us is the information that Trommler passed on, and which Curtis relayed to the British Embassy in Berlin and then on to us.’
‘Which was?’ Tremayne prompted.
Mansfield Cumming looked down at his desk and picked up a single sheet of paper, one side covered in closely spaced typewritten lines. ‘It’s a plot, basically,’ he replied, after glancing at it for a few moments. ‘Let me give you some background information. As things stand, the Royal Navy dominates the oceans. It’s the biggest navy the world has ever seen, equipped with the most modern and most powerful warships we have been able to construct. In any maritime conflict, with any nation, the Royal Navy would prevail.’
‘I’m not a sailor,’ Tremayne remarked, ‘but supposing Germany combined its own navy with the other maritime forces of this Triple Alliance they’ve set up. How would it work then?’
Cumming shook his head. ‘We would still be more than a match for them. Even if Germany produced a combined fleet with Italy and the Austro-Hungarian Empire, we would still have something like a twenty-five per cent higher gross tonnage. I grant you, that would give us a much smaller margin of superiority, but it would still be enough.’
‘So the only way that the German Navy could hope to achieve maritime superiority would be if the Kaiser managed to secure an alliance with another – a different – nation, one which already has a strong navy?’
Cumming smiled. ‘As usual,’ he said, ‘you’ve gone to the crux of the matter. Without a new alliance, I don’t believe Germany would dare to declare war on Britain. With such an alliance, it could happen tomorrow.’
‘But an alliance with whom?’
‘One nation Germany could contemplate linking up with is Russia. They have a total warship tonnage of over eight hundred thousand, and if that nation threw in its lot with the Triple Alliance, the combined force would be so powerful that it could take on the Royal Navy on the high seas and probably beat it. And if the time ever comes when the Royal Navy no longer dominates the oceans, the British Empire will cease to exist within one generation. Make no mistake, Tremayne, Britain is and always has been a maritime nation. Our most important single attribute, our strongest military arm and our most powerful instrument of diplomacy, is the Royal Navy.’
Tremayne shook his head. ‘But Russia would never join forces with Germany,’ he objected. ‘The Tsar has signed a treaty with France and that puts Russia in opposition to Germany right from the start.’
Mansfield Cumming nodded. ‘When the German clerk approached the Berlin Embassy with his story, that was their initial reaction as well. They were inclined to dismiss Trommler out of hand. But he was adamant that such an alliance was not only planned, but was about to be implemented, and he claimed he’d seen a document which proved it. Spelled it out, in fact.’ Cumming leant forward to emphasize the point. ‘But it isn’t Russia that Germany is planning to join forces with. It’s the United States of America. And the two of them together – America and Germany – have one goal in mind. They intend to declare war on Great Britain and destroy our Empire.’
Chapter 7
9 April 1912
London
Tremayne stared at Cumming for a few moments, then shook his head. ‘I don’t believe it,’ he said. ‘The Germans have got nothing in common with the Americans, and our relationship with them is very good. We speak the same language, we share the same ideals and values, and we have strong trading links. Why would the American people possibly want to form an alliance with Germany?’
‘It’s not quite that simple,’ Mansfield Cumming sighed. ‘America is a melting pot of different cultures and races. Though the English predominate, as you say, there’s a very large German presence over there and, more importantly, many of the richest and most influential families in America are either
‘Which was?’ Tremayne prompted.
Mansfield Cumming looked down at his desk and picked up a single sheet of paper, one side covered in closely spaced typewritten lines. ‘It’s a plot, basically,’ he replied, after glancing at it for a few moments. ‘Let me give you some background information. As things stand, the Royal Navy dominates the oceans. It’s the biggest navy the world has ever seen, equipped with the most modern and most powerful warships we have been able to construct. In any maritime conflict, with any nation, the Royal Navy would prevail.’
‘I’m not a sailor,’ Tremayne remarked, ‘but supposing Germany combined its own navy with the other maritime forces of this Triple Alliance they’ve set up. How would it work then?’
Cumming shook his head. ‘We would still be more than a match for them. Even if Germany produced a combined fleet with Italy and the Austro-Hungarian Empire, we would still have something like a twenty-five per cent higher gross tonnage. I grant you, that would give us a much smaller margin of superiority, but it would still be enough.’
‘So the only way that the German Navy could hope to achieve maritime superiority would be if the Kaiser managed to secure an alliance with another – a different – nation, one which already has a strong navy?’
Cumming smiled. ‘As usual,’ he said, ‘you’ve gone to the crux of the matter. Without a new alliance, I don’t believe Germany would dare to declare war on Britain. With such an alliance, it could happen tomorrow.’
‘But an alliance with whom?’
‘One nation Germany could contemplate linking up with is Russia. They have a total warship tonnage of over eight hundred thousand, and if that nation threw in its lot with the Triple Alliance, the combined force would be so powerful that it could take on the Royal Navy on the high seas and probably beat it. And if the time ever comes when the Royal Navy no longer dominates the oceans, the British Empire will cease to exist within one generation. Make no mistake, Tremayne, Britain is and always has been a maritime nation. Our most important single attribute, our strongest military arm and our most powerful instrument of diplomacy, is the Royal Navy.’
Tremayne shook his head. ‘But Russia would never join forces with Germany,’ he objected. ‘The Tsar has signed a treaty with France and that puts Russia in opposition to Germany right from the start.’
Mansfield Cumming nodded. ‘When the German clerk approached the Berlin Embassy with his story, that was their initial reaction as well. They were inclined to dismiss Trommler out of hand. But he was adamant that such an alliance was not only planned, but was about to be implemented, and he claimed he’d seen a document which proved it. Spelled it out, in fact.’ Cumming leant forward to emphasize the point. ‘But it isn’t Russia that Germany is planning to join forces with. It’s the United States of America. And the two of them together – America and Germany – have one goal in mind. They intend to declare war on Great Britain and destroy our Empire.’
Chapter 7
9 April 1912
London
Tremayne stared at Cumming for a few moments, then shook his head. ‘I don’t believe it,’ he said. ‘The Germans have got nothing in common with the Americans, and our relationship with them is very good. We speak the same language, we share the same ideals and values, and we have strong trading links. Why would the American people possibly want to form an alliance with Germany?’
‘It’s not quite that simple,’ Mansfield Cumming sighed. ‘America is a melting pot of different cultures and races. Though the English predominate, as you say, there’s a very large German presence over there and, more importantly, many of the richest and most influential families in America are either
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