Nanyang Storm 1864

Chapter 174: Bloody Battle in Cebu

"Okay, buddy, my mission is basically completed. The rest depends on you, General Huang." Major General Robert said goodbye to Major General Huang Shan with a relaxed expression.

His mission was to escort the Huangshan Expeditionary Task Force to Cebu Island, clear all obstacles along the way, and ensure the smooth landing of the Expeditionary Task Force.

After landing, they had nothing to do with the sailing cruiser squadron.

The main fleet of the Northern Expedition is expected to arrive in the central waters of the Visayas Islands, that is, in the waters near Cebu Island, tomorrow morning.

The cruiser squadron will return to base after completing its mission. Whether it will stay here to carry out deterrence cruise missions or join the army in the northern expedition to Manila will depend on the orders conveyed by the navy's top brass.

Major General Huang Shan saluted and said, "It's been a pleasant experience with General Robert. Thank you for your fleet's perfect escort mission. I wish you a safe journey!"

"I also hope that your army can successfully resolve the current trouble, but in my opinion, this trouble is really not small."

Major General Robert put away his joking expression. At this moment, in the suburbs of Cebu City, more and more white militiamen were gathering. The number had exceeded a thousand, and they were all equipped with muskets.

More than a dozen white officers on horseback galloped back and forth, shouting loudly to urge order. Among them were more than 200 Spanish soldiers, forming a powerful military force.

"Don't worry, we can solve this problem." Major General Huang Shan replied calmly, raised his hand to salute again, then turned around and left the ship and went ashore.

Major General Robert silently returned a military salute, then turned around and said to his men;
"Okay, we still have a lot to do.

Send a few people to the Fu fleet over there and tell them that the general needs to recruit all their sailors because there are too many ships here that need to be sailed.

As for their own ship, it will be docked at the pier for the time being."

"Yes, General." The men quickly ran forward to carry out the order.

The entire transport fleet consisted of 25 ships. Except for 4 sailing cruisers and 7 sailing transport ships, the remaining 14 were large Chinese ships, each of which had thirty to forty Chinese sailors.

These are all large and prosperous ships that sailed from Chongming Island. They are equipped with double the crew to cope with the arduous voyage day and night. There are at least two helmsmen, and the number of sailors in other positions is similar.

If we calculate one ship for another, the existing manpower can operate 14 Spanish galleons.

If Robert's sailing ships were to be manned by more people and a few captured white crew members, he could launch another 5 to 6 large sailing ships.

In this way

There are a total of 23 large sailing ships in the harbor, and about 20 of them can be operated.

As for the rest, we can wait until the Northern Expedition fleet arrives tomorrow morning. No matter how many large sailing ships we have, we can sail them away. It will not be a problem at all.

But before that, there were many trivial matters that General Robert needed to arrange.

We must find out which ships here are British, French, and Dutch, so as not to cause trouble for the Marshal, which would then be a problem for us.

In the heart of Major General Robert, he still has deep awe for the British Navy, which dominates the world's oceans.

"All battalions, assemble and prepare for battle."

"Establish artillery positions and prepare to bombard."

Major General Huangshan issued an order after he stepped onto the dock. It was now around 10 o'clock in the morning, and the landing team of about 5000 people had all gone ashore. The conscripted native coolies were still carrying supplies.

This is not the point. Just leave a company of soldiers to guard him.

The artillery team that Major General Huangshan values ​​most, including two artillery squadrons of about 400 people, is the most important offensive force of the landing troops, and all of them rely on artillery to open a path to victory.

The two artillery teams were equipped with a total of 12 American 12-pound field guns and more than 30 mule and horse carts.

In addition to the 12 artillery carts, the rest of the mules and horses were ammunition carts and transport carts.

Outside Cebu City
It is a large field of crops, which are now over knee-high, and the lush green color is very pleasing to the eye.

Major General Huangshan observed through the telescope and found that some white militiamen carrying guns were running out of the city and joining the Spanish troops who were gathering.

Most of these temporarily recruited white militiamen were armed with old-fashioned flintlock muskets, which made Major General Huangshan feel much more at ease, and a cruel smile appeared at the corner of his mouth.

According to reliable intelligence

The Spanish colonial army was also equipped with old-style flintlock muskets. By the middle of the 19th century, this former colonial empire had lost its glory and its weapons and equipment lagged behind those of the great powers.

