Chapter 307: The Military Layout of 1912
On December 31st, just a few days after the Christmas holiday, the government of Australasia returned to the demanding affairs of governance.
The last day of the year is usually when the Cabinet government holds its annual report meeting. However, since the new Cabinet government had only been in office for a few months, the report primarily summarized the work of the previous Cabinet, and therefore, the content of the report was relatively sparse.
Of course, the main focus of this meeting was the planning of the new Cabinet's term in office.
Given the chaotic situation in Europe and around the world, no one could be certain when war would break out. This meant that the task of the Fourth Cabinet was extremely difficult, and it was highly likely that during their term, they would face a world-changing war that had never been seen before.
This also meant that the role of the Fourth Cabinet government was incredibly important; one wrong decision could undo ten years of national development.
While later historical events could provide Arthur with many experiences and lessons, who could guarantee that the development of the world would follow the course of future history?
Would Italy switch sides? Would the United States join the war? Would Russia experience a revolution?
Leaving those three questions aside, Australasia itself was an unpredictable factor that even Arthur couldn't be sure of.
Theoretically, regardless of which side Australasia joined, it could provide some assistance and even change the course of the future war to some extent.
But Arthur's ambitions went far beyond that. What Arthur aimed for was for Australasia to gain a higher international standing during this war, to absorb the fruits of the defeated nations, and to at least become a power broker after World War I, not just a pawn.
Although the annual report meeting was significantly streamlined, it still covered the most important matters.
As of December 31, 1911, the population of Australasia had officially reached over 10.51 million, with 8.27 million in Australia and 2.14 million in New Zealand. The population of the New Guinea colony, Australasia's Timor, and the Royal Territories stood at 73,000, 19,000, and 8,000, respectively.
Australasia also officially had its second city with a population over one million, Melbourne.
Melbourne's population had reached over 1.04 million, making it the economic center of Australasia after Sydney. Along with Sydney, it was hailed as one of Oceania's two brightest jewels.
After more than a decade of development, the level of development within Australasia's cities had roughly caught up with that of average European cities. Cities like Sydney and Melbourne, with their million-strong populations, had grown to match even the finest cities in Europe.
This was quite normal. After all, Australasia's current focus had been on the development of these two cities. The country had invested most of its national effort into their growth.
These two cities had no true rivals within Australasia, which had led to their dominance. Even with Minister Grant's advice, Arthur had already implemented and enacted laws to encourage immigration to the more remote areas, colonies, and smaller cities, while reducing welfare benefits for the larger cities.
Still, despite these efforts, more than 40% of the nearly one million immigrants each year chose to settle in the major cities, or at least in state capitals with populations of several hundred thousand.
After all, only in large cities could they find more job opportunities and greater prospects for development.
What could small cities offer? Apart from special exceptions like the Leonora Industrial Base, small cities mainly focused on agricultural development, and at best, one could become a farm owner.
Immigrants generally had dreams of striking it rich; they weren't keen on settling down as farmers.
A population of ten million was a threshold, a necessary condition for stepping onto the path of becoming a great power.
In the current world, no country with fewer than ten million people could realistically be considered a true power.
But in reality, ten million people was merely a starting point. For Arthur to achieve his ambitions, Australasia's population of just ten million was far from enough.
The standing and reserve armies of European countries already totaled millions, nearing ten million.
Although total mobilization would severely damage a nation's foundations, it showed that these countries had the resources to wage war and the courage to fight to the death.
Looking at Australasia, the army's limit may be 500,000, and any increase beyond that would cause significant harm to national development.
But if Australasia wanted to be a powerful country with international influence, a standing army of over one million was absolutely necessary.
This meant that Australasia's population needed to exceed 20 million in order to stand shoulder to shoulder with the other great powers.
Based on current immigration rates, it would take at least another ten years for the population to surpass 20 million.
If we factor in the likely restriction on migration once war broke out in Europe, this would reduce the number of immigrants arriving in Australasia, or potentially even cause a drastic decrease.
In other words, it might take twenty years before Australasia's population reached 20 million.
By then, World War II might be on the brink, and Australasia would only then have the population base to compete internationally. This was perhaps too late.
It seemed necessary to take some measures to accelerate immigration before and after the war.
For the Australasia government, there was another piece of good news: the total fiscal revenue for 1911 had reached a new high, amounting to 78.41 million Australian dollars.
The continuous increase in fiscal revenue indicated that the country's development was finally showing tangible results.
Of course, this increase in revenue was partly driven by the arms trade and food exports, but it was still a positive development.
The total government expenditure had also been growing. In 1911, the total government expenditure had reached 67 million Australian dollars, resulting in a surplus of 11.41 million.
