Persian Empire 1845

Chapter 388 Patagonia (Part Two)
Inside the port of Blanca, everyone felt a sense of unease. How had the Mapuche gotten here so quickly? The expeditionary force had clearly driven them away to other places.

"What should we do? Should we run?" a woman asked her husband.

"It's alright, our army will drive them away soon. Go to sleep!"

The woman gripped her husband's sleeve tightly, her gaze darting anxiously out the window. They were on the outermost edge of Blanca, where they could occasionally hear sporadic gunshots.

“But I heard from the sailors at the dock that the Mapuche people are different this time…” her voice trembled, “They’re carrying muskets that we’ve never seen before.”

Her husband patted her hand, trying to appear calm, but his knuckles turned white from the pressure: "Reinforcements will arrive soon. Those barbarians will only take advantage of the situation to launch a sneak attack..."

A crescent moon hung in the sky, and the sea fog of the South Atlantic shrouded the salt marshes surrounding Blanca. Ahmadi led five hundred Mapuche warriors like ghosts through the reeds, their sheepskin boots barely making a sound as they trudged through the mud. In the distance, the torches of Argentine watchtowers cast dim, yellowish halos in the mist.

At midnight, just as the church bells in the harbor had struck twelve, the first explosion erupted from the naval warehouse.

"boom--!"

Argentine defenders rushed out of their barracks in a panic, only to find the gunboat "Liberty" engulfed in flames in the harbor—the lurking Mapuche had blown off its keel. At the same time, countless torches suddenly lit up the salt flats, and the bugle calls of the Mapuche warriors tore through the night sky.

“Allahu Akbar!”

Amidst the deafening roar of musket fire, the Argentine militia's defenses crumbled instantly. Meanwhile, outside the city, a large number of Mapuche people suddenly appeared, bombarding Blanca's walls with cannons, causing panic among the citizens inside.

"What happened! What happened?!"

"Run! To the church!"

Blanca was originally a fortress, so it still had some defensive capabilities. Before the city walls collapsed, the citizens quickly sought refuge in the church.

The church bells rang wildly, their tolls mingling with the whistling of cannons and the rumble of collapsing city walls. Citizens surged toward the San Martín Cathedral in the city center, only to find in horror that the iron gates were locked—the Argentine garrison had already converted it into a temporary command post.

On the fortress walls, the old artilleryman Martinez suddenly froze. Through his binoculars, six gleaming bronze field cannons appeared at the edge of the salt marsh—weapons that the natives could never possess.

"How could they have this..."

Before he could finish speaking, a plume of white smoke rose from the enemy's artillery position. The last thing Martinez saw was his left arm, blown away by the blast wave.

Mapuche engineers, their heads wrapped in green turbans and carrying explosive charges, charged through the breach in the eastern city wall. Behind them, three hundred assault troops in Persian-style uniforms advanced in a wedge formation.

Boom! A large breach was blasted in the city wall, and the army poured in. As the eastern city wall collapsed amidst the artillery fire, the ground throughout the city trembled. A couple hiding in the cellar of a bakery embraced tightly, flour raining down from the cracked wooden barrels, turning them into pale, ghostly figures.

But piercing through the explosions came the rhythmic beat of Persian military drums. The woman suddenly remembered the horrific stories circulating on the docks—foreign soldiers in dark blue uniforms chaining Argentine prisoners of war.

The entire port of Blanca was plunged into unprecedented panic. Citizens fled through the narrow streets like frightened sheep; some knelt by the roadside, clutching icons in prayer, while others frantically pounded on the closed iron doors of shops.

"Run to the port! Get on the ship!" a sailor with a face covered in coal dust roared in the crowd.

But the scene at the dock was even more despairing—the last merchant ship had left the port, all the warehouses had been destroyed to prevent the enemy from obtaining useful supplies, and the entire dock was engulfed in flames.

The shouts of the Mapuche fighters echoed through the streets. Many citizens were horrified to discover that these "barbarians" were actually shouting in fluent Spanish: "Surrender! We only kill those with guns!"

Flames engulfed the wooden piers of the dock area, and the scorching heat distorted the air. An Argentine officer brandished his saber, attempting to organize a defensive line, but the routed militia were deaf to any orders. Several terrified soldiers even dropped their rifles, stripped off their uniforms, and mingled with the fleeing civilians.

Port Governor Carlos Mendoza threw the last confidential document into the fire. Through the shattered stained-glass window, he saw a flag embroidered with a crescent moon and lion fluttering in the town square. He knew it was all over.

In this raid, the more than 2000 Argentine regular troops and militiamen were completely ineffective. They were all captured or killed, along with more than 200 civilians, while the Iranian side suffered more than 260 casualties.

News of the occupation of Blanca quickly spread throughout Buenos Aires among those who had escaped. As the capital of Argentina and home to the largest local interest groups, they demanded that President Mitre send troops to retake Blanca.

"This is a disgrace to Argentina. We must take back Blanca in order to protect our territory."

In the Argentine parliament, members of the Buenos Aires Group demanded that the government allocate 100 million pesos to form an expeditionary force. However, members of the Rosario and Córdoba regions, along with other inland regions, resisted the bill. They knew that if the proposal passed, Buenos Aires would become even stronger, making it much harder to seize power later.

The British also sensed something was wrong. Why would Iran suddenly attack Blanca? Wouldn't that mean their investments would go down the drain?

British investment in Argentina was mainly in the form of government loans. In 1860, British government loans accounted for 81% of its total investment in Argentina. Although not a large sum, it still amounted to £300 million.

The British ambassador immediately telegraphed London, hoping Britain could give Iran a warning. His successive victories over Russia and the Ottoman Empire had left him somewhat disoriented. He needed to be shown who the true hegemon was.

By this time, Blanca was completely occupied, and according to past practices, they should have all been killed. But since they were all civilized people, that wasn't so easy. They simply sliced ​​the governor, the mayor, and those who were shouting into pieces. It was said that this was a punishment only found in the Far East; after being sliced, their heads were stuck in front of the church door, nearly scaring the bishop to death.

Meanwhile, the suburban estates were cleared out. A new round of land distribution began, with each participating soldier receiving 60 mu (approximately 4 hectares) of land, and the families of fallen soldiers receiving 40 mu (approximately 2 hectares). The land distribution was quickly completed, and within the city, notices were posted announcing their rule over the city, stating that as long as they did not commit crimes, they could continue to live there.

(End of this chapter)