1627 Rise of the South China Sea

Chapter 628 The Dutchman's Plan
Van Longen has worked in the East India Company for more than ten years, and has won the trust of the governor. He has also traveled between Java and Northeast Asian countries for a long time, and he is familiar with the sea conditions along the way. It couldn't be more appropriate.

The search and rescue fleet is composed of Van Longen's own seven armed merchant ships as the main body, plus two armed troop carriers under the East India Company.Originally, Van Longen did not plan to organize other troops besides his own fleet, but Governor Cohen believed that it was necessary to send a certain number of soldiers to assist in this operation, because now it is impossible to determine the real reason for the disappearance of one's own ships. Intercepting and killing Dutch merchant ships at sea, then enough troops may give Van Longen more confidence in responding.

A fleet consisting of nine sailboats and nearly a thousand people, if they are not lucky enough to find the missing boat, it is equivalent to just wandering in the sea.And the cost of such a fleet going to sea is not a small amount. In order to avoid all the expenses being wasted, the East India Company still let Van Longen's merchant ships undertake a certain amount of transportation tasks.

The fleet will carry a batch of spices, tin, sumac, etc. and some other tropical products locally produced in Java, as well as some native products from Persia, India and Ceylon.These goods will be transported to Dayuan Port, where they will be distributed by local merchants to Daming, North Korea, Ryukyu, Japan and other countries by sea.And this fleet can ship a batch of goods purchased from the above-mentioned countries locally, and then return to Batavia by the same route.After such a voyage, excluding the expenses of the search and rescue operation, the fleet can still make a certain profit, and the captain and crew will not complain too much about this errand.

"In the Far East, no one would try to rob such a fleet. Your Excellency, you don't have to worry about our safety. We will return to Batavia intact in two months." The face of Governor Cohen who saw him off was not very good-looking, and Van Longen could only say some scene words to comfort the other party.

In fact, the voyage from Batavia to Dayuan Port is more than 12 nautical miles, and it will take more than half a month for the fleet to reach the destination without wind. No one can guarantee that this long journey will happen. What kind of unexpected situation.The seven armed merchant ships under Van Longen's name were all equipped with varying numbers of artillery pieces. The largest ship, the "Nederlander", was equipped with twelve 24-pound broadside guns and two [-]-pound bow guns. Comparable to the average warship.The two armed troop carriers are each equipped with eight cannons, and the total number of cannons in the entire fleet exceeds seventy. An artillery battle at sea will not frighten any opponent.

But even if the combat capability of this fleet is not weak, Van Longen is not arrogant enough to think that what he is leading is an invincible fleet.Because he had also heard of the gunboats built by the Haihan people in Qiongzhou Island. The smallest type was equipped with ten cannons. Shiba fleet.

Van Longen had had direct contact with Shibazhi before, and had a general understanding of the armed level of these pirates.Although he also didn't pay attention to Shibazhi, but if Fan Longen was to deal with the siege of these pirates, he might not be able to win or retreat unscathed.Moreover, it is said that since the second half of last year, the Haihan fleet has fully taken over the defense of the waters around Qiongzhou Island, which at least shows that the strength of the Haihan fleet is far superior to that of the Daming Navy.

Van Longen would rather encounter the Portuguese or the Spaniards at sea than he would encounter opponents like the Haihan Fleet in this search and rescue mission, because the first two opponents also knew the basics, but the Haihans seemed to be lurking in the shadows Like other killers, they couldn't see their true strength.

Governor Cohen's response to this was a severe cough. Although he is only 44 years old and is far from aging, his health has deteriorated in recent years, and it is actually difficult to maintain a normal working state.If the two Chinese doctors in Batavia hadn't been giving him prescriptions to take care of his body, he would have died long ago.Today, he came to Batavia Harbor to see off Van Longen's fleet. He was also unwell all the time, sitting on the chair carried by two native attendants without getting up.

In fact, Peterson Cohen passed away on September 1629, 9 in the original history, but after the Haihan people came to this time and space, many things changed unconsciously.The two Chinese doctors who treated him actually worked with Ma Yu for a period of time at the immigration transfer center in Lijiazhuang, Guangzhou before coming to Batavia, and also learned some advanced knowledge of Haihan medicine. By mistake, he accepted someone else's employment and came to Batavia to make a living.However, they can only diagnose Cohen's general cause of the disease, and there is no way to cure his chronic lung disease. The only thing they can do is to use some soothing prescriptions to regulate his body, so that his condition can deteriorate slowly. .

"Mr. Van Longen, any force that threatens the East India Company must be eradicated and must not be tolerated!" After Cohen managed to slow down, he began to lecture: "Whether it is the Portuguese or the Spaniards, as long as they want to If our ship is shot, then hit it back fiercely! Don’t be afraid of a war, in the Far East, we are the most powerful force!”

Van Longen thought to himself that I am only an armed merchant ship, not the Dutch Navy, and self-defense is okay. Do you really expect me to fight them desperately?However, he promised very well: "Master Governor, please rest assured, if it is really the damn Spaniard who attacked us, then I will definitely let them see the terrifying power of the Dutch!"

Cohen coughed a few more times, and then said: "Considering your military skills, I have sent Mr. Spikes and Mr. Brower, the most capable under my command, to assist you in completing this mission. If an armed conflict occurs, they will They will command the soldiers to destroy the enemy. If you are undecided, please consult with them.”

"It's a great honor for me to act with two excellent commanders." Van Longen bowed slightly to the two officers standing beside Cohen.Although they are not genuine officers of the Dutch Republic, they are only commanders appointed by the East India Company, and their subordinates are only armed personnel organized by the company itself, but in the colonies of the East India Company, they are genuine government troops.

