Volume 4: Hot! The whole world is a warring state Chapter 793 Massacre in the Gulf of Aden
On January 12, 1648, at 3 a.m. Eastern Time, a large fleet appeared in the waters near Socotra.
It was winter in the northern hemisphere, and although the latitude here was not high, at least the sea was generally calm during this season. After leaving Mumbai, during the six-day journey, this huge fleet of 1,060 ships was only drenched by heavy rain once.
Of course, the main reason why they showed up a whole day later than Inukai Toji's staff had expected was that they met up with the empty transport detachment returning from the Persian Gulf on the way. The fleet stopped temporarily in the ocean and transferred some soldiers and supplies to the newly joined transport detachment.
It was of course very dangerous to stop in the ocean to transfer personnel and supplies when retreating from the enemy. But there was no other way: when leaving Mumbai, because the number of transport ships was one-third less than expected, each ship was overloaded. With so many people, it was extremely difficult to go to the toilet on the ship, not to mention that the lack of space would make people very anxious and prone to illness. The transport detachment coming from the Persian Gulf also had insufficient coal on board, so it had to be transported from the fleet leaving Mumbai.
"Sir, we are still 20 nautical miles away from Socotra Island. The garrison on the island called and said they have prepared food, fresh water, coal and other supplies. Once our troops arrive at the port, they can enter the port one by one to replenish. At the same time, a regiment stationed on the island, as well as more than 7,000 logistical support personnel, have made preparations for retreat."
"Have they spotted any Chinese fleets lately?"
"Three days ago, they used the thirty transport ships anchored on the island as reconnaissance ships to conduct a fan-shaped reconnaissance around the sea area, but no enemy warships were found."
"Strange, this is really strange. The Chinese just watched us return to Europe? Where are our radio monitoring?"
"To the west of Socotra, only the signals of our EU ships were received. Chinese signals, which are very unfamiliar to us and cannot be deciphered, frequently appear in the eastern waters."
"I hope the Chinese are really behind us and far away from us." He looked at his watch and confirmed the time again. Garcia said, "The transport fleet will be divided into three batches to enter the port for replenishment. Tell the generals of the army to take good care of their soldiers. They are strictly prohibited from disembarking at this time. I know they have been very depressed on the ship recently, but in this emergency, if any soldier disembarks without permission, our navy will abandon him on the island."
"yes!"
"The fleet is in battle formation. I always feel that the Chinese will not let us go back so easily."
"Sir, are you saying that the warships will not enter the port?"
"Yes, we will not enter the port. Our supplies will be delivered to us by other transport ships after we enter the Red Sea."
"yes!"
"Send a telegram to the Ottomans, asking them to continue to fight like us and not to enter the port for supplies. After we enter the Red Sea, whether they want to return to the Persian Gulf or enter the eastern Mediterranean through the Suez Canal, we will send them off or welcome them."
"yes!"
Following Garcia's order, more than 900 transport ships of various sizes began to slowly but orderly adjust their formations, and then slowly approached Socotra Island at a speed of 8.5 knots. On the Western Joint Fleet side, six battleships, 21 heavy cruisers, six light cruisers, and 79 destroyers formed a circle with six battleships as the core, and gradually surpassed the transport fleet at a speed of 13.5 knots, and sailed to the north of the transport fleet.
At 6:00 a.m., the first transport ship entered the berth of Socotra Port, and the local garrison and logistics personnel who had been waiting for a long time began to quickly hoist various materials onto the ship. Then, the second ship arrived, and the third... By 6:40, all the more than 100 berths in the port were filled with transport ships.
At 7:10, the first transport ship had finished its supply and began to slowly leave its berth. At this time, the sun in the low-latitude area had also risen completely, and the entire sky was bright with morning light. The lookouts on the warships quickly reached their maximum sight.
At 7:50, the first batch of 105 transport ships had completed their supply. After repeatedly confirming that there were no enemy warships around and that no enemy telegraph signals were detected, Garcia took a slight risk: he let the first batch of 105 transport ships sail slowly northwest at a speed of six knots without escort, preparing to enter the Red Sea.
Of course, this is very dangerous, but there is no other way: if the first batch does not leave, the next batch cannot come in. Even if the first batch of ships leave the port and anchor nearby, it is still okay for the first batch of more than 100 ships. If the second batch, the third batch, etc. leave the port, how much area will they have to cover on the sea?
"Hey, let the troops on the island work faster. We will try to complete all the supplies by noon today. That way, by the afternoon, we will be able to catch up with the transport fleet that set out first."
Putting aside Garcia's anxiety, the first batch of transport fleet that completed the supply adjustment changed its course to the northwest after leaving Socotra and began to advance towards the Red Sea.
The leader of the fleet is the Pyrenees, a standard supply ship of the Spanish Navy with a displacement of 10,000 tons. In addition to a huge warehouse, there is also a 75mm naval gun on the bow. The crew of the ship are all from the Spanish Navy, and its captain is a lieutenant colonel of the navy.
