When Marin came to Tenburg with the 28 abducted trainee knights, Kohler ran over:
"Master, the ship has arrived, the ship has arrived!"
"What ship has arrived?" Marin was stunned. There were countless ships on Texel Island. Many merchant ships docked at Te Horenche, and many fishing boats docked at Odesshild. Marin didn't know which ship Kohler was talking about.
"It's the two Kirk sailboats you ordered in Lübeck!"
"Ah? So it's them!" Ma Linping patted his head and remembered. When leaving the Teutonic Knights in January, Marin made a detour to Lübeck and ordered two Kirk sailing ships with a displacement of more than 200 tons for trade in the Teutonic Knights.
Now, a few months have passed, and Lübeck has indeed finished building these two ships. Of course, it was also Marin who put the two ships in the two shipyards. If they are placed in one shipyard, they may not be almost built together. After all, in a shipyard, there is always a sequence of arrangements.
The completion time of these two ships was very close, with only a difference of 5 days. During the ten days when Marin went to the Principality of Cliff, the two ships docked at the wharf of Te Horenche respectively, and Kohler arranged to pay the final payment. Then, these two "huge" cargo ships docked at the port of Te Horenche.
However, Marin suddenly remembered that he didn't seem to have specially prepared sailors for these two merchant ships...
Marin was so depressed that he just slapped his head, but he suddenly remembered that the Frisian warship he captured before also had sailors. However, those sailors are now temporarily assigned to the farm. The last time Columbus was sent on a voyage, only 80 of the more than 200 Frisian sailors who were captured with Captain Kidd were sent out, and there were still a hundred or so people who were not sent out.
Originally, Marin didn't quite trust the remaining sailors. However, since the Friesian noble republic was wiped out by the Duke of Saxony, the original bosses of these sailors are all finished, and naturally returned to their hearts. So, Marin arranged for those people to control the remaining 3 warships and cruise the open sea.
Now, Marin needs to send someone to control the two new ships to trade in the Teutonic country, so he naturally thought of those sailors.
Therefore, Marin ordered that from the remaining 160 sailors, select 40 more honest people, and take another 40 people selected by Marin from the young Frisian fishermen to form a crew to officially take over. these two ships.
In addition, Marin also selected 20 gunners who could fire guns, and carried a few guns to act with the ship. In order to ensure the safety of the ships, Marin decided to arrange two warships to escort the two ships for their first trade.
Because, although there are no pirates in the Danish waters and the Baltic Sea, it does not mean that there are no pirates. There are many novice sailors on board, and they are not very courageous. For the first time, in order to embolden these novices, Marin decided to send two warships to escort them.
You know, going to the Teutonic Knights to do business is different from Columbus going to India. Because the Indian route has not yet opened, there are basically no pirates on that route. From the North Sea to the Baltic Sea, there are also some small-scale pirates on this route. These pirates are very smart to survive a few blows from the Danish Navy and the Hanseatic Navy.
Generally, they dress up as ordinary fishermen. Seeing a powerful merchant ship, they would not provoke them, but seeing a single merchant ship, they would take the opportunity to make a move...
Moreover, these people have been fishing and part-time pirates all year round, and their eyes are very poisonous. They can see clearly which ships can be provoked and which ships cannot be provoked.
Because it was the first trade voyage, Marin was actually quite nervous. So, he sent two warships to escort. This escort is not only to protect the two brand new merchant ships, but also to declare that these two ships have backing...
It is not stupid for those pirates to survive under the suppression of the two major forces. For merchant ships backed by warships, they generally do not move. Otherwise, if people are in a hurry, they will directly send warships to stay for a long time, catch fishing boats when they see them, and they will definitely find pirates.
This has happened before, when a merchant ship belonging to the King of England was looted in the waters off Denmark. Then, the furious King of England sent warships, together with the Danish warships, to block off the sea area where the accident happened, and caught fishermen when they encountered it. Then, a captured fisherman happened to know about the pirates, so he reported it for his own freedom. Then, the group of pirates who hid deeply, the entire fishing village was taken over by the British...
Therefore, these surviving pirates are also taboo to merchant ships with backgrounds. This time, Marin, coincidentally, also played the British flag.
The reason for flying the flag of the United Kingdom is because the United Kingdom is also a maritime power. Moreover, the relationship between Britain and Denmark is very good, and the Danes will not embarrass the British.
Marin wanted to fly the banner of the Hanseatic League before, but he found out that the Hanseatic League in the Wende business district headed by Lübeck is a deadly enemy with Denmark, and conflicts have broken out many times. If the flag of the Hanseatic League is played, the Danes may detain the ship in a fit of anger.
So, after thinking about it, Marin decided to fly the British flag and pass through the Danish waters. Wait until the sea area controlled by the Hanseatic League, and then change to the flag of Königsberg...
Moreover, the reason why Marin dared to fly the British flag was because his crew members were basically Frisians. Frisian, the language of the Frisians, is very close to English. Even Danes can't tell the difference between Frisian and English. Anyway, let the Frisians pretend to be British, absolutely...
In fact, Marin didn't know that his decision greatly enhanced the safety of his merchant ship. Because the British once retaliated against the pirates on this route, and their prestige was very strong among the pirates. As long as the British flag is hoisted, ordinary pirates dare not do anything.
And if Marin chooses to fly his own flag, the Wadden Islands are so unknown, the chances of being robbed by pirates are very high... Of course, that is without the escort of warships...
After the ships and sailors were ready, Marin began to order the workers to start loading the stored salt, ready to be shipped to Königsberg.
These salts are distributed locally at only 4 shillings per quarter. When transported to Königsberg, the wholesale price reaches 10 shillings, which is 2.5 times the local price.
Moreover, because they have the license of Grand Master Philip, in name, these two ships belong to Grand Master Philip. As the supreme leader of the Teutonic Kingdom, Philip Grandmaster, does his merchant ship need to pay taxes? Obviously not. Therefore, these two merchant ships, Marin, not only have a license to sell salt in the Teutonic country, but also save import duties, which is very advantageous in trade...
On the return journey, the two ships can also be loaded with local specialties such as timber and fur that are abundant in Eastern Europe, and brought back to sell. Although the profit is far behind the salt trade, it is still profitable...