"Da, Dafantou, they are all wearing plate armor... What should we do?"
The one who asked the question was Masuda Shiro Tokisada. He and Matsukura Shiurito were equally dumbstruck when they came up with the Dinghai on their front and rear feet, because he was also unarmored like Matsukura Shiurito - they were actually a trap for the shameless navy. Well, it was the navy on the Izu who told them not to wear armor at the end of the fight.
Because there is a high probability that sailors will fall into the water during a gang-hopping battle. If they are not careful during the gang-hopping process, they will fall into the water. If the gang-hopping cannot win and they have to retreat, they will jump into the sea and escape. To put on dozens of kilograms of armor would be to commit suicide by jumping into the sea!
In addition, there are many firearms on warships, including not only naval guns that can be used to attack enemy ships, but also professional deck guns for "sweeping the deck", as well as various muskets used by sailors. Wearing armor can protect against knives, swords, and maybe guns, but it cannot protect against cannons and guns. Not only is it impossible to prevent, it will also hinder the treatment of injuries.
Therefore, wearing armor in a naval battle may be more likely to die than not wearing armor. As a result, the armor coverage rate of navies of various countries is getting lower and lower.
The Japanese shogunate navy stipulated that no armor should be worn in ship battles. According to the exact information obtained by the shogunate, the regulations of the Ming Dynasty Royal Navy also clearly stipulated that naval personnel were not allowed to wear armor when fighting at sea.
Therefore, Matsukura Shigeri and his 250 Shimabara samurai were all unarmored and did not carry armor-breaking blunt weapons. 200 of them all carried Odachi (a very long katana) that could be used in the field. ), and the rest carried iron cannons and ordinary-length katana swords.
Including Matsukura and Masuda, the first batch of Japanese samurai to climb aboard the Dinghai were all carrying Odachi... And how could they break through the Ming army's slat armor with an Odachi?
What should we do in this situation now?
Masuda Shiro Tokisada, who believes in Catholicism and cannot commit suicide (fighting with the Ming army soldiers in front of him would be suicide!) is now anxiously waiting for Matsukura Shigetoshi's answer!
The Shimabara samurai who did not know that the Ming navy had broken the rules were still climbing up. After climbing up, they, like Masuda Shiro Tokisada, saw the Ming navy soldiers who did not abide by the rules and fought in armor. All were at a loss.
However, Matsukura Shigeuri had already recovered from the shock and loudly said: "Shimabara samurai... whether you are advancing or retreating, charge forward!"
After shouting, Matsukura Shigeuri drew out his Odachi sword, yelled and rushed towards a particularly grown-up Ming army soldier.
When the soldier saw Matsukura Shigeri rushing towards him, he was not nervous at all. He just calmly swung his sword to block Matsukura's Odachi, then waved his vine shield and hit Matsukura's head with all his strength. ! Matsukura Shigeri screamed, then collapsed to the ground, unable to move. I don't know if he was fainted or became a god?
The group of Shimabara samurai below saw their boss being so brave, and their eyes turned red. They all roared and waved their Odachi swords and rushed towards the Ming army soldiers wearing plate armor and holding swords and shields. Then, the soldiers of the Ming Army on the opposite side were like chopping melons and vegetables. In the blink of an eye, they chopped down or knocked out a deck of Japanese samurai...
"Hahaha..." On the back deck of the Dinghai, Lieutenant General Zu Kuan of Liaoxi was already laughing from ear to ear, and said to Hans Postmann beside him, "These Japanese dwarfs are so funny." , How can anyone go into battle without wearing armor and only carrying a thin knife? Fighting is not about killing people like a gangster! They are like pirates, so how can they go into battle!"
After hearing what he said, Hans Postman just shook his head repeatedly. Can the navy still wear armor after joining the gang? Aren't you afraid of falling into the water? Moreover, gang fighting is not the main mode of naval battles. Naval battles mainly rely on cannons. Even if you get close, there are also muskets and deck guns. The reason why these bumpkins from the Army were brought in today was because Zu Kuan was clamoring for meritorious service, otherwise the Japanese over there would have been killed by muskets and deck guns... If there was no such certainty, Hans Postman would never give the Japanese boat a chance to come up and fight the gang!
