The Port of Seville is located in the southern part of the Iberian Peninsula, in the lower valley of the Guadalquivir River, about one hundred kilometers south of the Gulf of Cadiz, with a population of approximately hundreds of thousands.
The Guadalquivir River flows through the city. The buildings in the city still retain their appearance during the Moorish rule. The land here is open and low, with an average altitude of less than 100 meters. Most of the land is fertile alluvial. The plains are very conducive to agricultural cultivation.
However, the Spaniards did not want to develop planting industry here!
Because, compared to the lucrative maritime trade, the returns from the planting industry are really too low...
Therefore, this coastal city, which is the only coastal city with an inland river port and is located at the mouth of the Mediterranean Sea and close to the Strait of Gibraltar, naturally takes advantage of its terrain to develop shipbuilding, transportation, logistics and trade transactions, etc., which are related to Spain's national strength and economic pillar industries. .
Especially after Columbus discovered the New World, the 'Indus Islands (New World of America) Trading House' began to be established here, monopolizing the overseas trade of Spain and almost all of Europe (mainly the American part), making the city of Seville a Rapidly developed into the most prosperous economic port and city in Europe.
European countries are obviously very jealous of this.
But there is no way. Now the Kingdom of Spain is the most powerful maritime country in Europe. They have an invincible fleet and can fight European powers such as the Netherlands, Austria, Britain and the Ottoman Empire on land and sea at the same time on the sea and the land of the New World. And don’t fall behind.
This was the era of the Spanish Armada. Although other countries, such as the United Kingdom or France, were jealous, they could only make small moves in private. They just wanted to continue to encroach on Spain's overseas colonies. They did not dare to go directly. To tease the Spaniard's beard.
Of course, other European countries don't dare, but that doesn't mean that the Li family fleet from the Ming Empire in the east doesn't dare!
Isn’t this?
While all the forces in Europe were dumbfounded, the Commander-in-Chief of the Spanish Armada and the Admiral of the Royal Spanish Navy, Pedro de Barrudis, announced a formal war against the Li family fleet of the Ming Dynasty in a very high-profile manner, and a week later today , allowing such a huge fleet with more than a hundred warships to complete its formation on the sea outside the port of Seville and begin to slowly move south.
That's right, more than a hundred ships.
Moreover, they are all dedicated warships, and the sailors are all Spanish navy soldiers. There is not even a fully armed merchant ship or transport ship in the formation!
After sailing for a long time and seeing that everything was going well, the commander-in-chief of the Spanish Armada and the admiral of the Kingdom of Spain, Pedro de Barrudis, finally stroked the railing of the bow with satisfaction and looked at the men under his command. proud of the huge Spanish Armada.
This is Spain's confidence in dominating Europe and even the world.
And now, they are about to give a good look to the Oriental who came here from a distant country and began to challenge their Spanish majesty!
"Admiral!"
At this time, a young officer in military uniform came behind Fleet Commander Barudis.
"Well?"
"Is it Alonso?"
"Just say what you have to say, don't hesitate."
Barudis glanced at the other party, and when he saw that the other party's expression seemed a little hesitant, he chuckled, and then said bluntly.
"yes!"
"Admiral..."
"I also asked the captains under the businessman Giannimo de Espinoza. They all said that the Li family's fleet is not easy to deal with."
"Those Easterners, their naval guns have more than twice the range of ours. They can maintain a high hit rate within a distance of 800 to 1,000 yards. Their power is also terrifying. In addition, their speed is also fast and their ships are large. , there are at least a hundred naval guns on each side of the ship, and the firepower is extremely terrifying!"
"In this case, we don't seem to have any good way to deal with them."
The young officer Alonso said what he was worried about. In his opinion, the trouble a large fleet such as theirs would have to find a small fleet with only five ships, but with faster speed and longer range, would be the only problem. It's definitely not easy.
In particular, unlike the other countries in Europe, those Ming people from the Far East did not have their own land and ports in Europe, nor did they have to guard a certain place to prevent the attack of their invincible fleet. Therefore, he was worried about this time But his actions are not very promising.
