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The Suez Canal was built and opened to navigation in 1869. It is a sea-level waterway that runs through the Isthmus of Suez in Egypt, connects the Mediterranean and the Red Sea, and provides the shortest route from Europe to the lands near the Indian Ocean and the Western Pacific. It is one of the most frequently used routes in the world.
.It is also the boundary between Asia and Africa and the main channel for people from Asia and Africa to travel. The canal runs from Port Said in the north to Suez in the south.
The city is 190 kilometers (105 nautical miles) long. It dug a tunnel from the north of Port Said into the Mediterranean Sea and to the south of Suez. Construction started in 1859 and took 10 years to complete. The initial plan was to dig a tunnel from the delta along the Tumela River.
Small canals and a southern branch canal lead to Suez, and a northern section to Port Said. This canal provided drinking water to other arid areas and was completed in 1863.
Marx called the Suez Canal "the great waterway of the East." After the completion of the Suez Canal, it greatly shortened the voyage from Asian ports to Europe, roughly by more than 8,000 to 10,000 kilometers. It connected the Red Sea and the Mediterranean.
It connects the Atlantic Ocean to the Indian and Pacific Oceans via the Mediterranean Sea and the Suez Canal, and is an international shipping waterway with important economic and strategic significance.
In 1859, the Canal Company hired thousands of Egyptian migrant workers at very low wages and forced them to perform extremely heavy labor in the tropical desert of the Isthmus of Suez. There was a lack of drinking water at the construction site, and a large number of migrant workers died of thirst. The food provided by the company was shoddy and small in quantity.
One meal was not even enough to satisfy the hunger of a child, and most migrant workers were often in a state of semi-starvation. The sanitary conditions were very poor, and diseases such as bronchitis, hepatitis, pulmonary dysentery, etc. were extremely common, especially the plague, which claimed the lives of a large number of migrant workers.
In 1863, typhoid fever swept through the construction site, and many migrant workers died suddenly; in 1865, cholera broke out at the construction site, and a large number of migrant workers died. Even the people who sent the patients to the first aid station could not be found, and no one was there to dispose of the bodies of the migrant workers who died on the construction site.
To build the Suez Canal, 120,000 Egyptian workers sacrificed their lives, with an average of 738.5 deaths per kilometer.
In 1875, foreign debt forced Pasha (Said Pasha's successor) to sell his shares in the canal to the British. In 1882, British cavalry stationed in the canal. In 1888, the Congress of Constantinople declared the canal neutral under the protection of the British Empire.
Zone, stipulating that the canal is open to ships of all countries during peace or war. In addition, the convention also stipulates that no hostilities shall be allowed in the waters of the canal, and fortifications shall not be built along its coast. This gave the British control of this transportation artery.
.
On February 1, 1899, after two weeks of sailing, the Japanese fleet arrived at the Suez Canal. In Port Said, there was a supply station established by the British Navy. The Japanese fleet could replenish supplies such as fresh water and coal here. At the same time,
It can also allow the Japanese navy soldiers to disembark and exercise to relieve the fatigue of the journey. Because they are likely to encounter the Chinese navy halfway, Lieutenant General Togo Heihachiro hopes to keep the soldiers' fighting spirit high, so as to deal with the disadvantaged Japanese navy
is very important.
Port Said is located at the northern end of the Suez Canal. It has developed rapidly due to the opening of the canal. Here, not only all kinds of food and supplies are sold, but sailors can also go ashore for recreation. For example, after the Japanese fleet arrives this time, it will
The prosperity of Port Said contributed a lot of money. Many Japanese soldiers vented their long-spent energy on these black African or Arab women.
Here, there are also warehouses opened by the Chinese. When the Japanese fleet arrived in Port Said, the news was immediately sent back to the country, allowing the Imperial Navy to accurately grasp the whereabouts of the Japanese navy and make necessary deployments.
On February 3, the replenished Japanese fleet set sail again, crossing the Suez Canal and entering the Red Sea. At this moment, in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait of the Red Sea, a Chinese naval warship flying the blue-background golden dragon flag was cruising here. This is the Chinese Navy
The 'Wuwei' among the 'Tianshui-class' light cruisers. They were ordered to go here, wait for the Japanese fleet, then track and monitor the Japanese fleet, and report the movements of the Japanese fleet to the country.
In the bridge of the 'Wuwei', the captain, Lieutenant Colonel Gao Hui, looked at his watch anxiously. The Japanese fleet had set off five days ago, why hasn't it arrived yet? The Bab el-Mandeb Strait connects the Red Sea and Aden.
This is the main channel of the sea, and the Japanese fleet must pass through it. Therefore, the "Wuwei" came here to wait.
"Captain, please relax! Since the Japanese fleet has appeared in Port Said, they can only pass through here!" The navigator of the 'Wuwei' comforted him when he saw Gao Hui's anxious look.
"Yes! This time, little Japan knows that it is certain to die, so naturally it will delay a little bit. This is completely understandable!" The gunnery commander of the 'Wuwei' also joked.
