Rise of the 1630s South America

Chapter 1663 Dutch South Africa ([-])

Jan van Riebeck is 56 years old this year, and he has served as the governor of the Dutch South African colony for more than 12 years. In the East India Company system, to be honest, he can be regarded as a relatively "longevity" governor.

Originally the founder of the Cape Town colony in history, the founding father of white South Africa, and whose portrait was printed on the South African banknotes of later generations, Van Riebeck will be the second governor of the colony.But to be honest, he, the second Governor of Cape Town who has been in office for more than 12 years, has done much better than the first Haimer De Young: he not only won more employees from the East India Company than before. More lenient agreement - originally the East India Company employees who farmed in South Africa were just agricultural workers, later they were allowed to own their own land, but still had to farm for the company, now they only have to farm for themselves The land, the company takes a proportional percentage, which is equivalent to collecting rent-at the same time, it also developed the local wheat planting industry, livestock breeding industry, wool industry, melon and fruit planting industry, and wine making industry, and added a lot of money to Dutch South Africa. s population.

Less than half of these new populations (of course referring to whites) are Dutch-speaking "Booleans" from the United Provinces, and the rest are Protestants from Germany and France.Especially the latter. Over the years, as the religious atmosphere in France has become more and more tense, many Huguenots have been forced to leave their hometowns with their families and go to the United Provinces or the United Kingdom to settle down. Of course, a considerable number of them also crossed the sea. Came to settle in South Africa.

These Protestants from Germany and France are generally more open-minded (of course, people who oppose the corruption of the Catholic Church...), have a higher education level, have more labor skills, and have richer wealth. They are high-quality immigrants In history, the Netherlands and England did not know how many such Protestant immigrants from the Catholic world absorbed, which greatly enriched the strength of the country.

These Huguenots from France are now intermarrying with the local Dutch and Germans, slowly losing some of their own cultural characteristics.But on the other hand, immigrants are also influencing each other, and some Huguenot lifestyles have gradually been accepted by the Dutch and Germans, the most important of which is probably the brewing of wine.

In today's Dutch South Africa, the foothills of Cape Town, Stellenbosch and other places, due to the abundant sunshine and suitable environment, are very conducive to the growth of grapes, so a characteristic industry has gradually developed over the years. : winemaking industry.The ships of the Dutch East India Company going east liked to purchase melons, fruits and vegetables, poultry and livestock, and a large amount of wine here.For this reason, they have reduced their purchases of Australian wines and Yantai wines in recent years. Even if the taste of wines in these two places is not the same as that of Cape Town, and there is still some market demand, they will probably buy these wines. Orders from the Cape Town side are completely supplied.

In addition, the Protestant immigration also brought some other changes, which have greatly changed the social outlook of Dutch South Africa, making it a positive trend as a whole, and people's lives are more chaotic than the war. The Old Continent is better.I believe that if it weren’t for the three counties of Hezhong, Tianxiong, and Changqing of the people on the east bank to isolate Dutch South Africa in a semicircle, making it lack of room for development, what kind of situation these Dutch Boers would have created? .

But now it seems that everything is over!The East Coasters suddenly came to the fore, and the six colonial towns of Proteum, Bredasdorp, Hammer, Neuhorn, Gowers, and Stellenbosch were taken, and Cape Town became the last stronghold. But it is already just an isolated city, and it is only a matter of time before it falls.Many people did not understand what happened, including Van Riebeck!

Of course, as a mid-to-high-level employee of the East India Company, Governor Van Riebeck has heard about some things that are happening in the Old World today, including the famous massacre in the square of Gwangenport Prison and the ensuing joint Provincial ruling Prince of Orange's "sanctions" on East Coasters.But he really couldn't believe that the people on the east coast brazenly declared war on the United Provinces just because of these economic sanctions - no, this is already an undeclared war - could it be that they are all impulsive young men who don't think about the consequences at all ?Don't you know how close the trade relationship between the two countries is and how big the business is?But now everything is ruined, and there is no room for change. Governor Van Riebeck also deeply regrets this.

