My Italian: Chapter 506 Great White Fleet Part 1

The disaster of the eruption of Mount Vesuvius came and went quickly. A month after the volcano stopped erupting, parts of the province of Campania, where Naples is located, have returned to normal. In addition to the people who lost their loved ones in this cataclysm still thinking about it, in other people, this volcanic eruption has already become a topic of conversation.

Of course, the loss of Naples is not small. According to the statistics after the event, the total value of the loss is about 46 million lire. The main damage came from the destroyed town of Ottaviano and the shutdown of surrounding factories caused by the volcanic ash.

However, these losses are not borne by the people or the factories themselves. The government has also provided some relief funds to compensate for some of their losses.

Therefore, this volcanic eruption has also become the memory of most people.

The disaster caused by the volcanic eruption has basically come to an end, and the days still have to go on.

And one day more than a month later, the port of Naples welcomed a large number of warships. Anyone who is familiar with the navy will definitely be very surprised, because all the warships that the Italian Navy can get are gathered here. I am afraid that the port of Naples is not intended to be a military port, right?

It is not surprising that some people think so, because there are very few warships in Italy at present. Except for the Dreadnought warship, the others are several thousand tons of warships, and there is no one of tens of thousands of tons, which makes the prestige famous. The Italian Navy was a little embarrassed.

No way, who made the Italian Navy sell ships too hard before, and also retired a large number of old warships in order to build ships, resulting in today's green and yellow situation. I couldn't even find a battleship that held up the facade.

But don't worry, two Dante-class battleships are about to enter service, and two more are about to be launched. And a new large cruiser of the Taranto class is also about to be launched. In just one year, the Italian Navy will be greatly improved. As for the current small difficulties, it is enough to overcome them.

In addition, although the large warships Italy can't take out, the small and medium-sized warships are different. The 26-knot Piedmont-class light cruiser, or the 30-knot new destroyer, are very interesting little characters.

There is naturally a reason for these battleships to gather here. Because the visiting fleet from the United States is about to arrive in Naples, Italy, as the host, naturally needs to send battleships to welcome it.

Maybe someone has already thought of it, yes, it is the famous Great White Fleet who is visiting this time. Compared to history, the visit was made two years earlier.

The reasons are also caused by many aspects. First, after the victory of the Russo-Japanese War, Japan was too active in the Pacific Ocean, which is suspected of squeezing the interests of the United States in the local area. Therefore, the US fleet's round-the-world visit has elements to show its strength.

Second, the new US President Roosevelt Sr. was an admirer of the theory of sea power (same as William II), he attached great importance to the navy, and was willing to support the navy to show its strength to all countries in the world.

Third, the United States has built a lot of warships in recent years. In just six or seven years, the United States has built 16 large warships. It was also after the wealth was sufficient that the United States came up with the idea of ​​showing it to other countries.

This is not just to show off the strength of the U.S. Navy, but also because it benefits the United States. For example, on the issue of the Panama Canal, the United States used its expanded navy to force the French to let go of the Panama Canal.

The U.S. Navy, which has tasted the sweetness, intends to show it to various countries while the current warships are out of date. I feel that the effect is not bad. Japan, which was a little noisy before, immediately showed enough enthusiasm.

When the fleet arrived in Japan, the Japanese Navy sent 16 of its best warships to greet the guests. After that, the fleet was not only summoned by Emperor Meiji, but also the commander of the combined fleet, Admiral Togo Heihachiro, and also had a great conversation with the officers and men of the U.S. Navy. And the celebration lasted for a whole week, which made the US Navy quite happy.

No way, the 16 newly built ex-dreadnought battleships do look majestic, enough to show the strong industrial strength of the United States. So that in order to let it pass through the Suez Canal, the canal had to temporarily close other ships for 4 days.

And now that this majestic visiting fleet is about to arrive in Naples, the Italian side, as the host, of course, cannot make the guests dissatisfied, so all kinds of warships available in Italy are gathered here, waiting for the arrival of the American fleet.

"Lieutenant General, the American fleet is almost here."

On the flagship Dreadnought, Lieutenant Admiral Hilma, the commander of the local fleet, who was in charge of leading the team to greet him, said after hearing the communication officer's words. "Order, each ship is ready in turn to welcome American friends from afar."

Lieutenant General Hilma's words are literally, because the relationship between the two countries is very good, so giving each other enough respect is the character of the Italian Navy.

Following Lieutenant Admiral Hilma's words, the Italian warships also began to start. They were lined up in long queues, waiting for the visiting American fleet~www.mtlnovel.com~ The distant American fleet has already shown its figure and is heading towards the high-speed From Naples.

With the welcome sound of the gun salute, the visiting American fleet entered the port of Naples in turn.

"Hello, Major General Sperry, welcome to Italy."

During the welcoming ceremony, Lieutenant General Hilma stepped forward and held the hand of Major General Sperry, commander of the US Great White Fleet.

"Hello, Lieutenant General Hilma, thank you for your welcome."

As the commander of the Great White Fleet, Rear Admiral Sperry has also visited many countries and ports, and is familiar with diplomatic etiquette.

Afterwards, the generals on both sides shook hands and insisted, and when Rear Admiral Sperry walked up to a middle-aged man in the uniform of the Italian Navy Rear Admiral, his eyes were somewhat complicated and he said.

"Hello, Major General Lefer. Your Excellency is well-known, and my colleagues admire your commanding level."

Major General Sperry's words showed that they knew who they were losing. Of course, this is not to turn over the old accounts, but to be respected.

In the face of Sperry's meaningful words, Leifer, who had been promoted to major general, could only answer with a smile. "Thank you for the recognition from your colleagues in your country, but everything has passed, and we should look forward."

"Your Excellency is right, we should look forward."

At the welcome dinner held that night, officers from the United States frequently toasted Leifel, even the battle-tested Leifel couldn't resist, and didn't even know how to leave.

This also shows that the Yankees are a bit insincere when they say let go.

However, finding a place at the wine table was not the main reason for this visit to Italy, as the officers of the US Navy knew.

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