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The current U.S. government urgently needs a victory to divert the attention of the people at home and boost their confidence. After being defeated by China last year, although William? McKinley's government has done a number of things to stir up anger against China. However, many Americans still have great doubts about whether they should embark on the path of foreign expansion. If a victory can be obtained, then it will be of great benefit to the United States. Of course, if it fails again, the path of US expansion to the outside world will probably have to be completely closed. Therefore, the target chosen this time is the weak Spain.

Although, hundreds of years ago, Spain was the number one power in the world. But after the Armada was defeated by the British, Spain quickly fell. A large number of colonies**, the country's economic and industrial development is also very slow, so that the current Spain will have completed the completion of becoming a weak country. Therefore, the US government has the courage to launch a challenge to this old colonial country.

Got William? After President McKinley's consent, the U.S. Army and Navy quickly prepared. Still, they needed a pretext, a pretext acceptable to all Americans for war against Spain. However, such excuses are always easy to find.

The "Maine" is an old armored cruiser, which has been in service for 6 years. However, today, the 'Maine' is completely backward and can no longer play a role in naval warfare. Because of the uprising against Spain in Cuba, the warship was sent to Cuba to carry out the mission of escorting overseas Chinese.

The Maine sailed from Key West, Florida, USA to Havana, Cuba, in September 9. Three weeks later, at 9:40 p.m. on 5 February, the USS Maine exploded in the port of Havana. The force of the explosion was enormous, almost one-third of the front side of the hull was blown away, and the rest of the wreckage quickly sank to the surface, killing 266 people, the vast majority of whom were soldiers. On 27 July, the United States Minister to Spain demanded that Spain cease fire in Cuba and abolish the concentration camp law. Spain declared a truce on April 9 to avoid war against the United States. However, the U.S. Congress issued a resolution declaring Cuba the right to withdraw from Cuba, authorizing the president to use force, and declaring that the United States had no intention of annexing Cuba. On 22 April, the United States Navy blockaded Cuban ports. On April 24, Spain declared war on the United States, and the next day, the United States declared war on Spain.

After the Maine incident, the Spanish government sent a fleet (6 warships, under the command of Psevera) to defend Puerto Rico, and on 9 May entered the port of Santiago. The U.S. North Atlantic Fleet (7 combat ships, commanded by WT Sampson) immediately imposed a blockade on the harbor and demanded the cooperation of the Army in annihilating the West Fleet in the harbor. However, after landing east of San Diego, the U.S. Army's 5th Army (about 70,000 men, commanded by W. Shaffert) insisted on taking the city of San Diego as its goal; In the battle to capture the commanding heights in the east of the city, 700 people were killed and wounded. On July, the Western Fleet was ordered to withdraw from the port of Santiago and was annihilated by the American fleet outside the port, killing 60 men and taking 00 prisoners (including Severa). The U.S. side suffered only casualties. On the 6th, the city of Santiago was besieged by the Cuban rebels and American troops, and about 20,000 defenders in and out of the city surrendered. On the 25th, an expeditionary force led by US Army Commander Na Myers landed in Puerto Rico. The Western government sued for peace. On 2 July, the United States and Spain agreed to cease military operations. In Cuba, the U.S. team also won one after another, defeating the Spanish Army in Cuba, thus making the land shape of the war favorable to the United States.

And in Asia, when the United States declared war on Spain, China also threatened Spain with war. On 27 April, Wu Tingfang, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Chinese Empire, sent a note to Li Mei, the Spanish minister to China, expressing great indignation at the massacre of Chinese by Spanish colonizers and natives in the Philippines.

Li Mei was shocked, now Spain is at war with the United States, where does it have the strength to face a more powerful China? And the killing of Chinese in the Philippines is simply a common occurrence. China is making a fuss about this matter, and the later intentions can also be imagined.

"Your Excellency Wu Tingfang, I don't know about this matter, I will react to the country and ask the Governor of the Philippines Basilio? His Excellency Augustine gave China a satisfactory answer! Li Mei said immediately. Now, Spain has decided to go all out to fight the United States, and if China takes the opportunity to invade the Philippines again, Spain will not be able to resist it. The Chinese, who defeated the Americans last year, are simply not something that the declining Spain can deal with.

"Okay, three days, I'll give you three days. If the empire is not satisfied, the empire will use a single means to protect the lives and property of the empire's people abroad! Wu Tingfang said firmly.

