Rise of the 1630s South America

Chapter 1940 Overseas Interests ([-])

On March 1686, 3, near the mouth of the Duck Lake in calm weather, the weather was fine and the southeast wind was force four.

"Chairman Ma, this is our newly completed giant battleship 'Umbrella', which will soon be deployed to the Second Fleet as the flagship of the fleet." Inside the Zhenhai Port Naval Base, Ma Wenqiang, the new Chairman of the Executive Committee, was accompanied by many admirals. Next, boarded the fourth ship of the "Executive Committee" class three-deck battleship, the most powerful in the naval battle order, for inspection.

The "Umbrella" was named by Liao Xiaoyao, the fifth chairman of the East Bank Executive Committee, who has resigned. It means the umbrella for the overseas colonies and allies of the East Bank, which is very domineering.And Ma Wenqiang, who was elected as the new chairman of the executive committee by a high number of votes in the Founders Council, also appreciated this very much, so he came to visit as soon as the navy invited him.

Ma Wenqiang, who was born as a civilian official, has also served as the captain of the Southern Exploration Team, but he is mostly focused on strategy, and he is relatively unfamiliar with the details of military equipment.So when I saw the "Umbrella" battleship that the country spent a lot of money to build, I was very excited. I went through all three decks, including the ammunition depot, kitchen, lounge, dining room, conference room, captain's room, and command ship. The bridge and other facilities went in and had a look.When it was over, I was grinning from ear to ear while touching a 135mm cannon. The overall mood was quite positive.

Chairman Ma was happy, and all the officials of the navy were naturally relieved. Then some people wondered whether they should strike while the iron is hot, and put the other two three-deck battleships "Milestone" under construction on the berth. The funds for the "Scavenger" have also been allocated in place, and the two warships will be completed and sea trials will be completed before the end of this year.

But no matter who Ma Wenqiang is, he who has been immersed in officialdom for decades will naturally not be caught by these little tricks of naval officials.He insisted that the appropriation should be done according to the plan. Now that the central finance is very tight, every penny has a clear destination, and it is impossible to break the original plan to accommodate the navy.You know, in order to support the Navy's "Five-Year Shipbuilding Plan", people across the country have tightened their belts over the years, and a lot of funds for education, medical care, infrastructure and scientific research have been compressed. Otherwise, with the Navy's crazy military expansion How can the speed and the cost of long-term maintenance after forming an army be used?

"After the 'Umbrella' is in service, there is finally no need to talk about empty cities in this country!" Sitting in the officer's dining room on board, Ma Wenqiang gently stroked the tables and chairs full of beautiful wooden textures, and said with a smile: "There are two' The "Executive Committee" level is in Hong Kong, so the local coastal defense is safe. However, the "Umbrella" will soon serve in the Indian Ocean, where it can play its role better, and it will also be of great help to our pioneering role in the Indian waters. In short , During this visit today, I saw the staged results of the navy's construction. This is very good, very good, and it proves that the country's money is not wasted. From now on, I hope that you will carry forward the spirit of not being afraid of suffering, not being afraid of tiredness, and being brave in sacrifice. Spirit, spread the prestige of the East Coast Navy to the world."

Ma Wenqiang's words were tantamount to announcing a change in the national policy of the East Coast Republic of China.In fact, this kind of change can be seen in many places before, such as strengthening the military presence in the Caribbean Sea and the Cape Verde Islands, such as going to Portugal to garrison troops (even if it is symbolic), such as high-profile entry into India and so on.However, it is the first time that it has been said through the mouth of the country's top leader, so its weight can be seen.Considering the journalists from Pravda, Kommersant, Southern Railway Weekly and other media who followed me, this news will spread across the country at the fastest speed in the future, and then cause waves of discussion.

