On January 1, 1936, in the coldest world of Leningrad, an unusually thin ship slowly slid off its slipway into the water. After the semi-finished product came to rest on the water, it slowly approached the outfitting dock of the Leningrad Red Banner Shipyard with the help of several tugboats.

A year later, the Type 33 destroyer, named Excellence, officially joined the Northern Fleet sequence, and three of her other sister ships will serve in the Northern Fleet. This was the Excellence-class destroyer that opened the beginning of the modernization of the Red Navy.

Starting from the Excellence class, the Red Navy began to catch up with the world's advanced level, and a large number of new ships greatly improved the combat effectiveness of the Red Navy and played an important role in World War II. And history also calls this period of time the shipbuilding frenzy of the Red Navy in the thirties. Officially, the Soviet Union called it a three-year shipbuilding program.

However, today we are not focusing on the Red Navy's shipbuilding program, because during this time period, there are too many similar shipbuilding programs in various countries around the world, such as the shipbuilding program of Nazi Germany, for example, Spain's Grand Fleet program.

The sun never sets on the empire, when it comes to this term, the first thing that comes to mind for comrades may be the Victorian British Empire. But the first empire on which the sun never sets was Spain, derived from the words of Carlos I (also known as Holy Roman Emperor Carlos V): "In my territory, the sun never sets." ”

However, the glory of the Spanish Empire ended with the end of the Age of Discovery, and Spain in the 19th and 20th centuries was already a second-rate country in Europe, especially after being humiliated by the American imperialists in the Spanish-American War.

But Spain, which was once a wealthy country, did not like this second-rate status. In order to protect the rights and interests of overseas colonization. Also in order to be able to make a little weak voice in Europe. After the end of the Spanish-American War. There has been a lot of discussion about how to build a "big navy". Of course, it is difficult for a good woman to cook without rice, and the Spaniards have discussed it happily, and they have mentioned a lot of shipbuilding plans, but they have never really made dumplings.

This situation lasted until the end of World War I, and on the famous naval holiday, Alfonso XIII approved a new naval budget on July 14, 1926. This became known as the 1926 shipbuilding program.

The plan was quite impressive, and the highlight of the project was the construction of three "treaty-type" heavy cruisers at a cost of 260 million pesetas. Let's put it this way. The entire shipbuilding program of the 1926 year was even twice the budget for the construction of similar ships of the British Navy in the same year!

Alfonso XIII has released a super satellite!

Of course, there is a price to pay for the launch of satellites, and it is known that within a few years this Alfonso XIII was forced to abdicate and run abroad. The Kingdom of Spain also became the Second Spanish Republic. And what kind of government was this Second Spanish Republic?

Let's put it this way, a lot like the state of Russia in 1917. The left and the right attacked each other, and first the left prevailed, forming a "socialist" government and carrying out a failed reform. By 1933, when the reforms could not be carried out, the rightist forces rose to the fore and a rightist coalition government was formed, which abolished all the reform measures of the previous government.

But this behavior greatly angered the left. In 1934, a general strike broke out in Asturias, led by socialists and anarchists. The strikers captured the capital of Oviedo. Assassinate officials and clergy, and set fire to theaters and universities. The unrest continued until October 19, until Francisco? Franco and others led the army to quell the unrest, which left some 3,000 people killed, 30,000 to 40,000 arrested, and the city destroyed on a large scale.

The general strike and bloody crackdown can be said to have directly ignited the anger of the left and right sides of Spanish politics, and the contradictions between the two sides were irreconcilable, laying the groundwork for a future civil war.

Sure enough, two years later, when the right could not bring any improvement to the country, it even became worse. In the 1936 election, under the banner of "Fascism brings you 'work' and hunger, fascism brings you 'peace' and 5,000 graves, fascism brings you 'order' and brings gallows." What the Popular Front offers you is bread, peace and freedom! "The left of the slogan won.

