On 21 July, a steady southerly wind blew across the Straits of Malacca, allowing the tricolor to hunt over the Dutch fleet. Pen × fun × Pavilion www. ｂｉｑｕｇｅ。 ｉｎｆｏ

Woodward, the governor of the British East India Company, walked on the docks of Malacca, looking at the imposing fleet of the Dutchmen with some surprise on his face.

Woodward could not have imagined that the Dutch would send so many warships to the Far East.

These Dutch battleships were all 3rd and 4th class battleships. The seaworthiness of European battleships in this era was limited, and the huge first and second class battleships could not cross half the world to the Far East. In East and Southeast Asia, the Europeans had only 3rd and 4th class battleships as their main battle ships.

The tonnage of the third class battleship ranged from 1,300 to 2,000 tons, and the crew on board was 500 to 700 people. The tonnage of the fourth-class battleship was 1,000 tons, and the crew on board was about 300 people. Such warships are not the largest in Europe, but they are the most numerous in the navies of all countries, and they are also the main ship types.

Woodward had taken a few steps up the dock when an intelligence officer ran up and whispered in Woodward's ear, "Governor, the Dutch have sent twenty-five ships. Among them, there were three third-class battleships and twenty-two fourth-class battleships. ”

Although Woodward was now invited to Malacca as a guest of the Dutch, the British did not forget to gather information.

On the whole, the British now had good relations with the Dutch, and Cromwell had just come to power in England, and the new merchants and factory owners had taken over some of the power of the nobility and the king. Britain began to accelerate its outward expansion, but this future empire on which the sun never sets is not strong now, and the focus of expansion is in the New World and India.

England, like the Dutch, is now busy stabbing Spain in decline. At this time, the Anglo-Dutch war had not yet broken out, and relations between the two countries were generally good.

But for seventeenth-century Europe, this apparent friendliness was fragile. In war-torn Europe, wars can break out between countries at any time for inexplicable reasons. So for Woodward, it was a rare opportunity to be able to walk around Malacca and gather intelligence.

Woodward asked, "How many cannons are there?" ”

The intelligence officer whispered: "There are one thousand one hundred and thirty guns, the vast majority of which are heavy guns over thirty-two pounds. ”

Compared to a merchant ship with only a dozen guns, the firepower of a battleship was completely two concepts.

In general, Europeans were generally armed with 64 to 80 guns on their 3rd class, and 4th class battleships were generally armed with more than 50 guns.

And the Dutch battleships had more firepower than the average European battleships. The cannons loaded by the Dutch on the ships were all 42-pounder and 32-pounder, and there were almost no small cannons. These huge guns can easily penetrate the armor of enemy ships, giving the enemy great psychological pressure before engaging in broadside combat.

Hearing the intelligence officer's words, Woodward took a breath and said, "The Dutch are going to make a big deal. ”

No longer lingering on the docks, Woodward led his retinue to the heart of Malacca, Famosa Castle.

At the castle, Woodward met Kuhn, the governor of the Dutch East India Company.

Woodward and Kuhn were both nobles, and after paying each other a salute, the two sat down at the tea table and started talking.

"We British could not have imagined that the Netherlands would send such a large fleet to the Far East."

Kuhn was a little uncomfortable hearing Woodward's words. The British were not so much expressing shock, but more like mocking the defeat of the Dutch in the Far East.

Kuhn sneered and said, "I think you know about our losses. ”

Woodward deliberately looked puzzled and said, "We don't know very well, our main focus is still in India. ”

Kuhn sneered again and fell silent.

Woodward felt that the scene was a little cold, no longer pretending, and smiled: "Of course, we also pay attention to some things in the Far East. According to my crude intelligence system, the Netherlands used to receive forty ships of raw silk from Formosa each year, fifteen ships of raw silk to Japan, and twenty-five ships of raw silk to Europe. The annual profit is around 20 million guilders. ”

Kuhn nodded and said, "Mr. Earl, this is a great loss. After the loss of Formosa, Li Zhi's ironclad ships constantly harassed our merchant ships at sea. We can only get ten boatloads of raw silk in Batavia a year, and we lose more than fifteen million guilders a year. ”

Hearing Kuhn's words, the Englishman behind Woodward whispered. Fifteen million guilders is a huge number, you must know that in this era, the cost of a fourth-class battleship is only more than 20,000 pounds, that is, more than a million guilders. In other words, every year the Dutch lost fifteen fourth-class battleships in the Far East.

From this point of view, the British fully understood why the Dutch had sent twenty-five warships to the Far East in the hope of regaining trade rights and Formosa.

Woodward groaned, "Li Zhi is a very strong enemy. ”

Kuhn nodded and said, "That's right, so we're not prepared to face Li Zhi's fleet alone. Together with the British, we hope to defeat Lee Sik at sea. ”

Woodward looked at Kuhn and didn't speak.

"As both Protestant countries, we want the British and Dutch to unite in the Far East," Kuhn said. As far as I know, Britain had fourteen warships in India. If all these warships were sent to East Asia, we would be able to defeat Li Zhi's fleet together. ”

Woodward laughed, "There is no conflict between us and Li Zhi. ”

Kuhn handed a cup of Chinese black tea to Woodward and said, "Count Kuhn, if we win this battle, we will gain not only raw silk, but the trade rights of the whole of China. ”

"Li Zhi's fleet has twelve ironclad ships, but these ironclads only have eighteen pounder guns. Eighteen-pounder guns may be able to penetrate our armed merchant ships, but not through our battleship armor at long distances. As long as we gather more than thirty battleships, we can win a decisive victory. ”

"After winning this war, the Netherlands was willing to divide the raw silk obtained between the Netherlands and Britain in proportion to the proportion of the ships to be sent. If Britain joins this war, it will not only be able to completely overwhelm Li Zhi's fleet, but it will also be able to make a profit of six million guilders per year! ”

Hearing Kuhn's words, the British entourage couldn't help but whisper. Six million guilders per year is equivalent to 1,600,000 taels of silver, which is equivalent to the cost of six fourth-class battleships, which is a huge amount of money. For an investment in fourteen battleships, this rate of return was high.

Woodward took a sip of his tea and said, "That's an interesting suggestion. ”