The Dutch navy returned fire very quickly. 【Reading.com】

In May of the third year of Taichang, the Dutch navy launched a tentative attack.

After all, the Dutch are the overlords of the South Seas, and the information they have is very accurate. The time of their attack coincided with the departure of the entire fleet of the White Coats Navy from the port of Pakistan to conduct combat patrols in the waters near Brunei. I don't know who arranged the patrol plan, but the port next to Pakistan, intentionally or unintentionally, was left without a fleet to garrison.

Seizing this rare opportunity, the Dutch navy concentrated 30 large warships and took the opportunity to attack the port of Pakistan. The operational thinking of the Dutch Navy is very clear: they will not only destroy the home port of the White Coats Navy fleet, but also clean and completely destroy all the equipment and facilities inside, so that all the Whitecoat Navy fleets will not be able to dock here, replenish here, and repair ships here.

For warships on the sea, it is not terrible to have no home port of their own. If you don't have your own home port, you can dock at another port. But if there is no place to dock, there is no place to replenish, there is no place to repair the ship, the problem is acute.

After any warship is active on the sea, it is inseparable from the three things of docking, supply, and maintenance. Even if there was no fighting, after the battleship entered the port, it was necessary for routine maintenance and inspection. The more tonnage a battleship has more artillery, the longer it will take to repair and inspect.

Why did the white-coat navy seize the port of Pakistan? In the eyes of the Dutch, it is to achieve the three basic purposes of docking, supplying, and repairing. The port of Pakistan has exactly such a function. They want to destroy the port of Pakistan, so that all the fleets of the White Army Navy will not be able to achieve these three goals, and can only fend for themselves.

If the White Coats Navy did not have the port of Balin as a base, they would have to go back to the coast of the Ming Empire for supplies and repairs. It's a long journey. In the round trip, a lot of time was consumed, not to mention, but also gave the Dutch Navy a chance to break through. Therefore, for the Dutch Navy, taking the Ba Bian was an inevitable choice.

At the head of this mixed fleet was Vice Admiral Seedorf of the Dutch Navy. He was the commander of the Dutch Far East Fleet. Generally speaking, those who can do this position are definitely not ordinary people. In the Far East, the interests of many countries are involved, and the situation is so turbulent that if we are not careful, we may fall into the trap set by others in advance. Therefore, people who are slightly less capable are not competent.

In fact, among the many vice admirals of the Dutch Navy, Seedorf was known for his bravery, good fighting, calm and wise. To be honest, being brave and fighting and being calm and wise are, in many cases, antonyms. However, these two adjectives are used in Seedorf, but no one thinks there is anything wrong with them. He was indeed a brave and calm man. His favorite thing to do is bombard the opponent with thousands of artillery pieces and engage them in a broadside battle.

Under Seedorf's careful arrangement, the Dutch Navy mixed fleet quietly departed from Jakarta in the middle of the night, and after sailing for most of the night, appeared in the nearby sea near Palin, just after dawn. Seedorf searched the surrounding sea with a clairvoyant mirror, and sure enough, he found no trace of the naval fleet of the White Army.

"Full speed ahead!"

"Seize the port next to Pakistan!"

Feeling that victory was in sight, Seedorf immediately ordered.

Suddenly, a strange thought flashed through his mind.

It stands to reason that as the only home port of the White Army Navy in the South Seas, and the only port where the White Navy fleet can dock, replenish and repair, the White Navy should attach great importance to it. If it is said that the white-clothed army came all the way to seize the Pakistani neighbors, it was just a whim, and Seedorf would not believe it.

The top brass of the white-clothed army and navy, even if they are all stupid, should understand that this port, for them, cannot afford to lose. Once this port is lost, all the white-coat naval fleets will face great danger. If the top brass of the White Army Navy were really so mentally retarded, it would have been impossible for the White Navy to develop to the level it is today.

It's like the Dutch's port of Jakarta and the Spaniard's port of Manila, both of which are guarded by naval fleets all the time. No matter how urgent the situation outside is, it is impossible to send all the naval fleets out without leaving one behind. How could the white-clothed navy be so careless? Could it be that there is something strange about this?

