King of German Mercenaries

Halfway out of Cork City, Marin looked at the boundless sea and felt that he had very few ships. This time we landed in Cork, because there were no big boats, and dozens of small fishing boats were used. It looks mighty and only carries 1,000 people and 100 horses in total.

Of course, if it is a beach landing, small fishing boats also have the advantages of small fishing boats. For example, the smaller the boat, the easier it is to approach the shallow waters on the coast, which is convenient for landing on the beach.

However, if it is transported remotely, it is very inconvenient. For example, on the way to Cork this time, two small fishing boats were almost overturned by the wind and waves.

So, after much deliberation, Marin decided to buy a few big boats. The so-called big ship is actually a 200-ton ship. In the future, it will definitely be a small boat. Even in the 16th century, a few decades later, 200 tons was considered a small boat. Because such a small boat can run well in the North Sea, but in the Atlantic Ocean, its ability to resist wind and waves is a bit weak.

Of course, Marin doesn't need a big boat right now. Because, his sphere of influence extends up to the island of Ireland. Moreover, on the island of Ireland, Cork is more used as a trade transfer station. Marin did not intend to play his own banner until he had enough strength and Henry VII to challenge him.

Even if the Irish princes such as the Counties of Desmond are easier to deal with than the Counties of East Friesland, Marin does not plan to go to Ireland for the time being. Because East Friesland is an isolated country in Germany, and Marin goes to attack it, and no one will help East Friesland. Although the Counties of Desmond are separated from the King of England, they are after all nominal British princes, and moving the Irish princes is equivalent to hitting Henry VII in the face. As the British monarch, Henry VII had no problem using tens of thousands of horses. Therefore, Marin is not an opponent at all now, and it is more practical to engage in the country of East Friesland.

However, for Cork, Marin is not going to give up. Because Cork City is the first trade gateway of the whole island of Ireland, mastering it is equivalent to mastering most of the foreign trade of the island of Ireland, and the profits are very lucrative. Moreover, when Marin is strong enough to wrestle with England, Cork is the bridgehead for Marin to attack the entire island of Ireland, and its position is important.

To get a firmer grip on Cork, a fleet of ships will surely be needed. After all, controlling most of Ireland's foreign trade, this volume is certainly not small. The ships needed are by no means a matter of three or two ships. At the very least, a dozen ships were needed, and they had to be armed merchant ships.

And a 200-ton armed merchant ship costs one or two thousand gold coins. 10 ships cost 20,000 gold coins. This is only the cost of the ship. In addition, it is necessary to hire a large number of sailors, as well as highly skilled captains, chief mates, etc.

In addition, several forts will need to be built in Cork Bay to prevent pirates and other forces from coveting this place...

After all, to restore Cork City's status as a trading port, tens of thousands of gold coins must be dropped first...

money issue,

Marin wasn't too worried. Not to mention that after opening up the trade routes of the Teutonic Knights, it will bring huge profits. In Venice, there is still 250,000 gold coins to withdraw...

"Oh, why did you forget about this?" Marin patted his head.

Last year, in Venice, the Venetians agreed to take another 250,000 gold coins even though they were rude. Marin was so busy this year that he almost forgot to withdraw money...

Last year, Marin signed a document with the Venetian after withdrawing the money, agreeing to withdraw 500,000 gold coins over two years. Then, the other 250,000 gold coins are counted as commodities and craftsmen, etc., and 60,000 gold coins have been consumed.

That is to say, when Marin went this time, he could directly get 250,000 gold coins in cash, and could buy goods or craftsmen worth 190,000 gold coins.

After returning to Texel Island, Marin thought about it and decided to let Kohler lead the team and take the remaining two warships to Venice by sea to withdraw money. Along the way, Marin lined up the most reliable 100 warriors to escort the ships.

Because of the death of Charles VIII, the blockade of the French at sea has been automatically lifted. So now Marin can safely send ships by sea to Venice.

