Ample financial resources, formidable shipbuilding capacity, and highly capable naval personnel had allowed the German Navy to lead the navies of other nations for centuries, reigning alone over the world's oceans.
During that time, powerful enemies had challenged their maritime supremacy more than once. Yet all had ultimately foundered and sunk. Sea power remained firmly clutched in the hands of the British Empire, allowing Britain to monopolize the world's largest colonial empire and reap enormous profits from it.
"Naval Minister, I would dearly love to see the Germans' expressions right now. Once they learn that all those Battleships they have completed or started building are obsolete, Wilhelm II will probably be mad with rage! To develop their navy, the Germans have practically poured in their very last Mark. And in the end, all the Battleships they built have become garbage." Sir Bannerman laughed wildly, his laughter brazen and arrogant.
Germany's industrial strength had already surpassed Britain's. If the British had not possessed vast colonies as markets in which to dump their goods, they likely would have been unable to hold out long ago. Germany's massive investment in its navy had also made the British feel an immense sense of crisis. After all, they had built their fortunes by monopolizing sea power. The Germans' attempt to challenge the British Empire's command of the seas was naturally something they could not accept.
"Prime Minister, there is no need to imagine it. Wilhelm II will certainly fly into a furious rage." Admiral Sir John Fisher wore a smile as well. When it came to Germany, every member of the British Cabinet shared the same attitude: to safeguard the interests of the British Empire, they had to suppress Germany at any cost. Only then could the British Empire's hegemony remain secure.
"However, Naval Minister, I fear we cannot keep our New-style Battleship secret for long. German spies are everywhere, slipping through every crack." Sir Bannerman was somewhat worried. Naturally, he hoped this New-style Battleship could remain shrouded in mystery forever. That way, once war broke out, they could easily defeat the German Navy and secure the British Empire's command of the seas.
"Prime Minister, complete secrecy is almost impossible, especially after a Battleship is launched. Such a huge thing floating on the sea is like a small mountain. Unless the German spies are fools, they will probably learn of it very soon." Admiral Sir John Fisher looked troubled.
"Then, Naval Minister, do we have any countermeasures?" Sir Bannerman asked.
"Prime Minister, even if the Germans learn that we are building a New-style Battleship and manage to photograph it, what can they do? It will be impossible for them to obtain the specifications of our New-style Battleship in a short time. Even if they begin designing one immediately, it will still take one or two years. By the time their New-style Battleship is completed and enters service, several years will have passed. By then, we will already have begun mass-producing New-style Battleships. We may even have started building the next class. We are ahead of the Germans by far more than one step. By then, the gap will only widen, never narrow." Admiral Sir John Fisher smiled.
Sir Bannerman nodded. Hearing Admiral Sir John Fisher say this, he finally felt considerably relieved.
"Prime Minister, we have completed the design work for the next class of Bellerophon-class Battleships. Construction is expected to begin in the second half of the year, and three will be built at once. The design of the class after that is also underway. In addition, our artillery factories are researching 13.5-inch Naval Guns. These will be the main guns of our next batch of Capital Ships. If Battleships armed with 12-inch main guns are called Dreadnoughts, then Battleships armed with 13.5-inch main guns will be super-Dreadnoughts!" Admiral Sir John Fisher said.
"Excellent, very good! We must continue maintaining our advantage over the Germans. This advantage must not only be reflected in the number of Capital Ships, but also in their quality. We must thoroughly extinguish the Germans' delusions of challenging our command of the seas. If they dare put those delusions into action, we will utterly destroy their navy and ensure they can never rise again for all eternity!" Sir Bannerman declared domineeringly.
"Yes, Prime Minister. The navy will certainly accomplish this." Admiral Sir John Fisher was full of confidence.
Germany's intelligence gathering in Britain had indeed been carried out exceptionally well. Both the German Army and the German Navy had intelligence agencies operating in Britain, though their focuses differed. In particular, after the German Navy made challenging the British Navy's global supremacy its goal, it intensified its collection of intelligence on the British Navy.
The launching and fitting-out of the Battleship Dreadnought had also been a major event within the British Navy. Although the British Admiralty demanded strict secrecy, there was no wall that did not leak. News of the British Navy launching a new Battleship was soon learned by the German Navy's intelligence department. After spending some time and paying a price, they also obtained the relevant specifications of the Battleship Dreadnought.
When this intelligence was delivered to the German Naval Ministry, Grand Admiral Count Tirpitz flew into a rage on the spot.
"Are those fools in the Naval Technical Committee truly idiots? The design proposal they rejected has become the British next-generation Capital Ship. If not for them, perhaps our own next-generation New-style Capital Ship would not be far from launching by now! This was a rare chance to narrow the gap between ourselves and the British Navy!" Grand Admiral Count Tirpitz deeply regretted it, while also blaming himself. When Oscar's design had been rejected by the Naval Technical Committee, if he had been a little more forceful and fought a little harder for Oscar, perhaps the outcome would now have been entirely different.
"Hmph! But this time, the faces of those stubborn old fossils in the Naval Technical Committee will probably be slapped swollen!" Grand Admiral Count Tirpitz sneered.
Naturally, such intelligence could not be hidden from Wilhelm II. The moment the navy's intelligence department obtained the relevant information, it notified Wilhelm II.
"Trash! Are those people in the Naval Technical Committee all trash? So many of them, all claiming to possess such deep qualifications in shipbuilding, yet they cannot even compare to a young man. What an absolute joke!" Wilhelm II thundered in his office.
He ordered an Imperial Council to be convened immediately, and Count von Warren, chairman of the Naval Technical Committee, was also required to attend. Naturally, this was absolutely not good news for the entire Naval Technical Committee.
Before you continue