Lin Gao Qiming

Chapter 888 Taiwan Island

As for the refugees recruited from Zhejiang, the General Staff suggested setting up a transit point in Taiwan.Refugees first arrived in Taiwan, and after a period of "hoarding" in camps in Taiwan, they were transferred back to Lingao.Some people can stay in Taiwan directly, develop Taiwan's land, and form a second colony.

Of course, the situation in Taiwan is a bit more complicated. Many forces above, including the Dutch, Spaniards and Zheng Zhilong, all have their own territory: the Dutch control the officials, Zheng Zhilong occupies Beigang, and the Spaniards occupy the chicken coop (Keelung).Roughly from Taipei to Tainan, along the coastline towards the mainland.Taiwan's aborigines, Malay immigrants and Japanese also have a small influence in the local area.

However, the scale of these forces is very small, and the territory they occupy is not large.The Dutch, Spaniards, and Zheng Zhilong's influence is only based on one or two castle support points, occupying a small area around them.In addition to trade, it is to collect tribute from Fujian immigrants and indigenous people.The latter proportion is very small.Except for Zheng Zhilong who organized immigrants to engage in agricultural development in the local area, the main purpose of Europeans occupying these places was to serve as trading bases and collect local soil products-mainly Taiwan's buckskin.

In terms of the strength of the navy and army of the Chuanzhong, it is easy to eliminate these forces.According to historical data: the total Spanish garrison force in the chicken coop is no more than 90 Europeans, plus one or two hundred auxiliary troops recruited by the Philippines.The Dutch were still building the city of Zeelandia from 1631 to 1632, and all Europeans stationed no more than 400 troops.Its sphere of influence reached its limit 30 kilometers outside the castle. In 1630, he was almost forced to leave by Taiwan's indigenous Mujialiu society.It was not until 1635 that the East India Company increased its troops on a large scale before it began a large-scale crusade against the surrounding aboriginal villages and expanded its ruled area.

Therefore, the threats of these forces on land are very small, and it is not an exaggeration to say that they are vulnerable.Sending an infantry battalion to reinforce a small amount of artillery is enough to sweep the entire island.But the situation at sea is more complicated.The Netherlands is now a trading partner, and its maritime power in East Asia is limited, and it will not take hostile actions at the risk of angering the Senate. The Spaniards can only be regarded as "presence" in the waters near Taiwan.

The only obstacle is Zheng Zhilong.The coastal area of ​​Fujian is his main activity area. The navy's transport fleet passes through this area, and even lands on Taiwan Island to build a transit base. It is a big obstacle.

If it passes through the Taiwan Strait.In terms of the tonnage, armament and combat power of the escort warships of the Harmony Ship, unless Zheng Zhilong launched a large-scale naval battle, he could hardly pose any threat.In the navy's deduction on the map, those who played Zheng Zhilong's side were rarely able to capture the passage of the transport fleet in the Taiwan Strait.In other words, at the level of communication and navigation at that time, even if Zheng Zhilong wanted to fight, he might not be able to catch the fighter.

However, if he wants to berth on the main island of Taiwan, he must enter and leave the coastal harbors of Taiwan, and Zheng Zhilong will have many opportunities for combat.This is to be taken into consideration.

Everyone believes that it is necessary to set up a base in Taiwan - in terms of development value, Taiwan is higher than Hainan.But there are different opinions on where to choose as a transit base.There are many places to choose from, including Chicken Coop, Tainan, Hualien, Kaohsiung and so on.

The chicken cages and fresh water occupied by the Spaniards were the first to be rejected.Although there are rich mineral resources near Jilong, including the famous Keelung Coal Mine and Jinguashi Gold-Copper Mine, it is very difficult to develop and the geographical environment is extremely harsh.Need to invest a lot of manpower and material resources for rectification.

The records of people at that time did not praise this place: "Chicken coop (Ke lang) and Danshui (Tansoei) are not good anchorages, and the people nearby are vicious, so they cannot communicate with each other." Is water and soil evil? When people come, they will get sick, and they will die when they get sick. All slaves who heard about chicken coops and fresh water would lament and lament, as if they were in an extinct area. The sailors changed their garrison in Spring and Autumn, so they were lucky to survive. That Jianer It's true that you are a servant, and Jun Xi is worthy of this."

Chicken coops and fresh water are located in the northern part of Taiwan, which is the area with the richest precipitation in the whole island, with an annual precipitation of more than 3000 millimeters.In a typical year, it rains half the year in Taipei.Areas with too much rainfall are good for plants and microbes, but not for humans.Therefore, Fujianese in the Ming and Qing Dynasties called Taipei a land of miasma, and the death rate of immigrants there was very high.If the transit base is set here, the death rate can be imagined.

There was another major earthquake in northern Taiwan in 1694.The intensity is so great that a 30-square-kilometer Taipei Lake was directly shaken in the Taipei Basin.No matter from which point of view, the Taipei area is not a place that the time travelers should set foot in.