"Okay, Your Excellency Wu Tingfang, I will do my best to give your country an answer!" Li Mei replied with some bitterness. He can tell from Wu Tingfang's attitude that China is ready to swallow the fat of the Philippines in one bite.

Li Mei contacted Spain for the first time, and Spain was also shocked. King Alfonso XIII of Spain instructed Li Mei to reach an agreement with the Chinese and to preserve the Spanish colonies in Asia as much as possible. At the same time, the Spanish ambassador to Britain and France also urgently asked the foreign ministers and foreign ministers of the two countries to ask for their support. The two countries have expressed their support for Spain.

The British Minister to China, Zhu Erdian, and the French Minister to China, Pierre, asked for a meeting with Wu Tingfang and offered to mediate the contradictions between China and Spain. However, Wu Tingfang sternly refused, indicating that this was a matter between China and Spain, and hoped that Britain and France would not interfere.

Seeing that Wu Tingfang was so tough, Britain and France naturally knew that China was bound to swallow Spain's Asian colonies. And they have just decided to start a war against China in two years, and it is difficult to change their decision now. In addition, this war against Spain was provoked by the United States first, and it is even more difficult for them to say anything. So they had to show Spain that the mediation had failed, and then leave the matter alone.

At the same time, a fleet consisting of the heavy cruisers 'Xi'an,' the light cruisers 'Mianyang' and 'Deyang,' and the destroyers 'Dujiangyan,' 'Pengzhou,' 'Qionglai,' and 'Chongzhou' had sailed from the port of Zhanjiang in Guangdong to cross the South China Sea and launch an attack on the Spanish fleet in the Philippines. In addition, a large number of transport ships have already been loaded with the 5th Marine Brigade to depart with the fleet. The additional Marine Corps Brigade and the 9th Brigade will follow. This fleet was led by Rear Admiral Li Haitao, Chief of Staff of the Home Fleet of the Royal Chinese Navy.

On April 0, the Spanish Minister to China, Li Mei, submitted to Wu Tingfang a solution to deal with the persecution of the Filipino Chinese, in which the Spanish government proposed to improve the status of the Chinese in Spain, protect their personal and property safety, and at the same time, compensate the families of the victimized Chinese, and ensure that such a situation will not happen again.

Frankly, this plan is already very good, and Spain has already made a big concession. However, the Chinese side did not agree with the solution proposed by the Spanish government.

On the afternoon of April 0, Wu Tingfang, on behalf of China, officially declared war on Spain. And the Spanish Minister to China, Li Mei, who had already guessed that this would be the result, also declared war on China on behalf of Spain. The war between China and Spain officially broke out.

The Western world has criticized China's behavior of taking advantage of the fire. It's just that China simply doesn't pay attention to this. In the eyes of the Western world anyway, China is their enemy. Naturally, China doesn't have to take care of their laws.

On May, the fleet led by Rear Admiral Li Haitao appeared off the coast of the Philippines. In the face of the attack of the Chinese Navy, the Spanish Navy, which had been prepared for a long time, did not hide, but chose to engage in a fierce battle with the Chinese Navy. That morning, the navies of the two countries encountered outside Manila Bay, and a fierce battle ensued. Already after China declared war on Spain, the commander of the Spanish fleet, Don? Patricio? Major General Montojo was already waiting for the war. Even though Spain has fallen into decline, Spain still has its own dignity and glory. The Spanish navy he led fought to defend Spain's last glory.

The Spanish Navy had only seven warships, and the most advanced warships were none other than the 3,500-ton 'Reina? The cruiser Cristina had 55 mm guns, and the rest was a wooden-hulled cruiser Castile with five destroyers and gunboats with a displacement of 500 to 00 tons. The detachment of the Chinese Navy, with an overwhelming advantage over them. Even the displacement of the heavy cruiser 'Xi'an' surpassed that of the entire Spanish fleet.

Naval battles broke out in the morning of May. Tang Dynasty? Patricio? Rear Admiral Montojo knew the inferiority of the Spanish fleet, and he commanded the fleet and launched an attack on the Chinese navy, hoping to bring the two sides closer.

At 20 o'clock, when the distance between the two sides was still 6 kilometers, Rear Admiral Li Haitian ordered the fleet to open fire. The two twin 20-mm guns of the heavy cruiser "Xi'an" immediately attacked the "Reina? The cruiser Cristina opened fire. The other warships also chose their targets one after another, and basically adopted a one-on-one approach to attack the Spanish fleet.

The old Spanish fleet is clearly no match for the Chinese Navy. However, like knights at sea, they launched an assault on the Chinese Navy.

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