After Edward was silent for a long time, he asked another question:

"Do you think, Grand Duke Marin, that England could stop the French from crossing the sea with those big merchant ships alone?"

Marin thought for a moment and replied:

"It should be no problem, after all, the quality of the English sailors is much higher than that of the French. So, Your Majesty, what do you have in mind? ”

"What do I mean...... Is it possible to give advance notice to London and prepare them for a major French invasion? ”

"This is not good, if Henry VII learns that the French are going to invade in a big way, he will definitely find out the reason. When the time comes, we will be exposed to the actions of the north......" Marin said hesitantly.

"I know, I mean, that we may, after my army has finished crossing the sea, inform the French, and inform London, and let them know what is going ......on in France," Edward thought as he thought.

Marin suddenly realized:

"You mean, when we were ready, we deliberately leaked the information that the French were going to cross the sea to Henry VII. In this way, Henry VII was more prepared against the French? ”

Edward nodded again and again, and said:

"Yes, that's what it means. Although the big ships went out, the small ships of England were also useful and could be used to intercept the French ships! ”

"Small boats intercepting French ships? Will it work? Marin was a little suspicious, he had always been a supporter of the doctrine of big guns and ships, and he didn't think much of small boats.

"Of course, the sailors on small boats can also jump on the French ship by means of a grappling hook. Also, you can shoot arrows and throw fire at French ships......"

In this era, the main way of naval warfare was nothing more than jumping ships and slashing each other, as well as shooting arrows at each other. Sometimes, they throw fire at the other party's boat. After all, the ships of this era were all made of wood, and the torches were dipped in oil on wooden sticks, which could set the opposing ships on fire if they were not extinguished in time. Although, this odds are slim.

England had a large number of sailors, the balance on board was good, and the jumpers had an advantage in chopping. After all, an infantryman, rocking from side to side on a ship, may not be able to exert his full combat power. Experienced sailors, on the other hand, are able to defeat enemies that cannot be defeated on land.

As for shooting arrows at each other? That's the strength of the English. The English were all-encompassing archery, and the overall level was much higher than that of the French, and in naval battles, they were very advantageous. This is one of the important reasons why the French could not defeat England in traditional naval battles......

After thinking about it, Marin suddenly realized......

Those backward naval warfare methods that he did not look down on were still the mainstream tactics in Europe at this time. As for the naval artillery battle, only Marin fought once off Jutland. However, that is not replicable.

Why? Because now European artillery is mainly made of copper, and the price of copper is so expensive, there are not many countries that can afford to equip a large number of copper cannons. It was also Marin who made a cast iron cannon to equip a large number of them.

Not only that, but the platoon tactics were particularly gunpowder-intensive. There is such a shortage of saltpeter in Europe, who can get so much gunpowder for the naval guns to bombard? Just like Marin's fleet, he fought a battle of Jutland, but as a result, more than half of the gunpowder was consumed, and he was distressed to death. This is still the reason why Marin sent people to buy Indian saltpeter, as for other countries, it is better to save it......

At present, Marin's fleet, as well as the Spanish and Portuguese fleets, are generally equipped with naval guns. Other countries are still basically in the era of traditional naval warfare. This is mainly due to the fact that Portugal and Spain have also opened routes to India, and a lot of saltpeter has been purchased there. And this is also part of the reason why America went to India to purchase saltpeter insufficiently.

In England and France, it seems that the use of Kirk sailboats is now popular. This sailing ship is the main sailing ship of the Hanseatic League at present, and it is also the most popular sea ship in England and France. If the two countries fought at sea, it would certainly be a contest between Kirk's galleons.

The British Navy really began to promote the cannon giant ships, and it was also under Henry VIII, and it was in the middle and late part of the reign of Henry VIII. Because, through the Reformation, Henry VIII confiscated a large number of Catholic Church assets, so he had the money to build so many warships. From the time of Henry VIII, Britain really had full-time warships, rather than relying on the recruitment of merchant ships from the civilian sector to participate in the war.

But for the time being, Britain relied on civilian merchant ships to enter the war, and France was no different. But the difference between the two countries is that there are more and more talented sailors in England. Moreover, since the time of Edward III, England has promoted national archery, which has made England a very large number of archery masters.

And in traditional naval warfare, archery is important. Not only can it kill and injure a large number of opposing sailors and shipboard soldiers, but it can also incinerate opposing ships by firing rockets. Among them, the most common tactic is to shoot the sails of enemy ships with rockets. Because, the sails are high and cloth, which burns more easily than the hull. Once it catches fire, it is difficult to put out because it is high. And if the sails were burned, the ship would lose power and would have to stop on the surface of the sea and wait to be beaten and shot at by the enemy......

