I

   Chapter 706 703 [mafang]

  More than a hundred years ago, when the Portuguese designed the fort, they planned to build the Malacca Fort into an irregular pentagonal bastion group.

  However, the manpower and material resources here are limited, especially the stone materials are very difficult to obtain. The Portuguese finally only completed the central castle as planned. As for the other areas, the outer city walls are only being built continuously, and the outer city walls have not yet completely enclosed this place.

  The Dutch occupied Malacca for nine years, continued the Portuguese fortification work, and finally repaired the outer city wall to the **** of Mount St. Paul.

  At the same time, a bastion-like building (not very formal) was built on the east and west sides of the outer castle. For the rest of the outer city walls, there are only enemy towers with crossfire at the five corners.

  If you want to complete the original design drawings of the Portuguese and build a perfect irregular pentagonal bastion here, it may take a hundred years according to the construction speed of the Malacca colonists...

  At this very moment, the Eight-Nation Allied Forces on the attacking side were met with crossfire from two enemy platforms.

   But to be honest, the crossfire of only 30 people still uses old-fashioned matchlock guns.

   This kind of arquebus, which can fire two rounds a minute, belongs to the top elite infantry. As for the Dutch army, except for the slightly decent Batavia garrison, the other colonies are all rubbish. They were former adventurers, hooligans, and even tramps. With a meager salary, no training all day, and occasionally going to the city to work to earn extra money, being able to fire a bullet in two minutes is considered qualified.

   On average, a bullet is fired every 1.5 minutes. If these 30 people are all regarded as sharpshooters, and the firing rate of the arquebus is 100%, it can kill 120 siege soldiers in six minutes.

  In an attack of thousands of people, what is 120 dead?

  The actual situation is that when the soldiers of the Datong Navy began to climb the city wall, the casualties of the siege party were less than 50, including those who fell down the hillside and were injured.

  Unfortunately, all 3,000 soldiers of Johor, which sent the most troops, collapsed.

  The soldiers of Sumatra were affected by the soldiers of Johor, and more than half of them fled inexplicably. Then it became a chain reaction, and soldiers from Da Ni, Ding Jialu and other countries followed suit.

  Because the hillside on the north side of the city wall was covered with bushes, the Dutch didn't bother to clean it up. It is difficult to see each other's actual situation clearly among the various units of the coalition army, and it is also difficult to know the strength of the defending side's firepower during the battle. Anyway, I heard crackling gunshots, and then saw the largest number of Johor soldiers collapsed. I subconsciously thought that my side was defeated, so I bluffed and followed the crowd and fled.

   "Bang bang bang!"

  The cross vigor of the Dutch defenders continues, but is noticeably sparse and unkempt.

  The outer city wall is very low, and with the help of pillars, it is easy to climb up. Seeing that the siege party was about to ascend the city, the 30 Dutch soldiers guarding the enemy's platform became more and more flustered, and they couldn't even fill the ammunition normally.

   "Reinforcements, quickly request reinforcements!"

   "Come on, come on, hold on for a few more minutes!"

  Dutch defenders on the east and west sides, nearly a hundred people are running towards this side. But Kuang Hong's attack was too sudden, and the Dutch commander needed time to react, and it was probably too late at this time.

   But still came, the first batch of more than 20 Dutch soldiers rushed to the enemy station in the north for reinforcements, and fired at the siege soldiers in a panic.

   "Old grandson!"

  The first Datong army to climb first was Sun Junsheng from the Shanghai Fleet. He was shot and fell to the ground before he could gain a foothold.

  Lao Sanjin was climbing the ladder, watching Sun Junsheng's body, falling down while wiping his left arm. Under his hissing and roaring, his eyes were red, and he climbed up at a faster speed.

   Both of them were from the Yangtze River Navy. Before that, half of the Navy was abolished, some were converted to post office officials, and some were converted to naval soldiers. They have been comrades in arms for many years, and they didn't get hurt when they killed the tartar, but they didn't expect Sun Jun to die overseas.

   Two more soldiers climbing the city fell, and Lao Sanjin finally climbed up the city wall.

  He carried a flintlock gun on his back, a bayonet and ammunition pouch on his waist, and a relatively thin waist knife.

  At this moment, Lao Sanjin pulled out his waist knife and charged towards the Dutch defenders on the enemy platform. There are more than a dozen Dutch soldiers here, all the bullets have been fired, and they are all reloading in a panic.

   "Quick retreat!"

  Finally, a low-level Dutch officer yelled to run away.

  The outer city wall is too long, and it is simply not something the 180 defenders can take care of. Distributed to each enemy tower and bastion, there are only a dozen people in one place on average, how can it stop thousands of enemies from attacking the city?

   Lao Sanjin hurried to catch up, and chopped down one of them with one blow. This is an unlucky guy who didn't retreat in time.

  On the other side of the enemy platform, soldiers from the Datong Navy also climbed up, just in time to block the retreat of the dozen or so Dutch defenders. After some fighting, only three Dutch soldiers managed to escape, and fled directly into the bastion further away.

  Lao Sanjin led his men to chase after him, but he encountered a burst of bullets head-on, and four Datong soldiers fell instantly.

   "Withdraw the enemy station just now!"

   Lao Sanjin yelled and led the people to retreat in a hurry. The bastion in front of him is really difficult to break through, and a forcible attack is purely fatal.

   Another enemy station, Prince Narai of Siam, has also ascended the city. Behind him were Yang Dongkui and Hua Erkang, two adventurers and rangers, one in the middle and one in the west. The three of them formed arrows and rushed out, hacked down several people one after another, and finally occupied this place.

  Narai looked back at this time, except for the Siamese army, the troops of other countries that cooperated with the troops had already collapsed by 70% to 80%.

