It was indeed the "Light Cavalry" that fired first. Because of its "high-speed" characteristics, this high-speed reconnaissance ship was equipped with all the cannons except for a small number of close-in defense light cannons to protect against pirates. long heavy cannon.
Jinghua's ship-borne light artillery is just the naval version of the army's artillery. It is very difficult to modify and the cost is easy to control. Therefore, it mainly spends its time on the long and heavy artillery that is highly pragmatic and has been repeatedly emphasized.
This makes Jinghua's long and heavy artillery quite unique in this era - after all, Europe's military equipment is far from entering the era of "rapid changes" at this time, let alone people like Gao Pragmatic to make long-term plans. , everyone is crossing the river by feeling the stones.
In fact, sixteenth-century European artillery was even more complex than its ships. Whether it is a muzzle-loading heavy main battle artillery aimed at destroying ships, or a breech-loading smaller artillery aimed at killing people, they can be divided into three main types.
The first type is the Porter gun, which is extremely short and stubby in shape, similar to the Perley gun. It can be regarded as the predecessor of the mortar. The latter was originally just the name of some of the gun types.
The second category is the cannon, a family of thick, medium-range artillery pieces. The primary type is the demi-cannon, a crouching monster with a 9-foot-long barrel and a 6-inch-wide bore that can shoot straight. A 32-pound solid bullet with a range of about 500 yards, it was the ancestor of the mortar in the 18th century.
Finally, there is the long-range artillery family, which are the ancestors of long-range artillery in the 18th century.
Theoretically, a long heavy gun can fire an 18-pound shell - half the weight of a half-long heavy gun - effectively to a distance of 700 yards. If fired at will, the maximum range is as high as about 2 miles.
Therefore, the ships were separated by "long gun range", which meant that the two ships were separated by approximately less than 2 miles, and by "half gun range", which meant that the two ships were separated by about 350 yards.
One mile is approximately equal to 1.6 kilometers, and slightly less than two miles can be regarded as approximately 3 kilometers. This is the best theoretical range of Europe's excellent long heavy artillery at this time.
However, just as the "maximum theoretical speed" of a ship is sometimes very different from the actual best speed it can run, there is also a big gap between the theoretical range of this long heavy gun and the actual range.
In fact, even though these artillery are collectively called long heavy artillery and semi-long heavy artillery, because it is difficult for European man-made artillery in this era to achieve any standardization, each gun is very different in terms of bore, muzzle caliber, weight and performance. .
And because the variety of weights and measures in various regions of Europe in the sixteenth century reached an incredible level, and most interested later researchers were indifferent to these surprises, the final data had to be corrected again and again.
Therefore, there will be some embarrassment when reading the data in later generations. For example, a ballistics expert may mention that a long and heavy gun with such specifications fired a 9-pound shell 2,500 steps away.
However, he did not actually have a precise understanding of the 1 step and 1 pound here, which country and era implemented the 1 step and 1 pound, and the distance and weight they represented were equivalent to the future generations.
Regarding the statements of foreigners he copied (most experts relied on each other for copying), he did not know whether the values used by the other party were consistent with or completely different from his own.
Therefore, in the field of military history in later generations, the information the public has about European artillery in the Armada era can almost be said: all of them are only relatively accurate.
Jinghua had already obtained many parameters of Portuguese and Spanish artillery through various means, and even obtained some physical objects for research and benchmarking. What is particularly interesting is that both the Portuguese and the Spanish are equipped with a wide variety of artillery, not only from different artillery factories, but even from different countries.
When Gao Pragmatic sent back the first report of the Jinghua Artillery Factory to redo it, he said this: "Your factory gave me more than 70 kinds of artillery parameters. How much time do I have to compare and analyze them one by one? Your factory should be in Pick two or three artillery pieces of each type that you think are the best, benchmark them and strive to surpass them, and then submit your report again."
After the re-submission, Jinghua Artillery Factory also attached a statement, believing that the difference between land guns and naval guns in the future is likely to become larger and larger. It is recommended that Gao Pragmatic approve their re-planning and completely separate the design and design of land guns and naval guns. Manufacturing, of course, also requires re-numbering, etc.
This plan has been approved by Gao Pragmatic, but it may take some time before it is actually implemented. Currently, the "Left Wing Hussars" is still carrying the No. 2 gun, but because these two high-speed reconnaissance ships were newly launched shortly, they are using the latest model of the No. 2 gun shipboard version.
The main features of this model are long range, high accuracy and better reliability. However, limited to the technological level of the era, the prerequisite for achieving these advantages is to reduce the weight of the bullet - in other words, the power is reduced.
At this time, the largest European heavy artillery shells were usually 32 pounds (about 14.5 kilograms, 29 kilograms. As mentioned earlier, the mass weights and measures in this book have been converted according to the current customary market kilograms). However, because the opponents that Ming Dynasty had faced before almost did not even have cannons. No, the requirements for giant cannons are relatively small, so Jinghua's largest standard No. 1 artillery shell only weighs 28 pounds.
