Fortunately, knowledge about ship design is common. It took Hilde half a year to fully understand what parts a ship needs and what kind of structure it has. Then, Hilde and a group of shipbuilders and designers carried out a new round of design work, expanding the design of the Greek Empire's warships in two directions - this gave birth to the main types of ships that make up the two fleets, sailing ships and galleys.
Sailboats can be said to be the direction of future shipbuilding. Without sailboats, it would be difficult to achieve long-distance sailing, especially in the complex Atlantic Ocean. Therefore, Hilde asked engineers to redesign it based on this idea, and then a sailboat without any oars was born. This kind of ship relies on the sea breeze to move forward, with a complex sail structure, huge masts and wide sails, which were not available on previous ships.
At the same time, because the sails are simplified.
This means that a sailing ship does not require hundreds of people to row like a galley.
The space inside the ship was fully utilized, making the cargo and passenger capacity of a sailing ship far greater than that of a galley. A large galley could carry at most a hundred heavy infantrymen, while a sailing ship could easily carry 200 people, and the cargo it could carry was more than double that of a galley of the same size. If the wind direction on the sea was good, the speed of a sailing ship was more than 30% faster than that of a galley.
However, there is not much wind in the Mediterranean and Black Sea regions.
In this sea, the power of sailing ships is actually greatly reduced.
Therefore, another idea is to continue expanding the paddle boats.
In fact, in real history, paddle boats were a product that had basically not developed.
The fifth section of the second tune: A well-thought-out decision
This is the embarrassment of the galley.
Its technology tree was basically maxed out during the Greco-Persian War.
Although the appearance of this traditional galley has been changed in various ways, in fact, by the 15th century, the galleys at that time were no different from those used during the Greco-Persian Wars, and the design principles and structures were the same. However, this does not mean that the galleys have lost their role. Facing the challenge of sailing ships, the galleys ushered in a wave of upgrades in the 16th century, which is the famous Gallaemonte.
Compared with ordinary galleys, the Gallesais had a stronger sail design and adopted a more complex sail design. At the same time, the enlarged hull made the volume much larger. The displacement of this new type of galley easily exceeded 800 tons. In Hilde's fleet, the flagship that Hilde was riding now was a new type of galley with a displacement of tons. Not to mention now, even in the th century two thousand years later, it would still be one of the most powerful giants in the Mediterranean.
It's just such a behemoth.
This would make the Carthaginians, a seafaring nation, realize the horror of the Greek Empire.
"Sissi."
Sophia walked over to Hilde.
She nervously pulled Hilde's clothes.
"How long will it take to get to Carthage?"
"It'll probably take a few days... After all, Rhodes is here."
Hilde pointed at Rod who was standing on the mast.
Now, Rhodes raised the golden trident high in his hand, manipulating the sea and pushing the fleet forward.
Originally, Hilde didn't plan to come with Sophia. She wanted to leave the matter to Sophia alone. But after she talked to Sophia, she looked so aggrieved that it was hard to let her mind go. Hilde thought about it carefully and decided that it was not appropriate to leave the important task of going to Carthage to Sophia. So, Hilde let Xerxes and Dione take care of the affairs of Actium, and she personally took Rhodes and Sophia to Carthage.
Leaving Dione and Xerxes behind might indeed be dangerous, but Hilde thought carefully and felt that the possibility of the other side taking the initiative to attack was almost negligible. If the other side really wanted to take action, they would not have retreated to Sicily and dared not come out. Moreover, under the efforts of Alcibiades, the Greek Empire officials were contacting the Syracuse people and trying to solve the problem from a diplomatic perspective... although it was absolutely impossible to solve it.
in other words.
In fact, both sides need time.
The Syracusans needed it, and so did Hilde.
Therefore, since there was a peace talk that could delay time, the Syracusans were happy to accept it, so they slowly negotiated and delayed as long as possible. Then, the Syracusans were surprised to find that the army led by Tomyris took down the city-states in southern Italy in one go, directly disintegrating half of Syracuse's power, and Hilde also returned from the direction of Carthage at that time.
It really kills two birds with one stone.
And after Rhodes released his divine power.
He jumped down from the mast and hopped over to Hilde's side.
"Sister Sissi!"
Rod happily hugged Hilde's arm.
Then he turned around and hugged Sophia.
"I have completed the mission."
"Good job."
Hilde smiled and patted Rod's head.
"Now, shall we go eat something first?"
"Um, okay."
