Joseon Military Officer, Establishing Balhae - Chapter 304



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Episode 304

Battle of Gaeju (1)

Donghaebu Seolhae Port.

A sailing ship that I had never seen before was gliding across the sea of ​​Seolhaeman. It had three masts and was similar in size to an Aoji-class medium-sized ship, but its speed was incomparably faster.

Taegeon and Lee Ha-ryun were watching the sailing scene of this new type of sailing ship through the Cheonri-gyeong from the observation deck located on the hill northwest of Seolhae Port.

“It came out okay?”

Taegeon gave a short comment while looking down at the Cheonri Gyeong.

“Are you sure you’re okay?”

“Oh, very good.”

As soon as he heard the news that a new sailing ship had been developed, Taegeon took a train and headed there. Thanks to the opening of the Gyeongseul Line, he could travel to and from Seolhae Port without any trouble, so he rushed over to watch this test sailing scene.

“You said that prototype was a schooner?”

Tae-Geon asked in a small voice so that no one else could hear.

“Yes. It’s a schooner. However, it’s not necessarily a schooner. It’s just a modified model of our stern, except that it uses a triangular sail. The difference is that our stern uses square sails as well.”

Lee Ha-ryun smiled and gestured to Son Won-pyo, a professor of shipbuilding engineering at Seolhae University, who was on his right. He was completely absorbed in the sea, watching the test sailing scene. The developer of this new type of sailboat was Son Won-pyo, and Lee Ha-ryun only provided the concept.

Schooners are one of the types of sailing ships developed in the Netherlands at this time, but they were not widely built and used until much later. Schooners were sailing ships with two or more masts and only triangular sails (alternating sails), and were specialized for speed. Therefore, the hulls were designed with speed in mind, and they were of various sizes, so they were used not only for coastal navigation but also for ocean voyages.

Since it only used triangular sails, it was possible to sail against the wind at a very high speed, and its ability to cut through rough seas was also excellent. As a result, in the West, it was mainly used for Atlantic slave trade ships, privateers, and merchant ships carrying cargo that required rapid transportation. It was also popular as a fishing boat because it required less manpower than a sailing ship using a square sail (plane sail).

“It is said that it has an excellent ability to ride the wind, so it would be very useful in the waters of Ryukyu or Formosa. The wind direction in those waters changes frequently and it is rugged.”

“So, didn’t everyone say that we needed a new type of sailing ship? And this ship just happened to be the result of a project to develop a high-speed ship? Hehe!”

“Okay, very good.”

Taegeon was very satisfied.

“Thank you, Geoha.”

Son Won-pyo, who had come close to Tae-geon, bowed his head and expressed his gratitude. Tae-geon asked him.

“If you use that as a warship, how many guns can it mount?”

“I’m thinking of about twelve doors, six on each side. Of course, it could be more. The size of that ship is similar to that of the Aoji class.”

“Twelve is enough. Our cannons are so powerful that there is no need to place so many cannons like before.”

“Yes, I understand. Then I will design the warship accordingly.”

“Oh, of course, please let us use it for commercial purposes as well. It seems like a ship that shipping companies would really like.”

“Yes, I will do that.”

The Balhae-type schooner was not much different from the chubby ship in terms of form, except for the size. The chubby ship was also built in large numbers for civilian use, and was used as a fishing boat, coastal cargo ship, and passenger ship. Therefore, if you went to a port designated as a fishing port, you could see a scene of chubby ships anchored together with small side boats that could only accommodate three or four people. Even the chubby ships for fishing boats had already been improved several times, and their appearance was very different from the chubby ships used by the navy.

“If the center ship were to be a little bigger, it would probably be able to sail the ocean.”

“Actually, it is still possible. However, it is somewhat dangerous, so the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries has banned it.”

The Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries was a ministry that was launched last year. Balhae was a country that had been promoting itself as a maritime power from the beginning, and as the size of the shipping and fishing industries grew day by day, the Balhae government eventually had no choice but to establish this ministry.

“Giha, then please give that new sailing ship a name. Do you have one in mind?”

Lee Ha-ryun asked.

“It’s called Haerang-gyeop. I’ll try to use the northern place names this time.”

Haerang-hyeon was one of the main strongholds of Inanbu.

“So, should we call it a Haerang-class frigate?”

“Haerang-class frigate……. Nice.”

Lee Ha-ryun nodded and responded positively.

“Then let’s go to the port. There are people waiting… Huh? A naval officer?”

Lee Ha-ryun stopped talking when he saw two high-ranking officers in naval uniforms running up the stairs to the observation deck.

The two men explained their business to the head of the guard and were immediately guided to Taegeon. They saluted and briefly introduced themselves.

“Giha! This is Lieutenant Commander Kim Tae-in, the Naval Liaison Officer at Seolhae Port. The contact ship sent from Hani Island just arrived and brought a report.”

“The Honey Island?”

Vice Minister Kim Tae-in knelt down and submitted his report.

The writer of the report was Tammy. Taegeon quickly read the report and then handed it to Lee Ha-ryun.

“The Ming and the Netherlands struck first.”

Taegeon defined the Battle of Hani Strait simply as follows: Victory was a given, and the achievements that came with the victory were well rewarded, but the important thing was that they attacked first.

“Huh? Look at these guys?”

Lee Ha-ryun responded without taking his eyes off the report.

“Well, we’ve captured five more Dutch East India Company ships. Most of them are in tatters though, so I’m not sure if they can be repaired or used.”

Lee Ha-ryun summarized the report so that those around him could hear it as well.

“Besides, since we have captured over two thousand prisoners, it would be great to use them in the Hani Islands and the freshwater province of Formosa. There is a lot of work to be done there.”

