The Rise Of Australasia

Australasia had essentially ceased research on battleships and maintained a level of aircraft carriers almost comparable to the British.

For this reason, the biggest threat to the British was not Australasia, but the Island Nation that once built the mightiest battleships.

Indeed, this was no joke.

The Islanders had different ambitions, and their warship numbers certainly exceeded those stipulated in the Naval Limitation Treaty.

However, the British were entirely focused on combating the United States at the time and turned a blind eye to the occasional treaty breaches by the Island Nation.

But now, with the Americans out of the picture, the British naturally had no more reservations.

For Britain, anything could be tolerated except the risk of being threatened in naval terms.

It was foreseeable that once the division of the United States was completely dealt with, the British would turn their attention back to the global situation.

Of course, given the British knack for playing a balancing policy, there was a greater chance they would disrupt the relationship between Australasia and the Island Nation, forcing Australasia into an unwanted competition.

In fact, there was a high likelihood of this happening. For the British, if the Island Nation and Australasia fought each other, it would solve two potential threats.

Then, the British could simply focus their attention on the situation in Europe, firmly securing their position as the world's supreme power.

As for nations in other regions, there were none that posed a threat to Britain at the moment.

After all, aside from Europe, Asia, and Oceania, the only region with powerful nations was North America.

Of course, that might not hold true in a few months.

Arthur didn't believe the British would miss the opportunity to carve up the United States, especially considering it had previously gained independence from Britain.

Even if Britain couldn't completely annex the American territories, in line with their balance of power policy, they would certainly support several states in the Americas.

However, this was good news for Arthur. At least it meant his plan to support a new America could proceed, and he could claim an extra share in Central America.

In fact, based on new army organizational charts, the size of the Australasian Army was set to grow.

Previously each infantry division had only 16,000 men, whereas the new divisions were increased to around 17,000.

Numbers in both artillery and cavalry divisions saw certain changes too, which meant that the Australasian Army's total strength was expected to exceed 270,000 men.

An army of 270,000 was sufficient for Australasia. After all, without warfare, maintaining too large an army was a heavy financial burden.

Yet, while sustaining this 270,000-strong army, it was still crucial to focus on reserve personnel training.

Military training for university students and certain eligible male citizens was deemed necessary, becoming an unavoidable topic for all male citizens of Australasia.

Indeed, not even William, the heir to the throne, was exempt.

Arthur was already selecting the military unit for William's service, where he would serve incognito in the unit of Arthur's choosing and demonstrate his abilities for at least two years.

This would be a test for the future monarch. After all, if one couldn't manage relationships with soldiers, how could one deal with the crafty officers?

While Arthur was still around, the officers seemed honest, but with a new monarch, various true faces would gradually emerge.

A qualified Crown Prince needed to be not only politically adept but also deeply trusted by soldiers, or at the very least, well-liked enough to earn their loyalty to the royal family.

Traditionally, given a nation that valued the navy, the likelihood was that the Crown Prince would choose to serve in the navy.

As with Britain, if the British Crown Prince served in the military, he would likely choose the Royal Navy.

After all, it was the Royal Navy that maintained Britain's dominant status; the British Army's combat effectiveness was just barely acceptable.

However, for Arthur, what he most hoped for was that William would serve in the army.

At least for the short term, there wouldn't be much development in Australasia's navy. Apart from the construction of a few aircraft carriers, the main battleships wouldn't see significant changes.

After all, it was still important to maintain good relations with the British, at least before the outbreak of World War II.

Arthur certainly did not want to become a central figure in World War II, especially not of the villainous sort.

Of course, if one were to consider it slyly, Arthur did hope the war would erupt as it did in history.

Because the current situation was very different from that in history, without a complete United States to help Europe win the war.

This also meant that if Germany were to trigger World War II, the resistance against the Germans in the early stages would be just Britain, France, and Russia.

Each of these Powers had its own significant issues, which meant defeating the German onslaught would require them to shed even more blood.

This scenario would be favorable for Australasia, granting Arthur the chance to reap greater benefits.

Such as the Malacca Strait, which Arthur desired: the British would never relinquish it unless there was an exceptional crisis.

Of course, should India ever face a threat, apart from their native land and India, the British would certainly be willing to give up any territory.

After all, India was the British Empire's crown jewel, and without it, the British Empire's crown would lose its luster.

Indeed, this was by no means a joke.

The claim to the British Empire's throne was through the Indian Empire; without India, the British Monarch would be merely a King.

Of course, one could see from the fact that each British Monarch was referred to as either a King or a Queen, that outside of the British themselves, not many countries were willing to acknowledge that crown.

Europe placed much more emphasis on jurisprudence than other regions; without legitimate jurisprudential succession, even if you're the leading superpower, other countries would not recognize the monarchy.