Chapter 1328 Post-war Inventory

Tao Donglai weighed it again and again, but he was still reluctant to use the service life of the steam engine as the price of intercepting the Spanish fleet. The steam engines installed on these battleships were worth tens of millions of dollars, and their production capacity was extremely limited. Once they needed to be repaired and replaced, it was very troublesome and had to be repaired and replaced.

Towing the ship into the dry dock for operation is time-consuming and labor-intensive and will affect the normal deployment of the navy. The cost is not small. Moreover, in the fleet led by Tao Donglai, there are only a few warships equipped with steam propulsion devices. Let it escape

It was indeed difficult for a large force to intercept dozens of Spanish warships that were eager to escape.

The two Haihan fleets turned towards the fleeing direction of the Spanish fleet from the north and south directions respectively to pursue. Although they could not intercept them all, there were still some seriously damaged ships in the Spanish fleet that would run slower and slower, and were eventually captured.

The Haihan fleet caught up.

The Haihan navy pursued them for more than 30 nautical miles in one breath, and after forcing several Spanish warships to remain behind, Tao Donglai ordered the troops to retreat. Out of humanity, the two fleets slowly dispatched the surviving Spanish sailors at sea.

Fishing them out slowly also prevented them from feeding the fish in the sea.

In addition, during the final pursuit, four Spanish sailing ships had no hope of escaping due to damage to their hulls. They chose to stop the ships and surrender. The Haihan Navy sent people to board the ships to take over. After inspection, it was found that the hulls of two of the ships were too seriously damaged and had been damaged.

Unable to sail back to Sanya, after transferring the people and important items on board, it sank into the sea, including the American Fleet pioneer ship "Martin" that luckily escaped the battlefield.

More than sixty Spanish crew members who survived the "Martin" stood on the deck of the battleship Haihan and witnessed the entire process of their sailboat sinking into the sea. Some of them silently took off their hats and paid tribute to the once-inhabited battleship.

The sailing ship that carried them across half of the world paid a silent tribute. For some of them, the sinking of the "Martin" meant that their crew careers had come to an end. But relatively speaking, they were lucky.

After all, this ship carried more than 200 crew members when it set out from Manila, and now the survivors are only a fraction of the number when it set out. Most of the crew members have perished at sea in today's battle and will never be able to return to their hometown.

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If Luis hadn't stepped back from the brink and decisively chosen to turn around and retreat, the Spanish fleet's suicidal charge on Port of Victory would probably have resulted in the annihilation of the entire army. This could be regarded as a sign that Spain would never die, giving them a chance to escape. The two fleets

He fled eastward for a day and a night, and after confirming that he had completely escaped Haihan's pursuit, he stopped to take stock of the battle damage.

The encounter of the "Martin" is only a microcosm of the Spanish fleet's battle damage. A quarter of the more than 40 warships were permanently left offshore Sanya, and ten supply ships were also unable to

After leaving the battlefield with the fleet, it was calculated that more than twenty ships were lost in this battle, and the loss of manpower was estimated.

During the charge, the American Fleet, which was closer to the coastline, suffered more heavy losses, especially large sailing ships with a displacement of more than 500 tons, which became the key targets of shore defense firepower. The eight large ships of the American Fleet that exceeded 500 tons,

Only three ships successfully escaped, and the five armed sailing ships, including the "Martin", were not spared and became the dead under Haihan's gunfire.

Although the Manila fleet led by Louis was in slightly better condition, the number of ships destroyed by Haihan was only a few fewer. The battle damage situation was still not optimistic. Even the side of his flagship "San Diego" was riddled with bullet scars.

, five or six eye-catching large holes were made by the cannonballs. Fortunately, the gunpowder on the ship was not hit and caused an explosion, and the impact points of these bombs were much higher than the waterline, so there was no risk of water intrusion and capsizing.

Almost no ship in the entire Spanish fleet was withdrawn intact, and most of the ships had to be repaired immediately after returning to Manila. However, what the two commanders now have to consider is not how much it will cost to repair these sailing ships.

But how to explain the actual situation of the battle with Haihan to the Governor of Manila, Aragones. The majestic Spanish fleet went on an expedition to Haihan, but was beaten to disgrace by the opponent at the door of their home, and almost couldn't even escape. Such a record

How can I explain it in a way that makes sense?

