Napoleon in 1812
Chapter 98: The Great - 4

17. The Great – 4

So far, the history of the FrenchNavy hadbeen paved with manydefeats. Althoughthey hadsuperiorship manufacturing technology, courageoussailors, and superior woodand artillery than any other European country, theFrench hardly won.

This was because their opponent was none other thanthe BritishRoyalNavy, the kingofthe ocean. Thepassionate andcompetitiveFrench had been learning and growing up constantlyreflecting on their defeat. However, the British Navycontinued to widen the gapasitevolved at an even faster rate.

Enteringthe 19thcentury, the French Navy had becomenothing more thana meal for theferocious Britishbattleships. The Frenchadmiral instructed his subordinatestorun awaywithout looking backifthey sawbattleshipsdisplaying theUnionJack.

“It’s pathetic and miserable. France, whichconquered the continent, cannot breathe at sea.”

TheBritish Navy was by no means invincible. Napoleon knew it better than anyone else, because he had learned it fromhis own experience.

Infact, inthe world where he originallylived, HoratioNelson, an invincible admiralwho was incomparabletothe currentgeneralsofthe BritishNavy, was holdingout.

Nevertheless, theFrench Navy, which had continuedtogrow tremendously, eventuallysucceeded in blocking Nelson’s fleet.

This wasthe result of leading the sailors in the right direction, making continuous investments and givingthem faith in victory, despite the lack of talented people that happened due to thepurgeofnavalofficers.

ButwouldNapoleon, who hadalready provedonce that the Frenchwere notweak at sea, be abletodothe samehere?

“Theinstructors’ evaluationpapers are full of favorable reviews of cadets. It’s nota trick to flatter me or inflatemyachievements, is it?”

“OnmyfaithinGod and thehonorofmycountry, I declare to YourMajesty that thisisbynomeanssuch a shameless move! Thecadets are allpassionate about learning, and their abilities areexcellent and exceptional, they deserve to be called warriors of thesea! They are showing infinite loyaltytothe Empire andtoYour Majesty, andare lookingforward to getting on the deck as soonaspossibleand commandingthe battleships.”

The reportbyMajorGeneral D’Autriche, vice-principal of theNantes Naval Academy, was full of confidence, withoutaninch of falsehood.

Theprincipal of thismilitaryacademy wasLieutenant General Pierre de VaugirauddeRosnay, an oldroyalistnoblemanwhom Napoleon hadhad ahard time gettingunderhis command.

In peacetime, he would pretendtobea retired admiralworking as a teacher, but in theeventofa war, he would immediately commandthe elite fleet of the Empire. No one would be more suitable thanLieutenant General de Rosnay, who did notlose against AdmiralNelson.

The faceofDenisDecrès[1], the Minister of the Navy and theColonies, who waslistening to the reportwith Napoleon, also showedsatisfaction. It wasnatural that the stronger theFrench Navywas, thestrongerhis voice in the cabinet would be. Thereason why theBritish Navy was strongwas thatithad skilledofficers, sailors, and marines withcountless combat andsailing experiences.

Theydid not lose or suffer much damage in themaritimewar againstFrance, so they survived while accumulating experience.

And by passingthat valuable experience and know-how to their successors, thevirtuouscyclewas repeated, andthe strength of the British Navywas maintainedover generations.

On the other hand, Francelost every time it fought, soitwas unable to maintain a force of skilledofficersand soldiers.

Inthe end, latergenerationsoftenclimbed to thedeck without proper education. Thiswas how thegap betweenthe two countrieswidened.

After all, excellent manpower was thebasicfoundation to achieve strong maritime power.

The NantesNavalAcademy wasa newly created naval academythat implemented naval policies that had been successfulinthe world where Napoleon originallylived.

Naval officers learned about artillery, deck shooting, maritimesignals, and loading, which wereessential for them, andwere trained countless times in combatpractice.

In this process, cadets could experience leadershipthat they musthave as officers while leading sailorsand non-commissionedofficersassignedundertheircommand, and developtheirability to respond to unexpectedevents at sea.

As the educational curriculum was revised to be as close to practice as possible and money andtime were generouslyinvestedfor combat training andnavigation practice, satisfactory resultswere comingout in ashorttime.

The cadetswere graduallytransforming into‘sea men’ as theyadapted to theharshenvironmentonthe deck.

