As long as it is blocked and controlled from the source, even if it cannot make some enemies give in, it can help them win the final victory.
"In the hundreds of years that saltpeter has flourished throughout Europe, it was once more important and scarcer than coal, steel, and oil. Therefore, the market value of gunpowder exceeded that of gold. The pursuit of saltpeter was the most important thing in Europe from the 15th to the 19th century.
The country's national strategy, in England, the state hired private contractors to search for and obtain saltpeter. The Crown granted government commissioners - known as "dung collectors" - administrative privileges. The right to enter any private property and residence, even if necessary.
They could use force to collect and take away the saltpeter resources they found - literally dung, urine and pigeon urine."
In the conference room of the Imperial Ministry of Agriculture and Commerce, Li Jiebai, director of the Mining Department of the Ministry of Agriculture and Commerce, explained to the officials of the Ministry of Agriculture and Commerce the scarcity of saltpeter in Europe and even around the world.
"The white crystal saltpeter is regarded as an "incredible treasure" by the royal families of all countries. From Portugal's first voyage to the success of Henry VII, the first Tudor dynasty, to the British civil war in the early 17th century, and then
From the Revolutionary War and the Civil War in the United States to the Napoleonic Wars in France, until the end of the 19th century, saltpeter was a special commodity vital to national security. Countries lacking saltpeter were destined to fail in wars."
Then he raised his voice and said.
"During the Napoleonic Wars, as early as the end of the 18th century, France had improved the production of saltpeter under the guidance of the famous chemist Antoine Lavoisier, making its output more than 1,000 tons, thus gaining the capital to compete with Britain. This huge production capacity
Later, it met Napoleon's need to fight the British Empire after the French Revolution. But essentially, France's saltpeter was still not comparable to that of Britain - Britain had obtained local saltpeter mines by occupying Bangladesh as early as the 18th century, which is the famous saltpeter mine.
The output of "Indian saltpeter" once reached 10,000 tons at its peak! It can not only meet the needs of Britain, but also meet the needs of its allies..."
Listening to Li Jiebai's explanation, Sun Siwei frowned and said.
"So, India's saltpeter mines can meet their needs?"
Since His Majesty decided on the war strategy of "using saltpeter as a weapon", all Sun Siwei, as the Minister of Agriculture and Commerce, had to do was to fully cooperate.
Lord Shangshu's question made Li Jiebai shake his head and said.
"It depends on the period. During the Napoleonic War, the output of Indian saltpeter mines could definitely meet the needs of Britain and its allies. However, that was during the Napoleonic War. After all, the demand at that time was limited."
Li Jiebai looked at Bu Tang and said.
"The cannons at that time only used two or three pounds, or at most a dozen pounds of gunpowder, but now? Cannons can range from a few kilograms to dozens of kilograms of propellant, and the raw materials have also changed. Now the propellant is produced from saltpeter
The nitric acid extracted from the industry, including the production of explosives, is also inseparable from nitric acid. The arms industry's demand for saltpeter far exceeds that of the Napoleonic Wars. Just an Indian saltpeter is far from meeting the needs of the arms industry. At present, only the UK's annual nitric acid production
, it would require thousands of tons of saltpeter.”
Li Jiebai then introduced the situation of saltpeter imports from the UK, France, Germany and other European countries one by one.
"...In short, saltpeter is the crown jewel of the arms industry, but it cannot be synthesized artificially at all. It must rely heavily on manual collection and foreign imports. Without it, it is impossible to produce nitric acid, and without nitric acid, there is no arms industry. Britain relies on
Using saltpeter, they won the support of their allies. During the Napoleonic Wars, the British promised the Russians a guarantee of supplying them with 1,200 tons of saltpeter every year. However, Napoleon was unable to give Russia such a guarantee, which also determined Russia's final outcome.
Toward.”
Then, Li Jiebai took a deep breath and said.
"Budang, as long as we control the source of saltpeter, the British arms industry will definitely suffer heavy losses!"
…
"Stuck in the neck!"
Putting down the tea cup, Emperor Zhu Da said with a smile.
"Actually, it's just a stuck in the neck,"
It can be said that this word is very familiar to Emperor Zhu Da. In another world, European and American countries have a lot of trouble with China.
This is an old tradition in European and American countries. Once upon a time, controlling saltpeter from the source was also the UK's trump card. After all, before soda saltpeter was put into gunpowder production, the British, who controlled Indian saltpeter, used saltpeter to bribe other countries and used the saltpeter embargo card.
neck of France and its allies.
Now, let them try the taste of being stuck.
"Your Majesty, your Majesty is wise, it is stuck in the neck. It makes them unable to breathe! In the end, it suffocates them to death!"
Sun Siwei said,
"According to statistics from the Ministry of Agriculture and Commerce, the UK imports 123,000 tons of saltpeter from my country and 15,000 tons from India every year, 90% of which is used in agriculture, and the rest is used in arms and chemical industries. If a war breaks out, their demand will expand. Many times, without our supplies, it would be difficult to meet British demand just from India,"
Nodding slightly, Emperor Zhu Da said.
"Not only Britain, but also the United States, Germany and Italy! They all need saltpeter and nitric acid. The question is, where can they get enough saltpeter? If there is no saltpeter, what will they use to produce explosives?"
Without saltpeter, there is no nitric acid. Without nitric acid, there is no explosive. Without explosive... is it possible to win the war?
Even in the view of Emperor Zhu Da, the laymen in the Ministry of Agriculture and Commerce had no idea how big the demand for explosives was in war. Take the First World War in history as an example. The participating countries consumed tens of millions of tons of ammunition to produce.
With so much ammunition, how much propellant and explosives are needed, and their production is inseparable from nitric acid, that is, saltpeter.
Thank you that synthetic ammonia has not been invented yet, otherwise it would be a repeat of the British misjudgment during World War I. After the outbreak of World War I in 1914, many people estimated that the war would last only half a year at most, because Germany did not have enough nitric acid.
—Germany also needs to import Chilean saltpeter. The naval blockade caused by the outbreak of the war made it impossible for Germany to import saltpeter from Chile as it did before the war. Its gunpowder production was naturally restricted.
But what about now?
There is no synthetic ammonia in the world! This technology tree has not been lit yet. Of course, Emperor Zhu Da will not take the initiative to light it. Of course, if you have a technology that can choke other people's necks, you must take your time and take your time.
After thinking about it, Emperor Zhu Da said.
"Then formulate a plan! Investigate their demand for saltpeter to prevent them from building reserves..."