July 31, 1878, Moon Bay, the northern port of Natuna Islands.
Natuna Islands garrison commander Chen Xinggui accompanied Nanyang Governor Mei Dongxing, and Nanyang Army Commander Wang Dashan inspected the defense situation of the Natuna Islands.
"Master Mei, General Wang, please come this way."
Chen Xingui led the two of them to a highland, facing the fortress on the other side and introduced, "The local natives called this place Lanai. After our army occupied the Natuna Islands, they renamed it Linshan Town and built Linshan Town."
The hillfort serves as the core fortress of the Natuna Islands."
"I heard that the Chinese armed forces who occupied the Natuna Islands in the late Ming Dynasty and later the Dutch built forts here. I don't know if this is true or not?"
Mei Dongxing asked while observing the situation of Linshan Fort through the binoculars in his hand.
"It is true that both Chinese pirates and the Dutch once built fortresses on the island, but the scale of the fortresses they built was much smaller than that of Linshan Fort."
Chen Xingui took a few steps forward, pointed forward with his right hand and said, "The ruins of the fortress built by the Dutch are located to the west of Linshan Fort. The circumference of the fortress is less than a hundred meters and the height is about five meters. When our army built Linshan Fort,
, because it affected the view of the main fort, it was completely demolished, and the demolished materials were used as building materials to build the mountain fort. Now there is no trace of the Dutch fort left."
"The circumference is 800 meters, the width is 300 meters, the height of the city wall is 15 meters, and the width of the city wall walkway is five meters..."
Wang Dashan recalled the data of Linshan Castle and exclaimed, "A castle of this size can't accommodate 10,000 people, right?"
"General Wang's expectation is good. Linshan Fort has a planned area of 240,000 square meters and a standard residential population of 12,000. If it is attacked by the enemy, the maximum accommodation area of the castle can reach 20,000 people. Moreover, in the protruding mountainous areas on both sides of Linshan Fort
Each of the two small fortresses is equipped with a 150mm heavy cannon, forming a pincer attack with the four heavy cannons of Linshan Fort. It can control the sea area of nearly ten kilometers near the sea to a limited extent, forming a huge suppression of enemies from the sea.
effect."
Chen Xingui continued, "The Natuna Islands are an important transit point to ensure the safety of immigration routes. His Majesty believes that the defense construction of the islands should continue to be strengthened to build the Natuna Islands into a stronghold for the Han Dynasty in Southeast Asia. On the one hand, it provides a platform for the immigration fleet.
Provide material supplies and logistical support. On the other hand, we can rely on the military power of the Natuna Islands to combat pirates near the Southeast Asia and ensure the smooth flow of immigration routes. At the same time, we can deter the Dutch’s ambitions for the Natuna Islands and ensure that our military has a strong influence on the Natuna Islands.
The long-term occupation of the Nas Islands."
"It is necessary to strengthen the defense construction of the Natuna Islands. To be honest, Brother Chen, General Wang and I came to the Natuna Islands not only to protect the safety of Miss Wu, but also to convey the message to Brother Chen.
His Majesty’s will.”
"Master Mei, please speak."
Chen Xingui said respectfully.
"The mainland is expected to launch a war to unify Argentina from the second half of 1879 to the beginning of 1880. At that time, the Southeast Asian and African regions will not receive effective domestic support. Therefore, His Majesty ordered that from now on, the two northern provinces of Annan and the Natuna Islands,
The National Defense Forces in the three areas of Songkhla must prepare for war in advance to deal with possible attacks from Western countries."
Mei Dongxing paused and then said, "Director Huang on the African side has received domestic orders and started preparations for war. The only people in Nanyang who know the domestic orders are me, General Wang, Mr. Liang and Brother Chen from the Taiping Association.
So if Brother Chen has any good suggestions or requirements for the defense of the Natuna Islands, you can put them forward."
Chen Xingui took a breath, and after digesting the news he heard, he said, "The Natuna Islands have a permanent population of 17,000, and including the stranded people every year, the total is more than 40,000.
Linshan Fort and the two small forts on both wings can accommodate up to 25,000 people, so my subordinates believe that at least three new forts need to be built to protect the safety of the people on the island when the enemy attacks."
"Where does Brother Chen plan to build the fortress?"
"Padong, Lagon Island."
Chen Xingui took out the prepared map, spread it on the ground, and explained, "Badong is located 29.8 kilometers southwest of Linshan Fort. It has an open terrain and a moderate port depth, making it vulnerable to threats from ships at sea. Lagon Island has a prominent geographical location and is close to the Netherlands.
Islands controlled by Dutch were most likely to be attacked by the Dutch.
Therefore, I believe that the defense strength of the two places should be strengthened, and two medium-sized fortresses should be built in Badong and a small fortress in Lagon."
"Brother Chen is planning to abandon the Anambas Islands?"
Mei Dongxing noticed that Chen Xingui did not mention the defense plan for the Anambas Islands and asked.
"The Anambas Islands are small and more than five hundred miles away from the Natuna Islands. If a war breaks out, the Anambas Islands, which are isolated from the main island, will be difficult to hold on. Building fortresses on the islands will not be of much use, and
It will also distract the precious strength of the National Defense Forces, so I do not recommend building fortifications on the Anambas Islands."
The Anambas Islands consist of Jermaja, Ziontan, Matak and many other small islands. They cover an area of 637 square kilometers. They are hilly, covered with dense forests and rich in high-quality timber.
After the National Defense Force occupied the Natuna Islands, they immediately launched an operation to eliminate pirates on the surrounding islands and occupied the Anambas Islands.
The Anambas Islands are under the jurisdiction of the Natuna Islands. The people on the island are all Chinese dispersed from Annan, Natuna Islands and other places, numbering about a thousand people.
Although the Anambas Islands only cover an area of 637 square kilometers, the relatively suitable natural environment on the island provides a good living security for the Chinese refugees who immigrated there.
On the largest Changma Island (formerly known as Jemajia Island), Chinese immigrants cut down the dense forests to make raw materials for building houses. At the same time, the land left after cutting down the trees was planted with rice, sweet potatoes and other food crops.
The harvested grain, vegetables, picked coconuts and other food can not only meet the living needs of the local Chinese, but can also be transported to the Natuna Islands and the immigrant fleet.
According to the carrying capacity of the Anambas Islands and the hard-working nature of the Chinese refugees, there is no big problem for 16,000 to 7,000 people living on the island. However, considering the risk of war, Chen Xinggui has been carefully controlling the population of the Anambas Islands.
In order to prevent the problem of overpopulation on the island and difficulty in retreat.
After listening to Chen Xingui's explanation, Mei Dongxing understood his difficulty.
He opened the mouth and said, "The National Defense Forces have limited strength in the Nanyang region. The Nanyang Army has to deal with the threats from the French and the Manchu and Guangxi troops. It cannot mobilize troops to support the Natuna Islands. The defense of the Natuna Islands still has to be done by yourself."
"I understand Lord Mei's difficulties. There are already 1,000 regular troops and 1,000 militia troops in the Natuna Islands. They do not need the support of the Nanyang Army. However, I can only give up on some areas that cannot be taken into account at the same time."
"Anambas can't do anything. While there is still more than a year, we can start the work of evacuating the people of the Anambas Islands now, so as to save it from being too late later."
"After the fleet that escorted Miss Wu left, my subordinates arranged for someone to do it."