"Chairman Ma, all the officers and men of the navy have been waiting for this day." Li Zemin, a veteran navy admiral who was also elected as the chief of the general staff of the national armed forces at the meeting of the founding fathers, stepped forward and said: "Now the country is Overseas trade is becoming more and more important, and it is obviously impossible without a strong navy, which obviously cannot guarantee our interests. Nowadays, the construction of navies in European countries is very fast, let alone the traditional naval powers such as Britain and the Netherlands. The naval strength of the kingdom of France, which was originally relatively backward, has been a surprise attack in recent years, which is impressive. As far as the navy's standing professional warships are concerned, this country has surpassed the United Provinces and England, ranking first, although its strength still needs to be determined. Further inspection, but it has already shown people's determination in the construction of the navy. The five-year shipbuilding plan formulated by our country this time will invest a lot of money in a short period of time to update the navy's old ships and expand the size of the combat fleet. From the perspective of timing It is very appropriate to say that it is very conducive to the next action."

Speaking of the rapid expansion of the size of the French navy, it has been increasingly valued by traditional naval powers in recent years.In fact, people were astonished at the financial condition of the Kingdom of France, which maintained a Continental Army while investing heavily in the sea, and found it almost inconceivable that they could do so.But in any case, the French actually built a large number of warships and equipped them with sailors and cannons. This threat is not covered.

In this regard, the most nervous is undoubtedly the British and Dutch navies who have taken turns to control the North Sea, the Baltic Sea and other trade hotspots. However, the people on the east coast are also afraid, because this Frenchman is so crazy!Not only did they show off their power in Europe by virtue of the fact that the naval power has greatly increased—such as dispatching the Eastern Fleet to threaten Genoa*—but they also made troubles in the Caribbean, even India, and the Indochina Peninsula, which is also a strange thing.

As early as a few years ago, people on the east coast learned through various channels that the French not only sent warships and immigrants to the Caribbean Sea to consolidate the several islands they occupied, but also showed expansion ambitions for Africa and the Far East: After seeing the little-known small country of Courland gain a foothold in the Congo River Basin in Africa and develop a number of profitable business practices such as tobacco planting and slave trading, the French were also jealous, and in a few years The former sent an expeditionary fleet to the Gulf of Guinea, established a stronghold in a place called "Lagos" (meaning saltwater lake) by Portuguese slave traders, defeated the local aborigines, and officially started colonial rule.

Not to mention, the French are also very interested in the Far East!As early as 1648, after the Dutch East India Company controlled the foreign trade of the entire Siam and part of its economic power, the country had always wanted to get rid of this unfavorable situation, and sent envoys to Europe many times, which aroused the interest of Louis XIV .

In 1665, French Jesuit missionaries arrived in Siam and were warmly welcomed by Siamese from the king down.Since then, the ties between the two countries have become increasingly close, and French businessmen have also begun to try to break through the obstruction of the Dutch to trade with Siam, and have achieved some results. For this reason, in 1673, King Louis XIV of France wrote a letter to the King of Siam Personal letters to strengthen relationships.

In 1678, the French instigated Constantine Bokon, an employee of the Dutch East India Company.Later, with the permission of the King of Siam, the French sent two envoys, six missionaries and 1684 army soldiers to land in Siam and officially started their operations. Jealousy, desperate to encircle and suppress its maritime trade lines, and at the same time, it also made the people on the east coast look sideways. Could it be that the French are crazy, and they are not afraid of making troubles in Siam without commanding the sea?

But in any case, the increasingly strong momentum of expansion shown by the French over the years really exists.The Dutch saw it, the British saw it, and even though the people on the east coast were halfway across the world, they also saw it, not to mention the traditional allies of the Genoese who came to the east coast to complain and ask for help up.

And to curb the ambitions of the French, the people on the east coast have no practical and effective methods on land, so after much deliberation, they can only move their minds at sea.Among them, strengthening the naval strength and deploying to various key nodes is probably the most effective means.

