Gou was a member of the imperial family in the late Ming Dynasty

Chapter 1070: Win the first city

As Hermann's order was issued, Fort Zeelandia and Fort Antonius prepared for war after a brief panic. The city gates were closed, all the people in the city were mobilized, and the army was on high alert, ready to fight against the Ming army with the help of the strong city and fortress.

In addition, the person sent to deliver the letter also left in time. As for whether he could reach Batavia, or how long it would take for reinforcements to arrive after Batavia learned the news, Hermann could not guarantee it.

But as a soldier, he had done everything he should have done, and he was not idle in the following period. Not only did he arrange his two most trusted officers, Captain Philip and Captain Bedel, in Fort Zeelandia and Fort Antony respectively to ensure the defense of the two cities, he also personally stayed in Fort Zeelandia, waiting for the subsequent battle to come.

Speed ​​is of the essence in war, and Shi Daxuan, the commander-in-chief of the Ming army, certainly understood this principle. However, at this point in the war, the previous surprise attack tactics were completely ineffective.

If the capture of Penghu and Taijiang was due to the Ming Dynasty catching the Dutch by surprise, then after the capture of Taijiang, there would be no such good thing again. The Dutch had already learned that the Ming Dynasty was attacking Xiaoliuqiu and landing, and they were well prepared. With the support of Fort Zeelandia and Fort Antony, the Dutch would never surrender easily.

Shi Daxuan was very clear about this, so he did not rush to launch an attack immediately after landing, after all, the army still needed to be repaired and prepared before the war. The next day, after completing the reorganization of the army, Shi Daxuan issued an order, asking Shi Lang to continue to lead the navy to control the port and garrison Penghu to prevent the Dutch reinforcements from coming from the sea, while Hong Xu and Gan Hui led a part of the army to attack Fort Zeelandia and Fort Anthony respectively, intending to destroy the two cities head-on and completely eliminate the Dutch military forces on the island.

Hong Xu was in charge of Fort Zeelandia, Gan Hui attacked Fort Antony, Shi Daxuan was in charge of the command, and the war finally broke out.

The first day of fighting was extremely fierce. Whether in Fort Zeelandia or Fort Antonius, the Dutch in both cities showed a strong will to stay. They took advantage of the city walls and fortifications and used their firearms to fight back and forth with the attacking Ming army.

Although the Ming army had an absolute advantage in numbers, the Dutch city was built very solidly, and the fortress structure of the city was unique, and the firearms were extremely advanced. It was not easy to take it down by normal siege means.

In the initial attack attempt, the Ming army suffered a little loss. Seeing that the situation was not right, the Ming army immediately adjusted its tactics, using the firearms they carried to fight the Dutch, and at the same time surrounding the two cities with their military advantage. On the one hand, they put pressure on the Dutch in the city, and on the other hand, they used this method to find the weak points in the opponent's defense, so as to break through the surface and attack into the city.

The battle lasted for several days, with casualties on both sides, but the Ming army still failed to capture the two cities. Seeing that the battle was not going well, Shi Daxuan considered and adjusted his tactics again, asking Hong Xu, who was attacking Fort Zeelandia, to temporarily suspend the attack and use several thousand troops to besiege it, while the rest of the troops were first transferred to Fort Anthony to concentrate on capturing Fort Anthony first.

Compared with Fort Zeelandia, Fort Anthony is closer to Taijiang Port and poses a greater threat to the Ming army. If Fort Anthony cannot be taken down first, once the Dutch reinforcements arrive after a long delay, the Ming army will be attacked from both sides, which is extremely disadvantageous to the Ming army.

Even though the Ming army had far more troops than the Dutch, the Dutch were no pushovers. Relying on the convenience of cities and firearms, they fought back and forth with the Ming army. The Dutch hid in the city, which had particularly strong defenses and no shortage of food and water. As long as they held on tightly, the longer the time, the more disadvantaged it would be for the Ming army.

In view of this actual situation, Shi Daxuan decided to launch a focused attack on Fort Anthony. He not only mobilized the main force to continue the siege of Fort Anthony, but also transferred 80% of the army's firearms to this side. As a result, the pressure on Fort Anthony suddenly increased several times. The original Dutch military force in Fort Anthony was difficult to support. If it were not for the commander Captain Bedell's proper response and leading his troops to fight to the death, Fort Anthony would have been lost long ago.

The fighting went on for another two days, and the Dutch army in Antony Fort suffered heavy casualties. Before the war, there were less than two thousand Dutch people in Antony Fort, but after the war, in order to ensure the defense of Fort Zeelandia, which had a small number of troops, Hermann adjusted the troops in the two places. Therefore, the number of troops in Antony Fort at this time was only about 1,300 people. In addition, there were ordinary Dutch people living in Antony Fort, local people who surrendered to the Dutch, and some Ming people who were coerced.

During the ten days of war, Fort Anthony had suffered more than 300 casualties under the attack of the Ming army. Although this number is not too large considering the total number of 1,300 people, it should be noted that in war, generally speaking, if the casualties reach 20%, the troops are in danger of losing their combat effectiveness, and if it reaches 30%, the basic troops are facing collapse.