However, this thought only shone in Seedorf's mind, and there was no impression. Due to the strength of the Dutch navy itself, Seedorf was not at all blind to ordinary intrigues. In his opinion, some of the opponent's cleverness, in the face of absolute strength, has no chance to play a role.

"Why do I feel something is wrong?"

Esco, who accompanied Seedorf in battle, looked at the sea around him from the clairvoyant mirror, and there was also a puzzled look on his face. In order to confirm the information, he even climbed to the top of the mast himself to check the surrounding sea.

Quiet, too quiet, a little unusually quiet.

It stands to reason that the main fleet of the Dutch Navy is dispatched, and the White Navy should have some reaction. Even if the White Navy does not know the news that the main fleet of the Dutch Navy has departed from Jakarta, in the current situation, they should increase their patrols on the sea near Pakistan. Even if there are no large warships patrolling, there should always be small warships, right? Even if you don't even have a small warship, there should always be a regular sentinel ship or something, right?

However, there were no ships to be seen in the nearby sea next to Pakistan. Not to mention the patrol and sentinel ships of the White Clothes Navy and the merchant ships that come and go, and the fishing boats that catch fish, there is not a single one. All in all, there were no other ships on the vast sea, except for the warships of the Dutch Navy. Not even a seagull was seen.

"Could it be that the white-coated navy is really so careless?"

Originally, the defense of the port near Pakistan, so negligent and lax, was definitely a good thing for the Dutch navy. In this way, the Dutch navy could directly enter the port of Pakistan and take the white-coat navy by surprise. There was no guard ship, and when the Dutch naval warships appeared in the harbor, everyone was afraid that they would be dumbfounded.

However, I don't know why, Esko always felt that something was wrong in his heart, and he couldn't get excited. For this reason, he had to take deep breaths again and again, and drive away all the ominous thoughts in his mind.

...... "Why haven't you come yet?" ”

"Will the Dutch Navy not come?"

"They can't see something, do they?"

Yun Qifeng held the binoculars and muttered to himself a little nervously.

Chen Xinhai, who was standing beside him, nodded confidently, but did not speak.

After the entire fleet of the White Army Navy was dispatched, it was Yun Qifeng who was responsible for garrisoning the port next to Balin. As for Chen Xinhai himself, he became the commander of the light pole instead. Now Chen Xinhai does not have any warships under his command. If he was killed by the Dutch Navy into the port, he, the deputy commander of the White Navy, would probably only commit suicide and martyrdom.

Fortunately, with the presence of Yunqifeng and the artillery led by him, Chen Xinhai could seize the rare opportunity to play soy sauce and enjoy the beautiful scenery around him. To be honest, the scenery around the port in Balinbian is quite beautiful. It's a pity that due to his busy affairs before, Chen Xinhai didn't have time to enjoy the scenery at all.

Yun Qifeng put down the binoculars, looked around habitually, and nodded lightly. All the forts around are ready. The muzzles of the black hole were all aimed at the main channel in front of the port. All howitzers are already loaded with shells. As soon as he gives the order, the first round of shelling can begin.

As one of the top leaders of the artillery of the White Army, whenever a new type of artillery appears in the White Army, Yun Qifeng will appear as an ambassador for the test, and the new artillery will appear. In fact, his current position, which is still the commander of the artillery battalion, has never changed more. However, the equipment of the artillery battalion under his command has been changed several times. From the original mortars to the current howitzers, it can really be said that it is a new thing, and the shotguns have been replaced.

These howitzers, with a caliber of 105 mm, are newly developed and have never been used in real combat. Therefore, what is its actual combat effect, Xu Xingxia is not clear for the time being. The terrain in the Western Regions is complex and the roads are rugged, and large-caliber artillery cannot maneuver smoothly here, and it is more convenient to use it only in the sea port.

