Ming Zuo

In the two battles on land, the royal army and the parliamentary army all won one and lost one.

It seems that a tie has been reached and the balance has been maintained, but for the parliament, the situation is deteriorating rapidly.

The problem comes from the sea.

Through the last naval battle, the main force of the British navy originally controlled by the parliamentary army has been completely lost, and it is no longer able to gallop across the sea.

As an island nation, without a navy, no amount of victory on land will help.

Cromwell was well aware of this.

So he took drastic measures and mobilized a lot of resources, hoping to revive the navy.

For this reason, he did not hesitate to levy heavy taxes, forcing nobles and businessmen to spend more money.

In parliament-controlled territory, the economy is deteriorating rapidly.

Although this was caused by the situation, and Cromwell had no choice but to do so, the nobles and businessmen didn't care that much.

Whoever affects their interests and prevents them from making money is their enemy.

Inside Parliament, voices of dissatisfaction with Cromwell continued to grow.

It's just that Cromwell's reputation is too high, and he can temporarily control the situation, and those voices of dissatisfaction can only temporarily stay dormant.

In the past two battles, the parliamentary army and the royal army were tied, which effectively prevented the advance of the royal army, which made Cromwell's right to speak to a higher level.

But danger also follows.

Cromwell knew the importance of the navy, so how could Kong Zhiguang not know?
Although he had already learned that the main force of the ocean-going fleet had come to Europe, Kong Zhiguang decided not to wait.

After discussing with Marton Tropp, he decided to wipe out the British navy in one go.

The United Fleet went south along the northern coastline of the United Kingdom. After rushing into the Thames River, it bombarded both sides of London indiscriminately, causing fires everywhere in London and many people homeless.

Even London was attacked, which took a toll on morale in Parliament.

Under pressure, Cromwell had to mobilize a large number of artillery from the front line back to strengthen the coastal defense, hoping to prevent the combined fleet from landing.

However, Kong Zhiguang never thought of landing a battle at all.

Taking advantage of the darkness, the United Fleet sailed into the ocean silently, then circled in a big circle, and headed south rapidly along the French coastline.

Robert Blake was taken aback when the combined fleet appeared outside Portsmouth.

After the death of George Monk, Robert Blake was the last famous admiral of the British Navy.

Cromwell also pinned the task of revitalizing the navy on him.

But Robert Blake is also a clever woman who can't live without rice.

The resources of the United Kingdom itself are not rich, and about half of the territory is still under the control of the royal family.

Especially in the southeastern part of the UK, after so many years of mining, there are no enough qualified trees.

How do you build a boat without wood?

Robert Blake had suggested to Cromwell that he hoped to order the East India Company to provide support.

But no one thought that the East India Company verbally rejected the transfer order of the parliament.

They declared strict neutrality and would not take part in domestic wars.Whoever wins gets allegiance.

Just kidding, since the change of position and the alliance with the empire, the East India Company has completely opened up the situation in Tianzhu.

Do you want to be loyal to the parliament stupidly, and then be wiped out by the armed forces of the empire in Tianzhu?

Although the East India Company has both administrative and military functions, it is still a company in the final analysis, and they need to be responsible to their shareholders.

Without the support of the East India Company, at this time Britain had no other colonies overseas, which made Robert Blake's shipbuilding plan very slow.

The room leak happened to rain overnight, and the United Fleet came.

Kong Zhiguang has already explored the topography of Portsmouth.

He let Marton Tropp lead the Dutch fleet to block the southern end of the Solent to prevent the British fleet from escaping.

He then landed three companies of infantry on the Isle of Wight.

After more than a day of fighting, the defenders on the Isle of Wight dropped their arms and surrendered after being unable to resist.

He personally led the imperial warships to block the northern end of the Solent Strait, and stormed Portsmouth Bay at the same time.

As the most important naval base in the UK, the terrain of Portsmouth Bay is very dangerous, and only a narrow seaway can enter it.

The parliament deployed a battery at the entrance of the bay, and the defense was very tight.

But it didn't work.

The range of the naval guns of the Imperial Navy far exceeds that of the British. Even if the naval guns hit the coastal defense guns, the British can only look at the ocean and sigh.

Under five days of continuous fire, the British forts were completely lost.

The Wehrmacht infantry also landed on the flanks, defeated the blocking forces of the Parliamentary Army, bypassed the front of the fort, and approached downtown Portsmouth.

"We are warriors of the sea, and our pride cannot be tarnished. Even if we die in battle, we should hold our heads high and not be looked down upon by all evil enemies."

Knowing that the general situation was over, Robert Blake issued an extremely tragic mobilization order, and then led the remaining eighteen warships of various types, rushing towards the outside of Portsmouth Bay.

Kong Zhiguang admired his courage in daring to show his sword, but he would not sympathize with him.

"fire!"

The imperial fleet has long been lying outside the bay, and the broadside guns on one side are all aimed at the exit.

When the British navy rushed out, what greeted them was an endless variety of shells.

Explosive bombs shattered the dead, and rocket bombs rained down on plantains.

The battle ended quickly.

The British didn't even have time to set up their formation, and they were all buried by too fierce firepower on the way out of the bay.

Robert Blake stood proudly on the mast, holding the cross flag in his hand, allowing the sea to submerge himself little by little, and also submerged Britain's supposedly brilliant future.

The military strategist who established the British maritime hegemony defeated the famous Dutch general in one fell swoop, and finally withered in the face of the changed history.

The fall of Portsmouth completely panicked the parliament.

With the navy completely wiped out, it meant that royal troops could land from either direction.

How does this allow the parliamentary army to defend?

"Mr. Speaker, we must come up with a solution. Your Excellency the Protector's demands are getting too much. If this continues, we will all go bankrupt."

The merchants found the elders' style, and their complaints and dissatisfaction were rampant.

Let alone them, the anger within the Presbyterian faction has also reached its peak.

All understood that defeat seemed inevitable.

On October 10, Cromwell returned to London.

Dwindling support for the frontline is worrying.

"Gentlemen and ladies, don't you all want to return to the king's hateful oppression? What are we fighting for? Britain's future needs to be won by ourselves. No matter how powerful the enemy is, it is impossible to defeat our unity .”

On the Grand Square, Cromwell gave an exciting speech in the eyes of all the citizens.

boom……