Anyway, if he is the admiral of the Li family fleet, he can just walk away. No matter how powerful the Armada is, what can it do to him?
Of course, if he were the admiral of those five ships, he might be able to do some more terrifying things, and it was the kind of crazy behavior that would make him feel cold from the soles of his feet to his forehead just thinking about it. He only dared to think about it. I thought about it but didn’t dare to say it.
"Ah!"
"Yes, of course I know what you are talking about!"
"but……"
"Didn't we order Las Palmas' fleet to go north?"
"What we have to do is not to annihilate them all. We only need to capture or sink one of their ships and obtain their naval guns and ship-related data."
"Once we obtain those things, no one can ever shake the hegemony of our Kingdom of Spain!"
Think about the Protestants, the Dutch, the Austrians, the increasingly dishonest British and the Ottoman navy who were arrogant and domineering in the New World and did not heed Spain's warnings and threats. Pedro de Baroudis, the elusive pirate king of the Mediterranean Sea and the Strait of Gibraltar, Hayreddin, smiled coldly and subconsciously touched the admiral's sword on his waist that was personally awarded to him by the King of Spain.
As long as he obtains the data on the artillery and ships of the Li family fleet from the far east, from the declining Ming Empire, and then studies and imitates them, he believes that by then there will be no more people in Europe and the New World. It is the opponent of the Kingdom of Spain!
By then, after the Kingdom of Spain dominates Europe and the New World, it must not be difficult to go south to Africa and completely drive away the Li family forces who have come from afar from Africa?
Moreover, he heard that the Dutch were organizing an expedition ship, seemingly preparing to regain the interests of the Indian Ocean and the Spicy Islands in Guawa?
At that time, Spain can wait for them to fight first and lose their strength, and then follow them to capture India and Guava in one fell swoop, and then seize the money bags of the Dutch and Portuguese!
Especially the Portuguese…
Barudis knows that the Portuguese, whether it is Abokoluq or the large and small chambers of commerce, have been making a lot of small moves recently!
It's a pity that they are unlucky. Portugal is on the verge of death. In addition, they have been hit one after another by the Ming Dynasty. I don't know if they can recover?
However, it would be best if it fails to slow down and continues to decline, because in that case, Spain can openly annex Portugal.
"correct!"
"How long will it take for us to reach the waters near Madeira?"
After thinking for a while, Barudis suddenly asked.
Now he doesn't want to care about the life or death of the Portuguese, nor does he want to care about the conspiracy of the British or the Dutch. He just wants to reach Madeira quickly and capture the Li family fleet, and get the things he hopes to get!
"Report to the Admiral!"
"The fleet is too big and I'm afraid it won't be able to speed up. In addition, we are taking advantage of the headwind from the side. I estimate that it will take at least seven to eight days to reach Madeira."
"..."
"A week?"
"snort!"
"I hope those Easterners from the Ming Empire won't run away!"
"run?"
"Probably not?"
"Why not? If I were them, I would probably run away too!"
"But……"
"Admiral!"
"Didn't we already give orders to the fleet commander of Las Palmas? They will try to go to Madeira first and drag those Ming people there?"
"Ah!"
"Can they hold off?"
"this……"
"If you don't seek to engage in combat or annihilate the enemy, but just make the enemy fearful and maintain their existence, I think there should be no problem."
"After all, the Li family's fleet only has five giant warships. They also have to guard and suppress Madeira. I'm afraid those Ming people will not be too relaxed and cannot separate the warships to deal with Las Palmas' fleet."
"besides!"
"The Portuguese are very tenacious. They will certainly not let a group of people from the distant east occupy their ports and cities easily. Don't worry about this!"
The young officer Alonso answered loudly, trying his best to comfort the admiral of their Armada, and at the same time comforting himself.
"Well, I hope..."
