1635 Han style rises again

Chapter 628 The Lost East India Company
In the early 17th century, the Dutch caravan owned more than 1.5 ships, accounting for two-thirds of the total tonnage of European merchant ships. They monopolized commercial trade in the Mediterranean Sea, the Baltic Sea, and even the North Sea.

The footprints of the Dutch people are still looking for the world routes explored by Spain and Portugal, and they are active in West Africa, America, West Indies, East Indies, India, and even Daming, Japan and other regions full of countless wealth.

The brutal 30-year war in Europe destroyed the economies of Spain, Portugal, Shinra, and even Germany, and the population and wealth of many countries suffered huge losses.However, among all the countries participating in the war, only the Netherlands maintained economic prosperity, population growth, and quickly replaced Spain as the new world maritime hegemony.

If it is said that the Dutch got more than what they paid in this war that was destined to benefit no one, European countries may not have many complaints.But if this kind of income is too much, then Europeans will realize that whether it is the failed Catholic camp or the victorious Protestant camp, the contributions of these two hostile forces are not worth it.

The Dutch have gained too many benefits, so much that many European countries are jealous and envious.The whole of Europe has been dragged to the brink of bankruptcy because of the 30-year religious war, but the Dutch people have made a lot of money because they have managed this war business more in line with their own interests!
All the disputes in the world may originate from interests.

England and the Netherlands were constantly at loggerheads over fishing and high seas treaties, with sporadic maritime skirmishes.

And France, which was an ally in the past, also stared strangely at the Netherlands. Why is this rich land outside the territory of France?
Compared with England, the threat of France worries the Dutch people more. Although the two sides are still separated by the Spanish Netherlands (now the southern part of Belgium), they are also close land neighbors, and during the Thirty Years War Among them, the combat style shown by France was too unpopular. They wantonly ravaged the land of Germany, countless people were exterminated, and countless wealth were destroyed, which made the Dutch feel fear.

To defend the Netherlands, they had to make a choice.

maritime?

Or land?

This has always been a major choice that has plagued the Netherlands.

If you choose the sea, the huge maintenance and war costs of sea power will be enough to drag down the wealthy Dutch people-Spain and Portugal are lessons from the past.Moreover, this choice also brings a more terrifying idea. France, which has driven straight in by land, is likely to repeat their misdeeds during the war-massacre residents, burn villages, destroy cities, and torture innocent people.A no man's land for raping women and creating blood.

With deep fear and vigilance towards France, the Dutch began to invest more resources on land and built fortresses all over the country.The investment in the navy has been drastically reduced, and the many large professional warships originally planned to be built have all been cancelled, which has seriously weakened the combat effectiveness of this powerful army that once defeated the Spanish Armada (this is also the first time The Anglo-Dutch War, the reason for the substantial defeat of the Dutch).

In the distant East Indies, the Dutch have always regarded trade as another form of war. They hope to monopolize all trade goods in the region, and hope to control any trade channels that create wealth in their own hands.The hot pursuit of wealth makes their methods extreme and brutal.

Fortunately, any opponents the East India Company encountered in the region, whether in terms of weapons or business ideas, had a certain generation gap with the Dutch, allowing them to easily control all situations.

Therefore, the East India Company can rule the vast sea area of ​​the region and establish a strict commercial hegemony only by relying on a large number of armed merchant ships.As for high-end toys such as professional warships, even the Netherlands does not have many ships, let alone the remote Far East colonial area. The nearly [-] armed merchant ships currently owned by the East India Company are completely sufficient to meet any challenge.

But now, the powerful East India Company is once again facing serious challenges. A new force established in the southern continent, they are not willing to be content with the sphere of influence and distribution of benefits delineated by the East India Company, and want to obtain "a status commensurate with their own strength." .

The Dutch East India Company is well aware of what the Hanzhou people want to achieve through war, but they do not intend to compromise on this. They are going to use their superior sea power to thoroughly teach the arrogant Hanzhou a lesson.Don't think that occupying a vast continent, with a population of more than 20, and a few warships that can be sold, just want to easily challenge the maritime hegemony of the East Indies.

For this reason, Cornelis van der Lin, the governor of the East India Company in Batavia, adopted the suggestion of the navy and mobilized more than [-] armed merchant ships to form two mobile fleets, sailing to Ambon and Kupang.He believes that after the two fleets meet at Timor Island, they will form the largest expeditionary fleet in the region so far. They will appear in the mainland of Hanzhou and attack the coastal towns of Hanzhou.

