"Oh my God! What have they done?" When the ship sailed into the port of Port Royal, the special envoy sent by King George II of the United Kingdom was frightened by the "decorations" hanging around the port of Port Royal.
Jump.
After all, even in the darkest Middle Ages in Europe, when people tried large-scale trials of heretics and witches, the docks were not filled with wooden piles and hung with corpses.
The envoy took a cursory glance and saw at least hundreds of corpses.
However, the special envoy did not blindly think that this was an indiscriminate killing of innocent people. After all, Britain also had an old tradition of hanging pirates up for public display.
For example, the famous pirate captain William Kidd was hanged and his body was covered with tar and hung in an iron cage by the Thames River for two years.
If these corpses hanging here are all pirates, then there is nothing surprising. The only question is why there are so many.
The envoy boarded the dock with doubts. Governor Swann and Beckett, who had already received the news, and senior officials of the East India Company were at the dock to greet him.
The envoy himself certainly does not deserve such grand treatment, but he represents the King of England, so that is naturally different.
Before Chen Mo could make the East India Company and the British royal family break up, they still needed to show respect to the royal power.
"Governor Swann, Lord Beckett, Your Majesty heard about your actions in the Caribbean, and sent me specially to express greetings to you two. At the same time, you also asked me to ask you some questions to answer the royal family's doubts." Special Envoy
After some polite exchanges with Governor Swann and Beckett, he told his purpose of visiting.
Because the royal family was actually very dissatisfied with the war initiated by the East India Company and Governor Swann's failure to promptly notify the mainland of the matter, the envoy did not behave very politely.
Otherwise, he would not have started talking about it directly on the dock in front of everyone.
However, this situation had been anticipated by Governor Swann and Beckett, and they had no worries or thoughts because of the envoy's attitude.
Governor Swan said to the special envoy enthusiastically: "Mr. special envoy, there is no need to be so excited. Everything we do is for the benefit of the United Kingdom, and we are happy to answer your and the royal family's questions.
But before that, please go to my Governor's Mansion. We have prepared your welcome banquet. Let's have a drink first! A friend recently gave me a very good red wine. I think you must
Will like it.”
Faced with Governor Swan's enthusiastic invitation, the envoy hesitated but accepted his invitation.
Although the war initiated by the East India Company made the British mainland very passive, it was won after all and had an advantage.
Under such circumstances, it was impossible for George II, who was fond of martial arts and had strong martial virtues, to pursue Governor Swann and Beckett for their "provocation".
After all, the British Empire was constantly acquiring colonies in the New World through colonial wars during this period, and launching a war was not a big deal.
What really made the royal family feel dissatisfied was that they did not receive any news before the war began, and Governor Swan, a governor who was supposed to be loyal to the country and the royal family, also did not inform the mainland about this matter.
The East India Company invested more than a hundred warships in this war, mobilized twelve infantry regiments, and spent at least hundreds of thousands of pounds on military expenses. The royal family had to wait until the Spanish were ready for such a large operation.
We only found out after mobilizing troops and sending reinforcements. How could this not make George II angry?
It was precisely for this purpose that George II sent an envoy to confirm whether the East India Company and Governor Swann were still loyal to the royal family and whether they had any thoughts of betraying Britain.
And a banquet is undoubtedly the most suitable channel to find out the news.
The special envoy got into Governor Swann's carriage and the group returned to the Governor's Mansion.
However, on the way, the special envoy was still curious and asked Governor Swan: "Your Excellency, why are there so many corpses in Port Royal?"
"These corpses? They are all pirates." Governor Swan heard the envoy's inquiry and smiled nonchalantly: "Before the war, in order to stabilize the security in the Caribbean and increase our strength, we suppressed and cleared pirates.
Those who are unwilling to surrender will be executed as pirates, while those who are willing to surrender can obtain a privateering license and become employees of the East India Company."
"Sounds good, then why did you execute so many people instead of integrating them into infantry?" The envoy was still puzzled.
There is nothing wrong with Governor Swan's strategy. During this period, the armies of various countries were actually filled with quite a few criminals, gangsters, and second sons or illegitimate children without inheritance rights. These captured pirates were also a very high-quality source of soldiers.
After all, in this era, the army's death rate is really high. After all, there are only a few people who voluntarily join the army. Only those who want to risk their lives for a better future will take the initiative to join the army.
To a large extent, the recruitment of soldiers in various countries really relies on recruiting strong men to form an army.
If these pirates are incorporated into the army, to a large extent, they will indeed be a good source of soldiers. After all, they are all outlaws who take life and death lightly, so they can be more courageous on the battlefield.
And crew members usually have good obedience, because at sea, the captain's orders are absolute, and sailors who disobey orders will usually be severely punished. Unless the captain is too cruel and causes the crew to mutiny, the captain's orders are the most satisfying on the ship.
where it is firmly enforced.
However, Governor Swan shook his head and did not support the envoy's statement: "They are too free and loose. Pirates usually have little discipline. If they are organized into an army, they will not be able to exert sufficient combat effectiveness, so it is better to directly
It would be better to hang yourself."
Although the special envoy disagreed with this, he did not criticize a governor's governance strategy. He just shook his head in disapproval: "It's better to get rid of these corpses and leave some hanging to deter other pirates.
Having so many corpses hanging on the roadside still affects the image of Britain."
"Don't worry, we are already cleaning up, and these corpses will be properly disposed of." Governor Swan said this, with a slightly strange smile on his face.
When the special envoy heard what Governor Swan said, he didn't doubt him, so he dropped his concern about the matter and didn't ask any more questions.
Instead, Governor Swan took out two cups and a bottle of red wine from the small box in the carriage and said to the special envoy: "Mr. special envoy, you have been tired all the way. Why don't you drink a drink first to relieve your fatigue? This is a gift from a friend of mine."
My good wine!”
Facing Governor Swan's warm invitation, the envoy hesitated for a moment and accepted the wine glass.