"Dubh-Linn" - means black pond.

Dublin, located at the mouth of the River Reich on the island of Ireland, was marked on ancient maps of Europe by ancient Greek astronomers and geographers as early as the 1st century AD. The first half of the word "Dubh" bears traces of the strict English language of zhòng, while the second half of the word "Linn" is pure and authentic Irish, and the capital of the Kingdom of Ireland is a vivid reminder of the island's history.

Dublin is not only the largest city in Ireland, but also the second largest city in England after London under the rule of the King of England in the early 17th century, and the only Irish land in England that is truly 100% controlled, with even more English and Scots living in the city than the Irish. The royal family of England used this as a source of harsh repression against millions of Irish who refused to comply with the Protestant Reformation.

The Xiaoice climate that has been fermenting since the end of the 16th century has made Ireland a miserable place second only to Germany during the Thirty Years' War in Europe. Dublin was once home to more than 60% of the city's population, and in order to maintain the city's rule, the local Irish governor, the Earl of Stratford, also reached its peak of exploitation of the rest of Ireland, and a large number of desperate Irish starving people either sold themselves into indentured slavery and embarked on the road to the New World of North America to survive, or joined the war against the English rulers, or even joined the English mercenaries to eat in the Thirty Years' War.

In any case, Dublin was one of the two symbols of England's right to rule Irish before Irish independence, and the other being the title of King of Ireland held by the King of England.

……

Thursday, December 13, 1635.

More than 8,000 Spanish Army troops, escorted by the U.S. Navy's European Expeditionary Fleet and landed at Wicklow Harbour South of Dublin, arrived a week earlier in the village of Conniebrook, less than five kilometres from Dublin.

However, this does not mean that the Spanish commander, Marquis Albert of Santa Cruz, will be able to enter Dublin by the way. Just 6 kilometers west of the main Spanish army, on the north bank of the Dodder River, Cromwell's 7,500 English soldiers had been waiting for many days.

Cromwell did not choose to defend the city in Dublin, but led the elite main force to the battle, which made people secretly admire Cromwell's superior strategic and tactical vision. For no other reason, if Cromwell chooses to defend the city, then the whole of Dublin will be within the range of the Chinese and American naval guns, and Cromwell, who has already experienced the firepower of the Chinese and American navies in the attack and defense of Cork City, will never sit idly by, especially since there are not many Irish people in Dublin who can be used as a shield.

The main force of England was stationed at this time, far outside the maximum range of the naval guns of the Chinese and American Navy. Cromwell now has the initiative in Dublin's defense in disguise: if Albert, Marquis de Santa Cruz, does not come to the battle. Rather, it went directly north to Dublin, where Cromwell could at any time make a detour to the rear and destroy the logistical supply of the Spanish Legion; As long as the main Spanish force on the ground can be defeated or simply confronted, the situation in Ireland will continue to develop and drag in an unpredictable direction, which is the last dose of Cromwell's prescription for the defeat of the main English navy, and the only option for Cromwell to gamble.

A decisive battle with the main English force in a place where the guns of the Chinese and American navies could not reach was a matter of great reluctance on the part of the ordinary officers and men of the Spanish Army, who relied on the artillery support of the Chinese and American navies for a very short time. In a certain way, the Spanish legion, which seemed to be advancing all the way, seemed to suffer from gains and losses and lack of confidence at this time. There was a world of difference from the resolute attitude of the English army to survive to the death.

Whether the Marquis de Santa Cruz was willing or not, he had to accept Cromwell's silent challenge or he would have to go on indefinitely. Stimulated by the increasingly obvious military threat from France and the Netherlands on the continent, the Spanish magnates in Seville or Madrid could no longer hold on to the war of intervention in Ireland. Such an elite Spanish legion if it were completely dragged down in Ireland. That could well lead to a crisis in Spain's own forces.

When the Spanish side received the battle plan, Major General Zhang Chunrui, who was in charge of the Princess Xijun, also had to vote in favor. But at this time, Zhang Chunrui was more concerned about the movements of the other five Huamei light cruisers led by Sun Yang. According to domestic instructions. Sun Yang is leading a detachment with the Princess of Relief as the flagship, sailing towards the mouth of the Thames, preparing to destroy the last remnants of the English navy. and officially blockade London, shattering the last illusions of the hardliners of the English parliamentary party.

……

December 14th, early in the morning, foggy.

At this time, more than 7,500 English officers and soldiers were all replaced with clean uniforms under the leadership of aristocratic officers, and the 5,000 American-style 21B flintlock rifles and 8 12-pounder cannons that were brought together by the new and old also made this English army, which had almost no way out, look majestic and murderous.