It is conceivable that the left will soon counterattack the right, and that comprehensive social reform will be carried out again. And this is something that the right will never tolerate. On the day the left won the election, the right began to prepare to solve the problem with the army, and this opportunity has historically appeared in July. First, the Right assassinated Jose, an important figure on the Left. Castillo, and then the left took out Jose of the right in a-for-tat. Cal. Sotrol. The deaths of the two Josés kicked off the nationwide unrest in Spain, which lasted for three years!

However, in Li Xiaofeng's view, in fact, the Spanish Civil War did not need to be fought for three years at all, and the republic had an advantage, and once had the upper hand, but these teases liked to die, and they buried their advantages in a daze, and they were buried together with the communist elites of more than 50 countries around the world. If there is a choice, Li Xiaofeng really doesn't want these pig teammates. Unfortunately, there is no choice.

In order not to let a large amount of aid go down the drain, and also in order not to do useless work. The day the Spanish left won the election, Li Xiaofeng began to prepare. What to prepare? Naturally, it was to strike at the forces of the Nationalist Army in advance, and the focus was on the two heavy cruisers in the 1926 shipbuilding plan mentioned earlier.

Some comrades may express their strangeness, didn't it be said earlier that the shipbuilding plan for the 1926 year was to start the construction of 3 heavy cruisers? How did it become two in the blink of an eye?

No way, in 1928, the construction of ships No. 1 and No. 2 began, and the construction of ships No. 3 was originally scheduled to start in 1931, but wasn't there civil strife in Spain that year? Alfonso XIII, who had supported the 1926 shipbuilding plan, ran away and the state finances were unsustainable, so the third ship was cancelled.

It's not just the third ship that was canceled. The shipbuilding projects of the No. 1 and No. 2 ships were also dragged out. By the time the civil war broke out in July 1936. The outfitting of the first ship, the Canary is not yet complete, and the two sister ships are parked together at the Ferrol Naval Shipyard to await an unpredictable fate.

At the beginning of the civil war, the Nationalist army, representing the fascist forces, defeated the sailors and workers representing the Second Republic and captured the two unfinished heavy cruisers. It was with these two heavy cruisers that the Nationalists were able to break the naval blockade of the Republic and bring Franco's troops in Monaco to the mainland for the war. Objectively speaking, these two heavy cruisers played an extraordinary role, of course. The main reason was that the Second Republic was careless and transferred the main naval forces to the direction of the Bay of Biscay, giving Franco an opportunity.

Therefore, Li Xiaofeng was ready to deal with these two heavy cruisers in advance, even if he could not help the Second Republic to recapture them, he had to destroy them on the outfitting dock.

According to the original plan, the agents of the KGB only had to quietly pay attention to the situation of the two heavy cruisers, and did not need to carry out any special actions until the moment when the contradictions in Spain completely broke out. But what Li Xiaofeng didn't expect was that in this time and space. The situation in Spain is deteriorating much faster than in history, and the general elections have just ended. While the left was still celebrating its victory, the right fired the first shot – the assassination of the aforementioned José.

This hornet's nest was punctured, and the leftists barely thought about it, and immediately targeted the second José. The deaths of the two Josés directly announced the beginning of the unrest, and Franco soon instigated the unrest in Spanish Morocco, and the fascist fanatics immediately responded in a rally, setting off a rebellion in Spain itself.

"The headquarters has already given an order to destroy the fascist bandits in advance as soon as they are ready to seize the ship!" Rakorov, the head of the Spanish station of the KGB, gave orders to the GRU team in Spain.

However, what Rakorov did not expect was that the Nationalist Army moved faster than he expected, and before his order could be conveyed to the Ferrol Naval Shipyard, the shipyard was seized by the Nationalist Army, and the GRU Action Group lurking in the shipyard was controlled by the Nationalist Army like other workers, and the work of destroying the two heavy cruisers could not be carried out at all.

