Reborn In 17th century India with Black Technology

153  Sloop Of War Pratham

Vijayanagara Empire, Hampi.

The Royal Palace.

Vijay is seated in his study room, jotting down ideas about how he wants to structure the Secret Service. He is also contemplating whether to formalize the organization, which has existed in the shadows away from public view, and bring it into the light. Vijay feels that this is still a debatable question. Bringing the organization into the light would make it more formalized and accountable for its actions. On the other hand, it also exposes the eyes and ears of Vijayanagara to enemy nations. The public's view is also another concern. Vijay would have to consider whether the disadvantages are worth overlooking in light of the advantages.

*Knock knock*

"Come in," Vijay responded.

Vinod entered the study room and delivered the news after greeting Vijay, "Your Majesty, the four shipyards you contracted have completed their construction."

Hearing the news, Vijay was elated. He had been waiting for this day for a long time. After assigning the task of designing Vijayanagara's own warship to Danior Boswell, the war with the Mughal empire started, making him too busy to pay attention to the military ships he had ordered to design.

However, during the battle, just two months in, Vijay received news that Danior was successful in designing the boat. Fortunately, the blueprint was also sent with the mail for Vijay to inspect. Upon reviewing the blueprint, Vijay confirmed that it was the design he had been looking for. So Vijay directly ordered Danior to proceed with manufacturing the ship and to train a few batches of qualified shipbuilders.

On top of that, Vijay also wrote another letter to Vinod, instructing him to build three more shipyards in the empire, ready to manufacture military vessels at a moment's notice. Vijay established a total of four shipyards, each equipped with a dry dock capable of housing a battleship of 2000-ton displacement. This construction of shipyards began half a year ago, wholly subsidized by the royal family. The four shipyards were strategically located along the coast of the empire. The shipyards were named the Shivaji Shipyard located in Kochi, Kerala, the Chola Shipyard in Colombo, Sri Lanka, the Raya Shipyard, currently the most advanced Shipyard, where the prototype ships had been produced, situated in Mangaluru, Karnataka, and finally, the Ashoka Shipyard in Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh.

Vijay plans only to retain the Raya Shipyard in the future and sell the rest of the shipyards as soon as they are operational. His primary goal is to stimulate the Vijayanagara economy by improving the marine industries and preventing the establishment of monopoly companies. Monopoly companies are effective in centralizing the resources of a small state and producing internationally competitive products, but they are more suitable for small countries with a small population and economy, not for a large country with its own internal economy like Bharat.

Hence, monopoly industries in big countries lack market competitiveness and hinder innovation. For Vijay, who was a scientist in his last life, this is the last thing he wants to see. While considering all this, Vijay made his way to Mangaluru. Fortunately, because the roads had been previously built, Vijay reached Mangaluru within the same day.

Raya Shipyard, Mangaluru.

"Master, what is all the excitement about?" A teenager asked Daniel Boswell, president of the Boswell Design Bureau. This teenager was the assistant Daniel took in from the naval academy after noticing that the boy had an excellent talent for ship design. Occasionally, when he felt stuck in his thought process, Daniel used to visit the naval academy to give classes and teach the students the basics of shipbuilding and also go through his own basics as well. It was during one of these visits that Vishesh Neeladri caught his eye. Daniel noticed that Neeladri was able to understand his explanations very quickly, learning seamlessly from one theory to another and coming up with his own theories. Although the theories were not entirely new and were already proven or disproven, Daniel was more surprised because Neeladri could infer more advanced theories from the basics. It was at that time that Daniel decided to take Vishesh Neeladri as his disciple.

"His Majesty is coming to inspect the new sloop," Danior said, sounding a little excited.

"Oh, His Majesty is coming!" Vishesh exclaimed, surprised and reverent. Coming from a small fishing village where the locals struggled due to exorbitant debts imposed by their landlord, Vishesh's family benefited greatly from His Majesty through the laws he promulgated, particularly the law that forgave loans and distributed land. This led to relative affluence in their village, and his family decided to send him to the naval academy when the recruiters found them in the village. Fortunately, he caught the master's eye in the academy, and since then, he has been working in the Boswell Design Bureau as the president's assistant.

The wait was not long, as Vijay arrived at the shipyard in a few hours.

