1444, Byzantium Resurrects

Chapter 53 Parade

Chapter 53 Parade
Jufra Region, Alagheh Administrative District, Alagheh City.

Under the guidance of Martinez, Isaac visited a firearms factory that had already reached a certain scale.

In those days, firearms manufacturing was still at the manual stage and was inefficient.

With the influx of large sums of money, several mines outside the city came back to life and began to recruit more people and develop new mines.

The saltpeter fields in the west of the city are undergoing initial preparations, with human and horse feces and urine piled up there, stinking unbearably. It is expected that the first batch of saltpeter will be harvested next year.

At present, the main raw material of the firearms factory is still nitrate soil with a low nitrate content, which is collected uniformly by various ruling areas and transported to the city of Alagai.

According to Isaac and Martinez's plan, the entire firearms factory is divided into three secondary workshops.

They are the gunpowder workshop, manufacturing workshop and raw material workshop.

The raw material workshop is responsible for smelting. They will burn the metal ore mined from the veins outside the city into metal and supply a steady supply of materials to the manufacturing workshop.

The gunpowder workshop is mainly responsible for the management of saltpeter fields and the manufacture of gunpowder.

The manufacturing workshop is responsible for processing the metal materials provided by the raw material workshop into complete muskets and cannons.

The manufacturing workshop now has more than 20 workers and can produce five matchlock rifles a day.

As for artillery, the current conditions do not allow for its production and we must wait for further mining of the copper mines outside the city.

As the furnace fire burned, workers poured molten iron onto the mud film to form the prototype of the gun barrel.

This step is the most dangerous. If you are not careful, cracks or holes will appear in the barrel.

Such a barrel is not acceptable, otherwise it will easily explode.

After the first step of casting is completed, technicians will conduct an airtightness test on the barrel, and qualified barrels will undergo subsequent processing.

It includes steps such as installing the vent, chiseling out the powder pool, tightening the iron ring, and installing the wooden gun body.

This is a more conventional way of manufacturing matchlock guns, which has been used from the last century to this century.

The structure of the matchlock gun at that time was still very primitive. It was just a bronze tube or wrought iron tube with one end closed and a matchlock on the top.

At the beginning of the 15th century, the fuse of the matchlock gun was moved to the side of the barrel, and a powder pool with a protective cover appeared. This design was used on later matchlock guns.

The barrel with a butt plug is inserted into the handheld wooden handle, while the barrel without a butt plug is tightly clamped on the wooden support with an iron ring. When shooting, the shooter needs to hold the wooden handle with one hand and use a red-hot metal wire or matchlock with the other hand to ignite the gun, making it impossible to aim.

Because these muskets are not much different from early light artillery, they are also known as "hand cannons".

Unlike contemporary Chinese matchlock guns, European matchlock guns often have a hook-like structure at the front of the barrel, which serves as a support during use.

When defending a city, archers can hook their guns on the city walls to make shooting more stable. They can even hook their guns on the large shields used by crossbowmen to form simple fortifications in field battles.

"Your Highness, this is the blueprint of the firearms that I have spent my life researching. Please take a look."

Martinez held a thick stack of parchment scrolls and placed them heavily on the table.

Isaac looked at Martinez, making sure he wasn't being difficult.

I don’t understand this stuff either!

Isaac flipped through these complicated drawings, which were filled with various symbols and numbers, which were dazzling.

He suddenly felt a little depressed.

As a time traveler, I am obviously unqualified.

Blast furnace ironmaking method, no.

Manufacturing guns and artillery, no.

Synthetic fertilizers, no.

Forged high-strength steel, no.

I understand the principle, but I just can't put it into practice.

Isaac could extract perfume, process soap, make saltpeter, and brew strong liquor.

But so will Europeans.

Isaac was good at reciting poems and composing essays, and his skills amazed everyone. There was nothing wrong with him, except that he was useless.

This is very embarrassing.

“Why are gun barrels getting longer and longer now?”

Isaac looked through some drawings.

"Your Highness, after granular gunpowder became popular, we found that by lengthening the barrel, we could obtain greater firing energy and make the weapon more powerful."

"Previous powder gunpowder did not have this feature."

The granulation of gunpowder did greatly increase the power of the matchlock gun, but the long barrel made aiming and transportation extremely inconvenient.

The hit rate of such a matchlock gun is touching, and whether it can hit the enemy depends entirely on God's blessing.

"what is this?"

Isaac pulled out a different drawing.

There is a long metal hook on the gun body that can rotate around the axis.

One end of the hook is connected to a thick rope.

Martinez looked.

"Oh, this is a little gadget made by one of my students."

"He thought that adding a rope would make the musket more accurate."

Martinez turned around.
"Metz! Come here!"