Napoleon wasreceiving abunchofpapers containinggrades and instructor evaluations of naval cadets from Major GeneralD’Autriche, who cametoParishimself forreporting, andread them one by one. There was a common intense desire felt fromthem.

It was theyoungpeople’sambitiontosomeday surpass Britainand establish Europe’s best maritime empire, and to stand tallasthe leader of theera. Theyoungpeople of the Empireattheirpeak were so determinedthat they could do anything.

“There’sa separate reasonwhy I called the minister andthe vice-principal, whomust be already busy.”

Afterreading thelast report, Napoleon’swordsmade their heads tilt.

“Since the armisticenegotiations thatendedthe PeninsularWar, there have beena numberofgood investment proposals received by theimperialgovernment. Amongthem, therewere projects that wereconsidered to be so powerful that theywere regarded as topsecret.”

WhenNapoleonclapped hishandsand senta signal, the door to the officeopened and a man with his servants entered. Hisuniform showedhis rank, indicatingthat he wasanartillery officer.

“Myname is Henri-JosephPaixhans[2], fromthe 17thBattalion of the Imperial Guard Artillery. I salute YourMajesty theGreatEmperor of theEmpire!”

“Welcome, Lieutenant Colonel. I wouldlike to askyou to presentthe new weaponyou made.”

“It would be suchanhonor, YourMajesty!”

“Then let’s go to thedemonstration hall. Everyone, get ready to be surprised.”

Napoleon andLieutenant Colonel Paixhans leftthe office first, and Major GeneralD’Autriche andMinisterDecrès shrugged andfollowed.

===

“I’vealready said it, butonce again, pay attention. I think this new project is an innovativeweapon thatwill changethe situation on thesea, so youshould strictly think about its confidentialityasI do.”

Theplacewherethey arrived was an ownerlesssite in thesouthofParis. However, although there was no name to it, it belonged to theimperialfamily, andNapoleonhad beenstrictlycontrollingaccess to thisplacefor severalyears.

“This is it. Lieutenant Colonel, pleaseexplain it to them.”

“Yes, YourMajesty!” Sᴇaʀch* Thᴇ ɴ0velFɪre.nᴇt website on Gøøglᴇ to access chapters of nøvels early and in the highest quality.

There wasone veryhuge cannoninfrontofthem.

“It’s too bigtobea field cannon, right? It’s not one. It’sa cannonthat canbeused in battleships on thefrontline. But of course, it’s still bigeven fora ship.”

LieutenantColonel Paixhans began explaining witha triumphant look.

“Sofar, cannons havebeen usefulbycarryingiron balls andsending them throughenemylinesand units. Modifications weremade, and the cannonballs varieddepending on the purpose of artillery fire, such as shotguns, grape bullets, andchainbullets. Artillery officers havelearned to usethem in therightplace, and so have their subordinates. But thisnew cannon andits cannonballs are fundamentally different from those usedbythe imperial armysofar. In particular, I am confident that theywill be able to givea fatal blow to wooden sailing ships.”

Whatonearthwas thiscannon and theshells contained in it fora lieutenant coloneltobesocondescending in front of them? Major General D’Autricheand Minister Decrèslooked grim.

Watching them, Napoleon smiledinwardly. He usedtobelike that, too. But he changed his expression immediately after confirmingthe power of thisinnovative cannon.

“Itwouldbebetter to see a demonstrationthan to hear ahundred explanations. Well, get it ready.”

Lieutenant ColonelPaixhansordered subordinate noncommissionedofficersand researchers to operatethe hugecannon. Ammunition was brought, loaded, and then the chamber was adjusted. Ata glance, it was undergoing amuch more complicated and difficultprocess than ordinary cannons.

It wasnot until sometime that it was possible to install the ignition detonator, the final step before shelling.

“Cover your earstightly.”

“Yes, yes? YourMajesty?”

“Fire!”

“Aaahhhhh!”

Even if lightningstruck at aclosedistance, it would not be as loud as this. LikeNapoleon, who wascoveringhis earswith hishands, LieutenantColonel Paixhans, the noncommissioned officers andthe researchers, whohad coveredtheirears with cotton balls a while ago, were safe, butthe two were verysurprised by the unimaginablesound.

In particular, thewig of Minister Decrèsflew off, revealing hisbald head ridiculously. But he was so astonished by whathappenedinfrontofhis eyeswith hismouthwide open thathedid not even think of pickinguphis wig.

“Woaaaaahh!!”