It's okay to be interested in dealing with the indigenous tribes armed with cold weapons, but to rely on these scrap metals to fight against your own army...

He took out his gold pocket watch and checked the time. It was almost 10:20 in the morning. Major General Huang Shan instructed his men:
"Bombard for ten minutes and see how brave these Spaniards are."

"As you command, sir."

Twelve American field guns have been pushed to the front of the formation, with a forward column of about 200 meters, 6 guns on each side, and a distance of about 1400 to 1500 meters from the opposite Spanish formation.

The distance is a bit far, but still within the range of the M1857 12-pound field gun, which has a maximum range of 2700 meters.

The artillery positions that received the order raised their guns and then reported that they were ready for the bombardment.

"Okay, let's get started."

After the order was given, the two artillery positions on the left and right roared "boom boom boom..." in succession, and fired solid spherical shells amid the loud artillery fire.

Amid the exclamations of the Spanish militia, 12 black shells fell from the sky, five of which hit the ranks, bouncing all the way and creating five bloody alleys.

If you hit it, you will die, if you rub it, you will be injured.

One round of shelling caused casualties among seven or eight white militiamen and caused a minor commotion.

"Damn Orientals, how could they have such advanced Napoleon cannons? Could it be that the French are secretly supporting the forces of King Jinghai?" Captain Joselu shouted loudly with an angry look on his face.

The Spanish intelligence was very backward. From the Governor's Office to the army below, they still believed that the people occupying Mindanao were Oriental rebels from the mainland, namely the troops of King Jinghai.

It was not surprising that Captain Joselu could recognize this famous European artillery piece.

Over half a century has passed since the birth of the Napoleonic Cannon. It has accompanied the armies of European powers in their conquests around the world and can be seen in countless wars.

Captain Joselu is the commander of the Visayas Fortress and a professional artillery officer.

It was his vacation time these days, and he was enjoying a quiet and peaceful life with his wife and children, but it was broken by the gunfire of the invaders.

These oriental troops stood between the fortress and the city. Captain Joselu was unable to return to the fortress in time to command the battle, and was temporarily assigned to command this hastily assembled mob.

Lieutenant Colonel Lenormand, the commander of the city's defenses, rode up on horseback, reined in his horse, and stood before the battle line, shouting to the white militiamen who were in a commotion after being bombarded.
"Brave citizens, we are facing the most dangerous moment in three hundred years. We must unite to repel the enemy and defend our traditional way of life and beliefs.

This is an Eastern rebel force from the King of Jinghai in the south, those Eastern people with braids.

These Orientals are cowardly and timid, and are nothing more than a group of scarecrows in terrible clothes.

Don't be intimidated by their bluffing. The British and French armies had conquered this northern power with swords and guns a few years ago, and captured their capital with only a few thousand people.

One hundred European soldiers could defeat and occupy an Oriental army of tens of thousands.

Brave Spanish warriors, there are 1160 of us here. As long as we can withstand the initial artillery fire, when the time comes for close combat, we can reap and kill as much as we want.

I make this promise to you in the name of the official appointed by the Governor's Office.

All Oriental captives you capture will be reduced to slaves, become your private property, and be protected by the laws of the kingdom.

Let us fight bravely, and glory to glorious Spain!"

"Fight, fight, kill all these Orientals."

"Don't forget your promise, sir."

"Hahaha... No one should compete with me for them. My estate is in need of a lot of slaves, and these Orientals are just in time."

Instigated by their officers, the enthusiasm of the white militiamen was aroused again, and they waved their swords and guns and shouted loudly.

Lieutenant Colonel Lenormand, the city's defense commander, rode up to Captain Joselu and said, leaning down;

"Captain, our soldiers cannot stand here and be beaten all the time. The enemy will not stop the shelling. No one can endure such torture."

"Understood, sir. Please give your orders."

"Okay, I need you to command the first wave of militiamen who have been reorganized and launch the first attack on the enemy."

"Understood, sir, I will resolutely carry out your orders."

"Order all musketeers to reload and carry out the order."

"As you command, sir."

After Lieutenant Colonel Lenormand finished his instructions, he gave his horse a powerful thump with his feet, urging it to gallop away. He had to leave. If he delayed for so long, the second round of artillery fire from the Orientals would probably come soon.

Sure enough, as Captain Joselu loudly ordered "Everyone load up and prepare for battle", loud artillery fire erupted from the Oriental artillery positions again.