The last time the Spanish fleet suffered such heavy losses in a battle was on the European battlefield where the great powers were fighting. It had never suffered such a big loss in the Far East. Let alone the two commanders, even the Governor of Manila was involved in this matter.

, may not be able to shoulder this responsibility. For the current plan, we can only rush back to Manila with the remaining troops, and then work with Aragones on how to report the news back to the country. But no matter what, the two

It is estimated that the responsibility of the main parties cannot be shied away, and their military leadership careers will most likely come to an end after this defeat.

When Haihan withdrew his troops and returned to camp, he naturally wanted to make statistics on his own losses. Compared with the beaten Spanish fleet, Haihan's navy's losses in the two days of fighting seemed extremely limited.

Although more than a dozen battleships were lightly or severely damaged, only three battleships were seriously damaged, and they were all still repairable. However, they would definitely have to be sent to dry dock for overhaul after returning to port.

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The loss of personnel has caused some pain to the military. So far, the number of killed and missing personnel has been counted to more than 40 people, including several senior naval officers, and this number is probably not

The final result is that there are still many ships participating in the battle that have not yet completed the personnel count. Although the navy has obvious advantages in equipment and tactics, it is still inevitable in this kind of maritime melee with shelling as the main attack method.

A large number of casualties - yes, for the Haihan Army, more than twenty casualties in a battle can be defined as a "large number".

Although the number of dozens of people seems small, the training cost and cycle of Haihan soldiers are far beyond that of ordinary sailors in this era. Officers who can assume command positions on ships need to serve for several years before they can accumulate enough training.

Gain promotion opportunities with experience. Therefore, for the Haihan Navy, these casualties are not just a series of cold numbers. The combat positions left by the dead may not be immediately filled by those who come after them. These dozens of people

If there are vacancies, it may be necessary to recruit ten times or even dozens of times the number of sailors to select enough qualified people to replace them.

The search for the warring waters and nearby coasts may continue for three to five days to ensure that all survivors, including the Spanish crew, can be discovered in time. This is of course mainly for safety reasons to avoid any

The Spaniards who fell into the water during the battle secretly swam ashore and caused more trouble. However, the subsequent search work does not have to rely entirely on the military. A part of the militia will be mobilized to perform this time-consuming and laborious task.

During this period, the state of martial law on the entire Hainan Island will continue. The state of war will not be stopped until the military determines that the Spanish will no longer carry out military operations against Haihan. The foreign ships that have recently entered and exited major ports on Hainan Island,

More or less, everyone will definitely be affected by this, and there will definitely be a lot of inconveniences. Of course, no one will put the inconvenience on Haihan's head. Every injustice has its owner, and every debt has its owner. This trouble will be left in the end.

Spain, the next mess, will be the main target of complaints.

However, the local people, mainly Haihan nationals, had no complaints about this war. Thousands of people watched the several-hour battle clearly or vaguely on various highlands along the Sanya coastline, and the people were overwhelmed by the victory.

The celebration ceremony was held, which had already begun when the Spanish fleet turned around and evacuated.

At first, the people watching the battle on the Yulin Peninsula discovered that the Spanish fleet had turned around and retreated, and they burst into cheers like a roaring mountain and a tsunami. The news quickly spread to the city, allowing those Haihan who had not had the opportunity to go to Linhai Highlands to act as spectators.

The citizens also learned the news that the enemy troops were fleeing in panic as soon as possible. They might have been uneasy because of the rumble of cannons coming from outside the port, but after the news of the victory came, the people immediately

Let out the stress in your heart by shouting loudly.

"The navy only dispatched a dozen ships in total, chasing fifty or sixty ships on the sea. That scene... tsk tsk tsk!"

"I heard that this group of pirates came all the way from Luzon Island. If you don't take it, there is a way to heaven. If you don't take it, there is no way to hell. You have to rush in..."

"The navy has made great achievements this time. Let me tell you, when I came from Victory Port just now, I saw that the faces of the army officers stationed on the shore were not very good. This time, there was no meat left for the army...

