“…… At 9:47 a.m. on July 30, as the ironclad ship "Rizakura" was bombarded by enemy gunfire until it reached a distance of 150 meters from the enemy's battleship, it was heavily bombarded with its bow guns, thus firing the first shot of our army in this battle. ”

"At 9:55 a.m., the 'Rizakura' completed its turn, and with its own side facing the enemy ship, it immediately launched a salvo, six explosive shells, five missed, and one hit the superstructure of the opponent's bow, causing a fire. As she was about to straddle away from the enemy ship, the 'Rizakura' fired another salvo, this time with an astonishing 50 percent hit, and three explosive shells hit the English battleship with a displacement of about 400 tons, causing the ship to burst into flames. ”

"...... 'Rizakura' continued to rush into the array of the English fleet without pausing, and with its thick armor, flexible maneuverability, and high rate of fire of its guns on average one shot per minute, it gave extremely effective damage to the enemy ships, and at the same time, it also caused a certain degree of confusion in the formation of the enemy fleet."

"In this battle, our naval fleet took the 'Rizakura' as the arrow, sixteen sailing ships as the vanguard fleet, and nineteen sailing warships as the rear guard fleet, and discharged two columns head-on to the enemy's entire fleet. Although this offensive formation is conducive to the enemy fleet giving full play to the advantages of the guns on both sides, it is convenient for our fleet to quickly turn around and launch another attack on the enemy ship by virtue of the maneuverability of the sail warship. ”

“……”

"In less than two hours of fighting, at least ten warships of the English fleet were seriously damaged, or a raging fire rose up, or the waterline was pierced by conical solid bullets, and they withdrew from the battle sequence one after another for emergency rescue and remediation."

“…… The turning point of this battle occurred at 11:42 p.m., when the ironclad ship "Li Ying" entered the position of the Chinese troops of the British fleet, and in a very bold way of attacking -- directly approaching the position of the British flagship "George" less than 80 meters, and using six left side guns to bombard more than 40 of the opponent's starboard guns. After three rounds of bombardment, the 'Rizakur' sailed away from the 'George', and the powerful rifled conical shells left several penetrating bullet holes on the starboard side of the opposing side, many of which were located at the waterline, causing the 1,300-ton 1st class battleship to roll sideways. Subsequently, the 'Tianshu' and 'Meltwater' followed up several rounds of explosive bombs at the ship, causing the ship to immediately fall into a huge disaster. In less than fifteen minutes, the 'George' broke into two pieces and quickly sank into the water with several violent explosions. ”

"The British fleet, which had lost its command, fell into a brief period of confusion, and although one of the opposing battleships raised its battle command flag ten minutes later and tried its best to gather its fleet and launch a counterattack against us, the enemy's formation was out of order, and it was divided into three parts, which were not subordinate to each other, and they fought separately, falling into the guerrilla mode that our warships are most familiar with."

"At 12:15 p.m., the Spanish fleet, which had been watching for a long time, joined the battle group and attacked the English transports in the rearguard, and tried to cut off the enemy's eastward escape."

“……”

“…… The battle lasted nearly six hours, and at about 3:20 p.m., the English fleet began to disperse and break out, and our troops immediately began to pursue in an effort to annihilate more of the enemy's living forces. ”

"At 8:20 p.m., no cannon sound could be heard on the huge Alvoran Sea, and the boiling sea surface returned to its former calm, and under the light of the stars and the moon, there was no noise on the blue sea, except for the scattered broken wooden planks, disorderly debris, and floating barrels, and the choking smoke of gunpowder also dissipated invisibly with the sea breeze."

"In this battle, our naval fleet won a hearty victory. Although the exact results of the battle have not yet been counted, it can be known from daytime battlefield observation that the English fleet lost more than half of its losses, and no less than 23 warships were sunk or captured. By early tomorrow morning, the pursuing warships would return, when better news came. ”

“……”

After reading the battle log submitted by the fleet staff officer of the Qi State and the hussar general (admiral) Wan Botai, the commander of the Qi Expeditionary Fleet, signed his name at the end, then closed it gently, then stood up, walked to the window of the command room, looked at the dark sea in the distance, and let out a long breath.

In the daytime battle, the performance of the English fleet was undoubtedly admirable, and many of their warships did not stop fighting, lower their flags and surrender until they could no longer maneuver. Among the several battleships that were sunk, there were also loyal captains who gave up the chance to escape at the last moment and sank into the sea with their beloved warships, returning to the ocean.

