Rise of the 1630s South America

Chapter 2090 West Indian Ocean (26)

On January 1690, 1, a large-scale army was marching in the area north of Guangcheng County, South Africa.

If you look down from the sky at this moment, you may be blinded by the billowing smoke and dust, and you can only see a long dragon rolling forward along the Great Karoo Plateau with thousands of ravines.On both sides of the long dragon, there are some fast-moving small smoke and dust, sometimes moving quickly from the head of the line to the end of the line, and sometimes moving quickly from the middle of the line to both sides, in short, there is no stop.Anyone can see that this is an army, an army on the march.

Summer in the Great Karoo Plateau is undoubtedly very dry and hot.The ground is full of dry weeds and brown bushes covered with dust. Flowers and green grass can only be seen in some river valleys.Many of these valleys and valleys cut out by geological rejuvenation contain precious freshwater resources.In these places, the aquatic plants are lush, the flowers are beautiful, and the competition is cruel!

Not only are there competitions between animals, but also competitions between humans!The most common conflicts have erupted among black indigenous peoples, who have fought for generations over precious water sources.Even after the people of the Karma Kingdom came and conquered them, the situation remained the same. What should be done is still what should be fought.There is no other reason, the Karma Kingdom has not brought them a qualitative change in productivity, and water is still a must for them.

Things really changed after more and more immigrants from the east coast in the south.The vigorous construction of Guangcheng County and the increasing number of peripheral settlements have compressed the traditional activity space of these black people.After several small but unforgettable armed conflicts, these Xhosa blacks understood that now they met a formidable opponent, a powerful opponent they had not encountered since the great march from Central Africa in the eleventh century. opponent.

From the second half of 1687, people from the east coast successively lived in the towns of Alicedale, East Somerset, Aberdeen, Kleprat, Graf Reinette, South Africa, Graham Township and Adelaide Township established Liangting Township, Hutaopu Township, Zhongshan Township, Manjusri Township, Pioneer Township, Huang'an Township, and Lukou Township, a total of seven settlements, with a total of tens of thousands of immigrants. With an average of more than [-] people per year, the balance of power in nearby areas was suddenly changed.

Immigrants flocking to the east bank occupied these key nodes, and then under the protection of the militiamen and some Black Banner warriors from the counties in the river (at that time, Yang Liang’s troops were still suppressing bandits in Yiyang Bay to the east), The arduous reclamation work began to lay a solid foundation for the complete digestion of this land.

The Xhosa Negroes were a little out of sorts with this series of actions by the East Coasters.They tried to fight back, but were quickly repulsed and met with severe reprisals.Hei Baqi was very keen on arresting them to replenish the Dingkou, and the people on the east bank also planned to arrest them to build roads and mines, so their fate was very miserable. After a few rounds, they disappeared completely and disappeared into nothingness. up.

However, the battle with the blacks more or less delayed the reclamation of tens of thousands of residents in these seven settlements.Especially after the Kama Kingdom also sent some elite headquarters soldiers to join the war in 1688, these settlements were severely harassed, and they had to request the River Central District Administration to transfer the South African cavalry battalion to curb the counterattack of the blacks.

The situation finally stabilized somewhat in 1689.At this time, Yang Liang had almost finished his actions at Yiyang Bay, and used a boat to pull the troops to Guangcheng County to land again. He planned to take a short rest before launching the final blow to this annoying Karma Kingdom. , Let it completely become the dust of history.

The main force that Colonel Yang Liang plans to use for combat is naturally the First Regiment of his old army.The first regiment is called "The First Mixed Regiment of the Republic of China on the East Coast", and it is the early result of the "Battlefield Reform Regiment" operation currently underway.The predecessor of the First Mixed Regiment was the Temporary First Regiment, which originally had jurisdiction over the Second Infantry Battalion, the Sixth Infantry Battalion, the First Cavalry Battalion, the First Artillery Battalion, and the First Supply Battalion.

This time the reorganization of the troops was uniformly stipulated that the first mixed regiment had three infantry battalions (numbered from the beginning), one cavalry battalion, one artillery battalion, one supply battalion, one engineering company, one guard platoon, one reconnaissance platoon, and one communications battalion. platoon, a military band, a simple field hospital, a repair shop, a camp training school, and several regiment headquarters staff (mainly staff officers, cooks, orderlies, etc.), the total strength of the regiment is 4995, and the front-line combatants It accounts for more than [-]% of the total force, which is quite good.

