The Soul of the Han Dynasty in the Late Ming Dynasty

Chapter 781 Messed Up Daming

Because the Englishmen on the voyage captured three Galen ships, two whaling ships, and six Japanese Zhuyin ships and Daming Junk ships.

It is clear that the English travel to the East would pay off, as has historically been the case.

Loot-loving, they tasted the sweetness of the Eastern trade and sent more warships and armed merchant ships to vigorously develop it, and finally even crushed and embezzled the Dutch East India Company.

More than a hundred years later, the English managed India as the brightest jewel in the crown of the Queen of England.

Now that history has changed, the British would not have imagined that their first trip to the Far East would turn into a bloodbath.

Wedell came to the Far East as if he was invincible, and his heart was full of pride.

Under the artillery fire of the first-class warships of the British Empire, all the warships and armed merchant ships in the field of vision could only tremble. Basically, facing a few rounds of shelling, the opponent raised the white flag and surrendered.

They finally entered the Daming sea and came to the coast of Guangdong to find the place called Macau rented by the Portuguese.

The Portuguese didn't like the English, and of course it was impossible to share their colonies with them, and they didn't remind the leader of the team, Wilson, not to mess with the huge and ancient Ming Empire.

This is also because Wilson, who was going smoothly along the way, was domineering, which caused the old colonial Portuguese to look angry.

The governor of Macau, Domino, hated the arrogant English and deliberately tripped them up.

In fact, Portugal was no longer an independent kingdom at this time. It was ruled by Spain for more than [-] years. However, Macau has never surrendered to Spain and still hangs the Portuguese flag.

The Portuguese have been working hard to restore their country. Spain, the world's first empire on which the sun never sets, has begun to decline since their Armada was defeated by the British many times. The spring of the Portuguese seems not far away.

The reason why the Portuguese Governor of Goa agreed to share the Far East trade with the British was of course to use the power of the British to fight against Spain, but Macau obviously didn't buy it at all.

This is of course the interest relationship at work.

At this time, the trade routes between Macao, Goa and Lisbon had been blocked by the Dutch fleet, and navigation was very difficult, often facing heavy losses of ships and cargo.

The Governor of Macau could only maintain the trade route between Nagasaki and Manila. Unfortunately, the trade with Nagasaki was also expelled by the Wa country because of the expulsion of Catholics, except for Ming Dynasty, other foreigners who came to trade were expelled. Therefore, the business of the Portuguese was also difficult.

It is also because armed merchant ships traveling to the Japanese country were often robbed, the Portuguese had to give up the Japanese trade, and now there is only one place in Manila that still maintains a close trade relationship, and the trade volume still reaches millions of taels of silver every year.

If the British were allowed to open up the Ming market and take a share of it, the Portuguese's remaining trade interests would also be lost.

Without the huge profits of maritime trade, how can there be money and food to support the armament of Macau?How can it be possible to feed thousands of people?
Of course, the Portuguese did not farm in Daming. They had to purchase the food, vegetables, meat, and poultry eggs they needed, and they needed a lot of silver every year.

The reason why Macau is so amazing that other Portuguese colonies fly the Spanish flag is that they still fly the Portuguese flag and refuse to surrender to Spain.

It is because of the huge profits made by comprador Daming goods, which propped up the armed forces.

Macau was even able to manufacture high-quality Hongyi cannons and matchlock guns and sell them to Ming Dynasty, and sent mercenaries to fight for Ming Dynasty with money. This shows that the armed forces of the Portuguese in Macau should not be underestimated.

The British would certainly not be able to attack Macau with six warships. The St. Paul’s Fort built by the Portuguese on a small hill in Macau had as many as 32 heavy guns.

What's more, the Portuguese not only built this fort, but also several relatively smaller ones, which can completely form a firepower network.

The British had traveled far and wide to the East, but the Portuguese in Macau refused to follow the instructions of the Governor of Goa and did not allow the British to share Macau's trade privileges.

Seeing that the Portuguese were so uncooperative, Wedel, who didn't know where to go, simply tore his face, and decided to bypass Macau to open up a business route by himself.

The dizzy British ignored the sovereignty of other countries and chose to openly provoke Ming Dynasty.

They actually planned to forcefully enter the Pearl River Estuary. After the Ming army stationed at the Humen Fort and fired a warning, Wedel found that the Ming army's artillery had a short range and low power and decided to seize the Humen Fort to knock the mountain and shake the tiger.

The Ming army at the Humen Fort really insulted the nation. After being bombarded by six British warships, they became a mess. When they found hundreds of strangely dressed British soldiers attacking the fort with matchlock guns, they rushed away. scattered.

In the first battle with the Ming Dynasty, the British army killed more than a hundred Ming troops with negligible casualties, captured the Humen Fort, seized 35 artillery pieces, and transported them to their warships.

The English were invincible after winning the first battle, and Wedell was full of spirits. It turns out that this great country is so weak!Full of confidence, he looked down on the Ming army from the bottom of his heart, thinking about choosing a piece of land to establish a colony.

In order to show off, Wedel also sent an invitation to invite the Portuguese in Macau to see how the British Empire easily defeated this eastern power and seized dozens of artillery pieces.

Domingo, the Portuguese governor of Macau, saw Wedel’s letter and learned that the British had killed hundreds of Ming soldiers and seized 35 cannons. He immediately realized that the arrogant English had a big problem.

The English didn't know that this move awakened a sleeping lion, and they were still showing off in front of the Portuguese. Dominique laughed so hard.

In the 36th year of Jiajing, the Portuguese obtained the right of residence in Macau from Daming, and it has been nearly 100 years.

They never doubted that they could capture one or several castles of Ming Dynasty by force, but this huge country has tens of thousands of castles, which is simply not something that any European country can conquer.

The English are too arrogant, and this time they must be taught a lesson. The Governor of Portugal, Macau, sent his adjutant Noretti to bring a few people to the Pearl River Estuary to mediate, and exhorted:
"Mr. Noretti, when you go to the British this time, you must paralyze them. When you go to Guangzhou for mediation, you must show your friendship to Daming, and even condemn the British banditry."

Noretti has been in the East for a long time, but he didn't know that if he really angered Daming, no matter how many fortresses there are in Macau, they will be conquered.

The main reason is that the Portuguese have been conquered by the Spaniards, and the small place of Macau, which is isolated overseas, is doomed to receive no reinforcements. How can it compete with the Ming Dynasty, which has a population of hundreds of millions?
(End of this chapter)