Wind Rises in North America 1625

Chapter 92 Spanish Action

“Oh, the merciful God has not forsaken his people!”

On March 1628, 3, when Major Diego Ricardo, who had been trapped on the coast of San Diego for nearly two months, saw an armed sailing ship flying the Burgundy Cross flag of the Spanish royal family slowly approaching, he excitedly knelt on the beach, constantly making the sign of the cross on his chest with his hands, praising the Lord's mercy.

God have mercy on us. After being isolated from the civilized world for less than two months, everyone feels an inexplicable fear and loneliness, as if they were abandoned on this desolate land and would disappear silently from the world at any time.

Now, someone finally came to pick them up.

"What on earth is going on here?" Rear Admiral Juan Vicente Gomez of the Military Commission of the Viceroyalty of New Spain looked at Major Ricardo with a serious face and asked sternly.

"General, we encountered a group of pirates," Major Ricardo said with a bitter face. "They launched a shameful surprise attack on us when we were attacking the Indian camp. ... The 'Krell' and the 'Bishop Salti' were also unfortunately captured by them."

"Are those pirates in league with the Indians?" Major General Gomez frowned. "Are they English, Dutch, or French?"

"No!" Major Ricardo said with a troubled expression. "They must be the pirates who attacked the Banderas Valley (present-day Puerto Vallarta, Mexico) and the small town of Manta. Yes, I'm absolutely certain they arrived here in that strange-looking galleon the victims described, and then attacked the two transport ships we were on."

"After a hard fight, they captured our ship. They also tried to annihilate us, but our heroic resistance forced them to abandon their landing. However, we were trapped on land."

"As for the Indian tribes here, I'm also very sure that they are in collusion with the pirates. Not only did they obtain a large number of weapons from the pirates, but they also participated in the division of the spoils. We have seized many items that were looted in the town, and even several sacred objects from the church."

"Major Ricardo, didn't you capture a single prisoner in your battle with the pirates?" Major General Gomez looked at the disorganized troops behind him and the disheveled soldiers, and said dissatisfiedly, "We finally tracked down these pirates. Surely we can't get a clearer picture of their situation?"

"The attack on Banderas Valley over two years ago was a spur-of-the-moment attack. But the raid on Manta a year ago demonstrates the sheer audacity of these pirates, their complete disregard for the dignity and might of the Kingdom of Spain. Therefore, your unexpected encounter with them in San Diego Bay this time proves they may be planning another attack."

"So, we have to know information about them, such as where they are based, how many people there are, which country they are from, and who they are going to attack?"

"..." Major Ricardo's face froze, and he stammered, "General, these pirates possess... two large ships, with perhaps over... four hundred men. We were simply no match for them. Furthermore, they used their ship's cannons to bombard us fiercely. It was clear that we were extremely disadvantaged the entire time. Therefore... therefore, although we killed or wounded dozens of pirates, we were unable to capture any of them."

"Hiss..., two large ships, more than four hundred pirates..." Major General Gomez couldn't help but gasp.

The existence of such a large group of pirates undoubtedly poses a serious threat to the security of the Pacific coast of Spanish America.

In addition, these pirates appeared on the Pacific coast for three consecutive years, all during the winter northwest monsoon season, which shows that they are probably entrenched somewhere on the west coast of America and make a living by looting our Spanish coastal villages and towns.

"Perhaps, we should form a temporary fleet to conduct regular and irregular patrols along the Pacific coast to prevent these pirates from continuing to harass the territory of our Kingdom of Spain."

"Besides this, we may also need to establish military outposts on certain coasts as appropriate to provide early warning to the local colonial government and to assert the Kingdom's sovereignty."

"However, these matters require a huge amount of money, which is not a good idea for the Governor's Office, which is in extreme financial difficulty."

"Oh, these damn pirates!"
-
"What? The Manila colonial government is preparing to launch another large-scale attack on Formosa and plans to occupy the entire northern part of the island?"

A report from Manila was presented to the desk of Marquis Pedro de Rivera, the Governor-General of New Spain, which immediately aroused his anger and he threw the report to the ground.

The Manila authorities wanted to recruit 500 soldiers from Mexico. In addition to deploying some of the troops in the city of Salvador (now Keelung), which was built only two years ago, to deal with a possible attack by the Dutch East India Company, they also planned to march north to occupy the Huwei area (now Taipei) and bring northern Formosa under Spanish colonial rule.

Although the Viceroyalty of New Spain had on paper as many as 8,000 soldiers under its jurisdiction, it was still extremely difficult to allocate 500 soldiers.

Because these troops are needed to defend the vast colonial territory and need to be stationed everywhere, which makes the number of troops seem a little stretched and insufficient.

