The Sun Never Sets In Spain

The harassment fleet set sail at night. At the moment when Rome imposed a curfew and military control, no one noticed a large fleet quietly leaving the port.

In order to prevent exploration, the fleet sailed a long way west after leaving Rome, walking along the edge of the Tyrrhenian Sea, avoiding the usual routes from Italy to Sardinia as much as possible.

However, at night, it was okay. The ships lacked lighting means, and the whole fleet could not be seen clearly by the moonlight alone.

But in the daytime, even if you are very careful, you will inevitably encounter a lot of merchant ships and ocean-going fishing boats. After all, this is one of the most prosperous sea areas in the Mediterranean. It is impossible to walk on this sea without being seen.

However, this was expected by Lieutenant General Morales. They had sailed a distance of more than 150 kilometers under the night, and they had enough time to buy.

The next thing to do is to finish this mission before the news is received in Italy.

This is not difficult to achieve. Even the wooden cruisers in the fleet are equipped with steam engines. With the assistance of paddle wheels, the average speed is above 11 knots. Although it does not reach the level of ironclad ships, it is not far away.

What is the concept of a speed of 11 knots, it can run about 20 kilometers per hour.

As for Rome to reach Palermo by sea, even a long detour is less than 700 kilometers, which means that they will be able to reach their destination by sailing for another day or so.

If the captain met on the way wants to remind the Italian government, he must first go to the nearby provincial capital city, send a telegram, verify, and dispatch again. The time is definitely far more than a day.

...

Alfonso did not pay too much attention to the harassment of the fleet-there was no possibility of failure in this operation, because there were no hard targets at all.

As the name suggests, harassment is enough. Whether it is running to the port and firing a few rounds or sinking a few patrol ships, they are considered to have completed their mission.

What bothered him more was the news from the Austro-Hungarian Empire.

Perhaps influenced by the victory of the city of Rome, Gisela and his correspondence were mixed with current affairs and politics for the first time.

Every line between the lines implies that his Austro-Hungarian Empire was dissatisfied with the outcome of the Austro-Prussian War.

Mostly Eugenie didn't know where to say something, and let the Austro-Hungarian Empire know that Spain wanted to lease the French Mediterranean fleet.

Not only Gisela, but even Rudolf wrote a letter, asking sideways whether to lease the Austro-Hungarian fleet.

Obviously it was an idea of ​​taking the boat for land.

It is not surprising that the Austro-Hungarian Empire had this idea. The reason why they did not participate in the Franco-Prussian War was because their strength was too far from that of Prussia, and Prussia did not have too many harsh demands on them, and the motivation for revenge was insufficient.

Not to mention that Prussia is easy to do, even if the defeat is set, they may not be able to do it.

This is not the case for Italy at all. Venice is the essence of the empire, and Austria-Hungary is dreaming and wanting to get it back.

Italy's strength is not as good as theirs. It is normal for the Austro-Hungarian Empire to try to regain lost ground during the Spanish-Italian War.

But... you can take it, it's a bit too much to empty the glove White Wolf, right?

Trade the ship for land, you used to be the United States?

Alfonso was slanderous about this, but he still had to take care of the feelings of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, and he couldn't be too blunt.

On the one hand, the two countries are quasi-relatives, and on the other hand, he also supports Austria-Hungary in taking back Venice.

He was unwilling to mix Austria-Hungary with this matter because he was afraid of disturbing his negotiations with the Papal State, and he was afraid that the fate of Austria-Hungary would bring too many variables. Not to mention, once Austria-Hungary supports him, he will borrow Italy. The few dared not to use force to solve the problem.

Now there are not so many worries. The power of the Roman Church has gradually withdrawn from Spain, and the religious reform will begin only after the war is over.

At this time, it is naturally a good thing for Austria-Hungary to declare war on Italy in the north.

Do not ask them to make much contribution, the main reason is that after the war, conditions are provided that Austria-Hungary is a living target, then Spain can be more presumptuous.

You and Austro-Hungary have taken back rich Venice. Isn't it reasonable for me to take Sardinia in Spain?

Alfonso discussed the matter with Campos. Campos was puzzled at first hearing about it. After combining the intelligence of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, he learned why the Austro-Hungarian Empire wanted prostitutes:

"The Austro-Hungarian Empire ceded Venice to Italy at the end of the Austro-Prussian War. If they took the initiative to claim it, it would be tantamount to overthrowing the "Prague Peace Treaty."

The Austro-Hungarian Empire was unwilling to offend the Prussians. After all, the opponents had an absolute advantage in the French-Prussian battlefield. It is said that they have received Prussian warnings. "

Speaking of Campos, he pointed a paper to Alfonso: "And only the royal family and the people want to get back to Venice, the army and the parliament opposed this.

The Battle of Rome ended two days ago, and Emperor Franz had revealed in private that he wanted to start a war against Italy, and received many letters of opposition the next day.

Italian unification will make the Austro-Hungarian Empire continue to lose blood, especially if they were annexed after they just returned, the local Italians will certainly not be happy. "

Campos concluded: “It is difficult for the Austro-Hungarian Empire to use military means to solve the problem when the army is unwilling, so they thought of trading ships for land, and they did not go through formal diplomatic channels, but in the royal family. Mentioned in private correspondence."

After understanding the idea of ​​the Austro-Hungarian Empire, Alfonso tentatively stated in his reply to Rudolph that Spain does not need ships now, but if the Austro-Hungarian Empire can share the pressure of Italy, not only Venice can take back, but Milan also It's not that you can't negotiate.

Communication between Madrid and Vienna is inconvenient, and it takes at least 4 or 5 days to receive a reply after the letter is sent.

...

During this time, the harassment fleet has approached Palermo's port.

Unsurprisingly, Palermo is still carrying out normal business activities. As the largest trading center on the isolated island of Sicily, ships coming and going have almost blocked the port.

Standing on the temporary flagship Numancia, Morales looked at this unsuspecting scene quite amazed.

Fortunately, their mission is just harassment. In case it is the main mission, they can take Palermo without any effort, and then control the Strait of Messina and take Sicily into the bag.

"Lieutenant General, what should I do now?"

Morales turned his head and looked around, and all the officers were waiting for him to give orders.

To be honest, he also hesitated, mainly because there are too many ships in the port.

There was a huge commotion in the port, and he was obviously setting up defenses. He had to make an early decision.

After thinking about it for a while, Morales ordered: "Stop the coastal defense artillery first."

As soon as the voice fell, a cannonball was thrown from the harbor and landed heavily on the water next to the Numancia, causing a huge splash.

Morales laughed at this. It was impossible for these shore defense guns to penetrate the armor of the iron-clad ship. It was easy to know the location.

"The cruiser retreats, and the Victoria is going to destroy it."