In contrast to the uneven armaments of most European armies of the same period, which were cost-saving, Cromwell had a better understanding of how to build a New England army. Not only weapons, but also military appearance, morale and confidence, this subtle understanding can be said to have advanced his military thinking by a full decade.

In the frozen Irish steppes of winter, the English army formed a nine-row line formation, the first three of which were traditional spearmen, the last six were all flintlock musketeers, and hundreds of cavalry were distributed on the flanks.

The fog cracked and drifted away under the faint morning wind, and then slowly diluted and re-stitched together. Looking to the east, in addition to the faint sound of human voices and horses in the ears, the monoculars are also blurred.

"Your Excellency, the Spaniards are here." There was no joy or sorrow on the dull face of an English general, but he tugged on the reins on the horse's back, soothing the horse that was a little restless in the cold winter.

The staccato beat of drums came through the mist, and the slightly chaotic footsteps and the clashing of armor and weapons mingled into an oppressive Spanish war song.

Finally, in the morning mist blown by the breeze, more than 8,000 officers and soldiers of the Spanish Army appeared to the east of the English army, led by the Marquis of Santa Cruz. Unlike their opponents, who were armed with nearly 70% of their flintlock rifles, the Spanish Legion had only about 3,500 21B flintlock rifles, and a handful of new 34A flintlock rifles with less than 45% muskets. But the Marquis de Santa Cruz had twice as many cannons at his command as Cromwell, including several new 8-pounder guns that had been brought in urgently.

"Fire!"

"Fire!"

Perhaps both sides feel that the words are not speculative. Or basically they are all very clear about the attitude of the other party, and this time no one said any nonsense of "let so-and-so gentleman fire first". After more than ten minutes of silence, both armies, which had gathered about 1,500 yards, gave the order to open artillery fire at the same time.

In the rumbling cannonball, the familiar and strange spherical whistling sound of cannonballs staggered through the mist, and the stiff dead grass ground injected more bouncing power into the shells after they landed, crashing into clouds of splashes of dirt and smoke and dust towards the opponent.

The line of spearmen torn through by the shells twisted and twisted, mingled with heart-rending screams, and flying limbs and broken armor weapons mixed with atomized blood charged in all directions in the pale white mist.

"Steady!"

The clatter of dust and metal from the cannonballs once again blasted through a large field of pikemen, and the dead soldiers twitched and crawled on the ground, letting out a chilling cry. The junior officers of the Spanish legion constantly shouted in the phalanx. The older Spanish veteran was silently looking at the sky with a self-deprecating expression, while the younger soldier was pale and his eyes were closed, expecting that he would still be conscious when the next shell landed.

"God, it's horrible...... Lieutenant, are they going to kill each other like this? ”

Far behind the rear of the Spanish Legion, a European second lieutenant gunner, who seemed to have grown up in China, shuddered at the cruel and indifferent massacre of each other in front of him.

"Whoever is timid at first, may not have to continue, second lieutenant...... In fact, the pressure on the English is even greater. Because they had much less artillery than the Spaniards. ”

Hu Huan put down the binoculars, and his wrists trembled a little, but when he thought of the savagery and ruthlessness of the English army when they evacuated Cork City, he also lost his good feelings about the English people who should be worthy of respect.

"Sir. The English on the opposite side looked much smarter than the Spaniards, and they calculated that our naval guns could not support the Spaniards with a single shell. Another Chinese naval lieutenant gunnery officer was also muttering behind him, and it seemed that he was probably not used to a war without the ornate cover of artillery shelling.

"Some people say that Cromwell is a genius commander, and he really lives up to his name...... Pity. We have only two 75-mm naval guns and organ machine guns here. Of course, perhaps in such a big situation, our support is also superfluous. Hu Huan took out his pocket watch and looked at it. A smile gradually appeared on his face, "In five minutes, the cannons, whether they are English or Spaniards, will have to stop firing, otherwise they will explode." ”

"That is, both sides will die indifferently for five minutes? Let's hope no shells come to us......"

The European second lieutenant gunners turned their heads awkwardly and looked at the small group of Chinese Navy sailors with less than 100 people behind him, and his face was also full of nervousness.

……

Soon, the bombardment of Spain and England saluted each other and stopped, and all the artillery had to be cooled.

The herald rode by, shouting inaudible orders, and the ranks of the English soldiers on the front line began to advance, the black-pressed horizontal ranks moving slowly, like Lin's flintlock muskets, bayonets and spears rising and falling slightly on the horizon.

