Late Ming sea owl

Chapter 353 Firefight
The wind is blowing from the southwest at sea, and the entrance to the channel on the west side of Keelung Port is roughly facing north, so sailboats can only turn into the port when sailing from west to east, and they must accumulate enough kinetic energy outside the port and rush in in one go.

The Lioness turned around and hoisted full sails, almost following the coastline on the west side of Keelung Port. The southwest monsoon blew from the starboard side, the wind direction was almost perpendicular to the hull, but slightly biased towards the side wind.

Such a crosswind can allow the sailboat to reach the maximum speed. After a period of accumulation, the Lioness gradually reached the speed limit, which means that the rudder effect is the highest at this time.

When approaching the entrance to the western channel, Captain Lucas seized the opportunity and decisively ordered a turn. The Lioness made a beautiful change of flank with the wind and entered the Keelung Port at an angle.

Then, the sailors standing on the foot ropes on the foremast and mainmast began to fold the two main sails, which was to slow down and reduce the damage. After all, the main sail is the lowest and is most likely to be hit by shells. Western sailing ships usually only hoist the sails during battles.

At this moment, thunderous cannon fire rang out one after another. The first to open fire was the round fort on Tongpan Island, followed by the artillery fort facing west at the foot of the mountain. More than ten shells cut through the sky and flew towards the Lioness.

Without Lucas's order, the Lioness's two bow guns began to fire back. These were two 33-caliber Kofilin long guns, with longer barrels than the ship's broadside guns, so that they could threaten a longer distance when chasing.

One of the two shells hit the gun emplacement at the bottom of the hill, destroying the awning above the emplacement, but failed to injure the guns or the gunners. The Lioness itself was hit by several shells, and several holes were punched in the cross sails on the foremast and mainmast. A sailor who was reefing the sails had his arm broken and fell from a height with a scream...

What was even more fatal was that a shell penetrated the bow bulkhead and then hit the gun carriage of one of the two bow guns. The flying fragments and gun carriage parts hit the gunners, creating a cloud of blood mist.

The most terrifying thing was that the gun carriage that was sitting in the back broke free of the brake cable and rushed backwards like a wild horse. The weight of this gun carriage and the guns was several tons, and it kept swaying as the ship swayed.

The calves of three gunners were crushed into a bloody pulp, until the gunner of another gun group threw a rigging anti-friction piece, which temporarily stabilized the uncontrollable gun carriage. The surviving gunners around rushed forward and hurriedly put on the spare rigging...

Captain Lucas naturally could not see what was happening on the gun deck, as he was on the rear deck at the time. Of course, even if he was at the scene, he probably wouldn't have the time to cheer up the surviving gunners, because he saw something even more terrifying:

Deep in the channel on the west side of Keelung Port, four old lock ships with tonnage comparable to that of the Lioness were lined up in a row, with dozens of cannons extending from the sides, looking like centipede legs from a distance.

"Hurry! Change side and sail out of the port!" Lucas' heartbeat almost stopped at this moment, and he shouted hysterically.

At this moment, several blood-red flames licked out from the black muzzle, blinding Lucas's eyes. The Dutch captain, who always looked down on Orientals, finally realized that he had made an unforgivable mistake...

The old lock ships Feng Fengshi, Gan Yanshou, Chen Tang, and Duan Huizong simultaneously opened broadside salvos, firing one ten-jin cannon after another. At the same time, Keelung Fort in the southwest corner of Sheliao Island also opened fire, but only the diamond-shaped bastion facing northwest had a range of fire.

Nearly 50 solid shells were fired at the Lioness with great force, and no less than 5 shells penetrated the ship's planks. Wood fragments swept across the gun deck like raindrops, like the giant scythe of the god of death sweeping across, mercilessly reaping the lives of the VOC gunners.

The situation on the open deck of the Lioness was slightly better, because the old lock ship of the Huiyou Company was on the upwind side, the muzzles of the guns on the engagement surface were lowered, and the distance between the two sides was about one mile at this time, so the impact points of the shells were generally low.

Thanks to this, the mast system of the Lioness remained intact in this round of salvos, with only a few more holes on the sails and several side rigging cables being cut off, but the ship's sailing performance was almost unaffected.

