Late Ming Dynasty: Oops, I am surrounded by the Donglin Party

The so-called Eighty Years' War naturally refers to the Dutch War of Independence.

In fact, a considerable number of wars fought by Europeans in the Middle Ages were caused by inheritance issues.

Europeans have their own system of inheritance, which prioritizes people based on bloodline.

For example, if there is a royal marriage between country A and country B, and country B has no royal family, then the king of country A may inherit the territory of country B and become the king of both country A and country B.

In addition, many European royal families like to marry close relatives, so under this inheritance system, it is very easy for the family line to become extinct.

For example, Spain, the Habsburgs, Bohemia and even France, as well as many duchies and counties within the Holy Roman Empire, often attacked each other over issues of succession rights.

In order to solve this problem, many countries have invented more inheritance systems. For example, Poland, a smart country in Europe, came up with a new method - the election of a monarch.

As long as each country has a royal marriage with Poland, it can recommend its own nobles to be the king of Poland.

Of course, in order to avoid this problem, many countries simply choose a republic.

The reasons for the Dutch War of Independence are even more complicated. The Netherlands is also known as the Netherlands, which means low land. It is one of the richest regions in all of Europe.

Through two hundred years of intermarriage, the Spanish gradually gained control of the lowlands, but at this time the religious reform in Europe was surging.

Because the Netherlands has a super-developed economy and more open-minded people, many people in the lowlands are more inclined to Protestant doctrines.

As a staunch supporter of Catholicism, Spain certainly could not tolerate such behavior in the Lowlands.

In an era when religious authority was higher than imperial authority, what was more intolerable than pagans was heresy.

So the rulers of Spain began to persecute Dutch Protestants in the Inquisition.

Eventually the Dutch could no longer tolerate this and a revolution broke out, and the war lasted for eighty years.

It ended only because of the end of another war, which was the Thirty Years' War, also known as the Religious Wars, which caused the Europeans to lose a large number of people.

Finally, with the help of filial Catholics, Protestants won the war. It was also in this year that the Netherlands won independence with the help of Old Master Gu.

As for the double-deck battleship Zhang Shikang mentioned, it was actually his way of testing the Da Vinci in front of him.

Zhang Shikang once played a game called Europa Universalis and knew the history of warship updates and replacements.

At least on the European side, the main warships, from the original caravels, to galleons, to double-deck battleships, and then to triple-deck battleships.

Although he knew the development history, Zhang Shikang did not know when the double-deck battleship came out and when it replaced the galleon and became the latest generation of main battleship.

"What? The Eighty Years' War?

How can Your Excellency the Duke be sure that the war in the Netherlands will last eighty years?

Double-decker battleship? Your Excellency the Duke actually knows the latest warship of the Netherlands?"

Da Vinci's eyes widened, he was truly shocked.

If you do the math, their country's war of independence has been going on for a full seventy-two years.

But even so, Da Vinci couldn't tell who would win or lose.

Now not only their country is at war, but all European countries are in chaos.

As for double-deck battleships, the Netherlands had indeed begun mass production, but due to the domestic situation, this latest type of warship was never used in the East Indies.

Even the Zheng family might not know it, but this short-sighted, greedy and arrogant young noble of the Ming Dynasty in front of him actually knew it. How could Da Vinci not be shocked?

"Don't worry about these. Just tell me whether the double-deck battleship can be sold."

Hearing that the Dutch warships had actually been replaced, Zhang Shikang tried to ask.

If the Dutch fleet is really completely replaced, the regional situation in East Asia and Southeast Asia may undergo major changes in the future.

Compared with the galleons, the Ming Dynasty's Fuzhou ships have begun to lag behind in performance and firepower. If the Netherlands really brings its main fleet to Asia at that time, Zheng Zhilong might be in trouble.

However, both the Dutch War of Independence and the religious wars throughout Europe ended eight years later with the signing of the so-called Peace of Westphalia.

By then, most European countries will begin to compete for overseas markets in order to gain more benefits, and the colonial movement will reach its climax.

In other words, the Ming Dynasty had at most five or six years to prepare.

Five or six years may seem like a long time, but considering the overall technological advancement of a country, it is still an extremely short time.

Not to mention that the construction of ports and shipyards alone would take one or two years. The modification of warships, including the development, launching and trial voyage, and mass production of galleons, would take a considerable amount of time.

After wiping out the imperial court, Zhang Shikang originally planned to take a break, but now it seems that he has to speed up his pace.

"Your Excellency, the double-decker warship is the most advanced warship in the Netherlands. Even the Governor of Batavia has no right to buy or sell it!

Please believe in my sincerity, I can help you get a sufficiently favorable price for the Galleon warship.

Moreover, in the whole of Asia, the Galleon warship is the best warship." Da Vinci said with great confidence.

It just doesn't include Europe, right? What a jerk! Zhang Shikang felt extremely unhappy.

With the help of Johann Adam Schall von Bell, he developed a 24-pound cannon that was considered advanced in Europe, but he had to keep it a secret from others, not letting them know about the improvement of black gunpowder and other projects that the General Administration of Manufacturing was developing.

As human beings, double standards are inevitable.

After frowning and thinking for a while, Zhang Shikang decided to cooperate with the Dutch first.

No matter what, we must increase the Ming Dynasty's naval power as much as possible. This is why we cooperate with Zheng Dezong, with Guoguo Ya, and with the Dutch.

"How much silver does one of your galleons cost?" Zhang Shikang asked.

The Zheng family's silk ship cost 100,000 taels to build. Including all the sailors, gunners, boatmen, and various cannons, muskets, cold weapons, armor, etc., Zheng Zhibiao asked for 190,000 taels for a silk ship.

Zhang Shikang knew that the price given by Zheng Zhibiao was definitely an internal price, because the Zheng family had asked him for something in the first place.

But he knew the situation of the Netherlands. It was a business group disguised as a country, and it would not do anything without profit. He was mentally prepared for this guy to make exorbitant demands.

When Da Vinci heard this, he immediately smiled. Business was his strong point, and political needs were secondary.

"Your Excellency, do you want only warships? Or do you want artillery and firearms as well?

The quality of our Dutch artillery is among the best in Europe!"

"Compared with the little France?" Zhang Shikang said casually.