Metz, who was adding wood to the stove, put down the firewood in his hand, wiped the ashes off his face, and ran over.

"Teacher, what's the matter?"

"This is His Highness Isaac, Prince of Constantinople, Despot of Surt."

Metz saluted hastily.

“Is this your invention?”

Isaac pointed to the blueprint.

Metz stole a glance and saw that Isaac seemed quite happy.

"Yes!"

Martinez kicked Metz down.

"Say it nicely!"

"Ouch—"

Metz bared his teeth and touched his butt.

"This kind of musket with a rotating shaft was proposed by someone more than ten years ago. I improved it a bit!"

“Using a smoldering tinder instead of other fire starters makes lighting much easier.”

Isaac gave him an appreciative look.

This is the prototype of the matchlock gun.

If the emergence of the matchlock gun marked the beginning of the emergence of hot weapons on the historical stage, then the widespread use of the matchlock gun officially announced the arrival of the era of hot weapons.

The significance of the matchlock gun is undoubtedly significant. It directly improves the accuracy and firing speed of guns to a higher level.

The biggest difference between the matchlock gun and the arquebus is that the shooter of the matchlock gun must light the fuse with the torch in his hand while aiming, while the matchlock gun greatly simplifies this step, allowing the shooter to hold the gun to his cheek and concentrate on aiming.

Historically, as early as the early 15th century, someone proposed a concept similar to the matchlock gun, but unfortunately it has never been taken seriously.

It was not until the middle of the 15th century that this new type of musket gradually came into people's view.

"Butler Martinez, do you have a ready-made sample of this gun?"

Martinez shook his head.

"You have one week to make a prototype gun. The worker who makes it will receive a reward of 100 ducats."

Metz's eyes lit up.

"Your Highness, there is nothing technically difficult about this type of firearm, but is it really necessary?"

In his opinion, the technology of matchlock guns was already relatively mature and his own craftsmanship was also very good, so there was no need to improve it.

is it necessary?

Of course there are.

The early matchlock muskets might not have been much different in power from the older matchlock muskets, but the musket would remain the main firearm in Europe for several hundred years.

Over the past few hundred years, the craftsmanship of the matchlock gun has continued to improve and has spread throughout the world.

The colonists from Europe carried this simple and crude weapon across the five continents and four oceans, destroyed countless civilizations, and seized endless treasures.

It can be said that it was thanks to the matchlock that the European colonists were able to crush the Native Americans with force.

The development of the matchlock gun did not require any advanced technology. A few small tricks and modifications could double the chances of a soldier's survival on the battlefield. The matchlock gun was improved and delivered to the army for use. The army then reported the problems encountered during use, and then continued to improve it, repeating the above steps.

This will create a positive cycle.

What Isaac has to do now is to plant a seed for the prosperity of the matchlock gun and wait for the technology to sprout.

Establishing a firearms factory is only the first step. In the future, Isaac will also establish a research institute specializing in firearms innovation.

……

After bidding farewell to Martinez, Isaac headed southeast from the city of Alagai and arrived at the city of Ugu.

Count Adnan Ugu was waiting at the city gate early.

After a year and a half of fighting, the situation in the south of the Grand Duchy of Soult has basically stabilized.

With the support of Isaac, Count Adnan of Ugu exchanged Isaac's slaves and food for the rich iron ore on the edge of the Sabua Mountains.

The earl was quite shrewd and capable. He not only subdued the local small and medium-sized tribes and forced them to convert to Orthodoxy, but also won successive wars with King Abdullah and seized a large number of livestock and people.

Now, the entire Ugube State has basically filled the administrative gap of the Fezzan Central Government in the central and eastern parts of the country, and actually controls more than 8,000 people and has more than 15,000 subordinates.

Count Ugu has 500 standing troops and can recruit up to 2,000 tribal people in times of war.

Looking at Count Adnan's well-equipped guards, Isaac felt a little regretful for sealing such a great man in a place rich in iron ore and oasis at the foot of Mount Sabua.

Under the escort of the Purple Guards, Isaac rode forward slowly, looked down at Count Adnan, and accepted his bow with grace.

"Fighting against foreign enemies, guarding the borders, protecting the people and supporting the army, these are all your contributions, Lord Earl."

Isaac spoke slowly, staring into Adnan's eyes.

"This is all thanks to God's blessing and your guidance, my dear highness."

"When Sirte was under siege, I sent a reinforcement to Saint Joseph's north, but halfway through the journey, I heard about your victory over Yusuf's rebellion."

"The external enemy has been resolved. I am delighted from the bottom of my heart and feel honored to have such a wise and decisive monarch like you."