But now that things have come to this point, and the war has indeed broken out, then there is no need to continue to feel sad, let's focus on how to solve the current predicament.Now the cavalry of the East Coasters is active in the north, and the vast countryside has fallen without accident. Even if it has not fallen, it has lost contact with Cape Town and is no longer useful; Thousands of pagan soldiers "wearing blue uniforms", Governor Van Riebeck judged, must be the main force of the East Coasters-then the facts are clear, and now they have been surrounded by the East Coasters from both sides, There is no longer any retreat, except at sea.

"Your Excellency, please look at the sea!" On the top floor of the Fort of Good Hope in Cape Town—this castle was originally built by the British, and then continuously repaired, reinforced, and expanded by the Dutch—the leader of the militia pointed to the sea not far away. Several cruising warships said.

Van Riebeck looked around and quickly recognized that those warships were the classic "Jiqi" class escort gunboats of the East Coasters. There are four in total. They can be said to be a tyrannical sea force in the coastal waters of South Africa, at least at this moment. The two East India Company armed merchant ships moored in the port of Cape Town couldn't bear the idea of ​​coming forward to fight.

"Even the sea is blocked. It seems that the entire Cape Colony must be captured." Van Riebeck was suddenly a little angry. He had devoted countless efforts to the development of Dutch South Africa. It's so rude, it's not enough to seize six towns, but you want to take off the jewel of Cape Town, is this crazy?

"They must have been bewitched by the devil." Governor Van Riebeck left the window, and while pedaling downstairs, he vented, "Yes, they were bewitched by the devil, otherwise how could they have done such a stupid thing?" ?Even if they took Cape Town, wouldn’t the 17-member committee in Amsterdam, the Dutch provincial government, and the United Provinces’ government not retaliate? Don’t they plan to let their ships enter the Baltic Sea in the future? They are Ready to receive the unending hostility of the United Provinces in the Mediterranean? A bunch of foolish people who have done such an unforgivable thing, and now I want to see what the future holds. Hart—"

Hart came over quickly.This man is not tall, and his appearance is not good. He looks like an old country man. Of course, that is just the impression of people who don't know him well.Anyone who knows Hart's background knows how ruthless this seemingly friendly guy is when he is decisive. Otherwise, do you think he can be the commander of this German mercenary army with about 1250 people?How can it be!

"Hart, I say now to you and your companions. You are God's holy people, and you will not be afraid, for God will be with them, and His angels will stand by your side. The east bank before you Although people seem to be a big trouble, but we have a strong castle, sufficient food reserves, a newly replenished arsenal, and a large number of high-spirited soldiers, so what do we have to be afraid of?" Fan Li Governor Baker said in an emotional tone: "You are a new generation of Israelites, chosen by God to occupy such a vast land in South Africa, just like the Hebrews once won the land of Canaan. Fight, don't let Heretics despise, let alone fear, for our ultimate victory is certain, as it has happened countless times before."

Hart and the others are old fritters. After many years of bloody storms, they will naturally not be moved by Van Riebeck's words.But at the same time, he also deeply realized that they really had no way out, and could only fight with the people on the east coast until one side couldn't persist and declared failure.Therefore, he quickly returned to the barracks of his army, asked officers at all levels to go down to the army to mobilize, and also tried to find a way to invite the pastor of the church in the city to help boost morale. One of the things pastors do best.

Priests in this era can be considered all-around talents.In addition to being proficient in religious classics and etiquette, they can generally read and write Latin, and their attainments in mathematics and alchemy are not low, and they even need to participate in battles in many cases, so the combat value is actually quite high, let alone A piece of cake for war mobilization.