At 11:20 am, the Pyrenees was more than 50 kilometers away from Socotra Island. Behind it, more than 100 transport ships, separated by 200 meters, formed a 20-kilometer-long snake formation that stretched as far as the eye could see. And about two or three kilometers behind this long snake formation, there was another long snake fleet consisting of more than 100 transport ships, stretching nearly 20 kilometers.
"Captain, here's your coffee."
"Thank you, Fernando."
"We will enter the Bab el-Mandeb Strait in two or three hours. As long as the Chinese are not guarding there and we can enter the Red Sea smoothly, everything will be safe."
"Captain, do you also think that the Chinese will not let us go easily?"
"Of course, do you still remember that nearly ten years ago, our transport fleet was attacked by the enemy near the Strait of Malacca? The cunning Chinese like to bully our unarmed transport ships the most."
"Haha, the last time was in Southeast Asia, which is too far away from God's area. Now, we are about to go home. God's sight has covered this place. With his blessing, the cunning Chinese are powerless."
"I hope so." After saying this, the captain and the first mate began to make the sign of the cross on their chests. But before they finished making the sign of the cross, a trembling, crying voice came from the copper pipe connected to the watchtower: "Captain, warships are spotted ahead. A large number of warships."
"Maldita Sea!" There was no luck, the Spanish main fleet was still behind them! The meaning of the large number of warships in front was obvious.
"Helmsman, turn the rudder to the left, we are heading south! Engine room, increase the speed to the ship's maximum speed of 13 knots! Telegraph room, send a message to the following ships, disband the formation, and all head south. Send a message to Mr. Garcia on Socotra Island, we have encountered the enemy's main fleet!"
With a series of telegrams from the Pyrenees, the original orderliness of the fleet of more than 100 ships suddenly disappeared. Most of the transport ships began to turn left and flee to the southern sea: the sea they were in was called the Gulf of Aden. If they went north, the nearest land was Yemen. At this time, Yemen was basically a barren land. If they couldn't find water after going up, their death might not be much better than drowning in the sea.
Besides, although this place has not been effectively developed, it still belongs to the Ottoman Empire in name. Even if you have so many troops landing on Ottoman soil, the Ottomans probably won't allow it, even if they are allies.
On the contrary, the south of this time was Somalia and Eritrea in later generations. Although these two places were also quite desolate at that time, at least they were not arid deserts, and the British and several French principalities had established colonies there. After landing there, with the support of the colonial government and so many land forces, they could still struggle a bit.
Of course, among these more than 100 transport ships, there were a few smart captains: they did not follow the Pyrenees' arrangement to turn south, but instead headed north!
"Commander, the enemy has discovered us and is turning. Most of the enemy ships are turning south as we expected. Only a few are heading north."
"Haha, those heading north are all smart. Forget it, with so many ships, it's normal for some to slip through the net. Now order, break the radio silence, and each ship should sink as many enemy transport ships as possible while maintaining the formation. Note that since the enemy's main fleet may be nearby, we don't want to take prisoners, just sink them!"
"Yes, sir!"
Following Inukai Touji's order, the main fleet of the Ming Navy had arrived at the nearby waters more than three days ago. In order to avoid being discovered by the reconnaissance ships of Socotra Island, they were forced to retreat and hide again and again, and were almost forced into the Red Sea. Finally, they were able to start a killing spree.
The flagship Lian Po took the lead and quickly approached the Spanish transport fleet at a speed of 16 knots. When it was about 10,000 meters away from the enemy, it fired the first shell.
Although the point where the shells landed was not even a near miss for the more than 100 transport ships, the 420 kg shells fired by the 305 cannons created huge water columns on the sea surface, making the transport fleet, which was mainly composed of ordinary merchant ships, even more panicked. After these guys panicked, the 200-meter distance that was originally well maintained between each other also changed rapidly: some ships were farther away, while others were getting closer. When these ships became densely packed, hitting them became a very simple matter.
At 11:30 a.m., just ten minutes after the battle began, the Lian Po's main gun scored a hit: a shell fired by the 305 main gun directly hit a medium-sized transport ship with a displacement of only 3,000 tons. After a huge explosion, the transport ship broke in two on the spot and sank quickly without any temper.
As Lian Po scored a hit, the subsequent Li Mu, Bai Qi, Wang Jian, etc. also began to score hits one after another. For a while, the entire surface of the Gulf of Aden was filled with the rumbling of cannons, and huge black smoke continued to rise from transport ships of various sizes. And these thin-skinned and brittle transport ships were directly hit, of course, with one shot hitting the target. Even the near miss bullets fired by the 305 main gun would tear a huge gap in the steel plate below the waterline, and the fate waiting for these ships was still sinking.
In this flustered team, it was actually the navy officers who were in control. It was actually a high-speed transport ship that could reach a maximum speed of 13 knots. The Pyrenees was bombarded by the Ming Navy without a scratch on its oil skin. It survived the first two rounds of bombardment and, after successfully turning, ran nearly two kilometers south.
However, before the people on the ship could calm down, the report from the lookout made them completely despair: "A large number of enemy destroyers have been spotted ahead!"
"Hahaha, Commander, you are so smart. You have already figured out that you are going to flee south. We have been waiting here for a long time!"
