African Entrepreneurship Records 2

Chapter 977 Intelligence Survey
Amid the sound of the Rhine Empire's national anthem and cannon salutes, the East African Lion flag slowly rose, and all the East Africans present stood up and sang the national anthem, which gave the diplomats present a great shock. This detail was not just a show, but a manifestation of cohesion.

More than 200,000 people visited the ceremony today, and the scene of 200,000 people singing the East African national anthem together was naturally an unparalleled event.

"East Africa's cohesion is so strong that it is no wonder that East Africa has risen to become a world power in just over 30 years. The Hechingen royal family's grasp of the hearts of the East Africans is beyond imagination," French Ambassador Lawrence commented objectively.

"Yes, although East Africa is a country with many immigrants, their cultural identity is definitely not comparable to that of the nouveau riche in the United States. In East Africa, I have never seen the filth between the yellow and white races. If it were in the United States, even the white race would be divided into different levels. Therefore, the East African government's brainwashing methods for the people are very sophisticated." Spanish Ambassador William echoed.

William was shocked and envious of the cohesion shown by the East African people at this moment. After all, his homeland, Spain, was very torn internally, which has always been one of the weaknesses of the Spanish Kingdom.

As a Frenchman, Lawrence could not understand this. The French have always had a strong sense of national identity. Even in the 21st century, many black people regard France as their motherland, which also shows that French culture is inclusive.

Of course, East Africa is not as good as they imagined. As a country forcibly invaded by the Hechingen royal family, East Africa has had a chain of contempt since the colonial era. However, with the passage of time, the popularization of German and intermarriage between immigrants, these contradictions have been gradually eliminated. As a country that practiced forced marriage in the early days, it is difficult for various immigrant groups in East Africa not to integrate into one.

With the switching between the national anthem and military songs and the sound of military music, today's highlight finally began. The reviewing troops, mainly composed of the East African Defense Force, began to march towards the rostrum one by one.

This is a program that is popular among diplomats from various countries and East Africans. The army itself is full of mystery and legends, and it has always been the most talked-about group throughout the ages.

"We are facing the 4th Company of the 3rd Regiment of the 2nd Brigade of the Rhine Empire Royal Guard Division. This is a unit that played an important role in the South African War. It was established in... and later participated in many battles such as..., which embodies the style of the soldiers of the Rhine Empire Royal Guard Division and their strong courage to defend their country..."

Amid the awkward faces of the British and Portuguese diplomats, the Royal Guards Division paraded troops marched in an orderly manner. With a handsome rifle-splitting movement, the white edge of the bayonet revealed murderous aura, and the leather shoes made a deafening sound as they stepped on the national avenue.

There was thunderous applause from the guests on the viewing stand and the spectators on the National Avenue, but it was rather harsh to the ears of the British and Portuguese diplomats.

Ambassador Thomson said sourly: "It's like a group of machines, without any characteristics. An army should have its own soul, instead of losing its own characteristics and appearing dull like this."

Wagli, president of the Portuguese East African Commercial and Trade Association, also agreed with Thompson's remarks: "Yes, yes, it seems that after ten years of peace, the East African army has also declined. This kind of fancy equipment is of no use on the battlefield."

Because of the South African War, Portugal has not established normal diplomatic relations with East Africa until now, so the so-called Portuguese Commercial and Trade Association in East Africa is Portugal's diplomatic agency in East Africa. After all, East Africa is one of the major countries in the world, so no matter how much the Portuguese government hates East Africa, it cannot but communicate with East Africa, especially today when commercial activities between the two countries are becoming more and more frequent.

The whispers of the British and Portuguese diplomats naturally did not resonate with others. Instead, Maxim, who had suffered a loss from Wilson before, came to Wilson and said, "It was this kind of show-off that beat Britain to a pulp in the past ten years. Tsk tsk tsk tsk."

Wilson said with a gloomy face: "We in Britain chose to cease fire only for geographical reasons, not because of defeat. Moreover, compared with the East African army, which can fight a tie with our British Empire Army, the Russian army is completely vulnerable. After all, you were defeated by us in Crimea. Your gray animals are dressed like beggars. Look at the East African army in front of you. Their investment in Europe is definitely not weak, at least not the same as the beggar army."

Wilson was still sharp-tongued, which made Maxim very angry. When he was about to vent his anger, the East African personnel had unknowingly come to the two of them. "Ambassadors, today is an important day for us in East Africa, so don't let anything unpleasant happen. And Ambassador Maxim, you left your position without permission, which is always bad."

In order to prevent the British and Tsarist Russian diplomats from verbally attacking each other, East Africa deliberately moved Maxim and Wilson's positions far away. Unexpectedly, Maxim was so vindictive that he came here specifically to make trouble. So under the mediation of East African staff, Maxim returned to his position indignantly.

The little incident on the viewing stand did not affect everyone's interest in watching. After all, this was a rare opportunity to learn about the situation of the East African army.

"The East African Defense Forces are very qualified in terms of both their appearance and military skills, and their discipline is also very strong. Only our German army can compare with them."

"Their weapons and equipment are not inferior to any other army. The Mauser rifles are well maintained, the number of machine guns is also considerable, and there are artillery of various calibers. The East African artillery is a self-contained system, covering large, medium and small types. The only difference is their hauling personnel.

The artillery towing work of many troops in East Africa has been completely handed over to military trucks, so they are naturally not very familiar with using mules and horses to tow the artillery again. After all, a 75mm caliber rapid-fire cannon requires the cooperation of six military horses, which is extremely difficult. Therefore, the artillerymen who have received short-term training are still a little unfamiliar.

"East Africans are quite insightful. We in France are equipped with a large number of 75mm artillery. According to my observation, this type of artillery is the most common in the East African military parade. East Africa even specially ordered ten 75mm artillery from my country a few years ago. It seems that many generals in East Africa have similar ideas to our army."

It is undeniable that East Africa prefers 75mm artillery, but it is far from being a historical legacy as French Ambassador Lawrence believes.

In the early days, East Africa did not need too many large-caliber artillery. After all, most of East Africa's opponents were indigenous people, and using artillery against them was a bit like overkill. In addition, East Africa was underdeveloped in the early days and had never encountered decent trench warfare. Artillery units naturally tended to transfer, so a lot of 75mm artillery were produced at that time.

However, this situation has changed in the past decade, and the categories of artillery production in East Africa have tended to be diversified, especially in the study of trench warfare in South Africa. Faced with military fortresses such as Maputo and Luanda, this has enriched the research topics of the East African Defense Force.

After the formations of infantry, cavalry, artillery and machine gunners passed by, there was basically nothing to watch in this parade. At this time, the so-called "Air Force" of East Africa was also dispatched. They were two domestically-made airships that were copied from East Africa. They flew over the National Avenue to bring the parade to a close.

This military parade was a visual feast for those present. Even in Europe, it is rare to see a military parade of such a large scale.

At the same time, many weapons and equipment were displayed in this East African military parade, which shows that there is no obvious gap between the East African Defense Force and European military powers, and that they are at the "same level". Common weapons and equipment, especially heavy firepower, are quite abundant.

Although the number of troops on parade was less than 10,000, the standing armies of many countries were only tens to hundreds of thousands strong, except for countries like Tsarist Russia and the Far Eastern Empire. Of course, correspondingly, the weapons and equipment of the two countries were the worst among the great powers.

(End of this chapter)