Chesapeake Bay, blockade formations, HMS Lion 3rd class battleship.

In the enclosed Admiral's room, Shaq was frowning as he read the report.

The report, which came from faraway Newfoundland, was marked as top secret and was not known to unrelated personnel.

According to the second formation of the Continental Detachment, the Canadian garrison intends to promote the peaceful return operation in Portland, a major seaport town.

At this stage, the review of the action plan has been completed, and the implementation staff is being widely selected in the Army.

At the same time, the Canadian garrison hopes to have the full cooperation of the second formation, and the Navy will take on the deployment and reception of operational personnel, as well as necessary maritime support.

The timing and wording of this application were very delicate.

On land, General Clinton's southward strategy was fruitful, and most of the battles were won absolutely, except for a few setbacks in New Orleans and other places.

This meant that the garrison's military focus on responding to armed rebellion in North America had officially shifted.

The next phase of the military campaign is likely to revolve around Savannah, and the Canadian garrison guarding New England can only sit on the sidelines and watch as glory, merit, prestige, and privilege move further and further away from them.

And on the sea, Sir Parker established a new order in the Caribbean with a crisp and beautiful battle, and by the way, he crushed France and defeated the Netherlands.

The greatest value of the Battle of the Windward Islands was that it fundamentally established Britain's dominant position in the New World.

The Royal Navy could do whatever it wanted, because with the current maritime strength of all parties, Britain would no longer be afraid of a challenge even if France united everyone.

But at this time, the application for action from the north was suddenly handed to Shaq's desk, and there was a strong smell of wanting to dominate the crowd.

The review of the action plan is completed, i.e. the implementation of the action is a foregone conclusion.

Extensive selection of executives, i.e., [all garrisons must cooperate with the action].

Hope for support from the sea......

New England clings to Boston Harbor, and this time it is clearly a return of peace. Since we are not ready for a full-scale war, why do we have to pull the navy in one more move?

There seems to be only one possibility, and General Clinton in the south has the unsparing support of the Navy in the series of wars going south, and since there is support in the south, so should the north.

Shaq picked up the quill in disgust, ready to veto the request.

He didn't like himself and his men being objectified as targets for the Army's jealousy, not to mention that the operation was only against Boston.

Boston was the most prosperous port in the North, and the wide docks were lined with advanced batteries built by the British, and the fleet was not technically feasible for a ground attack.

But just as he was putting pen to paper, he suddenly thought again......

The application for the operation was submitted by the second formation on its own initiative, and if the Canadian garrison asked the fleet to bombard the port like a delirium, it would also be the second formation that hit the stone with an egg.

Why are they sending this application?

Could it be that it is not only the army in the north that is unwilling to be reduced to a supporting role, but even the navy in the north has become restless?

Shaq's brow furrowed again.

The British colonial power structure gave a great deal of respect to expatriates at all levels.

Each colony had its own independent governor, who acquired his rights according to the nature of the colony, and was the head of the military and political affairs.

In practice, however, the colonies may have been able to reluctantly organize some of their own vigilante marines, but they would not have the ability or the ability to build their own independent navies.

The colony's truly combat-ready naval and land forces were sent from the mainland, and the colony was responsible for providing military expenses, but personnel were always firmly in the hands of the military headquarters at home.

Personnel and financial power are the two pillars of the military organization, and the separation of pillars naturally leads to two results.

First, the governor nominally controlled the army, but in fact relied on the army, and even if he had enough logistics and supplies to serve as his life, he did not dare to be overly harsh, let alone carry out his command.

Because the officers from the aristocracy are starving to death, they don't stay here, and they can go somewhere else.

Second, the convergence of personnel rights.

The confinement of personnel authority meant that the colonial army was to be integrated into the military system of the state, and only in this way could it constitute normal promotions and transfers, and no independent kingdom would emerge.

In the case of the New World Navy, Peter . As the admiral of the fleet, Parker systematically controls the dispatch navy of the entire New World, and has three major fleets under his jurisdiction: the Caribbean, the Continent, and South America, and then subdivides multiple formations.

From a personnel point of view, these fleets were supposed to be one, but since the colonies controlled most of the fleet's military spending, they still had corresponding independence.

Peter. Parker personally docked with the Pan-Caribbean colonies, and the only one who could achieve complete control was the Caribbean Detachment, which was also the commander of the detachment.

These include the Jamaican 1st Formation for the Central Caribbean, the 2nd Barbados Formation for the Windward Islands Colony, the 3rd Bahamas Formation for the Bahamas Colony and the 4th Formation for the Gulf of Mexico for the Central American Colonies.

During the Battle of the Windward Islands, all the ships he drew were from the 1st to 3rd formations, and the complete 4th formation was retained to deal with the unclear attitude of the Spaniards at that time.

Shaq's situation is similar.

As Admiral of the Continental Fleet, his main sources of military expenditure were the Thirteen North American Colonies, Canada, and the Bermuda Islands.

Among them, the military expenditure south of New York State and Bermuda supports the first formation, and the north of New York and the Canadian region supports the second formation.

So Sir Parker couldn't fully control him, and he couldn't fully control the second formation, but because all the military expenses had to be transferred to him, the relationship within the detachment was much closer than his relationship with Sir Brother.

