Chapter 367: Britain's Concession

What Gao Da said was truly not a lie.

On April 30, 1895, before the British Navy could arrive at the Strait of Gibraltar, the joint exercise between the Spanish Navy and the French Navy had already begun.

While called a joint exercise, in reality, it was just the navies of both sides gathering together to take a few old, decommissioned warships as targets for target practice.

The internal propulsion systems of these warships and vessels used as targets had undergone simple repairs to ensure they could sail at a certain speed for a period of time.

The task of the Spanish and French navies was to simulate the process of discovering and sinking enemy warships; whoever could sink the so-called enemy ships in less time and with fewer shells would naturally be the side with the best performance.

As the planner of this joint naval exercise, Spain had also made careful preparations for it.

A total of 12 decommissioned warships that had undergone simple repairs served as targets, allowing the Spanish and French navies to have their fill of fun at once.

Although it was a joint exercise, good or bad performance concerned the face of their respective navies, so both sides attached considerable importance to this exercise.

In order to demonstrate its strength to France, Spain deployed two of its newest battleships in this joint naval exercise, namely the battleship Ferdinand II and the battleship Isabella I.

Only when Spain demonstrated its strength would France value Spain and offer more generous conditions to win Spain over.

One must know that as one of the most powerful countries in the world today, France's battleship Brennus was still sitting in the shipyard's dry dock.

As a latecomer, Spain had already built two battleships; such speed was completely incomparable to the current French Navy.

During this joint naval exercise, the performance of Spain's two battleships was quite excellent, even making the French naval soldiers envious to the point of almost drooling.

France's battleship Brennus had begun construction as early as January 12, 1889, and had started sea trials on October 17, 1891.

According to normal logic, such a completed battleship should basically be able to officially enter service after 1 to 2 years of sea trials.

France originally had the hope of becoming one of the first countries to possess battleships, but the construction of the battleship Brennus played a huge joke on the French Navy.

Since its launch in October 1891, this battleship, on which the French Navy had pinned its hopes, had stubbornly and repeatedly cycled through sea trials, discovering problems, and returning to the factory for modifications; to this day, it had not officially entered service.

Originally, for this joint naval exercise between the two countries, the French Navy wanted to include the battleship Brennus to highlight the strength and foundation of the French Navy.

But unfortunately, the modification work on the battleship Brennus was not yet complete, and the navy could not possibly take a semi-finished battleship to participate in a joint exercise.

This was also the reason why the French Navy drooled while looking at the Spanish battleships; Spain had battleships and it really built them—five at a time—and the construction speed was exceptionally fast. Where was one supposed to reason with that?

In fact, this joint naval exercise would not take long, but the French government also knew the purpose of Spain organizing this naval exercise, and they did not mind helping Spain in such a small matter to make Spain lean more toward their side.

It was precisely for this reason that such an exercise, which was not very large in scale, lasted for a full three days.

On the second day of the exercise, a British squadron arrived at the Strait of Gibraltar and used signal flags to send a message to the French-Spanish joint fleet located in the Strait of Gibraltar, demanding passage through the Strait of Gibraltar.

The Spanish and French fleets naturally had no objections, but during the process of the British fleet passing through the Strait of Gibraltar, the coastal defense batteries on the Spanish coast and the naval guns of the two battleships were already aimed at the British fleet.

If the British fleet were just passing through the Strait of Gibraltar normally, this would naturally be no problem. But if the British fleet wanted to look for trouble, Spain would not mind having a naval battle with Britain.

The total scale of the British fleet did indeed crush the various countries of Europe, but the British fleet was not just in one place in Europe. Looking at this fleet currently at Gibraltar, their volume was not as large as the scale of the fleet Spain was using for the naval exercise, so there was naturally no need to worry too much.

The abnormal actions of the Spanish Navy immediately attracted the attention of the British Navy and the French Navy.

Aiming with artillery batteries was no joke; once the Spanish side issued the order to fire, it was very likely that several British warships would sink in the Strait of Gibraltar.

