Nanyang Storm 1864

Off the coast of Kagoshima

As far as the eye could see, the warships of the Great Chu Empire's allied fleet were densely packed on the sea, a sight that sent chills down one's spine.

Inside the harbor, there were only a few dozen merchant ships and a dozen or so Fusō warships. The largest Fusō warship had a displacement of only about 2300 tons, which was just a light cruiser.

The disparity in strength between the two sides is so vast that it is despair-inducing.

Unexpected
This small regional fleet, which was only at the level of near-shore defense, actually dared to break out of the bay and launch a desperate charge against the expeditionary fleet of the Great Chu Empire!

Kagoshima Port, which faces the active volcano Sakurajima across the sea, has a wide sea surface and excellent water depth. It is a concave bay, making it an excellent port for berthing large ships.

The disadvantage is that the sea surface is too wide and it is not a bay that embraces the sea, making it difficult for coastal fortifications to defend.

That is precisely why
Knowing that they could not escape death, the Japanese naval squadron in Kagoshima Harbor decided that rather than being trapped and strangled in the harbor, they should rush out and fight the powerful enemy to the bitter end, and die a glorious death.

Such ferocity caught the attention of Commander-in-Chief He Zhucheng.

He dispatched the 5th Squadron of the 2nd Cruiser Squadron to meet the enemy. The 5th Squadron consisted of four light cruisers ranging from three to five thousand tons, most of which were equipped with 210mm main guns. They set up a horizontal blockade line at the exit on the Sakurajima side.

Led by the light cruiser "Suma," the flagship of Rear Admiral Togo Masamichi of the Japanese Navy, more than a dozen Japanese warships of various sizes rushed out of the harbor and launched an attack on the four Chu cruisers that were waiting in battle.

Seven or eight kilometers away, the fifth cruiser squadron of the Chu Kingdom launched its first round of shelling, dozens of shells splashing up a forest of water columns, stirring up the seawater as if it were boiling.

Although the first salvo missed, the straddle-fired close-range missiles created huge waves, lifting the high-speed charging Fusō torpedo boat high like a leaf before crashing down heavily.

A torpedo boat suddenly plunged into the giant wave and never came out again, sinking directly to the bottom.

The other seven torpedo boats also had to slow down immediately, weaving through the surging waves, and were easily capsized by the giant waves.

These Japanese torpedo boats, weighing only one or two hundred tons, were extremely dangerous to navigate at high speed through the forest of water columns created by 210mm shells.

The first salvo was a success, and the Chu officers and soldiers of the Fifth Cruiser Squadron cheered in unison. They then rolled up their sleeves and went all out, unleashing even more intense firepower on the charging Japanese warships.

As the distance closed, the 122mm secondary guns of the fifth cruiser squadron also joined the battle, providing even more intense firepower.

On the sea
Every now and then, Japanese warships would be hit, bursting into large flames, circling on the sea and losing their direction. Then, huge fireballs from the secondary explosions of ammunition would flash across the vast sea.

Following the destruction of the light cruiser Chitsuji, two more Fusō Navy destroyers and four torpedo boats were hit, either capsized or severely damaged, rendering them combat ineffective.

The cruiser "Suma" was also hit by two shells, and the entire ship burst into flames. While fiercely returning fire, it led the remaining Fusang warships, like a human torch, to charge towards the Chu cruiser fleet.

At a distance of about four kilometers, the cruiser Suma made a sharp turn on the sea surface and then quickly launched eight steam torpedoes.

The other torpedo boats also launched torpedoes quickly during the sharp turn, and as the torpedo boats violently swung their heads, the torpedoes that entered the water spread out in a fan shape.

Steam torpedoes of that era had limited range and were very easy targets.

Warships trained in torpedo protection can easily evade torpedoes. In the Battle of Tsushima, those Russian warships trained in torpedo protection suffered virtually no losses.

The secondary guns of the Chu cruiser quickly turned their muzzles and opened fire fiercely on the direction of the incoming torpedoes on the sea, creating a dense zone of gunfire and spraying large plumes of water.

The defensive shelling lasted for two or three minutes, detonating seven torpedoes in succession. The cruiser then quickly turned at eleven knots and entered the safe zone cleared by the shelling to avoid the torpedoes.

Guided by officers on one side of the warship, none of the nearly 20 torpedoes fired by the Fusō Navy fleet during their charge hit their mark.

This steam torpedo leaves a very clear trail on the sea surface, which can be observed with the naked eye.

It is best suited for use in the early morning, evening, or when visibility is poor after nightfall. In the Battle of Tsushima, the Fusō Combined Fleet launched its torpedo attack after the daytime naval battle had ended and night had fallen.