The bulletfiredfrom thecannon hit theabandoned house thatwas chosen as target. If it had been aregular cannonwith regular bullets, whetheriron or shot, thedemonstration would have beencompleted by breaking downthe house withphysicalforceorbymaking alargehole in it.

However, the purpose of the shellsproducedbyLieutenant Colonel Paixhans was different. Theywere designed to explode. A red-yellowflamethat rose witha roar hit theabandoned house and black smoke swallowedupthe surroundings.

Whenthe smoke subsided, thehousehad disappeared, andonly tracesand debris of theexplosion wereleft scatteredaround it.

“YourMajesty! Were there anyflammable substancesinthe house, like gunpowder, sulfur, or oil!?”

“Theresearcherswouldknow betterthan that, wouldn’t they?”

“Th-then…!?”

Lieutenant ColonelPaixhanscontinued to explaintothe two, theirsurprisemaking themforget the pain in their ears.

“The shell I made is notaniron cannonball thatpasses throughthe target, but an ‘explosiveshell’ thathits thetarget and then explodes.”

Thatwas right. This was thereason why Paixhans, who usedtobea captain, waspromotedtolieutenant colonel at once, and whyNapoleonprovidedhim withanopen space to conduct top-secretresearch.

When Napoleon heard about the research plan for this cannon andshells fromCaptain Paixhans, hejudged thatthis would be a decisive weapon in thetimesahead.

He immediately invested generous resourcesinit, and twoyearslater, LieutenantColonel Paixhans faithfully met hisexpectations.

“To brieflyexplain theprinciple, theshellisequippedwith a fusethat ignites whenthe cannon is fired, and thatmakesthe shell explodewhen it reaches its target.”

The principle of theexplosive shell was relatively simple. Similarly to conventional cannonballs, a chargebehind the warhead exploded, allowing theshelltofly to the target.

However, themain difference was that high-performanceexplosives were concentrated in thewarhead of theshells produced by LieutenantColonel Paixhans.

Whenthe shell hit thetarget, theimpact activated thedetonator inside thewarhead, stimulatingexplosives andcausing a hugeexplosion.

The resulting high heat, flames, and blowwoulddevastate the entirearea andcausegreatcasualties anddamage to the enemy.

“Special cannonsare needed to usetheseexplosive shells. They arecomposedofmuch more preciseand complexdevices than conventional cannons. Unfortunately, this cannon, whichcontainssuch devices, is toobig and heavy to be used as afieldgun. However, if it undergoesa slightminiaturization and weightreduction process, there is asufficient possibility that it can be used on aship.”

Napoleon wasconvinced thatdue to the natureofthe explosion, itwouldhave a stronger effect in maritime warfare thaninland warfare.

A sailing shipmade of wood, on a deckwheretherewas not much space to avoid, wasa huge and slow target. Innavalbattles where ships on thefirstline fired artilleryshells, this cannon would bring disaster to theenemy.

What if French officers, who had been reborn as ‘sea men’ through an efficientand combat-oriented training process, were given abattleship armed with these gunsand explosive shells? Minister Decrèsand Major GeneralD’Autriche, who werelistening to Napoleon, also had their heads twirled.

Decrès wasfrom thenortheast, thepolitical center of France, and D’Autriche was from asoutherncoastal city witha very strong regional feeling.

The countryitself was so wide thattherewere many quarrels and disputes between regions, but allofthem hadone thing in common: the French gathered under theflag of France.

Through the blood of allthe French wasflowing thesame feeling since the Hundred Years’ War, after having been brutally beaten by thepirates of that island country.

They hada great dream of conquering Britainbybreakingdown thewooden walls blocking the Dover Straitand landingFrance’sGrandArmée (Grand Army). Theireyes reflectedsuch a strong desire.

Thetwo naturally felt joy from finallyacquiring areliableweapon thatcouldbreakdown theBritish fleet dominating the sea.

“I named this cannon Paixhans Cannonafterits creator. Aren’t youlooking forward to it? Theday whena Frenchfleetofwarshipsarmedwith Paixhans cannons and explosiveshells fires mercilessly at the British Royal Navy.”

“…!”

“I’ll askthe minister and thevice-director. Are you ready to defeatthem whohold theworld’s maritime hegemony, and achieveFrance’slong-cherisheddream?”

They hadonly oneanswer to this.

TL notes

[1]DenisDecrès

[2]Henri-JosephPaixhans

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