Chapter 929 Uninvited Guest
In order to prevent the enemy from raiding Batavia from the sea again, Van Diemen prioritized coastal fortifications in the reconstruction project, even prioritizing the reconstruction of the Batavia city wall. Van Diemen's engineers planned four parallel sections of coastal fortifications in the Batavia harbor area, including coastal defense batteries and bunker fortifications for the assembly of musketeers. The military plans to deploy fifty to sixty artillery pieces on these four sections of fortifications to cover the main port areas and coastal waters with firepower as much as possible, striving to block the enemy at sea and not put the opponent ashore.
In last year's battle, the East India Company made a serious mistake, thinking that it could easily block the opponent's offensive with its fortified city. However, the Dutch were taught a lesson by the Dutch with their primitive weapons and offensive methods. , victory or defeat on the battlefield is not determined by weapons and fortifications, but by the people participating in the battle. Although the equipment of the Ma Da Blue Army was backward, and many soldiers had not even received systematic military training, their victory was due to their large number of troops and their refusal to retreat, and they forcibly broke through the fortifications and walls inside and outside Batavia. If the Dutch armed fleet hadn't rushed back at the last moment to seize the horses and beat the blue army, thousands of Dutch people in Batavia would have gone to see God.
Van Diemen knew that the East India Company's local garrison strength could not be rapidly improved, and the Malta Blues would not give up the idea of attacking Batavia. He wanted to effectively prevent the enemy's next offensive, and finally The best way is to keep them at sea. Once the opponent is released ashore, even if the city wall of Batavia can be restored to its original state, the Marta Blue Army can follow the same pattern and break through the city defense again.
However, the project of building coastal defense forts is indeed not small. Even with Haihan's engineering and construction capabilities, it took two years to complete the coastal defenses in Victory Port. The coastal defense works at the Port of Batavia have been implemented since Matalan withdrew from the army last year. Up to now, not even half of the progress has been completed, and the construction effect is far from meeting the military's requirements.
The stone materials required for the shore defenses need to be transported from the quarry about thirty kilometers south of Batavia City. This is a difficult task. For this reason, the East India Company requisitioned almost all the cattle and horses in Batavia and used them as animal power to transport stone. This measure inevitably caused complaints from the local people. The freight industry of the entire Batavia Port was greatly affected by this, and the port trade, which was originally in the post-war recovery period, was also indirectly slowed down by this move.
Despite this, Van Diemen was still dissatisfied with the construction status of the coastal fortifications. This kind of fort built with stones from a flat bottom was not strong. However, due to the requirements of the construction period, Van Diemen had no better solution. He learned from the slave trader Captain Phillip that the Haihan people had a building material called "cement" that could quickly bind sand and gravel together and was said to be resistant to water erosion. Later, Philip thought of many tricks and finally spent a high price to buy more than 2,000 kilograms of cement from Ambrosia Island through various twists and turns.
After trying it out, Van Diemen was really happy and worried. What he was happy about was that the effect of this thing was much better than the earthen plaster used before. It was perfect for building fort fortifications that required high strength. The worry is that the production method of this thing is in the hands of the Haihan people, and it cannot be bought with money. It seems unrealistic to use this thing to complete the Batavia Port project. The Haihan people's port terminals, fort fortifications, and even some civilian houses are said to have been built using this material. Although Van Diemen didn't want to admit it, he actually knew in his heart that the Haihan people's engineering and construction technology had far surpassed his own.
Earlier reports from Taiyuan Port stated that the construction speed of the new port opened by Haihan there was extremely fast. Van Diemen once thought that it was Chief Hans of Taiyuan who intended to complain, but if the Haihan people were using it during the construction of the port, With this new building material, it seems to make sense. The seafaring technology of the Haihan people is not inferior to that of the Dutch, and their infrastructure capabilities are still higher than that of the Netherlands. Judging from the situation in the past two or three years, the expansion speed of the Haihan people in the Far East has obviously far exceeded that of the East India Company. This is also the reason why Van Diemen A matter of deep concern.
