The Port of Rotterdam is one of the most important commercial ports in Western Europe. The shipbuilding and trading industries here have always been very prosperous. Because it is backed by the hinterland of the European continent, plus there are many rivers such as the Rhine River, water and land transportation are very important.
Extremely convenient and the location is very advantageous.
In addition, the lowland areas have always had a strong commercial atmosphere, which has contributed to the prosperity and excitement of the Port of Rotterdam.
However, at this moment, along with the large ships in the sea outside Rotterdam Port, one after another, the ferocious barrels were aimed at the Rotterdam Port. Suddenly, the sirens in the entire port rang out one after another, resounding through the sky.
"Dang~dang!"
"The Spanish are attacking!"
"Quick, quick! Prepare to fight!"
Suddenly, the entire Port of Rotterdam was in chaos.
"Dongdong! Dongdong!"
Soon, along with the rumbling sound of shelling from the sea, billowing white smoke continued to rise from the warships, and the shells roared in the sky and then hit Rotterdam heavily.
"boom!"
These breech-loaded explosive bullets purchased from the Ming Empire were extremely powerful, and were accompanied by violent explosions and terrifying impacts wherever they landed.
The entire Rotterdam was covered by artillery fire. In just a blink of an eye, it was reduced to ruins and no longer the bustling and lively place it was a moment ago.
"Fight back, fight back!"
After receiving the news, Duke William rushed to the city wall and angrily issued an order to counterattack.
"Dongdong!"
Along with the billowing white smoke, the turrets above the city continued to launch counterattacks at the Spanish warships on the sea. The fighting between the two sides was very lively.
"General, how do you think we can quickly capture Rotterdam in front of us?"
On a warship, Alfred put down the telescope in his hand and asked a Ming man next to him.
"The warships are bombarded from the front and the army is landed on both wings. Taking it is nothing at all."
Fan Mindao carefully observed the topography and topography around the Port of Rotterdam and said very confidently.
Fan Mindao graduated from the Ming Dynasty Royal Military Academy and served in the Ming Dynasty army for more than ten years. He could have continued to stay, but he was tired of the boring life in the army, so he applied for discharge and went overseas to pursue his career.
I worked as an escort overseas, opened a trading company, worked as a bodyguard, and worked as an explorer and navigator, but in the end I didn't achieve anything famous and I was still very depressed.
Finally, on the recommendation of a friend, he went to Spain to help the King of Spain train his new army. This time, he was also entrusted to come here as a consultant and give advice to Alfred.
"Um!"
Alfred nodded and immediately gave the order.
Soon, dozens of warships were bombarding the Port of Rotterdam from the front, while troop transport ships began to land in other places, continuously sending a large number of troops to the shore, and then quickly attacking the Port of Rotterdam.
"Hold it! Hold it!"
On top of the city wall of Rotterdam Port, Duke William kept roaring, urging his soldiers to hold on to the city wall. Once the city was breached, he would die.
Charles V had already promised that he would be guillotined. Once caught, they would surely die.
"Soldiers of the Netherlands, listen, if you surrender now, we will ensure that you can return to your families safely in the name of Emperor Charles V."
"But if you want to resist stubbornly, you will die when the city is broken!"
"Everyone, listen up. As long as you can catch Duke William, you will be promoted to the third level and rewarded with ten thousand taels of silver. No matter who you are, you can be reused."
"Now Emperor Charles V is vigorously reforming and re-employing capable people, regardless of whether they are nobles or not, only based on ability and contribution."
"What are you waiting for? Surrender now and escort your commander out now to achieve great success!"
While the Spanish army was attacking, they also kept shouting at the Dutch soldiers inside the city with tin trumpets. They also used very sophisticated psychological warfare. There is no doubt that this was also Fan Mindao's strategy.
Along with the shouting and the pressure from the mighty army outside, the counterattacks in the entire Netherlands city suddenly began to become sporadic.
Many soldiers even looked at their commanders, making these nobles break into cold sweats. They were very scared when they looked at the people around them, fearing that these people would kill them and take them to the Spaniards to collect the reward.
"Fire, fire!"
"The Spaniards cannot be trusted. We Dutch people should not listen to these Spanish nonsense."
Duke William's eyes were blood red and he kept roaring.
At the same time, when he looked at the soldiers around him, his eyes were also wary.
