Rise of the 1630s South America

Chapter 2330 Ceuta

September 1697, 9, Ceuta, sunny.

The port of Ceuta is small, with an area of ​​less than [-] square kilometers. It is located on the south side of the Strait of Gibraltar, on the Mediterranean side.The Portuguese occupied it more than two centuries ago and maintained their rule for more than two hundred years.At that time, the port of Ceuta was not only a trading port leading to the land of North Africa, but also the port of the Portuguese navy. Their warships set off from here to fight against the Green Christian pirates who plundered the Catholic people to show their devotion to the Lord.

During the annexation of Spain and Portugal in this century, the Port of Ceuta was controlled by the Spaniards.At the very beginning, the Spaniards actually had some ambitions. They planned to rely on the two strongholds of Gibraltar and Ceuta to firmly control this shallow strait that enters and exits the Mediterranean Sea from the south to the north.But the ideal is plump, the reality is skinny, and Spain's national affairs are getting worse, so it can't make good use of these two so-called Mediterranean gateways. Any one of England, the Netherlands, the East Coast, and France can kick Spain down. People's so-called door has been kicked down.This is because the strength is not enough, and the best location is useless!

Up to now, although the port of Ceuta is still in the hands of the Spaniards in name, the people on the east coast who live here all the year round have even exceeded one-third of the total population, and their economic strength is very strong, and the background of their home country is very strong. Therefore, it has basically turned against customers in Ceuta and gained the upper hand, which made the Spaniards here very depressed.

However, people on the east coast are not very satisfied with this port. There is no other reason, it is too small!The land of more than ten square kilometers can only be achieved by the virtue of the Portuguese.Think about it carefully, Ceuta, Mozambique Island, Mombasa Island, Diu Island, Macau, ouch, they are all pitifully small and aggrieved!But the Portuguese are quite happy, they just like such a small town, and they have no desire to expand, which is really helpless.

Apart from other things, the port of Ceuta, if it is open for business, there are not many places to build hotels, restaurants, brothels and other government facilities, let alone necessary factories, military camps and storage and logistics facilities.If Ceuta Port wants to achieve greater development, it is best to expand the territory a little deeper, such as extending the actual control line to the inland area by ten kilometers or twenty kilometers.Several east coast businessmen have been discussing this matter before, and they made a briefing in the town council through the councilors they influenced, and then reported it to the mainland of Spain.

In fact, this is also understandable.The Kingdom of Spain is like a person suffering from chronic illness. His body is severely depleted, and his condition may continue to deteriorate. At this time, it is better to stay still than to move. The most important thing is to take care of the body and survive.Not to mention, Morocco is not something that can be bullied at will. They also have considerable strength. How much power does Spain need to invest to achieve its goal?Do you want to die?

So, the port of Ceuta has been so narrow and cramped until now, that even Cai Zhenguo, the special envoy of the East Coast Republic of China to Europe, stayed in a hotel room that was pitifully small. Very uncomfortable.Cai Zhenguo has been pampered and pampered for many years, and he is slightly dissatisfied with this, but he is not a person who can't bear hardships. He can bear such a poor environment on board, let alone this clean and tidy hotel?

On the second day after Cai Zhenguo arrived at the port of Ceuta, he secretly met with several businessmen serving the navy and listened to some of their opinions.In fact, the Navy still attaches great importance to the port of Ceuta, because it can almost choke the throat of the Strait of Gibraltar, so that anyone who enters or exits the Mediterranean must move within the circle designated by the people on the east coast, and cannot go beyond the thunder pool. .But they also feel that this port is too small, and it is too small to be a pure military base-you know, this is not the era of high-tech weapons in later generations, and tens of thousands of soldiers and workers will be stationed in a large military base And its family members, it is actually quite normal—not to mention a port for both military and civilian purposes.

Cai Zhenguo could hear what the Navy meant, and knew that they wanted to expand the area of ​​Ceuta Port.But one is that this is still Spanish territory, and because it is very close to the Iberian Peninsula, the Spaniards have a strong control; the second is that naval warships cannot be driven ashore. If you want Morocco to nod to agree to this matter , Most of the army will have to be used, which makes the navy very worried. It feels that the army will probably stand by and open its mouth, which is not easy to handle.

But the navy also really loves this port.In the end, maybe they will save face and ask the executive committee to persuade the army to help them open up a larger hinterland for the port of Ceuta.Now that the east coast is sailing to establish a country, the navy has a great reputation and has made countless profits. They have plenty of bargaining chips to exchange with the bitter army.To put it bluntly, it's just a loss of face, but compared with the important interests of Ceuta Port, face is nothing!