Coastal defense guns were not small-caliber artillery. The coastal defense batteries deployed by Spain around the Strait of Gibraltar had a minimum caliber of 234 millimeters, and the most important ones were the 343-millimeter giant batteries of the same model as the battleships, which could potentially heavily damage a battleship with a single shot.

This was indeed because the British fleet's intentions were not pure. Although the British had no plans to go to war with Spain, their idea of using the navy to deter Spain had never been dispelled.

Do not look at the small scale of this British fleet before them; it actually contained three battleships, namely the battleship Royal Sovereign, the battleship Revenge, and the battleship Resolution.

The battleship Royal Sovereign was the lead ship of the Royal Sovereign-class battleships and also the first warship to usher in the pre-dreadnought era. Since its official completion in May 1892, the battleship Royal Sovereign had been serving in Britain's Channel Fleet.

The battleship Revenge and the battleship Resolution were the same; they were both serving in Britain's Home Fleet. This time, Britain transferred them to the Strait of Gibraltar, clearly wanting to rely on the numerical advantage of battleships to deter the Spanish Navy.

But what the British Navy did not expect was that the Spanish side was not only not afraid, but instead had an air of "life and death are indifferent, let's fight if you're not convinced."

This immediately left the British fleet dumbfounded, and it also made them dare not have the slightest other action.

No one dared to guarantee whether Spain would fire first. If they were careless for a moment and let Spain launch a sneak attack, causing the loss of a few battleships, then that would be a huge joke.

The British were indeed wealthy and imposing; they not only single-handedly ushered in the pre-dreadnought era but also built a full eight Royal Sovereign-class battleships in one go.

But this did not mean that the British could accept the result of losing several battleships in a short period of time. The total construction cycle of any battleship was as long as two years or more; even for Britain to build a battleship, from the start of construction to the completion stage after sea trials, it would take 2 to 3 years to finish.

If too many battleships were lost at once, it would not only cause the naval advantage that Britain maintained relative to other countries to vanish, but it would also allow other countries to catch up to Britain in terms of pre-dreadnoughts, which was something the British side absolutely could not accept.

"Your Excellency Commander, the Spanish coastal defense batteries have already aimed at us. Do we still want to continue passing through the Strait of Gibraltar?"

On the British fleet's flagship, the battleship Royal Sovereign, a messenger looked at the fleet commander with a worried face.

At this moment, the fleet commander was also a bit unsure of the Spaniards' thoughts; at such a critical juncture, any choice could potentially completely change the diplomatic relationship between Britain and Spain.

After a moment of silence, the fleet commander then issued his order: "Pass the order down, continue passing through the Strait of Gibraltar.

Change our destination and head directly to Malta. Additionally, send a telegram to the country to inform them of our situation.

If the country has any thoughts of fighting the Spaniards, tell them to send more battleships."

Although they had a certain advantage in battleships, the overall scale of the Spanish Navy was larger than this British fleet.

What's more, around the Strait of Gibraltar, Spain had also deployed a large number of coastal defense batteries.

The role of these coastal defense batteries was not a bit worse than battleships; if a real fight broke out at this time, it would be impossible for the British fleet to achieve victory.

Under the close watch of the Spanish Navy, the British fleet cautiously passed through the Strait of Gibraltar. After crossing the strait, the British fleet immediately headed east to Malta, with no intention of stopping at Gibraltar at all.

Although Gibraltar was an important naval base for Britain, under the current circumstances, being stationed at Gibraltar was no different from charging into an enemy's encirclement.

Although Malta was slightly further from the Strait of Gibraltar, the advantage was that it was closer to Britain's colonies and friendly countries.

Even if a war broke out, this fleet would not have to worry about being surrounded by the Spanish Navy. They could choose to be stationed in Greece or Egypt, or they could withdraw through the Suez Canal and head to the more distant India.

Not long after, the British government also received the relevant information.

They were astonished by the bold behavior of the Spanish Navy, and within the British government, there was also worry about whether continuing to deter Spain would trigger a great war between the two countries.

However, Britain was Britain after all; even for the sake of their own face, relevant protests were a must.

Not long after the incident occurred, the British government formally lodged a protest with the Spanish government.

