Chapter 391 Britain and France jointly visit

Although the war only broke out for four months, it was a huge drain on all participating countries.

So far, Australasia has exported to Europe at least 5 million tons of grain, 500,000 rifles, hundreds of millions of rounds of ammunition, and a variety of weapons and equipment, strategic materials, etc.

Including oil, coal, iron ore and other mineral resources, Australasia also sold many to the British Empire and France.

These trades also brought a lot of profits to Australasia, and at the same time promoted the economic development of Australasia. This is why Australasia was the only participating country with rapid economic growth during the war.

Thanks to the rapid expansion of the military industry, Australasia's industry has also experienced considerable growth.

It is worth mentioning that the French have realized the harm their unique military uniforms have brought to the army, and are currently making urgent plans to replace their existing military uniforms with colors that are less likely to be spotted.

Some factories in Australasia are responsible for the production of military uniforms and helmets.

This has also given some civilian clothing factories in Australasia good development opportunities. At least during this period of time, the market for military clothing was much higher than that for civilian clothing, because many supplies were destroyed or intercepted by the enemy before they were delivered to soldiers.

Of course, Russia's demand for military uniforms is minimal. If you have to ask why, you can tell by looking at the military uniforms with bullet holes and patches worn by Russian recruits.

The Russians are really good at ripping off their clothes. Even if they are from their comrades who died in battle, as long as the uniform is not damaged too much, it still has value.

There are currently no more taboo weapons such as poison gas on the European battlefield, but Arthur understands that if the war in Europe continues to develop like this, the Germans will definitely not be able to sit still, and poison gas will definitely be used by the Germans.

In order to deal with the poison gas that the Germans might use, and also to protect the Australasian army, under Arthur's order, Australasian scientific researchers began to urgently study gas masks, a kind of gas mask that Arthur requested to isolate harmful gases. Gas mask.

Taking advantage of this opportunity, Arthur also asked people to research reliable and convenient masks to prevent the possible pandemic of influenza in a few years.

The influenza pandemic that will occur in a few years is not a small infectious disease. If there is no preparation, it is likely to cause a large number of casualties and losses to the country and the people.

Arthur is already making intensive preparations for masks, disinfectant and other supplies. The purpose is to wait for the arrival of future influenza, so as to reduce casualties as much as possible in Australasia, and even try to eliminate casualties as much as possible.

The good news is that the outbreak of the Spanish Flu pandemic will take several years, and due to Australasia's remote location, it is destined not to be the most severely affected area.

As long as we protect ourselves at the national level and prepare a large number of masks, disinfectant and other emergency supplies, we can effectively handle this influenza pandemic.

Regarding the integration and assimilation of all immigrants in the country, the unification of language and religion were two of Arthur's most important policies.

With the joint efforts of the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Education and Archbishop Steed, a large number of non-British immigrants have been trained in English, so that they can at least use English for simple communication.

You know, the vast majority of those who opened factories in Australasia were British Australasians.

This also means that knowing English is a necessary condition when looking for a job. Although this does not represent the basic condition, whether you can speak English will actually determine whether you can survive in the factory.

Just imagine, how can you work better if you can't even understand what your colleagues and leaders are saying, and you have to rely on hand gestures to communicate?

Because of this, German and Russian immigrants still have a high attitude towards learning English.

This has also allowed the progress of language unification in Australasia to be implemented smoothly, and all language schools run by the government and churches are basically full.

In addition to unifying the language, Archbishop Steed also attempted to unify the religions of Australasia.

But religion is different from language. People can accept learning another language to help them live a better life, but they often cannot accept converting to a religion.

Some people who don't believe in religion are okay, and those who are more superstitious about religion even make cold remarks to the missionaries sent by the church and directly express their rejection.

Arthur was not too concerned about the religious unity of Australasia. After all, in this era, secular rights far outweighed religion.

For a country like Australasia, as long as the fundamental power is in Arthur's hands, it doesn't matter what religion its citizens believe in.

As long as it can be ensured that British and Protestants make up the majority of the total population of Australasia, the remaining minority of residents will be extremely free in their beliefs.

Of course, some religions that oppose the government and royal rule and are contrary to the beliefs of most British immigrants are unlikely to be taken over by the government.

The specific choice is left to Archbishop Steed to resolve.

Anyway, in addition to being Archbishop of Australasia, Archbishop Steed is also the head of the Australasian Protestant Association.

