The Rise Of Australasia

Chapter 458: Chapter 364: Hope Battleship

This era is not the same as later generations, private education has not yet been popularized among the general public.

Although there are many private schools in Europe at this time, there are also numerous private schools in Australasia.

These private schools generally bear the titles of the aristocracy, and those who are able to attend these private schools are either nobles or wealthy capitalists.

Even in some more traditional aristocratic schools, there are cases where top-level capitalists with a net worth of millions or even tens of millions have no right to attend such schools.

Such schools generally serve only the descendants of high-ranking nobility, training outstanding descendants for the aristocratic class.

These schools are not only for providing top-notch education, but also for providing an excellent network of connections for the descendants of the nobility.

It should be noted that in such top-notch traditional aristocratic schools, every student's parents and their families have considerable power and influence.

By connecting through such means, the entire aristocratic class has become more united.

This also means that it is difficult for ordinary people to access any other forms of education besides the state-run public education.

As for the content taught in public schools, it is actually determined by the Australasian government.

Australasia's unified language policy has been implemented since the time Archbishop Steed first arrived in Australasia several years ago, not only defining the status of English in various schools, but also establishing Victoria Language Schools in the community.

In Australasia's native land, all current public schools only teach the English language. Only after entering a corresponding literature department in a university can students choose other languages.

This means that among Australasian students, they are now all able to communicate effectively in English.

These students include a large number of those of British descent, as well as those of German, Russian, and Italian origin.

For a country like Australasia, which is made up of a majority of immigrants, the importance of a unified language is unmatched.

"Minister Stefan, tell me about our current progress in promoting English!" Arthur looked at Minister of Education Stefan and asked with a smile.

Although the Victoria Language School is jointly established by the Australasian government and the Australasian Church, the major funding comes from the education sector.

There is no choice, as the language schools that popularize the country of Australasia are beyond the reach of the current Australasian Church.

Moreover, the importance of promoting English has led most of the language schools to be free of charge, so the education sector and the church cannot make any profit from it.

Therefore, the establishment of Victoria Language School has always been funded by the Ministry of Education, while the church and the education sector jointly provide talent.

Archbishop Steed's reason for venturing to establish the Victoria Language School despite the risk of loss is to take advantage of the popularization of English to gain more opportunities to spread the faith among non-English-speaking immigrants.

After all, only when there are more adherents to Protestantism can the Protestant Church and Archbishop Steed gain a higher status and benefit. So, for both the Australasian government and the church, the new version of Victoria Language School is a win-win proposition.

"Yes, Your Majesty." Minister Stefan replied with respect.

"Your Majesty, the Victoria Language School has been in operation for nearly five years since its founding. Considering the importance of popularizing English, our goal during these five years has been to popularize Victoria Language School in various places.

So far, in the eight states and one territory of the Australian and New Zealand regions, there are more than 100 Victoria Language Schools, training nearly 700,000 short-term trainees and nearly 200,000 long-term trainees.

Our next goal is to strive to train at least 300,000 people every year so that more immigrants can communicate proficiently in English.

Because it is aimed at the general public, the Victoria Language School is divided into two terms: six-month courses and one-year courses, corresponding to short and long-term training.

Generally speaking, after studying at a language school for six months, one can usually use most simple English for communication, which does not hamper their life in Australasia.

At present, the majority of non-English-speaking immigrants choose to study short-term courses for six months.

In fact, the Cabinet Government has also proposed a quick way to improve the English popularization rate, which is to enforce restrictions on factories and high-paying jobs that require knowledge of English.

However, if this is done, it would easily cause dissatisfaction among immigrants who do not speak English, which is not good for the country's stability.

It should be noted that there are already quite a few people of Russian and German descent in Australasia. If such restrictions are blindly increased, it can easily lead to dissatisfaction among these people.

Hence, after much consideration, Arthur chose a relatively moderate approach: setting up free English language education schools like the Victoria Language School for the public.

These immigrants, to make a living and to adapt better to Australasian life, would always try to learn and understand English.

At present, Australasian language schools can teach over 200,000 immigrants a year, and the popularity of English has already improved significantly throughout the region.

