Chapter 570: The Inventor of the Mortar
While Charles and Mathieu were deep in technical discussion, a secretary walked into the R&D office and approached Charles.
"General, Mr. Deoka would like you to come to his office. Someone wishes to meet with you."
"Alright," Charles replied. "I'll be right there."
He was puzzled. Who could warrant a meeting arranged through Deoka?
A friend? A journalist? Some industrialist?
Charles didn't think too much of it. After a few quick instructions to Mathieu, he followed the secretary out toward the administrative building.
…
Inside the office, Charles found a man in his fifties—well-dressed in a suit and tie, clearly someone of means. He was engaged in quiet conversation with Deoka, but stood quickly upon Charles's arrival, visibly excited.
"You—you must be General Charles. It's an honor to meet you, General!"
Charles looked toward Deoka with a questioning expression.
Deoka stood and introduced him:
"This is Mr. Stokes, owner of the British Scott Machinery Company. Most of our tractor components come from his firm."
Ah, a business partner. Charles smiled politely and shook the man's hand.
"The honor is mine, Mr. Stokes."
Something about the name tickled Charles's memory. He was sure he'd heard it before.
They all sat down. Deoka picked up a blueprint from the coffee table and grinned at Charles.
"Would you believe it? Stokes came up with a mortar design nearly identical to yours—but you beat him to it."
Charles blinked and took the drawing.
Indeed—it was a mortar.
The next second, the realization hit him: Stokes? As in Stokes, the historical inventor of the modern mortar?
(Note: Sir Wilfred Stokes was the real-life designer of the modern trench mortar, developed during WWI. He wasn't originally a weapons expert, but a mechanical engineer.)
Stokes leaned forward, his voice slightly nervous.
"I designed this last year, but I made some errors—mainly because I wasn't familiar with military requirements. I used powdered black powder instead of granulated propellant. Later, I learned it needed to combust instantly—not burn slowly."
(Note: Powdered black powder burns incompletely and inconsistently due to lack of airflow between particles. Granulated powder allows for immediate combustion and a clean explosive force.)
Stokes shook his head and looked at Charles with frustration.
"When I finally got it working and presented it to the military, do you know what they told me?"
"'Sorry, Mr. Stokes, Charles beat you to it. His mortars are already in field use. Haven't you heard? He's even won battles with them!'"
"I couldn't believe it. What are the odds?"
He laughed, but there was a note of awkwardness. Then, more seriously, he added:
"But please don't misunderstand me. I'm not here to challenge your intellectual property."
"You were first. Your design is more advanced. You deserve all credit. I just wanted to express… my admiration."
Charles nodded.
"I understand, Mr. Stokes. And thank you."
He looked back down at the blueprint, genuinely impressed.
"This is excellent work. I believe, had you known more about military specs—or been in the army—you might have beaten me to it."
Stokes relaxed and smiled.
"Thank you, General. That means a great deal to me."
Charles paused, then suddenly asked:
"Why don't we collaborate, Mr. Stokes?"
Stokes was startled.
"Collaborate? On what?"
Tractors? They were already working together.
Mortars? Charles's models were fully developed and already in production. What did he mean?
"Artillery," Charles said, lifting the blueprint. "You clearly have a sharp mind, an engineer's creativity. And right now, we need people like you—especially in wartime."
Stokes looked flustered.
"General, I think you misunderstand me."
"I'm not an artillery designer. In fact, I barely know anything about artillery. I'm just a mechanical engineer. I'd be honored to work with you, but…"
Charles interrupted him with a slight smile.
"That's exactly what I need, Mr. Stokes. Most artillery problems are mechanical in nature."
Stokes tilted his head, uncertain.
"For example?" he asked, clearly wanting specifics—something to prove he could still contribute.
"Take the breech block," Charles replied.
"We need to shorten it."
Stokes was confused.
"Shorten the breech block? The military wants that?"
"Yes," Charles explained calmly. "Not for traditional field guns. But if we want to mount artillery inside tank turrets…"
Stokes's eyes lit up. He leaned forward sharply.
"Oh! Yes, I see what you mean now!"
"You're right, General—this is a huge need. All future tanks will have to face this issue. And that means there's a huge opportunity!"
"My God—we're going to make a fortune. This is a fantastic project, General. Truly!"
…
Charles had arrived at the "Char B1" design precisely because of this issue.
In this period, there were no purpose-built tank guns. Existing artillery had breech blocks that were too long to fit inside compact turrets.
To make it work, you'd need an absurdly large turret. That meant more armor, more weight, more power—and before long, you'd need two engines just to move the thing.
It was a domino effect: heavier turret → bigger gun → heavier engine → doubled complexity.
That's what had led to monstrosities like the Char 2C.
The only realistic solution was to mount the main gun in the hull, like the B1. You'd lose some mobility and angle, but it solved the space issue.
"So," Charles asked, "do we have a deal?"
"Absolutely!" Stokes stood and shook his hand vigorously.
"Thank you, General, for giving me this chance."
(Image Note: In a tank with vertical breech travel, a shortened breech block is necessary to allow loading and firing inside tight turret space. In WWI, the lack of dedicated tank guns forced designers to choose between small-caliber rotating turrets or fixed large-caliber guns. The Char B1's layout—turret with a small gun, hull with a 75mm—was the best compromise.)
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