Rise of the 1630s South America

Chapter 1944 Overseas Interests ([-])

"Boom! Boom! Boom!" After the gunpowder smoke cleared, several officers rode their horses to observe the impact point.

This is a training ground on the outskirts of Henghai Port, which belongs to the Navy. Currently, the Second Marine Battalion directly under the Ministry of the Navy is stationed with more than a thousand troops.The Ministry has infantry, artillery, and engineering troops, but no cavalry and supply troops, but it is equipped with a field hospital and a gun repair shop, which is still different from the army's establishment.

The artillerymen of the Second Marine Battalion are undergoing routine military training.These guys who were transferred from naval gunners looked relaxed at the moment, waiting for the officers to test the shooting effect, I believe it will not be bad.They have reason to be so confident, because they have been shooting artillery in rough seas for so long, and when they get to stable land, they can quickly become skilled artillerymen as long as they adapt a little.

And it's pretty much the same.After several trainers got off their horses to check, they found that the impact point was very accurate, which was similar to the result observed by the observation post on the nearby watchtower with a telescope.The artillery brothers of the Marine Battalion are very proficient in their business, and they are obviously much better than those "unintelligible infantry" (the Army's sarcasm).

"Commander Zhou, the Artillery Brothers of the Second Battalion have been training hard and have a solid job. They will definitely be the sharpest sword in our hands in the future!" Lieutenant Colonel Ding Zhen, commander of the Cape Verde Squadron of the Navy's First Fleet, looked at the pitted ground, said with a smile on his face.

The "Battle Commander Zhou" standing next to him was Zhou Bo, Lieutenant Commander of the Navy, the commander of the Second Marine Battalion who had just airborne.Yes, you heard that right, he is Zhou Bo, a military police officer of the former army system, and the younger brother of Zhou Yafu, commander of the [-]st Marine Battalion of the Navy.Because of recklessly planning the attack on Father Ramos, Zhou Bo was demoted several ranks by the Ministry of the Army and sent to serve in Xinhua Island.Later, I don’t know what the reason was, maybe it was because of his brother’s persuasion, or maybe he had some grievances in his heart. In short, Zhou Bo quickly got on line with the Navy, and was ordered by the Joint Staff Headquarters, which has been controlled by the Navy for many years. He was transferred to be the commander of the Second Marine Battalion of the Navy (the acting battalion commander who was in charge of preparing and training the battalion had a tragedy and could only "subdue" to the deputy battalion commander), officially left the army and became a member of the navy.

The two brothers of the Zhou family served as the battalion commanders of two marine battalions at the same time. It is a good story to tell, although the army has cursed these two "traitors" countless times.

"I've also figured out the situation of the Second Marine Battalion these days. The artillery level is certainly good, but the infantry as the main force is still a bit poor. Basic skills such as marching, camping, reconnaissance, shooting, and stabbing are lacking, especially Those mercenaries from the old continent have outdated concepts, deep habits, and poor military discipline, which is really worrying." Major Zhou Bo smiled wryly after hearing this, and said: "It will take another year or two. Time to practice well."

He was born in the army and has received a complete and systematic education, and he has a good vision, so he can naturally see the true level of this so-called marine battalion.In his opinion, the Second Marine Battalion, full of mercenaries and new recruits, is not much better than the local militia security regiment, and even worse in terms of discipline.Such an army can naturally fight against the wind and fight against the wind, but if it is a battle against the wind and against the wind, it may have to kneel.

Therefore, he intends to perform several "surgeries" on this unit, but it's just that he hasn't had time to take over for a long time.In addition, the deputy battalion commander who was robbed by him had a high prestige in the battalion, and he had different opinions on his reforms to improve combat effectiveness, so this matter was pushed to the back, and it is still the same as before.

"I'm afraid I won't give you such a long time, Battalion Commander Zhou." Lieutenant Colonel Ding Zhen waved his hand when he heard this, and said, "You know that the situation in Europe is becoming more and more tense now, and a war may break out at any time. Once this war Fighting will definitely involve the interests of our country, especially the Italian peninsula and the Black Sea region, which is the most chaotic. To be honest, my brother, the superior recently intends to move your ministry. You must be mentally prepared for this. Don’t be caught off guard when the time comes.”