At this time, the battle on the deck of the Dinghai was almost over. Except for some of the samurai who boarded the ship with Shigetoshi Matsukura and committed suicide by jumping into the sea (they were not navy, they were not that good at water and could not swim to the island), the rest either died in battle or died in battle. Captured!
Hans Postman withdrew his gaze from the deck and looked at the surrounding sea. The warships on both sides were already mixed together, and a maritime melee, which the Beiyang Navy was best at, had already begun.
As long as the melee begins, the Beiyang Navy will definitely win!
Because the advantages in equipment, training, command, and even numbers are all with the Beiyang Navy. Even the Dutch instructors are much better than the Spanish instructors!
Once the Beiyang Navy severely damages or even annihilates the main force of the Shogunate Navy, all maritime power in Northeast Asia will belong to the Ming Dynasty.
With sea power, how could the Ming army go nowhere in Northeast Asia?
Thinking of this, Postman said to Zu Kuan: "Lieutenant Zu, after this battle, are you still going to Lushunkou?"
Zu Kuan was stunned. "Admiral Put, what do you mean by this? Where can we go if we don't go to Lushunkou?"
Postman raised his hand and pointed to the Iron Mountain Peninsula on the Korean Peninsula, "That's Iron Mountain... If 10,000 of your people land there, they can capture Uiju of Korea to the north and to the south. Go down to Pyongyang, the Western capital of North Korea!”
"This..." Zu Kuan swallowed. Recovering Pyongyang was a great achievement of the feudal lord!
But the risk seems not small!
"Admiral Putu," Zu Kuan said, "Yiju and Pyongyang are the territory of slaves and traitors with two white flags. Dorgon and Dodo will definitely not ignore death. If they lead the cavalry and gallop back... I can only 10,000 people, and they are all infantry!"
"Going back at a gallop?" Postman laughed. "Can the slaves' cavalry run faster than my warship? How far is it from Gaizhou to Pyongyang?"
"More than 1,000 miles..." Zu Kuan said, "The cavalry will travel day and night, and it can be completed in five days at the earliest."
"It's only 500 miles from Tieshan to Lushun, and my fleet can complete it in one day!" Hans Postmann said, "It's only more than 1,000 miles from Tieshan to Beacon Mountain, and my fleet can complete it in two days. , you can go there and back in four days!
Infantry with two legs cannot outrun cavalry with four legs, and cavalry with four legs cannot outrun battleships using sails... Under the current wind direction and force, my battleship can travel 40 miles in an hour, and in a day 12 hours is almost 500 miles...and traveling 200 miles a day on horseback will wear out both the man and the horse, while traveling 500 miles a day by boat requires just lying down and not moving.
Moreover, traveling 200 miles a day on horseback must be carried lightly, but on a warship of the Ming Navy, you can even bring enough rations for several months, as well as cannons and horses!
Therefore, after the Battle of Pi Island, there is no suspense about the outcome of the war in East Asia and the ownership of hegemony! "
This is the advantage of sea power!
Although the Ming Dynasty could control the sea to a certain extent before the formation of the Sanyo Fleet, it did not have the ability to transport tens of thousands of troops to Korea and Japan, so it could not be regarded as having real sea power.
And now the Ming Dynasty already has real sea power in East Asia! Every beach in East Asia and even Northeast Asia is now under the deterrence of the Ming Navy and the Ming Army escorted and transported by the navy.
Zu Kuan had been persuaded by Postman and gritted his teeth and said: "Damn it, let's take a chance... Let's just say that the 10,000 elite men in western Liaoning under my command were severely seasick and had to land at Tieshan to rest! After landing, I found that Pyongyang was empty and more suitable for the army to rest, so I moved to Pyongyang..."
"Okay!" Hans Postman smiled. "According to the regulations, I have the right to suspend the transportation operation and let the army on board disembark when necessary."
He does have this authority! Once the navy goes to sea, it has no way to maintain contact with the higher authorities, and it encounters many unexpected situations. If it does not delegate power, the navy will not be able to go to the ocean at all, and can only serve as a coastal defense force in offshore waters.