Of this, military spending amounted to 28.71 million Australian dollars. While the navy had not expanded, the army had grown by 100,000 soldiers, and coupled with the various weapons and equipment, military spending accounted for over 40% of the total government expenditure, a significant characteristic of this era.
In fact, European countries' military expenditures were also high, as everyone knew that they were soon to face a coalition of the great powers.
If military spending wasn't high now, the future losses to the country and government would far exceed the current costs.
Some smaller countries had even gone as far as taking out large loans from both domestic and foreign sources to fund their military expansions.
This was a gamble—whoever won would gain territory, population, and war indemnities. Not only would they cover the loans, but they would also increase their national potential.
As for failure, for these daring nations, perhaps they hadn't considered the consequences of losing.
Of course, the nations willing to gamble had some backing. Italy, currently waging the Italo-Turkish War, had leveraged the power of the great powers, its powerful navy, and the fact that other powers would not intervene, to confidently declare war.
The Balkan countries preparing for war, backed by the Russian Empire, had also expanded their armies and acquired weapons from Russia, while the attention of the Ottoman Empire was diverted by the Italo-Turkish War. This gave the Balkans the confidence to prepare for war with Turkey.
As for the naval and arms race currently happening in Europe, it could be seen as a sign that the two major military blocs in Europe lacked the full confidence to defeat each other, so they were relying on the massive expansion of their military forces to gain an advantage.
The available funds of the Australasia government had already exceeded 250 million Australian dollars, a source of confidence that would allow for a massive expansion of military armaments when war approached, strengthening the country's defense capabilities.
If we add the large loans from domestic and international sources, Australasia could potentially have up to half a billion dollars available, making it possible to form one of the top three navies in the world.
After the simple report, the next agenda was the new Cabinet's plan for the next four years.
Given the current situation in Europe, war could break out at any moment. This meant that the development of the military industry over the next four years was crucial.
First on the agenda was next year's defense budget. The Cabinet had approved a defense budget of 30 million for the Ministry of Defense in 1912, with several important conditions: the ministry must speed up the training of new forces and ensure that all the armies are highly trained and combat-ready.
For the navy, Arthur hoped that there would be more open-sea exercises to improve sailors' familiarity with ship operations and enhance the navy's combat strength.
As the saying goes, "The roar of the cannons brings in treasure." And that treasure was the cost of naval artillery, which far exceeded that of regular artillery. A single naval exercise could cost hundreds of thousands or even millions of Australian dollars.
If the entire fleet participated in a large-scale exercise, the cost could multiply.
Still, these exercises were necessary. After all, with no active battles, such exercises were the only means to increase the navy's combat power.
The 30 million Australian dollars defense budget was specifically set aside for extensive drills and training for both the army and navy.
Arthur even mentioned that if military spending exceeded the government's budget, the royal family would be willing to subsidize an additional 2 million dollars annually, but the condition was that the money had to be spent efficiently and effectively.
The royal family's financial group was not lacking in money, with an annual net income of 50 million Australian dollars, making it comparable to the government.
The royal family's financial group contributed over 8 million Australian dollars annually in taxes, which made up a significant portion of government revenue.
The royal family's financial group had total assets of 400 million pounds, or 800 million Australian dollars, and it invested and built various factories and enterprises valued at over 100 million pounds.
In addition, the royal family's financial group held 150 million pounds in cash flow, about 300 million Australian dollars, and tens of millions of Australian dollars in stocks.
In the past, the main source of income for the royal family's financial group had been Benz automobiles, but now, the income from Benz cars no longer made up half of the group's total income.
The wealth of the royal family's financial group allowed Arthur to invest in advanced military weapons, including tanks, aircraft carriers, and planes.
To date, all the funding for the development of these advanced military weapons had come from the royal family's financial group.
Though the scale of research for these three weapons wasn't large, the cost was still in the millions of Australian dollars each year.
Without the royal family's financial backing, the government would not have been able to afford such expenses.
This was the power of wealth—without money, it would be impossible even to start the research, let alone hire the necessary talent.
And for this, Arthur had to thank his grandmother, Queen Victoria.
After all, the inheritance left to him by his grandfather, Duke Arthur, was only 80 million pounds. The rest was all thanks to Queen Victoria, including New Zealand and New Guinea, which were gifts from her.
Had it not been for Queen Victoria's will, it would have been much harder for Australia to acquire these regions.
After all, considering Arthur's and Edward's relationship at the time, even though these regions were of minimal importance to the British Empire, Edward VII would likely have obstructed any attempt to acquire them.
Perhaps this was the advantage of birth! Born into the British royal family, the only son of Queen Victoria's most beloved son, it seemed only natural to inherit such gifts.
For someone of noble birth, using that advantage wisely would provide even more benefits and help avoid unnecessary setbacks.
(End of Chapter)
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