The weight of the No. 2 cannon shells is divided into two categories: land and sea. The No. 2 cannon shells of the land gun weigh 20 kilograms, and the No. 2 naval gun shells weigh 24 kilograms. Due to technical adjustments, the naval guns of the two high-speed reconnaissance ships of the "Ranger" class were unable to use 24-pound ship-borne No. 2 gun shells and were changed to use 20-pound land gun No. 2 gun shells.
Originally, the most suitable bomb weight was about 22 kilograms, but considering that there are only two ships of this class, and they are still in the experimental stage, it is uncertain whether they will continue to be built in the future, so I "accommodated" and used land guns. The shells made do.
Of course, this refers to solid projectiles. In actual naval combat, it is sometimes necessary to launch special projectiles such as chain projectiles (chain projectiles are used to destroy the sails, cables, etc. of the opponent's ship).
This special cannonball uses a chain to connect two small cannonballs smaller than the caliber of the cannon bore. After it is fired, one cannonball will drag the other cannonball out in a centrifugal swing, so it will pull on the sail. Make a big hole, or tear the rigging, or if you are lucky, you can even break the mast and paralyze the enemy ship.
This kind of shell is mainly used to limit the mobility of enemy ships. Similar principles include stick shells and so on. In addition, chain bombs also have an important function, which is cutting.
The rapidly rotating chain bomb can easily cut open the enemy (mainly the sailors on the ship). It is a very terrifying weapon. However, because its effect is more reflected in the damage to masts and canvas, and the hit rate is not as good as grape bullets, few people mention it.
As for grape bullets, this special type of shells uses net bags to bundle loose bullets into a bunch. It looks like a bunch of grapes in shape, hence the name. However, the range of grape bullets is not as good as that of solid bullets. Its main advantage is that one shot fired at close range can knock down dozens of enemy soldiers instantly, which is equivalent to disintegrating an infantry squadron (European standard).
As for naval battles, it is obvious that these artillery shells, which can knock down large numbers of enemy officers and sailors but do not have enough range, are basically used for close combat, such as firing a few shots to clear the area before taking the initiative to join the fight, or to prevent the opponent from doing so. During the battle, use AOE group damage to protect yourself.
The shells currently fired by the "Left Wing Hussars" are not special shells, but ordinary 20-pound heavy land artillery solid shells.
20 pounds doesn’t sound light, but the solid iron means it’s actually not that big—not as big as a person’s head. A projectile of this size hit a 1,200-ton sailing ship. The great thing was that it made a small hole, but the destructive power was actually limited. (Note: By the way, a 1,200-ton wooden sailing battleship is much larger than a modern 1,200-ton iron ship.)
At this time, the "Light Cavalry" was still about three and a half miles away from the Spanish treasure ship fleet. It had only reached the theoretical maximum range of its long heavy guns, so the shells it fired could only be said to be used for calibration.
The results of the calibrated firing were not very good. Even the shell closest to the enemy's flagship "San Antonio" landed nearly a mile away. However, this result shocked many people on the "San Antonio" into a cold sweat.
Echevarry, deputy commander of the fleet and captain of the flagship, was shocked and exclaimed: "These are at least a dozen long heavy guns, and judging from the sound of the guns, these long heavy guns are all of the same caliber - this means that the opponent is a professional navy warship!"
Commander Silva was also surprised. He rolled his eyes and frowned: "But they are not flying the 'Fire of the Sun and Moon' flag of the Ming Dynasty, but the Shujian flag of Jinghua Company."
Regarding the "Fire of the Sun and Moon" flag of the Ming Dynasty that Silva mentioned, this needs to be explained.
In the first year of Longqing, that is, 1567 AD, Emperor Mu Zong Longqing announced the lifting of the sea ban on Gao Gong's suggestion. This was the official opening of the sea after the Ming Dynasty had banned the sea for many years. Immediately afterwards, the merchant ships of the Ming Dynasty went to sea legally, and they saw a national flag hanging on the bow of the foreign merchant ships. Since the Ming Dynasty did not design a formal national flag, the merchants designed a "national flag" themselves.
"Ming" is composed of the sun and the moon, so the national flag they designed is also the same, with the sun on the left and the moon on the right. The sun and the moon are closely connected to form the word "ming". Since the Ming Dynasty favored the virtue of fire (probably because the emperor's surname was Zhu, and Zhu was as red as fire, the Ming Dynasty claimed to have the virtue of fire), most of the clothes were mainly red, so they designed another circle besides the sun and moon. Red flames rising in all directions.
The background color of the flag is blue, which represents the sky. The entire flag means "the sun and the moon will never burn out, and the light will shine forever."
