government, Arthur also awarded Evan the title of Sir, former Prime Minister.
The future Prime Minister of Evan can also be called Sir Evan, who is a true nobleman recognized by the government and royal family of the Kingdom of Australasia.
Of course, a knighthood has no territory and cannot be inherited. It is just an honorary title of nobility.
But this can be regarded as stepping into the threshold of the nobility after all. In Australasia, which has no nobility except the royal family, the Jazz can currently be regarded as a true nobility.
Although there is no real territory, the knighthood can still earn a certain amount of income every year. This income is at least three times the average annual income per capita in Australasia (the medal is ten times).
Along with former Prime Minister Evan, the commanders of the First and Second Divisions were also awarded knighthoods. Of course, the reason why Commanders Silvio Lonny Rodling and Fritz Reiner received knighthoods was because Arthur wanted to quickly promote the recognition of military merit in Australasia, so that Australia The people of Dalasi understood that Arthur would never treat his heroes badly.
In this way, after the next war, the Australasian army will definitely move forward for countless rewards such as titles, honors, medals, awards, military ranks, etc.
This is also one of the benefits of the monarchy. The monarch can enfeoff recognized nobles. This is a ladder for common people to step onto the high-level road, which will naturally arouse the excitement and enthusiasm of the vast majority of people.
However, Arthur still controlled the rewards of titles very strictly. It has been more than seven years since the development of Australasia, but it is only the first time that nobles have been enfeoffed, and they are all titles such as knights, which are more honorary titles.
The future nobles of Australasia are bound to become a major force in Australasia, but Arthur is also very strict in selecting future nobles.
Except for those who have made great contributions to the country, if you want to become a noble, you can only rely on huge military achievements.
As for the real nobles who can inherit like the Baron Earl, apart from a war where the fate of the country is at stake, they can only rely on seniority and contribution, and maybe they can get a little edge.
On November 7, 1907, accompanied by government officials, Arthur went to New South Wales to inspect the newly built reservoir.
Because of Australasia's unique climate, many areas of the Australian continent are in a state of water shortage.
Fortunately, the population of Australasia is not too large now. Even if the demand for industrial water is increasing rapidly, there is not yet a big water problem.
But this is also a hidden danger after all. Several years ago, Arthur ordered the construction of large-scale reservoirs in suitable areas of Australasia to meet the future water needs of the Australasian population.
These reservoirs are also divided into industrial water reservoirs and civil water reservoirs according to different geographical locations and sizes.
The water from industrial water reservoirs basically flows to major factories and industrial areas to meet the water needs of industrial areas.
Civil water reservoirs play a variety of roles. In addition to the water needed for people's daily lives, crop cultivation, animal husbandry, and even the electricity industry that is currently booming in Australasia also require a large amount of water resources.
Of course, the electricity industry does not actually use water, but uses the water level difference between reservoirs to generate electricity in conjunction with hydroelectric generators.
At present, the most common type of power generation in Australasia is thermal power generation, and hydropower generation is currently only in the testing stage.
Of course, the reason for all this is that Australasia has sufficient coal resources. Australasia does not have the mineral resource shortage problem faced by other countries. The word "mineral resource shortage" does not even exist in the Australasian dictionary. superior.
The reservoir that Arthur inspected was located on the Timmert River in New South Wales, so the name of the reservoir was also Timmert Reservoir.
This is a large reservoir designed to solve water problems near New South Wales and Sydney. It is also equipped with hydroelectric power generation devices and is the first hydropower station in Australasia.
As early as when the Electric Energy Research Laboratory was established, Australasia's electricity standards had clear indicators, that is, the voltage was 220 volts.
Coupled with other standards for industrial electricity consumption, Australasia has now established a relatively complete electricity consumption system, and electric lights and electricity have gradually entered thousands of households in Australasia.
Among other things, Arthur's Sydney Palace is definitely one of the palaces with the most complete electrical energy infrastructure at present.
Currently, you can see a variety of crystal lanterns carved from crystal in the Sydney Palace. The lights are colorful at night and look very beautiful.
Thanks to the current increase in per capita income, Australasians are no strangers to electric light.
Most of the industries in Australasia were established in recent years, and all use new industrial equipment.