As for pirates? That's not a problem, the two warships, although not big, are equipped with artillery, plus there are 100 veterans in the town, they can still deal with pirates.

After all, the current pirates are still not large enough, with one or two pirate ships at most, and their tactics are also jumping ship to help hack and kill. In the face of artillery and professional armies, these pirates are scumbags. Only the British pirates who were later equipped with "Hongyi Cannons" could really threaten the warships. However, that kind of pirate was actually established with the secret support of the British royal family, and it was regarded as the British reserve naval force. Where can a truly pure pirate get a naval warfare weapon like the "Hongyi Cannon"?

For now, because of the popularity of bronze guns and the high price of copper, most countries rarely equip guns, let alone pirates.

When I went to Venice this time, Malin specifically told Kohler that in addition to withdrawing money, he was going to buy some scarce supplies...

For example, soda, which is a lot in Venice. Because Venice controlled trade in the central and eastern Mediterranean. Egypt is a famous source of natural soda. So, this stuff is a lot in Venice, and it's not expensive.

However, this stuff is important for glass making. So, Marin is going to ask Collado to buy some back so he can use it to make glass.

With glass, Marin can make glass greenhouses. In addition, glass windows can be promoted...

Glass in Europe is not cheap now, so the ones who can really afford glass as windows are not noble castles or church buildings...

The Italian side is fine, close to Venice, where the glass is produced. Therefore, glass is used more. Like the larger churches in Italy, the stained glass produced in Venice is used as the window of the church, which is very dazzling.

And Northwest Europe, because it is far from Venice. The Venetian glass manufacturing is hand-made, and the output is not much. Therefore, in the Beihai area, even if you have money, you cannot buy good glass.

There are also some glass craftsmen in Germany and England. However, the glass they make is of poor quality and only produces green glass...

Unlike Venice, the technique of adding manganese dioxide to neutralize the green color has been mastered. Therefore, in this era, whether it is colorless glass or colored glass, only Venice is produced. In other parts of Europe, only the most common green glass can be used. And, because of the lack of soda. The soda used to make glass in other regions is actually obtained by extracting the ash water of plants and trees, and the cost is relatively high. Therefore, the price of glass in other regions is not low. Fortunately, the production capacity of Venetian glass is limited. Therefore, these craftsmen who produce high-cost green glass also have a mouthful to eat...

This time, Marin sent Kohler to Venice, in addition to buying soda, another task is to buy pyrolusite. The pyrolusite is mainly produced in Hungary and Romania in the Balkans.

To manufacture glass, Venetian needs a lot of pyrolusite as an important additive for neutralizing green. And Marin needs pyrolusite, not to make colorless glass.

In fact, Marin needed pyrolusite to make spring steel. For example, the most common 65Mn spring steel needs some manganese. As long as pyrolusite (manganese dioxide) is available, Marin allows artisans to extract the manganese. Or, simply throw the pyrolusite directly into the steelmaking furnace and add the reducing agent, and then the manganese steel can be obtained directly. Of course, if the pyrolusite is directly added, the manganese content is difficult to control. Therefore, the manganese metal is first reduced, and then a certain amount of manganese metal is added into the steelmaking furnace to obtain manganese steel with the corresponding manganese content...

Of course, Kohler's task is not to ask the Venetians to buy pyrolusite. Who are the Venetians? He is a profiteer...

If you ask the Venetians to buy pyrolusite, will they still be killed? The task Marin gave Kohler was for him to find a way to find the merchants selling pyrolusite in Hungary and Romania, and connect with them to buy cheaper and larger quantities of pyrolusite...

With spring steel, it is convenient for Da Vinci to make clockwork and revolver firearms... So, this matter is very important to Marin...

That is to say, although Marin sent Kohler to Venice this time under the banner of withdrawing money, in fact, he still needs to buy a lot of soda and import channels for pyrolusite...