The Development of Firearms

Laszlo and his entourage quickly arrived outside the warehouse.

From the outside, the warehouse looked magnificent and grand, with brick walls of ancient color, showing a distinct Italian style.

Statues of Mars, the God of War, and Minerva, the Goddess, stood at the entrance, adding an atmosphere of majesty and solemnity.

The Emperor's double-headed eagle flag, Austria's red and white striped flag, and Styria's green and white striped flag hung on the front wall of the warehouse, a dazzling sight.

Smith, who had officially accepted the appointment as the Director of the Austrian Arsenal, personally served as the Emperor's guide, introducing him to the internal situation of the armory.

Under his guidance, Laszlo stepped into this recently completed armory.

Upon entering the warehouse, various weapons were neatly arranged, and under the illumination of torches, swords, spears, and halberds gleamed with a cold metallic luster.

Laszlo's gaze was almost immediately drawn to an exquisite matchlock gun. He walked forward and gently caressed the gun body: "Smith, your weapon forging craftsmanship has become increasingly superb.

However, have you made any progress on the heavy matchlock gun that I previously commissioned you to research?"

Smith's expression tightened, and he said, "Your Majesty, we have indeed achieved some results in the manufacturing of heavy matchlock guns.

Please see, the latest samples are displayed over there."

He led the Emperor to the display area for trial-production matchlock guns, pointed to these enlarged firearms, and continued to introduce: "These matchlock guns far exceed the firearms we initially produced in terms of range and power. They can penetrate good quality Milanese plate armor from a hundred meters away, providing powerful and effective fire support for our army."

Laszlo examined them carefully for a moment, then tried to pick up one of the firearms, only to find that it was heavier than he had imagined, making it difficult to aim and shoot by holding it level with both arms.

He noticed that there was also an iron stand next to the weapon rack, which was used to fix the firearm.

This type of firearm was already very similar to the Spanish heavy matchlock guns he remembered, but he could not be sure whether its reliability and power could truly catch up to the Musket.

"It certainly looks good, but what about the reliability of these firearms? Most importantly, can they be mass-produced?"

Smith looked troubled and, after a moment of hesitation, said, "Your Majesty, to be frank, the cost of manufacturing heavy matchlock guns is too high, which severely hinders the mass production process.

Firstly, their gun barrels require high-quality iron ingots for forging, and this type of iron is extremely difficult to refine and requires the best iron ore.

The good news is that the hematite in Styria can meet the requirements, but the bad news is that output will be severely limited.

Moreover, forging iron blocks of such thickness into thick gun barrels using the Italian method is extremely demanding on the physical strength and skill of the craftsmen; most craftsmen are unable to do it.

Therefore, forging each qualified gun barrel consumes a lot of manpower and time.

Furthermore, the precision components on the gun, such as the trigger mechanism, require extremely high craftsmanship, resulting in a persistently high scrap rate, which further increases costs."

Laszlo frowned. Smith's meaning was very clear: to mass-produce this heavy matchlock gun, investment must be increased.

From purchasing raw materials to recruiting craftsmen, he also had to bear the loss of defective products. Moreover, this type of firearm consumed about three times as much gunpowder as light matchlock guns, which was another huge expense.

And as the power increased, the chance of a barrel bursting also became greater; a moment of inattention could scrap an expensive firearm, making the consumed musketeers the cheaper consumable instead.

After a moment of deliberation, Laszlo decided to postpone it for now. Recently, he had been reducing taxes, providing disaster relief, and maintaining the army and government, spending money like water.

To save money, he was even unwilling to directly send troops to settle Mainz, instead letting Adolf take three thousand men to fight it out himself.

In the end, it was only with the reparations from Venice and the tributes from numerous vassal states that the treasury could barely maintain a surplus. Any increase in military expenditure would have to wait until tax revenues recovered.

Currently, only the Independent Army and the Imperial Guard had been equipped with firearms, not only due to the cost of firearms but also the limitation of gunpowder reserves.

Although the Ottoman and Venice had been defeated, Eastern trade was still controlled by the Ottoman and Venetians, and the shortage of saltpeter remained a major pain point for Austria.

