Rise of the 1630s South America

Chapter 896 New China's New Crisis ([-])

On December 1651, 12, I arrived at Xiaobaitu in the Tunguburi area in the southwestern part of Madagascar. Looking at more than 1 "garbage" (Polish soldiers) picked up like rags, my face was tense, and the anger was beyond words. .

Bingtaro and Zhai Xiaoshan, who were sent out as the vanguard, suffered heavy blows in these days.Not only were they short of supplies, but they were not very familiar with the terrain. They were surrounded by natives on a loess slope, and then attacked repeatedly.Although there was a temporary barbed wire to help, and although they circled the carts as a line of defense, they were under the continuous attack of more than 1000 natives (including about 30 musketeers, and the number of native soldiers increased to more than [-] on the [-]th). , there are still many casualties.

What's even worse is that there is no water source at all on the small soil slope where they are trapped, but the hot weather and fierce fighting are constantly consuming the water in their bodies. Even after drinking, Bintaro had to order the slaughter of the livestock (cows and camels) that accompanied the army, and relied on drinking blood to maintain water in the body.The battle was so miserable that the army on the east bank was really the only one in the battle against the natives—if Xiao Baitu's main force hadn't overcome the difficulties and came to the rescue quickly, most of their 300 people would have been killed by the entire army. overwhelmed.

Does the rising country have a combat power bonus compared to the normal state?Or is this native country, which is mainly based on farming warfare (the Sakaravas have been attacking the Melinas on the central highlands, and has maintained a military advantage all year round), itself proficient in various strategies and tactics?Xiao Baitu couldn't find the answer to this question, but he subconsciously felt that these Malay colonists from Indonesia were not low in civilization. They could smelt iron, use cattle to plow fields, and build water conservancy facilities. , will compost farmland, build various buildings, develop terraces in high areas, and establish some feudal kingdoms with rough but generally passable systems, so it is incorrect to equate them with Indians in South America, They will also suffer big losses. They are already considered "semi-civilized people" and must be treated with caution.

Xiao Baitu circled around the battlefield where they had defended for several days. At this moment, the Sakaravas had retreated, leaving only a mess on the battlefield.Perhaps the decisive advance of Xiao Baitu's troops was somewhat beyond the expectations of the natives, so the enemy's retreat was relatively hasty, and some damaged matchlock guns were lost on the battlefield—this kind of damaged musket is also important to the natives. Property should not be thrown away at will.

After a few days, the natives killed and wounded "thousands of people" on this battlefield (Zhai Xiaoshan said, but Xiao Baitu thinks it is exaggerated, the natives may only have lost four or five hundred soldiers), and the thirsty loess land sucked It was covered with the blood of both the enemy and us, and at this moment it shone with a strange red light.Looking at the Polish soldiers with bandages on their heads and surviving the disaster, the words of accusation were blocked in their mouths; and looking at the soldiers of the East Coast Army under his command who were covered in mud and looked tired, Xiao Baitu couldn't say anything. What harsh words, so I can only temporarily change my words to encourage and comfort the gang of Qiuba. The main idea is to hope that everyone will not be intimidated by difficulties, continue to carry forward the fighting spirit, eliminate stubborn enemies, and not let their military uniforms be ashamed.

After Xiao Baitu finished speaking, the liaison staff officer beside him immediately put down the notebook in his hand, and then said in Polish to the hundreds of Polish soldiers in the ranks: "The commander-in-chief praised us for our tenacity, and he promised that if we continue to If you perform well, we will be responsible for the task of breaking into the native king's palace." This aroused great cheers from the Polish soldiers, because everyone knew that this meant that they would share the most wealth.

Xiao Baitu's Department set up a logistics depot here, leaving some wounded and sick here to recuperate. Zhai Xiaoshan will take the remaining dozens of directly subordinate soldiers (150 at the time of departure) and [-] soldiers from the Eight Banners of the Island. The officers and soldiers stayed and garrisoned here, waiting for the arrival of the second batch of supplies from the main force of the South African cavalry company.

After all the personnel rested at the military depot for a day, on December 12, the troops brought a certain amount of water and military supplies, and then continued to move forward along the Mianhe Valley.Their goal is still to find the main force of the natives for a decisive battle, to solve the opponent once and for all, so as to save them from fighting guerrillas in the future and wasting money on military supplies.The natives seem to have the same idea. Perhaps the victories on the battlefield over the years have greatly boosted their morale. Xi Fuqi and his two sons also led a large number of troops to fight along the Mian River. The two sides finally encountered each other on a river beach more than 2 kilometers east of the military station on December 12.

Although the people on the east bank had cavalry for scouting, due to the undulating hills, dense forests, and the natives' familiarity with the geography, the two sides discovered each other almost at the same time, and this also made the battle a complete one. Field encounters, field battles.

