The Rise of the European Emperor

Even before the war with Denmark, Marin had the will to help Sweden develop the Falun copper mine. Because, Marin knew that Sweden does not have any source of financial income. It is not a matter of relying solely on Lübeck and his own sponsorship.

Therefore, Marin had long talked with Old Steen. Sure, and he used his own hands and equipment to help develop Falun's extra large copper mine. The income obtained is divided into five and a half. However, all the investment in the development of copper mines is from Marin.

Actually, old Steen. Sure did not realize that Faylun Copper Mine was a very large copper mine, but thought it was just an ordinary copper mine. Therefore, I still feel a little embarrassed about the half-point required by Marin, and plan to collect only taxes.

According to the usual practice, gold, silver, copper and other precious metal deposits, the official European tax standard is 10% to 20%. Marin intends to give half of the proceeds to the Swedish government, which is naturally tax-free. In this way, Marin is equivalent to taking 30% less profit. However, Sweden was funded in disguise. So that Sweden has sufficient financial strength to deal with possible retaliation from Denmark.

Know that Sweden has high latitudes, and only the southern region is suitable for a little agriculture. As for the northern region, especially the area north of the Arctic Circle, the Swedes never developed it. Only the Sami people live in the northern region.

Under such circumstances, Sweden has little source of financial revenue. Therefore, Sweden looks much larger than Denmark, but its finances cannot catch up with Denmark.

Even before the four-nation alliance attacked Denmark, the areas suitable for agriculture and trade on the southern coast of Sweden were under the control of the Danes.

In history, Sweden was not always the opponent of Denmark. Until the Fa Yilun copper mine was developed, Sweden did not have enough financial resources to organize an army to compete with Denmark. The famous Gustav II, if not supported by the huge profits of the Fa Yilun copper mine, was also unable to participate in the "thirty-year war" in Germany. After all, Sweden wants agriculture without agriculture and trade without trade, almost nothing. If there is no support from Fa Yilun copper mine, the Swedish finance is almost nothing ...

Now in Sweden, even if the southern part is taken back from Denmark. However, the financial situation remains poor. Although it is said that there are some iron ore mining and smelting, but the scale is not large, and not much profit. There is more wood, but more pine, less oak. Pine wood is not as popular as oak and is generally used to create furniture or extract rosin. Of course, when building a ship, pine can also be used to build the deck and mast. Mainly, oak is resistant to seawater corrosion, while pine is not resistant to seawater corrosion, and can only be used to create parts above the water level that are not in contact with seawater.

As long as he returned from Copenhagen, Marin signed an agreement with Old Steen. Sure. Marin sent people to develop the Falun copper mine, and half of the proceeds belonged to the Swedish government. At the same time, the operation of copper mines is tax-free. Because the mining tax is included in that half of the income ...

In addition, Swedish officials must not interfere with the operation of the Fa Yilun copper mine. In this way, Marin can control the operation and sales of Fa Yilun Copper Mine. Of course, if the Swedish government needs to purchase copper, Marin must supply it, and it must be supplied at a discount.

Before, Marin had sent Kohler long ago to find someone to go to Austria in the south to recruit engineers for copper mine start and smelting. Austria is just below the Alps, with more copper and silver mines. Therefore, there are more artisans here. Southern Germany has always been a relatively developed area of ​​European handicrafts. The handicraft industry and mining industry here are relatively advanced in technology. Bohemia and Austria have always been important producers of precious metals in Europe. The level of craftsmen here is also very high.

Moreover, in Austria, Maximilian I mortgaged the largest copper mine in Europe at this time, the Tyrol copper mine, to the first richest man in Shenluo, Jacob Fogel.

At this time, the copper price in Europe is very expensive. Due to the nature of businessmen, Jacob Fogel believes that European copper prices are not high enough. The copper price is not going up because the copper output is too high. As a result, Jacob Fugel, the first local tyrant of Shenluo, closed some mines and reduced the output of the Tyrol copper mine. In this way, the supply of copper is reduced, and prices will naturally rise.

It's just that as a result, some engineers and miners of the Tyrol Copper Mine are unemployed ...

Taking advantage of this opportunity, the people who were sent by Kohler directly recruited the unemployed engineers with high salary. Moreover, some experienced miners were recruited as foremen and masters to go to the Fa Yilun Copper Mine to instruct the Swedes to open mines ... After all, the mining work also requires experienced miners to lead and guide ...

Of course, mining is not that simple. Not only engineers and miners are needed, but also smelting equipment is needed to turn copper ore into copper.

For this reason, Marin also made the oldest blast furnace for copper smelting. The blast furnace "designed" by Marin is a simple blast furnace from a "big steel-making" period erected in the back mountain of the previous life. It has a simple structure and a small footprint. More versatile, it can not only make steel, but also smelt copper and other non-ferrous metals. However, after the "Great Steelmaking", this blast furnace was abandoned in Houshan and became a scenic spot. When Marin was a child, he often went to play on the bare top of Houshan. He naturally remembered the structure of the blast furnace and often played with the bellows of the blast furnace.

However, this manual blast type blast furnace that looks very backward in the eyes of Marin and future generations, in this era of Europe, is "high-end equipment" ... used to smelt copper, the effect is very good ...

There is nothing else in Sweden, because there is a lot of wood, and it is very convenient to burn charcoal. At that time, it is very convenient to use charcoal as a reducing agent in the blast furnace.

The only inconvenience is probably the traffic problem. Sweden is a relatively late-developed area, with fewer Roman avenues. Moreover, it is said that the Falun region is located in the central area of ​​Sweden, where there are mountains and water ... bad is bad because there are mountains and water ... because it is difficult to repair roads ...

Therefore, no one has discovered and developed the Fa Yilun copper mine for a long time. Only in the coastal plain area, Sweden has a relatively dense population ~ www.wuxiaspot.com ~ Therefore, it is also a big trouble to develop the Yilun copper mine alone, and not solve the transportation problem.

But for him, as long as a large number of blast furnaces are erected in the Falun area to smelt copper, even if the transportation cost is high, it will be fine. Because copper is also considered a precious metal in Europe at this time, and it is expensive ...

According to the intelligence sent back to Sweden, the nearest city to Falun is the port of Gävle in eastern Sweden, only tens of kilometers away from Falun. However, it is dozens of kilometers in this area, with mountains and lakes everywhere. It seems difficult to open a road from Fa Yilun to Gävle ...

However, as long as this road is made up, the development of the Fa Yilun copper mine will be easy. Because there is a blast furnace, and a group of highly skilled craftsmen direct reasonable mining. To be sure, the copper output of the Fayilun Copper Mine in the future is certainly not low. As long as the road is clear, it will be shipped to Gavle and shipped directly to East Friesland. Whether it is used for casting cannons or other functions, it is a very good choice.

Moreover, if you sell it, the profit is also considerable. After all, copper prices in Europe are so expensive now ...

Although it may be cheaper to buy copper from India. But the problem is that the cycle to India is too long, and it takes nearly two years to run back and forth. If you desperately need copper, you might not be able to wait. This is also an important reason why Marin will let the fertilizer processing plant add a process of collecting nitrite.

Moreover, ocean transportation is not very safe. If the ship carrying the copper encounters heavy storms and unfortunately sinks, then it would be dumbfounded ...

Therefore, it is necessary to develop a large copper mine in Europe. In this way, you can also ensure that you will not suffer from copper shortages. Even if there is an accident with the copper ship going to India, there will be no major problems.