Nodding, the Commander-in-Chief of the Spanish Armada and the Admiral of the Royal Navy, Pedro de Barrudis, said no more. He just turned around silently and looked at the dozens of large Spanish square sailing ships (Galenic) behind him. The fleet consists of dozens of medium-sized two-masted and three-masted sailing warships.
This time, after informing His Majesty the King, he dispatched a total of 150 large and medium-sized warships, carrying more than 3,000 cannons and tens of thousands of soldiers. As long as the enemy did not run away, he could definitely defeat those Only the Li family fleet of five ships was left in Madeira.
Of course, he had also heard that Gianlonimo de Espinoza talk about the Battle of Comoros at that time, and knew that the Li family's fleet had strong ships and powerful guns. However, this time, unlike those merchants' armed sailing ships, They are all warships here. When the time comes, after the arrangements are made, they will rush directly towards Madeira from all directions at the same time. Even if the ships of the Li family fleet are powerful and cause certain losses to his fleet, he is still confident enough to defeat those ships. Enemies from the far east!
Because, no matter how much loss he may suffer, he is not afraid!
The invincible Spanish fleet and the courageous Spanish naval soldiers will definitely not be like those cowardly merchant pirates who hesitate to move forward after losses. They will rush forward to the enemy under gunfire and launch resistance against the enemy. In close range bombardment or gang fighting, even if one third or more of the warships are lost, they will not hesitate!
In fact, Baroudis is not worried about losses at all!
After all, the Spanish Armada is a terrifying fleet with more than a thousand large and small ships (some of which are small and medium-sized armed merchant ships or transport ships). Even if the fleet he brought out this time was damaged by more than half, as long as he got the ships of the Eastern Ming people, The data on guns and ships are all worth it.
But...
When the Commander-in-Chief of the Spanish Armada and the Admiral of the Royal Spanish Navy, Pietro de Barrudis, and his officers were thinking and dreaming, what they did not know was:
Not long after they left the port of Seville, their squadron from the port of Las Palmas, with more than 20 large and small ships, had successfully invaded Madeira. In the port.
"Report!"
"Captain, the Li family fleet is not here!"
"The workers on the dock said that their people had quietly evacuated last night, and no one was left. There are no of their people here, and there is no ship of theirs!"
A group of soldiers who were ordered to investigate the city and the dock hurriedly ran back and reported to the squadron commander who was leading the soldiers in formation on the dock, enjoying the pointing and surprised looks of the Portuguese. .
"!!"
"Do you know where they went?"
The squadron commander of the Armada was actually mentally prepared. Otherwise, how could they have invaded the Madeira port so easily without firing a single shot?
"Sir!"
"A merchant ship captain who entered the port in the morning said that he saw five huge black ships heading north at night."
"??"
"North?"
"Yes."
"!!"
"not good!"
"Quick! Arrange two clippers to head north immediately and report the situation to Governor Baroudis!"
The squadron commander's face darkened, and then he immediately turned around and gave an order to a herald.
"yes!"
"As you command!"
The herald ran straight to the berth of the dock.
Soon, two armed clippers with three masts and square sails sailed out of the port. Then, driven by the south wind, they quickly inflated their sails and adjusted their direction, and began to accelerate toward the northwest.
…
At this time, on the sea, the five giant ships of the Li family fleet were continuing to sail rapidly in the north-east direction with the wind.
At this time, the speed of the five ships reached more than twelve knots with a tailwind, which dumbfounded the sailors and captains of the ships that occasionally saw passing ships at this busy Mediterranean outlet.
They have obviously never seen a ship that is so huge and can run so fast, be so flexible, and not fall apart?
Of course, as for what those people thought, Anne didn't care, because at this time, she was comfortably swaying and dozing in the fishing net hammock tied to the bow of the boat, and enjoying the cool sea breeze.
"..."
∠(ᐛ ∠)＿
"??"
(๑•̌.•̑๑)ˀ̣ˀ̣
"Hey! Why are you hanging around? If you had nothing to do, would you go fishing?"
٩(ŏ﹏ŏ、)۶
Annie didn't know how many times she saw that guy Song Yifeng wandering in front of her and stopped talking, so she was a little impatient and couldn't help but ask.
