The Rise of Ming Dynasty 1646

Chapter 691

But the most eye-catching ones are the six or seven huge sea-going ships that are under intense construction on the berth.

The largest one was as tall as three people, and its dense ribs were like the skeleton of a dragon. It seemed that it would resurrect at any time, jumping into the sea and stirring up turbulent waves.

Even the smallest ships are larger than ordinary houses, and the craftsmen who are working on them are like crucian carp climbing on the body of a giant whale.

In fact, only Zhu Linmi and a few important officials knew that the largest warship was still in the deepest part of the shipyard, and it was impossible to see it from the outside. It was the treasure of the factory and the thunder of the Daming Navy.

Zhu Linmei had specially ordered before that the shipyard was not allowed to carry out large-scale welcoming activities, so as not to affect the construction of warships.Therefore, at this time, only Shao Zhizhang, the ambassador of the Longjiang Shipyard, brought more than a dozen officials to kneel outside the door. Seeing the emperor get off the imperial chariot, he hurriedly bowed down and bowed down, "I pay homage to my emperor, long live..."

"Get up and talk."

Zhu Linmei raised her hand to signal, and then walked straight to the largest berth in the northwest of the shipyard without anyone leading the way, "How is the progress of the newly built battleship?"

Shao Zhizhang hurriedly led his men to follow up quickly, bowing and saying: "Return to the emperor, the keel has been laid yesterday, and 67 ship ribs have been made, and the installation will start tonight."

Zhu Linmi quickly came to the frame of the 800-ton warship. The construction of this ship has just started, and nothing can be seen yet.

Shao Zhizhang pointed to the stock yard on the side of the slipway, and said, "Your Majesty, all the ship materials needed were prepared at the beginning of the month, and a thousand craftsmen rushed to make them day and night. Master Pan estimates that the ship will be ready to launch in May at the most."

Zhu Linmei was not surprised by this construction speed.Since the [-]-ton Class III battleship in Yongbeili was completed and launched at the end of last year, half of the craftsmen involved in the construction were sent to Longjiang, and even Pan Mingzhong, a master craftsman, also came here.

With such support, the Longjiang Shipyard quickly launched an [-]-ton warship. In addition, Nanjing's human resources and materials are extremely rich, and the construction speed can naturally be faster than that of Yongbeili.

At the same time, construction of a new third-tier battleship has also started in Yongbeili.In other words, by May of this year, the Daming Navy will have at least three [-]-ton battleships.

With these three ships alone, the combat power of the Daming Navy can rank first in Asia, easily crushing the military presence of Western countries in the Far East!

As for the [-]-ton cruiser and smaller warships, Zhu Linmi no longer has to personally ask about them. As long as the money is enough, the Ministry of War will naturally have a complete set of construction plans.

According to Zhu Linming's request, before the end of this year, even if the fleets of all Western countries in Asia are assembled, they will not be able to match the Daming Navy.

At that time, the Daming Navy will go to Europe for the first time to show its existence, and begin to compete with all world naval powers in the Atlantic and Pacific.

And by that time, Ming's colonies in Australia, America, and Africa will also be established one after another, and they will begin to continuously import wealth and resources to the East.Who else can defeat such a Daming? !

Thinking of the trade and transportation with the colonies, he asked Shao Zhizhang again: "By the way, is the trial construction of the clipper ship going well?"

Shao Zhizhang was stunned. Although he knew how to build ships, he had already exhausted his brain cells in order to supplement the knowledge of Galenic battleship construction. He was completely blank about the more novel clipper ship.

He had no choice but to order the officials beside him, "Go and invite Master Pan."

A moment later, a middle-aged man with dark skin and a beard hurried over. Seeing Zhu Lin, he hurriedly bowed and bowed, "Pan Mingzhong, my next official, long live my emperor, long live!" He has now been promoted to the Ministry of Workmanship. He is a secretary, but everyone in the shipyard called him Shunzui and still called him Master Pan.

Zhu Linming immediately smiled, "Master Pan, please get up. You have made great contributions to the establishment of the Shaoxing ship."

The Shaoxing is the third-tier battleship that has just been launched in Yongbeili.

Pan Mingzhong hurriedly bowed and said, "It's all thanks to the advice of the Holy Majesty and the work of the craftsmen to get this boat. Otherwise, I'm afraid I wouldn't even be able to build a [-]-ton warship with just my humble skills."

Shao Zhizhang whispered to the side: "Master Pan, the emperor asked how the clipper ship is progressing?"

"Ah, back to the emperor," Pan Mingzhong turned around and said, "The next official thought of wrapping the bow of the ship with copper skin and reinforcing it with a cast iron frame, which solved the serious problem of bending the bow.

"According to the drawings drawn by His Majesty, a [-]-ton flying shear ship has been trial-built. The ribs were laid yesterday and the hull is being installed."

Zhu Linmei was overjoyed when she heard the news. The easy breaking of the bow was the last problem that plagued the construction of clipper ships. It seemed that it would not be long before this kind of fast sailing ship, which appeared at the end of the eighteenth century, would be able to carry all kinds of goods from the Ming Dynasty and travel across countries. between.

You know, due to the extremely slender shape of this ship, combined with the unique wave-splitting underwater hull design, coupled with the hollow bow and the extensive use of triangular sails, its speed can reach more than double that of ordinary Galen ships!
In history, someone drove a clipper ship and crossed the Atlantic Ocean in only thirteen days.At the end of the Ming Dynasty, even the Helan people, who were the most developed in navigation, could not complete this task in less than two months.

(End of this chapter)