Chapter 77: Chapter Seventy-seven: Military Reform (Please Subscribe!)

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March 3,1901, outskirts of Sydney.

Originally a desolate valley, it has been simply transformed into a large makeshift military camp.

After more than a month of mobilization, most of the Australian garrison forces had arrived here, embarking on a lengthy phase of reorganization and training.

Reforming the existing military was something Arthur had decided on early on, though due to various delays, it was postponed until now.

The current Australian military was composed of the original colonial forces and Arthur’s Guards.

Arthur’s Guards amounted to 4,000 soldiers, all originating from the British Empire’s Royal Guard Corps, well-equipped, and boasting strong combat capabilities.

The remaining colonial forces were the garrison from the time of the Australian colony and were handed over to Arthur for management following Australia’s independence, after which Arthur transferred them to the Ministry of Defense.

These colonial forces totaled 6,000 soldiers, being a local conscription army.

One feature of this army was that aside from the higher-ranking officers, all the junior officers and soldiers were comprised entirely of Australians.

It was precisely due to this that both the armaments and the salaries of this army were jointly funded by the six original colonies, hence the corresponding weapons and equipment were somewhat inferior.

Actually, it wasn’t just the weapons and equipment. Whether it was the soldiers’ combat proficiency or military discipline, they were both somewhat inferior compared to the regular army of the British Empire, let alone compared to Arthur’s Guards.

These soldiers could barely manage to defend Australia, but if they were to genuinely join a war, they would probably just become cannon fodder and be taken as prisoners.

Therefore, a military reform was imperative. Selecting soldiers with the potential to become elites, equipping them with new weapons, training them in military discipline, and building a new, powerful army were all necessary steps.

After all, the Guards were Arthur’s final trump card and, under normal circumstances, sending them to the battlefield was highly unlikely.

To better facilitate this military reform, Chris Perry, the commander of the Guards, would work along with Minister of Defence Kent to supervise and train these soldiers.

As for the drill sergeants, they were naturally composed of the elite soldiers and officers from the Guards.

These guardsmen were selected from the top-notch soldiers from the British Empire’s domestic armies. Arthur felt assured of their abilities and loyalty.

The first part of the training plan was to select physically robust and quick-thinking soldiers.

Since Australia has no system or institutions for military officer training, nor any wars for these officers to gain experience and enhance their abilities,

The only solution was a simple method: select individuals who were both physically robust and quick-thinking, then develop them to mold future commanders.

Since the commander of Australia’s army had returned to the UK, this army was currently under Minister Kent’s control.

As Minister Kent was a loyal subordinate of Arthur’s, there would naturally be no opposition to this military reform.

As for the fact that this reform might cause some officers to lose their ranks, Arthur was not concerned.

If an individual lacks the capability, then wouldn’t leading a troop amount to harming everyone involved?

Just as the saying goes: a general bear and soldier bear are of the same breed. The new army, whether generals or officers, must all undergo rigorous selection and training, ensuring their absolute loyalty and sufficient capability before assuming official positions.

Thus, under the watchful eyes of Arthur, Minister Kent, and General Chris Perry, the training of the 6,000-strong army started its first phase: physical training.

Minister Kent and General Chris’s training plan was to treat these 6,000 soldiers as new recruits for training and cultivating. During the training process, they would select promising and talented soldiers for additional cultivation; these individuals would be the army’s future reserves of officers.

As for the remaining soldiers, after numerous rounds of physical and disciplinary training, followed by a few days of ideological education, they would officially become Australia’s new soldiers.

These trained soldiers would then be reorganized into the Australian 1st Defense Division.

The future First Defense Division would be the template and instructors for Australia’s future army expansion, and also represent the strongest combat force within the standing army.

Although the training was quite rigorous, Arthur was not stingy with logistics and supplies.

In this era, a large number of soldiers would not have the chance to eat meat even once a year. Only the soldiers in the relatively economically developed European nations could enjoy abundant meals every day.

Each of the three daily meals for the Australian army included beef and mutton. Although each person only received a ration of 200 grams, less than half a pound, the lunch and dinner meals combined already exceeded a pound.

This couldn’t be helped as as a major power in animal husbandry, Australia was not in short supply of meat.

Although the scale of animal husbandry hadn’t yet reached the colossal levels of the future, there were already a considerable number of herdsmen and pastoral areas. Just the export of beef and mutton generated tens of thousands of pounds in revenue for Australia every year.

While the army was busy training, Minister Kent was in contact with Hunter Steward to order a batch of new weapons and equipment from the military factory.

The weapons that the previous Australian army had been equipped with, although produced in Britain, were of an assortment variety. The stronger Lee-Enfield rifles made up less than a fifth of the total, appearing somewhat shabby in front of the Guards.

After this round of troop reorganization, all the Australian forces would be equipped with Lee-Enfield rifles and managed by Australia’s own military factories, instead of importing them from Britain as before.

Furthermore, the army would also be equipped with the currently most powerful MA-96 Maxim Machine Guns and CA-1 Machine Guns. Even after Germany’s artillery technology aid arrives and the military factory starts producing large-caliber firearms, the army would order some heavy artillery to be fitted.

Arthur’s goal was straightforward: to build Australia into a military power with simultaneous development of its navy, army, and air force.

Although the air force was still non-existent and the navy maintained only a small scale due to various reasons,

It did not hinder the current steps to develop the army. After equipping all troops to the teeth, the Australian military would too become a global superpower.

In terms of training, Minister Kent spared no effort. In addition to ordering 6,000 Lee-Enfield rifles, he also ordered over 10 million bullets.

Aside from physical and disciplinary training, these soldiers would also undergo frequent shooting training, a privilege only those in industrially powerful countries could afford.

Sharpshooters are forged one bullet at a time. That was Minister Kent’s idea. He utilized this cumbersome yet effective method to rapidly enhance these soldiers’ shooting precision..