Cai Zhenguo knew what the navy meant.This is to use the strength of their diplomatic department to help speak, and finally achieve the goal of making the Moroccans submit.Of course, Cai Zhenguo is not disgusted by this. The navy has always "knowledge the general situation", so if he can help them, he will naturally help them.For this reason, he had actually contacted the Portuguese before, and Lisbon agreed to send troops. With the addition of a mixed regiment of the East Coast Army and some Italian soldiers, it is not out of reach to achieve the goal.

Of course, if the Portuguese and Italians are to send troops, the benefits are naturally indispensable.The Italians can say that it is basically enough to promise them some commercial interests and at the same time support their expansion in the Apennine Peninsula.As for the Portuguese, the people on the east coast promised that they could seize some of the Spanish territories adjacent to them after the war, especially some lands that had historically had ownership disputes, and they could swallow them all. question!It's just that the Portuguese seem to be a little hesitant. They value overseas interests more. To put it bluntly, they prefer money rather than the little bit of land in front of them.In fact, this is also easy to understand. Portugal is originally a small country. Even if a little Spanish land along the border is swallowed up, how big can it be?Moreover, this may also plant an eternal disaster between Spain and Portugal. Once Spain's national power is restored in the future, if there are any talented and bold figures, how much blood does Portugal plan to shed to defend such a land?So they are still hesitant until now, and Cai Zhenguo understands very well and doesn't urge them to answer after they have figured it out.

Cai Zhenguo also saw many British people in the port of Ceuta.These people are all here to do business, but it is really hard to say whether there are spies among them.But it doesn't matter, Cai Zhenguo knows exactly what the British are planning, and it is nothing more than to win over the powerful fighting power of the East Bank to stand with them.But according to the local meaning, there is a high probability that the people on the east coast will not stand with the British, and of course they will not stand with the French. In fact, they will not directly participate in the war at first, and will only encourage the Italians to fight in the Apennine Peninsula. Do it, expel the Spanish forces, and control more territories.After that, they will officially end and directly declare war on Spain. No matter which side Spain is on—there is a high probability that it will be on the French side, because most of the nobles in Spain are inclined to France, and because of the strong combat effectiveness of the French army—they will stare at With Spain beating up fiercely, taking away its own share of interests, and then choosing allies to establish a new order.

The British government had tested the attitude of the East Coast people through informal channels before.But Cai Zhenguo did not give a clear answer, which made the British a little worried.It's funny to say that England, which is the most industrialized in Europe, is the most afraid of the east coast, because the more they develop industry, the more dependent they are on the east coast - now England's biggest import from the east coast is machinery Equipment and parts, followed by industrial raw materials or semi-finished products - on the contrary, the Spanish idiot, although he has been beaten many times by the East Bank, is still not very sober, and he may suffer a big loss in the future.

The British are now very much trying to figure out the attitude of the people on the east coast.They are very aware of the strength of the East Bank. Even if fighting across the hemisphere will greatly weaken the strength of the people on the East Bank and prevent them from fully exerting their power, it still makes people feel scared.England is really worried that they have made the wrong bet. Think about it, when they happily formed an alliance with Austria and the Netherlands to fight Spain and France, they suddenly found that the people on the east coast joined the Spanish camp. Wouldn’t that be stupid? up?But the British can't wait like the East Coast. After all, they are in the European situation and can't get away. That's why they want to find out the attitude of the East Coast people. But Cai Zhenguo always pretends to be false No truth.

Cai Zhenguo finally stayed in Ceuta Port for about a week.During the period, I also visited a newly built Taoist temple here, as well as a primary school serving the children of merchants on the east coast, and had a conversation with representatives of the business circles. I pretended to be the master of Ceuta Port, and I didn't care about the feelings of the Spaniards at all.

On September 9, Cai Zhenguo left Ceuta by boat and returned to the nearby port of Cadiz.Here, a doctor sent by the East Bank to Madrid is about to return home. After seeing Cai Zhenguo, he reported the condition of King Carlos.It roughly means that this person can still live on for a while, but he is indeed terminally ill and is not far from death.Considering that he has no heirs, and neither of his relatives is good, a tragic war is inevitable. He solemnly reminded the East Coast Navy and Army to prepare for dispatch, but it should be done in a low-key manner and in batches, so as not to Make too much noise and screw up big things.

Cai Zhenguo admired this very political doctor, but he didn't say much.The navy and army on the east coast have already begun to recruit enough vacancies and replenish their equipment. In the second half of next year at the latest, the first batch of naval transport ships will leave Hong Kong with supplies.This is the battle that will determine the fate of the nation for a century, so naturally it goes without saying.

Everything is under control!

(End of this chapter)