"

This battle, which did not last particularly long, soon became a hot topic in the streets and alleys of the city. People all knew that the Haihan and Han armies had won the battle again, and some good people in the teahouse had even made a handicap,

Bet on whether the prisoners of war parade will be held tomorrow or the day after tomorrow. Not to mention wars, even military exercises have become less and less in the area near Sanya in recent years. The occasional exciting event like this can fully mobilize the enthusiasm of the people.

Liu Shang's mood at this time was rather complicated. As a temporary cadre of the Youth League, he had to show joy and excitement like the people around him, but he couldn't help but feel a little disappointed with the result. He didn't expect the Spanish fleet to really be able to

Entering Sanya and destroying the Haihan people's lair, he already knew how powerful Haihan's defense methods were before the war, and he also understood that the Spaniards would not be able to break through the numerous defense lines set up by Haihan in Sanya in one fell swoop, but what he had heard before

Internal news said that the Spanish fleet was coming in a menacing manner, and he felt that it should at least create some trouble for Haihan.

It's just that the Spaniards were too unsatisfactory. They appeared in a hurry off the coast of Sanya and launched an attack before they had a firm foothold. This was fine. If the attack was successful, they could at least be praised for their courage, but they didn't even rush into the harbor.

It had already been bombarded to pieces by heavy artillery on the coast. Such combat power, let alone causing trouble for Haihan, from Liu Shang's point of view, was simply giving Haihan's navy a free record. In the end, it was defeated by Haihan's army.

They were driven away and fled without touching any soil in Sanya. Such a sneak attack could be said to be a complete failure.

However, although Liu Shang looked down on the Spaniards' performance in this battle, he actually understood in his heart that this enemy army was not a weak force. The main reason for their poor performance was because the opponent they chose was an extremely powerful naval force.

Han, if the enemy he faced was the Ming Dynasty Navy, then this one-sided battle might have to change direction.

When Liu Shang was studying various materials in the Sanya Library, he had seen a piece of information. The content was that the colonial authorities in Manila met to discuss how to conquer the Ming Dynasty. The time of this meeting was actually April 1586, which was

That happened nearly fifty years ago. At that time, the Manila authorities drafted a specific action plan including 11 paragraphs and 97 articles on the premise that the participants fully agreed to conquer the Ming Dynasty by force.

Led by the Governor-General and Bishop of the Philippines, dozens of local dignitaries gathered to sign and report it to the King of Spain.

This action plan plans to dispatch 12,000 Spanish troops, recruit 6,000 Japanese mercenaries, and use servant troops from Portugal, America, the Philippines and other countries. This detailed combat plan even includes statistics on military expenses and supplies.

, as long as the King of Spain makes the decision, the Manila authorities will enter the implementation stage.

Liu Shang also broke into a cold sweat after reading this document that he had never seen before in the Ming Dynasty. He knew that it was unlikely that Haihan would falsify such a document that outsiders could not see. It was probably true. But in the end, the Spaniards did not

The reason why this terrible plan was put into practice was because the Spanish Armada suffered a major failure when it invaded Britain in 1588 - yes, it was the same Britain that had been beaten to a pulp by the Haihan army at Star Island in the South China Sea just a few months ago.

.This defeat made Spain's hands and feet blocked by the European powers and had no time to advance eastward. The Ming Dynasty was lucky enough to escape a catastrophe.

Of course, there had not been a large-scale military conflict between the Ming Dynasty and Spain before, so it seemed difficult to determine which one was stronger and which one was weaker in this kind of confrontation. However, at the end of this document, there was a comment by Haihan Defense Minister Yan Chujie, who believed that at that time

Qi Jiguang had just passed away, and the Qi family army was transferred to the northern border towns to deal with the Mongols. The Ming Dynasty's southern garrison was in a very fragile period, and it was very likely that it would lose parts of the coastal areas of Guangdong and Fujian to the Spanish invasion. With just a few

Tens of thousands of troops were able to cross the sea to invade the Ming Dynasty, which boasted a standing army of two million, which is enough to show how big the gap in military strength between the two sides was.

However, the Spanish army, which was highly praised by Minister of Defense Haihan, was beaten completely out of temper by the Haihan army who fought with less and more in the battle of Sanya. How big is the strength gap between them?
Chapter completed!