During the day, it's like a louse on a bald man's head... it's hard not to notice.

When the cruiser Suma approached to a distance of about 3 kilometers, it was subjected to concentrated fire. Five or six shells hit it in succession, which blew the superstructure of the cruiser Suma to pieces and set the whole ship on fire.

The other torpedo boats and destroyers lost speed after the sharp turn and became slow-moving targets on the sea, and were quickly identified and named one by one.

Explosions and fires filled the sea, and thick black smoke shot straight into the sky.

With a loud "boom"

The cruiser Suma's ammunition magazine exploded, and the huge mass of water from the explosion propelled the entire battleship several meters above the sea before it crashed down, instantly shattering into pieces.

The tearing and breaking of steel produced a piercing noise that carried far across the sea.

On the distant flagship "Kunlun Mountain"

Commander-in-Chief of the Expeditionary Fleet, Admiral He Zhucheng, silently put down his binoculars, his face twitching involuntarily; the voice was simply too grating.

Even though they were quite far apart, he still felt uncomfortable.

This short but fierce naval battle was a one-sided massacre. The battle lasted about 20 minutes and posed almost no threat to the fifth cruiser squadron of the Chu Kingdom before being completely wiped out.

In this battle, a total of 14 ships of the Kagoshima garrison were annihilated, including two light cruisers, four torpedo destroyers, and eight torpedo boats, achieving a complete naval victory.

727 enemy soldiers were killed and 65 were captured. Our own warships suffered 2 minor injuries and 1 serious injury. The unlucky guy who was seriously injured had his leg broken by a shell.

The only threat the Fusō battleships posed to the cruiser fleet was the 152mm main guns mounted on the Suma and Chitsuzu. During an assault, only the bow main guns were effective.

Facing the dense barrage of dozens of 280mm main guns from the fifth cruiser squadron firing from its sides, it was like charging into a machine gun; there was absolutely no chance of victory.

General He Zhucheng nodded slightly and said;
"A resounding victory in the first battle! Congratulations!"
In accordance with His Majesty's decree, if the Fusang Allied Fleet dares to show itself, we will eliminate them one by one, and two by two, without any mercy.

First Battle Squadron, listen to my command…

"The First Battle Squadron has arrived. We respectfully request that Your Excellency Commander issue your orders."

"Mark the designated fortified positions and prepare for artillery fire."

"Yes, Commander-in-Chief."

The Kagoshima Fortress is divided into the Sakurajima Fortress and the Kita-Kōgang Fortress. Due to the large sea area it defends, it has many blind spots in its defense.

There's no way around it; Kagoshima Port is a concave harbor along the coastline, with a vast sea area and good water depth, but its disadvantage is poor defense. If it weren't for the Sakurajima volcano, the entire port would face the Pacific Ocean without any cover.

In terms of defensive conditions, Osaka, Nagoya, and Tokyo Bay are all superior to Kagoshima Port, and even Nagasaki is superior to Kagoshima Port.

The mountains on both sides of Nagasaki Port are like two giant arms that extend deep into the sea, forming a long and winding inner bay, which is very advantageous for the layout of fortifications and gun emplacements.

Nagasaki is a city formed along a shallow plain in the bay. It is narrow and long, with densely packed city buildings built along the bay.

Comparison
Kagoshima has vast plains and hills inland, with considerable depth and large tracts of fertile land, which fostered a relatively developed agricultural civilization. The Satsuma Domain was one of the four most powerful domains of the shogunate.

The bloody Battle of Lake Ikeda took place here 40 years ago. Lake Ikeda is not far from Sakurajima.

For this reason, the Fusang Combined Fleet dared not deploy its forces here, fearing a repeat of the same mistake, and instead dispersed its fleet to Osaka, Nagoya and Tokyo Bay, where defenses were better.

It is currently the morning of December 9th.

After a brief but intense naval battle, the First Battle Fleet, led by the Qinling and consisting of the Changbaishan, Tianshan, Kunlunshan, Yecheng, and Sishui, filed out in single file, forming a clear single-file line, and swaggered toward the Sakurajima Fortress.

Its course is on the side away from Kagoshima.

This was to avoid being attacked from both sides by land-based artillery fortresses, and instead choose the weaker side to be bombarded with artillery fire.

About 22km offshore from the Sakurajima Fortress, the Japanese defenders on the island could no longer hold back and opened fire first, the booming sound of cannons echoing across the sea.

The 305mm shells landed a kilometer or two away, creating a huge column of water that looked quite astonishing.

The First Battle Squadron of the Great Chu Empire's Expeditionary Fleet remained unmoved. The six warships, each the size of a small mountain, lined up in a row, reduced their speed to six or seven knots, and positioned their sides towards the Sakurajima Battery.

