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Chapter 1284 Battleships Gather in Portsmouth
An important port of the British Royal Navy, Portsmouth Harbor, where dozens of warships gathered, the flags covered the sky.The Union flag symbolizing the unity of England and Scotland was hoisted on the warships of the Royal Fleet. The King of the Seas, known as the Golden Devil, was about to participate in its first battle after it was launched.

British Admiral Sir Pennington personally listed the King of the Seas as a flagship ship.

In addition to the King of the Seas, the fifty-gun class Crown Prince sailing battleship that went on two missions to the east is also among them.

There are also armed merchant ships and two-masted warships with a displacement of several hundred tons.

Since the end of Queen Elizabeth's era, the Royal Navy has not improved much, and many wooden sailing ships have rotted in the sea.

After decades, the British navy tried to rise again, and Portsmouth gathered the fleet built by Charles I at a cost of 80 pounds.

More than 20 ships used for combat, not only the ten warships used to assist the Fourth Fleet, but also more than a dozen other sailing warships used to protect the British mainland gathered here.Many small boats transport supplies and people between the larger ships and the shore.Coupled with the small boats coming and going, the number of ships in Portsmouth Harbor is even more numerous, and it seems to have restored the style of fighting with the Spanish Armada in the past.

More than a dozen ships of the Fourth Fleet also anchored at the port here, and joined the British Royal Navy to form a mighty fleet.

"Our Royal Navy has rarely organized fleets for expeditions since we reached an armistice treaty with the Spaniards and French. I don't know if our naval soldiers can still bear the word royal." Sir Pennington said in the port The final preparations before the expedition, said to Earl Stratford, who is the King's Overseer.

"That's why His Majesty the King spent a lot of money this time to send nearly half of the warships of the Royal Fleet to participate in the conflict between the Chinese and the Barbary pirates, in order to exercise the will and combat skills of the Royal Navy soldiers. After so many years, even the pirates bullied us In the coastal area, if we win this battle, the Barbary pirates will definitely be extremely afraid of us and dare not enter our territorial waters." Earl Stratford said.

"In this way, we have offended the watchdog of the Ottoman Empire, the Barbary pirates. In the future, the relationship with the Ottoman Empire will be bad, and it may affect the trade between the Levant Company and the Ottoman Empire..." Pennington Sir said.

"The watchdog of the Barbary pirates is not so loyal to the Ottoman Empire, and they are beyond their reach. They will not give up trade just because their watchdog is kicked." The Earl of Stratford wore aristocratic Clothing, wearing a black bowler hat, and a saber and a short musket at the waist.

"If you really judge like you, our Royal Navy can safely attack with all its strength." Sir Pennington said.

While some generals and nobles of the Royal Navy were talking, a young noble arrived with a group of German mercenaries.In exile in Britain, he asked Charles I to join the expedition.

"His Royal Highness Prince Rupert!"

Although he was young, nobles such as Sir Pennington and the Earl of Stratford all respected him, and it seemed that he had a high status.

"I will board the ship with everyone from Bohemia and fight with you," said the young prince.

"His Royal Highness, didn't you always like to command cavalry? Why did you go out with our navy?" Many nobles were deeply surprised that the young prince suddenly claimed to participate in the Mediterranean expedition.

"I have asked His Majesty the King for instructions, and he has allowed me to join the expeditionary force. I will fight like a brave knight on the sea and fight pirates! I want to see the combat skills of the orientals in order to recover The Palatinate of our family," said the young Prince Rupert.

Sir Pennington, the Earl of Stratford and other nobles who were in charge of coordinating the expedition looked at each other. The expedition seemed to be a little noisy, and even people from the German region were alarmed.

While the Royal Navy is making final material preparations, the Fourth Fleet is also making final checks.

The ironclad General Fubo is impeccable in terms of firepower and defense in this era. The more troublesome thing is that the steamship needs a lot of coal.Fortunately, Britain is currently the country with the largest coal production in Europe. Many nobles have coal mines, which can supply enough coal for ironclad ships to sail.They are also more than happy to ship the coal over, as far as they are concerned, they don't have to pay customs duties to sell the coal directly to the ironclads.

"When the Admiral Fubo was sailing on the sea, some parts of the hull were slightly damaged, but the problem is not serious. In the future, we will find a way to produce parts for ironclad ships in the iron foundry in the city of London, otherwise once we If the steam boiler, propeller and other important parts of the ship are seriously damaged, it will be difficult to return to the mainland.” The maintenance workers who came with the ship conducted a detailed inspection of the ironclad ship before the Fubo General sailed for the first time, and reported to the captain Zheng Zhibao .

"Manufacturing these parts depends on you boatmen, and you have to pay Western companies separately. There is only one ironclad ship, and the maintenance cost is too high." Zheng Zhibao sighed.

Although the ironclad ship has given the Minister of the Navy a lot of face, it is quite expensive to support an ironclad ship.

The steam engines and boilers used in ships are all tailor-made, and many parts are also specially matched for this ironclad ship. When there is only one ironclad ship, the equivalent of the machine that produces the corresponding parts can only serve such a ship. It may not be possible to start work a few times, so it is difficult to make up for the cost of the machine.

In addition, a large amount of coal is needed when sailing, and a coal ship must be carried to replenish at any time during the expedition.Coal also needs money, and running a steam ironclad ship is burning money.

"Are the other warships ready for the expedition?" Sun Xu asked the captain of each warship at the port with the logistics officer.

"Our General Fubo's hull, supplies, and sailors are all fine, and we can set off at any time!"

"All 441 crew members and sailors of the battleship Soochow are all ready for the expedition!"

"The battleship Wei Guo is in good condition. One of the artillery pieces was blown up during the last training, but even if one of the artillery pieces is missing, it will not affect our Shuhan battleship."

Each captain reports the situation of the ships under his jurisdiction to the fleet commander Sun Xu.

The main force of the Fourth Fleet this time is the ironclad ship General Fubo, sailing battleship Shuhan, Wei Guo, and Soochow. They will serve as the most powerful bargaining chips to deter Barbary pirates.

(End of this chapter)