Chapter 239: Franco-Spanish Cooperation Renewed

It must be admitted that since the Franco-Prussian War, the development of the Germans has been set to fast-forward.

The unified German Empire leapt to become the world's second-largest industrial power, and the speed of its industrial development was not affected in the slightest by the unification of the country.

In 1871, Germany's steel production was only 251, 00 tons. But last year, Germany's annual steel production exceeded 400, 00 tons.

Although surpassed by the equally rapidly developing United States, Germany's steel production still ranked third in the world, far exceeding France's 300, 00 tons.

It is worth mentioning that after nearly ten years of hard work, Spain's steel production finally reached a scale of 201, 00 tons.

Although this does not seem like much, it has already exceeded the steel production of the Austro-Hungarian Empire and Russia. Even looking at the world, Spain's steel production ranks after Britain, the United States, Germany, and France, making it the fifth-largest steel-producing country in the world.

However, steel production only represents the scale of heavy industry and cannot represent a country's industrial level. Although Spain has surpassed the Austro-Hungarian Empire in steel production, there is still a certain gap between them in terms of total industrial scale and industrial level.

It can only be said that the former Spanish colonial empire was too glorious, and even after being in decline for so long, it still possesses a certain foundation.

After these few years of development, although Spain has not yet returned to the posture of its heyday, it is not too far behind the five great powers like the Austro-Hungarian Empire and Russia in terms of industry.

Spain's industrial scale has even exceeded that of Russia, but Gao Da has not publicized this much, which is why the people and governments of various European countries are not very aware of it.

In fact, Spain has been developing quietly during these years of economic crisis, and it is currently definitely the most powerful country in Europe outside of the five great powers.

Led by German officials, Gao Da and the Spanish officials visited several important cities in the Ruhr area.

After completing the visit, Gao Da met with the controllers of famous German companies such as Krupp under the introduction of the German government.

In addition to being a famous arms company, Krupp is also a technologically advanced steel company.

At the 1862 London International Exhibition of Industry and Art, the Bessemer acid converter steelmaking process, which can conveniently smelt low-quality iron ore into high-quality steel, made its debut.

In the following six years, more than 70 Bessemer acid converters were put into use in Europe, most of which were built in Germany.

The Krupp company, led by Alfred Krupp, was not only the first steel company in Germany to adopt the Bessemer acid converter, but also leapt to become a famous high-quality steel production company in Germany.

Steel produced using the Bessemer acid converter was also known as "Krupp steel" within Germany, and the Krupp company became famous as a result, receiving strong support from the then-King of Prussia, Wilhelm I, and Chancellor Bismarck.

Having gained support from the government, the Krupp company quickly expanded its scale and began to delve into military and chemical industries.

The Krupp cannon produced with Krupp steel was the best reward from Alfred Krupp for the trust placed in him by Wilhelm I and Chancellor Bismarck, and it was also the trump card that led the Krupp company to prosperity.

The reason why Gao Da wanted to meet Alfred Krupp was not only to introduce the Krupp company's artillery technology, but also to introduce the Krupp company's steelmaking technology.

Steelmaking requires chemistry, and the country with the largest reserve of chemical talent is definitely the British Empire. In fact, many famous steelmaking methods were invented by British scientists, but it is not necessarily the British government that makes heavy use of these steelmaking methods.

Alfred Krupp's talent in steelmaking technology is beyond doubt. He successively learned the Bessemer acid converter steelmaking method and the Thomas steelmaking method, keeping the Krupp company's steelmaking technology at the forefront of the world, which is also one of the reasons for the prosperity of the Krupp company.

The strength of German artillery technology is largely due to the advancement of steelmaking methods. The famous Krupp cannon barrels are made of Krupp steel, and the durability of Krupp steel has created powerful and very stable Krupp cannons.

Because the Krupp company is a private enterprise, this also increases the possibility of Spain obtaining steelmaking and artillery technology from the Krupp company.

On the premise that the German government does not object, Gao Da is very confident in reaching a cooperation with the Krupp company, and through the steelmaking method mastered by the Krupp company, Spain's total steel production will be improved again.

Sure enough, when Gao Da met the famous Alfred Krupp, the other party's attitude was very respectful and expressed a willingness to reach a cooperation with the Spanish government.

Because the economic crisis has not completely ended, the Krupp company, as a steel company, has also been affected. More importantly, the Krupp company's other major source of income, the military industry, is also lacking orders at this time, and the company's finances are still relatively tight.

Although the Krupp company is willing to cooperate with Spain, when Alfred Krupp heard that the cooperation Gao Da mentioned was to purchase the Krupp company's artillery technology and steelmaking technology, even Alfred Krupp was a little shocked and hesitant at this time.

Steelmaking technology and artillery technology are the foundation of the Krupp company's existence, not to mention introducing both technologies at the same time.

But considering that it is currently in the stage of economic crisis, and the fact that cooperation with Spain will basically not affect the Krupp company's business in Germany, Alfred Krupp himself was a little hesitant.