“Boom boom boom… boom boom boom…”

The adjusted muzzle spewed out flames and slammed 12 hot shells into the enemy. Only screams were heard, and the originally neat formation was beaten to pieces like dog teeth.

This time, nine shells hit the neatly arranged formation, and more than a dozen white soldiers were directly beaten to pieces, with the injured screaming in pain.

There was an even greater commotion in the ranks. If no action was taken, who knew whether these militiamen who participated in the battle with such bravery would collapse on the spot?
Captain Joselu drew his sharp sword and shouted, "Forward... Men, use the muskets in our hands to teach these Orientals a lesson."

Under his command, more than 600 white militiamen formed two horizontal rows, each row with more than people. They held their muskets and pressed forward to the assembled Oriental troops to the sound of drums.

"Boom boom boom..."

"Boom boom boom..."

The artillery positions on the left and right sides launched a series of artillery attacks. After six or seven rounds of salvos, the Spanish white militia, who had suffered dozens of casualties, continued to advance despite the artillery fire.

More than 560 Spanish officers, soldiers and militiamen in the rear formed a second horizontal array and pressed towards the Oriental troops.

The distance between the two sides was reduced from more than 1,500 meters to less than 1,000 meters.

Major General Huangshan put down the monocular in his hand, turned around and ordered; "Stop the shelling! Pass my order; Xin's regiment will form up to fight and attack!"

"As you command, sir."

Give an order

The "Xin" regiment consisted of more than 400 officers and soldiers, arranged in three horizontal rows to meet the enemy. Each row had more than people, and the soldiers held loaded muskets in their hands.

Swords and guns are like forests, and military flags are flying.

Comparing the two, the gap becomes apparent.

The infantry of both sides advanced towards each other in lines. The Spanish mob was a disorganized group, their troops twisted like a long snake, some advancing and some lagging behind.

On the other hand, the officers and soldiers of the "Xin" Regiment of the Second Expeditionary Division of the Great Chu were lined up in a neat line, with three platoons forming three lines, and they went into battle to the rhythmic sound of war drums.

About four or five minutes later

The distance between the two armies was shortened to more than 300 meters. They could see each other's ferocious and hideous faces, and the murderous aura was not concealed.

This made the atmosphere on the battlefield extremely solemn, and the pressure was felt on the officers and soldiers on both sides.

Captain Joselu and several officers had to rush out, waving their command sabers to urge the lagging white militia to speed up and keep their formation in order.

His plan was to stop advancing when the distance between the two sides was about 120 meters, and fire two rounds of volleys to defeat the Orientals.

who knows

When the Oriental army was 200 meters away, the officers shouted loudly, "Stop moving forward, check your guns, hold your guns level, aim..."

Such a sudden action made Captain Joselu feel creepy in an instant. He was shrouded in great fear and his face turned pale.

Why open fire at such a distance?
Is it...

A terrible thought came to his mind, and Captain Joselu looked at the opposite side in fear, especially the muskets in the hands of those soldiers. He tried his best to see clearly what model they were.

However, the two sides were 200 meters apart. Even with good eyesight, it was impossible to clearly identify the model of the other side's gun. They could only see its general shape.

"Maybe... the Oriental officers are not experienced enough." This lucky mentality emerged in my mind.

Captain Joselu did not stop his soldiers from advancing, as he still had a glimmer of hope.

"Aim at the enemy and open fire." Lieutenant Colonel Zheng Jiahui, commander of the "Xin" Regiment of the Great Chu, swung the command knife in his hand fiercely and issued the order to shoot.

"Clap clap clap clap..."

The sound of gunfire, so dense that it made one's scalp tingle, resounded throughout the world, and more than 400 deadly bullets swooped down like a black mass of locusts.

All I heard was a series of "Puff, puff, puff, puff, puff..." sounds that made my scalp numb. The white militiamen standing in the front row fell down like wheat being cut, blood splattered everywhere, and the strong smell of blood instantly filled the battlefield.

This round of deadly volleys fully demonstrated the high accuracy and lethality of the American-made Springfield M1861 rifle.

At a distance of 200 meters, a single volley knocked down more than half of the enemy's front-line officers and soldiers, nearly to white militiamen. The entire column fell like a dog's teeth, like a bloody massacre.