Although the Haihan people retained the East India Company's colony in Taiyuan Port, they did not hesitate to clear out the Spanish base in Taipei at the beginning of the year, which already showed that the Haihan did not want to share the island of Taiwan with others. The reason why they haven't taken action against Da Yuan Port yet may just be that they haven't freed up their hands for the time being. Although the two sides also signed an armistice agreement, Van Diemen knew very well that the binding force of this paper agreement only stayed on paper. As long as the Haihan people felt that the time was ripe for action, they might tear up the agreement at any time.
But Van Diemen really never thought that the Haihan fleet would one day come to Batavia, so when he first heard about the incoming fleet, he did not believe that it was the Haihan fleet and asked his subordinates to Confirm the flag of the fleet again. However, Haihan is the only one using the red and blue flag in the entire Far East, and confirming it ten times will not change this fact.
"The Haihan people actually launched a sneak attack! These shameless guys!" Officer Spikes, who arrived after hearing the news, was also shocked by the news. After his defeat at the Battle of Ambona two years ago, he lost the opportunity to compete for the governorship, and now he could only serve as a sergeant under Van Diemen.
"Whether they are going to launch a war against us or not is not yet certain." Van Diemen still maintained a rare calmness and did not make impulsive judgments because of the sudden change in the situation.
"Mr. Governor, we can't put the Haihan people ashore. Their fighting power is much stronger than the Matalan people. Once they go ashore, they will be difficult to deal with!" Spikes did not think that the Haihan fleet appeared as an uninvited guest. He came out of Batavia Harbor with good intentions, and he still vividly remembers the loss he suffered on Ambrosia Island two years ago.
"Order the whole city to enter a state of combat readiness!" Although Van Diemen was not sure of the real intention of the Haihan fleet suddenly appearing outside the harbor, it was always right to sail carefully and prepare for the battle first: "You Go notify Van der Wegen and ask him to get the combat ships out of the harbor quickly!”
On weekdays, there are armed patrol boats of the East India Company operating in the offshore waters of Batavia Port. However, the sea conditions have been poor these past few days, and all patrol boats have returned to the port area for rest and maintenance. Unexpectedly, the timing of the combined fleet's arrival was just right, and it happened to hit the Dutch defense gap, making Van Diemen's command very passive. In this case, the only choice was to save the combat ships first. As for resisting the Haihan fleet's offensive at sea, Van Diemen did not intend to send his own manpower to train the Haihan fleet in vain. After all, the two sides have fought several times at sea in the past, and they both know who is strong and weak. If a fight breaks out at sea, the Dutch will only suffer. While Van Diemen was commanding the mobilization of troops, he was wondering why the Haihan fleet had arrived here without any warning before. Could it be that the Dutch stationed in the north on Tammelan Islands and Belitung Island had been uprooted by Haihan? Apart from? But he never imagined that the Haihan fleet did not choose the direct route from Ambuna Island to Batavia to go south. It did not pass through Tameran Islands and Belitung Island, but followed the coastline of Borneo. A big circle, and then all the way around from the east end of Java Island.
It has to be said that after Van Diemen took over the East India Company, he indeed paid much more attention to military affairs than the former Governor-General Cohen. After his order was issued, the whole city was quickly mobilized, and the docks and plantations outside the city were mobilized. The staff quickly returned to the city, and a force of 3,000 people, composed of Dutch, blacks, local indigenous people, and some immigrants, quickly assembled and headed to the port, deploying to several sections of shore defenses that had not yet been fully completed. Although these troops may not be able to stop the Haihan people who have strong ships and cannons, they can at least give the dignitaries in the city a little more sense of security.
Van Diemen did not rush out of the city to personally command the troops. He appointed Spikes to command the first line of defense in the port area, while he sat in the city. Van Diemen was not afraid of death, but he was worried that after he left the city, the bureaucrats in the company council would give random orders and cause chaos. If these guys hadn't been in the way when the Malayan Blue Army attacked last year, Batavia's defensive battle wouldn't have been so difficult. After Van Diemen took over the power, he decisively reduced the council's say in military affairs. The purpose is to prevent civilian businessmen from interfering with military command.
