1627 Rise of the South China Sea

Chapter 661 Deployment and Movement
Although the degree of development of the Natuna Islands is far less than that of Dayuan Port, the importance of its geographical location is no less than that of Dayuan Port.On the waterway between Dayuan Port and Batavia, the Natuna Islands are a very important supply point. Whether it is going south or north, Dutch merchant ships will almost always choose this place as a must-stop port—this is also The main reason why Dutch merchant ships frequently threw themselves into the net after Natuna Island changed hands.

Taking a step back, even if the Dutch merchant ship now knows that this place is occupied by pirates of unknown origin, and chooses to detour cautiously when passing through the surrounding waters, it will not be able to detour very far.More than 100 nautical miles to the east of Natuna Island is Borneo, where the aborigines are also quite hostile to the Dutch. Dutch sailing ships cannot even resupply there, and under normal circumstances they will not choose to sail close to the coastline of Borneo, so as not to Suffered from "unfriendly" treatment by indigenous people.Nearly a hundred nautical miles to the west, the Anambas Islands are also a sea area where pirates frequently operate, and there is no safety at all if you go there.

The existence of Natuna Island in peacetime is extremely thin, and even the crew and sailors who travel here and there don’t think there is anything special about this place, but after the change of ownership, everyone has noticed the strategic position here, and it has completely become A nail nailed in the South China Sea Channel, and the pirates entrenched on the island have the ability to fight the East India Company by force. Of course, its threat cannot be ignored by the company's board of directors.The defeat of the armed fleet on Natuna Island was even more serious in nature than Fujian’s defeat—at least Fujian’s defeat did not immediately affect the waterway between Dayuan Port and various places in Northeast Asia Safety.

"I think the company's board of directors will be more inclined to solve the troubles of Natuna Island first." Van Longen said very straightforwardly, without any detours: "If Mr. Hans wants to ask the company for assistance, I estimate that it may be realized within this year." Very little sex."

Hans also immediately realized his negligence. The failure in Fujian did not have a great direct impact on the company. If the hidden dangers of Natuna Island cannot be properly resolved, the company's layout in the entire Northeast Asia will be affected. will be affected.Which is more important, anyone who understands the truth can distinguish clearly.If he were in the position of Governor Korn, he would probably take Natuna Island as a priority option at the moment.

However, this situation is not necessarily bad news for the person in charge of Dayuan Port.The more the company's board of directors valued the role of Natuna Island, the less impact Fujian's failure would have on the contrary, and the responsibilities of relevant personnel would naturally be reduced a lot.Just imagine that the elite sent by the headquarters suffered a big loss at the hands of a group of unknown pirates, so it seems that Fujian's loss to the Haihan people, who are not weak at all, does not seem to be a shameful record.

Hans was silent for a while before answering: "I will write a letter in my own hand, please deliver it to Governor Korn for me. My servant will deliver the letter to you later."

"I am willing to help you." After the conversation came to an end, Van Longen stood up and said goodbye with great interest. He could see that the uncle and nephew probably still had some private topics to discuss.

The reason why the handwritten letter was given to Van Longen instead of Van der Wegen to take it back was not because Hans could not trust his nephew, but because Van der Wegen's social level was not high enough to complete this mission at all.And Van Longen is one of Governor Cohen's capable officers. He will definitely meet Cohen when he returns to Batavia, and it will be very convenient to submit the personal letter of the chief executive.Of course, Hans wouldn't let him go for nothing, and when he sent a letter to Van Longen later, he would also send him a favor.

"If it hadn't been for Van Longen's reminder, I would have almost forgotten about Natuna Island." After Van Longen left, Hans's complexion improved significantly, and his tone became lighter: "I will send a letter to the Governor. Explain the reason for the failure of this battle, and help you reduce your responsibility as much as possible."

