Ming Zuo

Chapter 1752
"Didn't France help you?"

Shang Kexi was somewhat puzzled by Portugal's difficulties.

According to the agreement, France will deepen its intervention in the situation on the Iberian Peninsula.

With France, the most powerful country in the European army, it stands to reason that Spain will definitely not have a better life.

How can such a major blow to Portugal?

"There is civil unrest in France and the royal family has fled Paris. Now they are too busy to help us."

Afonso briefed the situation.

Just as the ocean-going fleet was rushing to Europe, the domestic situation in France was in turmoil.

The cause of the incident was that followers of Cardinal Mazarin were destroyed by mobs in Paris, which was known as the Fronde movement in history.

King Louis XIV of France was only five years old when he came to the throne in 1643, so his mother Anne became queen regent.

And Anne's favorite minister, Mazaran, became the prime minister, with great power.

Because of French financial problems during the Thirty Years War, Mazaran had to advance money to financiers.As a reward, he allowed financiers to collect taxes and collect state revenue, allowing these tax packers to reap huge profits.

As a matter of course, it aroused the jealousy of the nobles and the anger of the people.

French social conflicts began to intensify.

Three years ago, the people of Paris launched an armed uprising, forcing Louis XIV to leave, and Mazarin was also exiled.

Until the beginning of the second year, Prince Condé led a large army to surround Paris. The fearful nobles and bourgeoisie betrayed the people and signed an agreement with the king, resulting in the failure of the uprising.

After this uprising, Prince Condé sought to serve as prime minister, relying on his great achievements, but was rejected by Louis XIV.

Prince Kong Dai, who was strongly dissatisfied, united with the nobles and conspired to overthrow Mazaran.

Mazaran acted first and arrested Prince Kong Dai.

So the prince's supporters began to riot, and eventually the whole country became a mess.

In the end, the two sides had to compromise, and it ended with Mazaran's second exile.

But wait, things are far from over.

Just last year, Mazarin was recalled to Paris again.

Prince Condé was so angry that he joined forces with Spain to invade France.

During the war of more than two months, the rebels won successively, and Louis XIV had to flee Paris again.

Feeling that everyone is an enemy, Mazaran was disheartened and resigned for the third time.

After he left office, Prince Condé also lost the support of the people.

After all, the behavior of the aristocrats' betrayal had already made the people recognize their faces, and it was impossible to be a minion.

As Louis XIV was welcomed back to Paris, Prince Condé had to go into exile, and Gaston, Duke of Orleans, was demoted.

Although the civil strife in France appeared to be over, it was still recovering and was unable to support Portugal.

As for Holland...

Now he is doing his best to help King Charles II of England fight against the Parliament, and he is out of reach.

It can be said that if the empire does not invest in power, maybe the situation in Europe will be hugely disadvantaged.

Fortunately, the ocean-going fleet came.

Knowing the situation in Portugal, Shang Kexi didn't dare to delay, and immediately sent his army northward.

At the same time, the escaped Spaniard also reported the situation.

"General, the empire's fleet is here. They have very powerful weapons, and our warships are hard to resist."

In the presence of Juan José, the Spanish major gave a detailed account of the situation, but was not appreciated by the general.

"Mr. Major, you shouldn't exaggerate your defeat. Can a single shell sink a battleship? My God, is the shell blessed by God? Or is it the curse of the East?"

The meeting room burst into laughter immediately.

Not to mention that Juan Jose didn't believe it, neither did the other generals.

There are imperial warships on the British side, and the Spaniards have already obtained information about how they fought.

Although I have to admit that the warships of the Imperial Navy are very good, the artillery is also very accurate, and the range is longer, but it is still within the acceptable range.

Especially in the process of fighting against the Portuguese, they seized many bronze artillery pieces authorized by the empire to be produced by Portugal.

People don't think that this kind of artillery with a small caliber can sink a warship with a single shell.

The Spanish major flushed.

"General, I swear on my honor that this is true."

Juan José laughed so hard that tears came out.

"Well, well, Mr. Major, you have no reputation."

These words can be described as very humiliating, but Juan Jose said it openly.

The Spanish major's eyes were burning, and he had no choice but to return to his seat, cursing bitterly in his heart.

"Damn bastard."

All of Spain knew that Juan José was the illegitimate son of King Felipe IV of Spain.

His mother was actress Maria Calderon.

Although Philip IV had given birth to many sons, all of them died without exception.

After realizing that there was a problem with the heir, Felipe IV began to train Juan José.

This guy started as a guard officer, first gained military power when he went to Naples to suppress the fishermen's riot, and then became the governor of Sicily.

Last year he commanded the Spanish army to besiege Barcelona and won a big victory. He began to gain fame and was hailed as a famous general.

Originally, he was going to continue to command the battle in the direction of Catalonia, but he was beaten by Portugal on the western front, and Felipe IV had to mobilize him.

Seeing that there was no hope on land, Juan José decided to deal with Portugal by sea.

His approach has yielded great results.

The developed areas of Portugal are all along the coast. After being attacked by the Spanish navy, they suffered heavy losses and have seriously affected the economy.

The most terrible thing is that the resources sent to Portugal from South America began to be cut off.

If things go on like this, Portugal's defeat due to lack of resources seems not far away.

Seeing that the huge credit is in front of him, but the imperial navy has stepped in, how can the arrogant Juan Jose agree?
"Order all warships to go south immediately, we will teach the Easterners a painful lesson."

The Spanish fleet moved quickly, concentrating hundreds of warships along the Iberian coast in search of Gibraltar.

At the same time, the third detachment of the ocean-going fleet led by Shang Kexi also approached Tangier at the western end of the Strait of Gibraltar.

The place where the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea meet, the sea wind is strong, and the temperature is uneven, so that every ship is full of sails, and the speed is extremely fast.

"Discover the Spaniards!"

Although the ocean-going fleet has fewer ships, its reconnaissance methods are more sophisticated, and it was the first to discover the enemy.

"Ready to fight!"

Shang Kexi did not fluctuate in the slightest.

Years of military career have already developed his rock-solid character.

He firmly believes that with the strong strength of the National Defense Forces, he can win any battle against any opponent.

An hour later, the Spanish fleet jumped out of the sea level to the north.

There are countless ships, which seem to cover the sea, and the number is more than five times that of the ocean-going fleet.

The war is about to start!
(End of this chapter)