The Australian Revolution of 1828

The Napoleonic Wars began with the Third Coalition against France in 1803 and ended with the Seventh Coalition against France in 1815.

而在第三次反法同盟之前，还发生了两次反法同盟，即发生于1792—1797年间的第一次反法同盟，以及1798年11月—1802年3月的第二次反法同盟。

Because the Netherlands participated in the First Coalition against France, it was defeated by the First French Republic in 1795. In the same year, the puppet government of the Republic of Batavia was established, which was incorporated into the First French Empire during the Napoleonic era in 1810.

In 1810, the Fourth Coalition against France, organized by Britain, ended in failure. After learning that Napoleon's First French Empire had annexed the Netherlands, Britain sent a fleet to occupy the Dutch colony of Java in 1811.

In 1814, after the victory of the Sixth Coalition against France, Napoleon was exiled, and the Netherlands was able to break away from the First French Empire.

In 1815, the Kingdom of the Netherlands was established after the victory of the Seventh Coalition against France.

Considering that the Kingdom of the Netherlands was very close to the British mainland and was a very suitable place to launch an attack on Britain, Britain needed to maintain good relations with the Netherlands and therefore returned Java in 1816.

However, with the surge in British trade demand, Stanford Raffles, the deputy governor of the Bengkulian region of Sumatra, recognized that the Bengkulian region was poorly located and difficult to develop.

In 1819, with the support of the Governor-General of India, Hasidin, a new colony was established on Singapore, an island that was originally part of the Johor Sultanate.

The Dutch governor of Java was very dissatisfied with the British establishment of a colony in Singapore, believing that Singapore fell within the Dutch sphere of influence.

The Netherlands subsequently negotiated with Britain multiple times, demanding that Britain withdraw from Singapore.

At the time, many British officials were also concerned about the Netherlands' geographical location and believed that Britain should avoid war with the Netherlands as much as possible. They repeatedly asked Stamford Raffles to withdraw from Singapore to avoid the situation from deteriorating.

However, Stamford Raffles was unwilling to give up and made several attempts to contact the Governor-General of India, Hastings, to persuade him to support the occupation of Singapore and to explain that the occupation of Singapore was legally justifiable.

Stamford Raffles believed that Malacca belonged to the Malay Peninsula, and therefore Singapore was not within the Dutch sphere of influence.

In the years that followed, after numerous negotiations, the Anglo-Dutch Treaty was finally reached in 1824, with both sides recognizing each other's spheres of influence. The Malay Peninsula belonged to Britain, and the East Indies to the Netherlands, thus leading to Britain's withdrawal from the Bengkuren region of Sumatra.

Meanwhile, the total tonnage of the Dutch navy had decreased from 8.7 tons in 1790 to 1.5 tons in 1828, a significant reduction in its strength.

However, due to the impact of the war, the total tonnage of the British Navy also decreased from its peak of 36 tons to 26 tons in 1828.

The number of first-class battleships of the British Navy, ranging from 2500 to 3, was reduced to three. Due to their high cost of construction and operation (large hull, numerous guns, and over 800 crew members), first-class battleships were generally used as flagships or symbols by various countries, and were manufactured and equipped in small quantities.

海军舰船2000吨—2500吨的二级战列舰7艘，海军舰船1300吨—1800吨的三级战列舰126艘。

In addition to the first, second, and third-class battleships, Britain also had nearly 57 fourth, fifth, and sixth-class cruisers, with a single ship displacement ranging from 450 to 1000 tons.

The UK has a total tonnage of 26 tons and 193 ships of various sizes.

Fortunately, nearly 68% of the ships were deployed on British soil, preventing France from unifying Europe once again.

The remaining 32% of the ships, totaling 62 vessels, were deployed in South Africa, India, and other locations, both to protect the colonies from invasion and to safeguard shipping lanes.

Han Qingyun was dressed in a modern-style red and yellow Grand Marshal uniform, with a gold Major General rank insignia on his shoulder and a peaked cap on his head, looking just like a modern military officer.

Meng Hung of the Industrial Development Bureau and Li Guochen of the Trade Bureau were dressed similarly.

The two men were the Left and Right Commanders of the Grand Commandery, and thus held military positions. However, they were only lieutenant colonels, two ranks lower than Han Qingyun.

Throughout the 19th century, due to the widespread use of firearms, the organization of cold weapon troops became outdated and was simply unsuitable for firearm troops. The modernization of the Hanyang Navy and Army became inevitable.

This is a system that Westerners figured out long ago through a century of war, so it must have its reasons.