Seeing that Van der Wegen still had an uncomprehended expression, Hans could only continue to explain: "The reason why I didn't use this method before was because I was worried that it would be counterproductive, and the company would think it was a shirking of responsibility, which would intensify your punishment. But I forgot about Natuna Island, Spikes and Brower were defeated together, they lost to pirates, and we lost to a regular fleet with a full lineup, the company will be against The punishment you impose must never exceed them. My purpose of writing this letter is to remind Governor Cohen to be fair and not to end a young man's future just because of such an accidental defeat."

"So it is! I will always be grateful for everything you have done for me!" Only then did Van der Wegen understand the real reason why Hans suddenly proposed to write a personal letter.

Hans waved his hand and said, "I can't do much for you. After returning to Batavia, everything can only be done by yourself. Also, make a good relationship with Mr. Van Longen during this voyage." , Don’t look at him as just a sea merchant, maybe he can’t help you much, but it’s easy to get bad things!”

"I will remember your teachings, dear Uncle Hans." Van der Wegen replied respectfully.In terms of being a human being, he still has a lot to learn from his uncle.

While the Dutch on Taiwan Island were still racking their brains on how to deal with the accountability of the company headquarters, Haihan had already started preparations for the change of defense and development of the Abunana Islands.

The Ministry of Civil Affairs plans to move about 6000 immigrants to the local area in the second half of the year. This number is basically the same as that of the aborigines left there. On the one hand, it is to increase the labor force on the island and provide manpower guarantee for the next development and construction. On the other hand, The large number of naturalized people immigrating in will also help Haihan to implement its own unique social system in the local area.After completing this stage of immigration, the number of permanent civilians on the island will reach [-] to [-], and this number does not include the troops stationed on the island.

Due to the transfer of power, it is not suitable for the Annan militia troops who play the role of pirates to continue stationing in the Abona Islands.This army will be stationed in Qiongzhou Fucheng area in Qiongbei, and even their family members will move from Annan on a voluntary basis-this is what the executive committee promised to this army at the beginning One of the post-war benefits.

However, Mu Xiabo, the commander of this force, did not choose to return to Sanya, but planned to garrison at Cam Ranh Bay. After all, it will be Haihan's largest military base in the South China Sea in the next few years, and the size of the garrison may even be large. It will surpass Sanya.However, there was unreliable gossip among the top military officials that Mu Xiabo already had a partner with Annan, but he hadn't married yet. This was one of the important reasons why he chose to settle in Annan.But Mu Xiabai didn't mention it himself, and his colleagues were not very willing to take the initiative to support him. Yan Chujie could only tacitly approve Mu Xiabai's one-month long vacation. The destination can be chosen at will within the Haihan control area. All the expenses were reported, and it was right to regard it as a congratulatory gift from the government.

The senior officer who will represent Haihan to Ambuna Island to replace Mu Xiabo is Roger from the North American Gang. Before that, he and Shi Diwen had been transferred from the Tiandu Industrial Zone and officially entered the military establishment to serve.When Shi Diwen led the fleet of Haihan missions northward to Fujian, Roger also took over the military control of Qiongzhou Fucheng and parts of the Qiongzhou Strait.

Because Haihan had made preparations in advance, after the alternate officials of the Ming Dynasty arrived in Hainan Island at the beginning of the year, they basically failed to cause any waves, and the city of Qiongbei was always firmly under Haihan's control.However, Qiu Yuan, the local chief executive, was much more ruthless than his colleague Zhang Xin in Danzhou. There was no such thing as Yan Mingjun, Li Jin, and the riots in Danzhou.In Fucheng, anyone who openly takes the lead in opposing Haihan will be killed and arrested. Even if they just make such remarks, they will be warned or even forcibly moved out of the place.

Qiu Yuan's iron-fisted means in the capital of Qiongzhou made it very easy for Roger to be stationed there. There was almost no pressure to speak of. He did not even carry out large-scale military operations during his short term of office.But such an environment also has a disadvantage, that is, there is no military merit at all.Shi Diwen went to Fujian with the mission. As a result, by chance, he assisted the Ming army to capture Nanri Island occupied by Shibazhi. He has already achieved a good result, and Roger is naturally envious. , The request for war report to the Military Commission is almost once a week, hoping to lead troops to the war zone instead of enjoying peace in the Haihan controlled area.

