Chapter 1023 The Russian Navy docked
"In that case, let's first provide the South German Kingdom with two thousand rifles and bullets. This is enough for them to sweep across the entire Komadougou Yobe River Basin!" Ste said.
So far, the Kingdom of South Germany has formed a force of 5,000 people, which is relatively easy for a country with a population of one million.
It is precisely with this army that is very weak in East Africa that the Kingdom of South Germany has basically formed a huge advantage over the surrounding indigenous forces. After all, the Kingdom of South Germany is located in Libya to the north and Sudan in Egypt to the east. The core of the Kingdom of South Germany is Libya. The territory is largely separated by the Sahara Desert.
Even if Egypt seems much more powerful than the Kingdom of South Germany, it is impossible to launch an attack on the Kingdom of South Germany across the Sahara Desert, not to mention that the Kingdom of South Germany has the giant East Africa behind it.
In other words, except for East Africa in the south, the South German Kingdom is either desert or some extremely backward nomadic people in other directions. The west is special, with British and German colonies, but it is still bordered by indigenous forces.
……
October 4, 1904.
Luanda.
Due to the continuous victories of Japanese military power in the Far East, Russia, which extremely despised Japan before the war, developed a tendency to over exaggerate Japan's strength.
And the Pacific Second Fleet, which was reorganized from the Baltic Fleet and had been prepared since the beginning of the year, finally arrived in East Africa.
Under the escort of East African warships, the Russian Navy warships sailed into the port of Luanda in East Africa in an orderly manner, enjoying a rare rest.
“God, we finally arrived in Luanda! The idiots in the government don’t know what they think. They should negotiate with the East African government to set the port of call to Cabinda, so that we can suffer less. "Russian general Kurovsky complained.
“When I saw Cabinda, I even thought we had arrived at our destination, and I was so happy in vain. But fortunately, Luanda looked as prosperous as Cabinda, and we could finally have a good time. Take some rest ”
Kurovs. It's not that he is dissatisfied with the environment in Luanda, or that Luanda is worse than Cabinda, but because if he waits to land in Cabinda early, for the Russian navy who have already suffered at sea, even a few days in advance For a few hours, the soul can also get greater comfort.
For the Russian sailors, these days' trip was simply a disaster. In addition to being more comfortable in German waters, the following journey caused indelible damage to everyone's mind or body.
Starting from crossing the English Channel, basically many countries, including France, most countries or colonial ports refused entry to Russian warships.
Furthermore, British warships monitored the Russian Navy for a long time and watched the Russian Navy arrive in the waters near Morocco.
In addition, British warships often provoked the Russian army. Under this influence, the psychological destruction of the Russian navy was even worse.
Midway, due to the joint pressure of the Japanese government and the British government, most of the colonies were not open to the Russian navy. This situation continued until the German colony of Cameroon, but the conditions in the Cameroon colony were too poor and they were unable to do anything for them. The Russian Navy provides excellent services.
Therefore, the Russian Navy carries a large amount of coal to ensure that long-distance voyages will not be replenished due to exhaustion of fuel. Although the East African government and Russia have reached an agreement to replenish it at East African ports, the Russian government is also worried that the East African government will change its mind temporarily. So it is necessary to bring enough fuel.
In fact, without the help of William II, there would not even be a fleet willing to help Russia transport coal. Behind the Russian navy were German coal ships, but even with William II's intercession, these German shipping The company only promised to escort them to the Strait of Malacca because they were also worried that Japan would not uphold martial ethics and attack the Russian navy in advance. If it were not for the pressure from William II, these German shipping company ships might not even want to go to the Indian Ocean.
In fact, the Russian navy is divided into two routes, one part takes the Mediterranean route, and the other part chooses the west coast of Africa. Finally, it converges in Mombasa, then heads to the Strait of Malacca, and rests for the last time in Pontianak Port. After that, it will directly reach the East Asian waters.
Kurovsky's fleet is on the west coast of Africa. Compared with the second fleet that is still being monitored by the British in the Mediterranean, the Russian army that chose the west coast route is undoubtedly much luckier.
The Mediterranean must always be wary of the Japanese Navy and the British Navy, while the west coast of Africa, starting from the Cameroon section, does not have to worry about being plotted, not to mention that after arriving at the Port of Luanda, the Russian Navy has been fully rested and supplied with supplies.
Many Russian sailors disembarked in Luanda. After transporting supplies, the commander specially gave the exhausted sailors a half-day holiday, and the officers of the fleet also began to look for places to spend money.
Kurovsky and several colleagues came to a relatively luxurious state-owned hotel in Luanda. Compared with the lower-level sailors with lower income levels, there is no doubt that Russian officers like Kurovsky have the spending power It is relatively high.
Russian sailors can only go to some cheap taverns that specialize in serving sailors, and the Kurovskys naturally spend their time in hotels with elegant environments and excellent services.
Stuffing steak imported from Argentina into your mouth, while drinking high-end red wine made in East Africa, amidst the sound of elegant music.
Kurovsky said: "This is the life that people should enjoy. I feel like my whole body is growing hairy on the sea. If it had come a little later, we might just be able to eat inferior food like ordinary soldiers. It’s brown bread.”
Ankarev said: “There is no way, it is basically difficult to obtain supplies on the sea, all supplies are required. Calculate carefully, if we don't reach an agreement with the East African government, I'm afraid we will still suffer for the next two to three thousand miles of sailing."
"If there is no East Africa, we can only choose the French overseas territory of Madagascar as our destination. Yes, but I believe the conditions in Madagascar may not be as good as those we passed through in West Africa. "
Kurovsky: "Yes, the conditions of those ports are so poor. Compared with the East African coast, they are like two worlds. I would like to know why, in the same Africa. The gap is so huge that the colonies of other countries on the West African coast are simply undeveloped and wild lands, while Cabinda and Luanda on the East African coast It’s probably not that bad in Europe.”
Ankarev: “Who knows! Maybe it’s the difference in race? Anyway, I have hardly seen black people in Luanda. This is East and West Africa. Perhaps the most fundamental difference between those colonies is that the black people’s level of civilization is too low, and it is difficult to be civilized even if they come into contact with the civilized world.”
Kurovsky said: "It's possible! The closer you get to East Africa along the way, the more prosperous it becomes. Although it is not up to the level of the coastal areas of Western Europe, it is definitely better than many areas in Russia. The advantages of East Africans are too great. They Facing the ocean, this is what we in Russia dream of, and the colonies in West Africa are simply a waste of this great resource.”
For the Russian Navy, East Africa is a very unfamiliar country, and in the past it could only be seen on the map. Only by truly coming into contact with this place, especially in the strong contrast with backward areas like West Africa, can the Russian navy understand how unique this country is in East Africa.
In fact, this feeling becomes more profound from the moment we enter the South Atlantic. Not only are there more towns, farmland, and plantations near the East African coastline, but the infrastructure conditions are also better. Not only are the cities large, but the buildings are also obvious. Compared with other regions, rural areas have better water conservancy facilities and more livestock than West Africa.
In particular, the facilities at the ports of Cabinda and Luanda are obviously more modern, with more large-scale equipment, and there are obviously many more ships in the ports than in West Africa. This is a reflection of the prosperity of trade. Many ships fly the East African flag. , and rare fishing boats, which can be reflected intuitively.
(End of this chapter)