Chapter 1642 Occupying Cavite

In this era of naval artillery battles, it is not easy to completely destroy enemy ships. Even if Haihan's naval guns are far superior to their opponents in terms of performance, they are still limited by the weapon manufacturing process. In addition to direct hits,

It is basically impossible to achieve the feat of killing a ship with one shot without using the mast or the arsenal on the ship. The "Black Shark"'s speed, steering, firepower and defense are all better than the Spanish warship, but after all, it relies on two guns

It is not easy for a naval gun to sink an opponent alone. Moreover, the "Black Shark" has already killed several enemies in and out of the enemy fleet. If the hull was not covered with iron armor, it would have been destroyed by this time.

The cannon fire from the Spanish warships was shattered into sieves.

The four exploration-class warships performing interception missions on the periphery have not achieved breakthrough results. Their naval gun performance advantages are not as outstanding as the "Black Shark". To attack enemy ships, they can only further shorten the engagement distance. During the shelling

Enemy ships will inevitably be hit at the same time, and the protection provided by the wooden hull is relatively limited. Deaths and injuries have inevitably occurred during the battle.

However, there is also good news. The main force of the Haihan Fleet has completed the cleaning of the Cavite Seaport, and the main force of the Army has also successfully completed the landing. The dozens of freed combat ships are turning their direction, preparing to join the Manila Fleet.

come in the battle.

Of course, Juan did not ignore the enemy fleet appearing on the distant sea. In fact, he had been carefully paying attention to the movements in the south, fearing that the Haihan people only sent these five ships to fight to set a trap for him. But even if the opponent's main force did not

Before launching an attack, the five ships clashed from left to right, preventing the Manila fleet from moving south smoothly to outflank the Haihan fleet that was landing in Cavite. At this time, seeing that the opponent's main force had turned around and headed north, I knew that

The port of Cavite was most likely in danger, and immediately ordered people to send out a signal and voluntarily evacuate the battlefield.

Now that the Spaniards have taken the initiative to retreat, Haihan has not taken the initiative to pursue it. The navy has already carried out combat missions for almost a whole day, and it will be difficult to exert 100% of its combat effectiveness if it continues to fight. Moreover, the land battle in Cavite

It is not over yet, the Haihan Army also needs some time to clean up and digest the occupied areas in preparation for the next battle to attack Manila.

Controlling the Cavite Peninsula is equivalent to blocking the access to the sea from the Port of Manila. If the Spaniards wanted to bypass the Cavite waters by sea, they would have to spend a day sailing north along Manila Bay.

You have to make a big circle along the coastline. Of course, even so, when you get to the mouth of Manila Bay, unless you choose to pass through at night, you will definitely not be able to avoid the surveillance on Corregidor Island.

As dusk falls, the battle at the northeastern tip of the Cavite Peninsula has calmed down. Only occasional sporadic exchanges of fire indicate that the Spaniards have not completely given up control here. The Haihan Army's frontline headquarters has been set up in the Port of Cavite.

In one house, according to the prisoner's confession, it was originally the command center of the Manila fleet. Now it has just completed the change of ownership, which can be regarded as making the best use of the property in another sense.

Yan Chujie, Wang Tom, Qian Tiandun, Harugong, Roger and other generals have all landed ashore and arrived at the frontline headquarters to listen to the situation reports from the commanders of each unit. At present, except for a few patrol boats at sea, other generals have arrived at the frontline headquarters.

The troops involved in this battle have gathered at the Port of Cavite for rest and recuperation.

Today is the first day of the official war with Spain. In terms of the final result, it is naturally extremely beneficial to Haihan. Not only did he successfully break into Manila Bay, but he also successively captured two strategic locations, Corregidor Island and the Port of Cavite.

.Especially the latter, which was originally the station of the Manila Fleet and has relatively complete port supporting facilities. It can be put into use immediately after the Haihan Army takes over, which can save a lot of time and energy.

Although it failed to inflict serious damage to the Manila Fleet in previous naval battles, the performance of the participating troops was already remarkable. The "Black Shark" almost single-handedly held back the Manila Fleet's offensive, laying the groundwork for the attack on Krabi.