This also resulted in Australasian industry requiring large amounts of electricity, rather than the steam-powered equipment that was still used after the Industrial Revolution, as was the case in the British Empire.
At present, thermal power plants of various sizes have been established in various states in Australasia to generate electricity for major cities.
Even Australian Timor has plans to build small thermal power plants, but the earliest completion will have to wait until next year.
If we want to say that the area with the most complete electricity network currently, it must be the Capital Territory where Sydney is located.
There are two thermal power plants in the Capital Territory, one large thermal power plant is used to supply electricity to industrial areas, and one medium-sized thermal power plant is used to supply electricity to civilians.
The Timmert Hydropower Station is Australasia's first step in exploring hydropower.
At present, the street lights in major cities in Australasia have been gradually replaced by electric street lights. Although this is a test for the power system, it is not too much of a burden.
Australasia's electricity system consists of the National Electricity Corporation and the Electric Power Research Laboratory.
The National Power Company is jointly held by the royal family and the government, with the government occupying 50.01% and the royal family 49.99%.
The Electric Power Research Laboratory is completely controlled by the royal family and is part of the royal family consortium.
After several years of hard work, the royal consortium has grown into a giant in Australasia, controlling Australasia's finance, industry, military industry, shipbuilding, minerals, electricity, oil, investment, medicine, Food and other areas.
It can be said that even if Arthur's military power and fame are discarded, the various industries controlled by the royal family consortium are enough to stabilize the position of the Australasian royal family.
This is also a trump card that Arthur left to his descendants. Even if the future ruler loses military power, as long as he does not commit suicide, he can still become a ruler with real power.
As long as the future successor can value the reputation among the people like Arthur and continue to manage and maintain it, the Australasian royal family will not lose its status. Of course, allowing Arthur to personally inspect the Timmert Hydropower Station must have other meanings.
The large reservoir where the Timmert Hydropower Station is located provides water protection for cities in the Capital Territory and parts of New South Wales, and is also a solution to Australasia's water resources problems.
At present, the government expects to build at least ten large reservoirs like the Timmert Reservoir. Together with other large and small reservoirs, they can fully meet all water needs of Australia's population of 40 million.
The current population of Australasia is just seven million, which is still a long way from the population of 40 million.
After inspecting the reservoir, Arthur rushed to the military factory without stopping to watch the military factory test the improved model of the MA-96 Maxim machine gun, the MA-107 Maxim heavy machine gun.
After eleven years, the military factory finally made certain improvements to the Maxim machine gun in terms of machine guns. It slightly increased the output frequency of the Maxim machine gun, and also reduced the weight of the machine gun to a certain extent, which can be regarded as reducing the burden on logistics. .
More importantly, the slightly smaller Maxim heavy machine gun can be better installed on motorboats and aircraft as the main attack weapon of motorboats and aircraft.
And since Arthur started research on tanks, future tank weapons will also be a headache for the mechanical research laboratory.
Future tanks must have an artillery gun and a heavy machine gun to meet Arthur's expectations for high firepower.
Just imagine, if big guys like tanks appeared in advance on the future battlefield, they were covered in thick armor and equipped with artillery and machine guns.
What a spectacular scene it would be for such a big guy to face the enemy's infantry and cavalry charge? When the enemy's cavalry slashes at the tank with cold weapons, you will understand how desperate the changes brought to the army by technological crushing are.
This scene actually appeared in World War II in history. The Polish cavalry performed well in World War I, which also made the Poles very superstitious about their cavalry.
When their cavalry faced German tanks, they realized how fragile life is in the face of technology.
Due to the two wars, the military factory not only expanded greatly in scale, but also officially entered a profitable state.
Australasia currently has a certain reputation in East Asia and South Asia, and weapons produced in Australasia are gradually exported to these regions.
Of course, Russia and Australasia themselves account for the majority of arms sales every year.
Russia's Far East Army is purely due to logistics and transportation problems. In addition, the quality of the German-made weapons produced in Australasia is indeed good, and there is no need to have anything to do with Russia. Therefore, the arms trade with Russia has never been interrupted.
Although Australasia does not need too many weapons, it consumes a lot of various ammunition and shells.
Coupled with this military expansion, these orders are enough for the arms factory to produce for a period of time.
Military factories and shipyards have transformed from gold-swallowing beasts to gold-absorbing beasts.
