Chapter 185 The results of the naval battle and British expansion

When Arthur, who was far away in Australia, received the final report on the naval battle between the Russian Empire and the island nation, it was already noon the next day.

Not only Arthur and the two protagonists of the Tsarist Empire and the island country, but also the British Empire, the German Empire and the United States, as well as the Tsarist Empire's ally France, are all very concerned about this large sea battle that can determine the situation in the Far East.

The Russian Empire currently has one thing in common with the island countries. Their logistics rely heavily on maritime transportation.

Although the currently highly disputed area in the Far East is adjacent to the Tsarist Russian Empire, the Far East and the European region of the Tsarist Russian Empire are adjacent to distant Siberia, a cold and desolate land.

Coupled with the fact that the Trans-Siberian Railway has not yet been completed, it is impossible to rely on road transportation.

This also led to a huge flaw in the Tsarist Empire, that is, the logistics cost in the Far East was several times that of the island countries.

Neither the island nation nor the Russian Empire could afford the cost of defeat in a naval battle. If the advantage is lost on the sea, the logistics of fighting in the Far East will be enough to bring down the entire country.

The detailed results in Arthur's hands were provided by Germany. As countries that were also very interested in this war, Germany and many European countries sent joint observation groups. The results of the war were estimated by the participating groups based on the traces on the sea after the naval battle at that time and the number of fleets from the two countries returning to their bases. , even if it is not that accurate, it is at least mostly consistent.

Judging from the results of this battle, both the Pacific Fleet and the Combined Fleet suffered heavy losses in this naval battle.

The island squadron responsible for intercepting the main force of the Pacific Fleet directly lost one battleship and four cruisers. The remaining battleship was also damaged, and the six cruisers were more or less injured.

The main force of the Pacific Fleet is not doing well either. One Petropavlovsk-class battleship was directly seriously injured and will have no combat effectiveness in a short period of time.

In addition, two cruisers were sunk and buried in the ocean outside Port Arthur.

However, in general, the main force of the Pacific Fleet took advantage of its numerical advantage to sink one battleship and four cruisers of the island nation with only one relatively weak Petropavlovsk-class battleship, which was severely damaged and two cruisers were lost. The battleships and cruisers also lost more or less, which was considered a good victory.

Of course, the reason for such good results is also the excellent command of Lieutenant General Makarov.

In addition to these, the island nation's fleet was successfully driven into the minefield laid out in advance. This is also the reason why the island nation's fleet suffered such heavy damage.

The battle situation on General Witthoft's side was much more disastrous. Although he received timely assistance from General Makarov, a Petropavlovsk-class battleship was still sunk, and the remaining A battleship that was launched was not in good shape either. It would not be able to return to its former glory without undergoing a period of repairs.

The result for the six cruisers was even more tragic. Originally, the two cruisers were chased by the island country's Second Fleet and suffered some minor injuries.

In this sea battle, the two cruisers also bore a considerable part of the firepower. They were directly sunk in the first search, and another one was seriously damaged and scrapped.

One of the remaining four cruisers was seriously damaged, and three were slightly damaged. Among them, simple repairs for minor injuries can continue to put them into battle, while those with serious injuries will also need to undergo major repairs.

The main force of the island country's combined fleet severely damaged two battleships and three cruisers. The loss of two cruisers was more tragic than the Tsarist Russian Empire.

This battle caused the Tsarist Empire to lose one battleship and three cruisers, seriously damaged two battleships and two cruisers, and lost almost one-third of the main warships of the Pacific Fleet.

On the island nation's side, one battleship and six cruisers were lost, three battleships and three cruisers were seriously damaged, and the losses were nearly half of the combined fleet.

Judging from the goals of both parties, the goal of the main force of the island nation's fleet has been achieved.

They successfully lured the leading force of the Pacific Fleet out of the hole and allowed it to enter the encirclement of the United Fleet of Island Nations.

The vanguard consisted of two battleships and six cruisers. In this naval battle, one battleship was sunk, one battleship was seriously damaged, and only four of the six cruisers were left, and only three had combat capabilities.

But what the island country did not expect was that General Makarov, as the commander of the Pacific Fleet, was not in the vanguard, but led the main force one step behind.

This also made the island country's plan come to nothing. They originally thought that General Makarov would dispatch directly. Combined with General Makarov's violent and bold character, they believed that General Makarov would successfully enter the center of their encirclement. .

But what they didn't expect was that it was General Witthoft who led the leading troops. This is a soldier who is relatively cautious by nature. After he succeeded Makarov as the new commander of the Pacific Fleet in history, he did not even take any active risky actions, which is enough to show the caution of General Witthoeft.

It was precisely because General Witthoft had to be cautious that the vanguard did not completely enter the encirclement of the island nation's combined fleet, and it also allowed the vanguard to successfully persist until the main force of the Pacific Fleet arrived.

