Chapter 64: Military Industry Introduction and Production Line
“However, just a group of industrial experts is not enough. I hope to introduce some skilled technicians and immigrants from Germany to fill the gaps in Australia’s industrial development.” Arthur said with a smile, “At the same time, I hope that Australia can send a hundred students to study in various universities in Germania every year. I believe that the German education system can cultivate outstanding talents for Australia and completely solve the loopholes in the basic talent and middle-level talent vacancies in Australia.”
For Australia’s industrial development, what is lacking is far more than just skilled technicians, but also various capable talents and a large number of immigrants.
To establish a complete industrial system, a large amount of mineral resources and population are needed, so that there will be enough workers, laborers, and intellectuals.
In terms of mineral resources, Australia is not lacking, and even extremely rich.
The minerals Australia possesses are enough to make it one of the world’s largest mineral resource exporters, without worrying about resource reserves.
However, in terms of population, the problems manifested by Australia are very serious.
The current European powers, any one of them is a superpower with a population of tens of millions. It is because of having tens of millions of people that they can establish large-scale industries.
One of the reasons why small countries cannot develop is that, in addition to mineral resources and land area, population size is also a crucial factor.
If Australia wants to rise and establish a strong industry, it must have a population of at least 20 million.
Of course, this is Arthur’s future goal for Australia. The current plan is to introduce immigrants and increase Australia’s population to over 5 million, heading towards 10 million.
“No problem, Arthur. The great Germanic tribes are a good source of immigrants, and more German immigrants will help us establish better relations.” William II nodded and said, “There is also no problem with the exchange students. Under the condition of satisfactory grades, any university in Germania welcomes their arrival.”
Arthur’s proposal is entirely within William H’s plan. For William II, tying a country firmly to his war chariot and making half of its population German is a good choice.
When half of Australia’s population is German, even if Arthur is unwilling, he will have to take into consideration the feelings of all Germans in the country.
Under such circumstances, wouldn’t Australia’s policies naturally lean towards Germany?
“Thank you, Your Highness.” When putting forward his proposal, Arthur understood that William II would not oppose it.
Even his proposal might be welcomed by William II. After all, binding Australia more firmly to Germany’s war chariot is something William II wants to accomplish.
“Your Majesty, besides all these, we would like also to introduce various military industrial technologies and industrial technologies from Germany. Germania, as one of the most powerful industrial countries, has given birth to the world’s top military and industrial technology. We yearn for this technology and dream of owning it.” Arthur said with a smile.
Sitting in front of them, William II is an extremely arrogant and self-conscious person. Due to physical reasons, William II has a psychological deficiency.
As for Prime Minister Bernhard, he is also quite proud of Germania and himself. In their eyes, the German Empire is not inferior to any other country, and the various foreign policies of Germany under Prime Minister Bernhard’s tenure can attest to this.
Because of this, upon hearing Arthur’s praise of Germania’s industry, both William II and Prime Minister Bernhard showed quite proud smiles.
They may feel inferior in terms of naval strength, but in terms of industry, they believe that Britain is no longer a match for Germania.
“Of course, Arthur. Besides some core strategic technology, other industrial and military technology can be sold to you in the form of production lines.” William II said with a smile.
There is quite a difference between selling production lines and selling technology. Although mastering production lines can also control the production of products, once there are problems with the production lines, they can only rely on Germany’s help.
Arthur did not object, smiling and saying: “I hope to introduce German rifle production technology, as well as the famous Culver Company’s artillery technology. Australia has vast territory and also needs a strong army and equipment to guard it.”
“Which rifle do you mean for the production line?” William II frowned and asked.
“Of course, it is the new standard rifle produced by the Mauser Company, the 1898 model rifle.” Arthur replied with a smile.
The reputation of the 1898 model rifle is not famous, but its improved version, the Mauser 98k, is one of the most famous rifles in the world.
“Gew98? Arthur, as far as I know, you should have control of a military factory built by your original uncle Arthur. The rifle production technology it has is not weaker than Gew98. In my opinion, there is no need to exchange Gew98 production lines. It’s better for a country to have one standard rifle, otherwise, it would be a big problem for logistics.” William II was taken aback and then reminded.
William II was talking about the Lee-Enfield rifle produced by Arthur’s military factory. Lee-Enfield, as a standard British rifle, is not inferior in performance and power to the Mauser 98k, let alone the current 1898 model Mauser rifle.
Under the circumstances where the production process and bullet caliber of the two rifles are different, in William H’s view, Arthur’s behavior is unnecessary and will also affect the logistics of the Australian Army.
“It doesn’t matter, Your Majesty. Both the Lee-Enfield rifle and the Gew98 rifle, in my opinion, are among the best rifles in the world. They can complement each other and perhaps give birth to a better rifle, right?” Arthur said with a smile.
Both of these rifles have a long lifespan, and their improved versions have been used until after World War II.
Although they are not comparable to the various semi-automatic and fully automatic rifles that emerged in the late stages of World War II, in this era when automatic weapons are not widely available, these two rifles are the two best rifles in the world for the next 40 years.
Moreover, Arthur’s introduction of the Gew98 rifle production line is not to equip the Australian Army with this rifle, but to export it in large quantities during World War I.
Although major European countries have stockpiled a large amount of weapons and resources for future wars, the consumption of war is enormous, and even if the major countries have transformed some civilian factories into military production, the huge gap still cannot be filled.
This has led to countries like the United States, which did not participate in the war in the early stages, making a fortune in war. The export of various resources, including weapons and equipment, grain, and medical supplies, became the most profitable method at the time, and the United States made a pot of money, laying a certain foundation for the true rise of the United States..