They denounced Spain for having no right to blockade the Strait of Gibraltar, and that using batteries to lock onto the British fleet while the British fleet was passing through the Strait of Gibraltar was an even more barbaric act.

Such behavior would not only damage the diplomatic relationship between Britain and Spain but would also cause unnecessary disputes and conflicts between the fleets of the two countries.

After the protest, the British government demanded that Spain provide an explanation for this and promise that such barbaric behavior would not happen again.

Regarding the diplomatic protest from the British government, the Spanish side did not care much.

A diplomatic protest actually also represented a compromise; in other words, war was basically impossible to happen again. If Britain still wanted to have a war with Spain at this time, they would not use such a weak method as a diplomatic protest.

If one could get the results one wanted through protests, then the great powers would no longer need armies. Only war could make other countries submit; diplomatic protests were just for the sake of their own face, to make things look passable on the surface.

Since the British government wanted face, then the Spanish side would give them face.

Regarding the British government's diplomatic protest, the Spanish government also had a relevant statement.

First of all, Spain explained that the so-called batteries aiming at the British fleet were just a misunderstanding.

At that time, the Spanish Navy was conducting a joint military exercise with the French Navy, and the Spanish Navy's batteries were only aimed at targets in the same direction as the British fleet.

The Spanish government also provided several photos, in which the targets being hit were indeed in the same direction as the British fleet when it entered the strait.

As for the matter of Spain blockading the Strait of Gibraltar that the British government mentioned, that was even more of a misunderstanding.

After all, the British fleet had passed through the Strait of Gibraltar safe and sound, which already showed that Spain's blockade did not exist.

The French government also provided certain evidence, proving that the Spanish Navy at that time was indeed aiming at the targets determined by both sides, and not at the British fleet crossing the strait.

Since the Spanish and French governments both said so, the British government naturally gave up on the diplomatic protest.

Continuing to make a scene would not only fail to save face but would instead cause the relationship between Britain and Spain to become sharp.

British Prime Minister Archibald Primrose was not stupid. The reason he agreed to launch the Boer War was because Britain was in an absolutely dominant position.

Even if one used their toes to plan the war, the probability of Britain winning this war was extremely high.

But Spain was different. Currently, Spain's naval power could be said to be firmly in the top three in the world. If it were just that the navy was strong, that would be fine, but Spain's army power was also quite good.

Fighting a war with such a Spain, Britain really could not be sure who would win and who would lose.

Although Britain could indeed reduce the transport of supplies from Spain's mainland to the front line by blockading the Strait of Gibraltar, this ultimately could not change the situation of Morocco being on the losing side of the war.

The British army personally entering the field could indeed slow down the speed of the Spanish army's offensive, but that was just slowing it down.

The British government still had self-awareness regarding its own army. The British Army could indeed bully some great powers with weak combat effectiveness, but in front of a country like Spain with relatively strong army combat effectiveness, the British Army's combat effectiveness was still not worth looking at.

Although giving up Morocco would to a certain extent affect the control of Gibraltar for Britain, as long as Gibraltar was not lost, Britain would still be the country controlling the Strait of Gibraltar.

This incident could only be handled this way; using a Morocco to trade for an opportunity for Britain to deal with the Boers with peace of mind.

After Britain finished dealing with the Boers, it would not be too late to consider the layout for the Strait of Gibraltar.

At worst, they could strengthen investment in the Mediterranean Fleet, and they would still be able to control the two exits of the Mediterranean. At least in terms of the navy and the construction speed of the navy, Britain was not afraid of any country in the world.

The speed of building battleships like making dumplings was something only the British Empire could achieve in the current world.

While this farce between Spain and Britain was happening, the Imperial Guard's offensive against Morocco was quite smooth, having already pushed the front line to the important city of Larache in northwestern Morocco.

Because the logistical supplies were quite abundant, the Imperial Guard soldiers were enjoying fruit and beef and mutton from Spain while mercilessly venting their bullets at the Moroccans.

Do not look at the fact that there were only 8, 00 troops in northern Morocco; in these few days of war, the Imperial Guard's bullet consumption had already reached as high as millions of rounds, and artillery shell consumption was also close to six figures.

