Chapter 305: War Plan

To occupy the West African region before the Germans, Qiaodi and a group of officers immediately began planning a war against the local natives after arriving safely in the Congo Territory.

Although the Congo Territory had not yet expanded its military, it was, after all, Spain's largest colony and naturally had the largest number of colonial troops stationed there.

After arriving in the Congo Territory, Qiaodi discovered that in addition to the one colonial division he could mobilize, he could also draw upon three colonial garrison regiments to coordinate in the operation.

These forces combined exceeded 25, 00 men; it was highly likely they could not only attack one native power but even sweep away several native states in the western part of the Congo Territory.

Qiaodi knew the importance of occupying West Africa as early as possible for Spain, and without the slightest hesitation, he issued his orders on the second day after arriving in the Congo Territory.

The colonial division, acting as the main force, quickly assembled toward the Guinea region. The objective of this operation was the Bam Kingdom in northern Guinea, a native state with a long history, having been established for nearly 500 years.

Of course, no matter how long its history, such a native state was still vulnerable before the Spanish colonial army.

Although the colonial army was also composed of natives, it was a qualified force that had undergone specific training. The soldiers all used rifles provided uniformly by Spain, and their comprehensive combat effectiveness was several levels higher than these untrained native armies.

The Bam Kingdom was part of the Cameroon region, which was rich in natural resources and had a large native population.

Unlike in history, Spain had increased its investment in the Guinea colony due to the expansion of the Congo Territory.

This also resulted in Germany's infiltration into the Cameroon region being later than in history, and they were unable to take Cameroon in 1884.

Because this land was exactly within the colonial merger plan formulated by Ka Luo, Ka Luo would never allow Cameroon to be taken by the Germans.

The reason Qiaodi was so anxious to launch the war was precisely to establish Spain's ruling status over the Cameroon region formally before the Germans could.

In fact, one could see from the map that Spain had already occupied the greater part of the Cameroon region. The only area currently outside of Spanish control was the Bam Kingdom.

Unlike the natives in the regions Spain had already occupied, the level of civilization in the Bam Kingdom was higher than that of the eastern regions.

As early as the 15th century, Portuguese missionaries had reached this area, thereby initiating a vigorous slave trade.

Although countries around the world had already abolished slavery, the Bam Kingdom's ties with European nations had not been severed. Many missionaries chose to come to this land to spread Christianity, while simultaneously bringing advanced firearms and cannons to the natives here.

Of course, these missionaries and explorers did not come away empty-handed. They brought back gold and silver, as well as large quantities of ivory, palm oil, and timber.

Long-term trade with European missionaries and explorers had given the Bam Kingdom a certain level of military strength. The entire kingdom had a population of about 2 million and had armed a force of over 30, 00.

More than 5, 00 men in this army were equipped with various types of muskets, and they were also equipped with dozens of cannons of varying calibers.

Although the styles of the muskets and cannons varied, it was undeniable that such a native army equipped with advanced weapons posed a greater threat than other native armies lacking firearms, and it was even possible for them to cause heavy casualties to the Spanish colonial army.

Because Spain had more war plans to follow, this war against the Bam Kingdom could not afford to sustain heavy casualties.

Qiaodi scribbled on the map and finally determined a relatively detailed attack plan against the Bam Kingdom.

The Bam Kingdom had no coastline, and most of the country was mountainous. To the west of the Bam Kingdom was the Aro Alliance, a federation formed by many native states.

Similar to the Bam Kingdom, the Aro Alliance had earned a certain income through the slave trade and the export of palm oil and ivory, purchasing a batch of weapons and equipment from missionaries and explorers.

To the north of the Bam Kingdom was the Sokoto Caliphate, which was also the largest and most powerful native power in the vicinity.

The Sokoto Caliphate was also a loose federation formed by many native emirates, with the Caliph of Sokoto as the supreme leader of the nation.

As the most powerful native state in the West African region, the Sokoto Caliphate possessed tens of millions of native inhabitants and millions of non-Muslim slaves.

Theoretically, the Bam Kingdom, the Aro Alliance, and the Sokoto Caliphate all had a common enemy: the European colonists who wanted to conquer this region.

However, these three countries had different ethnic and religious beliefs, and the relationships between them were not that good.