"Under God's blessing, Wugu City has ushered in great development this year. Please move to my manor and allow me to do my best to be a good host."

Adnan's answers were so thorough that Isaac could not find any fault with them.

"Then trouble you."

Isaac nodded and led the Purple Guards into the city.

Adnan followed behind him, looking normal.

Along the way, Count Adnan was always half a horse length behind Isaac and introduced to Isaac the changes that had taken place in the city of Ugu over the past year.

"Your Highness, look, this is a market that I and the Surte United Chamber of Commerce jointly established. It is crowded with people every day."

When the people in the market saw Isaac's eagle flag and Count Ugu's desert wolf flag, they all knelt on the ground and dared not speak.

At the bazaar, local Berber Bedouins made up the majority, but Isaac also spotted some Slavs and Italians.

"Why are there so many free folk here?"

Isaac was a little confused.

Count Adnan assumed an air of great piety.

“God tells us to be kind to our brothers.”

"I promise to the slaves who convert to Orthodoxy that they will work diligently for me for a year, and then I will select the best and release them as freemen."

"They were all slaves captured from the fake King Abdullah two years ago, and are being gradually released as free people."

Generally speaking, tribal shahs like to enslave people to serve them.

There are not many people with such a long-term vision as Adnan.

"You are truly a religious role model."

Isaac said indifferently.

After taking a quick look at the market, Isaac discovered that there were quite a lot of things, some of which were local specialties, such as furs and dried meat, dates and palm oil, camel cheese and goat cheese.

There are also goods shipped from Europe, among which precious silk and dazzling gems are very popular among the nobles of nearby tribes, while cheap linen clothes are the choice of ordinary people.

Isaac even found a small bookshop with some books brought from Surt, with the emblem of a double-headed eagle painted on them.

Mr. Gutenberg has moved some of the papermaking workshops and printing houses to the port of Surt. Presumably, these books were transported here via the Surt United Chamber of Commerce.

Isaac slapped his horse and continued forward.

"Your Highness, over there is the St. Anthony's Church that is being built to commemorate our victory in the last war with the fake King Abdullah."

St. Anthony, the famous desert father, it seems that Adnan is going to make him the patron saint of the Uggube Kingdom.

The church was not big and was half-repaired. Many monks came out and saluted Isaac.

Next to the church, there is a small church school where Greek and theology are taught by priests from St. Anthony's Church.

Next, Adnan took Isaac to inspect the well dug by the Italian engineers, the well-ordered military camp, the blacksmith workshop, the town hall, and finally to the count's manor.

The manor is full of Orthodox elements, even a little deliberately so.

After going around in circles, Isaac felt much more relaxed.

Count Adnan did not hide anything from Isaac, but laid all his efforts out in the open for Isaac to review.

This proves that there is no intention to resist for the time being.

After lunch, Isaac and Adnan sat together and chatted.

"I am very pleased with your achievements. Is there any difficulty I can help you with?"

"Your Highness, my eldest son Murci has been studying Greek for a year. I hope you can allow him to go to the Royal Knights Academy to study."

Isaac glanced at the Count in surprise.

That’s quite sensible!

"Of course, he would be a good knight."

"We are having some difficulties with administration and hope you can send someone to give us guidance."

"Very good, any more?"

Isaac continued to ask with satisfaction.

Then Adnan started asking the real questions.

"Your Highness, I think that the main obstacle to the development of Wugu City is the roads."

"the way?"

"Yes, according to my understanding, there is only one road from Ugu City to Alagai City and Jufra City that is accessible by carriages, and it is blocked by sandstorms for four months a year."

“The rest of the trails can only be transported by camel caravans, which is inefficient.”

"I hope you can invite professionals from Europe to fix the road problems."

Adnan's words also indirectly reminded Isaac.

The road in the desert is very simple, it is a strip-shaped curve between two large water sources, connected by several small water sources.

The road conditions are better in the north and worse in the south.

Camels are the main means of transportation in the desert. They can adapt well to the desert environment and are not afraid of sand, dust and drought.

The disadvantage is that the cargo capacity is too small and the efficiency is low.

If you want to trade goods, you still have to use a horse carriage.

Building roads... this is another big project.

"Count, don't worry. Once I resolve the current war, I will definitely put road renovation on the agenda."

Isaac gave Adnan a perfunctory response.

Even if the road is built, it will definitely start from the north, and it will not be his turn for a while.

"You mean, we should continue the war?"

Isaac nodded and looked Adnan in the eyes.

Adnan was stunned for a moment, then stood up and knelt on one knee.

"Your Highness, as your vassal, I am willing to provide five hundred soldiers for you to command!"

"What about the war with the fake King Abdullah?"

"The false king is now unable to take care of himself and has no ability to attack."