Chapter 262 Ingenious Ship Design



Napoleon leaned over his desk, his eyes fixed on the table being pushed by the men working for Sane. He knew that beneath the concealing curtain lay the future of the French Navy. The anticipation was building inside him as he was eager to see what Sane had come up with.

The men stopped, their synchronized movements coming to a halt as they positioned the table precisely in the center of the room.

He nodded at Sané, signaling for him to proceed.

With a flourish, Sané stepped forward, his hands steady as he grasped the edges of the curtain.

"Your Excellency," Sané began. "I present to you the future of the French Navy."

With a swift motion, Sané whisked the curtain away, revealing the magnificent creation that lay beneath. Napoleon gasped slightly and his eyes widened in awe.

Before them stood a scale model of a ship like none other. Its design was a marvel of engineering, too advanced from its time. The ship was sleek, with a streamlined hull that promised unmatched speed and agility on the open seas, instead of a mast, it was a chimney that dominated the center. And in the fore and aft part for the ships were twin long-muzzled barbette.

There's no mistaking it, without his intervention, a French Naval Engineer, came up with a design similar to the pre-dreadnought battleships.

Napoleon was speechless, literally. He stared at it for a second without his eyes leaving it. As seconds passed by, Napoleon's admiration towards the engineers of France were growing exponentially, and it was not an exaggeration.

"Your Excellency, behold the future of our naval fleet. Instead of traditional wind propulsion, we've harnessed cutting-edge technology – the steam engine, to be precise, an expansion steam engine. This marvel boasts three shafts, each equipped with triple-expansion steam engines, driven by a total of 20 water-tube boilers, capable of generating an impressive 14,350 horsepower. The vessel measures 117.7 meters in length, with a beam spanning 20.3 meters and a draught of 8.4 meters.

Now, for its armament, we've equipped it with formidable firepower – two twin 305 mm guns, accompanied by ten single 138.6 mm guns and eight single 100 mm guns. And when it comes to protection, with the invaluable assistance of the Ministry of Science, we've developed armor that can withstand direct hits from enemy main armaments. The belt boasts a thickness ranging from 110 to 400 mm, the decks are fortified with armor measuring 55 to 90 mm, the barbettes with 270 mm, the turrets with 320 mm, and the conning tower with a formidable 326 mm of protective plating.

Based on our meticulous calculations, this vessel is projected to achieve a maximum speed of 18 knots and boasts an impressive range of 3,650 nautical miles."

"Sane, how long would it take for you to build those ships should I decide to commission one?" Napoleon asked, his tone serious.

"Hmm...factoring the refurbishment of the ports, I would say about three years. And per three years we could build up to 30 ships per major port. It all depends on the sizes."

"Well Sane, you know the situation of France, to maintain our empire we need a strong navy. I may not look like it but I'm also a naval enthusiast and have come to draw my own design."

Napoleon returned to his desk and grabbed a blueprint underneath. Sane looked curiously at the rolled scroll of the blueprint that Napoleon produced.

"Here it is," Napoleon handed it to Sane.

Sane grabbed and unfurled the blueprint. The moment his eyes lay upon the schematics, it widened.

"Your Excellency...this...it's elegant! It's detailed, elegant, and bigger than what I have originally designed," Sane exclaimed.

"If we are going to introduce a new kind of warship where all European powers are planning on making their own, ours should be better and bigger. The bigger the ship, the more it damages our enemy, psychologically."

Napoleon also handed Sane another batch of blueprints, all which are warship design.

"Can it be built? It's not that much of a difference to the ships that you presented to me," Napoleon mused.

"We will do everything we can, Your Excellency," Sane replied and continued. "How many ships do you want us to build anyways?"

"Oh about that..." Napoleon hummed aloud, after seriously considering it, he answered. "To be honest I don't know, how about to be followed? Let's focus on modernizing our ports first and then build one ship for every class and then we discuss from there."

Sane couldn't hide his concern. "If we go through that process, Your Excellency, we won't see a batch of warships in the next five years."

Napoleon's expression softened into a knowing smile. "That's alright. Rome wasn't built in a day, and neither will our navy be. We'll take our time and ensure that when those warships do set sail, they'll be a force to be reckoned with."