Zhou Bo was silent when he heard this, and after a long while he laughed and said: "The children are not so lucky. It seems that they will go to the battlefield and practice while fighting. But this is also normal. When a man joins the army, he should be able to face difficulties. The courage to face a powerful enemy. The Army has always used whether it dares to fight hand-to-hand with a sword at close range as a criterion for testing whether a soldier has enough courage. I think our Marine Battalion must do the same. Well, move as you move, whether it is a mule or a horse, go out You'll know after a couple of walks, what's left after being eliminated on the battlefield is the real seed!"

Zhou Bo vaguely knew where the "moving and moving" that Ding Zhen mentioned just now was going to, wasn't it the Black Sea, normal!Because according to the information currently available, the huge Russian Empire joined the alliance formed by Austria, Poland and other countries, and it is more and more possible to mad at the Ottoman Empire.

As we all know, there are always only two directions for Russia's expansion.One is to attack Poland or Sweden westward in order to recover the ports along the Baltic Sea that were cut off by Sweden that year - that made Russia a de facto landlocked country until the White Sea ports such as St. Nicholas and Arkhangelsk So far: the other direction is naturally to the south, that is, to attack the Crimean Khanate and its suzerain Ottoman Empire, and push the border to the Black Sea coast.

It should be said that the Russians have no priority in these two directions. They can expand in any direction, as long as there is an outlet to the sea, although the westward strategy seems to be a little bit more important.However, since the Poles elected a new king, Jan Sobieski, and the domestic chaos has been curbed a little bit, the Russians are less likely to go westward, unless they can contact the Swedes to attack Poland together. , but this is obviously somewhat difficult.In addition, the Poles also showed high tactical literacy and outstanding combat effectiveness in the Battle of Vienna this time, and their prestige in the Catholic world has also greatly increased. At the upper level, they think that the chance of the Three Kings Alexei leading an army of more than [-] to attack Poland in three directions is gone.

And since the westward movement is not possible, then it seems that the only way is to go southward!What's more, the Russians have not given up their coveting of thousands of miles of fertile Ukraine for many years, which can be seen from the fact that tens of thousands of Russian troops have always been stationed in Eastern Ukraine.It just so happened that this time the Ottoman Empire suffered a disastrous defeat under the city of Vienna, losing countless troops, equipment, money and food, and more importantly, the morale of the army dropped by more than one level. This is a good opportunity for the Russians to make progress!

Although it seems that the Ottomans have slowed down a bit and have a tendency to bottom out, but in the final analysis, the main force is still dragged by the Austrians and Poles in the Balkans, and there are only some second-line local troops on the northern shore of the Black Sea. The quantity is also very limited.If you can't grasp this kind of heaven-sent opportunity, then what a fart it is!As a result, Princess Sophia, the regent, was instigated by the envoys of Poland and Austria, and quickly made a decision to join their alliance to deal with the Ottoman Empire together!

It is easy to attack the Ottoman Empire (there are only some enclaves of the Ottoman Empire on the northern shore of the Black Sea, and the number of garrisons is limited), but don't forget its slave state, the Crimean Khanate!Although this country has a small population, its combat effectiveness must not be underestimated.Because of the relationship between physique and tradition, it seems that it is not impossible for this country to mobilize more than 15 infantry and fight for a year and a half under the limit state. what was achieved.To conquer the northern shore of the Black Sea and gain a foothold, about [-] troops are essential, and with the addition of more than [-] Eastern Ukrainian Cossacks under the control of the Russian army, there is a slight chance of winning.

Therefore, since the beginning of this year, the Russians have been recruiting soldiers, hoarding supplies, repairing roads, and collecting means of transportation across the country, looking like they are expanding their armies and preparing for war.Naturally, such a large amount of war preparation work cannot be concealed from those who are interested, not to mention that there are not a few businessmen moving between the two countries (the big buyer of Russian fur is the Ottoman Empire), and no one knows how many spies are among them. Therefore, it is only natural that the news spread to the south.