The battle on the ground gained enough space and time. Even if the officer commanding the battle on the "Black Shark" at that time was Wang Tom himself, it would be difficult to do better than Wu Sen. As for the failure to destroy or destroy the "Black Shark" during the battle,

Sinking Spanish ships was not a big deal in the eyes of the generals. Even when Wu Sen was issued a mission before the war, the command only asked him to try his best to hold back the Spanish fleet that might appear, rather than necessarily

To hit your opponent hard.

The condition of the "Black Shark" was basically not serious. Although it was hit by more than 20 bullets during the battle, the iron armor equipped outside the hull played its due protective role, and the entire hull had almost no need.

The parts that need to be overhauled immediately. The hit statistics of the two naval guns on the ship during the battle have also been released. They are basically maintained at around 40%, which is considered a good passing result. Considering that this is the "Black Shark" No. 1

A combat mission was carried out overseas, and he fought alone in the enemy's formation. This performance was indeed very good.

Due to proper protective measures, except for four people on the "Black Shark" who were slightly injured during the battle, no one was killed. Next, we only need to replenish ammunition, coal, fresh water and other supplies in time so that the sailors can

Get enough rest and you will be able to continue playing in good condition tomorrow.

The other four exploration-class warships that cooperated with the "Black Shark" on the periphery did not fare so well. Although the combat environment of these ships was much better than that of the "Black Shark", they still inevitably suffered casualties.

Situation. The hull of one of the ships was severely damaged. Several large holes were blasted out of the side by enemy artillery fire. The damage needs to be repaired. It may not be able to participate in combat missions for the next week.

.

But in general, the command is still able to accept this result. Judging from the comparison of the military strength of the two sides, it is basically impossible to capture Manila without damage. As for how much losses there will be during the battle, then

It all depends on the specific operations of the headquarters. Taking down Cavite Port with only the loss of one ship's combat effectiveness is definitely a very cost-effective deal.

As for the Army, currently the troops mainly composed of the 1st Lu Battalion and the 7th Lu Battalion have cleared an area of ​​approximately two square kilometers at the northeastern end of Cavite and established a land defense line to prevent the enemy from launching a counterattack. During the landing battle,

About 300 enemy soldiers were killed and wounded, more than 200 others were captured, more than 200 muskets of various types, nine large and small artillery pieces, and hundreds of cold weapons such as spears, machetes, bows and arrows were seized.

It is worth mentioning that there were about 30 Spaniards among the captured prisoners. Yan Chujie ordered these Spaniards to be held incommunicado until after the war to see if they could extract another ransom from the Spanish authorities. Of course, if the Spanish authorities

If they reject this offer, these people will probably work until they die on a plantation or in a mine.

The Army's casualties were more serious than those of the Navy. During the landing battle, a total of 17 Haihan soldiers were killed, and more than 30 others were injured and could no longer continue fighting. A second lieutenant from the Lu First Battalion platoon

Chang was killed by a stray bullet during the battle, becoming the first officer killed in this operation. However, considering the scale of the battle and the enemy's military strength, this casualty number was still within an acceptable range.

Although the Haihan Army is obviously stronger than its opponents in terms of military strength, this does not mean that the Spaniards are vulnerable. Since the last century, the Spaniards have been operating in the Manila area for more than 60 years, and they themselves are this

One of the maritime military powers of the era, if it had not hit the iron plate of Haihan, it can be said that basically no country in the Far East could truly threaten Manila's security. As for the war launched by Haihan this time, the Spanish

We were also prepared in advance, and we can get a glimpse of it just from the many fortifications built at the Cavite port.

It's just that the effect of Spain's hasty preparations for war stopped here. Although it could cause some trouble for the Haihan Army, it could not prevent the Haihan Army from landing here. As for Juan, he wanted to use the layers of resistance in the peripheral areas to hold him back.

Haihan's footwork tactics have had extremely limited results so far. Cavite failed even after a day of persistence, which did not even reach one-tenth of his expectations.

Fortunately, Juan had already considered the worst case scenario before the war. When he led the Manila fleet to leave the Port of Cavite, he ordered most of the supplies originally stored in the Port of Cavite to be shipped back first.