With Rhodes's divine power, the direction of the sea changed, like an invisible hand, pushing the entire fleet forward at an unimaginable speed. At present, the fleet's speed is about 25 to 30 knots. At this speed, from Corinth, along the coastline to the coast of the southern Mediterranean, and then from Cyrene along the coastline all the way west to finally reach Carthage, a distance of about 2,800 kilometers. If it works day and night, it will take more than 50 hours, or more than two days.
It would take just over two days to reach Carthage.
This is really fast.
Rod is so convenient.
Hilde wanted to give Rod a big kiss.
After solving this problem, there is basically nothing to worry about next.
Hilde hadn't been on a boat for a while. She hadn't been on a boat much in her previous life, but she still liked the feeling of being on the sea. She took Sophia and Rhode to enjoy a rich lunch on the boat, and then rested in the hammock. The soldiers on the boat were the same. With Rhode there, even the rowing slaves could rest. Except for the soldiers and officers responsible for vigilance and navigation, everyone else on the boat was very leisurely, eating, drinking, and happily chatting for the past two or three days.
This time headed to Carthage.
Hilde prepared several gifts.
First of all, there is the strong liquor that Byzantium is proud of.
Although brandy and whiskey, two kinds of strong liquor, should have been sold to Carthage through merchants, and the Carthaginians should have known about this kind of liquor, Hilde has encouraged the Byzantines to make wine for three years, and few people have tasted the brandy produced by Hilde's best winery. This time, Hilde brought fifty barrels of brandy from Byzantium, which were all old wines that Hilde blended and barreled herself and aged in wooden barrels for three years.
Secondly, there were exquisite silks from Seres, carpets from Persia, plush products, fine horses from Scythia, animal skins from Thrace, and exquisite gold and silver utensils. These things were presented as "state gifts" to the royal family of Carthage to express the friendship of the Greek Empire. These gifts alone basically filled up the 100 warships.
There are also things like steel weapons.
Some of them were also brought here by Hilde.
Although the Carthaginians liked to use mercenaries, they must have been interested in excellent weapons.
These things are the advantages of the Greek Empire.
At the same time, it is also a guarantee to demonstrate the powerful national strength of the Greek Empire.
Hilde's mission to Carthage was to clarify with the Carthaginians the division of spheres of influence in the western Mediterranean. Sicily and southern Italy had always been the lands that the Carthaginians wanted to obtain, but this was in serious conflict with Hilde's, or the interests of all Greeks. The Greeks would never allow this land, which they had spent hundreds of years to develop, to be handed over to the Carthaginians.
However, it seems difficult to ask the Carthaginians to guarantee that they will not invade Sicily and southern Italy. Carthage has currently occupied the northwest African region and even has Carthaginian colonies in Iberia. If they want to continue expanding, the Sicily Peninsula, which is only 200 kilometers away from Carthage in a straight line, will be the best choice, and it is the best choice that cannot be faulted.
The Second Fleet Arrives at Carthage
So, if the Carthaginians wanted to continue expanding.
An advance into Sicily was inevitable.
The purpose of Hilde's mission to Carthage was to make this matter clear.
Sicily belongs to the Greek Empire. If Carthage does not want to die, it should not touch Sicily and Italy. Of course, for the equally powerful Carthaginians, Hilde does not want this diplomatic action to become too rigid. Otherwise, once unnecessary conflicts and wars break out, it will have a great impact on Hilde's next plan to attack Persia.
And the matter of attacking Persia.
It was also profitable for the Carthaginians.
The Carthaginians were a branch of the Phoenicians.
The Phoenicians' homeland was the city headed by Tyre.
These cities are scattered all over the Palestinian region, and now it has been occupied by the Persians. The Persian army easily annexed this place and made the Phoenicians part of their rule. In response, many Phoenicians were forced to flee from their homeland. Some of them established other Phoenician city-states and colonies, while more came to the Kingdom of Carthage. For this lost homeland, the Carthaginians must have hoped to regain it, and Hilde was not impossible to give in on this matter.
Persia is too large a territory.
Hilde also considered how to manage these places if Persia was defeated.
If it were like Alexander's empire.
It would only bring hundreds of years of war and chaos here, and this was not what Hilde wanted to see.
Of course, we will have to wait until we arrive in Carthage to find out the specific situation.
Hilde was still looking forward to the Carthaginians' reaction.