The Great Khan of Crimea was the first to know the news, and immediately notified the generals of the Ottoman garrison in Azov, Sudak, Kaffa and other places, asking them to strengthen their vigilance and prepare for the outbreak of war.At the same time, Grail Khan also started mobilization in the country.According to the mobilization system designed with the help of the East Coast people, they first started small-scale mobilization in order not to damage the vitality of the people as much as possible.Unless they get the news that the main force of the Russian army is stationed in Eastern Ukraine on a large scale, they will start a large-scale mobilization. At that time, the Tatar Qingqi, which has made tens of millions of people in Poland, Russia, and Moldavia, will also open their arms. His ferocious minions.

In addition, Gelai Khan also sent people to the Haji Commercial Station managed by the people on the east bank to ask for help: including all help in materials, personnel and diplomacy.The Haji Commercial Station did not dare to neglect, and immediately passed the news to Cadiz and Viana do Castelo (where the Portuguese garrison is located) via the Istanbul embassy. A copy was sent to Huaiyuan Island and the Cape Verde Islands each, so that the commanders of these two squadrons knew what they were doing.

Lieutenant Colonel Ding Zhen, as the commander of the Cape Verde Squadron, actually still has a lot of autonomy.In the instructions given to him by the Ministry of the Navy, there is a clear content to protect the country's overseas interests in the Mediterranean Sea and the Black Sea, so it is normal for him to set his sights on the Crimean Khanate.He was really worried, worried that the Tatars would not be able to withstand the siege of the Russian army of 10,000+ or ​​even more than 20. There is no doubt that if this battle breaks out, the Crimean Khan cavalry will definitely be the main force of the battle. The Turks are really They couldn't get any soldiers—so they wondered whether to send the marine battalion under Zhou Bo's command to provide support.

Of course, the people on the east bank can deploy more troops than the second marine battalion. In fact, the Portuguese garrison is the main force. We can even look forward to the Kingdom of Portugal organizing a mercenary force of 3000 people to be commanded by the people on the east coast. There are quite a few people and horses, and they can already play such a small role.

Of course, whether this mixed army with a total of thousands of people will conflict with the Russians depends on the opinion of Gao Wengang, the special envoy to Europe.If someone in Gao thinks that the direct intervention of the army on the east coast will lead to a confrontation with the Russian Empire and cause major economic losses, then he will also veto it—without the approval of the Special Envoy to Europe, and neither Lieutenant Colonel Mao Jun of the Portuguese Garrison It is good to send troops to fight without authorization.

But in any case, keeping the Crimean Khanate and Black Sea trade is the first priority.If the Tatars were really defeated and fought in a mess, then no matter how reluctant the people on the east coast were, they could only bite the bullet and even fool the Venetians and other Italian friends to send troops to help the war, vowing to The Russians are blocked back, even if they lose their face and lose the entire Russian market (actually not too big).

"It's also a good way to train with battle." Lieutenant Colonel Ding Zhen took off his military cap, looked at the undulating sea in the distance, and said: "Our navy has also added a lot of new ships, and there are also a lot of recruits. If you go out to exercise , is also good."

"No, once our [-]nd Marine Battalion leaves, Cape Verde will be guarded by your fleet. Now Henghai Island (San Vicente Island) has coal mines and ship repair yards, Jianchang Island (San Vicente Island) Tang Island) has farms and orchards, Nankang Island (Saint Nicholas Island) has pastures, and Dongzhang Island (Sal Island) has salt fields. Our family business in Cape Verde is not small, and this archipelago has also become a You should be cautious." Major Zhou Bo said: "Besides, on the other side of the Black Sea, the weak navy of the Ottoman Empire is enough. The Russians have no The end point, you don't have much room to play when you go, you might as well just stay at home."

"What's more, the French are restless now, attacking everywhere, and causing great troubles. Compared with the Black Sea, I am afraid that the Western Mediterranean needs your help more. The Republic of Genoa is ours The traditional ally, the French Eastern Fleet has pushed them hard enough, you should have gone to support them long ago. Special Envoy Gao Wengang is a little indecisive, and has never made up his mind to invite you to go there, but it is hard to say what will happen later, maybe one day. You have passed." Finally, Major Zhou Bo reminded again.

Lieutenant Colonel Ding Zhen naturally understood what he said. The Republic of Genoa cannot afford to lose, and sea support is inevitable. The question is when to leave for the north.But they have nothing to say about this matter, and it still depends on the opinion of Special Envoy Gao Wengang. If he can't make up his mind, their Cape Verde Squadron can only stay here and wait for orders.

(End of this chapter)