The Rise of the European Emperor

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() Just when Marin was busy signing the "Non-aggression Pact" with neighboring countries, the Danish King Hans, who was supposed to leave, did not leave, but went to find his brother-in-law - the Elector of Saxony Frederick III.

Seeing this brother-in-law who had caused him to lose a large area of ​​his territory and needed to pay millions of indemnities, Frederick III, who had always been well-cultivated, almost lost control and sent someone to beat King Hans.

However, Frederick III held back. After all, a fight won't solve the problem, and you'll lose an in-law ally.

King Hans told Frederick III of his doubts. He was surprised by Marin's sudden affection, and always suspected that the cunning Marin had some conspiracy.

But Frederick III was much smarter than him. After hearing these words, he just thought about it and understood:

"Don't worry, brother-in-law, this time is a good thing. It shows that the little fox of Marin is not at ease with Sweden!"

"Worried about Sweden? What do you mean?"

Frederick III rolled his eyes - no wonder you always lose battles, just this IQ, you need to recharge...

He patiently explained:

"After these two wars, Denmark has been weakened. But after Sweden gained independence, it surpassed Denmark in terms of land area and population. So, I guess that boy Malin should be worried that Sweden will expand and die. Denmark!"

"He will worry about Denmark being destroyed?" King Hans was a little curious.

Frederick III rolled his eyes and said:

"Of course, if Sweden eliminated Denmark, its strength would be similar to the Kalmar Union before it lost Sweden, and it could be considered a powerful country. Marin was obviously worried that the mighty Sweden, after annexing Denmark, would demand Jutland. "

"Oh,

Does he support me now? ' said King Hans dumbfounded.

"No, that won't fully support you. He supports you now, but he is afraid that you will be destroyed by Sweden. If you become stronger and have the momentum to destroy Sweden, he will definitely turn to support Sweden!" Frederick III affirmed is to say. As one of the best politicians in Europe at the moment, he sees it better than King Hans.

King Hans is not stupid either. After thinking about it, he understands Marin's sinister intentions. For now, though, the best option for Denmark is to accept Marin's kindness.

So, before leaving Worms, King Hans of Denmark approached Marin, hoping to negotiate a business with Marin...

"What? You said you wanted to sell me lumber?" Marin looked at King Hans in surprise.

In fact, the idea was given to Hans by Frederick III. He knew that King Hans was planning to develop the forests along the southern coast of Norway. Because these forests are close to the sea, the large amount of wood that has been felled can be sold as a commodity.

After all, there is less and less good wood in Western Europe because of too much development. Norway's forests are not well developed because of their small population and low deforestation. Now, taking advantage of the opportunity to develop the southern coast of Norway, Denmark is simply going to sell a handful of wood, so as to get some money to pay off the debt and develop the local area.

According to ancient European law, forests and minerals were the property of the king. Then, the wood that was cut down is naturally Hans's. If you sell these wood, you can also sell a lot of money.

Although it is said that Hans can also find Hanseatic merchants in Lübeck and Hamburg to buy, but Frederick III believes that the Hanseatic merchants in Lübeck and Hamburg are too shrewd and cunning, and will definitely lower the price and will not give Hans a bargain .

But Marin is different. Marin now needs to support Denmark against the rise of Sweden. Therefore, selling wood to Marin must be relatively easier than the merchants in Lübeck and Hamburg.

As expected by Frederick III, Marin felt that the purchase of lumber from southern Norway seemed to be a good idea. Although Norway has a high latitude, there are still many broad-leaved trees, such as oaks, in areas south of 60 degrees north latitude due to the influence of the North Atlantic warm current. Back then, the canoes of the Viking pirates were made from tall and straight oak trees in the local area, and they were directly chiseled into dragon-headed canoes, which ran rampant along the coast of Western Europe...

Therefore, if the development of southern Norway is serious, there is no shortage of oak oak. Also, there are many local pine trees. Pine is an important wood for furniture and is also used to make decks and masts. Therefore, if the forest in southern Norway is seriously cut down, it can be sold for a lot of money.

In the past, Denmark occupied the Oresund Strait, an important transportation route from the North Sea to the Baltic Sea, and vigorously developed maritime trade. Naturally, there was no shortage of money, so there was no need to cut down trees and sell them for money.

However, now that the Danish fleet is gone, and the Oresund Strait is occupied by Lübeck and Hamburg, the most important source of maritime income is lost. In this case, cutting down trees and selling wood is really a good way to make money...

However, Marin is now very short of wood. If nothing else, shipbuilding requires a lot of oak, and pine can also be ordered. Even without shipbuilding, domestic construction requires a lot of wood.

Although it is said that after Marin occupied the north, wood can be cut free from the north. But the problem is - it doesn't cost money to chop wood in the north, but shipping the wood back to Europe is expensive...

If it is shipbuilding, it is possible to directly build a shipyard in the north and use local materials, which can greatly reduce the cost. However, if a lot of furniture is needed in the construction of the country, you can't also bring it back from the north, right? This back and forth takes several months, and the transportation cost is not lower than buying lumber from Norway.

Moreover, the southern part of Norway and Jutland are across the sea, and the distance is very close, so the freight cost is of course low. In the future, Marin will definitely need to use a lot of wood to develop Jutland. But Jutland has low forest cover, and good wood must have been cut long ago, not as much as in Norway to the north. Therefore, it is a good choice to import wood from Norway to build houses and furniture.

Of course, when it comes to shipbuilding, we must choose to build a shipyard in the north and use local wood to build a large number of ships. Especially those keel wood with a length of tens of meters, it is very difficult to move, it is better to lay the keel on the spot, and then match the ribs and other wood.

Moreover, the tree cut and sold in Denmark is not long-term, but because of the need to develop mountain forests. When southern Norway is developed, they may not continue to cut down trees and sell them.

Anyway, to support the confrontation between Denmark and Sweden, Marin agreed to the request for timber trade with Denmark, and agreed to send someone to build a warehouse terminal in the southern part of Norway, in the area of ​​Kristiansana, which was specially used to purchase the local logging in Norway. of wood.

The reason why the pier was built here is because Marin remembers that Kristiansand seems to be a pirate base and a shipbuilding base in Denmark in the future.

It is mentioned in the history books of the previous life that in 1685, the king of Denmark had authorized 69 captains of Kristiansand to plunder the then hostile British and Swedish merchant ships. Since then, Kristiansand has become a famous Danish pirate and shipbuilding base.

Marin worries that the Danes will go the old way and develop Kristiansand into a pirate base and a shipbuilding base, as historically did. The Danes have been beaten so badly by themselves. If they become pirates in the future, who will they plunder? It must be me...

Therefore, Marin simply set up a cargo terminal and a wharf in Kristiansand to purchase Norway's fine wood, especially for shipbuilding. Even if you can't use it yourself, you can hand it over to someone else. Anyway, just don't keep it for Denmark, lest they engage in privateers and affect their maritime trade...

Moreover, taking this opportunity, Marin plans to build a bridgehead base in Kristiansand, and even plans to build a coastal castle. If the Danes are dishonest, Marin can also use Kristiansand as a landing springboard to transport troops to land in Norway and teach the Danes a lesson...

Anyway, this timber trade can be regarded as a win-win situation. Denmark got the much-needed money, and Marin got the wood it needed. Even if you don't need it, it won't fall into your hand. Because, this year, the demand for wood in Europe is huge. Among the trade goods of the Hanseatic League, wood is one of the important commodities. Marin buys the wood that the Danes cut down in Norway. Even if he doesn't need it, it's mainly oak. Even if he has enough, he can hand it over to others, and he won't smash it in his hand...