Chapter 358 War Preparations
During the construction of Soga City, the Central Canal project was also in full swing. The Ndebele people were organized and divided into two groups to dig the canal. Coupled with the construction of the Lake Malawi Industrial Zone and the Northern Industrial Belt at the same time, the eastern part of the East African Kingdom is developing rapidly.
While these projects were being started, the army in Zimbabwe had already begun military training. The training was mainly focused on how to capture wandering Boers in the wild.
“Faced with the kingdom’s superior troops and powerful firepower, it is impossible for the Boers to confront us head-on. Then they will definitely be like cockroaches, crawling all over the dark corners, possibly anywhere, Suddenly attack you. At this time, your enemies are no longer the backward natives with spears, but the Boers who have certain military experience and also master thermal weapons. If we encounter Boers with this style of fighting, How should people respond? "
As the instructor asked, the soldiers below began to discuss. In fact, many people have seen guerrilla warfare, but it was done by indigenous people before, and the tactics were very effective. , but without advanced weapons it is basically equal to death. In the face of indigenous sneak attacks, East African soldiers can often deal with it calmly.
The indigenous people who can use guerrilla tactics are already relatively smart in the African region. More indigenous people are confused and defeated by East Africa, or they are simply unable to organize to fight against East Africa. The disparity in weapons was too great for ordinary natives to think of resisting.
“First of all, it is a strategy of division and encirclement, guerrilla warfare, guerrilla warfare, and guerrilla warfare. Therefore, the enemy must be restricted to a certain area so that they cannot guerrilla around.
Secondly, we must cut off Boer. The communication between people ensured that the Boer soldiers in the jurisdiction could not obtain any supplies from the Boer villages, and cut off their food and water supplies, so that they could not survive in the wild.
Finally, we must remember that we should not chase the enemy, do not be fooled by the Boers, and be careful of being ambushed. As long as we stick to the residential areas and conduct regular raids on the areas under our jurisdiction, the last living space of the Boer soldiers will also be "They will all disappear."
This is basically the battle plan in East Africa. Send troops quickly to seize Boer cities and villages, and then deal with counterattacks from those who slip through the trap.
The Transvaal Republic established by the Boers was quite special, so East Africa had to take over its national power in a very short period of time, which placed very high demands on the capabilities of the East African Kingdom's army.
First of all, there must be a detailed map to guide the army. For this, the East African Kingdom entered the Boer residence from the east by disguising itself as a German merchant or an expedition team, and conducted a detailed exploration of the Transvaal Republic. , supplementing the map every time you go.
These drawings were then transported back to the East African Kingdom by sea and compiled by the Hechingen Military Academy. The above information was summarized and unified into military maps, which included the Transvaal's terrain, rivers, forests, swamps, etc. Mark it out.
At the same time, feasible routes are drawn on the map for all cities, villages and towns in the Transvaal Republic. As long as the military governor of the East African Kingdom marches according to the instructions on the map, they can march in a very short time. Occupy the entire Transvaal Republic.
But the premise is that the Boers will not resist, which is obviously impossible. Even if the East African Kingdom takes a surprise, the depth of the Transvaal Republic is relatively large for the East African army. "When dealing with the Boers, we must also be careful of external countries, including the Orange Free State and the British Cape Colony, taking advantage of the situation. Our people must react quickly to capture the entire Transvaal Republic in more than a month. When the news gets back to Cape Town, the British have nothing to do with us. As for whether it is an effective occupation, it doesn't matter. We just need to let the British know that the East African Kingdom has annexed the Transvaal Republic. "
The operation against the Transvaal Republic had to be done with lightning speed, which put very high demands on the East African army. In order to improve the physical fitness of the soldiers, the army began to increase the food supply and increase the amount of training to ensure that the troops could march more than 40 kilometers every day.
The straight-line distance from the southernmost to the northernmost tip of the Transvaal Republic is about 500 kilometers. As long as the East African army can reach the usual amount of training, it can attack from the northern part of the Transvaal Republic to It can be done in the southern part of the Transvaal Republic.
As for the attitude of the Boers, the East African Kingdom's decision was to keep the good ones and discard the bad ones. There is also an Orange Free State to the south of the Transvaal Republic, which can be chosen by the Boers who are dissatisfied with East African rule.
In fact, today's Transvaal Republic itself is very poor. The climate of the Transvaal Republic is dry and hot, and the land is barren. The Boers can only make a living by running pastures. This is how the Boers have supported their families for generations. To make a living, it is inevitable to suffer from various shortcomings of a single economic structure and a weak economic foundation.
There is not a single modern industrial enterprise in this country, and not an inch of railroad has been built. In 1866, the Transvaal Republic's total annual fiscal revenue was only 66,000 pounds, and the Boers' treasury deposits were only nine shillings and twelve pence, less than one pound.
The reason why the Transvaal Republic can continue to exist as a country is to stick together. The government stipulates that any male citizen of the Transvaal who is over sixteen years old can apply to the state to allocate 2,400 hectares of land as a Return. These Boers need to pay grain and taxes to the country, and must serve as soldiers to fight for the country in wartime. Land means pasture, and conquering more land means more pasture, so the Boers continued to fight against black tribes inside and outside the country.
The biggest enemy of the Boers is the black Zulu Kingdom. The Zulu and Boers had a bloody feud at the Battle of Blood River. But the Zulu people are different from ordinary black indigenous tribes. The Zulu people are not only brave and capable warriors, but also surpass the primitive tribe in organizational structure. They have established their own kingdom and can fight in large groups.
The Ndebele regime that was wiped out before in East Africa was a branch of the Zulu people, and its capabilities were indeed remarkable among all the indigenous people encountered in East Africa. The most cunning thing about the Zulus is that they are good at using diplomacy to take advantage of the contradictions between the Boers and the British to sow discord. The same is true for the Ndebele people who can get support from the Boers.
However, the Transvaal Republic is now facing a disaster without realizing it. East Africa is not like the British. The British obtained colonies and are best at deceptive tactics (the Transvaal Republic joined the British in 1876 because it was deceived) ), and the East African Kingdom, like the Prussian barbarians, has always advocated force.
(End of this chapter)