In this naval battle, Qi achieved a complete victory and almost destroyed the English fleet, in contrast, the Qi army did not lose any of the more than 30 ships, and the casualties of officers and soldiers were only more than 620 (including 156 killed), and the losses were slight.

What is even more rare is that in the pursuit before sunset, the Qi fleet captured five troop carriers and two "treasure ships", the former was loaded with more than 1,800 British troops and a large number of weapons and equipment, and the latter carried countless gold and silver materials plundered from the Knights Hospitaller and Alexandria on Malta Island, but did not want to cheapen the Qi expeditionary fleet in the battle of the Alvoran Sea.

"General, the Spaniards want us to cooperate with them tomorrow in attacking Gibraltar from the sea." A liaison officer of Lieutenant Ling Lu (lieutenant colonel) walked up behind Wan Botai and gave him a military salute.

"How many British warships were there in the port of Gibraltar?"

"It is reported that there should be between ten and twelve British warships in the port of Gibraltar." The liaison officer thought for a moment and replied softly, "If there were a few British warships escaping our pursuit during the daytime battle, they might have avoided Gibraltar. At that time, there is a high probability that the number of British warships in the port will increase. ”

"Tell the Spaniards that in the course of the day's fighting, our ships and men have suffered heavy losses, and that we are unable to cooperate with them in attacking Gibraltar." A mocking smile appeared at the corner of Wan Botai's mouth, "Since it is to recover its own land, how can there be any reason to count on foreign military power?" Moreover, in the daytime battle, the Spaniards ignored the British warships, but blindly attacked the British transport merchant ships, so opportunistic, and had the face to ask us for help? ”

"Yes, General."

"By the way, let the intelligence officer who interrogated the British prisoners work harder, and strive to extract all the useful intelligence information from the British army's mouth overnight, so as to point out the accurate direction of our next move." Wan Botai turned to his lieutenant and ordered.

"Yes, General."

"Order the ship's medical officers and escorts to do their utmost to treat all wounded officers and men, and not to give up the lives of any soldier."

"Yes, General."

"Properly keep the remains of officers and men killed in battle, and tomorrow morning, all the personnel of the fleet will hold a solemn sea burial for them."

“…… Yes, General! ”

"I believe that near the Channel, if the English navy is inflicted such a heavy blow, it will almost shake the will of the English people to war." Wan Botai looked at the inky sea again, and muttered.

——

On 6 August, a Spanish naval captain changed horses fifteen times along the way, and at 4 a.m. rushed to the Privy Council in Madrid to report to the Admiralt, Count Adolfo Suárez González, on the outcome of the Battle of Alvoran.

Although he was woken from his sleep, Count Gonzalez, when he heard the news of the battle, stood for a moment, then looked ecstatic, and immediately got dressed, rode in a carriage, and went straight to the Prime Minister's residence, despite the darkness of the night.

At this time, the court of Madrid, which had been shrouded in political gloom, urgently needed an uplifting news to dispel the decadent and helpless mood of all its subjects.

Because His Majesty Philip V's intermittent mental illness was repeated, and the whole person fell into a periodic state of melancholy and depression, almost insane. In this situation, the king closed himself off and only allowed the queen to approach - an act that was secretly belittled by many court ministers, who believed that the king had been controlled by his wife, and that the power of the kingdom had been deprived of the impartiality and transparency it deserved.

Furthermore, the Queen advised His Majesty to leave Madrid and temporarily relocate the court to Andalusia, where the environment was more suitable for His Majesty's recuperation and recuperation.

Although the queen can assist His Majesty in handling public affairs, this move away from the center of government will lead the whole kingdom into a state of anarchy - under the king's nose, many court ministers will be neglected to serve the government, and if there is no king, it will not make everyone herd sheep, which will lead to the paralysis of the central institutions of Madrid and the whole kingdom in a state of unregulated!

It is also a tear to say, the once prosperous Kingdom of Spain has been plagued by disasters in the past hundred years, and almost none of the wars it has participated in have been won, which not only greatly consumes national strength and loses a large amount of territory, but also makes every proud Spaniard sink day by day, becoming the object of contempt and ridicule of all European countries.