There are many folk archery masters in England, even among sailors, there are many archery masters. Therefore, even if a small boat is dispatched, it can pose a great threat to the Kirk galleon of the French. Therefore, Edward suggested that Henry VII should be informed at the appropriate time, so that he would have enough time to recruit more ships for the war. Coupled with the large ships that had returned after the original break, the certainty of destroying the French fleet was even greater......

……

"It's just...... How to inform Henry VII that the French were about to invade? Edward said distressedly.

"This ...... I have a way! Marin thought about it for a moment and took it all over.

Why did Marin take this matter? It's because he really has a way. Of course, not directly to Henry VII, but to a spy installed in the French royal palace through England......

Henry VII was a scheming man and was hostile to France. So, he must have planted British eyeliner on the French side. Moreover, there was a man who had infiltrated the palace. Of course, not a heavy minister, but an ordinary clerk.

Speaking of which, Marin found out that this England spy named O'Connor was very coincidental. Moreover, it was discovered that this person was a British secret talker, a fat brother.

How did the fat brothers find out that O'Connor was an England agent? This matter had to be discovered by chance when Marin ordered the fat brothers to inquire into the location of the secret letters between France and the Duchy of Guedes.

The fat brothers got drunk with many of the palace clerks by inviting people to eat and drink. Among them was O'Connor, an English spy. When O'Connor was drunk, the fat brother did not ask him about the secret letter of France and the Duchy of Guedes, but accidentally inquired about the fact that the man could speak English.

Subsequently, the suspicious Paris branch of the North Sea Chamber of Commerce quietly investigated and found that this guy turned out to be an agent from England. Moreover, it has been lurking in France for more than ten years.

Of course, Marin didn't pay much attention to this information before. Because, it was none of his business for the English to plant spies in the French court. But now, this guy can be used......

How to use it? Of course, when he sent a letter to France, he deliberately revealed it to this person......

Of course, the intelligence of Marin and Edward's allied forces in the north of England must not be revealed to this guy. However, the information that the French were going to mobilize a fleet to cross the English Channel could have been deliberately revealed to him.

Then, O'Connor would certainly send the information back to London. In this way, Henry VII had time to requisition small ships from various ports to intercept the French fleet in the English Channel. Although it was a bit hasty, with the return of the merchant ships that had been distracted, and the addition of those small ships, it was still no problem to defeat the French fleet......

Delivering the message through O'Connor was a little more troublesome, but it was more secure. Why? Because if Marin had sent someone directly to London to inform Henry VII, Henry VII might not have believed it. If he sent someone to investigate and verify, when the investigation was over, the French fleet would have come over, and it would be a waste of time.

But O'Connor was different, he was a high-ranking spy inserted by Henry VII into the French royal palace. The information he sent back will definitely be taken seriously. And Henry VII will also make timely arrangements based on intelligence. In this way, England was able to defeat the French fleet with confidence, and even destroy it. Only when the French fleet was finished would Edward's rule in England be stable, and when Marin took over, it would be more secure......

What the? You say Edward might die later than Marlin? That's impossible. Because, when Edward stabilized the situation in England, he was useless. It just so happened that Edward had also offended the French, and when the time came, as long as he sent someone to kill Edward, he could also push it to the French, or, the remnants of Henry VII......

Anyway, Marin planned to follow Edward's name and kill all the great nobles of England. And those big nobles are deeply rooted, and even if they are eradicated, there will inevitably be remnants. Perhaps, without Marlin's hands, those remnants would have been able to assassinate Edward. Moreover, it is quite reasonable to let those remnants take the blame. After all, the great revenge of the exterminating clan is endless......

……

In addition, the timing of the transmission of information through O'Connor is also important. Marin intended to reveal the information to the French when they sent people to reconnoiter the coast of England.

O'Connor was an ordinary clerk on the periphery of the French royal palace, and it was impossible for him to know the military secrets of the French core, so he could only rely on Marin to tell him.

When the French sent people to the coast of England to investigate, it was at a time when the English merchant ships that had been broken up had not yet returned. At that time, the big ships did not return, the small ships did not gather, and the southern coast of England certainly looked empty.

During this time, O'Connor sent the information back and informed Henry VII that the ships had been deliberately split by the French...... Then, Henry VII, frightened, must have desperately conscripted the small ships of England. But by the time he called up the boat, the French spies had already returned. When the French gathered a fleet to kill, they happened to meet the returning English merchant ships and the small ships urgently recruited by Henry VII...... In the context of traditional naval warfare, those small boats can also exert great combat effectiveness. Of course, the premise is to fight traditional naval battles......