In the jungle east of the Paraguay River, a group of troops wearing Brazilian Army uniforms are marching slowly. Only more than 300 people in this troop have white features, and the others are obviously Han Chinese.
Li Mingyuan learned the news he wanted from Canudut, the roundabout route of the Brazilian army and the specific location of the receiving fleet.
The naval ships mobilized by Garcia did not leave after escorting the five thousand soldiers ashore. Instead, they parked at the landing site to provide logistical support for the roundabout troops. According to Canudut, there were more than ten warships parked at the landing site, two of which used steam.
Powered ironclad.
After entering the 19th century, ironclads gradually replaced sailing battleships and became the main battleships of the navies of great powers.
Relying on their rich domestic mineral resources, South American countries also purchased many ironclad ships from Western countries. When he was in Peru, Li Mingyuan heard about the Peruvian Navy equipping ironclad ships. At that time, Li Mingyuan also proposed the conditions for obtaining an ironclad ship, but was rejected by Peru.
The president flatly refused,
Then Li Mingyuan retreated and obtained a batch of large sailing merchant ships from Peru as compensation.
After the first industrial revolution, armored battleships became the main weapon in maritime battles. If Li Mingyuan wanted to move enough people from the mainland, he had to master a large number of armored battleships and steam ships. The information provided by Kanudut undoubtedly made Li Mingyuan
Seeing the hope of obtaining ironclad ships in advance,
The Chinese troops used captured Brazilian soldiers to disguise themselves as soldiers coming to transport supplies, and then boarded the warships to control the Brazilian crew members on the ships. Two armored warships and a dozen sailing warships fell into the hands of the Chinese Independence Army.
Half of the main ships of the Brazilian Navy are parked together to provide support for the roundabout force. After capturing this fleet, not only will the Chinese Independence Army have its own naval power, but they may also use these ships to go up the river and directly break into the rear of the main Brazilian force.
Give Brazilian troops a surprise attack.
Garcia was resourceful and used a roundabout attack on the Paraguayan defenders from the flanks. But what would the expression on his face be like if he knew that the Chinese Independence Army was also trying to attack him?
Li Mingyuan was in a good mood and waved to Kanudut.
"After arriving at the fleet anchorage, I will send a team of soldiers to follow you. At that time, your task is to gather the Brazilian naval officers together, and then the troops I send will deal with them.
After the matter is successful, I will deal with all the Brazilian soldiers who have seen you, and I will not leave you with any trouble."
"General, is your plan too risky? If they find a flaw, you and your men will be in danger."
"For two ironclad ships, a little risk is worth it. But don't worry, my men will always follow you, and they will protect your safety even if the plan fails."
Of course, sending people to follow Kanudut meant to monitor him, but Li Mingyuan said that protecting him was not deceiving him.
Canudut is the heir to Duke Forrobert of the Brazilian Empire. Being on the line with him will be of great help to the future development of the Chinese Independence Army in southern Brazil. Even if the plan to seize the ship fails, Li Mingyuan does not intend to kill him, but is prepared to
Put him back in Brazil and use the information in your hand to obtain useful information for the Chinese Independence Army.
Canudut is the deputy commander of the 5,000-strong Brazilian army. The Brazilian general who was responsible for the main command task has been killed by Li Mingyuan. There are only more than 300 people left in the entire 5,000-man army. Li Mingyuan's decisiveness severely punished him.
Have seen it myself.
Now that he has agreed to the conditions of the Chinese Independence Army, he can only go all the way to the dark side and proceed according to the plan designed by Li Mingyuan.
At eight o'clock in the evening on June 10, 1868, a group of Brazilian soldiers appeared at the naval camp by the river.
Many sailors gathered in the camp by the river, and it was their meal time. The Canudut family was young and had not joined the Brazilian army for a long time. Except for some senior officers in the army, ordinary soldiers had never seen him, so
After Kanudut arrived at the camp, he first sent two soldiers to inform the naval officer of the camp. After obtaining permission, he took the twenty or so soldiers around him to the warship on the river.
It was dark at night, and the Brazilian troops by the river were eating and chatting as usual, without noticing any changes in the river water.
Not far from the two armored warships, a dozen vague figures gradually approached the warships. It was June in South America and the river water was a bit cold. Chen Sen resisted the chill caused by soaking in the water for a long time and cautiously swam towards the warships.
The plan to seize the ship is divided into three action steps. First, the special forces soldiers following Canudut capture the Brazilian naval officer. Then the Chinese Independence Army Navy frogmen board the warship and control all the soldiers on the warship. Finally, they
Li Mingyuan, who was ambushing on the shore, launched a general attack and eliminated the Brazilian sailors on the shore.
The three action steps are closely linked step by step. Mistakes in every action detail will lead to the failure of the plan. As a veteran of the Taiping Navy who has been personally trained by Li Mingyuan for several months, Chen Sen understands the difficulty of the action better than others.
There were about 400 Brazilian crew members on the two ironclad ships, and the total number of frogmen participating in the operation and the special forces soldiers performing tasks on the ship was only more than 120. With more than 100 people, 400 enemy troops on the ship were captured.
It was a major test for the newly formed frogmen unit. However, in order for the operation to be successful, Li Mingyuan had given instructions many times during the march. Chen Sen believed that even if the operation was extremely difficult, the Chinese Independent Army would win the battle.