Not only did they fail to destroy the two cutting-edge heavy cruisers, but what made Li Xiaofeng even more angry was that the local KGB almost watched the Nationalist army occupy Ferrol, allowing these fascist fanatics to use bayonets and rifles to force the shipyard workers to speed up the construction of the Canary and Balearic for 24 hours, according to the project schedule, the two new heavy cruisers could be commissioned by October at the latest.

Li Xiaofeng knows very well what kind of goods the Spanish Navy is, don't look at the Republic of China, which controls most of Spain's maritime power, but this navy is really outdated, if the Nationalist Army is allowed to complete the construction of the new heavy patrol, then the balance of strength on the sea will be reversed.

Moreover, Li Xiaofeng also knew very well that the most critical factor affecting the direction of Spain was the Franco army in Spanish Morocco, and if Franco's army was allowed to return to the mainland as easily as it was in history, the battle would not be easy to fight.

If he could, he really wanted to immediately order the main fleet of the Red Banner Baltic Fleet, including two aircraft carriers, to immediately attack the Bay of Biscay and the Mediterranean, assist the Second Republic in blocking the Strait of Gibraltar, and block the main forces of the rebels overseas.

However, this matter is not something that Li Xiaofeng can do, after all, it is Spain, not the Soviet Union, and the influence of armed interference in the internal affairs of other countries in the international community is really bad, especially since the Spanish Civil War has just broken out, and the government of the Second Republic has not asked you for help from the Soviet Union, what is the matter with you rushing over in such a hurry?

"It's too sensitive to send a fleet over at this time, right?" Even Stalin, who had always advocated being tough on foreign countries, was very hesitant, "this period of international public opinion is not very favorable to our country, and if it is used by imperialism to make a big fuss......

This statement received a unanimous response from the Politburo, and things did not go smoothly on the Japanese side, and now that the Spanish problem has resurfaced, it seems that it is not good for both sides to intervene. Of course, the main thing is, people in Spain haven't called for help yet? There's no reason for us to go!

Li Xiaofeng was really a little speechless, and when the Second Republic of the Comic thought of asking for help, it was really late, the soldiers were fast, and it was not close from the Baltic Sea to the Bay of Biscay, so if you didn't act quickly and let Franco transport the men and horses back, it would really be too late.

"How about this, in the name of Yuanyang training. Send the fleet out. If the Second Republic could control the rebellion. Then we will train with sincerity, and on the contrary, if the Second Republic asks us for help, the fleet will be able to respond immediately! ”

A few great elders, you look at me, I look at you, I am a little moved by the mention of a certain immortal, this is indeed a good excuse, anyway, the Bay of Biscay is the high seas, why can't the Red Navy go there for training?

Stalin, who even reacted, immediately said: "Since this is the case. In the most extreme case, we can consider carrying a shipment of munitions, which we can deliver as soon as the Government of the Second Republic needs it. ”

"Tsk......"

Li Xiaofeng and Stalin's mention made Trotsky slash his teeth, and to be honest, he was not very interested in fighting the war, and it was easy for the Japanese side to stop a little, and before it was even completely finished, the Spanish side jumped out again. This year, he is still going to do a big construction, but this is it. Military spending has to occupy an additional part of resources, which is really not in line with his wishes.

But Trotsky could not yet directly oppose it. The reason is very simple, the Second Republic has a relationship with the Comintern, no matter how you look at it, it is its own people, and now its own people are in trouble, as the big brother of the world Communist Party, the Soviet Union cannot be unresponsive, right? If it is really indifferent, who will still mess with the Soviet Union in the future? And how to export the revolution?

After pondering for a long time, Trotsky squeezed out a sentence from between his teeth: "It is possible to send a fleet, but it must not interfere directly in the internal affairs of Spain, and it must not enter into a direct conflict with the rebels...... In the absence of a request from the Second Republic, it would be better for the fleet not to approach the Spanish seas......"