Originally, this flag was only used by private maritime merchants in the original history, but in this life, because of Gao Pragmatism, after knowing this situation, he did not rashly ask the emperor to designate a "national flag" for the Ming Dynasty (the more symbolic it is, the more symbolic it is. In this era, it is easier to cause controversy, and things like setting a national flag require a suitable opportunity), but Shangshu talked about it and asked the emperor to approve its use by the maritime merchants. It is an expression of "sincere respect for the imperial court" and deserves recognition.
It is indeed obvious at a glance that this flag means "the sun and the moon are immortal and the Ming Dynasty will always shine". Of course, the emperor would not think there was any problem, so Yubi Zhubu agreed. In this way, the maritime merchants of the Ming Dynasty had a unified, officially licensed flag to hang. Although this flag was not a national flag in theory, it was undoubtedly a national flag in the eyes of foreigners.
However, most other maritime merchants have no other flags to fly, so this "Fire of the Sun and Moon" flag is very conspicuous, and this flag is hung almost everywhere on the ship. However, when they enter the private port of Jinghua or travel with the Jinghua fleet, they need to hang sword flags of different sizes on the foremast, bow, stern, and the top of the signal pole in the cab according to Jinghua's requirements.
Jinghua, on the other hand, has long had "brand awareness" due to its high pragmatism and has been flying the Shujian flag for many years. Therefore, after the "Fire of the Sun and the Moon" flag was designated as a "quasi-national flag" that Daming Maritime "can fly", Jinghua only added a new internal rule, "Hang two 'Sun and Moon' flags on the left and right sides of the cab. Fire flag to show identity and origin."
This location is naturally not particularly eye-catching for the entire ship, so when other ships look from a distance, they usually only see Jinghua's distinctive sword flag.
Of course, Echevari also saw the most obvious sword flags. He pondered for a moment and asked with a worried look: "Is it possible that the Ming Dynasty also started to issue privateering licenses?"
This question was obviously due to the English Pirate Anxiety Syndrome, but Commander Silva showed his calmness at this time and shook his head decisively: "This is impossible. As far as I know, although Jinghua Company is not the royal family of the Ming Dynasty Emperor, trading company, but it is effectively in a similar monopoly position.
Since it has such a monopoly position, it must exist as a defender of the system like our Castile, and will never be a challenger or destroyer like England. In my opinion, I can understand anyone who wants to be a privateer in the Far East, especially the South China Sea, but Jinghua Company cannot be a pirate. "
Echevary slapped the window edge with some annoyance and said: "I understand this too, but how do you explain the current situation? Jinghua Company's warship - I'm sure it's not an armed merchant ship - came to attack us, attack Castile Kingdom Navy!
Your Excellency, Commander, you know this is an act of war. Who authorized Jinghua Company to wage war with us? Was it the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty? But why did the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty launch a war against us? Our two countries are thousands of miles apart. Although the Ming Dynasty has a lot of vassal countries, they are all around it. So what conflicts of interest do they have with us that require war to resolve it? I have never heard of their desire for overseas colonies..."
Echevar was still angrily analyzing and questioning, but Silva's face suddenly changed and he blurted out one word: "Damn it!"
"What's the matter, Commander?" Echevary comes from a small noble family. Ever since he was ordered to become Silva's deputy, he has rarely seen the commander who comes from a large noble family get angry, so this moment was a little bit... Shocked.
Silva stared sinisterly at the turning "Left Cavalry" and gritted his teeth: "I'm afraid the Philippine colony is in danger."
Echevary gasped and said in shock: "Is the Ming Kingdom also going to seize the colony?"
"I don't know." Silva didn't have time to analyze the overall situation of the country or anything like that. He just analyzed it according to the thinking of a naval soldier: "Look at that battleship, it seems to be faster than the ships of the same class that I know about. We have to be faster. I suspect that this battleship is just an advance reconnaissance ship of the Ming Dynasty Navy, and it only has one ship, so it will definitely not be our opponent.
The reason why it dared to fire at us must be relying on something... I mean, not far behind it, there is probably a large fleet of the Ming Navy and it is heading towards us. "
Echevary swallowed subconsciously and asked: "Then what should we do? Should we ignore it for now and go to Manila to inform Governor Santiago de Vera to prepare for the war?"
Silva did not answer immediately, but stared at the "Left Wing Ranger" and observed it again, and then said: "This ship uses hard sails and is a typical Chinese ship, but the bow of the ship looks a bit strange. , I don’t know how it was built…”
"Your Excellency Commander, our focus now..."
"Don't interrupt me, sir." Silva said seriously: "I am explaining the situation to you, my deputy and flagship captain. What I want to say is that, no matter what the reason, it can be seen now that The ship's speed is higher than ours."
"Well, as you wish, Commander, but that just means we can't catch it. May I take it that you agree that we should abandon it immediately and rush to Manila?"
Silva narrowed his eyes slightly and said: "We will turn around immediately and make a posture of rushing to Manila, but we should take a diagonal course... As long as the enemy ship falls into the trap and turns around to chase, we will immediately turn around at a suitable distance , attack and destroy it before it has time to turn around and escape!"
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