There are currently only two regiments on the east coast that have been reorganized in this way. They are the first and second regiments that were temporarily organized. Now they have become formal large regiments with 5000 people. They have various technical arms and are capable of independent combat. group.According to sources from the Ministry of the Army, the reform of battalions and regiments is currently being carried out steadily, and the next batch of reforms to the two regiments has also officially started. It has been initially determined that Zheng Dalin's department, which is currently fighting eastward and westward in the Tuanjiehe River Basin, will join forces with Some units have been merged to form the Third Mixed Regiment of the Army. The relevant technical arms such as infantry, cavalry, artillery, engineering, and transportation are being mobilized.

Similar to the third mixed regiment is the fourth regiment. In principle, this department will be reorganized with the Portuguese garrison as the main body, supplemented by some technical arms (this part needs to be recruited and trained) and finally formed.However, because the Ministry is still stationed in Europe, it will not be completed until the time of returning home for rotation (next year), but the supplement of relevant technical arms and professional officers can begin now.

After the reorganization of the two regiments in this wave, the East Coast Army has four mixed regiments, and the army that has been suppressed for a long time finally has some appearance.However, the four regiments are obviously not the end. In the plan of Major General Guo Handong, who is about to be promoted to the Minister of the Army, the East Coast Army will eventually have six mixed regiments. Among them, the troops in the Far East can be organized into one regiment. Recruit soldiers to form a regiment.If we take into account some independent units, such as independent cavalry units, independent field artillery units, independent engineering units, logistics units, etc., it is estimated that the size of the East Coast Army will eventually be around 3.6 after the completion of the formation. is greatly enhanced.

However, such an expansion of the army is obviously not what the navy wants to see.In fact, the Government Council has long complained that [-]% of the country's fiscal revenue is used as military expenses, so that they do not have enough funds to engage in national construction, so they bluntly point out that it is unnecessary for the country to maintain such a large army. It is a waste of people and money, so the ratio of military expenditure must be reduced to less than [-]%, so as to restore their "happy time" back then.

Although the navy and army have been dirty for a long time, they still have a clear understanding of this kind of "big right and wrong", and they jointly rejected the dangerous idea of ​​​​the White Shirt of the Government Administration Council.But at the same time, they also know that under this fierce game, the possibility of them wanting to increase military spending no longer exists, and the navy and army are destined to compete only within the limited amount of military spending.This is a zero-sum game. One dollar more for the Army means one dollar less for the Navy, so they are particularly reluctant to see the Army increase its establishment.

Considering that the chief of the general staff of the military department is Lieutenant General Li Zemin of the Navy—the Minister of the Navy and the Minister of the Army both have the rank of major general, and the chief of the general staff of the Joint Staff Headquarters is the rank of lieutenant general and is also a member of the executive committee—the head of the navy The authority is relatively heavy, so although the army has succeeded in expanding the size of its troops by using a series of incidents in South Africa, New China Island, and the Tuanjie River Basin to "make troubles", most of them will not be able to reach their original ideal value.The size of the army is estimated to be maintained at 3 people when it is constrained by the navy inside and suppressed by civilian officials outside. It is indeed very difficult to expand it.

And the scale of 3 people basically means that there are only five mixed regiments, and it is difficult to form a sixth regiment.Yang Liang, as a high-ranking officer in the army system, naturally hoped that the more "insiders" the better, but he also understood that it is up to the people to plan things, and some things cannot be forced. Too much is not good.

"Commander, Commander Liu (captain title) of the security team came over to ask if he should take a break. After walking all afternoon, everyone was hungry and couldn't move." Yang Liang, who was checking the map with his staff, suddenly heard the communication The platoon leader's report made him a little annoyed. These members of the security team have been pampered for too long. It's really shameful.

"Have the two counties of Hezhong and Cape had a good time? It's only been a few hours, and they are tired and tired? Look at those black banners, do they have any complaints?" Thousands of Black Banners warriors, these people have been fighting for a long time, they have been fighting and killing on the land of South Africa, and sometimes they are even transferred to fight on Xinhua Island in the Namib Desert, they are very hardworking , Combat experience is also very rich, this time they were also transferred together.

The communication platoon leader was a little embarrassed to hear Yang Liang's words, and didn't know how to respond.In recent years, the economy in the Hezhong area has developed rapidly, with more enterprises, the opening of the railway, and the increase in people's income. However, the security regiment system has been somewhat neglected, and the combat effectiveness of the militia reserve has declined.As Yang Liang pointed out in his words, the new generation of young South Africans who have lived a good life since they were young are not very keen on joining the army and fighting. People talk more about who made a fortune in Cape Town, a free port, and who went to volunteerism. Cheng has been panning for gold, and he can push it away when he can join the security team for training, and try to escape.Anyway, there are only 1000 members of the security regiment in a county, right?Which county is not a bunch of people now, whoever wants to be a pawn should go, don't hinder me from making money.