It is not enough if the country is weakened, but if there is a promising monarch to succeed to the throne, with the vast territory and rich history of the Kingdom of Spain, there is still a chance for revival.

However, God tried to play tricks on the Spaniards to the fullest, and the previous king, Carlos II, had little time to be in normal physical and mental condition from the time he succeeded to the throne until his death. His death not only wiped out the Habsburgs, but also led to a war of succession that could be devastating for Spain.

Finally, Philip V from the Bourbon dynasty is a little more normal, and he has a strong French background behind him, and it is expected that he can save the decadent Spanish state with this.

After Philip V succeeded to the throne, he also took advantage of the war to embark on a period of vigorous reforms, such as building a professional army, increasing fiscal revenues, strengthening centralized power, and creating an elitist bureaucracy. At that time, His Majesty the King was high-spirited and meritocracy, and selected a number of high-quality management and administrative officials, who provided human support for the smooth progress of the reform.

However, after the end of the war, the king from the Bourbon dynasty suffered from intermittent mental illness, which made him unable to effectively control the king's power, and the once positive political atmosphere was irrepressibly drawn into the quagmire, and countless hopeful subjects fell into endless despair again.

In this situation, it was no surprise that Spain lost the Italian War (also known as the War of the Quadruple Alliance), losing almost all of its possessions, leaving only a few inconspicuous coastal towns and deserted islands on the sea.

Now, in order to recapture Gibraltar and Menorca, which had been occupied by England, Spain organized several rounds of offensives, but failed to capture Gibraltar in a single battle.

Now, good news finally came from the Alvoran Sea, the Western Qi Maritime Coalition broke the English fleet, sank and captured more than 30 British ships, killed and wounded more than 5,700 British soldiers, and the rest of the British ships fled without a trace. After this battle, the Western Qi coalition forces have completely controlled the sea power in the strait, break through Gibraltar, and recapture Menorca Island, which will also be just around the corner.

"When, then, after a hearty victory for the Royal Navy, will our land forces regain Gibraltar and Menorca?" The long-term mental illness made Philip V, who was only forty-four years old, look unusually old, and his hoarse voice echoed in the empty hall, revealing a dull sense of depression and suffocation.

When the Prime Minister, Duke Giulio Alberoni, heard Philip V's question, the smile on his face froze, and after a moment's pause, he turned his head to look at the Minister of War, Count Antonio Ibañez Frere.

Yes, with the "cooperation" of the Qi Expeditionary Fleet, the Navy smashed the England fleet and won an extremely rare victory in decades.

Gibraltar, a land of projectiles, the army has mobilized tens of thousands of troops and attacked repeatedly, why can't it be recaptured?

"Your Majesty, the tens of thousands of officers and soldiers of the army are not invincible to regain lost territory, but ......, but ...... The officers and men of the army have always been short of equipment, especially the lack of heavy artillery and other equipment, and in the face of the fortress of Gibraltar, which England has based, it is indeed impossible to conquer it in a short period of time with the flesh and blood of the soldiers. In addition...... "The Minister of War, Count Antonio Ibáñez Frerere, first looked at the Prime Minister, Duke Alberoni, and then said to His Majesty the King in embarrassment: "In addition, more than 10,000 officers and soldiers on the front line have not been paid military pay and battlefield subsidies for more than eight months. Therefore, ......, the officers and men of the army were generally demoralized and complained about during the battle, and if it were not for General Juan's good management of the army and effective ammunition suppression, there might have been a chaos of mutiny and demanding. ”

"Duke Alberoni, can the kingdom financially raise the corresponding army salaries and war grants?" Philip V asked softly.

"Your Majesty, because of the war, the transportation of silver from the American Territory has been greatly disrupted. In order to prevent the silver ships from being intercepted and attacked by the English navy, the silver that was supposed to be transported to the mainland in the first half of the year was temporarily stranded in Havana, waiting for the escort of the Royal Navy's fleet. In order to blockade the Channel and cut off the rear route of the English navy, we have used all the 500,000 pesos we have raised for the maintenance of naval ships and the payment of salaries for officers and men, so that we can win the Battle of Alvoran. As for the long-overdue salaries and battlefield allowances for the officers and men of the army, the kingdom was already financially ...... There are no excess funds to pay for it. ”

"......" Philip V heard this, and suddenly felt an inexplicable anxiety and irritability.