"Come on, boys!" The Marquis of Santa Cruz drew a cross on his chest and gave the order to the adjutant beside him.

The Spanish infantry also began to march to the jagged beat of the drums, and the large and heavy Spanish phalanx met the nine thin rows of English troops in a more bold manner.

After about ten minutes, the sortie teams of the two armies finally met, and they were less than 200 yards away from each other, and even the faces of the officers and men of the opposing side could be seen clearly if they were eyesighted.

"Keep going! Watch out for the horizontal queue! The English herald rode up and down the outermost side of the line, constantly supervising the soldiers, while to the east, the Spanish phalanx infantry had stopped advancing.

The English musketeers on the opposite side were approaching in neat rows and horizontal formations, and the distance was almost 100 yards, and they still had no intention of stopping, and the monotonous drum beat became more and more clear, and the Spanish infantry at the forefront showed surprised expressions.

"Musketeers come forward! Raise your gun! Aim! ”

The junior officers of the Spanish Legion raised their swords, and columns of Spanish infantry carrying 21B flintlock rifles passed through the phalanx, lined up in front of them, and pointed their guns at the rows of lifeless English soldiers.

"Shoot!"

The sabre fell, and the sound of gunfire like bursting beans and snow-white gunpowder smoke rang out in front of the Spanish phalanx.

With continuous muffled grunts and screams, the English soldiers in the front row fell one after another, but for a linear queue with a width of nearly 300 meters, the first round of firing by the Spaniards' nearly 1,000 musketeers was not ideal.

"Move forward! Raise your gun! Aim! ”

At the shouts of the officers, the Spanish musketeers, who had finished shooting, habitually retreated into the phalanx, and then the second wave of musketeers lined up in front and raised their guns.

The salvo was fired again, this time with more fallen men in the English army, which had already approached 80 yards, and the blood holes in the body were clearly visible, and it seemed that the flesh could be splashed into the Spanish formation.

"Spearmen prepare!" There were less than 2,000 flintlock muskets in the first wave of Spanish phalanxes, and after two shots, about 200 or so English infantry were defeated, but the English in front of them were still stubbornly advancing.

"Did they master the art of hedging with bayonets against the spearmen of the Spanish phalanx?" A Spanish general's eyes widened, incomprehensible at the stubbornness of the English.

50 yards! It's so close that you can hear each other's heartbeats.

Thankfully, the English finally stopped...... After an inexplicable sense of relief, the Spanish officers and men quickly discovered that they were not in a good position - their musketeers were still reloading in the rear, and because of their nervousness, the maneuvers that would normally be completed in a minute or two were only half carried out.

"Aim! Shoot! ”

The English officer's order to open fire sounded like the sound of hell to the Spanish officers and men at the front of every front, and almost everyone subconsciously leaned backwards and huddled with their companions behind them.

A sea of fire and smoke appeared in front of the neatly lined English formation, and the first wave saw more than 2,000 flintlock rifles fired at extremely close range, and a dense rain of lead bullets entered the Spanish phalanx at unreadable speeds. Body cracks and screams, even more horrific than those of the Englishmen who had been shot before, revered among the Spanish officers and soldiers, rows of flesh-and-blood bodies falling crookedly with their weapons, and many more being knocked out of their center of gravity.

"Shoot!"

Before the smoke had cleared, the second volley of the English began again, and the smoke and fire continued to churn. This time more Spaniards were knocked to the ground. After two rounds of firing, nearly 1,000 Spanish infantry had lost their combat effectiveness, and the Spanish phalanx was full of holes and crumbling.

"They're crazy! How can they do this?! The Marquis of Santa Cruz had a pale face and a dry throat, "The rear team is deployed, and the battle line must be stabilized!" ”

"Ulla!"

Before the Marquis de Santa Cruz's words could be heard, nearly two thousand English spearmen on the opposite side crossed the musketeers and charged. The fast-moving crowd carried scalp-tingling, hideous spears several meters long and crashed into the formation of the Spaniards, who had not yet fully reacted.

The penetration of the English spearmen's weapons pierced the Spanish spear phalanx with a more shocking killing effect than buckshot, and even some sections rushed into the ranks of the musketeers, killing hundreds of Spaniards in a short time.

However, the Spanish legion had a considerable number of veterans who had fought for many years, and after withstanding the "stealing" attacks of the other side, the enraged Spanish bulls also fought with the English with their weapons.

Two piles of human bodies of different colors are desperately strangled on the cold winter plains of Ireland. Screaming, biting, howling and wailing were everywhere, corpses were everywhere, and blood was splattered everywhere. (To be continued......)