This time they went north to conquer the Karma Kingdom, originally they did not plan to deploy the militia security regiment system, but in order to let them see the blood and feel the atmosphere of the battlefield, they still dispatched the security regiments from Hezhong and Cape counties to join the battle. Together, 1000 people set off with the first mixed regiment.It is conceivable that when the two counties selected the list of conscripts at that time, what a frenzy it was. How many people asked everywhere to ask others to go out on their behalf.In Hezhong, which has been peaceful for two generations, it is indeed time to rectify it.Yang Liang has already decided that when New Huaxia Island begins to use troops against the Melina people on the Central Plateau next year, he will choose these few county security regiments that have been at peace for a long time to send troops, and the list of soldiers to go out cannot be the same. Be sure to make those sneaky guys pay the price.

"Let them hold on for a while and rest when they reach Liangting Township. You inform the company commander Zhao of the guard company and ask him to bring some cavalry to supervise. If anyone can't walk, they will be dragged out and whipped. If you can't cut it, you can't make it. Some children, You still have to beat and beat." Yang Liang said lightly.

Beside him are the soldiers of the First Mixed Regiment wearing black-brimmed caps and cowhide military boots. These elite troops marching silently are his greatest reliance on the ground in South Africa.However, as an important part of the military power on the east coast, and also the main source of supplementary soldiers for the main force, there is no reason to slack off the maintenance of militia reserves in various places.These troops are the main force for stabilizing the place, and they are "cheap" and "cheap" enough. If you don't pay attention to them and lead to corruption and vulnerability, how many regular troops do you need to form to replace them?is it possible?

After giving the order, Yang Liang didn't say any more. Instead, he stepped forward surrounded by many staff officers and guards.They were only a dozen kilometers away from Liangting Township, and he planned to rest there.

A few hours later, before the sun set, this large-scale team from South Africa arrived in Liangting Township and settled down in a temporary military camp outside the city. Then there was a series of noises, fetching water for cooking Those who washed the horses, those who moved and unloaded goods, those who went out on patrol, plus the township government cadres who came to work in the army (in fact, there was nothing, just some cattle and sheep), the whole camp suddenly ushered in a wave of vitality.

"From Liangting Township to the north, it is already the edge of the Great Karoo Plateau. The altitude here is not high, but the higher the north, the drier it is. Therefore, when we set off tomorrow, we'd better follow the Marching in valleys and ravines makes it easier to fetch water, and it is also more convenient to rest on the way. Moreover, we carry a lot of luggage for a journey of more than [-] kilometers. There is a possibility of accidents, so it is best to finish the walk in three days." In the temporary regiment headquarters, the marching staff officer was reporting to Yang Liang.

"In the vast area between Liangting Township and Lukou Township, have all the Xhosa blacks been wiped out?" Yang Liang asked, pointing at the map with his horsewhip.

"Basically cleared up. Occasionally there are some fish that slip through the net, but it's not a big problem. The frequency of attacks on the transport convoy between Liangting Township and Lukou Township has also been greatly reduced, which shows that the black power here is withering." The intelligence staff officer As soon as I heard it, I immediately stepped forward to introduce it.

"Tomorrow the cavalry regiment will go first, divided into multiple groups, with companies as units, responding to each other, and plow this area first. The large troops will follow up, don't worry, we have plenty of time. This time spent so much money, mobilized With so many troops, what we have to do is to get rid of the evil and leave no future troubles. Those people in the Karma Kingdom have almost completed their mission of being the pioneers of the king, and it is time to withdraw from the stage of history." Yang Liang said slowly.

The Karma Kingdom, a black Xhosa country that had been competing with the people on the east coast for decades, fell irresistibly and rapidly after the colonial forces of England and the Netherlands were driven out of South Africa one after another.I believe that if it weren't for the people on the east coast who had the idea of ​​driving away tigers and wolves, and kept driving them to the east, fighting and consuming each other with the local blacks, this country would have perished long ago without a trace.

But now, decades later, the East Coast people are becoming more and more powerful on the South African continent, their position is becoming more and more stable, and the population is increasing day by day, so there is really no need to continue to keep this country that has degenerated into a tribal alliance It's shocking.To mobilize a large army to encircle and suppress them, complete their meritorious service in one battle, and completely occupy their land is what a good man on the east bank of my country should do.

This time, Marshal Yang commanded a total of about 8000 troops, more than 1000 carts, and more than 2 pack horses (mainly under the care of the security regiment and transportation troops), and crushed a card with an estimated number of soldiers of no more than [-]. Ma Kingdom, should be more than enough.And once the Karma Kingdom is destroyed, there will be no strong resistance nearby. Gradually annexing the land and connecting it with the Yicheng area, which is also expanding, is the next thing everyone should do. I believe there should be no Man can stop this!

(End of this chapter)