Now let’s talk about the British.
Compared to the awkward, make-shift, and unhappy interview three years later in another time and space, the attention and welcome received by the British mission in this time and space definitely exceeded that of other vassal states brought to the Qing Dynasty. Of course, the debate over audience etiquette is still an irresolvable conflict.
Although Heshen talked about the past and the present, taking the example of the Netherlands and Portugal during the Shunzhi period, which required three kneels and nine kowtows, Macartney refused to submit. When He Zhongtang heard that the British's greeting ceremony was to kneel down on one knee, lightly hold the king's hand with one hand, and kiss him, he immediately felt unhappy. To put it bluntly, if you can't even kiss me, who do you think you are? How dare you hold the emperor's hand!
As far as the feudal vassal system is concerned, there is no such thing as equal exchanges between countries. As long as it is a foreign country, it must belong to a foreign vassal, and on the shores of the Tutu, it must be the king's ministers. No matter what little things are in their hearts, they must kneel three times and kowtow in public.
Except for He Shen, Yong Yan, Fukang'an and others who were responsible for mediating, other Manchu officials were very puzzled. Since the British were unwilling to pay an audience, why should they be allowed to attend the celebration?
Little did they know that this incident actually originated from Sun Shiyi's memorial to the court the year before last. The British letter of credence said "visit", but Sun Shiyi's staff translated it as "tribute".
After arguing and arguing, in order not to cause trouble, Manqing finally pinched his nose and agreed to kneel down, but was exempted from kissing the hands.
On the 13th day of the seventh lunar month, Qianlong still met with the British delegation. Macartney discovered that the emperor, who was rumored to have been mad at Beihai Town before, was not as sick and gloomy as the outside world said. He looked very happy in both attitude and expression.
Although Qianlong did not issue an order to expel guests, he was really unhappy with the British envoy's arrogance. After Macartney and others completed their interview, Qianlong immediately issued a secret edict that all extra rewards to the British mission would be waived; there would be no need to entertain guests while in Beijing; princes and ministers did not need to stand up when meeting Macartney.
"When I come to visit a foreigner, if I am sincere and respectful, I will treat him with kindness to show my tenderness. If I am a little arrogant, he will not be blessed to receive the grace. At the same time, I will reduce the courtesy of the reception to show the system of the heaven and control the foreign vassal. The way is appropriate."
Of course, if you are unhappy, you still have to buy the gunboat. After the Yangzhou Incident, the Qing court discovered that Wusongkou's river defense was ineffective against the Northern Navy's clippers, and thus the demand for British sailing gunboats became even stronger.
When the British mission returned to the capital, the two sides quickly entered into business negotiations. In addition to Heshen and Fukang'an, the two parties were responsible for this matter.
The Qing court proposed to purchase five more second-class sailing battleships. Macartney said there was no problem, and then put forward several requirements that had been prepared for a long time.
For example, it allowed British businessmen to trade in Tianjin, Zhoushan and Ningbo, allowed British businessmen to open warehouses in the capital, and even proposed to lease a small island off the coast of Zhejiang and Guangzhou like the previous Beihai Town.
Heshen actually hoped to expand trade. After all, the Manchu Qing Dynasty's annual fiscal revenue was only so small. Not counting He Zhongtang's own greed, if the imperial court wants to open up money, it can only start from trade. However, when he tactfully reported his thoughts to Qianlong, he was severely reprimanded by Qianlong.
It's just that the imperial court couldn't deal with the rebels in Beihai Town, and they were allowed to temporarily rent Flower and Bird Island for only five years. Who the hell is Ying Chi? You bought a few gunboats just to look up to him, but how dare you peek into the territory of China? !
After that, what made Macartney even more depressed was that neither Fukangan nor other Manchu ministers looked at the British practice of shooting Brown Bess rifles, and they all dismissed it, which made him promote the rifle. The idea failed and I was very depressed.
The British thought that the low cost of the short brown bass would surely attract the Qing Empire to purchase it. Each standard short brown bass rifle manufactured by the East India Company cost about 2 pounds and 4 shillings, and the French flintlock rifles of the same period were about the same price. As mentioned before, at the end of the 18th century, one pound was equivalent to about 7.8 taels of silver. Even at cost price, each rifle cost 16 taels of silver.
What a joke! The "Zambala Big Bird Gun" manufactured by the Military Preparatory Institute and the Ministry of Industry of the Qing Dynasty cost only a little more than seven taels per shot.
During the Yongzheng period, due to the failure of the "Battle of Hetongbo", the Manchu Qing Dynasty built "Zanbalak" muskets in Xi'an and the capital in order to gain technological advantages. Produced in Xi'an is the "Zanbarak", a large matchlock between an eagle gun and a matchlock. In addition to the "Zanbarak big shotgun" built in the capital, there is also a kind of shotgun called Zanbalat shotgun.