Needless to say, the profitability of the shipyard is natural. The order with Russia alone has earned the shipyard nearly one million pounds. Coupled with Australasia's own orders, not only has the scale of the shipyard expanded a lot, but various This kind of construction has never stopped.
Of course, among all Arthur's assets, Benz's car is currently the most profitable.
Although Arthur has not cared about the income of the automobile factory for a long time, the monthly income of the automobile factory will still be transferred to the royal bank on time and handed over to Kent Butler for review.
I don’t know, I was almost shocked when I found out about Arthur.
Although the car sales of Benz Automobile Factory are not as exaggerated as the initial sales, they have also entered a stable stage.
Moreover, there is currently no automobile manufacturer in the world that can have an impact on the Benz Automobile Factory, not even the Ford Motor Factory in history.
So far, Benz One has been on sale for just over four years and has sold more than two million units.
Although the Australasian factory produced only one-sixth of that, it was a net profit of £20 million.
Not to mention the shares from other factories, plus the net income from the US factory, over the past four years, Benz Motors has brought Arthur an income of 76.21 million pounds, converted into Australian dollars. It even reached 152.42 million.
You know, the shipbuilding plan that Australasia has just formulated, which can make Australasia's navy one of the top ten in the world, only uses a capital budget of 20 million Australian dollars.
If all the more than 150 million Australian dollars were spent on the navy, it would not be an exaggeration to build a navy that is among the top three in the world.
After all, if calculated at four million Australian dollars per dreadnought ship, these funds can build a full thirty-seven dreadnought ships.
Historically, the total number of dreadnoughts built by the British Empire from 1906 to 1914 was only 29, and Germany's rush to catch up was only 17, which is enough to show the huge amount of funds.
Of course, actual naval investment cannot be calculated this way.
Although the cost of the dreadnought is indeed true, in order for the warship to truly form a combat effectiveness, the training of naval soldiers, the cost of later maintenance of the warship, and the repair costs of various problems are also a huge expense.
But no matter what, 150 million Australian dollars can definitely build a navy that is among the top four in the world, and can even compete with any other country except Britain and Germany.
Speaking of Arthur's current personal property, it can definitely be regarded as extremely wealthy.
Arthur's private property currently amounts to more than 300 million pounds. Although 100 million pounds is lent to the government and the remaining half is real estate, he can still freely use hundreds of millions of pounds of available funds.
Moreover, the royal consortium can bring Arthur nearly 17 million pounds in after-tax income every year. This kind of money-making speed is even more terrifying than the Australasian government.
Arthur's property contributes up to 3 million pounds in tax revenue to the Australasian government every year. Coupled with the growth of various economies, Australasia's fiscal revenue this year is even expected to exceed 30 million Australian dollars.
After field testing, the improved MA-107 Maxim heavy machine gun is indeed more stable and has a better cooling effect than the previous MA-96 Maxim machine gun.
In addition, the weight of the new machine gun has been reduced, making it more suitable for equipping troops.
Therefore, under the witness of Arthur, the military and the military factory signed an order, striving to replace all heavy machine guns in the army with new heavy machine guns within two years.
As for those old-fashioned Maxim heavy machine guns that have been replaced, they can be sold to other countries and regions at lower prices.
After all, although the MA-96 Maxim machine gun is already a little behind for Australasia, in the eyes of some Asian countries, it is still a powerful, unprecedented heavy firepower weapon worthy of being purchased by the country's military. and equipment.
The weapons produced in Australasia have quality assurance, and Arthur doesn't have to worry about no one buying them.
At least across Asia, in addition to Russia, there are still three or four countries that are interested in Australasian weapons.
Especially the Qing Dynasty, after the last exchange of overseas students with Australasia, it became one of the countries seeking to purchase Australasian weapons.
Although this country is relatively backward, there is still no shortage of money if you squeeze it.
Coupled with other small and medium-sized countries in East Asia and South Asia, I believe that this batch of heavy machine guns will be launched soon.
Fortunately, the improvement of machine guns was relatively timely, and troops could be equipped with them before the army officially expanded. Otherwise, if we wait until the army is fully equipped before reinstalling, it will be necessary to replace hundreds of additional heavy machine guns, which is also a considerable loss.
A two-in-one chapter of 5,000 words, please give me your monthly vote!
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