Battleships in the sailing ship era were not so much for fighting naval battles as for deterring opponents. Because of its slow effectiveness and huge expense, preventing war through deterrence and supplementing it with diplomacy can often achieve the goal without war.
Sound familiar? It is the same as the nuclear weapons of later generations.
Whether it was Britain, France, Spain, or Tsarist Russia in the eighteenth century, they focused more on establishing a maritime power rather than a naval power. The former has a large offshore resource base that can be transferred to applications, while the latter's private enterprises cannot provide shipbuilding facilities and marine practitioners.
Everything is aimed at financial gain. If you can't see this clearly, you won't be able to understand the meaning of "sea power". The reason why Beihai Town has not expanded its navy is precisely for this reason. It is enough for the time being, and if it increases any more, it will be lost.
On the way to Changxing Island, the officers of the British Admiralty expressed confusion about the operational thinking of Admiral Hadang'a of the Qing Empire's Navy and raised objections, which made Hadang very unhappy.
"Your Majesty General, why are you launching an attack from the northwest?"
The officer responsible for leading the Admiralty Corps was British Rear Admiral Sir John Jervis, who had participated in the Seven Years' War and the American War of Independence. In another history of time and space, he rose to the rank of admiral of the Royal Navy, successively served as commander of the Mediterranean Fleet and the Channel Fleet, and became the British First Lord of the Admiralty after retirement.
After listening to the interpreter's explanation, John Jervis pointed to the southeast channel of Changxing Island on the map: "The fleet should seize the leeward position to prevent the enemy from retreating. First concentrate on destroying the enemy's large iron ship. They only have There are two ships, one of which is a 1,500-ton merchant ship, and we have five sea fortresses. As long as the biggest threat is removed, we can order soldiers to board the ship in close combat and capture the enemy ship."
After hearing what the translator said, Hardanga, who looked serious, scolded the foreigners for being troublesome. I, the Qing Dynasty, eat well and drink well, and treat each other with courtesy. I just want you to serve me well, and you actually want to criticize my army's strategy? It’s really unbelievable!
He couldn't explain to the other party what the "Guxu Art" was, but Qianlong made it very clear in his edict that if he wins, he just needs to drive away the Northern Navy, and everyone will be happy. Besides, rabbits bite people when they are anxious. If they cut off their escape route, they might both be destroyed. When the larger iron ship reaches Tianjin, he will die without redemption.
So Hadang'a lowered his face and said, "I don't need to worry about this, your Excellency. The general has his own arrangements, and you just need to follow them. You must know that there are many ways to win, and we only need to follow what the emperor said." "
John Jervis advised: "Your Excellency, if we attack from the downwind, our victory advantage will be more obvious. Use one boat to deal with the merchant ship, and the other four will form a double line to attack the iron ship. Just one round of shooting, They will collapse!"
When Hardanga was in charge of the new water camp in Fujian, he actually boarded the "Dingbei" for inspection many times and had a certain understanding of line tactics. He agreed with the opponent's proposed two-line battle line, but still stubbornly decided to attack from the northwest.
Well, the British have lost their temper. Anyway, I sold the boat to you and we took the money.
On each floor of the warship, British officers and Qing military commanders were lecturing their subordinates.
"It takes a thousand days to raise an army, but it takes only a moment to deploy it. Your Majesty has treated us so favorably. Today is the day to kill the enemy and serve the country! After defeating Zhao Ni, promotion and fortune will be just around the corner!"
"I am willing to die for the Emperor!"
"Gentlemen, we have traveled thousands of miles to come to this strange country, all for the glory of His Majesty the King and the British Empire! Please remember, we must put the preservation of our own lives first, and retain useful bodies for the empire in the future. Effectiveness.”
"Boys, let those Orientals see how our British Empire gunners fire! If anyone dares to drop his chain, I will hang him on the deck and whip him!"
"Hey, Tommy, is there any bounty after this battle? I heard that the Qing Dynasty was full of palaces and roads paved with gold, silver and precious stones."
"Gentlemen, on behalf of the East India Company, I assure you that each of you will receive a generous reward after this battle. Each of you will receive at least three pounds!"
"Great! Let's do it! Aren't we here just to make a fortune?!"
When the assistant leader on the second-floor gun deck heard the cheers and whistles on the deck, he frowned and said, "These are these barbarians without a king's constitution!"
After that, he glanced at the gunners and soldiers in the cabin, clasped his fists and said: "Our Qing Dynasty has a glorious destiny, and the country will be prosperous forever. Feng Mou relies on the strength of all of you, working together, bravery and loyalty!"
"I am willing to serve you!"
"Come! Sing a song called "Strong Military Appearance". A strong military appearance will bring authority to all directions. Sharpen your sword and spear, and use your armor to fight. Sing!"