This consumption of ammunition was not in vain. Besides the offensive being quite smooth, the Imperial Guard also created huge casualties for the Moroccan army.

The northern region had always been a place where the Moroccan army stationed heavy troops, and the number of Moroccan soldiers here reached tens of thousands.

After Spain declared war on Morocco, the Moroccan government organized troops to move south to defend, while also strengthening the defensive forces of the northern cities.

Originally, Tangier and Tetouan each had several thousand soldiers stationed, and after the war broke out, the number of soldiers had increased to tens of thousands.

During Spain's attack on Tangier, these tens of thousands of Moroccan troops were almost completely wiped out. The number of Moroccan soldiers who died under the fierce bombardment of the Spanish army reached as high as thousands, and thousands more Moroccan soldiers were captured and detained in the prisoner-of-war camp established in Ceuta.

Spain did not intend to establish a long-term colony in Morocco, so regarding these captured Moroccan soldiers, Spain did not abuse them too much.

Except for those more extreme Moroccan soldiers who highly hated Spain, the remaining Moroccan soldiers would receive better treatment, and two meals a day were still guaranteed.

Although these prisoners needed to help Spain transport supplies under the supervision of soldiers, such labor was not without reward.

Fruit and canned meat were the most direct rewards, and also the most popular things in the prisoner-of-war camp.

For these Moroccan soldiers, fruit and meat were things they could only eat after a long time.

Being able to eat fruit and meat while becoming a prisoner was already quite benevolent treatment.

After the Imperial Guard captured Larache, the number of Moroccan prisoners detained in the prisoner-of-war camp had already risen to tens of thousands.

The larger the number, the harder these prisoners were to manage. In order to prevent any accidents in Ceuta, Andrew decided to manage these prisoners in a dispersed manner and re-establish a prisoner-of-war camp in Tangier.

Although Tangier was a city just occupied by Spain, because it was a Haigang, the officials and soldiers sent by Spain to maintain order had already arrived in Tangier, and militarized management had begun several days ago.

Currently, the order in Tangier is considered stable, and accommodating a portion of prisoners of war is not a problem.

After dispersing these prisoners of war, Andrew set his sights on Ksar el-Kebir, southeast of Larache.

Not far to the east of Ksar el-Kebir is the Oued El Makhazine reservoir; this reservoir provides a large amount of drinking water and agricultural irrigation water for the surrounding cities, and its strategic value is evident.

As long as Ksar el-Kebir can be occupied, Spain's influence can expand to a range of dozens of kilometers in the surrounding area.

Further south are the Moroccan capital Rabat, and the important central Moroccan towns of Meknes and Fez.

As long as these cities are nibbled away step by step, ending this war will only be a matter of time.

The eight thousand men of the Imperial Guard have also suffered quite a few casualties during this period of combat. The good news is that the total number of deaths and serious injuries is less than one hundred, which is one of the benefits brought by firepower coverage.

Those soldiers whose injuries are not too severe can basically be put back into battle after simple treatment at the field hospital established in Ceuta.

As for those soldiers with more serious injuries, they need to be transported by transport ships to the mainland to receive treatment in hospitals in major mainland cities.

The hospitals in the two cities of Seville and Valencia are already prepared to receive the relevant wounded, and the current medical treatment for the wounded is considered quite smooth.

Although the frontline offensive is going smoothly, Kalu does not intend to let these soldiers fight the entire war. Kalu's goal is to let these Imperial Guard soldiers see blood and personally experience a real battlefield and war.

After the Imperial Guard soldiers on the front line adapt to the war, it will still be necessary to have other units rotate in.

This Moroccan war can be considered a very good testing ground, allowing most of the Spanish army to personally experience the cruelty of the battlefield and temper the soldiers' will.

Of course, whether it is the Imperial Guard or the Royal Army, there will certainly be casualties when they step onto the battlefield.

This is also unavoidable. Exchanging a small amount of controllable casualties for the transformation of the Spanish army after experiencing war is a worthwhile deal.

As for the soldiers who died on the battlefield, their families will be well settled and will receive a substantial pension, which can be considered a reward for their death on the battlefield.

I was too sleepy at night and slept for a while, sorry.

(End of this chapter)