Chapter 93 The Italian Cannon?
When the gift was carried into Arthur's estate by several dozen natives, he was visibly surprised.
Who would have thought that the Kingdom of the Netherlands would send him a gift like this? The long barrel already gave away the fact that it was a cannon, though what kind exactly was still unclear.
Arthur ordered the guards to remove the red cloth. At last, the cannon was revealed to everyone.
It was clearly brand new—never fired, not even once.
Next to it sat ten silent crates of shells—half of them slightly larger, the other half a bit smaller.
The cannon's caliber wasn't large. While difficult to determine by eye alone, Arthur could tell it was under 100mm.
But the question remained—why would the Netherlands gift Arthur a cannon? A gift at this level between states wouldn't be something ordinary—it would at least have to be of strategic value.
But did the Netherlands even have the industrial capacity to produce a world-class artillery piece?
Arthur stared at the cannon with growing confusion. It looked more and more familiar—until it finally clicked: wasn't this the Italian cannon?
In later times, this exact model of artillery became famous thanks to a line from a classic TV series. The "Italian cannon" shouted about by the Second Battalion Commander referred to this very gun: the M1897 75mm field gun.
To be more specific, the "Italian cannon" known in the East was actually a nickname and knockoff of the M1897 75mm field gun.
In truth, the M1897 was a French weapon, having nothing to do with Italy at all.
In France, it had another iconic nickname: "Mademoiselle 75."
What made it so famous was its recoil mechanism, which drastically increased its rate of fire. It could achieve a terrifying rate of at least 15 rounds per minute, and was regarded as the origin of modern rapid-fire artillery.
What did that mean in practice?
When other artillery units had only fired their first round and were still reloading, "Mademoiselle 75" had already fired her second.
By the time others were ready to fire again, she had already launched her third shell.
In terms of firepower saturation alone, her capabilities were undeniable.
Because of this, she became the main artillery piece of the French Army in World War I, and was still widely used in World War II. Countries such as Germany, Poland, Britain, the United States—and even some Eastern nations—equipped themselves with this gun in large numbers.
Arthur's munitions factory already had some automatic artillery technology, but it had only been implemented in 37mm small-caliber guns.
For large-caliber artillery, automation remained out of reach. This made "Mademoiselle 75" extremely important for Australia.
If they could reverse-engineer the technology, it would be possible to mass-produce similar guns and incorporate the concepts into their own automatic artillery research—including experiments with larger calibers.
Now that Arthur had identified the gun, he wasted no time. He immediately summoned all the munitions experts and ordered the guards to protect the cannon closely.
This was something that could spark a revolution in Australia's artillery development—he couldn't afford to take it lightly.
Soon, a team of factory experts arrived, along with several German artillery specialists.
To maintain secrecy, Arthur had only told them that a new cannon needed studying—without specifying which.
Nevertheless, it quickly caught the attention of the Germans. There was no reason to turn them away, so Arthur allowed them to join.
He was slightly surprised to see the Germans among the group, but didn't object.
Historically, because of the M1897, the French artillery doctrine shifted from six-gun batteries to four-gun ones.
The Germans, however, insisted that six guns were optimal for maximum firepower and redundancy—so that even if one was lost, the battery wouldn't be compromised.
German pride led them to dismiss the French model as foolish, and they suffered greatly for it during World War I.
Introducing this cannon early on to the Germans might not be a bad thing. It could greatly improve German-Australian relations, while also ensuring that the future world war would be even more intense—leading to greater losses in Europe.
Especially when considering America's opportunistic behavior—arming everyone during the early stages, then entering the war late to reap the rewards. Their loans and weapons allowed them to emerge as a postwar superpower.
By slightly strengthening Germany now, everyone would suffer more evenly later, giving Australia a greater chance to rise.
After saluting Arthur, the experts immediately surrounded the cannon and began their inspection.
At first, the German specialists were relaxed. Confident in their world-class artillery knowledge, they assumed there was little they hadn't seen.
But as they examined the cannon more closely, they began to notice unfamiliar mechanisms. Glancing at one another, they realized that none of them could explain how these components worked.
In contrast, the Australian experts—who had experience with recoil mechanisms—could identify some of the features. While the technology differed from what they had worked with, it was close enough to interpret.
"Your Grace, is this a semi-automatic cannon?" one of the Australian experts finally blurted out, unable to contain his excitement.
Australia had only developed semi-automatic capabilities for 37mm guns. Faced with a much larger semi-automatic model, they were practically drooling.
"Yes. How long will it take to study and replicate this at the munitions factory?" Arthur asked calmly.
"That may take some time, Your Grace. Conservatively, I'd say about a year. We'll need to fully dismantle and study it," the expert replied after a long pause of consideration.
"Wait, Your Grace—what do you mean by semi-automatic cannon?" a confused German expert asked. Weren't they supposed to be the ones taking the lead here?
Why did it seem like Arthur and his Australians knew more than they did? They understood automatic rifles, sure—but semi-automatic cannons?
To be fair, the Germans weren't entirely at fault. France and Germany had gone down completely different paths in artillery design.
Germany's Krupp guns leaned toward large-caliber, high-power cannons—some even exceeding 300mm in caliber.
France, on the other hand, led the world in rapid-fire artillery. "Mademoiselle 75" was their crown jewel.
The design philosophies produced vastly different results. In terms of big-caliber, heavy-hitting guns, Germany was unmatched.
But when it came to automated artillery systems, the Australians—thanks to their unique access and guidance—might actually have an edge over even the Germans.
(End of Chapter)
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