All eight main guns on the ship turned simultaneously, aimed at the Sakurajima fortress, adjusted their firing parameters, and then opened fire in sequence according to orders.

"Boom, boom, boom, boom..."

Six shells, fired at precise intervals, flew a distance of 22 kilometers and exploded violently around the Sakurajima Fortress, causing the ground to shake and dust to billow everywhere.

Four shells exploded particularly violently; these were 343mm shells fired from four Kunlunshan-class warships, each weighing 567 kilograms and filled with yellow high explosives.

The shells fired by the 305mm main guns of the Yecheng-class battleships weighed only 386 kg, and could not compare with the former in terms of range and penetration.

Generally speaking
Fleets rarely engage in direct firefights with fortified gun emplacements because warships, as expensive naval weapons, are extremely valuable, and exchanging them for concrete walls on gun emplacements would be a huge loss.

Moreover, the fortress is located on land, with a good geographical location, a wide field of vision, and stable land-based artillery conditions, resulting in higher artillery accuracy.

Warships, situated on the constantly swaying sea, are inherently less accurate than land-based vessels, a fundamental disadvantage.

However, the First Battle Squadron of the Great Chu Empire was not afraid at all, because the four Kunlun Mountain-class battleships were equipped with twin-mounted 343 mm main guns with a range of up to 28 kilometers, giving them the ability to shell the enemy from beyond their range.

Judging from the impact points of the six heavy artillery shells that hit the Sakurajima Fortress, four of them, which produced more smoke and dust, landed closer to the fortress, and one of them was a cross-fire.

The two 305mm shells, which produced less smoke, landed much more widely, about 2km away from the fortress.

At an ultra-long range of 22 kilometers, the 305mm main gun has reached its near limit.

Even at this extremely long range, the 343mm main gun can still maintain a certain level of accuracy. As long as there is enough firepower coverage, it is confident that it can destroy the Sakurajima fortress.

Sure enough, after each warship fired a shell for calibration, the ships adjusted their firing parameters, and the large-caliber naval guns roared in unison.

Each round of bombardment saw 48 shells rain down like a dark cloud, engulfing the Sakurajima Fortress in fierce fire, causing the sky to collapse and flames to soar into the heavens.

The Sakurajima Fortress also bravely returned fire, and a fierce artillery battle ensued, with the booming cannons lasting for more than two hours.

The distance of the fleet's artillery fire also got closer and closer, from the original super long distance of 22 kilometers to a distance of just over ten kilometers.

The closer the distance, the more accurate the shot.

The entire Sakurajima Fortress, spanning two to three kilometers in radius, was engulfed in flames by thousands of large-caliber shells.

After more than an hour of artillery battle, the Sakurajima Fortress was unable to retaliate and could only passively take hits, being ravaged by large-caliber shells time and time again, almost turning it into ruins.

"That's enough. Order the shelling to stop."

"Yes, Commander-in-Chief."

"Order the Second Battle Squadron to advance and stand guard 8-10 kilometers from the Sakurajima Fortress, providing artillery cover for the landing forces and destroying any remaining enemy firepower."

"Yes, Commander-in-Chief."

"Order the First Battle Squadron to sail southeast, patrol and stand by, inspect the forts and related weapon facilities, rest for a day, and prepare to take the north bank forts tomorrow."

"Yes, Commander-in-Chief."

After issuing a series of orders, Admiral He Zhucheng showed a long-lost look of satisfaction on his face, pleased with the fleet's outstanding performance.

After 23 rounds of bombardment, the First Battle Squadron had completely destroyed the Sakurajima Fortress, clearing the biggest obstacle to the landing.

The fleet fired a round of artillery fire approximately every 5 to 6 minutes, and more than ten rounds of artillery fire every hour.

With the cover of the large-caliber main guns of the Second Battle Squadron, the Japanese army's artillery was no match for them, and the landing operation would not be greatly hindered and would be completed today.

This kind of devastating artillery barrage would make the Japanese defenders feel extremely frustrated.

This was precisely the kind of warfare that General He Zhucheng preferred. Just as His Majesty said, "Don't try to save me that little bit of silver. With the Empire's resources, we can afford a mere tens of thousands of shells."

His Majesty the Emperor of Great Chu was not referring to ordinary cannonballs, but large-caliber cannonballs, each worth thousands of silver dollars. These included 280mm, 305mm, and 343mm cannonballs, with the most expensive 343mm cannonball costing 2250 silver dollars per shot.

The cheapest 280mm shell cost 795 silver dollars.

The feeling of ruthlessly bullying the Japanese with artillery fire was absolutely exhilarating. (End of Chapter)