Arthur strongly supported the accessibility of English. With sufficient funding provided to the department of education, he set a new goal: to increase the number of people receiving English training to over 500,000 within three years.

Besides assigning tasks to the Ministry of Education, Arthur also assigned specific tasks to each department, covering all aspects of Australasia.

With the new year approaching, no one could guarantee that the future year would be peaceful or wartime.

Under these circumstances, it was crucial for Australasia to prepare themselves to face wars at any time, and all factories and enterprises should also mobilize for this.

At the Cabinet Meeting, Arthur rejected some ministers' proposals to hold a military parade for both the army and navy.

Firstly, there were only about ten days left until the National Day, and preparations made on short notice would not be sufficient.

Secondly, holding a high-profile military parade in Australasia at present could inevitably impact the tense situation in Europe.

Even if the Germans did not misunderstand, how would the Austro-Hungarian Empire perceive it? As a member of the Allies, a large-scale military parade in Australasia at this time could be seen as provocative in the eyes of others.

However, National Day celebrations were still indispensable. This could be the last peaceful National Day celebration for the people of Australasia before World War I, and Arthur intended to give a speech to strengthen the morale within the country and remind everyone that Australasia could be involved in a major European war at any time.

After the cabinet meeting, the time quietly came to January 1, 1914.

On New Year's Day, Australasia received good news: the Hope-class battleships, Hope and Dream, were about to begin construction.

Given the experience of building Hope-class battleships for the Chileans, modifications were made to the Hope and Dream battleships to enhance their performance.

The main improvements were in armor and power. The armor of the two Australasian Hope-class battleships was more robust, resulting in a standard displacement of 23,000 tons and a full load displacement of 27,100 tons.

To match the increased weight, two mixed-fuel boilers were added to the power system, boosting the Hope-class battleships' power to around 35,000 horsepower, with an anticipated top speed of 21.5 knots.

Of course, there were no significant changes in firepower. Because the 45-caliber MK V type 13.5-inch main guns expected to be mounted on the Hope-class battleships were the most advanced, largest caliber, and most powerful main ship guns in the British Empire.

As for the more powerful 15-inch main guns, not to mention Australasia, even the British Empire was researching anxiously.

However, the good news is that the construction cycle of the Hope and Dream battleships is about a year, and the time for the British Empire's historical 15-inch main guns to be installed is in 1915.

This implies that the two battleships could be equipped with 15-inch main guns. As soon as either the British Empire or Australasia researches a stable 15-inch main gun, they can immediately change equipment.

Even if the 15-inch main guns are not mounted, the 45-caliber 13.5-inch main guns from the former British Empire are undoubtedly among the most powerful main ship guns in the world.

Especially the upgraded Hope-class battleships, they will represent Australasia's highest shipbuilding level and symbolize Australasia's power.

Arthur was very cautious about the start of the Hope and Dream battleships, and on January 1, the second day of the cabinet meeting, he personally attended the groundbreaking ceremony for the two battleships and made an important speech.

In his speech, Arthur compared Hope and Dream to the bridge of improvements in Australasia, vital trump cards to protect the safety of Australasia itself and its people, and safeguard their interests.

The entire 1914 naval construction plan focused on the construction of these two Hope-class battleships. If built smoothly, the two Hope-class battleships were expected to be completed and enter sea trials by early 1915, and officially enter service between late 1915 and early 1916.

Admittedly, the cost of the Hope-class battleships—one of the world's most robust battleship designs at that time—was also very high.

Even though the Royal Shipyard offered a sale price to the Ministry of Defense that was barely higher than the cost price, the cost of each Hope-class battleship was still around 4.6 million Australian dollars.

This signified that the Ministry of Defense's financial budget for the year had already spent nearly 10 million, the result being only these two battleships, which would not enter service until the end of next year.

From this perspective, it can be seen how exaggerated the naval arms race among European countries had become in terms of financial consumption.

Australasia only built two super dreadnoughts, and the mere construction cost accounted for one-tenth of the government's annual fiscal revenue.

If the follow-up testing, training, and maintenance fees are included, Australasia's finances could not afford too many super dreadnoughts.