After completing the defensive deployment, the Haihan warships did not rush into the port. Only then did Van Diemen breathe a sigh of relief. Regardless of whether the Haihan people were preparing to attack Batavia, at least they had used all the means at their disposal. If this still fails to stop the Haihan people, then it is really God's arrangement.
After waiting and waiting for several hours, there was still no next move from the Haihan fleet. Just when Van Diemen was about to lose his patience, a message was finally sent from outside the city - the Haihan people hoped to fight with Bada. Via officials arranged a face-to-face meeting, preferably with Governor Van Diemen in person.
Since the Haihan people just want an interview, they probably won't prepare for war. Van Diemen finally relaxed a little after hearing the news, but new questions came one after another. Where should the meeting with the Haihan people be arranged? good?
If the meeting place is arranged in Batavia City, can the Haihan people boldly go ashore and enter the city? If it were arranged in another place controlled by Haihan, such as a Haihan warship, then Van Diemen would be somewhat worried about safety issues.
Fortunately, Haihan quickly came up with a compromise suggestion. Find an island outside Batavia Port, and the leaders of both sides can make an appointment to go to the island to attend. The specific location can be designated by the Dutch side. There are dozens of small islands in the offshore area northwest of Batavia Port. It is not difficult to find a suitable place to meet among them. Haihan's move seems to be quite sincere.
In addition, Haihan also made a request to the East India Company, that is, to send ships into the port to purchase various supplies. Van Diemen did not refuse this. Since the Haihan fleet was not here for war, everything could be discussed. There was nothing that could not be resolved through negotiation. If there was anything, it must be because it had not been discussed yet.
"Pass my order to ask Mr. Su Keyi to come immediately." After Fan Diemen responded to Haihan's request, he immediately sent someone to ask for Su Keyi, who had dealt with the Haihan people.
As the Chinese comprador representative in Batavia, Su Keyi won the trust of the East India Company's senior officials. His elder Su Minggang had a close personal relationship with former Governor Cohen, and this trust also extended to him. In the summer of 1631, after Mushabi defeated the Dutch fleet that tried to take back control of the local area by force, Sukeyi, as a representative of the East India Company, went to Sanya, HN, with Van Longen and Van der Wegen to negotiate with Haihan. . However, the results of that negotiation were not satisfactory. The Dutch delegation was even put under house arrest in disguise for a period of time. Both parties failed to sign a formal settlement agreement in the end.
However, it was only after Su Keyi and others went to Sanya to see Haihan's local development with their own eyes that the East India Company's executives truly realized the terrifying strength of Haihan's opponent. If before this, the Dutch thought that the defeat of Ambon Island was just caused by accidental factors such as bad luck or poor command of the officers, then what Su Keyi and others saw and heard back from Sanya had already confirmed that the Haihan people The actions and the overwhelming results they achieved were no coincidence. This group of people would be one of the most difficult competitors the Netherlands had ever encountered in the Far East.
Su Keyi quickly rushed to Van Diemen's study after receiving the notice. He is now more than just a steward in the East India Company. After returning from negotiations in Sanya two years ago, Governor Cohen established a Chinese Affairs Department in the East India Company and appointed Su Keyi as the head of this department. Its functions include In addition to managing local Chinese affairs in Batavia, collecting information about Haihan is also one of the main functions of this department. In other words, this department somewhat resembles an intelligence agency, but its professionalism is far less than that of a specialized agency like the Haihan Security Department.
Su Keyi's job is to identify valuable parts from various messages, and use these messages to analyze Haihan's strategies and movements in the Nanyang region. This department has been in operation for more than a year. If we want to talk about his understanding of Haihan, Su Keyi can basically be regarded as an expert within the East India Company. Therefore, after Van Diemen dealt with the matter of deploying defenses, the first thing he did was not discuss the next step with his colleagues in the council, but instead invite Su Keyi to come and listen to his opinions on the current situation.
(End of chapter)