Rise of the 1630s South America

Chapter 2312 Silent preparation

October 1696, 10, Cape Verde Islands, sunny.

After nearly three years of construction, the construction of Praia Port, the largest city in the archipelago, is already in decent shape.The port machinery was replaced with new heavy-duty steam lifting equipment, more pier trestles were built, the breakwater was heightened and lengthened, and some small food processing factories and machinery processing factories even appeared near the pier. There was a thriving scene, and the residents were very happy.

Of course, the most striking thing is a huge fortress-like barn located on the eastern outskirts of the city.The food storage facility, operated by the National Grain Reserve, stores enough flour, rice, sorghum, canned goods, alcohol, tea, coffee, sugar, tobacco, spices and dairy products to feed tens of thousands of residents across the archipelago. For five full years.

Now everyone on the island knows that this huge barn stores military rations, which are provided for a large number of naval and army officers and soldiers who may arrive in the future.If there is no serious food crisis in the archipelago, it is difficult for the food stored in this barn to appear on the market, except for the old grain and rotten millet that are regularly sold to the feedlot - the feedlot is also newly established for the purpose of Provide meat to the troops who came to station. After all, the island is relatively dry, and it is impossible to provide fresh meat for the consumption of tens of thousands of soldiers by grazing, which will cause a huge environmental disaster.

Henghai Port, more than 200 kilometers northwest of Playa Port, is currently building a barn of amazing scale.According to the current construction speed, it will be officially completed in the second half of 1697, and it will be officially put into use in 1698 to store food.There is also a huge material warehouse adjacent to it. At present, ammunition supply ships belonging to the navy deliver materials almost every month. On the one hand, they are used for the training of the warships stationed here, and at the same time, they store what is needed for war.

And on Jianchang Island, which has a large area and complex terrain, thousands of officers and soldiers from the first battalion and one battalion of the Marine Corps are also training there day and night.The First Marine Regiment is a newly established establishment. It has three battalions under its jurisdiction, namely the first battalion, the second battalion and the supplementary battalion. The first and second battalions are full of staff, with 1000 people, and the supplementary battalion has only [-] people. The main function is to send trained soldiers to the front two battalions to supplement their battle losses.However, there are also rumors that the supplementary battalion may be expanded into a formal third marine battalion in the future to "respond to various emergencies."

The head of the First Marine Regiment is Zhou Yafu, who also serves as the commander of the first battalion, and the deputy head is Zhou Bo, who also serves as the commander of the second battalion.The two brothers, both of whom had "defected" from the army, had no ambitions. They helped the navy build up a land force of more than 2000 people, which has been unforgivable to many army officers.However, the navy was naturally very happy about this, and they promoted the ranks of both Zhou brothers to lieutenant colonel in recognition of their great achievements.

This time the navy's marine force was divided into two parts. The regiment's direct troops (including an artillery company, an engineering company, a guard platoon, a field hospital and other miscellaneous personnel) and the first battalion were stationed in the Cape Verde Islands. Its similar terrain, practice the tactics of seizing the island, in order to win the Canary Islands in one fell swoop in the future.The second battalion has already arrived at Huaiyuan Island. In the future, it will use this as a base to carry out activities in the Caribbean Sea, waiting for an opportunity to seize some islands under Spanish rule—if necessary, they will also gather forces from the Caribbean Shipping Company, the Free State, and pirates Act together to increase your odds.

It can be seen from this that the navy attaches great importance to future wars, and intends to play the leading role in opening up territories for the country.The army naturally saw their plan, and was quite dissatisfied.But what can I do?With the sea blocking them, is it possible that a group of landlubbers can swim to Europe?Even if they want to go to the two military bases in their hands, Viana do Castelo and Port Haji, they still have to rely on the navy.Even Haji Port, a leased land with great army power, the navy is also salivating, intending to seize it quickly!

The reason for this is naturally very simple. The navy has taken a fancy to the port there, and thinks it is a natural military port that can accommodate a large fleet, which is very important for the navy with ambitions in all directions.It's just that if you really want to get it in your hands, it may take a lot of effort. The army who is full of anger is not so easy to talk to.After all, people have been busy there for so long and invested so many resources to deepen their influence in the Crimean Khanate and Oirat Khanate. Why do you let your navy pick peaches?Hmph, Haji County's annual tax bill is nearly 10 yuan, and it is only a short distance away from breaking through the million mark. Is your navy jealous?This is not acceptable!

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Let us turn our attention away from the intrigue between the army and navy on the east coast and turn to the Italian peninsula.

