Charles heard Count de Rochambeau's statement, but felt he could only half agree.
The French Navy's combat power was indeed not weak; it seemed that during Napoleon's time, the world's best warships were always produced by France.
And French artillery, even now, was absolutely world-class.
Combining the two, the combat power of a single ship would naturally not be bad.
Unfortunately, this country that produced excellent warships also had an excellent army.
Perhaps because, as a land-based nation, the army fought more and found it easier to gain status, so excellent military commanders all went to the army.
Although France also produced a few excellent naval commanders, it was still incomparable to Britain, which mass-produced excellent naval officers and sailors.
Even with the best warships, not meeting a good commander was a very bad thing.
Although Charles, based on traditional history, believed the French Navy was merely average and the American Navy should be compared with the British Navy, it was naturally not appropriate to say such things at the moment.
"I have long heard that the stability and robustness of warships manufactured by France are the best in the world.
And your country's artillerymen, whether in the Navy or the army, are the most outstanding in the world; I deeply realized this when I studied at the Paris Artillery Academy.
Now, to have 70% of the combat power of a single French Navy warship, the American Navy is already very good.
Alas! I just don't know when we will be able to train a truly powerful Navy!"
"Hahahaha!
Councilor Godfrey, in fact, the Navy is changing very quickly; basically, a new generation emerges every hundred years, and it has been almost a hundred years since the last major warship revolution.
Now is also the time for new changes to appear.
The steam warship project you are currently collaborating on with our Navy is very good and is likely to become the main ship to replace existing warships within a hundred years.
As long as you study and develop diligently, you will definitely become a powerful Navy in the future," Count de Rochambeau said with a comforting smile.
"Really? I think the development progress of those steam warships is very slow?" Charles deliberately said with doubt.
"Of course it's true.
I once saw two experimental ships from New Orleans in the West Indies.
Although the hull was heavy and not as flexible and controllable as a sailing ship, and it also affected the layout of the warship's gun positions, it was very useful when trying to gain the windward position.
As for windless conditions, steamships had an absolute advantage in combat.
This is a very good auxiliary ship type with great development prospects," Rochambeau praised without reservation.
After a year and a half, those experimental steam engine warships had now reached their third generation.
By the second generation, they were already capable of partial combat, and the current new warships could not only sail from New Orleans to the French Navy base in the West Indies but also continuously fire while sailing.
Theoretically, they could already participate in battle, but because the sailors and naval officers were not proficient in operating these new warships, they could not yet form basic combat power.
Charles was very familiar with the test conditions of these warships.
Originally, he had also been very much looking forward to the participation of steam warships in the war, but even with a lot of additional investment, they could not be mass-produced immediately to participate in the war of Independence.
Coupled with the fact that the shipyards in Philadelphia and New York had just begun building large warships, he lost confidence in whether qualified steam warships could be developed before the end of the war.
He had already decided that future research on steamships would primarily focus on large fast ships, mainly ocean-going fast ships with dual power from steam engines and sails, primarily for delivering mail between the Americas and Europe.
Of course, a few dedicated high-speed luxury cruise ships would also be built, mainly for transporting nobles and wealthy individuals traveling between the Americas and Europe, and even worldwide.
Compared to current sailing ships, ships using both steam engines and sails would undoubtedly be much faster, and such cruise ships should be very popular.
"Oh? Have you already seen those new experimental warships, Your Excellency?
I didn't know they had developed to the point of being able to make long voyages.
In fact, the greatest feature of steamships is their speed, and the current speed can still be increased.
My steam engine research center is constantly researching new steam engines with greater propulsion.
In fact, I also believe that the future of this type of warship is very good; any Navy equipped with it will significantly increase its combat power," Charles expressed appropriate agreement.
"Of course!
As soon as our French Navy is equipped with these new warships, we will absolutely be able to defeat the British in conventional naval battles," Count de Rochambeau began to imagine, as if it were a given.
Perhaps in less than ten years, the British pirate Navy could be utterly routed by the glorious French Navy.
"Hehe!
However, I heard that a British man named Watt also developed a new type of steam engine.
If they learn that we are researching steam engine ships and immediately begin their own research, I estimate it won't take many years for them to build such steam engine warships as well," Charles deliberately retorted.
Count de Rochambeau's expression changed.
Although he was not clear about the research process of this steam warship, judging from the literal meaning of Charles' words, he knew his guess was likely correct.
