I Became The Crown Prince Of The Mexican Empire - Chapter 134



Only Noblemtl

Mexican-American War (7)

“Hey, hey! That’s my house!”

A militiaman shouted, but to no avail.

Now he was under the chain of command, and America was at war.

Under the command of Colonel Peter Jones, the troops began to loot every building in New Orleans, scraping together every last grain of food, but even that soon reached its limit.

This is because most ordinary citizens also took food and left.

March 19, 1846.

Exactly one month after the Battle of New Orleans, food supplies in New Orleans ran out.

All personnel, including officers, survived on only one meal a day, but they had not prepared for the siege in advance, and on the contrary, most of the food they had was taken, so it was natural that they could not survive.

Even in New Orleans, the third most populous city in the United States, those crumbs weren’t enough to feed 30,000 adult males.

“···If you’ve made it this far, you’ve done enough.”

They were all healthy adult males. Many of them were dissatisfied with being fed even one meal a day, although they could not speak out due to the circumstances.

Naturally, many New Orleans residents were among the militia that defended New Orleans, and some were dissatisfied with the fact that even their homes had been raided.

Of course, I couldn’t fight. Even if I had fought a month ago, I wouldn’t have had a chance, so now that I’m starving and have no strength, I can’t fight.

Now it was the limit.

“Send a messenger. I surrender.”

“yes.”

A messenger carrying a white flag rode out of the city on horseback. He returned shortly.

“Come out quickly, I will treat you humanely.”

It was a bland answer considering the serious nature of the message.

“Haha, okay. Let’s get out quickly.”

Thirty thousand men marched out of the city like a defeated army. The besieging forces were not nervous. They had not been there long in the first place.

Tata-tang!

As we left the city, gunshots could be heard from afar.

“···Are you training?”

Colonel Jones asked cautiously.

“Yes, of course.”

“her.”

They say they occupied it, but they are training in this place that is clearly enemy territory. They really brought ammunition in abundance. Did they bring ammunition in abundance? They said that all materials were still abundant, and that their level of preparation for war was overwhelmingly different.

“Please have some of this.”

The Mexican army treated us to a generous meal.

“There’s no need to give this much to a prisoner, right?”

“Haha, of course you have to pay for the meal.”

There was talk of forcing them into forced labor. Well, it wasn’t just one or two prisoners, it was 30,000 prisoners. It would cost a huge amount of money just to keep them alive, so they couldn’t just be left alone.

Even if the situation was the opposite, he would have ordered the prisoners to do something.

The prisoners moved the barbed wire that surrounded New Orleans with their own hands.

“Put it over there.”

The Mexican officer pointed his finger to the north, where they were to create a defensive line against their homeland.

***

“Now I can go out with peace of mind.”

For a month, we managed the occupied territory and supply lines, reorganized our troops, conducted more training, and awaited the surrender of New Orleans.

Although they had a rough idea of ​​the number of enemy casualties and the size of the enemy’s retreat northward, they did not attempt street fighting.

Because it would cause unnecessary loss of life. There was also an opinion to burn the city to the ground by firing cannons, but that was also rejected.

‘It could be our Mexican Empire.’

It wasn’t a tip from the higher-ups. It was just a strategic location close to the border and one of the largest cities in the United States, so they left it there just in case.

Of course, waiting for surrender also had its drawbacks. It took time. The main force could not be sent out without thinking, leaving 30,000 enemy troops behind.

I used the month effectively because it needed maintenance, but I was starting to get impatient.

“All troops! Prepare to march!”

65,000 troops began preparing to move. It was decided to leave behind 10,000 wounded men to guard New Orleans, the southern territories, and the supply lines.

March 20, 1846.

The Mexican Empire’s First Army Corps began to advance northward along the Mississippi River.

They captured every village they encountered along the way, and there was no significant resistance.

After going north for about 120km, I came into view of Baton Rouge, the city I had seen on my way down.

At the time, they were just ignored cities across the river, like New Orleans, but now they too were across the river.

It was not a small city, so it was a place that had to be captured, but there was no fighting.

“They say the fleet has already passed.”

“Well, I guess so.”

The city’s citizens looked terrified.

There were traces of relentless artillery bombardment of a city without proper defensive facilities or garrison. It was evidence that the efforts to build defensive facilities had been completely destroyed.

The 1st Corps easily took Baton Rouge and requisitioned some of its food supplies.

“At this rate, there won’t be any fighting until we join up with the 2nd Corps.”

The 2nd Corps, which had set out in early March, was sweeping up the vast territory west of the Mississippi River.

We are destroying all the militias that were raiding our supply routes and establishing a systematic occupied territory management system.