Under Rhodes's impetus, the fleet advanced at an unimaginable speed, and soon crossed the Mediterranean Sea and arrived at the coast of Africa. The fleet set out from Corinth, along the Peloponnese Peninsula, and then went south along the west side of Crete, and finally arrived at the outer waters of Cyrene. Cyrene is also a Greek city-state and the largest city-state established by the Greeks in Africa. However, Hilde had no time to contact the Cyrenaics this time, and they continued to maintain a high speed and move westward.
Arrived in Cyrene.
Carthage is not far away.
The city of Carthage was located in present-day Tunisia, right at the raised corner of North Africa.
When Hilde's fleet sailed on the sea, they could see a constant stream of merchant ships sailing freely in the waters of North Africa. These ships were different from the Greek galleys. Many light sailboats used more unique triangular sails, which made them lighter and more flexible. This was a type of ship that the Phoenicians liked. Although it was small in size, it was fast and very useful for short-distance trade. The Carthaginians established many colonies and cities on the coast of North Africa, and these ships became an important means of transportation between cities.
North Africa is really an extremely rich place.
Hilde couldn't help but sigh.
As the fleet sailed along the coast of North Africa.
Hilde could see the prosperous cities and scattered villages along the coast.
This is the only ethnic group in the Mediterranean that can be on par with the Greeks, the Carthaginians. The Greeks don't know much about the Carthaginians, and similarly, the Carthaginians don't know much about Greece. This makes people feel very strange, because Carthage and Greece are very close, but in Greece, you rarely meet Carthaginians living in Greece.
Similarly, when Hilde's fleet passed through the relevant sea area at such a fast speed, the Carthaginians here were also terrified. They had never seen such a fast ship, and the merchant ships passing by looked at this huge and fast fleet in horror, moving quickly towards the city of Carthage. However, the well-informed merchants quickly recognized the flags on the ships and realized that these ships came from a very distant city - Byzantium.
The founding of the Greek Empire had only been a few months earlier.
Most of the Carthaginians were unaware of what had happened.
Therefore, it is natural that there is no way to recognize the flag of the Greek Empire.
The most we know is that these are symbols from the city of Byzantium.
“It’s almost there.”
We sailed on the sea for more than two days.
Looking at the huge city gradually approaching outside, Hilde couldn't help but sigh:
"Soon, we will reach Carthage, the largest capital city in the western Mediterranean!"
"so fast."
"Yeah, thanks to Rod."
Hilde rubbed Rhodes' head lovingly and said with a smile, "However, this is also my first time seeing Carthage. It is quite different from what I imagined."
“It’s nothing like the cities in Greece.”
"correct."
Hilde looked at the city wall not far away.
The Carthaginians had developed commerce, but because they were outsiders, their walls were tall and solid. The gray-white walls showed that they were made of local loess, but they were much taller than ordinary Greek cities. At the same time, the walls protected the city tightly, but outside the walls were also very dense and prosperous markets and settlements, indicating that the scale of Carthage was far more than just the part inside the city.
Hilde was excited.
When he learned about the history related to Greece before.
I was full of curiosity about the civilization of Carthage.
Carthage has always been a mysterious civilization. They left a strong and colorful page in the history of Western civilization. In the fifth century BC, they competed with the Greeks and fought several Greco-Punic Wars. Later, after the rise of Rome, the Carthaginians almost destroyed Rome and fought three Roman-Punic Wars. In the end, the Carthaginians were destroyed by Rome. The Romans even wanted to sprinkle salt on the land of Carthage, making Carthage completely disappear from the stage of history. Most of the Greek books about Carthage were burned in the fire of the Library of Alexandria.
Therefore, it is difficult for later scientists to figure out what kind of nation the Carthaginians were.
But now Hilde has a chance to get to them.
This was something that made her very happy.
Afterwards, Hilde's fleet gradually slowed down. When they reached a distance of about fifteen kilometers from the port of Carthage, they stopped temporarily, because if they continued to move forward, they would inevitably have friction and conflict with the Carthage fleet.
The Carthaginian navy heard the news and came.
About seventy triremes were coming towards them.
The fluttering flags declared that they were warships from Carthage.
Second tune, seventh section, first contact with Carthage
The Carthaginians...
Hilde looked at the scene in front of him.
I also felt relieved.
The Carthaginian warships basically maintained a friendly attitude, and did not directly attack when the warships from the Greek Empire suddenly arrived so close to the city of Carthage. Perhaps they also realized that Hilde and his party had no hostility, so the enemy's warships stopped at a distance where they could open fire, and then slowly stopped.