But in any case, compared to the island country's loss of one battleship and six cruisers, as well as the serious damage to three battleships and three cruisers, the Tsarist Empire only lost one battleship and three cruisers, and only two battleships. and two cruisers were seriously damaged. Obviously, the losses of the Russian Empire were smaller.

After this war, there are currently not many warships available to both sides. The number of warships sunk in this naval battle has even been ranked among the top 20 in the world.

Currently, the Pacific Fleet only has four battleships that can perform normal tasks. As sub-main warships and cruisers as auxiliary warships, the Pacific Fleet currently has only nine ships left.

As for the island country, it originally had eight battleships and nearly twenty cruisers. After this naval battle, there were only four battleships and only ten cruisers that could continue to have combat effectiveness.

Before the war began, the Pacific Fleet had the naval advantage.

But after the island country successfully attacked, the Pacific Fleet, which seriously damaged a battleship and a battlecruiser, fell into a disadvantage.

Originally, the people of the island country were still happy, thinking that after this sneak attack, the island country would be at an advantage in terms of army and navy, and it would only be a matter of time before it defeated the huge Tsarist Russian Empire.

But after this naval battle, both the Pacific Fleet and the Combined Fleet currently have only four battleships available, and the number of cruisers is not much different, and they are basically at the same level.

More importantly, of the four remaining battleships in the Pacific Fleet, two are relatively powerful new warships, and the battleship Crown Prince, which was seriously injured in a sneak attack, has basically been repaired and can be put into battle immediately.

As for the Combined Fleet, the battleships lost in the naval battle were basically new battleships, and the remaining battleships can only maintain the same level as the battleships of the Pacific Fleet.

In fact, this is inevitable. Although the British Empire supports the island countries and the Russian Empire in their struggle for hegemony, it cannot cultivate a naval enemy for itself.

The warships sold by the British Empire to island countries are basically second-class warships within the British Empire, and there are only a handful of the most advanced warships.

The outcome of the naval battle was unacceptable to both warring parties. If you want to accept it, it may be the Tsarist Russian Empire.

General Makarov was quite satisfied with the outcome of the naval battle. At least after the sneak attack, the Pacific Fleet finally took the initiative on the sea. As long as the maintenance of the battleship Crown Prince is completed, the Pacific Fleet will once again have an advantage in battleships.

In fact, this is not far away. The injuries sustained by the Crown Prince will require up to two months of repairs in normal times.

However, due to the current war and lack of certain resources, the maintenance time will be postponed to three months.

But two months have passed, and it is expected that the Crown Prince will be able to perform its mission again by the end of next month at the latest and become the lead ship of the Pacific Fleet in controlling the situation in the Far East.

As for the island countries, they do not care about international morality, and the slightest advantage they gained from undeclared war and sneak attacks on the Pacific Fleet no longer exists.

The Combined Fleet and the Pacific Fleet can still maintain a certain advantage in a short period of time, but the Pacific Fleet's battleship Crown Prince will have a shorter repair time than the several seriously injured battleships of the Combined Fleet. If the battleship Crown Prince regains its combat effectiveness, what will happen to the battleship? This is bad news for the island nation.

If the sea is blocked by the Pacific Fleet, island countries will also face heavier logistical pressure.

Although the island country is located in the Far East, the logistical distance and difficulty are greatly reduced compared to the Tsarist Russian Empire.

But this is also under the condition of mastering the advantage of the sea surface. As an island country, if the maritime transportation and communication lines are cut off, it will be a heavy blow to the island country in this war.

Judging from the current results, the happiest people should be the British Empire and the United States.

In terms of naval strength, the current Pacific Fleet and Combined Fleet maintain a delicate balance, which also means that wars on land will become more anxious and intense.

When both sides lack naval superiority, they can only rely on the consumption of land forces to win.

The consumption of these two countries is something that the British Empire and the United States are happy to see.

There is nothing better than the current hegemon in the Far East, the Russian Empire, and the island countries that may become the hegemon in the Far East, consuming each other, at least for the British Empire and the United States.

The Russian Empire, the overlord of the Far East, and the competitor island countries were both busy with wars and had no time to think about anything else. The British Empire also launched its own plan and began to seek expansion in northern India.

I have to say, this is a good time period. The only threats to the British Empire in this area are the Russian Empire, the island countries and France.

The first two countries were busy with wars and were already fighting fiercely. Naturally, it was impossible for them to escape and seek trouble from the British Empire.

On the French side, suffering from the threat of the Triple Alliance, France has been trying to win over the British Empire.

Coupled with the fact that its ally, the Russian Empire, was facing war, France was a little too busy to care about others, and it was even less likely to protest against Britain's actions alone.

This also led to British expansion in India being extremely smooth, and there was not much opposition from the international community.

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