Hualien also has the support of many people.The advantage of Hualien is that it is extremely safe.It is located in the eastern part of Taiwan and is separated from the rest of Taiwan Island by mountains.The surrounding terrain is steep, and most areas are not suitable for ships to dock. Most of the coasts are very steep coastal terrain, and only the estuary has terrain for docking ships.As long as a base is established at the mouth of the river, it is impossible to land from other places.Historically, before the highway was opened to traffic in 1932, Hualien could only be connected with other parts of Taiwan by boat, and it was called Taiwan's "outlying islands on land".Throughout the 17th century, no one was interested in this place except that Spain went to Hualien to mine placer gold in 1622.

Hualien is relatively rich in mineral resources, among which there are three kinds that travelers can mine immediately: silicate serpentine asbestos, marble, and limestone.Hualien will be the most important cement producing area in Taiwan until the 21st century.High-grade cement can be made and supplied locally to develop Taiwan.There is still a small amount of iron ore in the local area, the reserves are not large, but it is easy to mine.In addition, many serpentine mines in Hualien are associated with chromite, magnetite and aluminum magnesium.At that time, Hualien's land surface should have more or less sporadic distribution except for coal mines, which was very suitable for a small-scale group like Lingao to develop mining.

In terms of fresh water resources, Hualien has three relatively large rivers, and there are quite a few alluvial plains that are not small in size. There is also a certain potential for farming and developing agriculture.

But in the end, too much rain in Hualien made this place lose the election.Too much rain made the local environment unsuitable for mass migration.During the Japanese occupation of Taiwan, it was planned to establish an agricultural settlement area for immigrants from Hualien, but it finally failed due to climate and disease.

The last ones to be considered are Pingtung and Kaohsiung.This place is on the Tainan Plain where Taiwan Island is relatively suitable for living and farming. There is a port in Kaohsiung. Although the port at that time was not renovated and could not berth large ships, it was still possible to berth sailing ships below [-] tons.

To the south of Pingtung and Kaohsiung are mountainous areas, and to the north is the influence of the Dutch.At present, the Dutch have a commercial agreement with the Senate, and the two parties maintain a "peaceful" commercial cooperation relationship.The Dutch have neither strength nor dare to take the risk of offending big suppliers to attack the transit bases in Pingtung and Kaohsiung.The Dutch can also play a role in isolating Zheng Zhilong.Besides, given Zheng Zhilong's current busy situation along the coast of Fujian, he might not be free to deal with the "Kun Thief".

"We transported immigrants from Zhejiang to Pingtung, Kaohsiung. Not only can there be a suitable place for quarantine and purification, but some people can also carry out agricultural development on the spot. The Chianan Plain is the best agricultural production area in Taiwan, regardless of sunshine, rain or land. They are all first-class. We can completely develop intensively in the form of large-scale farms, which is much better than the production environment in Hainan where the small-scale farming economy is dominant. It will be a leap forward for our agricultural production. Yes It will greatly improve the situation that we basically rely on imports for food." Luo Duo said at the end of his speech on the advantages of using Kaohsiung as a base.

"What should Zheng Zhilong do if he wants to harm us? His hometown is in Fujian." Someone raised an objection.Zheng Zhilong regards Fujian as his old nest, and he has an official status, so his power should not be underestimated.

"We don't need to be afraid of his sailing fleet. At the end of 1631, after our 854 modification and the first batch of 901 were completed, our fleet was like a god in the Taiwan Strait. Deploying the steam engine fleet forward to Kaohsiung will be of great help to those who pass through the Taiwan Strait. Our ships provide regional escort." Li Di, the Navy's staff officer, said, "Our navy has full command of the sea around Hainan Island and up to Hong Kong Island. The steam engine fleet stationed in Kaohsiung can deter all forces along the coast of Fujian and Zhejiang from acting rashly. Guarantee the safety of going north to Jeju Island and going south to Hong Kong Island.”

具体措施是组建两支分遣队。以854改和4艘901为核心的台湾分遣舰队驻泊在高雄，负责监视浙江、福建、广东沿海。重点是保证台湾海峡的“自由航行”。护送运输船队通过。以3艘901为核心的登莱分遣舰队驻泊在济州岛，随时对山东沿海和渤海湾地区执行干涉任务。

In addition to hybrid warships, the detachment also included several modified large-tonnage sailing warships.The warships of the two detachments are escorted by divisions. The transport fleet sails in groups during the voyage, and each transport ship is equipped with sufficient self-defense firepower.

These seven steam engine warships are expected to operate in this sea area until the beginning of 7.By this time, the second batch of 1633 warships built in Lingao can be put into active service, and the previous batch of warships can be replaced and returned to Lingao for maintenance.

The two squadrons will be based in Kaohsiung.The port facilities and stockpiles that provide logistical support for steam engine/sail hybrid warships are much more complicated than sail warships, so ships going north to pick up refugees will not have to worry about empty tonnage.In addition to the materials needed to transport refugees, the materials needed to open two sub-bases in Kaohsiung and Jeju Island are also enough to fill the cabin.

(End of this chapter)