The Rise of the European Emperor

After being silent for a long time, Edward asked another question:

"Archduke Marin, do you think England could stop the French from crossing the sea with those big merchant ships?"

Marin thought for a while and replied:

"It should be fine, after all, the English sailors are much better than the French. So, Your Majesty, what good thoughts do you have?"

"I mean . . . is it possible to give advance notice to London so that they can prepare for a major French invasion?"

"This is not very good. If Henry VII learns that the French are going to invade, he must find out the reason. At that time, we will be exposed by the actions of the north..." Marin said hesitantly.

"I know, I mean, we can notify the French at the same time as we can notify the French after my army has completed the sea crossing, and let them know what is happening in France..." Edward said thoughtfully.

Marlin suddenly realized:

"What do you mean, when we were ready, we deliberately disclosed the information that the French were going to cross the sea to Henry VII. In this way, Henry VII was more prepared for the French?"

Edward nodded again and again and said:

"Yes, that's what it means. While the big ships are out, the little English boats are also very useful for intercepting French ships!"

"Small boats intercepting French ships? Can you do that?" Marin was a little skeptical. He had always been a supporter of the cannon and giant ship doctrine, and he didn't care much about small boats.

"Of course, sailors on small boats can also use grappling hooks and jump on French ships to fight. Also, they can shoot arrows and throw fire on French ships..."

In this era, the main methods of naval warfare were nothing more than jumping boats to help each other slash and shoot arrows at each other. Sometimes, they will throw fire at the opponent's boat. After all, the ships of this era are all made of wood, and the torches are dipped in oil on wooden sticks. If the opponent does not put it out in time, it may set the opponent's ship on fire. Although, this chance is very small.

There are many sailors in England, the balance on the boat is very good, and the jumping boat has an advantage over cutting. After all, an infantryman, swaying from side to side on a ship, may not be able to exert his full combat power. The seasoned sailor, on the other hand, is on the ground on the boat and can defeat the enemy that cannot be beaten on land.

As for shooting arrows at each other? This is the strength of the English. The whole people of England shoot archery, and the overall level is much higher than that of France, and they take advantage of them in naval battles. This is one of the important reasons why the French cannot beat England in traditional naval battles...

After Marin thought about it,

Suddenly realized...

Those backward naval warfare methods that he despised were still the mainstream warfare methods in Europe at this time. As for the naval artillery battle, only Marin fought once in the waters of Jutland. However, that is not replicable.

why? Because European artillery is mainly made of copper, and copper is so expensive, there are not many countries that can afford a large number of copper cannons. That is, Marin, who came up with a cast-iron gun, which can be equipped in large quantities.

Not only that, but the artillery platoon tactics also consume a lot of gunpowder. Europe is so short of saltpeter, who can get so much gunpowder to make the naval guns blast? Just like Marin's fleet, they also fought a naval battle in Jutland. As a result, the gunpowder was used up more than half, and he was distressed to death. This is also the reason why Marin sent someone to buy Indian saltpeter. As for other countries, let's save it...

At present, the Marin fleet, as well as the Spanish and Portuguese fleets, are generally equipped with naval guns. Other countries are still basically in the era of traditional naval warfare. This is mainly because Portugal and Spain have also opened air routes to India, where they also bought a lot of saltpeter. And this is part of the reason why Amerigo went to India to buy saltpeter.

In England and France, it seems that the use of Kirk sailboats is now popular. This kind of sailing ship is the main sailing ship of the Hanseatic League at present, and it is also the most popular sea ship in Britain and France. If the two countries are at war at sea, it must also be a contest between Kirk's sailboats.

The British Navy really began to promote the cannon ship, and it was also in the period of Henry VIII, and it was the middle and late period of the reign of Henry VIII. Because Henry VIII confiscated a large amount of Catholic Church assets through the Reformation, so that he had the money to build so many warships. Since the time of Henry VIII, Britain has really had full-time warships, rather than relying on recruiting merchant ships from the private sector to participate in the war.

But for now, Britain still relies on civilian merchant ships to enter the war, as does France. But the difference between the two countries is that English sailors are more and more powerful. Moreover, England has promoted archery for the whole people since the era of Edward III, making England a lot of archery masters.

In traditional naval warfare, archery is very important. It can not only kill a large number of sailors and shipborne soldiers of the other side, but also burn the other side's ships by shooting rockets. Among them, the most commonly used tactic is to shoot the sails of enemy ships with rockets. Because the sails are high and cloth, which burns more easily than the hull. Once it catches fire, it is difficult to put out the fire because of the height. And if the sail is burned, the ship will lose power and can only stay on the sea waiting to be beaten and shot by the enemy...