"Is there any way to prevent the British Navy from equipping them?
Can we keep the news of the steam warship a secret?"
"That's certainly unlikely.
I can even guess that Britain has probably already started research in this area, after all, when my steam engine ship was first built, it wasn't kept secret.
European newspapers extensively published news about my steam engine ships.
I think since the British know about it, they will definitely research it," Charles shook his head.
"Yes!" Count de Rochambeau sighed.
He had thought they could completely surpass the British Navy, but now it seemed, at most, they would only have a slight lead over Britain in warship performance due to the advantage of earlier research.
Hadn't this just brought them back to the original level of comparison between the two armies?
"However, we can increase our investment in steamship research to prevent being overtaken by the British.
Additionally, we can pre-order a batch of immature steam warships to train sailors and officers who can operate them.
The current research progress is a bit too slow; after more than a year, it still hasn't been officially finalized.
Perhaps we can first build some civilian steam ocean-going ships to collectively research..." Charles began to incite Rochambeau.
This naval commander was indeed very fond of new warships and was eventually persuaded by Charles.
He formally promised Charles that he would use all his possible influence to request that France increase funding for research on new warships and quickly develop steam-sail powered warships that could be mass-produced.
At the same time, in order to quickly train a group of personnel capable of operating steam warships, he decided to first order five warships with mixed steam engine and sail propulsion from Charles' joint venture shipyard in New Orleans for training operating and commanding personnel.
Charles left Count de Rochambeau satisfied.
With the help of this Count, the shipyard he invested in New Orleans not only received an order for five warships for free, but also could use French army funds to research large civilian steamships.
His soon-to-be-established fast cruise line company could immediately begin building its first batch of civilian dual-powered cruise ships, couldn't it?
Just as Charles was triumphantly preparing to tell this good news to his beloved Diana, Count de Rochambeau, dressed in French noble attire, suddenly stepped aside and stopped Charles.
"Councilor Charles, may I bother you for a moment?" The Count took off his hat.
"Of course!" Charles nodded.
He had just secured a sponsorship from a Frenchman, and now another one appeared.
He wondered if this one was also bringing him money, or if he was going to ask for money back.
Count de Rochambeau didn't know what devious thoughts Charles was harboring.
After arriving at a corner with relatively fewer people, he watched the naval review while talking to Charles.
"Councilor Charles, when I went to New York this time, I saw many new equipment of the Continental army.
I heard you have a very large arsenal in Pittsburgh; are those weapons produced by your arms company?"
"Yes, that's right.
To support the war of Independence, I established an independent military industry enterprise within my original civilian coal and steel joint venture.
It's a pity that the weapons developed are far inferior to those donated by your country; I'm truly making you laugh," Charles nodded.
He secretly thought, this guy wouldn't be thinking that since we can already produce weapons ourselves, why are we still asking the French for arms support, thinking we are deliberately trying to trick them!
This was unfair to the Continental Congress.
The weapons produced by Charles' arsenal were not bad in performance, but mainly focused on rifled guns and various sabers.
Ordinary smoothbore guns and artillery were not particularly outstanding in performance.
They were expensive, and coupled with the limited military budget of the Continental Congress, it was impossible to procure them in large quantities long-term, so it was natural to seek some support from France.
"No! No! Councilor, the weapons produced by your arms company are all excellent in performance.
Aside from anything else, just the cavalry sabers, both in style and quality, are comparable to the best sabers in Europe.
I even plan to buy one from you to take back home!" Count de Rochambeau praised loudly.
"Hahahaha!
Why would the Count need to buy one?
If the Count likes it, I can have two sent to you at any time, as a testament to our friendship," Charles said with a smile.
Spending a little money for advertising in Europe was not out of the question.
"Hahahaha!
You are truly a generous man!" The Count did not refuse.
"However, my main purpose for coming this time is not to discuss sabers, but I discovered that the coastal defense guns and some field guns in New York, their firing of shrapnel and canister shot, had astonishing power.
I asked the commanders, and they all said that your arsenal provided the new type of shells, but they didn't know what was going on.
I wonder if you, the owner of this arsenal, could reveal the secret of those shells?"
Count de Rochambeau's face was eager when he asked, but as soon as the words left his mouth, he felt a little awkward.
Although the two countries were allies, directly asking about the weapon secrets of an allied army was still a bit too abrupt.
