Wind Rises in North America 1625

Chapter 164: Building an Army
Just as the newly arrived immigrants were about to finish their meal, several handsome soldiers came in from the cafeteria door, stood in front of them, and looked at them with complicated expressions.

Mo Tianhai was wearing the navy's dark blue training uniform, a peaked military cap, and a saber slung around his waist. He glanced over and immediately quieted down the cafeteria, which had been a bit noisy.

"You have five minutes left. If you haven't eaten enough, hurry up and fill up." Mo Tianhai said loudly, "Later, after you finish your meal, you will follow us out to begin the ten-day intensive training."

"According to the order issued by our Qiming Island Decision-Making Committee, during your quarantine period, everyone must undergo basic military drills and simple language training. So, starting today, you'll conduct military training in the morning, camp expansion work in the afternoon, and an hour of language training and study of various management regulations in the evening."

"Before this, I want to warn you all. Everyone must obey our orders and not disobey them. If anyone violates this, they will be given a verbal warning the first time, whipped with a military stick the second time, and punished with confinement and a month of hard labor in the mines the third time. ... Do you all understand?"

"...General, do women and children also need to undergo military training?" Deng Kun looked at his wife and children beside him, slowly stood up from his seat, and asked in a deep voice.

"Hmm?" Mo Tianhai looked at the stocky Liao native and smiled. "Women and children don't have to participate in military training, but they need to keep the quarantine area clean. However, they must attend the evening language and regulations classes."

"What language are you learning?" Luo Congnan interrupted, "Are you going to learn the foreign language?"

"No need to learn the foreign language, just follow us and learn Chinese." Mo Tianhai was a little dissatisfied with this person's casual interruption. "All of you need to follow us and learn Mandarin, uh, the local official language. Also, let me remind you here that when you need to speak, you must raise your hand and say 'report'. Only after I allow you to stand up and speak."

"This general..." Luo Congnan was immediately happy when he heard that he had to follow them and speak Chinese.

I have been speaking Chinese for decades, but now that I have come to this foreign land, why do I need you to teach me how to speak?
"Shut up!" Mo Tianhai shouted harshly, "What was the order I just gave? If you want to speak, raise your hand and shout 'report'. You can only speak after you are allowed to!"

"..." Luo Congnan saw that the other party was angry, staring at him aggressively, with his right hand holding the knife at his waist, as if he was going to draw the knife and kill him if they had a disagreement. He immediately shrank his head and dared not say anything.

Damn it, now that we’ve come to this strange place, we’d better just listen to their orders.

Otherwise, it would be unprofitable if someone used it to scare others.

"Alright, now all adult men, please stand up and line up!"

The many immigrants looked at each other, with some doubt and confusion on their faces, and only a few dozen people stood up.

Some people were at a loss, just sitting there stupidly, as if they didn't understand the meaning of the order.

Many immigrants were still holding the empty bowls and plates and licking the food, looking like they were not full yet.

"All rise!"

"Go out and form a line!"

Seeing that their leader Mo Tianhai had a dark face and was on the verge of a rage, several "senior" militiamen hurried forward, shouting and waving their scabbards, kicking and beating the immigrants in the cafeteria to drive them out.

What a bunch of stupid pigs!
They can't even understand basic commands. I will have to train them well later.

Back then, after a whole winter of training, our men were not only able to wield swords and sticks, but also to fire muskets.

After some rough urging and driving, the more than 300 adult men in the cafeteria were driven to the open space outside the door like a flock of sheep and began to assemble in line.

The whole process lasted about seven or eight minutes, and after being kicked, beaten and pulled by several militiamen, they were finally able to form several square formations. However, the entire formation was crooked and in a mess.

However, there is a bright spot.

There was a formation that was obviously much more disciplined, and there was a faint aura of military solemnity.

"Hey, you were a soldier before?" Mo Tianhai walked up to the team and asked in surprise.

"Your Excellency, I am... uh, a former captain of the Left Brigade of Dongjiang Town. I followed Marshal Mao and General Chen to kill the Tartars." Deng Kun said proudly.

"Well, not bad, not bad." Mo Tianhai nodded and praised: "Dare to kill the Tartars, then you are a real man! ... How did you follow our immigration ship to Qiming Island?"

"Because I was not tolerated by some evil people in Dongjiang Town, I was sent to your immigration ship and unexpectedly came here..." Deng Kun replied embarrassedly.

"Alas, the affairs of your Ming Dynasty were ruined by this kind of infighting and internal strife, and in the end, it benefited the Tartars for nothing." Mo Tianhai shook his head and sighed, "However, since you have come to our Qiming Island, we will naturally not bury your talents. Practice well, and after the quarantine period is over, I will recommend a good place for you."

