February 15, 1898. In the port of Havana, Cuba, when American expatriates excitedly pointed to the ironclad ships in the distance and praised the US Navy's "overseas Chinese protection operation." Spain, on the other hand, was hostile to the sudden arrival of American warships. At a time when the Spanish government was taking both hard and soft measures against the Cuban insurgents and actively de-escalating the conflict, the American fleet arrived. And as soon as he came, he stayed in the port of Havana for more than a month, and now, this ironclad ship is still lying in the port of Havana, so that the Spaniards in Cuba are like a man!

At this moment, the ironclad ship from the United States made a loud noise, and a huge column of water erupted from the middle of the hull, accompanied by a roar, the ironclad ship of more than 6,000 tons quickly sank to the bottom of the sea, and along with it sank, there were 260 sailors on board! In just a few minutes, the history of the world world was changed!

Under the propaganda of the American media, the Americans were outraged, and the first independent investigation team from the United States believed that the ship sank after a mine, which raised the anger of the Americans to a new level. The Spanish investigation believed that the cause of the sinking of the battleship was an explosion at the ammunition depot, but in fact, this reason still existed in the world at that time. And subsequently, the Spanish Foreign Ministry said that it could compensate the Americans for their losses, and was ready to calm the situation. After all, Spain doesn't want to go to war with the young cowboy of the United States.

But war is not a matter of the will of one side. The Americans found an excuse. Even if the Spaniards showed weakness, they would never be able to organize the outbreak of this war! As for the real reason for this, I am afraid it is impossible to verify. But there's nothing to it. Because it's just the prelude to a big show!

"General Severa, the mission of protecting Spain has fallen on your shoulders, and we should be ready!" The day after the explosion, Yang Yonglin was keenly aware of the approaching war. The US propaganda machine has been launched, and the fleet is also being mobilized, and Yang Yonglin has already felt a trace of uneasiness since the return of the US Far East Fleet not long ago. And now the explosions in Havana have made it happen!

"If there are no surprises, in 1 month the fleet will set sail. Lord Yang, as a general who participated in the First Sino-Japanese Naval Battle, I hope that your performance will not disappoint the Spanish Navy. Sevela said.

"We have purchased state-of-the-art warships. Several plans have been prepared for this day, the most warlike of the Spaniards have been called into the navy, we have established contact with the British and Germans, and we have prepared a fleet of logistical support. We did everything, so to speak. It's time for us to reap the rewards. "Yang Yonglin is not afraid of the war in front of him, because he knows that fear has no effect, and he will come back after all! What's more, he was full of confidence in this fleet, which mixed the elite of the British and German navies.

Faced with the threat of war, the Spanish fleet, which had been preparing for this for 8 years, began preparations for war. The 10 capital ships were divided into two temporary battle groups, the first battle group was commanded by Yang Yonglin, including the German version of the Garibaldi-class armored cruiser King and the Pisa-class armored cruiser Cologne, and two 4,000-ton protective cruisers, the Pluto and the Fury. The Ultimate Edition of the Hot (that) sub-class light armored cruisers Manila Good and USS Santiago. These six ships will form a fast fleet with 2 supply ships. Used to attack lines of communication and guerrillas, Admiral Severa will command the Dante-type battleships España and Madrid, as well as the Pisa-type armored cruisers Princess Maria and Okando, to form the Newport detachment, which will be used to attack the Newport News shipyard in preparation for the next step of the plan.

In addition to these 2 main fleets, there was a formation of torpedo boats, these had a displacement of about 600 tons and a speed of up to 24 knots. Mine-striking ships equipped with two triple 18-inch torpedo tubes, numbered T1 to T8, will then proceed to the Caribbean. These large mine-strike ships, which have been improved in ocean-going seaworthiness, will be put into battle in a decisive battle. …,

The above is the entire fleet of the Spanish side in this Spanish-American War. In addition to this, there were 8 high-speed transport ships selected by Spain from among civilian ships to supply the fleet at sea. Replenishment of ports was carried out in British seaports in the Caribbean. After a month of preparation, the Spanish fleet finally left the mainland on March 14, 1898, and headed for Cuba.