However, thinking about the potential role of those weapons for his own country and army, he regained a serious expression and looked at Charles earnestly, awaiting his answer.
He had even already decided that if Charles did not answer, he would not rule out diplomatic channels, or even espionage, among other actions.
Hearing the Count's question, Charles sighed inwardly.
It finally came!
He had originally thought that the first to notice the unusual shells would be the recipients of the shells—the British.
Unexpectedly, the first to come knocking was France, an allied country.
However, the use of new explosives was impossible to conceal; with the strength of Britain and France, once they knew the power of these new shells, they would definitely resort to any means to acquire them.
Now, Count de Rochambeau was merely inquiring verbally, which was still quite good.
At least he hadn't directly sent spies or anything like that to forcibly seize the secret.
He estimated that after the British found out, they would probably send people directly to seize it.
"Hehe!
Actually, within our Thirteen American Colonies, that's no longer a secret.
Those shells use a new type of explosive we discovered.
The explosive power of these explosives is several times that of black powder, so naturally, their power is immense," Charles explained as if unconcerned.
"A new type of explosive?
What kind of new explosive is it?" Count de Rochambeau eagerly pressed.
"Hehe!
This involves some trade secrets.
However, if the Count is interested, my arms company can, like the Continental army, provide the same price for the new type of explosives to our allied French army.
Your Excellency can completely buy them and then slowly research them yourself," Charles frankly refused.
Rochambeau's expression froze for a moment, a trace of unwillingness flashed in his eyes, but it quickly disappeared.
Seeing Charles' composed expression, he showed no anger at his questioning; instead, he apologized:
"Councilor Charles, I am truly sorry!
I was so presumptuous as to inquire about trade secrets.
Please accept my sincere apologies."
"Alas!
Your Excellency, to be honest, I have no intention of concealing the formula for this explosive from your country, but once these things are told to your country, your army will certainly have your merchants begin mass production, which will inevitably infringe upon my interests.
This truly only involves commercial interests; I have no other meaning!" Charles, in turn, began to explain.
That is also understandable; every businessman must ensure his business makes money.
"Rochambeau said very magnanimously, "I will tell my quartermaster to purchase some of that new type of explosive from your arms company!
That shouldn't be a problem, right?"
"Of course not!" Charles immediately agreed.
"We will definitely supply it with guaranteed quality and quantity!"
Looking at the seemingly gentle smile on Count Rochambeau's face, Charles knew exactly what he was planning.
It was nothing more than buying a portion of the explosive first for research; if the research wasn't successful, then he would find a way to seize the manufacturing technology.
Or he might simultaneously pursue other means to obtain the manufacturing formula for the new explosive and the production technology for the new artillery shells.
Hmph! Even if they knew the explosive, if they didn't know the correct production and detonation methods, and didn't know how to invent the detonator, a rash attempt to produce and detonate it would absolutely result in a heavy price.
However, you guys are lucky; my 'patriotic'Concept isn't very strong; as long as there's money to be made, it's fine.
I never intended to keep this new explosive and detonator a secret for the United States; as long as the patent is registered and my commercial income is secured, I am willing to sell, transfer, or license the production technology for a fee.
It's a pity that Count Rochambeau, perhaps because he was too upright, did not inquire about the possibility of purchasing the production technology after Charles mentioned the new explosive was a trade secret.
Instead, he obediently only discussed the effectiveness of this new type of artillery shell and praised the researchers who invented these new armaments.
The two then verbally agreed on a purchase agreement for one ton of safe explosive, as well as a large number of detonator shells and other armaments that Charles suggested purchasing, awaiting the signing of formal documents after the fleet review.
At the same time, Rochambeau also requested to observe the effects of these explosive weapons under the guise of inspection.
If the effects were good, he did not rule out purchasing more finished shells for direct use by the expeditionary force in America.
Charles, of course, gladly agreed.
With the end of the war with Britain, the U.S. army's arms procurement would certainly continue to decline.
At this time, if global powers like Britain, France, or even Spain, were to procure a batch of armaments from his arsenal, he would certainly welcome it.
While he was thinking about international procurement, the Ambassadors from several countries also noticed their conversation.
Although they didn't hear clearly, their expressions indicated that they were discussing something important.
The Spanish Ambassador, relying on Spain's alliance with France against Britain, walked over to chat:
"Count Rochambeau, Councilor Godfrey, today's fleet review is truly grand.
Alas! I only witnessed such a magnificent fleet review during the Spanish fleet's most powerful period.