In terms of weight, a brown bass weighs 4.5 kilograms, while a "Zambala Big Bird Gun" is a little heavier, only 7.8 kilograms. In order to be stable when shooting, either a gun fork or a saddle-shaped wooden shelf.
In terms of weapon effectiveness, before the British discovered the optimal ratio of black powder, the optimal shooting distance of a flintlock gun was one hundred yards, or 91.44 meters, and the misfire rate was about 17%.
According to a shooting test using the New World version of the "Brown Bess" in another time and space in 1811, the target accuracy at a distance of 91.44 meters (100 yards) under windless conditions was 53%, and the accuracy rate at a distance of 182.88 meters (200 yards) was 53%. The target rate is 30%, and the target rate at the distance of 274.32 meters (300 yards) is only 23%.
The "Zambala Big Bird Gun" is accurate when shooting at a level of 200 steps. If calculated based on five feet per step, it has reached more than 300 meters. Of course, in the Qing Dynasty's armament structure, this thing was called "returning artillery" and was no longer considered a gun. As for the Zabalat shotgun, its effective shooting range is within one hundred meters, which is actually similar to a flintlock gun.
During the Qing-Burmese War, the two sides fought four times. Although many senior generals of the Qing army were shot and killed, the Qing army did not imitate flintlock guns after the war because they believed that the accuracy of flintlock guns was too poor. Fu Heng mentioned in his memorial to Qianlong, "Although the firing of a self-propelled musket is convenient, the hit is not as accurate as a match rope."
If the flintlock muskets of the 18th century were really that useful, whether it was generals like A Gui or Fu Heng who had experienced many battles, whoever didn't use them would be a fool! Even if it is not used by the Green Battalion, the Capital Firearms Battalion must be equipped, right? The Manchus and Qing Dynasty even knew how to imitate the large guns of the Mughal Dynasty. Don't they still know how to imitate flintlock guns?
In the final analysis, it is still a matter of tactics. On the battlefield in these days, the firing distance of the infantry of both sides was within 200 meters, and if line tactics wanted to achieve the maximum lethal effect, the distance had to be reduced to 50 or 60 meters. At such a close distance, the flintlock gun can fire continuously in three or four rows, and the matchlock can also shoot in three stages.
Who the hell is waiting for you to reload after that? Either charge with a bayonet, or greet with a bow and arrow. The Manchus had repeatedly defeated their opponents with this skill before. Isn't it faster to use the Eight Banners' 120-pound compound bow at close range than to reload a flintlock gun? A fierce man like Yang Yuchun could probably shoot two of them with one arrow.
Although the Qing court rejected Macartney's request, the British did not intend to give up. They had previously bribed the accompanying Han translator, and through bribery, they got a message from the Lifan Yuan that Beihai Town was likely to go to war with Tsarist Russia in the north in the near future.
So Macartney and his party stayed in Beijing through hard work and hard work by finalizing the purchase of warships. One is to continue to exert influence on He Zhongtang through diplomatic means, and the other is to see the outcome of the confrontation between Beihai Town and the old empire of Tsarist Russia.
When they were guests on the Thor, the British already knew in their chat that the Northern Navy had captured Eastern Siberia in Tsarist Russia, but they did not know the specific battle. In their view, the Russians' strategic focus is on the Black Sea and Poland. Far-away Siberia is so vast and sparsely populated that it is actually easy to conduct a sneak attack.
In view of the fact that they are cooperating with the Qing Empire, the British have no plans to visit Beihai Town at the moment. However, Major General John Jervis, leader of the officer corps, pointed out that although the Qing Empire was huge, it might not be a match for Beihai Town. Macartney was convinced of this. He wanted to wait for the outcome of this war before deciding on the next plan.
July 17, 1790, Irkutsk.
After the military meeting, Zhao Xin didn't go anywhere. He took Liu Sheng and asked his staff to do some homework on the map within a hundred kilometers north and west of Irkutsk, and spent the whole night looking at the map.
There is no way, there are too many things during the day, and the only time I have free time is at night.
While they were looking at the map, they also compared it with the image data obtained by the reconnaissance team using the drone, trying to memorize the various data on the map. And this is what Zhao Xin has to do before the start of each battle.
In other words, the reason why Zhao Xin is able to know every battle well is because there is actually no other trick. The first is not to be lazy, and the second is to read more maps. Whether it is a mountain or a river in the battle area, or even the location and characteristics of every road or village, everything must be clearly understood. In the end, it is necessary to be able to command operations without looking at a map.
