Start 1861: I just inherited the Dutch throne

Chapter 640 Royal Netherlands Naval Academy
1878 4 Month 29 Day.

Royal Netherlands Naval Academy, Adelaide, capital of South Australia, Kingdom of the Netherlands.

There were more than 1874 graduating students at the 1500 graduation ceremony. In addition to teachers and school leaders of the school, there were also King William IV, Chief of General Staff Mark Rudd, Minister of the Navy Jan. Peter, and Chief of Naval Staff Joseph , Karls, and Arms Minister Louis Bell.

Currently on the podium in the college grounds, William IV is interacting with graduating students.

“In the history of the British Empire, the hidden white sails spread out on the edge of the sea and sky once symbolized this great country’s dominance of the ocean. The rise of the British Royal Navy was in the era of white sails. During the four Anglo-Dutch naval battles that related to the fate of the British Empire, During the Battle of Anglo-Spanish and the War of Trafalgar, the Royal Navy solicited the British again and again, deciding that the British Empire's intervention in Europe first began with the Royal Navy's attack from the sea. Therefore, the "strong ships and sharp guns" at that time meant It was the British Empire sailing battleship at that time.

As the first country to launch the industrial revolution, with the emergence of modern industry represented by steam power, the national strength of the British Empire has been rapidly improved.

The new technologies brought by the Industrial Revolution were quickly used in the field of shipbuilding. On August 1807, 8, the first power ship developed by the American Robert Fulton successfully trialled on the Hudson River, which marked the Human navigation has entered the steam age from the age of sails. Although ships began to have their own power, new technologies and new processes did not immediately change the appearance of warships. It was not until 17 that the ironclad "Glorious" of the French Second Empire was launched. The appearance of the "HMS" woke up the British who were raising sails and preparing to sail. If they want to maintain maritime hegemony, they must not let France lead a new era of steam ironclads. Therefore, we saw the British response to their opponents, the "Warrior" born. "

This year is already the seventh year that William IV has come here to attend the Naval Academy graduates. Before the academy moved to the Far East, it was a custom for William IV to come to the academy to give a speech at the graduation ceremony, just like at the Foreign Affairs College.

"Excuse me, students, do any of you know anything about the British 'Warrior'? Well, then this classmate will help answer the question."

"In 1860, the 'Warrior' designed by British ship designer Isaac Watts was launched. The 'Warrior' was 127 meters long, 17.8 meters wide, with a draft of 7.9 meters and a displacement of 9210 tons."

“‘勇士号’共安装了4门8英寸、28门7英寸前装线膛炮及4门20磅后装炮，这些火炮像之前英国其他的风帆战舰一样，分为两组固定安装在甲板下舷侧炮门后面，所有火炮只能向固定的方向开火。1节=1 海里/小时=1.852公里/小时”

"The armor of the 'Warrior' is installed at the central position where the side guns are concentrated, and the armor is 114 mm thick.

There are 10 hexagonal boilers installed in the cabin below the waterline of the ship, which uses single-shaft propulsion and has a speed of 14.5 knots (1 knot = 1 nautical mile / 1 hour = 1.852 kilometers / 1 hour). Steam engines and propellers are installed. At the same time, the 'Warrior' retains three huge masts that can hang sails. When using steam power and sails, its top speed reaches 17.5 knots.

As the first steam-powered ironclad equipped by the Royal Navy of the British Empire, although the 'Warrior' still retains the old-fashioned artillery and unique installation methods and sails, it has maintained many firsts and started the development of the Royal Navy. "The Age of Ironclad Ships"

"Clap clap clap."

William IV's eyes showed joy, and he took the lead in applauding the graduate for a long time.

Sitting next to him on both sides were Chief of General Staff Mark Rudd, Minister of the Navy Jan Peter, Chief of Naval Staff Joseph Karls, and Minister of Arms Louis Bell. They also expressed ecstasy. It seemed that they were happy to see the talents of the navy.It’s no wonder that the Netherlands has vigorously developed its army and air force (airship force) over the years. With the number of submarines and steam-powered battleships in the navy, which has increased to more than 40 ships, although it has begun to slow down its construction speed, the navy is still somewhat short of personnel, especially He is a naval talent.At present, the Royal Naval Academy in the Netherlands provides 1500 naval talents each year. Together with various talents provided by other institutions, the total number is about 1500.

William IV also requested to increase the proportion of naval talents in the navy, especially the education level. Because of this, the Netherlands began to build large-scale naval academies in various places six years ago. This year, more than 6 Royal Netherlands Navy branches have entered the enrollment process. state.

Legislation for the Naval Academies Code was developed and passed through Congress.

Since 1873, more than 10 schools for surface ships, submarines, coastal defense, and communications, as well as the Royal Naval Academy, have been established, forming a relatively complete naval academy system.

Naval command colleges are divided into three levels: junior high school and high school. Junior command colleges recruit high school graduates and outstanding soldiers with good political, cultural, and physical qualities to train commanders in various departments such as navigation, gunnery, mines, communications, and electromechanical. For cadres, the schooling duration is 4 years;
The ultimate command school mainly recruits outstanding on-the-job officers who are graduates of junior command schools and have served on ships for a certain period of time, and trains ship captains. The schooling lasts for 2 years.

The Royal Naval Academy mainly recruits regiments, divisions, and a small number of military officers to train commanders of ship formations and above. The academic duration is also 1-2 years.

In addition, William IV referred to the models of later generations and also required the Royal Netherlands Naval Academy to be divided into five levels of training: secondary college, college college, undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral students, mainly to cultivate specialized talents in engineering technology, operation and maintenance, and maintenance and repair. .The duration of study is 5-2 years.

In addition, there are also specially set up graduate classes to recruit graduates from local or military universities, mainly to cultivate high-level professionals in teaching, research, tactical and technical demonstration, etc. The schooling period is 2-3 years.

The Naval Academy also opens training courses to recruit serving officers to learn specific subjects. The schooling lasts for five months. Like the Naval Academy, each academy has established leadership departments and academic research departments of the navy such as training, politics, and school affairs.

In order to cultivate qualified officers, all the above academies have formulated strict teaching plans and assessment systems, adopted relatively advanced teaching methods, and attached great importance to the training of all naval cadets in sea life and the development of combat style, so within 12 months of each year Students will be organized or arranged to spend at least half a month at sea in each of the four quarters in order to develop combat style and become familiar with the maritime environment.

From 1873 to the present, it has provided a large number of top military commanders and professionals with both ability and political integrity to the Dutch Navy, making important contributions to the construction of the Netherlands Navy.

William IV looked at the 1500 graduates in front of him, and his heart suddenly filled with pride. With 15000 Dutch naval graduates this year, the Netherlands would not have to worry about facing the British Empire, the maritime hegemon, with its "strong ships and powerful guns."

In such an atmosphere, the graduation ceremony ended perfectly.

(End of this chapter)