Qiaodi's attack plan was essentially to exploit the contradictions between the natives, keeping the other natives neutral while Spain attacked the Bam Kingdom, so that Spain would have the opportunity to conquer the Bam Kingdom in a leisurely manner.

Theoretically, it was very hopeful that the Aro Alliance and the Sokoto Caliphate could be kept neutral.

As long as Spain did not launch a war against them, these federations formed by multiple native tribes were difficult to unite into a single rope; after all, natives were not exactly harmonious neighbors with other natives.

Before launching the war against the Bam Kingdom, Qiaodi contacted the Governor of the Congo Territory, requesting that the Governor contact the Sokoto Caliph and the Aro Alliance in the name of the Congo Territory government to keep them neutral in this war through material trade.

These native states had no industrial foundation, and European industrial products were still very popular in Africa. Spain could also demand neutrality from these countries by gifting firearms; once these countries obtained the firearms, they would consider themselves unafraid of a Spanish invasion and naturally would have no need to support a country with which they had a hostile relationship.

Of course, the firearms gifted to these natives were certainly not Spain's most advanced rifles. As a country that did not ban guns, there were still many hunting rifles and pistols within Spain, and these firearms could well be sold to these native states.

Current hunting rifles were basically muzzle-loaders; not only was the loading speed extremely slow, but the bullet range and power were also limited.

Needless to say, pistols had even weaker range and power than hunting rifles, with an effective range of only 50 meters.

Such firearms had a weak impact on the war, and even if given to these natives, it would have no effect on Spain.

Of course, the more muskets these natives were equipped with, the more likely they were to cause greater damage to the Spanish army.

But the problem was that the Spanish native army was composed of natives, and natives in Spanish colonies were, if not countless, definitely enough for Spain to squander.

The populations of Morocco, the Philippines, and Lanfang alone were enough to arm an army of hundreds of thousands, not to mention the black people who were everywhere in the Congo Territory; the armies they could arm would easily number in the millions.

Upon hearing Qiaodi's request, the Governor did not hesitate at all and immediately dispatched diplomatic representatives to the two native states.

Because both native states had trade relations with European colonists, and provided that no war had broken out between the two countries, the diplomatic representatives sent by Spain were not in mortal danger.

Although African natives did not have the tradition of not killing envoys during wartime, they also understood that if the Spanish diplomatic representatives were in mortal danger, they would face the edge of Spain's blades.

The first to receive the news was the Aro Alliance, which was closer. Because they were closer to the Bam Kingdom, this had led to a consistently poor relationship between the Aro Alliance and the Bam Kingdom.

Although they could not be considered mortal enemies, there was a competitive relationship between them. Both countries relied on the palm oil trade for income, so it would be strange if their relationship were good.

Upon learning that Spain was willing to exchange industrial products and firearms for the Aro Alliance's neutrality, the Aro Alliance did not hesitate at all and expressed their willingness to make this deal.

Of course, they were not stupid. Spain's attack on the Bam Kingdom had already exposed its ambition, and the Aro Alliance hoped to purchase more firearms from Spain to ensure the safety of its own territory.

To get the Spaniards to agree to sell more firearms, the Aro Alliance even swore that their purpose for purchasing firearms was to fight against the Niger Kingdom to the west.

Compared to the Bam Kingdom and the Aro Alliance, the Niger Kingdom was a relatively special existence.

The founder of the kingdom was Eri, and there were not many records about Eri. Local legends circulated about Eri being a "sky-like existence," believing that he descended to Earth and then established the Niger Kingdom.

Such legends were somewhat mythical, but they were deeply trusted by the local residents.

The Niger Kingdom was also a relatively chaotic existence, attracting a large number of people rejected by their own countries to take refuge, which also created the ethnic diversity of the Niger Kingdom.

Many natives whose land had been taken away by Western colonists chose to come to the Niger Kingdom, which also bolstered the population of the Niger Kingdom.

As the Niger Kingdom grew stronger, it would naturally affect the living space of surrounding countries. The Aro Alliance's so-called war against the Niger Kingdom was half-true and half-false; after obtaining enough firearms, such an attack plan might not be untrue.

