On July 21, a steady southerly wind blew across the Straits of Malacca, making the tricolor flags on the Dutch fleet flutter.
Woodward, the governor of the British East India Company, was walking on the dock of Malacca and looked at the magnificent fleet of the Dutch with some surprise on his face.
Woodward did not expect that the Dutch would send so many warships to the Far East.
These Dutch battleships are all third- and fourth-level battleships. The seaworthiness of European battleships in this era was limited, and the huge first- and second-level battleships could not sail halfway across the world to the Far East. In East Asia and Southeast Asia, Europeans only had third-level battleships.
, the fourth-level battleship serves as the main battleship.
The tonnage of third-class battleships ranges from 1,300 tons to 2,000 tons, and the crew on board is 500 to 700. The tonnage of fourth-class battleships is higher than 1,000 tons, and the crew on board is about 300 people. Such warships are not common in Europe.
It is not the largest, but it is the largest among the navies of various countries, and it is also the main ship type.
Woodward walked a few steps on the dock when an intelligence officer ran up and whispered in Woodward's ear: "Governor, the Dutch have sent twenty-five battleships. Among them are three third-class battleships.
Twenty-two fourth-tier battleships.”
Although Woodward was now invited to Malacca by the Dutch as a guest, the British did not forget to collect intelligence.
Generally speaking, the British now have a good relationship with the Dutch. Cromwell in Britain has just come to power, and emerging businessmen and factory owners have seized some of the power of the nobles and kings. Britain has begun to accelerate its outward expansion, but in this future day
The Immortal Empire is not strong now, and its expansion is focused on the New World and India.
The British, like the Dutch, are now busy stabbing the declining Spain. At this time, the Anglo-Dutch War has not yet broken out, and the relationship between the two countries is generally good.
However, for Europe in the seventeenth century, this superficial friendship was very fragile. In war-torn Europe, various countries could go to war at any time for inexplicable reasons. So for Woodward, he could walk around Malacca at will
Collecting information is a rare opportunity.
Woodward asked: "How many guns are there?"
The intelligence officer whispered: "There are 1,130 artillery pieces, and most of them are heavy artillery pieces over 32 pounds."
Compared to a merchant ship with only a dozen guns, the firepower of a battleship is a completely different concept.
Generally speaking, European third-level battleships are generally equipped with sixty-four to eighty cannons, and fourth-level battleships are generally equipped with more than fifty cannons.
The Dutch battleships have more firepower than ordinary European battleships. The cannons loaded by the Dutch on the ships are all 42-pound guns and 32-pound guns, and there are almost no small guns. These huge-caliber guns can easily penetrate the armor of enemy ships.
Put great psychological pressure on the enemy before the boarding battle.
When Woodward heard the intelligence officer's words, he took a breath and said: "The Dutch want to make a big deal."
No longer lingering on the pier, Woodward led his entourage towards A'Famosa Castle, the center of Malacca.
At the castle, Woodward met Kuhn, the governor of the Dutch East India Company.
Woodward and Kuhn were both nobles. After paying tribute to each other, they sat on the tea table and started talking.
"We, the British, never imagined that the Netherlands would send such a large fleet to the Far East."
Kuhn felt a little uncomfortable when he heard Woodward's words. The British didn't seem to be expressing shock, but more like they were mocking the Dutch's failure in the Far East.
Kuhn sneered and said, "I think you know our losses."
Woodward deliberately showed a puzzled expression and said: "We are not very clear. Our main focus is still in India."
Kuhn sneered again and fell silent.
Woodward felt that the scene was a bit cold, so he stopped pretending and said with a smile: "Of course, we also pay attention to some things in the Far East. According to my crude intelligence system report, the Netherlands used to obtain forty ships of raw silk from Formosa every year, going to
Fifteen ships of raw silk are transported to Japan and twenty-five ships of raw silk are transported to Europe. The annual profit is about 20 million guilders."
Kuhn nodded and said: "Mr. Count, this is a huge loss. After losing Formosa, Li Zhi's ironclad ships continued to harass our merchant ships at sea. We can only get ten ships in Batavia every year
From raw silk, we lose more than 15 million dong every year.”
After hearing Kuhn's words, the British behind Woodward began to whisper. Fifteen million guilders is a huge number. You must know that in this era, the cost of building a fourth-level battleship is only more than 20,000 pounds, which is one pound.
More than one million Dutch guilders. In other words, the Dutch lost fifteen fourth-tier battleships in the Far East every year.
From this perspective, the British completely understood why the Dutch sent twenty-five warships to the Far East, hoping to regain trade rights and Formosa.
Woodward pondered and said: "Li Zhi is a very powerful enemy."
Kuhn nodded and said: "That's right, so we are not prepared to face Li Zhi's fleet alone. We hope to defeat Li Zhi at sea together with the British."
Woodward looked at Kuhn and said nothing.
Kuhn said: "As both Protestant countries, we hope that the British and the Dutch can unite in the Far East. As far as I know, Britain has fourteen battleships in India. If all these battleships are sent to East Asia, together we will
We can defeat Li Zhi’s fleet.”
Woodward smiled and said: "There is no conflict between us and Li Zhi."
Kuhn handed a cup of Chinese black tea to Woodward and said: "Count Kuhn, if we win this battle, we will gain not only raw silk, but the trading rights of the entire China."
"Li Zhi's fleet has twelve ironclads, but these ironclads only have eighteen-pound guns. The eighteen-pound guns may be able to penetrate our armed merchant ships, but they cannot penetrate the armor of our battleships at long range. As long as we gather three
With more than ten battleships, we can win a decisive victory."
"After winning this war, the Netherlands is willing to distribute the raw silk obtained between the Netherlands and Britain in proportion to the proportion of warships deployed. If Britain joins this war, it will not only be able to completely overwhelm Li Zhi's fleet, but also gain a lot of raw silk every year.
Profit of six million guilders!”
After hearing Kuhn's words, the British entourage couldn't help but whisper. Six million Dutch guilders per year is equivalent to 1.6 million taels of silver, which is equivalent to the cost of six fourth-level battleships. It is a huge sum of money. For ten
For the investment in four battleships, this rate of return is very high.
Woodward took a sip of tea and said, "That's an interesting suggestion."
