Inspired by the glorious achievements of the Spanish destroyer fleet that year, fourteen American destroyers bravely charged towards the enemy ahead. Unfortunately, what they didn't know was that the Spanish succeeded because the range of the US naval guns was too short, and they could only charge forward.
They can launch torpedoes within two or three kilometers, but what they need to face this time is to intercept their shells from fifteen kilometers away. Even at a speed of 30 knots, they have to run at sea for almost ten minutes to have any hope.
What's more, the coalition destroyer fleet behind them was encircling them. These guys were only seven or eight kilometers away from them. Within two minutes of launching the charge, two American destroyers sank to the bottom of the sea amidst the explosion of 240 shells. At the same time,
At the same time, the Allied destroyers that were the first to rush to the launching distance fired torpedoes at them. In just three minutes, four more ships were blown to pieces, and at this time, the battleships in the distance were still out of reach.
Looking at the increasing number of coalition destroyers behind and the dense artillery shells roaring in front, the commander of this US military endured grief and anger and issued a retreat order. The remaining eight destroyers turned around and headed towards New York. During the turning process, there were another
Two were sunk by torpedoes and naval guns respectively. In the end, only six destroyers relied on their understanding of the water depth on the coast to escape from the shallow waters full of reefs and entered New York Bay and the four destroyers there. Two of them should be considered small protection for the gunboats.
Cruisers rendezvous.
As for the battle at the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay, the ten U.S. warships led by Mahan bravely fought fiercely with an enemy several times their size. In less than half an hour, the New York was severely damaged and a protected cruiser sank.
The USS New York retreated without the cover of coastal defense artillery. What made the Americans most angry was that the USS New York was severely damaged by the USS Massachusetts. A 330 shell with a delay fuze and an antimony charge penetrated its main body.
The armored belt blew away the entire stern of the ship and almost destroyed the drive shaft.
Mahan did not dare to risk his main fleet. This was something related to the life and death of the United States. It took only a few months to build a bunch of destroyers, but it took several years to build a single capital ship. The two were not the same concept at all.
However, he did not hand in a blank result. The US military also sank a Russian protected cruiser, which was a small consolation in this naval battle.
But only then did both sides discover where the four Canglong-class cruisers of the Chinese Navy and the four St. Louis-class cruisers of the American navy that copied them had gone?
What Mahan didn't know was that tens of thousands of Americans were now standing on the coast, staring nervously at the battle in the distance, a battle between four warships flying the Yellow Dragon flag and four warships flying the Stars and Stripes.
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"Bring the distance closer." Captain Sa Zhenbing of the cruiser Chilong said. Caribbean Task Force Commander Lin Taizeng was on the Haining. He is currently the commander of these four cruisers.
"Captain, I'm afraid this will put you within the range of the US military." An officer next to him reminded him.
"Our soldiers must experience war. It is difficult for them to grow up in such a battle. They must see real blood and fire. Besides, American artillery shells cannot hurt us anyway." Sa Zhenbing was very indifferent.
He said that the current fighting distance between the two sides is thirteen kilometers. Even if the explosive shells are fired at such a distance, they will not have much penetration. In addition, the delay fuze has delay. Therefore, the shells that hit the armored belt of the US warship
It is often bounced away directly. It has to be said that the Americans are very careful in armor protection. After all, they were the first to develop the Harvey armor.
Following the flagship's order, the three ships Ying Long, Qiu Long, and Pan Long, each of which was duel with an American ship, began to turn their rudders to close the distance. The Americans who had been bullied by them immediately became as excited as if they had been given blood.
Although the losses along the way were not too great, the feeling of humiliation made people mad with grief and anger. Now that the enemy actually gave up his own advantage and prepared to fight at close range, it would be better to vent his anger.
The maximum range of the US-made 152 naval gun is ten kilometers. As soon as the four Chinese cruisers entered this distance, the four ships of the St. Louis immediately opened fire at the same time, and then the Chinese shells from the opposite side also flew over. The two sides combined sixty-four main guns.
At a speed of hundreds of rounds per minute, shells were poured madly at the opponent. The Americans on the shore also roared like crazy, hoping that their cheers would increase the good luck of their own warships.
Unfortunately, it backfired. After closing the distance, the power of the explosive shells fired by the four Chilong ships increased dramatically. Any shell that hit it could cause serious damage to the American warship. The long alloy steel cast pole pointed by the L50 cannon penetrated and exploded.
The shell can easily penetrate the American Harvey carburized steel plate at a distance of eight kilometers, but at the same distance, the US-made imitation Armstrong L40 six-inch shell has almost no meaning when hit on the Chilong IV ship, but the high-explosive shell is still
It can produce some effects.