In the more than 20 years since he succeeded to the throne of Spain, the kingdom's finances have never been rich, and almost every year there is a financial crisis, and the gold and silver shipped back from the Americas are basically not much except for paying off part of the debts and interest. In order to keep the kingdom running and the vast overseas territories safe, the government had to borrow large sums of money again to plug the big holes everywhere, and the cycle seemed to never end.

"Do you have a way to raise funds?" Philip V looked at the several important court officials present and asked a little weakly.

When everyone heard this, they all looked at each other, and their faces showed a little embarrassment.

In the European lending market, the credibility of the Kingdom of Spain was not good, and it went bankrupt several times, which not only greatly damaged the credibility of the kingdom, but also tossed many creditors to death.

It was because the Kingdom of Spain declared financial bankruptcy that the consortium had failed to repay its debts, so that the consortium's decades-long investment had been lost, so that it had not yet climbed out of the debt quagmire, and the entire financial lending industry had completely withered and lost its former glory.

During this period, almost no consortium dared to borrow money from the Spanish government, and even if they did, the amount was kept to a very small scale, and the interest rate on the loan was as high as 20% or more.

"Your Majesty, the people of Qi expressed their willingness to provide a loan to the royal government a few months ago, but in view of the harshness of the collateral proposed by the other party, it was collectively rejected by the Privy Council." The Prime Minister, Duke Alberoni, hesitated for a moment, and then said stubbornly: "Now that the kingdom is in financial crisis, can we consider borrowing a sum of money from the people of Qi to solve the current urgent need." As for the collateral for the loan, we have proposed a proposal, which will require His Majesty's promise. ”

"What is the loan amount provided by Qi Guoren? …… What is your Privy Council prepared to use as collateral? Philip V asked in a deep voice.

"The Minister of Qi declared that if the royal government needed it, they could provide us with a loan of not less than two million pesos (1 tael of silver is about 1.3-1.4 pesos, and 1 gold yuan is equivalent to about 4.5 pesos). As for the loan guarantee, our Privy Council negotiated the mortgage of the island of Santo Domingo in the Caribbean to the country of Qi, asking for a loan of five million pesos. ”

"As far as I know, this island has been the territory of the kingdom for more than two hundred years, and there are tens of thousands of people on the island, how can it be easily ceded to the people of the Qi country?"

"Your Majesty, since the French occupied the western territory of the island of Saint-Domingo, they have been trying to seize the entire island, which has caused constant conflicts and frictions on the island, which not only worries the local colonial officials and many people, but also consumes a lot of materials and money in vain to prevent the invasion of the French. In addition, the many pirates that ravaged the Caribbean have frequently attacked the island's coastal towns, looting property and killing and injuring residents, which has further contributed to the island's severe population loss. ”

"In this case, why not the royal government use this dangerous and disputed territory as collateral to exchange a large amount of money from the Qi people, so as to fully ensure the smooth progress of the kingdom's war against England. If this can be used to win this war, not only can the kingdom be restored, but it may also be possible to claim a large amount of compensation from England, repay the loan of Qi, and redeem the island of Santo Domingo. ”

Philip V listened, and was silent.

As the grandson of the Bourbon royal family and the grandson of the Sun King Louis XIV, he was also full of ambition, thinking of relying on the powerful power of France, bringing the twilight kingdom of Spain back to the top, and then magnifying the Bourbon dynasty and making it glorious to the world.

However, since he succeeded to the throne of Spain, he has been constantly facing the loss of his teachers and land, and signing one humiliating contract after another. In the War of the Succession, most of Europe, including the South Netherlands, was lost, and Gibraltar and Menorca were occupied by England; A few years earlier, the Italian War (known as the War of the Quadruple Alliance) had completely destroyed its territory.

Today, the Kingdom of Spain can be said to have lost its status as a first-class power in Europe and has become a "fish belly" to be bullied.

"Duke Alberoni, immediately negotiate with the Minister of Qi on the loan." Philip V leaned back in his chair and said in a firm tone: "I hope that this loan will be fulfilled as soon as possible, but during the mortgage of the island of Santo Domingo to the Qi Kingdom, I must ask the Qi Kingdom to treat the people of the island lord well and guarantee their full right to worship God." ”

"Yes, my majesty." Duke Alberoni replied respectfully as he leaned over.

(End of chapter)