On October 1696, 10, in the small town of Campo Morone, north of Genoa, a huge military camp was under construction.This is a military fortress built by the Republic of Genoa with an investment of 15 million bank lire, and it is nominally used by the Northern Italian coalition forces.

The Campo Morone fortress is different from the general military town.There is a huge square and barracks inside the fortress. The square is well-equipped with equipment for soldiers to perform various exercises.The scale of the military camp is not small, and can accommodate more than [-] people at the same time, which is in stark contrast to those small and powerful fortresses in Europe.

There is also a large storage area inside the fortress.These warehouses are divided into categories, including weapons and ammunition, medicine, food, and other various military supplies.The warehouse is made of thick stones. Even at close range, artillery with a caliber below medium cannot penetrate, and the security is very high.

There are tall towers on each wall of the fortress, allowing the defenders to observe the movement of the incoming enemy from a long distance.And if the latest cannon produced by the northern arsenal is installed, it is enough to form a powerful suppressive firepower and cause major damage to the incoming enemy.

In short, this is a well-defended and massive fortress, a military town comparable to the famous Breda Fortress.And in this important town, nearly a hundred East Coast officers and soldiers in dark blue military uniforms have already appeared. appearance.The only Italians in the fortress are probably the dozen or so soldiers of the Northern Italian coalition stationed in the gate. They looked at the soldiers on the east bank who passed by the gate with complicated expressions, and lamented in their hearts that the fortress that the country spent a lot of money to build It is really helpless to let people from the east coast use it.

They learned from various sources that 1 soldiers on the east coast may be stationed here in the future—if necessary, [-] soldiers are not out of the question, that is, two mixed regiments—from here, they can easily Go deep into the heart of Savoy or the Duchy of Milan.The country of Savoy once joined the Confederation of Northern Italy, but after the pressure from the French, they finally chose to withdraw. It is actually hard to predict how they will stand in the future.Therefore, for this country, it is really necessary to be on the defensive. It is just right for the East Coast Army to station here.

According to the strong request of the East Coast consultants, the Northern Italian coalition forces have already reorganized several divisions.These divisions are uniformly equipped with hot weapons and learn new tactics. They are currently being trained in various places, and their daily maintenance costs are borne by several countries that have joined the Confederation in proportion.

Once a war breaks out in the future, these divisions will all go to the battlefield. Whether they face the French or the Austrians, their quality will be greatly tested.The Venetians, who are leading the army, are a little worried about this, because they believe that the Northern Italian coalition has not withstood the test of blood and fire, lacks experience, and may not be very effective in combat.Therefore, they hope to take advantage of the current opportunity to pull their troops to the Dalmatian coast, fight with the Ottoman troops, and gain some valuable combat experience.

This trick played by Venice was rejected by both the Genoese and the East Coasters.Genoese people think that the money paid by everyone is used by the Venetians to expand their territory. Do you think everyone is stupid?The people on the east bank are unwilling to increase the burden on the Ottoman Empire. After all, this country is now strong outside the country. If it is dragged down on the Dalmatian coast, other directions may be dangerous, which will affect the layout of the people on the east coast. Therefore, it is firmly vetoed. up.

But the Venetian's concerns are indeed justified.An army that has never seen blood and has no honor is indeed powerless. Let them experience it, see blood, and accumulate honor.The idea of ​​the people on the east coast is to pull them to Algiers in North Africa to fight against the pirates and local warlords.Pirates in Tunisia and Algiers have always been on the high seas of the Mediterranean Sea. They have repeatedly attacked merchant ships from various countries and kidnapped people. They have done a lot of evil.In recent decades, the English have taught them, the French have taught them, now it's the turn of the Italians!

As for the interference of the Ottomans, in fact, there is no need to worry at all!These places have only been the nominal territory of the Ottoman Empire since a long time ago. The local warlords have been managing themselves for almost a hundred years. They only pay some symbolic poll taxes to Istanbul every year, and they have the final say on everything else.Therefore, if the Italians came to fight here, as long as they did not plan to occupy it for a long time, the Ottoman Empire would not have any strong reaction.

So, this is really an excellent training object.In the past, the French and the British mainly attacked at sea to destroy the forts, but they were unable to completely eliminate the soil where pirates existed.Now the Italians are going to land in a grand manner. If the local warlords are hit hard, the threat of pirates will definitely be greatly reduced for a period of time, which can be regarded as eliminating harm for businessmen from all over the world.

And after the Northern Italian coalition forces have been tempered through the touchstone of the North African warlords, once the Spanish succession war breaks out in the future, this army will almost be able to come in handy, right?

(End of this chapter)