At this critical moment, Xiao Baitu never messed up again. According to the advice of the combat staff, he ordered the whole army to urgently set up field fortifications to provide cover for the artillery positions. To slow down the marching pace of the Sakarava people.

The battle finally broke out at three o'clock in the afternoon, and the king of the Sakaravas surprisingly assembled an army of seven or eight thousand—this made Xiao Baitu and the others almost curse, who said they only had five or six thousand soldiers— Then it doesn't matter what tactics it is or not, it's just a wave of charge, it can be seen that they have great confidence in themselves.

The two artillery companies on the east bank had 13 large and small cannons (the other three artillery carriages were damaged and abandoned on the way). After hitting two rounds of hollow iron balls, they resolutely replaced them with explosive bombs, and finally stuffed shotguns into the barrels. .The metal storm they created caused great damage to the native population. At least [-] people were killed or injured by the various types of shells they fired.

There are more than a thousand musketeers composed of the East Bank Army and some Polish soldiers from the Mianhe garrison. They skillfully fired their guns at the rushing natives. The formation also leaned over under their cover, and then launched a confrontation with the East Bank Army.Casualties on both sides began to increase sharply, but the natives were still desperate to retreat. It was not until the artillerymen moved the artillery and dropped some shells on their heads that the arquebus phalanx, which also had nearly a thousand people, retreated.The cavalry of the people from the east coast only chased and killed the enemy's rout for a while, and then ran back with a howl.

The short and fierce battle caused less than 2000 casualties on both sides within one hour, among which more than [-] people were killed or injured by the East Bank Army, Mianhe Garrison, and cavalry. , collapsed the same number; and as their opponent, the Sakarava army of the Manab Kingdom killed and injured more than [-] people, making people have to lament the cruelty of this war.

But the casualties are heavy, and the people from the east bank will not give the opponent a chance to breathe!Under the command of the officer, the musketeers of the East Coast Army took out the 41-year steel bayonet from their waists, screwed it under the muzzle, and then picked up the rifle with a length of more than 1.7 meters and wore a breastplate. Guarding the artillery, they slowly advanced towards the enemy.And the remaining thousands of Island Eight Banners soldiers, armed with spears, bows and arrows, and driving ox carts, guarded the weak wings of the army formation.As for those cavalrymen, they were still cruising on the edge of the battlefield, and they more or less restrained some Sakaravas, so they had to allocate hundreds of people for defense.

After entering the range of the artillery, the whole army stopped advancing, and then it was bombarded by the same artillery.This is the usual tactics of the people on the east coast, that is, relying on the super mobility of the artillery, the long range and the relatively accurate impact of the shells, they constantly attack the enemy's formation and their morale until they can no longer maintain the army. array, until it completely collapses.This method of warfare has been tried and tested no matter whether it is in the battle with the Spaniards or in the war with the Xhosa blacks in South Africa. Now it is the turn of these Sakaravatus, and it is equally effective.

No, before a few rounds of shells were fired, the enemy's formation became a little disorganized.It's a pity that the people on the east bank don't have enough cavalry at this time, and they can't take the opportunity to attack the weak point of the opponent's formation, otherwise they will be able to reap a big victory at this time.Of course, the commanders of the Sakaravas were not idiots. They soon realized that they were too big before the battle and did not realize the dominance of light artillery and well-trained artillery on the battlefield. They suffered a big loss in this kind of field battle that was originally full of confidence-they now have more than 600 casualties, which has never been seen in the decades of war history of the Manab Kingdom.

Now that you recognize the mistake, you have to correct it in time!Therefore, under the order of the old king, his eldest son Chimaron Garrifo immediately led the elite musketeers and some of the king's guards to escort the old king back; About 2000 soldiers launched a frantic counterattack against the army formation of the people on the east coast again to cover the retreat of the king and the elite troops.The musketeers in their hands have been trained for many years and cost a huge price. They are the mainstay in fighting other tribes and kingdoms, but they cannot be wiped out here; How much, I don't feel bad after death, so the choice is not difficult to make.

The battle finally came to an end in the evening, and the exhausted East Coast Army completely defeated the enemy's last counterattack. Chimara Dongna led hundreds of people to escape the pursuit of the East Coast Cavalry and fled into the mountains. As for the other more than 1000 soldiers, more than half were killed or injured, and all the rest were captured.

In this battle, the king of the Manabo Kingdom led nearly 8000 people to conquer, but he failed. A total of about 3000 people were killed, wounded and captured by the people on the east coast (if the previous battle is included, the total casualties were about 3600), it can be described as an unprecedented fiasco!At the same time, the people on the east coast fought twice, with a total of 388 casualties (mostly Polish soldiers), and 400 casualties in the Eight Banners of the Island, and the casualties were not light.

What's more troublesome is that the enemy's king withdrew with the remaining 5000 people, and many of them were veterans who had fought for many years. Xiao Baitu knew that the war was far from over.

(End of this chapter)