"A strong military appearance, powerful in all directions. Sharpened swords and spears, forest armored battles. Cut off the rhinoceros, the seven attributes are as rotten as silver; carry a shark letter, dazzling indescribable... It is a noisy and prosperous dynasty. But push the boss , Asking for good generals. The clouds are moving and the thunder is moving, and the people are upright and dignified."
At this time, the British people on the main deck heard the singing coming from below. After listening for a while, they found that they did not understand a word, so they spontaneously sang "Long Live Britain". This song is the solo and chorus at the end of the opera "Alfred". It premiered in London in 1745 and quickly became a favorite of the navy.
"When Britain first, at Heaven', Britannia! Rulethewaves,"
The officers of the two countries who had just finished their military meeting in the captain's room heard noisy singing outside and ordered their men to go out to see what was going on. He took the people here out and came back to report that the British and the water camp sergeants were singing to boost morale. Hadang'a asked the British what they were singing.
However, when the translator finished asking about the lyrics, I was suddenly shocked. "Great Britain is destined to rise from the ocean", how could he dare to translate it truthfully, so he explained that it was an English folk song, which was nothing more than words to boost morale and miss his parents and relatives in his hometown.
Hardanga and the generals couldn't help but sneer after hearing this, and they looked down upon the British more and more. A true man serves his country as if he were shrouded in horse leather. To serve the country is to observe filial piety. I really don’t know what to sing to miss my hometown during the war!
...
At six o'clock in the morning, the Thor's day begins again. As usual, the sailor on duty in the communication room saw the minute hand of the alarm clock pointing to 5:59, and then turned on the amplifier. When the second hand pointed to 12 o'clock, he immediately pressed the button.
In an instant, a murderous piece of music suddenly sounded from the loudspeakers on the deck and in the ship's building. As the prelude ends, footsteps are accompanied by trombones, and passionate music resounds all around.
"Dangdang~dangdangdang~dangdangdangdangdangdang..."
Jiang Fan and Hong Liangji, who were still asleep, immediately woke up from their dreams and immediately put the quilt over their heads. The two sighed helplessly, thinking it's happening again!
There's nothing else on board the Thor but this kind of murderous music is played every morning at six o'clock in the morning. At first, the two of them were excited to the music. They wanted to put on their clothes right away, draw swords and expand their battlefield. But after listening to it for four or five days in a row, no one was tired of hearing it.
In the cab, Ding Guofeng was holding a cup of coffee, humming along with the music, and watching the situation on the radar. When the music came to an end, Ding Guofeng couldn't help but raise his cup and shouted: "Ula!"
Ever since he became the captain of the Thor, his biggest pet peeve was to play "Soviet March" at six o'clock every morning. But this guy doesn’t speak Russian, so he just used the accompaniment version.
Even Deng Fei called him crazy, but after two years, he didn't get tired of it.
At this time, there was heavy fog on the sea, and it was impossible to see anything clearly a hundred or ten meters away. On the deck, soldiers from the Marine Battalion were patrolling with guns in the cold wind, watching closely what was happening on the sea.
Ding Guofeng looked at his watch and was about to ask the sailor next to him to check it for him before going to have breakfast first. But suddenly an abnormal signal came from the radar display.
There are about five ships that appear to be under 5,000 tons and over 500 tons, and are approaching from the northwest, still 6 nautical miles (11 kilometers) away from the Thor.
He stared at the two radar screens back and forth for more than ten seconds, and then asked the sailor on duty to call Deng Fei over immediately. Five minutes later, Deng Fei, who had just had breakfast and was about to rest, arrived.
"what happened?"
"Look, I think it looks like a fleet, and the ship seems to be quite big. It's much bigger than the ones we encountered before. It seems to be bigger than the Beihai No. 2."
When Deng Fei heard this, his expression suddenly changed, and he quickly came to the display screen, glanced back and forth for a moment, adjusted the working band, and then said in a positive tone: "That's right! It's a ship! Send a combat alert immediately , clearly ordered all ships to raise anchors!"
It is said that because the Thor is a 7,500-ton bulk carrier, it is equipped with two sets of radars. This is not something Zhao Xin made on his own, but according to the provisions of the International Maritime Safety Convention, it was already there when he bought the boat.
All ships of 3,000 gross tons and above must be equipped with two independently operating radars, one of which must be 9GHz. Before the Thor was modified, the second unit was 3GHz, but Deng Fei originally changed it to 9GHz for insurance purposes.
The first radar is used to determine and display other water vessels, coastlines, buoys and obstacles; the second is an automatic tracker, used to automatically plot the position and distance of other targets to avoid collisions.
The working bands of the two radars are mainly X-band (9320-9500 MHz) and S-band (3000-3246 MHz). When the antenna sizes are the same, the former has higher azimuth resolution and is conducive to close range detection; The latter is less interfered by rain, snow clutter and wave clutter, and is conducive to long-distance detection.