While the Spaniards were preparing for war, the Americans were not idle. Adhering to the principle of concentrating forces, all the warships of the entire U.S. Navy that could sail long distances were assembled on the Florida peninsula, including 4 battleships, 2 armored cruisers, and 13 protective cruisers. The USS Texas and four shallow-water heavy gunboats, as well as torpedo boats, remained in the eastern military ports. The 19 ships were soon divided into 4 fleets.

Admiral Simpson commanded four battleships to form the First Fleet, while Commodore Dewey commanded two armored cruisers and two Columbia-class cruisers and the USS Olympia to form the Second Fleet, which would work together to deal with the Spanish fleet from afar. Commodore Shelly commanded five 4,000-ton protective cruisers. His task will be to cover the army's sea lines of communication. As for the remaining 5 third-class protected cruisers, they served as sentinels and notification ships. Cooperating with Brigadier General Shelly's actions.

"Why do you want to change your plan? Didn't the original plan take covering the lines of communication as its core task? "When Magifin found out that Admiral Simpson was commanding 9 of the most elite warships in the U.S. Navy and took the initiative to find the Spanish fleet for a decisive battle. Magiffen asked.

"Offense is the best defense, Mr. Colonel, the navy is not just a vassal of the army, we have the responsibility to protect the security of the whole of America, and you know, our fleet is too small in number, for this purpose, we can only take the initiative." Admiral Simpson said with a cold face.

"But until we get the whereabouts of the Spanish fleet, we'll cruise the waters off Cuba." Brigadier General Dewey said with a little embarrassment. Then he approached Magifin and whispered in his ear: "The nerves of the American people are still very fragile, they are afraid of the Spanish fleet attacking the east coast, so for the sake of political necessity, the navy must take the initiative to meet the enemy." ”

"Damn political need." Magiffen cursed in a low voice. "If I could, I would like to be able to command the USS New York and USS Olympia to cover the Army convoy before the Spanish fleet is discovered." As Dewey's deputy, Magifin asked to divide the fleet.

"I'm afraid this won't work, you know, we only have 5 large cruisers, and if you take 2 away, the entire main fleet will be at a disadvantage." Dewey flatly refused, knowing that Magiffin had a point, but he could not risk the defeat of the fleet. After all, even if the 9 warships of the main fleet were together, once they fought with the Spanish fleet, the outcome would be unpredictable.

"If not, we can transfer the Texas to join the escort fleet, we still have several shallow water heavy gunboats, the current escort fleet is too weak." Majifen was still a little unwilling.

"With only 250 tons of coal on 4,000-ton ships and freeboard almost flush with the water, these ships are not suitable for fighting in the open sea. And we can't leave an undefended East Coast, right? Dewey said with some frustration.

"If the war had started two years later, we would never have been so stretched." At this time, Majifen realized how tragic the strategic posture of the Japanese fleet was. The safety of the lines of communication must be ensured, the safety of the domestic transportation lines must be guaranteed, and the Beiyang Fleet must be actively attacked, and the seemingly powerful naval force is scattered by a number of strategic objectives. And in this case, the opponent has every chance to break the scattered enemies individually!

The Spanish fleet had left its homeland and sailed to the distant Caribbean, and after more than a month of media campaigns, the United States finally mobilized public opinion at home, so the United States decided to officially declare war on Spain. However, in this war, the United States only limited the scope of the war to the Caribbean, instead of taking the Philippines and Guam and other places by the way, as in history.

In the early days of the war, the U.S. government was more inclined to use the navy to impose a blockade on Cuba, and then gain control of Cuba by landing a small number of army personnel in Cuba to provide help and weapons to the local rebel army. This strategy clearly overestimated the strength of the Cuban rebels and, more importantly, gave the Spaniards a chance to fight back!

On April 25, the United States declared war on Spain, and the curtain of the war was opened.

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