***
When the warships of Daqin, Britain and Portugal were heading south to Lisbon, the capital of Portugal, four armed merchant ships of ocean-going trading companies arrived in Portugal.
In a distant foreign country, suddenly seeing their compatriots, the excitement among them was truly indescribable. Many people shouted and laughed, and even shed tears of excitement.
In addition to rockets and Type 69 flintlock rifles, these four armed merchant ships of the ocean-going trading company are equipped with all kinds of weapons such as cannons, Type 68 rifled rifles, thunder bombs, bows and arrows, and crossbows.
Moreover, although they were called armed merchant ships, they were actually the fastest clippers. The four ships were led by a retired naval officer named Zhu Kexin.
Their destination was not Europe, but the American continent. It was one of the two expedition fleets sent by the Ocean Trading Company to explore the American continent at the request of Emperor Qin Mu. The other fleet took the route of South China and crossed the Pacific Ocean.
Zhu Kexin planned to go to Europe first, and then cross the Atlantic Ocean from Europe to America. For an exploration fleet heading to a distant unknown place, it would be the most exciting thing to meet the Qin Dynasty's envoys in Europe.
The mission's feat of conquering Paris, France, and its preparation to join forces with Britain and Portugal to attack Spain and seize the Strait of Gibraltar, all these events boosted the spirits of the expedition team, which had just arrived in Europe and was about to sail to America and was somewhat confused.
The Qin Dynasty's mission to Europe once again proves a truth: everything is possible!
Zhang Haoran and his colleagues were also very excited. The four clipper-type exploration ships were actually armed to the teeth. For the delegation that was short of troops, being able to have this expedition team of 600 people join in time would greatly increase their power.
Let's put the mission of exploring America aside for now. According to the navigation plan, with the amazing speed of the clipper, it would only take half a month to cross the Atlantic Ocean from Lisbon to America. Why not wait a while
In Lisbon, Qin, Britain and Portugal held a heated discussion and finally reached an agreement that the British and Portuguese navies, together with Qin's eight clipper ships, would jointly attack the Spanish navy while Philip IV was personally on an expedition to France.
If they could defeat the Spanish navy, they would force Spain to recognize Portugal's independence and cede the northern regions of Ourense and Santiago de Compostela to Portugal.
Britain obtained the Gibraltar region south of Mount Penivetico, and Daqin obtained the port of Ceuta in North Africa south of the Strait of Gibraltar. Britain would ensure that all Daqin ships enjoyed the right to freely pass through the Strait of Gibraltar at any time and under any circumstances.
Since Daqin was very far away from Europe, after Britain took over the Gibraltar region, the entire Strait of Gibraltar was almost controlled by Britain. Britain was very satisfied with this result.
Thus, the British and Portuguese navies, which had already assembled, plus the eight clipper warships of the Qin Dynasty, a total of 128 warships, marched towards the Strait of Gibraltar.
At this time, Philip IV of Spain, who led the army of 50,000 soldiers, had just reached the Spanish-French border. When he heard the urgent report from home that the navies of Qin, Britain and Portugal were heading towards the Strait of Gibraltar, the "King of the Earth" broke his rice bowl on the spot, which was a jade bowl as thin as a cicada's wing.
So the question is, how did Philip IV, who was far away on the Spanish-French border, immediately receive the news that the Qin, British and Portuguese fleets had just left Lisbon? Well, it was not surprising to receive the news that the three fleets were gathering in Lisbon, so how did Philip IV know for sure that the three fleets were going to attack the Strait of Gibraltar
This is a very intriguing question.
There is another problem. Zhang Haoran wants to lobby Spain and some southern European countries to unite with Daqin to attack the Ottoman Empire from both sides, so that Daqin's Central Asian strategic concept can be implemented faster and better.
If that was the case, why did Zhang Haoran join forces with Britain and Portugal to attack Spain? If Spain was defeated, how could they attack the Ottoman Empire
This is another intriguing question.
The man who came to report the news to Philip IV was called Dalausk. Seeing Philip IV so frightened, he hurriedly leaned over to Philip IV's ear and whispered in a low voice.