The detection range of this kind of radar for coastlines is 20 nautical miles, and the detection range for ships above 5,000 tons is 11 nautical miles. However, the detection range for ships below 500 tons, which is the most common in this time and space, is only 8 nautical miles; for small ships below 500 tons, the detection range is only 4.9 nautical miles.
It’s not that you can’t see it from a distance of 20 nautical miles, but the features of the target can’t tell whether it’s a ship or not.
In precipitation days and foggy days, because part of the energy of radar waves is absorbed by water, the object detection distance will be shortened by 15% to 20%. When cold air moves to warm water and is under-refracted, the propagation path of radar waves will be lifted off the ground, and the range will be shortened by 30% to 40%.
If it is on the ocean surface in the dry season, the maximum detection range can reach 1,500 nautical miles, but those are special circumstances.
As the sailor on duty pressed the siren, the alarm bell rang loudly on the Thor. The people who were eating in the restaurant were stunned for a moment, then put down their dishes and stood up; those who were sleeping also got up and got dressed, preparing to wash their faces and go out.
At this time, Ding Guofeng's voice came from the loudspeakers on the ship: "Everyone, pay attention! This is not a drill! Get into position immediately according to the first-level plan! Everyone, pay attention! This is not a drill!"
At this moment, the people on the boat immediately took action and began to prepare according to the contents of the plan.
Hong Liangji and Jiang Fan were also awakened from their sleep. Following Ding Guofeng's roar from the loudspeaker, bursts of rapid footsteps came from the corridor outside the door. The two looked at each other and knew something big was going on. Then he quickly put on his clothes, washed his face hastily, left the cabin and went straight to the cockpit.
At this time, the interior of the Thor was obviously different from before. There were actually two more Marine Battalion soldiers with guns at the door of the cockpit. When he saw Jiang Fan and Hong Liangji approaching, he immediately raised his hand to signal them to stop; then he used the walkie-talkie to report, and only allowed the two of them in after receiving permission.
The two of them were startled as soon as they entered. They saw Deng Fei and Ding Guofeng both wearing bulging orange clothes, pistols on their waists, and dark green steel helmets on their heads. At the doorway from the cockpit to the compass deck, there were two Northern Navy soldiers with guns.
"Two generals, what happened?"
Deng Fei stared at the radar screen without saying anything, while Ding Guofeng first ordered a soldier to get life jackets and helmets for Jiang and Hong, and then said: "The enemy is coming."
"Enemy?" Jiang Fan and Hong Liangji were stunned for a moment, then said, "Did the imperial court send troops from the land?"
"No," Ding Guofeng shook his head and said, "From the sea, but I don't know what it is yet."
While the three of them were talking, two sailors walked in holding a drone, and then walked towards the compass deck. After a while, the drone was already in place and could take off just waiting for Deng Fei's order.
At this time, Jiang Fan came to the glass window of the cockpit and looked out. He saw that the two cannons on the deck had taken off their colorful gun jackets. A team of Bei Navy was busy at the gun position. Boxes of cannonballs were being fired. After being transported to the back of the gun emplacement, the muzzle of the cannon also began to turn, pointing to the northwest.
The tarpaulins covering the heavy machine gun positions on both sides of the deck were all removed. From time to time, soldiers would deliver boxes of bullets from the warehouse on the first floor to the back of each machine gun position. At the same time, a large number of sandbag fortifications began to be piled up on both sides of the ship. Once completed, a group of Northern Navy soldiers entered them.
On the Beihai No. 2, Guo Xuexian, who received the notice, also ordered the entire ship to enter emergency combat readiness. With a rapid chime, the diesel motor in the aft cabin starts up, and the sailors on deck begin to raise the sail.
Although the Beihai 2's masts are equipped with motors, a small number of crew members still have to climb to the top of the three tall masts and stand on the foot cables to help prevent the canvas from sinking or rolling up.
All the closed gun windows on both sides of the ship were opened, thirty 75mm guns entered combat mode one after another, and boxes of heavy shells were moved out of the lower cabin. On the main deck, a platoon of Northern Navy soldiers were all armed with live ammunition.
When everyone was ready, the target on the radar had reached the ocean three nautical miles away, with a straight-line distance of five kilometers. At this time, the heavy fog still lingered, and the furthest distance that could be seen was no more than one kilometer.
Deng Fei immediately ordered the drone to take off and conduct reconnaissance over the target. Ding Guofeng also ordered the two cannons of the Thor and the fifteen 75mm cannons on the port side of Beihai 1 to aim at the target area.
The error-free chapters of "The Forty-Eight Years of Qianlong" will continue to be searched and updated. There are no advertisements on the site. Please also bookmark and recommend the search!
If you like The Forty-Eight Years of Qianlong, please collect it: () The Forty-Eight Years of Qianlong is the fastest to be searched and updated.