Laszlo sighed lightly and said helplessly, "You should try your best to optimize the craftsmanship. The mass production of heavy firearms will be temporarily shelved. First, ensure that the output of other equipment and the maintenance of the armory do not have any problems."

Smith quickly replied, "Yes, Your Majesty. We have already begun relevant research and are preparing to improve production processes, strengthen craftsman training, and increase product qualification rates.

But these tasks take time and are difficult to achieve large-scale mass production in the short term."

Laszlo put down the matchlock gun and looked around the entire armory: "I understand, this is not a one-time thing.

The armory, as the backbone of the Imperial Army's military strength, must not fail.

By the way, how are the stocks of armor and other weapons?"

Smith breathed a sigh of relief and pointed to the shelves next to him, saying, "Your Majesty, our inventory is sufficient. The existing armor and weapons are enough to equip a legion.

These armors are all made using improved forging techniques, which are not only sturdy and durable but also lighter in weight, providing protection while minimizing impact on soldier movement.

We have also developed a new type of light artillery to meet your requirements for mountain warfare capabilities."

Laszlo walked to the area where light artillery was stored and asked with interest, "This light artillery seems to have no changes in appearance, so what are its advantages?"

Smith immediately explained: "Your Majesty, you see, this is a disassemblable and adjustable gun carriage used by Burgundy engineers, which allows for more flexible transportation of the artillery.

In addition, we use higher strength bronze to manufacture the artillery, strictly controlling its length and caliber,

reducing unnecessary counterweights.

Compared to the light artillery currently equipped by the army, this artillery has a slightly shorter range and less power.

But as long as there are enough horses, it can march with mobile units in mountainous terrain."

Laszlo nodded with satisfaction. These were all good things he had specifically prepared to deal with the Swiss in the mountains.

Those Swiss happily swallowed Thurgau and were now eyeing Constance and the remaining Outer Austria territories.

Laszlo's next target to deal with was these damned Swiss.

However, to deal with the Swiss, one naturally cannot rely entirely on new weapons like firearms and cannons. These weapons can only serve as a bonus, inflicting casualties on the enemy and demoralizing them.

What is truly important is to cultivate the troops' meat-grinding capability, enabling them to dare to face the terrifying Swiss pike squares.

"This type of artillery can be mass-produced. First, equip the Imperial Guard, who lack artillery, with this type of artillery, and ensure the quality is up to standard."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

After visiting the armory, Laszlo then entered the arsenal, where the factory was a bustling scene.

The roaring flames in the furnaces illuminated the entire armory, and the craftsmen, sweating profusely, were orderly forging weapons.

Some busy craftsmen even had no time to salute the Emperor.

Laszlo walked along, observing the process of weapon forging. The factory was very neatly planned, with different areas used for producing different military equipment.

He stopped by a barrel, picked up a longsword that had just been forged but not yet sharpened, and swung it twice.

"This sword feels good," Laszlo praised, "It seems you have indeed put a lot of effort into weapon manufacturing."

Smith was very pleased in his heart. These craftsmen were all apprentices he had personally trained, and he had passed on all his lifelong knowledge from Nuremberg to these young people.

The Emperor's praise for the craftsmen made him very happy and also made the craftsmen in the workshop work even harder.

As the inspection neared its end, Smith also showed Laszlo new gunpowder formulas and improved weapon maintenance techniques, and he patted his chest, assuring the Emperor that they could absolutely guarantee that the Imperial Army's ordnance supply would not have any problems.

Laszlo expressed his satisfaction with this, ordered a reward for the craftsmen of the armory, and expressed his expectations.

There were still countless wars awaiting Austria, awaiting him.

The vast manpower pool of the Empire could provide him with an endless supply of reserve soldiers; as long as the armaments were sufficient, he could arm more troops.

With the Emperor's departure, the Graz armory returned to its busy state, and the craftsmen were filled with pride and motivation, knowing that their efforts had been recognized by the Emperor.

The weapons they produced would play a crucial role in defeating the Empire's enemies on future battlefields.