After hearing what he said, Philip IV asked doubtfully: "Is this true? Are you sure it is true?"
Dalausk looked around and whispered something into Philip IV's ear again...
***
To get from Lisbon to the Strait of Gibraltar, you must first sail south along the Atlantic Ocean, then go east around Cape St. Vicente and enter the Bay of Cadiz.
It is spring now, when the cold and warm monsoons meet in the Atlantic Ocean. Not only are the waves in the Atlantic Ocean turbulent, but also due to the temperature difference between the Mediterranean and the Atlantic Ocean and the warm and humid air currents above, fog often forms, covering the entire strait, with low visibility, posing a great threat to ship navigation.
When the combined fleet approached the Strait of Gibraltar, it encountered heavy fog. The sea was covered with a white haze. As dusk approached, the sunlight became extremely dim. The combined fleet of the three countries had to hang up lights to prevent collisions with each other.
Of course, this kind of weather has both disadvantages and advantages. For the actively attacking Allied Fleet, the advantages basically outweigh the disadvantages, as they can launch a surprise attack without the Spanish fleet being aware of it.
The Strait of Gibraltar is located between the southernmost part of Spain and the northwestern part of Africa, and is 58 kilometers long. The narrowest point is between Cape Marroqui in Spain and Cape Sires in Morocco, and is only 13 kilometers wide.
In the foggy dusk, 128 warships were sailing on the sea like a group of ghost ships. As the sky grew darker, the warships that were a little further away could no longer be seen. Only the faint lights on the masts could be seen.
As the Strait of Gibraltar got closer, the atmosphere became more and more tense. The Spanish Invincible Armada once dominated Europe. As the saying goes, a centipede will not die even if it is dead. Although the Invincible Armada was defeated once by the British fleet, its strength is still there. If the Invincible Armada discovers this action in advance, it will be a tragic bloody battle, and it is still unknown who will win in the end.
The flagship of General Lanbery sailing in front is the "Majestic of the Sea", which is famous throughout Europe. It is the largest warship in Europe, equipped with hundreds of large and small guns.
In order to achieve a better sneak attack effect, Lan Bai suggested that the ships should separate a little and turn off the lights on the ships. This proposal was immediately agreed by the Qin army. The Portuguese fleet didn't say anything else. Everyone dispersed a little and turned off all the anti-collision lights.
The thick fog made the night darker, with only the roar of the waves echoing. At this moment, there was a sudden and unexpected sound of artillery fire from the front. Boom! Boom, boom, boom... ... ...
But in the night, tongues of fire were like the devil's fire, and deafening roars made the entire Bay of Cadiz boil.
"Oh, God!"
"It's the Invincible Armada! It's the Spanish Invincible Armada!"
"Oh! We've been ambushed!"
"Oh my God, the Costa has been hit!"
"Sea Sovereign, look! Oh my God, the enemy's target is the Sea Sovereign..."
It is unknown how the Spanish Invincible Armada accurately predicted the appearance of the Three Kingdoms' combined fleet here, but at this moment they took advantage of the foggy weather and mobilized the entire Invincible Armada, totaling 93 warships, to set a complete trap in front.
This was an arc-shaped T-shaped cross-head. More than 90 warships opened fire fiercely, bombarding the British warships that had unknowingly rushed into the trap. At this time, the distance between the warships of both sides was only about 100 meters, and all the artillery was almost level firing;
Hundreds of shells flew close to the sea surface and hit the British warships hard, especially the huge and obvious target, the Sea Majesty, which was hit by shells like rain. The cabin collapsed and even the mainmast was broken. The shells fell down with a loud noise, causing the waves to churn up with an astonishing momentum.
The Invincible Fleet fired nearly a thousand shells at a time, which was extremely powerful. Before the British could react, they were dizzy and screaming in pain.
Pang Ning looked at the tragic scene ahead and shouted in shock: "Turn the rudder quickly! The enemy is ambushing! Run! Quick!"
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.(To be continued..)
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