This opportunity did not wait too long. The battle in Fujian made the Executive Committee realize that the time has come to openly seize control of Abuna Island, and it is also logical to increase troops on the island to control the East India Company. South China Sea route.Originally, the executive committee intended to transfer officers from Guangdong to carry out this task, but after Wang Tom's persuasion, the military committee finally decided on Roger.

Of course, the reasons given by Wang Tom are also very good. Roger and Shi Diwen are also majoring in construction machinery. In a place like Abuna Island that lacks supplies, he can perform some ordnance repairs and maintenance locally, reducing Dependency on base camp.In addition, the professional skills of the members of the North American Gang in navigation are also an important reason why the senior officials of the Military Commission cannot ignore it. Roger sitting in the local area will help disrupt the routes of the Dutch at sea, and several senior officers stationed in Guangdong are from the army. , In terms of naval warfare, it is obviously not as obvious as Roger's advantage.

In addition, there is another reason why it is inconvenient to make it public, that is, except for two doctors in the North American Gang who cannot be entrusted with the task of leading troops due to their special occupations, several other members of the North American Gang have been reused one after another—— Tom Wang As the commander of the navy, Qiao Zhiya was in charge of the construction of the coal-iron composite industrial base in Changhua. Shi Diwen also recently made military exploits in Fujian on behalf of the Haihan Militia. Only Roger had nothing to do.Even for the sake of fairness, he should be given a chance to perform, not to mention that his personal ability is not bad, and he has performed very well in the previous special operations that he participated in in the early stages of crossing.Coupled with the fact that Roger himself has a very strong desire to fight, the Military Commission should give him a chance to express himself.

The second battalion of the Haihan Militia that will accompany Roger to the south was established at the end of 1628. It is the same as the Annan Militia troop currently stationed on Abuna Island. It is also a reinforced battalion of four or four. Has been stationed in Qiongbei area.The entire battalion is full of more than 800 people. For this southward deployment, the Military Commission also arranged an additional engineering company and an artillery company to go south together.

In the earlier confrontation on Ambuna Island, the Annan militia led by Mu Xiabai was inexperienced in artillery warfare, which directly led to the unfavorable situation in the engagement stage.More than a dozen forts failed to block the opponent's landing operation, which also aroused the reflection of the high-level military after the war.Although the staff should also bear certain responsibilities in the relevant tactical design, through this battle, the Annan militia did expose their shortcomings in positional warfare-after all, this force is based on surprise attacks and mountain environments. They are not even equipped with heavy weapons as standard equipment, and the way of fighting on the frontal battlefield is indeed not what they are good at.

In order to make up for this shortcoming, the Military Commission made this special transfer.Although the configuration of the artillery company is only eight army guns, the power that professional artillery units can exert on the battlefield is not comparable to that of the infantry who make temporary guest appearances.

The engineering company will be mainly responsible for the construction of fortifications in the port area of ​​Abunna Island. The sudden attack of the Dutch last time has made the Military Commission realize that the previous idea was too simple. It will be beyond imagination, and the battle to seize the island of Abuna Island will definitely be launched in the next period of time.The temporary fort has proved to be extremely limited in the last battle. If you want to hold the port firmly, you still have to copy the existing successful experience and build a solid large-scale fortification on the coast.

Of course, it is not enough to just send an engineering company to the local area. The Ministry of Construction has to mobilize a batch of construction materials for this purpose and transport them to the local area by fleet.In view of the engineering volume of building coastal fortifications, this will undoubtedly be a huge military expenditure.However, this money really cannot be saved, and even Gu Kai, who has always questioned the military budget, did not express any objection this time - after all, the Dutch were all ashore last time, and if they don't repair the fort, it may be too late to regret it It's over.

So even though when planning to occupy the Ambuna Islands, the Executive Committee did not intend to invest too much resources in the local area to build Haihan-style coastal defenses, but after going around, everyone found that this step was impossible to skip However, the money that should be thrown in still cannot be saved.

(End of this chapter)