"The First Fleet is the most powerful maritime force of our country. Now its Caribbean Squadron and Cape Verde Squadron account for a considerable proportion of cutting-edge force. This is a decision made by the country after careful consideration. Huaiyuan Island and Verde The Horn Islands are the two key nodes for us to control the Europeans, and they are also the most important weapons for future countries to seize overseas interests and exert stronger overseas influence. The squadrons of these two places must choose elite soldiers and strong generals with international Modern military officers with a vision, don't be that fatuous and conservative. Once something happens, the commanders of the two squadrons must have the ability to deal with it decisively, especially the Cape Verde squadron, which is closer to Europe, can consider granting the right to make decisions on the spot You don’t need to wait for the approval of your superiors for everything.” Ma Wenqiang is different from the leaders of the previous generation. His policy agenda is more about expansion and hegemony, and his words are full of imperialist tone. Whoever is affected is actually not much different from the French today.

At present, in addition to a fleet that is gradually being strengthened on Huaiyuan Island, the people on the east coast also have a first marine battalion commanded by Lieutenant Commander Zhou Yafu.I heard that Chairman Ma Wenqiang Ma intends to also deploy a marine force in the Eastern Cape Verde Islands, that is, the second battalion of marine warfare under preparation.The battalion was established and trained by Zhou Yafu's deputy, and based on the Eastern Cape Verde Islands, it cooperates with the naval fleet to radiate the surrounding areas and serve the overseas interests of the East Coast Republic.

It can be said that the five-year shipbuilding plan is being implemented steadily, and a new marine battalion is about to be put in place. In addition to the additional expenses for repairs and expansion of Huaiyuan Island and Cape Verde Islands bases, the era of strong naval forces has arrived.It is worth looking forward to what kind of answers they will hand over in the future after sweeping away the disadvantages of not getting investment for many years.

At noon, Ma Wenqiang, Li Zemin and other national leaders invited the main officers of the ship and a group of journalists to have lunch in the dining room of the battleship "Umbrella".With the help of the food served at lunch, Ma Wenqiang talked about the importance of overseas trade with sucrose, pepper, spices and other Wei introductions, which aggravated the impression of a group of people.It is estimated that in the next period of time, all major newspapers will start to build momentum with this as a hot spot, and the future direction of the entire East Coast Republic has already undergone obvious changes.

This country, which is now infinitely close to a population of 600 million - as of August 1685, the total population of the Eastern Republic of China has reached 8 million, of which 593.8% were born locally, less than 57 million Ming people accounted for 340%, about 29 million; the total number of white nationals added up to nearly 174, accounting for 80%; the total number of non-national laborers declined steadily due to factors such as naturalization and repatriation to the North American continent, but there are still 13 The number of white laborers exceeds that of blacks by more than 23.5%. The domestic political situation is stable, science and technology are advanced, and industry and commerce are developed. Then when pursuing a higher standard of living and more economic benefits, seek external expansion and greater Influence is something that comes naturally.We must know that a higher standard of living means more resource consumption. Some of these additional resource gaps can be made up through the development of productivity levels, but some cannot and can only be sought abroad.Therefore, overseas interests have now become the top priority of the entire country. Strengthening the construction of naval power is naturally in the interests of all citizens of the East Coast Republic of China. For this reason, even if there is a large increase in financial expenditure, it will not hesitate.

It is worth mentioning that the people who were invited to visit the battleship "Umbrella" today are also the ambassadors of various countries stationed on the east coast. I am afraid that these people's moods at the moment are very different.Those who are close to the people on the east bank, such as the envoys of the Principality of Courland, the Republic of Genoa, and the Kingdom of Portugal, are a little excited, although their countries still face the risk of enemy countries attacking from land; it is not very easy to deal with the east bank Yes, countries such as England, France, and the United Provinces have complicated feelings. The stronger the fleet of the people on the east coast, the more uncomfortable they feel, and the greater the pressure the country faces.Once an armed conflict breaks out with the east coast in the future, overseas trade will definitely be greatly affected. How to solve it will be seen in the future.

After finishing his visit to the Zhenhai Port Naval Base, Ma Wenqiang took a boat to Hue County, an economic city in the north.There, he first inspected the tropical cash crop plantation industry that has developed quite well.He then received several special guests, descendants of the Cornelis family from the Dutch West India Company.

(End of this chapter)