Chapter 663 Iron Armor Battle Sail of the Sea Battle
English Admiral Robert Blake reported the results of the Madrid Conference to English Prime Minister Oliver Cromwell.
After listening to this, Prime Minister Oliver Cromwell said helplessly: "We have no choice but to join the Combined Fleet.
France supports the royal party, and if we don't compromise, we are likely to lose everything.
Participating in the formation of a combined fleet is something France strongly demands.
I can also use this method to divert the attention of France and the royal party.
Blake serves as the commander-in-chief of the combined fleet, and the English fleet is left in charge of George Monk."
When Admiral Robert Blake heard the name George Monk, he asked in surprise: "George Monk, Mr. Cromwell, you are talking about George Monk, the Governor of Scotland."
Prime Minister Oliver Cromwell nodded and said: "There are not many generals in England who can command the naval fleet.
I'm talking about George Monk, Governor of Scotland.
For transferring him for this reason, the royal party has nothing to say.
The departure of Georges Monk, a strong enemy who supported the royal party, attracted the attention of France and other countries.
We in England can completely rule Scotland and Ireland.
This is why I have no objection to the British Navy's participation in the Combined Fleet.
If these two places are not completely pacified, the British Isles will not be stable, and European powers will have excuses to intervene in the British Isles at any time.
Besides, this battle only requires us to send out men and ships.
France, a weak naval power, and Spain, a bitter host, all had money from the Habsburg dynasty.
Using other countries’ money to strengthen the British navy is not a huge loss for us.”
Robert Blake nodded repeatedly, admiring Prime Minister Oliver Cromwell's decision. He had not thought of this reason at all.
He said with a solemn expression: "I think the outcome of this naval battle is 50-50.
If the rumors about the Dahua Empire's fleet are correct, our chances of victory will be even lower.
But I think it is worthwhile to participate in this war. Ironclad ships are obviously the development direction of the future navy.
Regardless of victory or defeat, we will all get the opportunity to observe the ironclads up close.
This will lay a solid foundation for England to build ironclad ships."
Admiral Robert Blake was unable to give Prime Minister Oliver Cromwell such comprehensive consideration.
But as the commander-in-chief of the British Navy, he learned about the situation of the ironclads and immediately judged that the ironclads were unusual and would probably eliminate the sailing battleships.
Just because it is not restricted by weather, the value of the ironclad ship on the battlefield far exceeds that of the sailing ship.
Prime Minister Oliver Cromwell held long discussions with Robert Blake to determine the style of warfare for the English naval fleet.
Prime Minister Oliver Cromwell issued an order to transfer many important British generals to the navy to participate in this war.
The time for European countries to prepare was very short. The British Navy mobilized urgently to prepare everything at the scheduled time.
The fleet left the port to join the fleets of the Netherlands, Spain, France and other countries.
The commander-in-chief of the British Navy, George Monk, was troubled for a long time when he saw the transfer order.
He thought for a day and night and believed that the current constitutional monarchy in England was conducive to the situation of the royal party. He obeyed the order from England.
George Monk asked Robert Blake: "Mr. Blake, the combined fleet composed of several countries has different thoughts, and each country wants to maintain its strength.
The United Fleet has more warships on the surface, but if it fights against the Great China Navy Fleet, it is likely to be defeated by them individually.
As the commander-in-chief of the combined fleet, have you thought about this issue?
Another point is that Spain and the Netherlands have a grudge.
Will these two fleets play tricks on each other when the war is unfavorable?
Once this happens, the combined fleet will undoubtedly be defeated."
Admiral Robert Blake, upon hearing George Monk's doubts, briefly explained: "The combined fleet is a whole, but during the war, the fleets of each country are relatively independent and are responsible for different tasks.
For example, the French fleet only has two main battleships, and they are responsible for setting fire to ships, which is a kind of auxiliary operation.
The Spanish fleet is responsible for the left wing, and the Dutch fleet is responsible for the right wing. They will never be allowed to touch each other."
George Munch listened to Robert Blake's arrangements, and it was very clear what each country should do.
He knew that Robert Blake was extremely committed to this war.
The United Fleet has mixed feelings, but the number of warships is more than ten times that of the Great China Empire's fleet.
The combined fleet used force to defeat skill. He predicted that the combined fleet would have a high chance of winning in this war.
George Monk thought about the battle plan of the Combined Fleet, and he asked with some confusion: "Mr. Black, why did the Combined Fleet choose to set off from the Atlantic Ocean to find a way to lead the Imperial Navy of Great China to the Atlantic Ocean.