The issue of religion is left to the religion itself to solve. If Archbishop Steed has the ability to make the vast majority of Australasians believe in Protestantism, Arthur will definitely welcome and support it.

After a brief cabinet meeting, Arthur patiently waited for the arrival of the National Day in the new year.

But unexpectedly, before the arrival of National Day, Arthur took the lead in waiting for guests from Europe.

The visitors were Henry Winston, the British Ambassador to Australasia, and Topin Crete, the French Ambassador to Australasia.

The status of these two people in their respective countries is not small, because they are responsible for the contact with the allies of the Allied Powers, and they are also the bridge of communication between Australasia and the Allied Powers.

Although Arthur had already guessed the purpose of their visit, he still received them in the banquet hall with a smile.

The purpose of Britain and France's visit is actually very simple, and it is definitely related to the current war in Europe. Britain and France had to bear a large number of casualties every day on the European battlefield, and the Australasian troops only had over 300,000 troops at full strength, and now there are only more than 200,000.

Moreover, the Australasian Expeditionary Force is composed of the vast majority of indigenous people. Under such circumstances, Britain and France naturally want Australasia to send more reinforcements to relieve the pressure faced by Britain and France.

After everyone exchanged greetings and sat down, Arthur got straight to the point and asked directly: "Two ambassadors, why are you here today?"

Henry Winston and Toppin Crater looked at each other. Winston spoke first and replied very respectfully: "Your Majesty, to tell you the truth, the battlefield in Europe is very anxious now. In order to defeat the Germans as soon as possible, , we hope that your country can send at least 200,000 more reinforcements to help us launch a larger offensive, regain the lost territory of France in one fell swoop, and even directly invade Germany."

So far in the war, France and Germany have both won and lost, and the offensives of both sides have reached a stalemate, turning into a protracted and cruel war of attrition.

A war of attrition naturally requires human lives. It can be seen from the daily casualty figures on the Western Front battlefield that the British, French and Australian allied forces suffered nearly 20,000 casualties every day in the war of attrition, and more than 3,000 people died. The rate of consumption of manpower was extremely terrifying.

At this time, whichever side has more manpower means that it has more advantages to consume.

Naturally, it goes without saying that Britain and France are the main target of Germany's attack, and the current casualties have been very heavy.

The British Empire has so far sent more than 500,000 expeditionary troops to France, including 400,000 colonial troops and 100,000 regular troops.

Australasia alone not only dispatched more than 300,000 troops, but also only one division of regular troops.

Although the Australasian Fourth Division performed very well in the war, the combat effectiveness of a single division was not weaker than that of the German division.

Such a move cannot change the battlefield on the Western Front at all. Australasia needs to contribute at least another 200,000 troops to have a certain impact on the battlefield on the Western Front.

"If I remember correctly, what our alliance agreed at that time should be 300,000 colonial troops and a regular division! As early as two months after the war broke out, Australasia had already completed the task in full, and also Frequently transporting supplies to various allies, absolutely nothing is carried." Arthur glanced at the two ambassadors, chuckled and said: "And judging from the size of our army, we simply cannot organize another 200,000 troops in a short period of time. The army. If you need supplies, there may be ways, but in terms of the army, we are indeed somewhat powerless."

Winston and Crete looked at each other, and Crete was the first to speak: "Your Majesty, please rest assured that we are absolutely here with sincerity. Mr. President also knows that your country is not easy. If your country is willing to do it in three We are willing to support an army of 200,000 men within a month. We are willing to pay half of the cost of establishing this army and bear half of its military expenses for fighting in Europe. In addition, we are willing to transfer the Kerguelen Islands to your country and provide you with The country will provide an interest-free loan of 500 million francs.”

The Kerguelen Islands are located in the southern Indian Ocean, between the French colony of Madagascar and Australasia.

If Australasia can acquire this colony, its sphere of influence will also expand to the Indian Ocean.

After hearing the French conditions, Arthur couldn't help but narrowed his eyes and looked at Ambassador Crete with deep meaning.

I have to say that the conditions for the French are indeed generous. Australasia only needs to dispatch 200,000 indigenous troops to obtain an interest-free loan of 500 million francs, a colony that can expand its sphere of influence.

Even half of the cost of setting up and fighting the 200,000-strong army was borne by France. From a profit perspective alone, this sale of Australasia was definitely not a loss.

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