Although Han Qingyun was not particularly fond of foreigners, military modernization was an inevitable path, and the experience of modern warfare was universally applicable and did not differ between individuals.

As newcomers, the Hanyang Prefecture's naval and land forces naturally had to learn from them.

When Lieutenant Commander He Zhibang, who was in charge of daily management, saw Han Qingyun disembark from the ship, he personally ran up to him, gave him a modern military salute, and said, "This humble officer, Lieutenant Commander He Zhibang, Commander of the Hanyang Fleet, greets the Grand Commander, the Left Commander, the Right Commander, and Director Luo."

Although Ho Chi-pong held the title of Navy Commander, he was ultimately only a major, one rank below the Director, and was also under the direct leadership of the Left and Right Governors.

Han Qingyun, dressed in the uniform of a Grand Admiral, raised his hand in a salute, then inquired about the navy's situation, saying, "Commander He, are all the naval officers and men here?"

Naval Commander He Zhibang, with the demeanor of a soldier, was decisive and efficient, saying without any hesitation, "Informing the Grand Admiral that all officers and soldiers except those on duty have arrived. Please inspect them."

The inspection should not only look at the military appearance, discipline, and demeanor, but also at the combat capabilities of the naval fleet.

Han Qingyun had previously worked at the Trade Bureau and the Immigration Bureau, had come into contact with armed merchant ships, and had also led close-quarters combat operations with armed merchant ships, so he had some experience.

Looking at the officers and soldiers standing in formation, Han Qingyun said confidently, "Commander He, the navy is ready for battle!"

Although he received a notification from the Grand General's Office yesterday, Navy Commander Ho Chi-pong was unaware of the reason for the inspection.

Upon hearing this, Navy Commander He Zhibang keenly sensed the impending war. Forcing himself to remain calm, he said, "Admiral, the navy is capable of fighting, and it can fight!"

After surveying the docked ships, Han Qingyun said, "It's good that the navy is confident. My only concern is that you haven't experienced war for a long time and have forgotten what it's like!"

"By the way, have you ever rehearsed a real war?"

In fact, the navy has been in service for five years since its formation in 1823. Over the years, it has grown into its current naval force through the construction of its own ships and the purchase of second-hand ships.

After five years of upgrades and renovations, it has begun to resemble an army.

Navy Commander Ho Chi-pong said, "Grand Admiral, I have been actively conducting drills over the years in order to be able to deal with invading enemy ships."

"While there's a slight difference in combat strength, it's not by much!"

"It is essential for our naval officers and soldiers to be literate and proficient in arithmetic, so that they can fire shells farther and keep the enemy at bay!"

The phrase "keep the enemy at bay" originally comes from Mencius, but after arriving in Hanyang, it was Han Qingyun who demanded that the merchant ships be armed.

Unexpectedly, Navy Commander He Zhibang also remembered this sentence and brought it up to Han Qingyun at the right time.

Han Qingyun was no child; he wanted to see the results of the naval exercises. He said, "The ships will form a battle formation and head out to sea for live-fire drills. I want to see just how far the navy can strike."

Soon, the navy towed out an abandoned ship and dragged it 1200 meters offshore.

At this time, the cannons were all smoothbore cannons. At a firing angle of 4°, a 24-pounder (about 150mm) caliber cannon could have a range of more than 800 meters.

If the firing angle is 10°, a 150mm caliber cannon can reach 2000 meters.

Han Qingyun, seeing the distance was a bit far and worried that they wouldn't be able to hit it, asked with some doubt, "Isn't it a bit too far? Can our ships even reach it?"

The naval commander confidently stated, "Reporting to the Grand Admiral, the navy guarantees we can reach them, but it will require two more rounds."

Artillery fire relies on probability, a fact Han Qingyun was well aware of, and said, "Then let's begin!"

Two third-class battleships sailed out of the harbor, and after passing through the target area, several shots from the broadside guns on one side of the ships hit the abandoned target ship in just one volley.

Han Qingyun was somewhat pleased, but he didn't forget that naval warfare is a dynamic process, and said, "If the ships are moving, can you still hit them?"

The naval commander, as always, said, "Grand Admiral, we have also trained for this; we can hit it."

It's good that we can hit the target, but there aren't any fast-moving ships to test the target!

Essentially, the navy serves as a safety net; should the armed merchant ships of the Trade Bureau or the Immigration Bureau suffer a setback, the navy would be needed to step in.

Now that I've seen how the navy operates, it seems quite usable.