"Soldiers, we must get everything ready as soon as possible. The honor of the United Provinces cannot be tarnished, because God has chosen us, not because we are the most populous people in the world, but because of our other qualities. We have always thought of Israel. How can you give up easily now that you conquered South Africa like the twelve patriarchs who conquered the Promised Land? Soldiers, take up your weapons, follow your chiefs, and fight with the pagans from the east coast. Victory will eventually belong to us ” A priest with a flintlock pistol hidden in his waist stood on the city square and shouted at the entire team of mercenaries and temporary recruits: “Now, go to fight and let the people on the east coast see Our business."

And when the Dutch in Cape Town were in chaos, the main force of the provisional first regiment who had just left the peacefully received city of Stellenbosch and arrived in the area north of Cape Town was also the same as the one from the north. The security teams from Hezhong and Tianxiong counties that came over converged, then traveled all the way south, arrived at the outskirts of Cape Town, and began to set up camp and set up positions.

As Guo Handong, who had tasted the sweetness in Stellenbosch, he would naturally send people to Cape Town to approach the Dutch immediately with a white flag and ask them to surrender.But maybe Cape Town is strong, maybe the Dutch felt that they could wait for rescue, so they simply refused to surrender, saying that they would fight the East Coasters to the last moment.

Guo Handong was not surprised by the statement of the Dutch, because it is obvious that the city of Cape Town is extremely strong, the supplies are said to be abundant, and there are sergeants who are familiar with the battle formation guarding. Defense is not so difficult, unless the people here The morale of the soldiers is really low to a certain extent, but it is obviously not enough at present, which poses a problem for the people on the east bank!

Now there are actually two options before the people on the east coast. One is to contact the navy and let them rush to the port regardless of the danger, and then attack Cape Town and the fortress with land and sea attack, and capture this key city. The consequences are Casualties may be extremely heavy. After all, storming a fortress in this era must rely on human life, and there is no other way; , long-term siege, maintaining a certain intensity of contact warfare, and finally forcing the enemy to surrender, but it may be delayed for a long time, and the situation may not be able to afford it.

Guo Handong, as the supreme commander of the siege of Cape Town, now has the power to make this decision in his hands. He can decide the life and death of nearly [-] soldiers on both sides with one word!The subordinates also looked at him quietly, waiting for his order to attack or siege.

"The order is that the [-]th Mixed Battalion will go forward immediately and launch a tentative attack on the coastal defense fort on the east side of Cape Town. If the enemy resolutely resists, there is no need to entangle. You can retreat first and then do other tricks; the [-]th Mixed Battalion will also go forward to monitor the movement of Cape Town and prevent the city from sending troops to rescue the fortress; the [-]th and [-]th mixed battalions merged with the security regiments of Hezhong and Tianxiong counties, and immediately began to build temporary camps. After the order was issued, everyone more or less understood what their superiors meant, that is to attack the fortress outside the enemy's city first to see how it works.If it goes well, then the next step is to try to attack Cape Town, and if it doesn't go well, then don't say anything, and prepare for a long-term siege. Although Commander Guo has a strong background, it is not convenient to force Everyone went to eat the enemy's strong fortress to die.

The plan of the Tenth Mixed Battalion to attack the coastal defense fort did not go well.The Dutch also stationed three or four hundred soldiers in this small fortress, and possessed a lot of artillery. The Tenth Mixed Battalion had more recruits, and withdrew after the attack was frustrated and dropped dozens of corpses return.However, their attack is not ineffective, at least they have figured out some of the enemy's artillery positions, the firepower density of the defenders, etc. If they really want to pull out this semi-enclosed fort fortress to facilitate the entry of naval ships, it is still very difficult. It is of reference value.

Of course, then again, even if the coastal defense fortress is really captured, how to capture the more difficult city of Cape Town in the future is still a very scratchy thing, and it can only be said that it can only be besieged for a long time .

A bone-like bulge suddenly appeared on the back of the wrist of my left hand. I checked it online and found it to be a ganglion cyst, a common problem of typists.Suddenly there was a bolt from the blue, is it because I have updated too much recently and typed too much?Well, that must be the case.

(End of this chapter)