Fortunately, the Dutch were defending the city instead of fighting the Ming army in the field. They could still bear the casualties. But the problem was that the casualties were increasing every day. If they continued like this, the Dutch army in Fort Antony would inevitably collapse, and then Fort Antony would be completely undefendable. In addition, the situation in Fort Zeelandia was not good either. Although the Ming army was no longer attacking Fort Zeelandia as fiercely as before, the Dutch defenders in the city had a chance to breathe. But Hermann, who was stationed in Fort Zeelandia, was not stupid. He judged that the most likely change in the Ming army's tactics was to concentrate troops to attack Fort Antony.

Once the Ming army took Fort Antoni, it would be Fort Zeelandia's turn. By then, how could Fort Zeelandia, which was alone, withstand such a powerful attack? It would be inevitable that it would fall. In addition, there was no news of the reinforcements that Hermann had been expecting. According to the time calculation, the people he sent out to rescue might not have arrived in Batavia yet.

Even if he arrived in Batavia, according to his understanding of the senior leaders of the Batavia Parliament and the decision makers of the East India Company, even if they decided to reinforce him, it would at least take time for meetings and discussions, and then mobilize troops and warships. It would take at least a month and a half for the reinforcements to arrive.

Herman felt a chill in his heart when he thought of this. He felt that the possibility of holding out until reinforcements arrived was extremely small. Would the Ming army give him so much time in two months? And could Fort Anthony hold out for so long? Herman had no confidence at all.

But even so, as the highest military commander, Hermann could not show his worries, but had to show his firm belief in front of everyone. Especially the highest administrative chief, Caron, this useless noble had been scared by the war in the past few days, and even secretly asked him if the Ming army would guarantee not to kill him and let him leave safely if he surrendered.

If Caron lost all hope of resistance and even surrendered to save his life, then everything would be over. For the Netherlands, the East India Company, and his own dignity as a soldier, Hermann absolutely did not want this to happen.

Unfortunately, many things cannot be changed by personal will, and it is even more impossible to change because of one's own beliefs. After the Ming army intensified its attack on Fort Anthony, the situation in Fort Anthony became worse and worse. A few days later, Captain Bedell, the highest military commander of Fort Anthony, was accidentally hit by the artillery of the Ming army and died on the spot.

With the death of Captain Beder, the Dutch army, which had almost lost its fighting spirit, fell into chaos and had no intention of continuing to resist. At this time, Jacob, the chief executive of Fort Anthony, could not bear the pressure and took the initiative to raise the white flag to surrender. Fort Anthony was occupied by the Ming army and all the Dutch in the city surrendered.

After taking Fort Anthony, Shi Daxuan finally breathed a sigh of relief. When launching the attack on the two castles, Shi Daxuan's spirit was tense. After all, this attack on Xiaoliuqiu was not an ordinary war. This war was not only launched by Governor Hong Chengchou, but also concerned by the emperor.

Especially since Shi Daxuan was officially surrendering to the imperial court and no longer serving as a subordinate of Zheng Zhilong, this was his first war as the main commander. If the battle was fought well, it would be fine. But if the result was not satisfactory, he would have no way to explain to the imperial court. Not only would he no longer be valued by the imperial court in the future, but it would also affect the future of his two sons.

So for the sake of his son and himself, Shi Daxuan had to fight this battle beautifully. However, the Dutch on the island were no weaklings. They not only had sharp firearms and strong cities, but also had a strong will to fight. They had been attacking the two cities with ten times the number of troops for nearly half a month, but they still could not take the opponent. Shi Daxuan was extremely anxious.

When Fort Anthony finally raised the white flag and Jacob surrendered, Shi Daxuan's heart finally settled down and a long-lost smile appeared on his face.

As for the captured Dutch, Shi Daxuan kept his promise and properly settled them. He even sent doctors to treat the injured prisoners. After all, they were no longer pirates, but the navy of the Ming Dynasty, and Shi Daxuan was not a pirate leader, but a general of the Ming Dynasty.

Shi Daxuan would not kill prisoners, and Hong Chengchou had already explained to him before the war that the key to this war was to capture Xiaoliuqiu and expel the Dutch from the island. As long as this goal was achieved, there was no need to do other meaningless things. If the Dutch on the island were executed by drastic means, it would certainly be a relief, but the consequences of doing so would be extremely serious. Although the Ming Dynasty was not weak, and the navy and army left by Zheng Zhilong could also fight, the Netherlands was one of the powerful countries in Europe after all, and the Dutch had Batavia as their colonial headquarters in Asia, with many warships and troops. If the Dutch were completely angered for this reason, once the Dutch and the Ming Dynasty fought desperately, the war in the South China Sea would start again, and even if the Ming Dynasty won in the end, it would still suffer heavy losses.

Moreover, the Ming Dynasty was now developing towards an export-oriented economy, and the imperial court was planning to further promote foreign trade in various places. It was unwise to completely turn against the Dutch at this time. Under such circumstances, Shi Daxuan would naturally not start a massacre. Moreover, they had only captured Fort Anthony, and there was still Fort Zeelandia in the hands of the Dutch. Once the Dutch had no way out and refused to surrender, no one could guarantee how long the war would last.

(End of this chapter)