In 1616, the Tepehua formed an alliance with Indian tribes in the Chihuahua region, including the Tarahumara, to resist Spanish colonial rule and early Jesuit missionary forces.

The Spanish army tried several times to clear out the rebellious Indian resistance forces in the western part of Chihuahua, but the effect was not very good.

Because the Indians always moved their homes according to the seasons, like nomadic tribes, their erratic and unpredictable nature made it difficult for the Spanish to completely eliminate them. The Tarahumara people often launched armed uprisings, destroying local Jesuit missions and attacking tribes and villages that had converted to Catholicism.

They were a semi-nomadic tribe, but were deeply influenced by the Spanish colonists. They learned the use of advanced weapons and combat techniques in battle, which strengthened their resistance to a certain extent.

The Tarahumara were skilled in ambushes, and the fortifications they built effectively negated the Spanish advantage of firearms and horses.

They also traded livestock with Indian tribes further north, obtaining supplies and food.

In addition, there were sporadic outbreaks of Indian riots in the southern jungles, attacking and killing Spanish immigrants or compliant Indian tribes.

Even in the Panama region, a powerful Indian tribe suddenly emerged in the jungle area of ​​Parita Bay near the Isthmus of Panama.

They obtained firearms and a large number of iron weapons from unknown sources, conquered more than ten local tribes, and integrated them into a threatening tribal alliance.

The Governor of Panama once sent troops to carry out a mopping-up operation, but suffered a shameful defeat. More than 30 soldiers and armed volunteers were killed, more than 40 were injured, and they fled back to Panama City in a panic.

Just ask yourself, when the situation in the Viceroyalty of New Spain has not yet been completely pacified, where can we withdraw extra troops and transfer them to faraway Manila?

A few days ago, after returning to Mexico City, Major General Gomez of the Military Commission submitted to him a new military plan and immigration plan, which was to establish several military outposts in the Baja California Peninsula and San Diego Bay, and relocate a corresponding number of immigrants to strengthen control over the northern Pacific coastal area.

It is reported that the pirates who attacked Banderas Valley and the small town of Manta in previous years have reappeared and are likely to launch attacks on the Mexican coastal areas.

Of course, they might also run to the Viceroyalty of Peru, attack a coastal town and loot property, just like they did last year.

In addition, Major General Gomez also suggested the formation of a Pacific Fleet to maintain the Kingdom of Spain's control over the waters and curb pirate attacks.

If possible, we should send a small exploratory fleet this year, sailing north along the Mexican coast, to search carefully for possible pirate lairs, so as to eradicate this pirate gang once and for all.

Governor Rivera agreed in principle to the last of the above suggestions.

Because, whether it is setting up a military stronghold or immigration under the leadership of the Governor's Office, it costs money, and continuous investment must be made in the later stages to maintain the long-term existence of the stronghold.

So the problem is that the Governor's Office has been in financial decline for a long time and cannot squeeze out any "extra" funds for the construction and maintenance of new military strongholds and settlements.

In the past decade or so, the output of several silver mines in Mexico has dropped sharply (at this time, the Guanajuato silver mine has not yet been fully developed). King Philip IV, the "Committee of Indian Affairs" and the Kingdom's Finance Committee have been urging the Viceroyalty to increase silver mining and exploration efforts while also issuing an order prohibiting the outflow of silver.

As the scale of the European war grew, the Kingdom of Spain became increasingly dependent on gold and silver from its American territories. It was eager to collect every silver coin in the colonial territories and bring it back to the mainland to support the kingdom's finances, which were often on the verge of collapse.

Our Kingdom of Spain is clearly sitting on a mountain of gold and silver, so why do we always feel that the money we have is not enough?
The frequent uprisings and riots of the Indians, the rampant Atlantic smuggling activities, the ambitious Manila authorities, oh, and a group of damn pirates, too many troubles made Governor Rivera feel inexplicably anxious.

"Order General Gomez to assemble an exploratory fleet by June. It shouldn't be too large, consisting of three or four armed merchant ships," Governor Rivera instructed his secretary. "Once the fleet is assembled, it will sail north along the west coast of America, searching for and exploring possible pirate lairs."

"As for the Manila colonial government's request to mobilize troops, we reject it and allow them to form their own indigenous vassal forces locally. If they encounter a strong counterattack from the Dutch or the Ming government in Formosa, they can act at their discretion, even withdrawing to Manila."

"Oh, damn! By the time Manila hears back from us, it might be May of next year."

"Our most urgent task is to stabilize the overall situation in the Viceroyalty of New Spain. This is fundamental. Everything else is secondary."

"By the way, if any of the towns and ports along the Pacific coast are attacked by pirates again, please report it to me immediately."

"May God bless us!"

(End of this chapter)