Trotsky imposed a great deal of restrictions on the activities of the fleet, but he nevertheless agreed to the voyage of the fleet. Five days later, the fleet with the Leningrad as its flagship, including an aircraft carrier, two battle cruisers (Red Salama, Red Kharkiv) and four destroyers, hurriedly anchored from Kronstadt and, after joining up with two light cruisers (formerly the High Seas Fleet Cologne and Dresden) that had just completed their mission to Sweden and Germany, in the North Sea, headed at high speed in the direction of the Bay of Biscay.

Also two days later, two 10,000-ton oil tankers and two 10,000-ton bulk carriers, escorted by four destroyers, also anchored in the Bay of Biscay.

From the very beginning, the actions of the Red Navy attracted the attention of neighboring countries, and the Royal Navy and the German Navy sent ships to follow and monitor them almost immediately. When Britain and Germany discovered that the Soviets were heading in the Bay of Biscay, they were both surprised.

Because the reaction of the two countries to the turmoil that broke out in Spain was still relatively cautious, especially the British, who did not like either of the two political forces that dominated the political situation in Spain, the left was too communist, and the right was extreme fascism. Both gangs were bastards in the eyes of the British. So for this bastard battle, the British are ready to watch and play soy sauce.

As for the Germans, Franco was one of his own, but the start of his own was not particularly good, the major cities of Spain were still under the control of the Second Republic, and the rebellion did not end overnight as the Nazis imagined, but was severely resisted. In this case, it seems that it is not the best policy to wade into troubled waters regardless of it. Anyway, the Germans are still waiting, waiting for the Falangists to give them an explanation.

And in this case, the USSR reacted in advance, and this reaction was so decisive that although the explanation given by the People's Commissariat of Foreign Affairs of the USSR was the normal ocean-going training of the Red Navy, it could only coax fools. The Red Navy had not been to the Bay of Biscay for training for more than 10 years or even 230 years, so why did it suddenly go to training at this moment?

Moreover, the scale of this training is still so large, with the scale of this fleet, it can withstand the sea power of the whole of Spain. Anyway, the Germans didn't believe that the Red Navy was going to engage in training, and no matter how you look at it, it's full of malice. Stimulated by the Red Navy, the Germans reacted decisively by sending the Deutsche and Count Speer to the Bay of Biscay, and the Germans used the excuse of ocean-going training.

I have to say that the German Navy in this year is a little embarrassed, it has just gotten rid of the restrictions of the Treaty of Versailles, and a large number of new ships are still being designed and built. There really couldn't be any decent fleet to compete with the Red Navy, and the two pocket battleships sent had no advantage in the face of the modernized Red Samara and Red Kharkiv. Not to mention that the Red Navy also has an aircraft carrier, and if it really does, it is estimated that the Germans will be very bad.

Of course, this is very unlikely, and neither the Soviet Union nor Germany has any intention of directly clashing out. What's more, the two governments are still very friendly on the surface, and the two sides have pretended to communicate in the field of diplomacy, and have said: "This action is absolutely not targeted!" It's just routine training at sea. ”

However, no one believed this kind of nonsense, and after the Soviet Union and Germany sent their fleets, the two rogue Britain and France in Europe could not sit still. In Europe, Britain and France have always had the final say, when will it be the turn of the second- and third-rate polar bears and Hans to steal the show?

Anyway, Britain and France have a lot of opinions on this, and they are very dissatisfied with this, while shouting loudly in the international community: "The internal conflict in Spain is the internal affair of Spain, and no other country can interfere!" On the other hand, they sent their respective fleets out of bounds, and also went to the waters off the coast of Spain to regain the sense of storage in the name of training and routine patrols.

For a time, the sea around Spain was not ordinarily lively, and a large group of unrelated hooligans were strong onlookers watching the battle between the Second Republic and the National Army...... (To be continued......)

PS: Bow and thank you to Comrade hzwangdd and Comrade Juventus!