"Annie..."
"Are we really going to fight those Spanish Armada?"
"I heard they have thousands of war ships!"
"That's not the kind of small sampan used by Japanese pirates. Are you sure you want to go?"
Yes, this is what Song Yifeng is worried about, because Anne only said to send the fleet north towards Spain and the Mediterranean, but did not say what to do. Of course, she thought that the other party must be looking for trouble with those invincible fleets.
"Of course not!"
ヾ(^▽^*)))
"ah?"
"Then we are now..."
Song Yifeng was startled, and then there were more questions in his mind.
"you are stupid!"
(｡•̀ᴗ-)
"We have so few ships, why should we fight with them head-on?"
↜(ψ｀▽′)o
"Actually, we are going to sneak attack their lair now!"
ꉂ(๑¯͒ꇴ¯͒)✧
"Let's take advantage of their fleet's departure to bomb their home port and military port to make them mad!"
٩(ˊ◡ˋ*)و✧
"ah?"
Song Yifeng was shocked. She didn't expect Annie's plan to be like this.
"Didn't those Portuguese say that?"
|ू•ૅω•́)ᵎᵎ
"If we go to war with the Spaniards, they are willing to temporarily lease Madeira to us, and they will not even pursue the Malay Governor's matter, so we might as well just go and fight Spain!"
(๑‾ꇴ‾๑) Hehe!
"But……"
"They must be taking advantage of us, right?"
Song Yifeng knew that the Portuguese were not well-intentioned, so she had no hope of actually fighting with the Spaniards and their invincible fleet.
"yes!"
o(*¯︶¯*)o
"But it doesn't matter. If someone is willing to take the initiative to secretly supply us with shells and gunpowder, then things will be much simpler!"
↜(ψ｀▽′)o
"Anyway, let's turn the Mediterranean upside down!"
✧*. ٩(⃔｀▽′)⃕و✧*.
In Anne's view, it must be impossible to occupy all the large cities and ports in the Mediterranean!
Because that requires a large number of troops, and she also needs to fight dozens or even millions of enemies to defend the places she has conquered. Moreover, unless she is willing to create people again, more than 100,000 or 200,000 The Musketeers or something, but that would be too troublesome after all, and Anne obviously didn't want to do that.
Therefore, use the five ships in your hands like pirates to directly carry out raids in the Mediterranean Sea, sink enemy ships, merchant ships, bombard enemy ports, cities or military ports, and then hit and run, destroying the Mediterranean Sea. If it was smashed directly or something, then it would definitely not be a big problem.
She wanted that invincible fleet to know what dire consequences it would have to pay for directly launching a war against her!
Moreover, they are different from pirates. They don't steal things, and they don't easily kill people or set fires. They just destroy each other's military and commercial facilities and paralyze ports and ships.
"ah?"
"But, it sounds very dangerous..."
Song Yifeng always felt a sense of trembling fear when she heard that Annie planned to use only five ships to rush to the Mediterranean Sea to fight.
It was just as scary as when she dreamed at night, she was always caught and stripped naked by a scary monster, and then thrown into her mouth and chewed!
"Do not worry about it!"
(๑‾ꇴ‾๑) Hehe!
"If we can't beat him, let's just run!"
ꉂꉂ(ᵔᗜᵔ*)
It really doesn't matter. If Anne thinks about it, by then, the most that will happen is that all the countries in the Mediterranean will become enemies of her, and then organize hundreds, thousands, or even more terrorist fleets to encircle and suppress them?
But she was not afraid, because their ship was fast and the sea was big, so she would not worry about being caught by the enemy.
Besides, I’ve been too bored lately, and things like being chased by a lot of ships...
She, Grand Admiral Anne, finds it fun and exciting just thinking about it now, so she will definitely not miss it no matter what.
(✧◡✧)
(…)
(●￣㉨￣●)
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ᕕ(ᐛ)ᕗᕕ(ᐛ)ᕗ
It’s the end of the month, please vote