The outline of the warship became clearer and clearer in Chen Sen's eyes, and he could even see the figures of the sailors on duty on the warship.
"It takes a thousand days to raise an army, but only a short time to use it. The prince specially selected us to form the frogman army. Whether the two months of hard training can bear fruit will be tonight. Brothers, use all your abilities to defeat our frogmen in a battle tonight."
Do you have confidence in the reputation of our army?"
In the shadow, Chen Sen encouraged in a low voice. The dark frogman troops gathered together, raising their right hands to show their determination.
Various secret codes for underwater special operations were also plagiarized by Li Mingyuan and used in frogman training. Seeing that his frogmen were full of confidence, Chen Sen made a gesture, and the gathered frogmen quickly dispersed and swam towards their intended targets.
On the warship, Brazilian naval officers were holding a meeting. After Canudut led people into the ship's cabin hall,
Sun Qisheng quietly closed the door, and the special forces soldiers around him were scattered around the hall. The more than twenty Brazilian naval officers holding the meeting instantly became prisoners of the Chinese Independence Army.
"Everyone, I'm sorry, I have no choice but to do so." Kanudut showed an apologetic expression, then found the fleet commander, and under the escort of special forces, went to control the critical parts of other warships.
Deputy Commander of the Special Forces Sun Qisheng succeeded in the operation, and the frogman unit led by Chen Sen also boarded another ironclad ship.
With a "click", the sailor on duty had his neck broken. A frogman sailor from behind took the sailor's body and placed it on the ground. He quickly moved towards the center of the warship. The early stage operations of the frogman unit went smoothly, but as more and more frogmen boarded
When boarding a warship, the risk of being discovered also increases.
"Bang!" A Brazilian sailor who was injured but not dead fired his short gun, and the calm warship suddenly heard constant gunshots.
"Ignore the soldiers on the deck, all personnel control the bow control room according to the plan to prevent the enemy from destroying the warship."
The frogmen soldiers basically boarded the warship. Chen Sen was ready to deal with emergencies at any time. As soon as the gunfire rang out, he immediately commanded the frogmen soldiers to launch a strong attack.
The increasingly fierce gunfire on the ship also shocked the Brazilian soldiers on the shore. Several Brazilian officers ran out of the dining tent and subconsciously wanted to reinforce the friendly forces on the ship. However, before they could mobilize their troops, the Chinese Independence Army on the shore also
Charging from the hidden darkness, with calculated calculations and unintentional intentions, the darkness is surrounded by the sound of enemy charging horns.
The morale of the Brazilian army instantly dropped to its lowest point. After an hour, except for the one thousand soldiers who escaped under the cover of darkness, the other two thousand soldiers on shore and the navy sailors who stayed on the ship were all captured or annihilated.
The blood on the decks of the two ironclad ships had not yet been cleaned up, and Li Mingyuan couldn't wait to board the ship to see the results of the battle.
"General, the armored ship under your feet is a battleship purchased by the Brazilian Navy from the United Kingdom.
The specific data of the warship is: hull: displacement 6270 tons, total length 78.5, waterline length 71.67 meters, total width 14.5 meters, draft 8.1 meters, 420 crew members;
Power: 7 boilers, 2 reciprocating steam engines, power 3,000 hp, maximum speed 13.5 knots, range 3,000 miles 10 knots, single-shaft propulsion;
Armament: 2 270 mm mounted main turrets, two 240 mm 19 caliber cannons, 4 140 mm 21 caliber cannons
Protection: side armor 178-200 mm, gun gallery armor 160 mm, gun mount armor 150 mm."
Kanudut stood next to Li Mingyuan and introduced him actively.
"Kanudut, you have done a good job. I will keep my promise and let you go back."
Li Mingyuan was very satisfied with Canudut's cooperation with the Chinese Independence Army in capturing the Brazilian Navy's ships, so he gave him a few compliments.
"Your Majesty, the other armored ship has been cleaned. Do you want to take a look?"
After accompanying Li Mingyuan to visit the ironclad ship as the flagship of the Brazilian Navy, Chen Sen suggested.
"No need, another ironclad ship Kanudut has been introduced to me. It's getting late today. Let's go see it next time."
The other ironclad ship was only half the size of this one, with a displacement of 3,000 tons and a full crew of 200 people. After seeing the larger warship, Li Mingyuan's interest in the other warship dropped a lot.
The technology of ironclad ships in the mid-19th century was still relatively backward. The dark iron sheets, towering chimneys and sails left over from sailing warships undoubtedly destroyed the coordination of the entire warship.
After satisfying his initial curiosity, Li Mingyuan lost interest in observing another ironclad ship.
The ironclads in the mid-19th century did not have a long lifespan. A few decades later, with the update and development of technology, more and more new warships appeared, and the original old warships were quickly eliminated from the stage of history.
There is no need to think too much about what will happen in the future. As far as the present is concerned, the capture of two armored ships and a dozen sailing warships quickly improved the water power of the Chinese Independence Army and laid a good start for the Chinese to establish a country in South America.
The problem of the battleship was quickly arranged, and uncooperative sailors were immediately executed.
Obedient sailors were left on each ironclad to operate the warship, and other positions were controlled by Chinese soldiers. Once arranged, the captured warships could soon play a role for the Chinese Independence Army.
The two warships were named Chaoyang and Dawn according to Li Mingyuan's wishes, which means that the Chinese Independence Army will stand tall on the South American continent like the rising sun and the morning dawn.