Manila Port, so as not to give the enemy an advantage after the fall of this place. The result is that the supplies Haihan captured in Cavite are extremely limited. Except for some weapons that are of no use at all and can only be used to recycle, there is nothing of value.

.

"Have you ever looked at the warehouse on the dock? The Spaniards moved it clean enough. My people searched the entire dock and found less than two hundred kilograms of grain!" Yan Chujie clicked his tongue and said, "Schneider also said that we would

Scraping three feet of ground in Manila, I think it’s a big deal, the Spanish have scraped away this land, and we still have nothing to scrape!”

"Lao Yan, don't worry, all the good things must be in Manila!" Qian Tiandun said slowly: "Didn't you examine the prisoners? The Spaniards transported all the things back to the city when they left the port.

We went there and deliberately left Cavite empty for us. If we want to scrape the land, we can’t do it until Manila is conquered.”

Although the generals in the military are not money-crazed, they are not averse to the practice of plundering the enemy's wealth after the war. Haihan's foreign wars are almost always accompanied by high-return spoils, and the economic returns after the war have also become the executive committee member

One of the basis for considering whether it is necessary to launch a foreign war. The Executive Committee indeed has high hopes for the rewards that this attack on Manila can obtain after the war. After all, the military expenditure of this operation is almost equivalent to

The total military expenditure in the past two years has been exceeded. If we don't make a lot of money back, this operation is likely to become a loss-making business.

"Let's not talk about searching for money. What will we do tomorrow? In this weather, there will probably be strong winds and heavy rain tomorrow!" Roger is not very interested in the calculations of the Ministry of National Defense. This time he led his troops back from the South China Sea to join the war.

, the purpose is to prove to the Ministry of National Defense the value of the South China Sea Special Warfare Group trained by it.

The South China Sea Special Warfare Group under Roger is no idler. Even to maintain daily operations and training, its military expenditures are much higher than those of ordinary troops. And there has been no war in Xingdao for a year and a half. If there is no new

With his military achievements, Roger has no sufficient reason to apply for more military expenditures and new equipment from the Ministry of National Defense. Even if the South China Sea Special Warfare Group does have a very strong personal color, Roger cannot maintain this force at his own expense.

existence, otherwise its nature will really become a private army, and this will definitely violate the taboos of the Executive Committee.

Roger saw this attack on Manila as a good opportunity to show his strength, especially since the troops participating in the battle almost brought together all the special forces of the Haihan Army. Of course, he was not willing to lag behind. But today's attack on Jia

In the battle in Midi, the headquarters did not arrange for his troops to take the lead. By the time they landed ashore, it was already the end of the battle. They only sent two platoons symbolically to assist the friendly forces in building a defensive line. In the end, not even a shot was fired.

Of course Roger was not satisfied with this arrangement, but there were thousands of army troops participating in the war this time, and there had to be a division of labor. The headquarters could not send them all into battle at once, and Roger could understand this. So he sent his own troops to fight.

Their hopes were placed on attacking the city of Manila, and they hoped that the next war would proceed quickly.

The influence of weather on the war is undoubtedly a factor that cannot be ignored. With Haihan's current technological level, it is difficult to predict the weather in the Manila area before the expedition. He just chose a season with relatively less severe weather. But the tropical marine climate

It is difficult to predict in itself. Short-term bad weather may occur in offshore areas at any time due to changes in air currents and ocean currents. Originally, today's weather and sea conditions were pretty good, but when night fell, the wind and waves on the sea became significantly stronger.

, and rain began to fall in the sky. According to experience, there is likely to be relatively intensive rainfall in the next day or two, and this will inevitably affect the next actions of the Haihan Army.

Of course, this impact is definitely not one-sided. The Spanish army as the defender will also be affected by the weather. The coastal defense forts that the Haihan Army is quite afraid of will definitely have their combat effectiveness greatly reduced. If it can

Find a suitable fighting method, this may not be an opportunity to break through the enemy's defense line.

"Hang up Map No. 1 of Manila Bay." Yan Chujie ordered.

Soon this map of the area including Manila City was hung on the wall of the conference room. It is worth noting that the logo of the coastal defense fort has been added to this map after receiving the latest information from Manila.

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Chapter completed!