"..." Deng Kun was about to refute, but then he thought that there seemed to be no point in telling these people who were stranded in the foreign land. He moved his mouth but did not respond.

"Are there any former Ming Dynasty officers and soldiers here?" Mo Tianhai asked.

"General..."

"Pa! Pa!..." Mo Tianhai picked up the scabbard in his hand and hit the immigrants who were about to speak.

"I repeat again." After beating several people in succession, Mo Tianhai returned to the front of the team and shouted, "Anyone who wants to speak must raise their hands and report. Anyone who dares to do it again will be severely punished!"

"Alright, let me ask again, is there anyone here who is a former Ming Dynasty soldier?... Raise your hands and report!"

As soon as the words fell, the entire team fell silent and no one dared to respond.

"Hey, why are they all so scared?" Mo Tianhai sneered, "After a few beatings, you dare not answer? No wonder you were beaten by the Tartars and fled in panic, hiding on a small island, imitating others to be turtles!"

"Report!" an immigrant shouted loudly, "I used to be a sergeant in the Left Auxiliary Army of Dongjiang Town in the Ming Dynasty."

"Well, how many years have you been a soldier?" Mo Tianhai walked closer to him.

"I fled from Liaodong with my parents in the second year of the Tianqi reign. In the fifth year of the Tianqi reign, I joined the Dongjiang Town and served as a soldier for five years, holding the rank of General Flag."

"General Flag? That's considered a platoon leader. ...How many Tartars did you kill?"

“…Three.”

"Real Tartars, or fake Tartars?"

"Huh?..." The man was stunned.

How do they know that there are real and fake Tartars?
"Fake Tartar..."

"Not bad." Mo Tianhai nodded and said, "Those who dare to land in Liaodong and launch an offensive against the Tartars are true warriors. From now on, we on Qiming Island will definitely not treat you unfairly. ...Who else was once a member of the Ming Dynasty's official army?"

“Report, there is also a villain…” “Report, there is also me…”

"Report……"

"..."

In a short while, more than sixty immigrants reported that they were former Ming Dynasty soldiers, and many of them had fought on the battlefield and killed people.

"Oh my god! Instructor Wei and his men have recruited half a company of soldiers from Dongjiang Town?" Mo Tianhai was surprised and happy when he saw this.

We on Qiming Island are planning to establish a small professional army. Now it seems that we only need to select some militiamen who have received excellent military training over the years, and then mix and reorganize these Ming Dynasty official troops who have seen blood together. Wouldn't that be a force that can barely fight!

If the Spaniards come to attack, it will definitely give them a big surprise.
-
"Although the soon-to-arrive immigrant fleet will bring us over 2,500 immigrants, bringing the total population of Qiming Island to over 5,000, the manpower requirements for agriculture, industry, construction, and maritime transportation are enormous. This prevents us from establishing a large standing army."

In the conference room on the second floor of the administrative office building of Shixing Fort, an impromptu expanded meeting was being held to conduct extensive discussions and solicit opinions on the establishment of a full-time army unit.

In April, the immigrant fleet attacked a Spanish treasure ship again on its way to Ming Dynasty.

Although the operation was done cleanly and efficiently, and both the people and the boat were captured, no one could guarantee that the matter would not be leaked.

After all, the Portuguese are the biggest variable.

Or, a Portuguese sailor who was personally involved in the incident got drunk in a tavern and unconsciously spread the news in a big way, which then spread to Manila and then to Mexico, where the Spaniards learned about it.

Alternatively, in order to obtain more important benefits from the Spanish, the Portuguese sold Qiming Island to them directly through official channels.

In fact, starting from the accidental seizure of the "St. Louis" by the time travelers on Qiming Island five years ago, the "damage" caused to the Spaniards was not just one or two times. Almost every year they would take advantage of them and make some money, thus constantly "nourishing" the Qiming Island which was still in its infancy.

All this must have strongly stimulated the fragile hearts of the Spaniards, and they are looking for them frantically.

It can be predicted that once the Qiming Island where the time travelers are located is discovered, a large army will be gathered to kill them immediately and get rid of them as soon as possible.

In order to survive and protect themselves, the time travelers would immigrate from the Ming Dynasty frantically at all costs, in order to accumulate more manpower in the shortest time to fight against the invasion that the Spanish might launch at any time.

What's more, during the winter idle season, regardless of the cold weather, all young and strong men were organized to undergo necessary military training, trying to strengthen their own military strength by this form of universal military service.

Before this, some people had proposed to form a professional army, train it into elite soldiers, and then supplement it with a large number of conscripted armed militias in time of war to deal with the military threat from the Spanish.

However, due to lack of manpower, the decision-making committee temporarily rejected this proposal.