Spain, France, and the Holy Roman Empire all have ports in the Mediterranean area. With all their forces gathered, there will be a sizable fleet in the Mediterranean.
Why did the Combined Fleet only attack from the Atlantic Ocean instead of attacking Gibraltar from both the Atlantic and the Mediterranean?"
When Robert Blake heard George Monk's inquiry, he did not explain, but said meaningfully: "Mr. George, when you see the Imperial Navy of Great China, you will understand why we don't do this."
Admiral Robert Blake could not express what was in his heart.
The power of the Dahua Empire Navy is obvious to all. They formed a joint fleet this time and relied on the huge number of warships to dare to take the initiative to attack the Dahua Empire Navy.
European countries' ports in the Mediterranean are all on the defensive and are accelerating the construction of huge-caliber coastal defense guns.
The Mediterranean Sea seems huge, but compared to the Atlantic Ocean, it is not that big.
The most critical thing is that the two entrances and exits of the Mediterranean Sea, the Strait of Gibraltar and the Suez Canal, are all controlled by the Chinese Empire.
Once the fleet fails, it will be blocked in the Mediterranean Sea, with no way to escape.
It would be safer to choose the Atlantic Ocean for the decisive battle.
Once the combined fleet is defeated and retreats deep into the Atlantic Ocean, the Imperial Navy's fleet will have too few warships to pursue it.
Admiral Robert Blake and the naval commanders of other countries in the Combined Fleet had a common tacit understanding, so they chose the Atlantic Ocean as the battlefield.
The various fleets that formed the combined fleet soon met in the Spanish port.
They replenished ammunition and food at the port, and the commanders of each fleet determined the contents of military orders such as flags and flags.
The combined fleet was seen off by King Felipe IV of the Habsburg Kingdom of Spain and Spanish nobles.
They fired a salute, swore an oath, and set off south to Gibraltar.
The combined fleet will engage in a decisive battle with the Imperial Navy of Great China.
With the victory of the combined fleet, the power of the Great China Empire will be expelled from Europe.
France will also take this opportunity to form the European Union.
France will lead European countries to expel the Han forces that invaded Europe.
They are likely to take the opportunity to destroy the Fujian Kingdom that occupies Egypt and demonstrate the power of the alliance.
France took this opportunity to become the undisputed overlord of Europe.
The combined fleet suffered a disastrous defeat, and European countries would bear the price of defeat and cede territory and pay compensation.
Gibraltar is occupied by the Chinese Empire and is basically impossible to get back.
European countries can only reluctantly admit the power of the Great China Empire in Europe.
Robert Blake, commander-in-chief of the Combined Fleet, stands on the deck of the Combined Fleet's flagship, HMS England.
He looked at the huge fleet following the England, consisting of one hundred and thirty main warships and more than three hundred auxiliary warships.
This will be the most powerful naval fleet that European countries can now produce.
This is also the largest naval fleet in European history.
…………………………
In Gibraltar, it started to rain lightly, and most people were hiding in cabins and houses.
Admiral Li Pinglang saw Chief of Staff Gu Zhonghuang walking into the house wearing a raincoat. Rainwater was still dripping from the raincoat, which soon soaked the ground inside the house.
Chief of Staff Gu Zhonghuang said happily: "Before the heavy rain came, we finally built Gibraltar's coastal defense artillery system.
Commander Niu has such a huge coastal defense artillery regiment.
Even the most powerful maritime powers in Europe must pay a heavy price if their armies want to get close to Gibraltar.
As long as a certain country suffers heavy losses, other countries will not try to attack Gibraltar because the gains outweigh the losses.
In this way, when the fleet goes to fight in other sea areas, there is no need to worry about the situation here in Gibraltar."
Chief of Staff Gu Zhonghuang had been worried that the Imperial Navy fleet had too few warships.
During this period, they clearly felt the tense atmosphere in European countries.
When the Imperial Navy fleet came to Europe, it initially just wanted to intimidate European countries and, through a small-scale naval battle, verify whether the ironclads could achieve theoretical combat effectiveness.
European countries don't know why? They suddenly united.
They abandoned their previous grudges and wanted to expel the Chinese naval fleet from Europe.
Chief of Staff Gu Zhonghuang did not understand this matter. It was completely different from the Europe in his eyes.
In his eyes, some European countries are furious, some are sitting on the sidelines, and there are still countries that actively welcome the Chinese Empire into the game.
Precisely because of the drastic change in the war situation, Chief of Staff Gu Zhonghuang immediately asked craftsmen to speed up the construction of coastal defense artillery.