Based on the internal fetters of the naval system and the livelihood of the fleet, the entire New World Fleet can naturally be united on major issues of right and wrong.

But in terms of specific details, if the second formation is willing to cooperate with the Canadian garrison, even if he replies to veto, the second formation will find other reasons to act.

"That's why I don't like to do anything ...... approval."

Shaq read it in pieces, and wrote under the application:

[Application received.]

In view of the complete sea defense system of Boston Harbor, it is recommended to refuse the request of the relevant ship to attack the ground in order to avoid heavy losses.

In addition, there is no need to report the detailed rules for cooperation with army colleagues, and the specific degree of intervention is up to your own judgment.

Sark. Francis. Drake, on July 6, 1779]

Finally getting an important paperwork, Shaq twisted his sore neck and stood up.

The clock in the cabin had already crossed 10 o'clock, and before I knew it, it was already late at night.

At this time, the ship should be on night duty, and only one-sixth of the sailors should be retained to maintain basic manoeuvring and guarding.

As for the fleet staff officers and admiral adjutant assigned to him as the admiral, they probably fell asleep a long time ago.

Lack of energy is the enemy of thinking, and when it is not necessary, he has always opposed officers who use intelligence to stay up late for no reason.

Speaking of which, dealing with such boring affairs should also be considered a waste of energy......

Shaq thought lazily as he pushed open the hatch and saw the officer on duty walking in the direction of the captain's quarters.

"Is there anything sudden?" Shaq asked.

The officer on duty snapped and saluted: "Report to the Admiral, I was about to report to the captain that the sixth formation passed through the first observation point!" ”

"When?"

"There was an eight-minute delay, and the light signal was normal!"

"Is it still too short...... Shaq sighed, "I should have told you in the drill code that when the superior formation passes through the observation point normally, the lower formation will move according to the preset order, and then report to the formation commander after the movement is launched." ”

The officer on duty had a difficult face: "However, the Lion and the blockade formation do not perform circular movements......"

"The circle is just the model, and the defense is the fundamental. As a subordinate unit, it is likely that it will be required to do rectangular movements, triangular movements, or even straight and tangential movements according to hydrology and terrain, which is not a reason to exclude oneself from the auxiliary defense system. ”

"Yes, Admiral! I take it to heart! ”

The star officer responded with great enthusiasm, but in his heart he complained, besides you, who else would do such a thankless and complicated defense......

"You must be thinking that other commanders won't let you do any Shaq tactics, right?"

The star officer was almost scared to death.

Shaq's tactics were originally Lorraine's name for the defense of the round formation, and later passed through Bell's mouth to the Wanderer, and then to the Lion, which has degenerated into a slander and mockery of Shaq.

This should have been a joke that was only circulated between senior sailors and junior officers, and the officer on duty never thought that Shaq would know about it.

Thinking of Bell, who had suddenly disappeared, the star officer began to tremble......

"Admiral, not ......"

"You should figure out which warship you're serving, Captain." Shaq wasn't interested in hearing anyone argue, "This is the Lion, it's Drake's flagship, and I don't plan to replace my own until I'm killed or forced to retire." As long as you're on this ship, wherever you go, you'll need to be familiar with Shaq tactics, whether you identify with it or not. ”

"Yes! Admiral! ”

"Go, go and deliver the order to unfold."

"Yes! Admiral! ”

The star officer ran in a panic, and Shaq looked at his back and couldn't help but laugh at himself.

"Everyone thinks that the circle is a stupid tactic, but they don't know that anyone has ever given it a high rating...... yes, brother. ”

……

The blockade formation began its movement according to the preset orders.

The southernmost fifth-class ship burst forward, vacating the space, which was filled by the Lion in the middle, and placed horizontally, and the high-speed Brig on the north side also moved horizontally, hiding behind the side of the Lion, and died down.

This is a change from horizontal chain defense to three-dimensional defense, characterized by a narrowing of the defense surface, but a deepening of the thickness.

Because as the No. 6 formation sails along the trajectory, they will continue to cover the defense area at the mouth of the bay, and the original horizontal chain type will overlap with the No. 6 formation in this case, resulting in a waste of firepower.

But no one expected that the fifth-class ship that came out of the front actually ran into an uninvited guest who rushed into the mouth of the bay......

"Alert! Alert! All crew members arrived at their posts immediately, and each position was called by stars. Outpost meets the enemy! Outpost meets the enemy! ”

The shrill whistle tore through the silence of the night sky, and the disheveled captain ran out of the cabin with red eyes open, catching a glimpse of Shaq staring into the darkness.

"Admiral!"

"You are the commander-in-chief of the formation, go and do your thing." Shaq stared coldly at the darkness in front of him, "The cannon has already been fired in front, judging from the sound of the cannon, the opponent has bypassed the outpost and rushed at us in a panic." ”

"Rush us?" Only then did the captain realize that the Lion was facing the wrong direction, "horizontally, slowly...... Three-dimensional defense? ”

"We are now heading due north, and the Unicorn is on standby at our eleven o'clock. There's plenty of time, and there's no escape from the target. ”

"Yes!" The captain saluted loudly, "The starboard gun door is fully open, and the left rudder is five degrees, so you can wait for work!" Wait! ”