There are many archery masters in England, and even sailors have many archery masters. Therefore, even if a small boat is dispatched, it can bring a huge threat to the French Kirk sailboat. Therefore, Edward suggested to notify Henry VII at the appropriate time so that he would have enough time to recruit more boats to join the war. Coupled with the large ship that returned after the original deployment, the confidence to destroy the French fleet is even greater...

...

"Just...how to inform Henry VII that the French are about to invade?" Edward said in distress.

"This... I have a way!" After thinking about it, Marin took it all down.

Why did Marin take this up? Because he really has a way. Of course, not directly informing Henry VII, but a spy in the French royal palace through England...

Henry VII was a scheming man and was hostile to France. Therefore, he must have placed British eyeliner on the French side. Moreover, there is a person who also sneaked into the palace. Of course, not some important minister, but an ordinary clerk.

Speaking of which, it was very coincidental that Marlin discovered this English spy named O'Connor. Moreover, it was found that this person was secretly chatting with the British, and it was the fat brother.

How did the Fat Brothers find out that O'Connor was an England spy? This matter had to be discovered by accident when Marin ordered the Fat Brothers to inquire about the location of the secret letter between France and the Principality of Geddes.

By inviting people to eat and drink, the fat brothers got a lot of clerks in the palace drunk. Among them, including O'Connor, the English spy. After O'Connor was drunk, the fat brother didn't ask him the location of the secret letter from France and the Principality of Gerd, but accidentally inquired about the fact that the man could speak English.

Later, the suspicious Beihai Chamber of Commerce Paris branch quietly investigated and found that this guy turned out to be a spy from England. Moreover, it has been lurking in France for more than ten years.

Of course, Marin didn't pay much attention to this information before. Because it was none of his business that the English planted spies in the French court. But now, this guy can use it...

how to use? Of course, when sending a letter to France, it was deliberately revealed to this person that...

Of course, the intelligence of Marin and Edward's coalition in northern England must not be disclosed to this guy. However, the French could deliberately reveal to him the intelligence that the French wanted to mobilize the fleet to cross the English Channel.

Then, O'Connor will surely pass the information back to London. In this way, Henry VII had time to dispatch small ships from various ports to intercept the French fleet in the English Channel. Although it was a bit rushed, with the return of the dismantled merchant ships and those small ships, it would be no problem to defeat the French fleet...

Passing the message through O'Connor, although a little more troublesome, is more secure. why? Because if Marin directly sent someone to London to inform Henry VII, Henry VII might not believe it. If he sends someone to investigate and verify, when the investigation is over, the French fleet will call and it will be a waste of time.

But O'Connor was different. He was a high-ranking spy installed by Henry VII in the French palace. The information he sent back will definitely be taken seriously. And Henry VII will also make timely arrangements based on the information. In this way, England can steadily defeat the French fleet, or even eliminate it. Only when the French fleet is finished will Edward's rule in England be stable in the future, and when Marin takes over, it will be more secure...

What? You say Edward might die later than Marin? This is impossible. Because, until Edward stabilized the situation in England, he was useless. It happened that Edward also offended the French. At that time, as long as you send someone to kill Edward, you can also push it to the French, or, the remnants of Henry VII...

Anyway, Marin planned to follow Edward's name and kill all the great nobles in England. And those big nobles are deeply rooted, and even if they are eradicated, there will inevitably be remnants. Perhaps, without Marin's hands, those remnants could have assassinated Edward. Moreover, it is quite reasonable to let those remnants take the blame. After all, the great feud of genocide is endless...

...

In addition, the timing of the information passing through O'Connor is important. Marin intended to give him the information when the French sent men to reconnaissance off the coast of England.

O'Connor is an ordinary clerk on the periphery of the French royal palace. It is impossible for him to know the core military secrets of France. He can only rely on Marin to tell him.

When the French sent men to explore the coast of England, the English merchant ships, which had been set aside, had not yet returned. At that time, the big ships did not return, the small boats did not gather, and the south coast of England must have looked empty.

During this time period, O'Connor sent the information back and informed Henry VII that the large ships were deliberately set aside by the French... Then, Henry VII was shocked and must have desperately recruited the small ships of England. But when he called up the boats, the French spies had already returned. When France gathered the fleet to kill, it happened to meet the returning English merchant ships and the small ships urgently called by Henry VII... In the context of traditional naval battles, those small ships can also exert great combat effectiveness. Of course, the premise is to fight traditional naval battles...