Chapter 153

January 10, 1903, Sydney Port, Australia.

It's National Day again, and Sydney is still crowded with people, but the place where people gather has changed from the central square in front of the Government Building to the open space at Sydney Port.

Because it was the naval parade, and the Australian government and royal family had already warmed up the parade across Australia a month in advance, the open space near the port was filled with onlookers, and many people didn't even have a place to stay.

It was so crowded that people sitting or standing on the ground were almost shoulder to shoulder, and in some narrow places it was even difficult to reach out.

But this does not affect Australians' enthusiasm for participating in the military parade. At just after five o'clock in the morning, the open space was almost full of people, and the number was increasing rapidly.

If the open space in the port was not large enough, and the Australian government had prepared a flat concrete floor for this naval parade, even the Sydney port might not be able to accommodate so many onlookers.

Although more people watching means higher trust in the government and the royal family, too many people crowded into a small place is not a good thing.

Because there are so many people, it is very easy for stampedes to occur. Plus people are talking so much that they may not even hear each other shouting.

In order to ensure the safety of these people, the Ministry of Public Security specially transferred many police forces from other places, and even troops training near Sydney were brought over.

Even the police and the army were dispatched, and more than a thousand people were dispatched. This was able to barely maintain order at the scene.

Of course, everyone knows it. Before the military parade began, the scene was relatively quiet.

When the real naval parade begins, I'm afraid the scene will become even more chaotic and noisy.

While everyone was standing on the field waiting expectantly for the parade to begin, the security department was still urgently mobilizing manpower, and even mobilized a group of doctors from Sydney and the nearby New South Wales House of Representatives, in order to be ready at any time Be prepared to handle the unexpected.

A total of at least ten ships will be dispatched for this naval parade, including four armored cruisers, five coastal protection frigates and a coastal defense gunboat.

These three types of warships respectively represent the current main warships of the Australian Navy, equipped in large quantities with warships and patrol ships.

Compared with other countries, Australia's navy is completely at a lower level. The coastal defense cruiser currently used as the main battleship in the Australian Navy is only an auxiliary warship of the fleet in other countries. Australia does not have a single battleship that is truly the main force of the world's navy.

Of course, this is not because Australia does not have the strength to equip battleships. On the contrary, Australia has now mastered an independent construction technology of main battleships, and has even negotiated to build a battleship for the island country in the agreement with the island country.

But the current battleships seem to be a bit high and low. Although the current battleships can indeed greatly improve the strength level of the navy, it can also make people satisfied with the strength of the navy.

But how long can such a battleship last? The dreadnought will be born in 1906, just over three years from now.

It only takes one or two years to build a warship. Do we need to spend millions of pounds to build a former battleship that will only be successful for one or two years?

By the time countries around the world start their dreadnought construction plans, the pre-dreadnoughts built by Australia will also be reduced to scrap metal.

It would be better to wait until three years later to start the naval launch. Starting to build dreadnoughts at once, there is hope that it will have an impact on the current world naval hierarchy.

Although such a plan is indeed beneficial, it can only be forced on all Australians in the short term.

Although Arthur and the officials know that Australians attach great importance to the navy, even the launch of a small armored cruiser has attracted the attention of many Australians.

But there is no other way. In order to prevent the country from losing millions of pounds in vain, this is the only solution for the time being.

However, although the battleship construction plan needs to be shelved for the time being, these small and medium-sized warships do not need to.

These warships can be used as auxiliary warships of the dreadnought in the future, and form a battleship fleet with a powerful dreadnought.

Moreover, the cost of building these small and medium-sized warships is very cheap, and even the profits from arms trade with island countries are enough to build a dozen of them.

Amid the noisy waiting of the crowd, the port bell finally rang for the first time.

This is a big bell specially prepared for National Day activities. Its ringing also represents the official start of National Day activities on the third anniversary of the founding of Australia.

As usual, the host of the National Day event was the then Prime Minister, Prime Minister Evan. After more than two years as Prime Minister, Prime Minister Evan's temperament has become stronger and stronger, and he has more of the flavor of Western politicians.

"Gentlemen and ladies. Welcome to Australia's Sydney Harbor Naval Parade. Today is January 10, 1903, and it is also the third birthday of our great motherland Australia. To this end, on behalf of all members of the government, I would like to welcome you I would also like to extend my sincere greetings to our great His Highness the Duke. Without His Highness the Duke, I am afraid that Australia is still a region composed of six colonies. A large part of our income still has to be given to the colonial government. We It is not possible to travel to other states easily and quickly because of the policy of isolation between colonies. So, gentlemen and ladies, let us say to His Royal Highness the Duke in the most sincere words: 'Long live His Royal Highness the Duke!'" Prime Minister Evan Standing on the stage, he said with respect.

"Long live His Royal Highness the Duke!"

Following the guidance of Prime Minister Evan, deafening shouts immediately rang out throughout the port and all the stands, as if all Australians were declaring to God the achievements of their respected Duke.

Seeing that his guidance was successful, Prime Minister Evan respectfully asked Arthur to say a few words.

"Long live Australia!" Arthur's first sentence was nothing more than a response to the people's shouts just now.

"Long live Australia! Long live His Royal Highness the Duke!"

At this time, the shouts that had just fallen into silence broke out again, even stronger than at the beginning.

This is also Arthur's purpose, to promote nationalism at a point in time that is acceptable to all Australians.

Only by uniting all Australians to form a new nation and highly recognizing the country can Australia have more hope of becoming a powerful country and Arthur's rule will be more stable.

Second update, please support!