As soon as Vijay entered the shipyard, he was welcomed by Daniel Boswell, accompanied by a teenager no more than 19 years old, and an odd number of at least 200 people. After the pleasantries, Vijay expressed his desire to see the sloop. Daniel obliged and led him to the dock where a ship was positioned in a dry dock filled with water. Vijay could discern, at a glance, the slender build of the sloop—a ship with a mighty sail, appearing sleek and imposing. A smile spread across Vijay's face as he finally confirmed with his own eyes that Vijayanagara was now capable of constructing military vessels. Although these were considered the lowest tier of military vessels, they marked a significant foundation for the Empire.

"Tell me about these ships," Vijay inquired. Although he could vaguely guess the specifications of the ship, he let Danior do the task. Danior also happily agreed, looking excited and eager to show off. Nôv(el)B\\jnn

"Your Highness, this is a sloop of war vessel designed by the Boswell Design Bureau and manufactured by Raya Shipyard. This military vessel in front of you has a length of 15 meters and a beam width of 5.5 meters with a draft (depth below the waterline) of 2 meters. This design makes it capable of operating in shallow-draft conditions like in inland rivers, large lakes, and even in shallow sea areas near the coast. The ship is equipped with a single lateen sail mast (triangular mast), along with a fore-and-aft rig (sail aligned along the length of the ship). The structure gives the sloop excellent manoeuvrability greater than its larger counterparts. The keel of the ship uses teak wood sourced from Kerala along with sal and sissoo, wherever necessary. Due to the lightweight materials used in less core parts of the ship, the weight was controlled to a displacement of 100 tons. Due to the lower weight, the speed of the sloop in optimal conditions can reach up to 8 knots (14.4 KMPH) and the sloop needs a 50-men crew to house it."

Vijay was very satisfied with the conditions, but then he asked an important question, "Then what are its military capabilities?"

"Your Majesty, due to the versatility of the sloop, this vessel can be used as a platform in which different artillery could be equipped in different scenarios. The ship is not excellent in any department, but it is also not bad in any department; it is a very well-balanced design.

In the case of 12 KG calibre cannons, it is suggested to equip 8 cannons depending on the situation, with the option to equip more in emergency situations. However, this should be approached cautiously as it may significantly reduce the lifespan of the ship. For situations requiring heavy firepower, three 20-kilogram calibre cannons are recommended. It's important to note that due to the larger size of these cannons, requiring more space and producing greater vibrations, it is advised not to carry 12-kilogram calibre cannons if all three slots for the large cannons are utilized. Instead, a balanced configuration of one large cannon and six 12 KG calibre cannons is highly recommended.

We have additionally outfitted the ship with 10 swivel guns of 6 kg calibre, which were designed and developed in collaboration with the Bharatiya Academy of Military Sciences and Raya Armory. These guns serve the purpose of close counter-defence, particularly if the enemy attempts to board the ship. Each gun is mounted on a 2-axis swivel, allowing for an elevation of 45 degrees, a depression of 20 degrees, and a full 360-degree rotation.

"Good, good,"

*pat pat,*

Vijay nodded his head as he patted Danior's back, very impressed by the sloop, which more than matched and slightly exceeded his expectations. Vijayanagara could finally produce its own military ships. Even though these are small vessels of only 100 tons, they are considered advanced sloops on the world stage.

"Does this ship have a name?"

"No, Your Highness. I request you to name the indigenously manufactured ship of the Vijayanagara Empire yourself."

"Let me see." Vijay fell into deep thought, thinking that the naming of the ship could shape the Navy's future functions and operations. After pondering for a whole half an hour,' First Huh?' He muttered as he thought of a name, he made his decision.

"I have decided that this model of warships will be called the 'Hampi class sloops of war .' From here on out this class of military vessels will be utilized in coastal defence, and inland river defence, and will also play the role of a skirmisher. Mainly focusing on the hit-and-run tactic against a larger battleship, and this specific ship," Vijay said as he touched the keel of the ship in front of him, "will be named BNV Pratham (first in Sanskrit), as it is the first ship manufactured by the Vijayanagara Empire from the ground up."

Danior was very pleased that his magistrate recognized the ship and even named one of the ships, including the whole class of ships. However, he had a doubt and asked, "Your Majesty, what does this BNV stand for?"

Vijay, upon hearing the question, smiled and replied, "Bharatiya Naval Vessel.

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