"Any further delay will lead to a dead end. It is better to die early and be born early! Try not to be Japanese in the next life, and this will not happen!" Gao Hui said.
"Haha! Captain, you don't know this! Little Japan believes in Shintoism, and they believe in Amaterasu, which is different from the King of Yama we believe in. Even if Little Japan dies in this life, what will happen in the next life?
! Or we can only be little Japan!" the gunnery commander laughed.
"Coming, coming! The little Japanese fleet has appeared!" Suddenly, the lookout hand of the 'Wuwei' issued a warning. In the meantime, a large plume of thick smoke appeared more than 20 kilometers north of the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.
, this is a sign that a huge fleet is sailing on the sea.
"The damn ones are finally here! Prepare to turn around, we just need to follow them from a distance!" Gao Hui ordered. The endurance of the 'Tianshui-class' light cruiser is not high, only 4,000 nautical miles, and it can only fly from Manchuria to Manchuria.
Sailing from the German Strait to the Strait of Malacca, if you want to return to your country
If so, it must be replenished during this period. However, China does not have a supply station in the Pacific, and the British supply station will definitely not be open to the Chinese Navy. The Chinese Navy had to first deploy a few supply ships in the Indian Ocean.
ships to deal with emergencies.
The 'Wuwei' is just a light cruiser, and it certainly cannot compete with such a huge Japanese fleet. Therefore, their mission is only to monitor. With a maximum speed of 30 knots, it is enough to get rid of all Japanese warships.
"Your Excellency, Commander, a Chinese warship has been discovered twenty kilometers south of us." In the bridge of the "Shikishima", a staff officer handed the information to Togo Heihachiro.
"Haga! These Chinese people showed up so early? Damn it!" Togo Heihachiro was furious. Originally, in order to bring the fleet back to the country safely, he planned to skip the Strait of Malacca and pass through the Java Sea after entering the Indian Ocean.
Makassar Sea
Strait, and then enter the Pacific Ocean from the Celebes Sea at the southern tip of the Philippines, avoiding the South China Sea, which is heavily guarded by the Chinese Navy. But now, a Chinese Navy reconnaissance ship actually appeared in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, which immediately put an end to his plan.
A place of use.
"Your Excellency, Commander, send destroyers to drive away that China warship!" Rear Admiral Samejima Aki, chief of staff of the fleet, suggested.
"Okay! However, it probably won't be of much use!" Lieutenant General Togo Heihachiro said.
Togo Heihachiro has a deep understanding of the speed of the Chinese Navy's light cruisers. During the Sino-Japanese East China Sea Battle, the Chinese Navy's "Leshan-class" light cruiser gave the Japanese Navy a powerful blow, and the Japanese Navy was unable to fight back.
. And now, since the Chinese Navy dares to send warships to monitor the Japanese fleet, it must be fully confident.
Soon, the five destroyers of the Japanese fleet used their full power and quickly chased the "Wuwei". The speed slowly increased from the initial 10 knots to 28 knots. This was already their top speed.
"Captain, a small Japanese destroyer is coming up. Should we retreat or teach them a lesson first?" the navigator asked.
"Captain, there are only five destroyers. If they can't catch up with us, we can sink one or two destroyers first and then retreat!" the gunnery commander also said excitedly. These people are all militants.
The armament of the 'Tianshui-class' light cruiser is two twin-mounted 155mm naval guns, placed at the bow and stern respectively. There are also 6 105mm rapid-fire guns as secondary guns and 8 88mm rapid-fire guns. In addition,
There are also 8 doors with 37 mm
Meter rapid-fire cannons are installed on both sides of the battleship. The powerful firepower is simply not comparable to the destroyers of the Japanese fleet. If an attack is launched, even if the five destroyers of the Japanese fleet attack together, they will probably not be the opponent of the "Wuwei"
.
However, Gao Hui hesitated for a moment and still issued the order to retreat. Although the relationship between China and Japan is very tense now, overall, there has not been a formal war. He, a small lieutenant colonel, light cruiser
He still couldn't bear it if the president provoked a war.
"In addition, send the information about our encounter with the Japanese fleet back to China!" Gao Hui ordered.
Although the soldiers on the "Wuwei" were a little unwilling, they still obeyed the order and began to turn around and retreat southward. Thick smoke billowed out of the chimney, and the speed of the "Wuwei" quickly increased, reaching 28 knots.
, and the same speed as the destroyers of the Japanese fleet, making it impossible for them to catch up.
The destroyers of the Japanese fleet chased for dozens of kilometers and found that they could not catch up before they returned. When the destroyers of the Japanese navy returned, the "Wuwei" followed them again and stuck to the Japanese fleet like a piece of brown sugar.
Leave them helpless.
After several attempts in a row, it was found that the "Wuwei" could not be driven away, so the Japanese fleet gave up. However, the faces of the Japanese fleet were very ugly. With Chinese Navy warships following them all the way, their actions would be completely There are no secrets left. It seems impossible to escape the interception of the Chinese Navy and return to Japan safely.
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