At the end of the day, although the Krupp company's steelmaking method is advanced, it was learned and improved from the British steelmaking method.

The Krupp company hardly paid any research and development costs; if it counts that Krupp himself disguised himself to enter British factories to learn steelmaking technology, perhaps this is the only cost for the Krupp company.

If these steelmaking technologies can be exchanged for enough funds to support the company through the economic crisis, it is not too much of a loss for the Krupp company.

After thinking again and again, Alfred Krupp finally could not make up his mind. He could only express his apologies to Gao Da, stating that such a major matter still needs to be discussed with the company's internal management, and it will take some time to give Gao Da a reply.

Gao Da had no objections. During the stage of internal discussions at the Krupp company, Gao Da visited some factories in the Ruhr industrial area again and had Spanish officials record the planning of the German Ruhr area and the advantages of some factories.

Alfred Krupp did not keep Gao Da waiting for too long. Just the next day, he invited Gao Da to visit the Krupp company again and held a long discussion on the cooperation to be reached by both sides.

Of course, it was the subordinates brought by Gao Da who were responsible for the negotiations. Gao Da's task was more to visit the Krupp company's steel plants and military factories to see what was so unique about the famous Krupp company.

To welcome Gao Da's arrival, the Krupp company's preparations were quite sufficient. Perhaps it was also to show the capabilities of their company so as to obtain more funds and benefits during the technology transfer.

The Krupp company directly prepared a room of over 300 square meters to display their achievements. What was shown to Gao Da included models of the production processes of pig iron and cast steel workshops, steel ingots, train wheel axles, and samples of Krupp cannons.

These products represent the Krupp company's most advanced steelmaking technology and artillery technology, which are also the advanced technologies that Gao Da has been longing to introduce to Spain.

Although these industrial products are not considered advanced compared to later industrial and military products, for Gao Da, these are things that Spain has dreamed of.

Gao Da spent several hours in a room of only three hundred square meters, and it was not until both sides reached a certain compromise on the content of the cooperation that Gao Da ended the visit.

After the hard-fought arguments by the Spanish officials and the management of the steel and military factories, the two sides finally reached a consensus on the cooperation.

Gao Da's Royal Steel Plant invested 12 million pesetas to purchase a complete set of steelmaking equipment from the Krupp company, which is expected to reach an annual production capacity of 10, 00 tons of crude steel and 40, 00 tons of pig iron.

At the same time, the Krupp company will send at least 30 technical experts in steelmaking to Spain, and these technical experts will stay in Spain for at least two years to help Spain's steel plants master the Krupp company's steelmaking technology.

Of course, all expenses for these experts in Spain will be borne by the Spanish side, and the Krupp company will not pay a penny for this.

Regarding artillery technology, the Krupp company will not sell it directly. However, the Krupp company can sell 500 cannons to Spain in the form of normal trade and allow Spanish military factories to dismantle these cannons to learn the technology of Krupp cannons.

In order to get the Krupp company to agree to transfer the steelmaking technology, Spain also needs to pay an additional 20 million pesetas in learning fees.

Adding up all the expenses, Spain needs to spend 32 million pesetas to purchase the Krupp company's steelmaking technology, and they still need to study and imitate the artillery themselves.

Although it did not meet his expectations, this result was acceptable to Gao Da.

With the Krupp company's steelmaking technology, Spain's steel production can also achieve further growth. For a long time to come, the steel production of European countries will usher in explosive growth, and Europe and even the whole world will truly enter the industrial age.

Gao Da does not expect Spain to keep up with the development speed of the three industrial powers of Britain, Germany, and the United States, but he also hopes that Spain's industrial development can be second only to France, and even catch up with France in some cases.

France's comprehensive strength is not bad, but compared to Britain and Germany, France does not attach as much importance to its own industrial development.

This brings us to the impact of the Franco-Prussian War on France. Although France has a large population, most of France's population are farmers.

The small-scale peasant economy hindered the development of French industry, leaving France's industry with a situation where there are too many small and medium-sized enterprises.

After the defeat in the Franco-Prussian War, France faced a large amount of reparations. These reparations also limited the development of French industry and made it difficult for these small and medium-sized French enterprises to use new industrial technologies and equipment.

Under such circumstances, the speed of France's industrial development naturally lagged far behind countries like Britain, Germany, and the United States. This led to the fact that private capital in France was unwilling to invest funds in domestic industrial development, but rather preferred to invest funds in other countries to earn more profits through the faster development speed of other countries.

This created the glorious usury empire of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, but at the same time, it buried France's domestic development.

From the data in history, it can also be seen that France's development has been stagnant since the Franco-Prussian War.

In 1875, France's steel production reached 256, 00 tons. By comparison, Britain's steel production at this time was only 719, 00 tons, and Germany's and the United States' steel production were both less than 400, 00 tons.

At this time, France's industry had not lagged too far behind Germany and the United States, and it was still a powerful industrial country.

But in the following years, France's industrial scale did not see much growth.

By 1880, the steel production of Britain and the United States had successively exceeded one million tons, and Germany's steel production also had an exaggerated 624, 00 tons.