This scene instantly crushed the remaining fighting spirit of the Spanish militia, and they collapsed with a shout.

But it was not over yet. After the first row of officers and soldiers of the "Xin" regiment fired a volley, they handed the empty rifles behind them, and then took the muskets loaded with ammunition from the back row.

"Hold the gun level, aim... and fire."

"Hold the gun level, aim... and fire."

Two consecutive rounds of intensive volleys, a deadly hail of more than 800 bullets, killed and wounded more than 200 Spanish white militiamen.

Only one encounter

The first wave of more than 600 white militiamen suffered casualties of to people under the ruthless hail of bullets from the Xin Corps soldiers and were completely crippled.

Seeing the enemy retreat, Lieutenant Colonel Zheng Jiahui, commander of the Great Chu "Xin" Regiment, waved his hand back and ordered, "Sword and shield soldiers, charge! Disrupt the enemy's formation."

More than 1,400 sword and shield soldiers who had been following not far behind the "Xin" group rushed forward upon hearing the order and shouting, like hungry wolves seeing fat meat.

At this point, the sword and shield commander in the rear became anxious and hurriedly asked Major General Huang Shan for instructions, "Commander, we..."

Major General Huang Shan saw that the retreating white militia had already dispersed the second wave of infantry behind them, so he nodded and said, "Go ahead and chop off a few more heads."

"Yes, sir, chop off a few more heads." The officer agreed excitedly, then just waved his hand and shouted "Charge!", and a large number of sword and shield soldiers rushed forward.

Each Spanish soldier's head is worth twenty taels of silver, an officer's head is worth 50 taels, and the heads of these armed civilians are also worth ten taels of silver. It's all hard-earned silver!

There was no need to mobilize at this moment. The sword and shield soldiers, who were already full of enthusiasm, were chasing them all the way. When they approached the city wall, they caught up with the scattered rear guard of the white militia.

In an instant, the sounds of gunfire and shouting mixed together, and screams filled the air. The white militiamen fired bullets from their guns in haste, and were then chopped into a bloody mess by the rolling blades.

When approached by the sword and shield soldiers, these musketeers only had one chance to fire a shot.

There was no time for them to reload, so they could only fight with swordsmen and shieldmen with their muskets. Naturally, they were restricted everywhere and were soon chopped to the ground.

The pursuing officers and soldiers of the "Xin" Regiment also arrived one after another. According to orders, they disbanded the large formation and led some sword and shield soldiers in company units to rush into the city to fight.

In the city
Many white militiamen relied on the sturdy courtyard walls and picked up muskets to fight back desperately. The sound of gunfire and shouting continued, and the casualties on both sides continued to increase.

Major General Huangshan then entered the city and, based on the situation, dispatched officers and soldiers from the "B" Regiment in infantry companies, with each company carrying a piece of artillery to reinforce and eliminate the Spanish rebel strongholds bit by bit.

Soon after
With the rumbling of artillery fire, the bloody battle of Cebu City began and the fighting became more intense and bloody.

Cebu was their home. These white Spanish colonists had no way to retreat. In desperation, they organized many indigenous servant soldiers and rushed out in rounds to fight.

The Chinese army was steadily compressed, with musketeers and swordsmen working closely together to repeatedly kill the enemy with high efficiency, gradually occupying cities and fortified buildings.

From 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.
The bloody battle in the city lasted for more than 7 hours. The expeditionary task force led by Major General Huang Shan gradually took control of more than half of the urban area through the bloody battle.

However, they encountered two setbacks and had to stop moving forward.

One is the Santa Maria Church in the city, and the other is the "Morata Fortress" where the Municipal Council is located. Both of them are solid stone buildings and cannot be taken down by 12-pound field guns. Many white soldiers and armed militias hid in these two places and fired desperately to resist.

For the time being, there is really nothing we can do about these two places.

The Spanish colonized Cebu for 300 years, but they were not completely idle.

There are two fortresses on Cebu Island, one is Visayas located in the port, and the other is Morata Fortress located in the city. Both are tough thorns standing in the throat and cannot be taken down in a hurry.

After observing the terrain at the scene, Major General Huang Shan thought carefully and gave the order;

"Alright, stop the attack and count the casualties.

Contact Rear Admiral Robert of the fleet. I need his help. Provide me with at least four heavy artillery pieces to crack open these turtle shells one by one."

"As you command, sir."

(End of this chapter)