It is said that the Hanzhou people built a steel production base in a place in the west called Linhai (now Port Hedland, Australia).Oh, and there is also a coastal stronghold called Pearl Harbor (now Broome, a small port town in northwest Australia), where a lot of wealth should have been accumulated, and it can be plundered, which can more or less supplement the trade losses caused by the war.

If the attack goes well, our powerful expeditionary fleet can pull out all the coastal strongholds of Hanzhou along the way, causing Hanzhou to suffer huge losses.Well, in this way, it may be possible to calm down their fanatical minds, obediently conduct peace talks with our East India Company, and restore the economic order we planned.

"Your Excellency..." Rear Admiral Grigoris Kopet, commander of the Batavia Navy, pushed open the door of Governor Derlin's study without permission. This behavior seemed a bit rude and reckless.

"Dear Admiral Copet, are you in a hurry to report the good news of the Navy?" Governor Delin's beautiful imagination was interrupted, but he was not angry, but looked at some people with a smile. Major General Copet in a hurry.

"Your Excellency, I have just received news that our fleet in Ambon is almost... completely wiped out." Major General Kopet said with a pale face.

"The whole army was wiped out?" Governor De Lin's eyes widened immediately after hearing the words, "That's a fleet composed of fifteen armed merchant ships! How could the whole army be wiped out?"

It should be known that destroying an army on land can be easily done.But it is not easy to wipe out a fleet at sea, the sea is vast, even if you can't fight it, you can flee everywhere, as long as you stay until night, you can definitely avoid the enemy's pursuit, and you won't be wiped out.

"The Hanzhou Fleet lured Colonel Kuritz and the others into the depths of Ambon Bay, and then blocked the headland there, so..." Rear Admiral Kopet said with difficulty: "Moreover, the Hanzhou people almost dispatched them. There are a total of 26 ships that can be used in battle, including their two newly built battleships....In the end, only two armed merchant ships fled back to the port of Ambon. The Hanzhou people also sent ships to blockade there, The ship that came back to report the news still avoided the warships of the Hanzhou people outside the harbor at night, and then returned to Batavia."

"When did that happen?" Governor Delin asked with a livid face.

"November 3."

"More than a month ago?!" Governor Delin murmured: "A month ago, the Hanzhou people defeated Colonel Kuritz's fleet. So, what will they do next? Major General Kopet, half of us A month ago, another fleet was sent to Timor Island to support..."

"No, it's impossible for the Hanzhou people to move so fast..." Major General Coppett's face changed, but he still had a glimmer of hope, "Moreover, Lieutenant Colonel Copeland is a man with rich maritime combat experience. Officer, he will surely bring the fleet to Kupang safely."

"..." Governor Derlin shook his head and looked at Major General Kopet with some annoyance, "Their fleet is carrying [-] troops and a lot of combat supplies. If anything unpredictable happens, our East India Company will It will inevitably fall into a completely passive situation!"

Rear Admiral Coppett's expression froze. He understood what the "unpredictable things" Governor Derlin meant. If the fleet led by Lieutenant Colonel Copeland was annihilated by the Hanzhou people again, then don't say that the East India Company will be in a very long time. If a large-scale mobile fleet cannot be organized within a short period of time, the safety of Batavia and other colonial strongholds will face a great threat.

The Hanzhou people will temporarily control the sea control of the East India Company, and they can attack all the commercial strongholds of the East India Company at will. Of course, they can also guard important routes, intercept and attack the East India Company merchant ships.If they are more courageous, they can even block Batavia.

However, the concerns of Governor Durling and Major General Kopet eventually turned into reality.

On April 4th, as two battered galleys sailed into the port of Batavia, all colonial officials received the depressing news that the fleet supporting Timor Island was wiped out by the Hanzhou, and the ships were almost lost. At the end of the day, after Ambon, Kupang was also blocked by the Hanzhou people.As for another stronghold on Timor Island - Ocussi, it is likely that it has also been captured by Hanzhou.

Less than two months after the outbreak of the war, the Dutch East India Company suffered a humiliating defeat. The proud sea power was crushed by the Hanzhou people in a devastating way, losing more than [-] warships and [-] officers and soldiers. The rest (including the native troops of the Sultan Kingdom of Cirebon) almost lost their due counterattack capabilities.

All this seems to be in huge contrast with the expectations of the East India Company after the start of the war.

"We need to...peace with Hanzhou."

(End of this chapter)