In addition to the 105-mm howitzer, the White Army also specially developed a 155-mm coastal defense gun. The weight of such a large-caliber heavy gun was so great that it could not be used on a battleship at all, and it was only laid on a battery on the shore. However, the caliber of 155 mm is fatal for any wooden battleship. One shell goes down, and even a battleship with a displacement of more than two thousand tons will be smashed on the spot.

"It's coming!"

Suddenly, the whistle was loud, sharp and piercing.

In the shrill whistle, red pennants were constantly waving.

The Dutch fleet led by Seedorf slowly appeared in the telescope of Yun Qifeng.

The main channel of the port is located in the middle of a large number of hidden reefs, which is not particularly spacious, and can only accommodate about ten large ships at the same time. If there are more than ten large ships trying to enter and leave the port at the same time, there will be a queue. If you try to force your way through the reef area, you may be very likely to sink by hitting the reef.

To be honest, such a main channel is actually relatively poor among the various ports in the South Seas. This is also the reason why the Dutch did not pay special attention to the port of Paliby. After all, the port conditions in Malacca, Jakarta, Manila, Brunei and other places are much better than those of Pakistan. Even the nearby ports such as Surabaya and Magassa are much better.

Before entering the main channel next to Balin, all the Dutch naval warships came to an orderly halt. The captains of all the battleships were waiting for Seedorf's arrangement. At this time, the Dutch warships were only about ten miles away from the main buildings in the port next to Balin. At such a distance, it is basically subject to the fire of the port artillery. Of course, the large-caliber guns on large battleships also have the ability to return fire with solid shells.

Generally speaking, when the naval fleet forcibly attacks the port, it needs to suffer certain losses. Such losses, mainly from shore defense artillery. No matter what the force is, after occupying the port, it will set up a certain number of batteries to cover the port. For example, ports such as Malacca, which was controlled by the Portuguese, Jakarta, which was controlled by the Dutch, and Manila, which was controlled by the Spaniards, were all equipped with a large number of coastal defense guns.

Under normal circumstances, the caliber of shore defense artillery is larger than that of naval guns. Because, in the firing of shore defense guns, there is basically no need to consider recoil, the balance of the battleship, the damage suffered by the battleship, and the gunners carrying shells on a rocking ship. This means that the coastal defense artillery has a longer range and is more powerful.

There is no doubt that in the process of storming the port, the attacking side will inevitably be the first to be bombarded by shore defense artillery. Returning fire was possible only by forcing it through the shelling of shore defense artillery. In this process, the attacking team's fleet is likely to pay a certain number of casualties. However, as long as the port can be successfully captured, it is worth paying a little price.

Seedorf's fleet had more than thirty large warships with more than 2,000 guns. Among them, the number of large-caliber heavy artillery was large. Such ferocious firepower is indeed quite amazing. As long as a third of the shells can be successfully poured on the port near Pakistan, the port can be leveled.

"Block the main channel and open fire!"

Yun Qifeng did not hesitate to give the order for the shelling.

In fact, in the case of howitzers of 105 mm caliber, all Dutch battleships, have already entered the firing range. The farthest Dutch battleship was only about six kilometers away from the fort next to Pakistan. And a howitzer with a caliber of 105 mm has a maximum firing range of more than ten kilometers. Now, due to the need to enter the main channel of the queue, the Dutch battleships are adjusting their order, and the ranks are relatively dense, just giving the white artillery a salvo.

The forts in the port of Palinban are made of reinforced concrete, which is very strong. The battery was also not a moving warship, and there was no need to consider the recoil effect of heavy artillery. All howitzers, built with a sturdy base. Therefore, they are perfectly capable of a salvo.

The salvo of forty-eight large-caliber guns was quite powerful. The howitzer, which is already close to modernization, has been greatly improved in terms of range, power, and rate of fire. Moreover, from 75 mm to 105 mm caliber, the power of the shell increased by at least five times.

"Tom tom!"

"Tom tom!"

Bursts of roaring kept coming.

The entire port next to Pakistan suddenly became shaken.

(To be continued)