You must know that the armor steel used by China for its own Canglong-class cruiser is actually manufactured separately at a steel plant in Fuzhou based on the armor steel technology used on the Bismarck that Yang Feng exchanged with Mustache. Even Bofors does not have this technology.
The armor steel produced there is only World War I-level Krupp carburized alloy. Although it is definitely not up to the original version due to limitations in craftsmanship, compared with the current most basic Harvey armor, it is like a god.
Otherwise, Sa Zhenbing would be full of confidence! They had already tested it, let alone the 152 cannon. Even the old 305 cannon in Dingyuan could not penetrate Canglong's main armor belt without using new shells.
The fighting distance between the two sides was maintained at eight kilometers. At such a distance, the Chinese Navy's shooting accuracy also increased sharply. I saw shells whizzing past the sea, like bullets hitting pieces of paper, without any hesitation.
It pierced into the body of the US warship and then exploded inside. The power of the explosion of seven kilograms of antimony instantly tore the internal structure of the US ship to pieces.
The U.S. counterattack shells also exploded on the Chinese warships. The high-explosive bombs charged with nitrocellulose exploded one after another into fireballs. The Americans on the shore roared excitedly, but unfortunately after the fireballs disappeared, the Chinese warships were not affected at all.
There was no damage. In sharp contrast to them, their own warships were constantly spraying hull fragments outwards. Anyone who was not a fool could tell who was more ruthless.
In just five minutes, the first victim appeared. An armored cruiser renamed after the USS Charleston was hit by six piercing bombs in succession by the Chinese Navy Qiu Long on the opposite side, one of which hit the front main gun.
In the drug warehouse, the inherently unstable nitrocellulose shells were detonated instantly. The huge explosion directly tore the five thousand-ton warship in half, and it sat like a broken toy in the not-so-deep cave.
In the sea, small explosions were heard from time to time in the superstructure that was burning with raging fire. The remaining sailors on the ship jumped into the sea one by one in panic and swam desperately to the shore. Some Americans hurriedly rowed boats to pick them up.
After sinking the Charleston, the Horned Dragon immediately aimed its guns at the St. Louis, which was fighting Chilong. This cruiser, which was already scarred, could not withstand the attack of two powerful opponents. Soon, two bombs were fired at the USS St. Louis.
The shells that exploded inside the main armor belt tore two large holes on its starboard side, and seawater surged in. It was just a pirated copy of the Soryu-class appearance of the St. Louis, but it did not pirate the Soryu's perfect watertight design. This cruiser quickly
It capsized on the sea because of too much water.
When the remaining two ships saw this scene, they immediately lost the courage to continue fighting, but unfortunately they couldn't escape even if they wanted to. The Chinese warships were four knots faster than them. Such a gap could not be eliminated, so these two ships
The cruisers chose to stay as close to the shore as possible. Although the drafts on both sides were similar, they were familiar with the terrain in this area and soon got into a narrow channel in the shoal.
Sa Zhenbing chased after him for a while, but did not dare to take any more risks. Anyway, sinking two ships was already a huge victory. After bombarding them with artillery shells from a long distance, he turned around and headed south back to the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay.
At this time, the eight thousand Spanish troops who landed and the warships lined up on the Delaware River had completely turned Philadelphia into a sea of fire. Pizarro looked at his masterpiece in the distance with great satisfaction, and each building was in flames.
Seeing the collapsed buildings and the crying Americans fleeing their homes in the billowing smoke gave him a refreshing feeling. This is war, this is what the invaders should do, to hell with chivalry,
There is no massacre, no plunder, and no rape, so what kind of invader is that? This is what an invader should do, and this is what an invader should enjoy.
"General, the Havana telegram tells us that we must take away the Liberty Bell!" At this time, an officer came over with the telegram and said.
"The Liberty Bell, who wants that thing?" Pizarro said doubtfully. This bell is of great significance to Americans. To others, it is just a poorly made broken copper bell. Because of its weight, it is very difficult to get it off.
It will take some time. Time is precious now. You must know that the US military reinforcements from New York are almost here. If you don't have time to pick this bell, you might as well loot one more bank.
"It is said that this is the request of His Majesty the Emperor," the officer said.
"Well, since it is His Majesty the Emperor's request, then we have no choice but to comply. Who makes this emperor now our big boss!" Pizarro shrugged and said, but he knew very well that there was no behind-the-scenes support from Yang Feng.
Spain couldn't even win the last war, including the military expenditures for this war or the loans provided by the People's Bank of China.
So soon a specialized team rushed to the Independence Palace with trucks, which was already surrounded by fire and thick smoke, and prepared to turn the Liberty Bell, which symbolizes the independence of the United States, into Yang Feng's private collection.