The sailors faithfully carried out the captain's orders, and the Lioness turned side and headed for the open sea, changing its course from east by south to east by north. Keelung Fort soon lost its range of fire, but the four old lock ships and the guns on Tongpan Island continued to fire.

While the Lioness was sailing, the gunners were also firing back, but at this time two of the ten 12-pound guns on the starboard side of the gun deck had been silenced, and many gunners had been killed. In total, only five 12-pound guns fired in time, and the damage caused to the Laozha fleet was almost negligible.

The three 6-pound guns on the starboard side of the rear deck were intact, and the gun crew members were basically uninjured, but the caliber of these guns was too small to cause any damage to the Laozha fleet a mile away. The only one that made a contribution was the only remaining bow gun. The gunners, in their grief and anger, seemed to have divine help and hit a gun carriage under Tongpan Island with one shot, killing three Navy gunners on the spot.

At this time, the Lioness's course was increasingly biased towards the north, and the starboard side became the battle surface with Tongpan Island. The fragile Chrysanthemum was exposed to the guns of the Laozha fleet.

A new round of exchange of fire soon began. This time, the distance between the Lioness and the artillery batteries under the Tongpan Island Mountain was only more than one chain, which was the most common exchange of fire distance in the era of sailing battleships. The hit rate of both sides was greatly improved.

However, the sturdiness of the land artillery forts was far beyond that of wooden ships, and the aiming would not be affected by wind and waves. Although the number of artillery pieces with firing ranges on both sides was not much different, the Tongpanyu artillery forts gained an overwhelming advantage in this round of exchange of fire.

The Lioness's planking was pierced again by several shells, the starboard side was almost destroyed, and there were several more holes on the port side. This time, the casualties on the open deck were even greater, and Lucas himself was injured by a fragment and lost his right ear.

The mast system was also hit by the Peace Fort on the high ground of Tongpan Island. The bowsprit and topmast were directly broken. The Lioness lost the bowsprit and topsail, and the other five cross sails were also broken into pieces, greatly weakening its ability to catch the wind.

The most fatal damage still came from the Laozha fleet. The stern of the Lioness was smashed to pieces and the rear mast began to sway from side to side, posing a serious threat to navigation safety.

Lucas endured the severe pain of losing his right ear and quickly ordered the mizzen mast to be cut off, which meant that the Lioness lost its air rudder and its maneuverability was greatly weakened.

Fortunately, the Lioness was on a course that would not hit Tongpan Island, and the rudder was still working. The sailors struggled to control the ship and continued to turn, while hoisting two main sails again. The Lioness drifted northward under the south wind and luckily escaped the fire net of the Huiyou Company.

Lucas looked at his battleship sadly. The Lioness had been severely damaged and was only half alive. If it suffered another round of artillery fire, it would most likely be completely destroyed.

The loss of the crew was even more shocking. Dead bodies could be seen everywhere on the open deck, and the ubiquitous wailing coming from all directions and the gun deck below was creepy.

The seriously injured sailors were actually worse off than the dead. Most of them would eventually die, but they would suffer even more pain before dying, so many of them begged their companions to kill them...

Fortunately, it was the Lioness that rushed into Keelung Harbor. If it had been a schooner like the Vesp, it might not have been able to withstand even the first round of fire.

And if the ship coming in was a returning ship with a larger turning radius, it would definitely not be able to change sides and escape after rushing in, and the final outcome would be that it would be completely destroyed by the crossfire in the port.

"There are a total of 216 crew members on the Lioness. So far, 68 have been killed in battle, 53 are seriously injured, and 5 are missing. It is estimated that the final death toll will exceed half of the total number of crew members." First mate Marcel immediately counted the casualties on the ship and came to Lucas to report to him.

Marcel's left eye was blinded, and his remaining right eye seemed to speak: Captain, look at what you have done...

"Oh God! Let those damn junks chase us out!" Lucas prayed silently in his heart. His only wish now was to lead the Huiyou Company's fleet out of the port, because he knew that his main fleet was approaching.

This may be his only chance to escape punishment. After all, Fleet Commander Carpentier has issued a military order strictly prohibiting any ship from entering Keelung Port without permission.

(End of this chapter)