Maybe someone will kill me to take credit and receive the reward. I will be promoted to the third level, regardless of my background, and I will be rewarded with ten thousand taels of silver. Who wouldn’t be tempted by this?
"Everyone in the city listen up!"
"The great Emperor Charles V's reforms were for the benefit of ordinary people and provided a lot of opportunities for ordinary people. In the future, the children of ordinary people will also have the opportunity to become nobles and officials."
"Charlemagne will also significantly reduce taxes, promote employment, increase everyone's income, and improve everyone's living standards. The future of following Charlemagne is bright."
"Everyone, stop working for these decadent nobles!"
The shouting outside the city continued, and the big tin speakers amplified the sound, and they were all loud-voiced people. Everyone in Rotterdam could hear it clearly.
The effect of the shouting was very good. Rotterdam's defense became weak, and many soldiers only made a few symbolic counterattacks.
Less than an hour later, at some city gates, many soldiers raised white flags together and opened the city gates. Suddenly, Spanish soldiers poured in like a tide.
"Oh, God!"
"Why should you help Charles V, a dictator!"
After receiving the news, Duke William immediately became desperate and was about to commit suicide. However, the soldiers around him immediately controlled him, tied him up, and held him down before going to the Spaniards to collect the reward.
"Haha, General, your method works well. We captured Rotterdam in just one hour."
After Alfred saw the changes in Rotterdam, he couldn't help laughing happily.
"Not worth mentioning, not worth mentioning!"
Fan Mindao's old face couldn't help but blush slightly, what's this?
There is a lot to learn in the military academy, and this little strategy is just a drop in the bucket.
That is to say, people in Europe are not good at fighting. They are small countries. The countries are too small and the cities are relatively small and short. If such cities were placed on the side of the Ming Empire, they would have been destroyed long ago.
How many times.
I don’t know what the Europeans think. There are so many principalities, states, and autonomous cities in such big places, but no one can unify them all?
Looking at the East, the military leaders of the past dynasties would try to unify the entire world and would never allow such a fragmented situation to occur.
From Fan Mindao's point of view, there shouldn't be much technical content in fighting here.
Alfred got off the ship, mounted his tall horse, and walked into the port of Rotterdam with his head held high.
Under Fan Mindao's training, the Spanish army was well-trained. The key was that the discipline was very good. No one went to rob ordinary people's homes. Instead, they stood guard in various neighborhoods to maintain order. At the same time, they constantly posted notices to protect the people.
.
There were also people holding tin trumpets who kept shouting in various streets, telling the residents of Rotterdam not to be afraid and not to worry. Their Spanish soldiers would not touch anyone's property. If any soldiers violated discipline, you could still file a complaint.
them.
This set was obviously brought over from the east by Fan Mindao, and the effect was naturally very good. The order of the entire Rotterdam was quickly restored, and the residents in the city looked at these Spaniards curiously from the cracks in the door.
.
To be honest, they and the Spaniards cannot urinate in the same pot at all, because they are not a country or nation in themselves. It only became the territory of the King of Spain because of the complicated marriage of the royal family, but this does not mean that they and the Spaniards
It's a family.
But now that I see that these Spanish soldiers are well-disciplined and do not disturb the people at all, and then look at the uniformly dressed Spanish troops, I immediately feel that these Spaniards seem to be pretty good.
A large number of Dutch soldiers were gathered in various open spaces in the city. They had all surrendered. The Spaniards kept their promise and did not harm them, but only temporarily detained them.
At the same time, on the other side, Alfred was holding a public trial, inviting some high-status people in Rotterdam and a large number of ordinary people to come to an open place to try some nobles headed by Duke William.
In the huge open space, Spanish soldiers stood upright, forming square formations to maintain order on the scene. A large number of Dutch citizens were politely invited here by the Spanish soldiers.
This made many citizens very scared, afraid that these Spaniards would suddenly kill them or something, but fortunately Spain did not do anything to them, it really just invited them to come here to watch the show.
In addition to these people, some Rotterdam soldiers who voluntarily surrendered and made contributions were also invited here. They will receive the rewards they deserve. At the same time, Alfred will also entrust them with important tasks and appoint them on behalf of Charles V.
As officials and nobles, he was responsible for assisting Spanish officials in quickly restoring rule over the Netherlands.
There is no doubt that this idea was also proposed by Fan Mindao.