You say that with a population of only a few thousand, we can't even gather enough labor for farming and industry, so how can we have the spare capacity to set up a full-time professional army?
However, things are different now. The population of Qiming Island is about to exceed 5,000. In addition to filling the manpower gap in agriculture and industry, it will inevitably be able to squeeze out a certain amount of "surplus" population to a certain extent, thus forming a professional standing army.

In a real battlefield, professional soldiers are definitely more professional than temporarily recruited militia, and their combat effectiveness is incomparable.

"Although the size of the standing army we are about to establish cannot be too large, we can do our utmost to build it into a strong and elite force. Not only should its fighting spirit far surpass that of the armies of this era, but it should also be ahead of our opponents in tactics and weaponry."

Luo Zhenhui took over the conversation, his eyes determined as he said, "Although replicating the strongest army of our time and space is extremely difficult in this era, as long as we persevere and work hard, and successfully transplant even a small portion of that army's characteristics, we will be able to crush any of our opponents."

During this period, although European countries had established standing armies of a certain size, mercenaries usually still accounted for a large proportion of their armed forces, and could even determine the outcome of a battle or the rise and fall of a country.

You know, mercenaries fight just for a paycheck and are often unwilling to take risks.

For example, the Italians paid attention to precise calculations and avoiding casualties. When soldiers saw an unfavorable situation, they were more likely to choose to surrender rather than continue to fight to the death.

At the same time, the reliability of mercenaries is also questionable. As long as there is enough money, these military personnel will fight for their employers regardless of their country, class, master, or even religious beliefs.

Protestant Germans could happily fight under the banners of Spain or France, and professional Italian mercenaries could serve the English or the Dutch.

Mercenaries' employers change at any time according to needs, so they will not have any patriotic enthusiasm and will disobey orders when their conditions are not met.

When the war ended, the mercenaries who were no longer employed lost their source of income. They would use the money they earned from selling their lives to buy daily necessities from nearby citizens and merchants, but more of them would simply become looting bandits.

For example, during the "Spanish Fury" in 1574, some unemployed Spanish troops repeatedly looted Antwerp, causing widespread resentment among the local people.

As a result, European countries began to try to form standing armies to replace the mercenaries whose reputation was becoming increasingly bad.

Unlike mercenaries, standing armies basically only need to be paid, and their contracts can be terminated after the war.

Forming a standing army requires the country to supply weapons, equipment, venues and necessary supplies. At the same time, the newly formed army must spend time training to familiarize itself with its weapons and corresponding commands. It cannot directly provide high-quality soldiers who have been through many battles like mercenaries.

Due to various difficulties, most countries only make relatively small attempts at standing armies, that is, maintaining a small-scale standing army as the core of the army to replace some mercenaries.

The person who made a breakthrough in the construction of a standing army was Prince Maurice of the Netherlands. He realized the necessity of maintaining a standing army after reading ancient military works and facing the severe struggle for independence of the Netherlands at that time.

His greatest reform was the creation of a relatively stable standing army. Due to the small population of the United Provinces, these soldiers were mostly mercenaries or troops loaned from foreign countries at the expense of the Dutch. He kept these soldiers in service year after year, eventually turning them into a stable fighting force during the Eighty Years' War. Furthermore, maintaining this standing army over a long period of time allowed Maurice's ideas to permeate the ranks.

He first began to standardize the weapons used by the army, so that all troops serving the Netherlands, regardless of their origin, used the same standard spears, armor and muskets. This reduced the pressure on logistics and facilitated teaching.

Not content with this, Prince Maurice standardized the army's drill manual, compiling training requirements into a pamphlet. He also spent his free time training his soldiers, allowing him to quickly implement his new tactics, which featured more flexible formations and a more effective firing cycle than the Spanish. It was these measures that led to his success against the Spanish army.

Although the Kingdom of Spain had a standing army of over 60,000 men, the largest in Europe, during the war, its strength could barely meet the troop needs of the Flanders Theater.

Once a war breaks out, it is necessary to work closely with numerous "military contractors" and hire a large number of mercenaries to participate in the war.

During the Thirty Years' War, Spain had to face too many enemies, which required it to maintain a large force on several battlefields for a long time in order to maintain the Spanish Kingdom's hegemony in Europe.

As for the Spanish American colonial territories, the Madrid authorities believed that those third-rate colonial troops plus the temporarily recruited armed militia were enough to deal with any potential military conflicts, and there was no need to worry too much about security.

Even if there were Indian riots and pirate attacks, they were no more than the harm of scabies.

No country or force could truly threaten Spanish America.

"Therefore, we should establish a small but powerful standing army, give it more professional training methods and more superior weapons and equipment. This will surely enable us to gain astonishing combat power in future battles with the Spanish, thus ensuring that we can gain a firm foothold in this new continent!"

(End of this chapter)