Ever since he gave the first lesson to the officers below, he never taught these people those ancient military books that were too metaphysical, and he never asked his staff officers or regimental commanders to read "Sun Tzu's Art of War" or "The Art of War". "Wu Zi's Art of War" is memorized like a stream.
Zhao Xin's requirements for the officers of lower-level regiments, battalions, companies, and platoons are mainly three points: memorizing tactical rules, memorizing maps, and thinking through the worst-case scenarios in advance.
Battle has always been a very specific matter, and it is important to clarify strategic intentions, but as a commander, it is by no means as simple as issuing an order or making a determination. If you don’t master the basic tactical rules, are unfamiliar with the battlefield, and don’t know the enemy’s situation clearly, and don’t look for answers from the worst possible outcome in advance, you won’t be able to win any battle.
This is by no means something that can be solved with a few advanced rifles and long-range cannons. Anyone who does not understand the command procedures and related tactics of various military operations will be in trouble.
As a company platoon leader, how do you issue tactical commands?
After looking through the binoculars, he pointed at the target and shouted, "Brothers, rush for me, shoot if you can't capture it"? Or maybe shouting "If you die, your dick will rise to the sky, but if you don't die, you will die for thousands of years" to boost morale?
Those are called bandits, not troops.
Some people may say that we already have drones and instant messaging radio stations, so why the hell can we still win? ! Please, that's called "command information", which is two different things from command procedures. Command procedures can optimize processes based on information, but it cannot be said that information will automatically lead to procedures.
For example, if you encounter a river on the battlefield, everyone knows that you must cross the river, and crossing the river is a very specific tactical action.
As a commander, how do you make sure that the location you choose to cross the river is both strategically and tactically beneficial in terms of terrain? How to deploy crossfire points? How to deploy artillery? How to organize defense against the enemy crossing the river?
For another example, everyone knows the importance of infantry, which is the main branch of the army. How to configure it on the battlefield? Everyone will talk about the "three-three system", but what is the reasonable depth of the three-three system? How wide is the front of a company's attack?
Even though Liu Sheng and Wang Yuanfang had served as soldiers, the most they could master was the tactics of the infantry squad. They are also working hard to learn, especially Liu Sheng. Like Zhao Xin, he is also using the same stupid method to slowly understand. If you reach the position of division commander and still use the tactics of an infantry squad to fight, isn't that nonsense?
There are many teachers who are in their twenties, and they have been doing so since ancient times. You can count them on ten fingers. No one is handsome right away, and the same goes for time travellers. You have spent all your time picking up women and raising a harem, and you still want to rely on your charm to let others fight for you? Do you think you can command thousands of troops with just a moment of bravery? What good things are you thinking about?
After breakfast, Zhao Xin only slept for two hours, and then started a coordination meeting with the staff of the logistics department to listen to their report on the logistics deployment.
According to the existing "Road Index Manual of the Tsarist Empire" from the 18th century, the distance from Irkutsk to Nizhniyutinsk is more than 500 kilometers, and the distance from Nizhniyutinsk to Yeniseysk is more than 600 kilometers. In addition, the distance from Irkutsk to Ilimsk is 500 kilometers, and the distance from Ilimsk to Yeniseisk is more than 1,000 kilometers.
People in the Logistics Department must make a lot of calculations in advance based on the North Korean Navy's marching speed, climate, water flow and other factors to determine the location and number of military stations, hospitals, ship maintenance points, and material supply points along the way, and then draw the conclusion The number of ships mobilized, and the number of people providing logistical support.
The Northern Navy was making intensive preparations, and the Russian army led by Rumyantsev also began to take action. The Russian army was divided into two groups. One group of 30,000 troops advanced from Nizhny Uginsk to Qima in the northern part of the Angara Basin, and the other group of 5,000 troops advanced from the Angara River to Bratsk.
Two days later, when Liu Sheng learned the news, he said to Zhao Xin: "Do you want to knock down the Zaimka Fortress?"
"The important thing is not to capture the fortress, but to win the war. We must take the enemy by surprise and catch the Russian army on the Western Front by surprise."
Zhao Xin shook his head and did not agree. If the Northern Navy's offensive is too fierce, the Russian army's western front troops are likely to stagnate or shrink back to Nizhny Uginsk. The only thing he couldn't determine now was the movement of the main Russian army after passing through the Angara Basin.
In order to realize the scheduled plan, Zhao Xin has done a lot of preparation work. He first adjusted the deployment of the army, concentrating the main force of four regiments in the area between Usolye and Irkutsk, and using two regiments to protect his left flank.
On July 25, more than 3,000 Russian troops used the cover of heavy fog to attack three forward posts of the Northern Navy north of Usolye. After more than an hour of brief fierce fighting, the Russian army quickly retreated.
Obviously, this attack by the Russian army was a test of the North's naval power before the decisive battle.
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