After consultation, Spain agreed to sell 1, 00 hunting rifles and 20, 00 rounds of ammunition in exchange for the Aro Alliance's neutrality.

However, because transportation required time, these firearms and ammunition would take more than a month to be transported to the Aro Alliance.

To put the Aro Alliance at ease, after the two sides reached a verbal agreement, the Congo Territory collected over 200 hunting rifles and 500 rounds of ammunition and sent them to the Aro Alliance, expressing Spain's sincerity in facilitating the cooperation.

The Aro Alliance was very happy to receive the firearms, and they also stated that they would absolutely not interfere in Spain's war against the Bam Kingdom.

After confirming that the Aro Alliance would not interfere in the war, Qiaodi did not hesitate at all and immediately ordered the army to advance toward the Bam Kingdom.

Although news from the Sokoto Caliphate had not yet arrived, it was no longer important to Spain.

The capital of the Sokoto Caliphate, Tibili, was nearly a thousand kilometers away from the capital of the Bam Kingdom, Fuban; even if the Sokoto Caliphate were willing to support the Bam Kingdom, this distance of over a thousand kilometers would be enough to dispel their thoughts.

For African countries, a distance of over a thousand kilometers was a chasm difficult to cross. This journey had neither trains nor highways, and for these natives to reach the Bam Kingdom, they would also need to cross several native tribes and mountain ranges.

By the time they reached the border of the Bam Kingdom, the war launched by Spain would have long since ended. By then, not only would they be unable to support the Bam Kingdom, but they would also damage their relationship with Spain.

To defeat the Bam Kingdom more quickly, Qiaodi chose to divide his forces into two routes.

The colonial division would set out from Guinea and advance north to attack the border of the Bam Kingdom. A force of 20, 00 was enough to deal with the Bam Kingdom's 30, 00-strong army, and the border between Guinea and the Bam Kingdom would become the front line of this war.

This was not all. The remaining three colonial garrison regiments would be temporarily merged and launch an attack on the Bam Kingdom from the direction of the Baka tribe.

The Baka tribe was a native tribe already conquered by Spain, located exactly to the east of the Bam Kingdom.

The Bam Kingdom was shaped like a rectangle, with its capital located in the east-central part of the rectangle.

There was a distance of 200 kilometers from the Guinea colony to the capital of the Bam Kingdom, Fuban, and due to the many mountainous areas, it was difficult for the Spanish army to capture Fuban quickly.

But attacking from the direction of the Baka tribe was different. The capital of the Bam Kingdom, Fuban, was only 30 kilometers away from the eastern border; if the Spanish army's offensive went smoothly, there was even hope of besieging Fuban by the second day.

Even if the colonial division attacking north from the Guinea colony did not go smoothly, it could still pin down the majority of the Bam Kingdom's army.

This would be the best opportunity for the three colonial garrison regiments to launch a surprise attack. If the Bam Kingdom placed most of its troops on the southern border, their eastern border would become exceptionally empty.

If they also placed some troops on the eastern border for defense, then as long as the colonial division in the south was not at a numerical disadvantage, defeating the Bam Kingdom would only be a matter of time.

Such a layout could be said to be very reasonable, and it would be difficult for the Bam Kingdom to have room to resist.

Their military strength was also insufficient to deal with attacks from both the south and the east simultaneously, and it would be completely too late to conscript troops temporarily.

By the time they learned that Spanish troops were launching attacks on both the southern and eastern borders, it would be too late for them to resist.

By then, the Spanish army could catch the turtles in the jar and completely surround the Bam Kingdom's army. As long as the offensive on either the southern or eastern front achieved an advantage, the Bam Kingdom's army would have no choice but to retreat continuously.

After all, the land area of the Bam Kingdom was limited; where could they retreat to if they retreated further?

To the south and east were Spanish troops, to the west was the Aro Alliance with whom they had a not-so-good relationship, and to the north was the Sokoto Caliphate.

Although they could retreat to the Aro Alliance or the Sokoto Caliphate, in the situation where the Bam Kingdom was occupied by Spain, fleeing to the Aro Alliance or the Sokoto Caliphate would not gain them favorable treatment from the other side, and they might even be arrested by them and respectfully delivered into the hands of the Spanish army.

(End of chapter)