France's steel production was only 389, 00 tons, which is about one-third of Britain and the United States, and two-thirds of Germany.

This was not the time when France was the most backward. In 1885, Britain's steel production had reached 1. 17 million tons, and the United States' steel production had reached 1. 39 million tons.

Germany's development was not weak at all, with steel production almost doubling compared to five years ago, reaching 1. 02 million tons.

France's steel production was only 554, 00 tons; a few years ago it was two-thirds of Germany's, but by 1885 it was not even half of Germany's.

It was precisely the poor performance of the French during this period that gave Gao Da the hope that Spain could catch up with France in terms of industry.

Last year, Spain's steel production was around 200, 00 tons, while the French steel production reached 300, 00 tons. If the third phase of the Barcelona industrial base can be completed, Spain might really have the hope of catching up with France in steel production in the next few years.

Although steel production does not represent the overall industrial scale, it has a great connection with the overall industrial scale. After all, only when the domestic industrial scale and demand are relatively large will steel plants have enough orders to produce steel.

After signing the cooperation agreement with the Krupp company, Gao Da's purpose in the Ruhr area was more than half completed.

The steelmaking technology possessed by other steel plants in the Ruhr area was either similar to the Krupp company or worse than the Krupp company, so there was no need for Gao Da to make another trip.

Cooperation with the Krupp company had already fulfilled Gao Da's needs in terms of steelmaking technology and artillery technology, and this German visit could already be considered an unexpected joy for Gao Da.

After the contract was signed, Gao Da did not stay in Germany for too long.

After all, the next country to visit, France, is the main event, and the aid obtained from the French is what Gao Da is truly concerned about.

The fact that France gradually became a usury empire did affect France's own development, but it was a good thing for Spain.

German private capital is not necessarily weaker than France's, but these German capitals need to be invested in their own country to help Germany's industry develop faster.

This also led to the fact that although Germany has a strong industry, it does not have enough funds to help Spain develop.

But France is different. France has a completely self-sacrificing attitude; they have sufficient funds to help Spain develop, which is also the reason why Gao Da is more willing to reach a cooperation with France.

Regardless of how the relationship between Spain and France will develop in the future, at this time, France is the country among European nations most likely to provide the most loans to Spain, and this reason alone is enough.

Gao Da did not choose to travel to France by train as he did when going to Germany via Austria, but traveled north from the Ruhr area and then took a ship from the port to a French port.

The reason for this is naturally the competitive relationship between Germany and France. If he were to visit France by train openly from Germany, the Germans would lose face, and the French would also suspect Gao Da's intentions.

Because France has become a republic, there would naturally be no crown prince or king to receive him.

After Gao Da arrived in Paris, he was arranged by the French government to live in a manor in Paris.

Among the three countries visited this time, except for the Austro-Hungarian Empire, France might be the country with the best attitude towards Gao Da.

The main reason for this is that France needs Spain to break through Germany's blockade.

In the conversation with the French government, Gao Da mentioned that he wanted to obtain more interest-free and low-interest loans from France, and requested more industrial and other assistance from France.

The French would naturally not refuse this, but they also put forward their own requirements; after all, the French are not fools and cannot pay for nothing.

Among all the conditions proposed by the French, the first one is to prohibit Spain from reaching any diplomatic or military agreements with Germany.

The purpose of doing this is to prevent Spain from joining the alliance formed by Germany to isolate France. Gao Da also knew the French's purpose and naturally nodded in agreement.

The second requirement of the French is to establish a closer trade relationship with Spain.

Gao Da had no objection to this; after all, France's huge grain production is a good choice for Spain to avoid a food crisis, and trade with France will not be a loss for Spain.

Of course, the protection of Spanish industry is also very necessary. The economic crisis suffered by Spain had a weaker impact, and the prices of domestic industrial products are still relatively high compared to the prices of European industrial products.

Due to the impact of the economic crisis, the prices of industrial products in European countries, especially steel products and mechanical processing products, have fallen to a low point. If these products are allowed to flood into the Spanish market, it will definitely cause a shock to Spanish factories.

On the premise that the quality of these industrial manufactured goods is about the same, the people will definitely be willing to choose products with lower prices.

This also means that local Spanish factories must either lower their selling prices or face the problem of shrinking market share.

Gao Da is unwilling to let Spain's industry suffer a huge impact due to the influx of foreign industrial products, so while agreeing to the French proposal to deepen trade cooperation, he also specifically mentioned that Spain will not import French industrial manufactured goods for the time being.

The French government did not intend to force Spain to import industrial manufactured goods. After all, their purpose in proposing to deepen trade cooperation was to influence the Spanish government at the economic level.

As long as Spain further deepens cooperation, coupled with the large influx of French funds into Spain, French capital is destined to have a certain say.

This could also ensure that Spain remains closer to Falanxi, which is the true objective of the Falanxi people, and also the means carefully considered by the Faguozheng Prefecture to ensure that Spain does not lean toward Germany.

5200-word two-in-one chapter, seeking support!

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(End of chapter)