The important ports that the Imperial Navy worked so hard to win cannot be lost again in their hands.
Admiral Li Pinglang is more confident about future wars.
He smiled and said: "Chief of Staff Gu, if we hadn't used warships to warn European countries before.
With the current tense situation in Europe, they will definitely take action against ordinary merchants from the Great China Empire who come to Europe to do business.
Now the conflict is limited to the navy, which is the favorable condition we have won and will not affect innocent civilians."
While the two of them were chatting, the captain of the Changbaishan Zheng Sen opened the door and walked in excitedly.
He said excitedly: "Admiral Li, Chief of Staff Gu.
The destroyer No. 235 under my command, as a reconnaissance ship, went to the Atlantic to detect the enemy's movements.
They have discovered the enemy's situation and also encountered a messenger sent by the Imperial Embassy in England."
When Admiral Li Pinglang heard the news, he was extremely happy. Only after he learned about the troop deployment situation in various European countries could he make war arrangements.
He immediately ordered: "Invite the messenger in quickly."
Zheng Sen turned around and went out, and immediately brought a middle-aged man with full eyes.
After he came in, he introduced himself: "I am Wei Fangyue, the military attaché of the Imperial Embassy in Britain."
Admiral Li Pinglang and Chief of Staff Gu Zhonghuang looked at each other.
If the Imperial Embassy in Britain could send military attachés here, something big must have happened.
After Wei Fangyue introduced his identity and name, he handed his ID to Admiral Li Pinglang.
Admiral Li Pinglang looked at this metal ID made of fine steel, with clear text and uneven patterns that formed a portrait.
He observed the avatar and found that it was indeed Wei Fangyue himself.
He weighed the metal ID, took out his command knife, and chopped it off hard.
Sparks flashed and cracks appeared on the command knife, but the metal ID was intact.
This metal certificate is authentic at first glance. Steel with such hardness can only be smelted by the Great China Empire.
Only the machine tools of the Dahua Empire can cut this kind of steel.
They confirmed Wei Fangyue's identity and then listened to his description of the trends in European countries during this period.
After Wei Fangyue finished speaking, he took back his ID, said goodbye and left.
Zheng Sen said from the side: "This news is basically the same as the news detected by the reconnaissance ship.
Basically all the navies of European countries are dispatched, and it is only three days away from us.
If we want to ambush in advance, we must take advantage of the heavy rain to set off, otherwise it will be too late."
Admiral Li Pinglang looked at Chief of Staff Gu Zhonghuang and asked, "Because we took the initiative, Chief of Staff Gu stayed in Gibraltar to defend."
Chief of Staff Gu Zhonghuang thought for a long time. He patted the map with his hand and said: "The way of war is also a deceitful way.
There is no one or two choice. I think in the early stage, it is better for us to stay in Gibraltar.
Use coastal defense guns and the long-range artillery of ironclad ships to destroy the main force of the combined fleet.
At the right time, the fleet took the initiative to pursue the enemy that had just been defeated.
I want to see if they have more warships or we have more artillery shells."
When Admiral Li Pinglang heard what Chief of Staff Gu Zhonghuang said, he agreed: "Heroes think alike.
The overall number of warships between our army and the combined fleet is indeed very different.
We must first use various methods to weaken the enemy.
This is the first time that an ironclad ship has been officially engaged in a naval battle. We will use this battle to establish the prestige of an ironclad ship.
Let these countries in Europe know that the gap between ironclad ships and sail ships cannot be made up by quantity."
When Zheng Sen heard what Admiral Li Pinglang said, he echoed: "These clowns in Europe dare to use sailing ships to fight ironclads.
In the Navy's internal exercise that year, we achieved an excellent score of twenty to one.
This was done deliberately to take care of the mood of my colleagues.
Against the enemy, the armored ships will use all their firepower and will definitely achieve a record that will make the opponent despair."
Chief of Staff Gu Zhonghuang suggested: "Don't let the combined fleet arrive too quickly. There are still some mines in the destroyer ammunition depot that have been tested by some research institutes.
We laid mines on the path that the Combined Fleet must pass through, and first taught the Combined Fleet a small lesson.
If we can use this small means to delay the decisive battle between the combined fleet and our army.
That will be more beneficial to our army. If we can break free until reinforcements arrive, that is the best result."
Admiral Li Pinglang heard Chief of Staff Gu Zhonghuang's suggestion and thought this tactic was very good.
He ordered the destroyers under Zheng Sen to carry out this mission.
Admiral Li Pinglang also issued an order to prepare all ships for war and have the ability to leave port for combat at any time. (End of Chapter)