I never thought that naval forces of all countries would develop so quickly now; the newly established United States Navy is already very strong.
Please allow me to extend my sincere congratulations to both of you!"
"Sir, you flatter me!" Charles said modestly.
"That was merely a fleet review, not actual combat capability.
However, the American army is indeed advancing by leaps and bounds and is about to enter the ranks of strong armies," Count Rochambeau said frankly, without much modesty.
"Haha! I saw you two talking very happily just now; may I be so bold as to ask what interesting things you were discussing, and if I could share in it?" The Spanish Ambassador said with a smile, revealing his true purpose for coming over.
Count Rochambeau, perhaps because he was in a bad mood after failing to obtain the new explosive technology, now also felt very unfavorably towards the Ambassador.
Upon hearing him bring up the previous topic, he immediately said unhappily:
"Ambassador, we were just discussing some commercial secrets of Councilor Godfrey, which are not convenient for public discussion."
Charles had originally had a poor impression of this Ambassador because he had raised the Florida border issue, but now, hearing his question, he was greatly pleased.
He had just been wondering whether to let Spain and other countries procure armaments from his arsenal, and now they were actively coming to him; this opportunity could not be missed.
He immediately said with a chuckle:
"Ambassador, you are not an outsider, and there is nothing that cannot be said.
It's just that Count Rochambeau discovered our Continental army is using a new type of artillery shell and found it to be very powerful, so he wants to purchase a batch of the new explosive used to produce these shells from us, and also plans to observe the firing effect of this new type of shell.
If you are interested, Ambassador, you are also welcome to come and see.
My arsenal has a firing range in Philadelphia, and a test firing can be arranged for tomorrow!"
"New weapons!" the Spanish Ambassador exclaimed.
Although they were some distance from the viewing platform and normal conversation wouldn't be heard there, this exclamation was almost heard by several foreign envoys there, who all came over to ask the Spanish Ambassador, "What new weapons are they!"
However, after the Ambassador's exclamation, his face had already become the same as Count Rochambeau's, a look of regret and helplessness.
Count Rochambeau couldn't believe that Charles, who had just been talking about trade secrets, turned around and invited the Spanish Ambassador to witness the test firing.
Although Spain was an ally against Britain, there were also many land interest conflicts between the two countries.
Rochambeau naturally did not want these new weapons to be acquired by Spain.
And this foolish Ambassador, after hearing it, even shouted it out, letting other countries know the news simultaneously.
Although the Spanish Ambassador learned the content of their discussion and exclaimed it, he immediately realized that if there were indeed new weapons, secrecy was paramount, and it shouldn't be shouted out for too many people to know.
In this short time, both the Count and the Ambassador were filled with annoyance and regret.
Rochambeau was annoyed that he hadn't reminded Charles not to leak the news of the new weapons; the Spanish Ambassador regretted that he couldn't control his mouth, causing so many people to gather around and ask for details.
Charles was indifferent to their annoyance and regret.
Seeing the group of Ambassadors chattering and asking about the new weapons, he immediately repeated what he had just told the Spanish Ambassador.
He even asked Count Rochambeau to corroborate, further embarrassing the already annoyed Count, who, out of courtesy, still politely confirmed Charles' words.
At this, the other Ambassadors could no longer sit still and followed the Spanish Ambassador, expressing their willingness to go together to see the test firing effects, which made the fleet review feel a bit hastily concluded.
The firing range of Charles' arsenal was actually near the site used for testing light weapons during the Continental Congress' military procurement.
Because Charles' coal and steel conglomerate's subsidiary cannon factory began supplying iron and bronze cannons to the Continental Congress, the two parties simply co-invested and built an artillery test firing range nearby.
This range was relatively formal, complete with positions, sandbags, targets, and other standard features.
early the next morning, Charles led a group of Ambassadors and some military officials to the firing range for the test firing of the new artillery shells.
In fact, similar firing tests had already been conducted here when the Continental army procured new artillery shells, and the tests themselves had no issues.
When a shrapnel shell was fired and hit a pile of rubble on the target, the scene of the shell exploding and debris flying scared many people who were seeing the effect of the new shells for the first time.
Subsequently, several more shells with different effects were test-fired.
Although the range, caliber, and other aspects did not exceed the scope of muzzle-loading cannons, because the explosive charge inside the shells used new explosives like Picric acid, the explosive effect upon impact was naturally exceptionally violent.