The destination where the two corps were to join was ‘Memphis’. It was a large city, located in the middle reaches of the Mississippi River, and was a strategic and economic stronghold.

‘Maybe we’ll have another proper fight there.’

Unless the enemy goes mad, they can’t afford to give up Memphis.

***

At the end of March, bad news struck New York, the largest city in the United States, again.

“Extra! Extra! New Orleans has fallen!”

“What? Already?”

News of defeat in the Battle of New Orleans had already hit New York.

“What the hell is going on?”

“It’s only been a month, I thought I could last at least two months···.”

The third-largest city in the United States by population has been occupied.

The international community, including Britain, initially expected Mexico to have the advantage and watched with calmness, but it was a huge shock to American citizens.

I knew that the Mexican Empire had a strong naval force, but I had no idea that they would be defeated so easily on land.

Not only did they declare war first and get invaded first, they also failed to defend the river and New Orleans was occupied.

Some criticized President James Polk for starting the war without adequate preparation, but Polk cleverly argued that the blame lay with Mexico.

“Look at those legions of the Mexican Empire! They were preparing in advance to invade our United States! They prepared in advance, they created a pretext for war, they made us decide to go to war to defend ourselves!”

Many military experts and intellectuals also supported the president’s claim, saying, “The Mexican Empire must have been preparing for war for a long time.”

In fact, the Mexican Empire’s surprise attack was beyond common sense.

In times of national and personal crisis, James Polk began to use more explicit and aggressive language to agitate the public.

“That uncivilized ‘imperial state’, the Mexican Empire, is mobilizing a massive army by enacting a ‘massive draft law’ that allows even women and old people to be drafted! Freedom-loving citizens of the United States! Our freedom and democracy are at stake! Help us defend America!”

President James Polk made a fuss as if the country had been ‘invaded.’

He openly promoted expansionist beliefs, sent troops to the border to create a pretext for war, and ultimately drove the two countries into war, yet he felt no shame.

It was a great talent of a demagogue to be shameless. At some point, the American people began to believe that all this was the work of the Mexican Empire.

It was unclear whether he had truly been deceived or if he wanted to be deceived.

Even if it was only a temporary emotion, at this moment, the national unity of the United States was being strengthened in the face of the enemy, the Mexican Empire.

By the end of March, the United States was rapidly transitioning to a wartime state, but in the meantime, shocking news began to come in one after another.

***

The Mexican Empire’s fleet appears off the coast of New York.

“The defense level is really impressive.”

Indeed, New York Harbor had a level of defense befitting its reputation.

Several forts protected the harbor, beginning with Fort Wood near Liberty Island.

New York Harbor was one of the largest and most important ports in the United States, serving as a major gateway for international trade and immigration, and so the United States built defense facilities appropriate to its importance.

“Up to here. Don’t come any closer.”

The defenses along the Mississippi River were of little consequence, with forts and coastal guns painted to look like jokes.

“A port blockade doesn’t necessarily mean forcing a fleet into a port and destroying all the coastal defense facilities.”

“Yes, because we just need to block ships coming into the port from outside and ships going out of the port.”

As it was the busiest port in the United States, many ships were coming and going. They either didn’t know yet that war had broken out or, even if they did, there was no news of a blockade.

But the Mexican fleet suddenly appeared and intercepted them. In front of the harbor, out of range of coastal guns, the Mexican Empire’s fleet sent messengers to all ships.

“Due to the ongoing military conflict, the country is imposing a full port blockade on designated waters, including the Port of New York.

Any attempt to enter the blockade area is strictly prohibited, and any vessel violating the blockade will not be guaranteed safety.

We strongly advise all vessels to carefully consider this notice and not attempt to approach the blockade area, but to take safe alternative routes.”

It was a great loss for the merchant ships to come all the way to the port and just turn back, but no captain had the guts to ignore the warning while firing his main gun.

“Damn, this trip is a total bust.”

“Shall we turn towards Canada?”

“okay.”

The citizens of New York who were watching the scene were outraged, but there was nothing they could do. Only by dispatching the fleet could the blockade of the port be lifted.

“Mobilize all available warships!”

It was an order from the naval command. No ironclads were needed to blockade the port.

Now in Mexico, the ships of the line and frigates, which were considered outdated, had a power that ordinary trading vessels could not even think of opposing, and were more than enough to conduct blockade operations.

“Hahahaha, a country without a fleet.”

The remaining American fleet retreated to Pensacola, which was blockaded by twelve ironclads and twenty monitors, twice as many as the opposing fleet.

In this way, America’s maritime trade routes began to be blocked.