  Narai sneered disdainfully: "Coward!"

   Sea.

   At the moment when the siege battle started, Hong Xu put down the binoculars: "Fire the cannon, the whole army will attack, and the sailors will also take up weapons to attack the city!"

  There is still a difference between sailors and sailors. Sailors generally do not participate in battles.

  But most of the sailors were sent to the north to attack the city, and the sailors had to go on top at this time.

  Dozens of coalition warships, from the east, west and south, headed towards the outer wall of the castle together, firing shells as they advanced. The Malay natives in the sea were also rowing small wooden boats, rushing forward with great excitement, because as long as they climbed the city, they would be rewarded with food.

  There are too many ships attacking the city at sea, and the Dutch artillery can't take care of it at all, not to mention that the northern city wall has been captured, and I feel panicked at this moment. If it weren't for the fact that there was a bastion on the north and south sides of the outer city wall, the Datong army that killed the city wall would have rushed to seize the fort.

  In some places, the big ships will run aground, and the warships will put down the small boats one after another, and the sailors and sailors will row the small boats and rush towards the city wall.

  In order to form crossfire, the outer city wall is also built in a pentagonal shape, and there are land gaps in many places. Under normal circumstances, if you want to attack the city from these gaps, you will be tilted by crossfire, which belongs to the **** zone of the attacking side.

  However, the number of Dutch defenders is too small!

  The Datong Navy, as well as the sailors and sailors of the fleets of various countries, and the natives who fought for food, after suffering more than 200 casualties, the Dutch obviously couldn't bear it.

   "Withdraw! All withdraw into the bastion!"

  Commander Hendrick hastily ordered.

  The Dutch defenders retreated in a hurry, and before the artillery could destroy the cannons, they abandoned the city walls and ran away collectively.

  Member Sanders has returned to the central castle at this moment. He saw that the Datong army ascending the city from the north, unable to capture the bastions on both sides, was entering the city along the ladder, and wanted to go directly around the bastions to attack the central castle, so he was so frightened that he immediately ordered: "Tell Hendrick to let him give up!" Outer bastion, block the passages, all retreat here!"

   In this regard, the outer defense system of Malacca Castle was completely captured by the coalition forces, and the Dutch could only defend the central castle.

   "Well played, well played!"

   Kuang Hong stood on the top of the mountain, observing the battle situation with binoculars, and at this moment he was so happy that he praised again and again.

  The local Chinese leader Chen Erxun said: "My lord, the Dutch attacked here ten years ago, and they quickly occupied the outer city wall. But the Portuguese withdrew to the central castle, and the Dutch couldn't get in."

  Kuang Hong asked: "How did the Netherlands capture this city?"

  Chen Erxun said: "After more than half a year of siege, the Portuguese were so hungry that they left the city and surrendered."

   Besieged the city for half a year?

  Kuang Hong felt a little uneasy. He was a diplomatic agent and had no right to siege the city for more than half a year.

  Kuang Hong is worried, and so is Sanders.

   "How many casualties did our troops have?" Sanders asked.

   Hendrick said: "Thirty-one people lost."

   Sanderston frowned. There are only 180 defenders here, and a loss of 31 is one-sixth.

   "Let civilians and families take up arms," ​​Sanders said.

  There are some non-military buildings between the central castle and the outer city walls. It was the office of the Dutch East India Company and the residence of the company's staff and their families. As for the Dutch settlements in the urban area of ​​Malacca, they are all inhabited by Dutch businessmen and immigrants.

  By the way, Dutch Army soldiers are basically single, and they are unable to have a family here.

   In other words, the rule of the Netherlands in Malacca has not yet reached the level of assigning women to the army.

  Like Taiwan, after the Dutch colonists gained a firm foothold, they directly killed all the men on Xiaoliuqiu Island, and grabbed the women and assigned them to the soldiers to solve their physiological problems. The remaining women and children were divided and either kept as slaves or sold as slaves.

  The Dutch ruled Malacca not long ago. Under normal circumstances, it is estimated that they will do so in a few years, and they have to find an indigenous tribe that is easier to attack.

   Travel writer and painter Johann Neuhoff received an arquebus at this time.

   "Sir, can you shoot?" the officer asked.

  Neuhof looked at the musket in his hand, and said very depressed: "I do know how to use an arquebus, but what you gave me is a fire stick!"

  The officer explained embarrassingly: "It was left by the dead Nordic mercenaries ten years ago, and it has been thrown in the warehouse without maintenance."

  Ten years ago, when the Netherlands attacked Malacca, they sent only a few hundred troops. The real main force was more than a thousand mercenaries.

  Those mercenaries fought for money, so how could they be willing to sacrifice their lives in siege battles?

   Therefore, after taking down the outer city walls with the help of native soldiers and Han Chinese, the European mercenaries began to paddle in various ways, unwilling to attack the central castle. In the end, more than half of the mercenaries suffered casualties, because many of these guys came from northern Europe and could not withstand the tropical climate of Malacca. The main casualties were all from tropical diseases.

  The number of mercenaries who died because of combat was actually only in the single digits... They all won by besieging the city and running out of food.

   At this moment, the matchlock gun in Neuhoff's hand is a relic of a mercenary. The barrel of the gun is already stained with rust, and the wooden **** is moldy. This thing is used for defending the city, and can only be used as a stick to fight the enemy in close combat.

  The arsenal of the central castle, powder kegs were moved out one by one.

   The moment he pried open the powder keg, Neuhoff couldn't help but touch his forehead. The gunpowder inside is not just as simple as being damp, it has all been hardened together.

  After the Dutch captured this place, the defenders have not fought for almost ten years. Who is interested in maintaining the inventory in the warehouse?

  (end of this chapter)