"This is the effect! This is what I want," Count Rochambeau said loudly to Charles.
Although the other Ambassadors did not experience it as deeply as Count Rochambeau, they all recognized the power of this new type of artillery shell, or rather, the new explosive.
"Councilor Charles, I think we must discuss the procurement of these shells!" The Spanish Ambassador was the second to express his stance.
—
"Councilor, please name your price.
As long as it's not prohibitively high, we in Prussia must obtain these shells and the production technology for the explosive inside them," the Prussian Ambassador's request was even clearer and more explicit.
This was also because Prussia was a powerful land nation and knew it was impossible to cross the sea to America to seize the manufacturing technology for shells and explosives, so it preferred to negotiate terms directly rather than hoping to reduce the cost through other channels.
Other Ambassadors, such as those from the Netherlands, also expressed their intentions, either wanting to purchase technology or buy shells and explosives, and even when proposing, there was often an implied threat.
Charles accepted all requests for purchasing finished products without hesitation, and for those proposing to buy technology, he merely indicated that the technology was not yet mature.
"Sirs, I do not rule out the possibility of selling production technology under effective contracts and patent protection.
However, the conditions are indeed not mature at present, and I cannot agree immediately."
Hearing that it was still possible to acquire the production technology, many Ambassadors breathed a sigh of relief.
Count Rochambeau, who had thought yesterday that it was truly a trade secret and that direct access to the production technology was impossible, now, upon hearing that it might still be obtainable under certain conditions, could no longer contain himself:
"Councilor Charles! As long as you are willing to sell, we can discuss the conditions at length!"
The conditions paid in negotiation would generally not be higher than the cost of special channels.
Originally, several Ambassadors had already prepared to conspire and jointly pressure the United States' soon-to-be-established new government diplomatically to force Charles to disclose the production technology.
Now that they knew he was willing to sell, they instead felt that keeping the technological secret within the scope of the current few countries was very much in their interest.
The countries that currently had diplomatic relations with the United States were relatively on good terms, and naturally preferred to share within this small circle rather than force Charles to publicize the technology to the entire world.
Before formal purchases of finished products, the countries immediately began discussing technology transfer issues.
In fact, apart from nitroglycerin, safe explosives, and detonators, other transfer technologies were not important.
However, although these things could be easily researched if one had a strong chemical background, the research process itself was extremely dangerous and prone to accidents.
Charles' asking price was naturally very high; he immediately demanded half of the future profits from producing the product, with Charles selecting the production company, and no restrictions on the patent term, and so on.
Such conditions, of course, would not be accepted by the Ambassadors of several countries, who immediately began to bargain, asking for only a ten percent profit, a ten-year patent, and so on.
Anyway, these countries, when they initially rashly attempted to research explosives, would realize the high price they had to pay due to constant explosions.
At that time, they would certainly feel that his demands were not high, so Charles had no intention of backing down at all.
His psychological bottom line was a thirty percent profit and a fifty-year patent, which should be within the acceptable range for all countries.
Coincidentally, the Ambassadors of various countries also intended to have their national experts experiment after obtaining the finished products to see if they could produce them themselves, which would save them from paying any patent fees.
Neither side was in a hurry, and the negotiations naturally entered a long stalemate.
After the negotiations began, considering different stances, the final orders for finished products naturally went mostly to France, which, in addition to one ton of safe explosive and three thousand detonators, also ordered two thousand new shrapnel shells.
Other countries primarily purchased explosives, but the total amount was no more than three tons, while detonators reached ten thousand, and shells totaled around three thousand.
The main reason was that many countries could produce Picric acid, one of the explosives, themselves, and relatively speaking, they still placed their hopes on waiting for a breakthrough in production technology.
However, this single military procurement alone kept Charles' arms company in production until next year, with an order value of nearly one hundred thousand pounds and a very high net profit margin of about thirty thousand pounds.
Among these, the highest profit margin, apart from detonators which had full patents, was the new shrapnel shells.
Unfortunately, the procurement quantity for these shells was not large.
The reason was that the production process for these shells was complex, the price was expensive, and the shell body was large, only usable with large-caliber artillery.
General small-caliber field guns could only use solid shot, so the scale of use was not large.
Even a leading power like Britain primarily equipped them on naval warships.
The general army would only equip a small number in fortress guns.
The fact that several major powers only procured a few thousand this time was also due to this reason.