MTL - Restart Spain-Chapter 69 Castile-class battleship

August 1, 1876, the port of Barcelona, ​​Spain.

The five former Dreadnought-class battleships requested by Alfonso at the beginning of his succession were officially launched today.

The construction time alone took more than 18 months, and it still takes the Navy to truly become familiar with the battleship before it can be considered a real combat force.

The former dreadnought named "Castile" class is the most powerful battleship in the world's navy today, with a displacement of 14,050 tons and a full-load displacement of 15,220 tons. It is the battleship with the largest displacement in the world today, and a worthy giant.

Equipped with 4 343mm main guns and 10 152.4mm rapid-fire guns. In terms of armor, the thickest part of the main armor belt in the middle of the broadside reaches 457mm, and then decreases forward and backward by 406mm and 356mm respectively.

Because the armor steel technology has not been developed during this period, the armor is all made of ordinary steel, and the thickness is amazing.

The speed is an astonishing 15.5 knots, and the maximum speed is 17.25 knots.

The first ship was named "Queen Isabella", and the next four were named "Magellan", "Cnight of Cid", "Warrior" and "Prince of Asturias".

The five warships with a total tonnage of more than 70,000 tons, aided by the old-fashioned fleet of 30,000 tons in active service, jumped to the Spanish Navy's total tonnage of more than 105,000 tons.

It is almost the same as Russia's 110,000 tons, slightly less than the 130,000 tons of the German Empire, one-third of the French and one-fifth of the British.

It exceeds the United States' 102,800 tons, ranking fifth in the world in terms of total tonnage.

Castro, who personally trained a navy soldier, looked at the five behemoths parked in the port with excitement today.

He has been looking forward to this day with great anticipation since he succeeded him as Admiralty.

The Infreyxi White-class ironclad launched by the British in April has a maximum displacement of 11,880 tons at full load and a maximum speed of 14.73 knots. As the latest-class battleship of the naval overlord, it represents the highest level of warship technology in the world today.

Today, the Spanish battleship has directly broken the British's leading position in naval technology. Whether it is firepower or speed, it far exceeds the Infrex White class.

It is believed that after the water-dropping ceremony is over and the data is known to all countries in the world, it will definitely cause an uproar.

Alfonso stood beside Castro in a high-level navy uniform, accompanied by a dozen senior officers, all of whom Alfonso could not name.

Escorted all the way, he brought a specially built stand in front of the port. Alfonso, dressed in the uniform of an admiral, stood tall and straight at the front of the stand and straightened the microphone used for speech.

The perimeter of the port is already surrounded by dense crowds. Spain has concealed something during the construction of the warship, but it intends to make it public when it is launched.

On the one hand, this is something that there is no way to hide it. On the other hand, I also want to give the people a sedative through the launch of this battleship, and directly launch the five most advanced battleships in the world. It can be said that it can bring benefits to the people. huge confidence.

The title of Spain's first army in the world has become less and less recognized now, but the title of the most advanced army in the world has been preserved.

On the one hand, all countries have stepped out of the shock of machine guns and cannons to wash the ground. On the other hand, because the number of the Spanish army is too small, it really cannot support such a heavy name.

The launch of naval warships can effectively protect the prestige of the old colonial empires, and it can also deter some coveted enemy countries.

As an old colonial empire, Spain, the decline of its strength is undoubtedly the biggest blow to the **** of overseas territories. The strength can be really weak, but the name must be loud.

Alfonso held a bottle of champagne of unknown brand in his hand, took Queen Hepburn, and threw them one by one on the hull of the battleship, walking around, soaked with rain and dew.

The ritual of tossing a bottle is a distant tradition, the purpose of which is to pray for the smooth and safe sailing of ships in the future. Later, the British aircraft carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth was launched, and the Queen showed it in front of the public.

"Now I announce that the launching ceremony officially begins!"

Alfonso directly announced the start of the launching ceremony, the national anthem was played slowly, and the salute began to fire.

The navy above the five battleships all stood still and gave the Spanish military salute. Several old-fashioned ironclads began to slowly drag the battleship away from the shore.

The crowd of onlookers began to cheer, five behemoths, and several ironclad ships responsible for towing, and a dozen warships began to move, and pride involuntarily emerged.

"Queen Isabella" entered the ocean first, followed by "Knight of Cid"... The steam engine of the battleship started to start, and the black air began to fly into the sky.

After a while, the five warships all sailed out of the shallow waters and stood at a distance where they would not run aground. There was no so-called speech session.

After the warship sailed into the sea, the salute began to fire again, the military band played cheerful music, and the onlookers began to cheer and applaud. This kind of pride in one's own country is easy to satisfy.

The launching ceremony of the "Castile class" is a perfect end. I believe that the world will be disappointed with the warships that are currently under construction when the newspaper Le Monde spreads the news the next day.

The maximum displacement of the German Saxon class is only 8,000 tons, the Dutch "Prince Koning" is 5,400 tons, the Russian "Peter the Great" is 10,500 tons, the Italian "Kao Dulio". 11,000 tons, and the Spanish Once can be said to go to the front of the world.

Countries are already building, and even warships that are just sketches have been declared outdated without being launched into service.

It may not be a big deal for Britain and France, which are powerful in shipbuilding, but for countries like Italy and Russia, which have high hopes for new warships, it must be an extremely cruel blow.

Although the production of dreadnoughts is not as turbulent as the production of dreadnoughts, the appearance of the former dreadnoughts will still cause naval competitions in various countries.

Among them, the one with the greatest pressure must be the mighty British Empire.

"It's a pity that William has not yet ascended the throne of the German Emperor. It's really a loss for the Spaniards."

Alfonso sighed involuntarily. William II did not catch up with the previous fearless arms race, which would make the British look more towards Spain.

"Why would William lose to the Spaniards if he didn't become the German Emperor?"

Queen Hepburn couldn't help asking. She felt that what Alfonso said was a little strange, but she didn't dare to question it directly.

"Haha, I can't tell you this. If you want to know, just guess."

Alfonso laughed and avoided Hepburn's question. William II, who was of British blood, had a great yearning for the ocean.

Hepburn's face darkened, ignoring the silly Alfonso, and looked at the five "Castile class" in the distance with complicated eyes.

Some people are looking forward to Portugal being able to have this kind of super warship one day. The "Castile class" is a real super warship in this era.

......