These two officers are not unknown people. Jacques Spikes, who was born in 1585, was once a representative of the East India Company and lived in North Korea and Japan in Northeast Asia for a long time. He came to the East India Company in Van Longen Spikes had been in the Far East for ten years at the time.Hendrik Brower, who was born in 1581, also stayed in Japan for a while. He joined the East India Company as a sailor as early as 1606, and his qualifications were earlier than Spikes.

In the original history, these two officers also successively served as the governors of the East India Company.When Cohen stepped down in 1629, he was succeeded by Jacques Spikes, and Hendrik Brower took over from Spikes in 1632 as the eighth governor.However, in this time and space, the arrival of the Haihan people inadvertently prolonged the life of Governor Cohen, so they were not able to take office according to the time in the original history.

"But if you let these two go to sea with me, what about the local defense?" Van Longen is no stranger to the identities of these two officers. They are both senior officers of the Batavia Garrison. , It will indeed have a certain impact on the local defense of Batavia.

"That's not a problem." Cohen waved his hand lightly and said, "Mr. Van Diemen has returned from Ternate."

"Presumably our Lord Dimen must have brought back a lot of gains?" Van Longen asked hurriedly after hearing the news for the first time.

"Yes, that place is said to be rich in cloves and cardamom, and there are also tin mines, all of which are good things." Speaking of this, Cohen's sick face also showed a bit of complacency: "It was really great to send him to the east to explore. A wise decision."

"My lord has always been so wise." Van Longen flattered him unabashedly.

Anthony van Diemen, born in Kullenberg, the Netherlands in 1593, was just a less successful businessman in his early years. After joining the East India Company in 1618, he was stationed in Batavia and became a navy.Last year, Cohen appointed him as the commander of the expedition fleet to lead a fleet eastward to explore the waters east of Java and south of Luzon, and attack and expel the forces established by the Portuguese in this area.

Ternate is located in the Maluku Islands, about 1500 nautical miles east of Batavia, and needs to pass through the Java Sea, Flores Sea, Banda Sea, and Maluku Sea on the way.Although the voyage is far away, the rich local spices and tin mines are worth developing.Of course, the most important thing is that this kind of good place cannot be quietly taken up by the Portuguese who are eager to make use of it.

More importantly than occupying Ternate, Van Diemen drew a large number of accurate sea charts for the East India Company, which provided great help for the company to continue to explore the unknown seas eastward and southward.In the original history, after taking office, Van Diemen, the ninth governor of the East India Company, sent a large number of expeditions to the east of Java. There are indeed many places in New Zealand, Tonga, Fiji and the north coast of Australia. named after him.After his death in 1645, the East India Company ordered that the extreme west point of the island of New Zealand and an island off the east coast of Tasmania be named after his wife to commemorate his contribution to the company.

"In view of Mr. Van Diemen's outstanding contribution, I have issued an application to the Congress of the Republic to appoint him as the admiral of the Far East!" Cohen coughed a few times, and then said: "If you successfully complete the Complete the task, then I will recommend you to fill the vacant seat after Mr. Van Diemen's promotion."

In the original history, Van Diemen was indeed appointed as an admiral in 1631, but it was not Cohen who issued the document for him, but his successor Spikes.But by mistake, Van Diemen was lucky not to miss his chance for promotion.

"I will live up to the Governor's high expectations!" Van Longen suppressed the joy in his heart, and bowed deeply to Cohen to express his gratitude.

Although he can be regarded as Cohen's subordinates, his actual position in the East India Company is not high, and it is far behind Spikes, Brower, Van Diemen and others.And if Van Longen wants to continue to climb up, then obtaining a senior military position is a shortcut. After all, in the promotion assessment conditions of the East India Company, commanders who have served in military positions and have experience in leading troops are always better than pure commanders. Businessmen are more likely to be favored by the governor and the board of directors.What Van Longen lacked was an opportunity to make contributions.

"I've given you the opportunity, Mr. Van Longen, it's up to you whether you can seize the opportunity." Cohen covered his mouth with a handkerchief, and finished his final instructions amidst constant coughing.

"May the Lord bless you for a speedy recovery!" Van Longen took off his hat to signal, and strode towards his own boat.After some advice from Cohen, he now no longer regards this task as a dispensable errand, but a great opportunity on his way to promotion.

"set sail!"

Following Van Longen's order, the nine sailboats successively unmoored, anchored, hoisted their sails, and slowly left the dock.Hundreds of local people waved their arms on the shore to see off their loved ones.And the sailors on the ship also lay on the side of the ship, saying goodbye to their loved ones loudly.Van Longen did not stop this kind of behavior. In this era, sailors do not know whether they will return safely every time they go to sea, and every farewell to their loved ones is likely to be the last.

Van Longen generally has a list in his mind of where natural disasters may occur on this route of more than 2000 nautical miles, and where pirates or armed ships of opponents may appear.Since this trip to the north is to find out the truth about the disappearance of the Dutch merchant ship, we can only slow down and search for every suspicious area on the way.Doing so would definitely lengthen the voyage, and the original 20-day voyage would probably be extended by one-third. Van Longen conservatively estimated that the trip would be smooth if it arrived at Dayuan Port within [-] days.

The first stop of the fleet was Belitung Island, 200 nautical miles north of Batavia. This large island with an area of ​​nearly 5000 square kilometers was not rich in natural resources due to too many coral reefs around it. The East India Company did not use it as a The main target of colonization, only more than 200 immigrants were resettled in the harbor on the south side of the island, which can be regarded as a means of control here.It was not until 200 years later that the Dutch discovered tin veins on the island, but that is a story.

(End of this chapter)