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Lee Ha-ryun handed the report back to the secretary of the Taewangbu and looked at Tae-geon. Tae-geon remained silent as he thought about his next move.

Soon Tae-Geon spoke to the secretary who had been accompanying him.

“Preach it out. Until the end of this war, or more precisely, until I issue the order to lift the embargo, all merchant vessels belonging to any nation are prohibited from approaching the eastern coast of the country.”

Lee Ha-ryun smiled in satisfaction, as it was a natural measure. He planned to do so when war broke out, especially when a naval battle broke out.

“Inform the British East India Company, Spain, and Portugal of this fact, and also convey our intention to take measures to cover their losses through our trade with Balhae.”

“Yes, geometry.”

Tae-Gun spoke again to Navy Liaison Officer Kim Tae-In.

“If we are going to launch a naval blockade, it will be difficult with only two squadrons. Shouldn’t we deploy one more squadron from the 3rd Fleet?”

“Yes, I will report this to the Navy Headquarters immediately.”

Taegeon paused again. His gaze lingered for a moment on the sea of ​​Seolhaeman.

“What are you thinking?”

“Now that the war has begun, I’m thinking about what to do first.”

“The ground forces are already fully prepared and will be able to carry out any order.”

“Good! Then there’s no need to wait for the enemy to provoke you first. Let’s start from the Gaeju area. Contact Ung-ak right away. Attack immediately.”

Each army unit stationed on the front lines was simply waiting for Taegeon’s orders to be given.

“Yes, that’s right.”

Thanks to Taegeon coming to Seolhae Port, he was able to receive the report sent by Taemi earlier. As a result, Taegeon’s response was also faster.

Taegeun and Lee Ha-ryun canceled their attendance at the remaining events and returned straight to Seoul.

* * *

General Liu Zheng, who commanded the 1st Army of the Ming army, led 30,000 troops to a small pass north of Gaeju under the order of Yang Ho, the commander-in-chief of the Liaodong Gyeongryak. It was a low pass that would be the future boundary between Daeseokgyo and Gaeju. This was the staging point of the 1st Army of the Ming army that Yang Ho had ordered.

When Yang Ho was appointed as the Commander-in-Chief of Liaodong, he appointed generals who had experience fighting in the Imjin War and the previous Liaodong War, including Du Song, Yu Jeong, Gwan Byeong-chung, Shi Guk-ju, and Liaodong General Yi Yeo-baek.

He divided his army into four groups, and among them, he made the Gaeju area army his allies. In fact, this unit was the main force of the Ming army, and the commander of the allies was Du Song, the general of the Shanhaiguan.

Yu Jeong and his adjutants climbed the highest mountain in the vicinity, Walnut Mountain. It was not a very high mountain, just a small hill, but it offered the best view in the area.

As I climbed the mountain, the first thing that caught my eye was the leisurely flowing Daegyeong River to the east.

Yoo Jeong asked his adjutant, the Vice Minister of the Marine Corps, Kang Eung-geon.

“You said that if you follow that river, you’ll reach Hwangtolyeong?”

“Yes.”

The adjutant was very knowledgeable about the geography of the Liaodong region and was from there.

“But I heard that there are no additional troops deployed there.”

“That’s right. There’s no need to guard such a rough terrain.”

The 1st Army of the rear army, which was half of the rear army commanded by Yu Jeong, was assigned the role of supporting the right army of Gaeju. Therefore, when the right army began to engage in a battle with the Balhae army guarding Ungaek-hyeon, they planned to immediately move south and attack the Balhae army camp at Hashima Ridge.

The reason why Ming’s strategy of going over Hashima Ridge was decided was because if they crossed it, they could advance to the southern part of the Liaodong Peninsula via the Zhanghe (Zhuanghe) or Bilihe Valleys. Although the terrain was somewhat rough, it was a shortcut.

“Did the rear advancing navy detect our movements?”

“well.”

“You probably know by now, right?”

“That may be true. But it would be difficult for them to reinforce their forces on the Gaeju front. They are far away.”

“That’s true.”

The reason why the Ming army stationed 60,000 troops in the rear and stayed in Liaoyang, while the main force, the right army, was only 40,000 troops, was to induce Balhae to let its guard down. Of course, 40,000 troops were not a small number, but considering the strength of the Balhae army, it was not a large number. Not only was the strategy good, but Liu Zheng had also experienced it painfully in the First Northeast Asian War, the Liaodong War.

So, the decision was made not to deploy 70,000 troops from the beginning, but to send only 40,000 troops first, and then deploy an additional 30,000 troops, half of the rearguard, as the battle was imminent.

Therefore, the 20,000 central army troops deployed in the Suam area and the 40,000 left army troops deployed in the Yeonsan-gwan area were responsible for dispersing Balhae’s forces.

“According to what we have learned so far, the number of naval forces beyond that front is only 25,000. So no matter how strong they are, there will certainly be no great difficulty in breaking through the front line. However, the problem comes after the breakthrough. Even if we occupy Liaodong, we still have to cross the Yalu River…….”

The Ming army was not yet aware of the fact that the 17th Division of the Balhae reserve forces had joined.

Commander Kang Eung-geon was confident of victory in the first battle. However, he was not sure about the situation after that.

Yoo Jeong glanced at Kang Eung Geon and smiled bitterly.

“It won’t be easy to fight in the West. Do you know how scary their guns are?”

“Yes. I’ve heard it so many times it’s become a pain in the ass.”

Kang Eung-geon had not experienced the Balhae army’s firearms in the previous war, so he only knew about them through rumors.

“So, you mustn’t let your guard down……”

Before Yu-jeong could finish speaking, gunfire suddenly began to be heard from the south.

“What, what is it?”

“Huh? Is this the start of a battle?”

“Oh… It looks like the Balhae army is going to attack first. The order to start attack hasn’t even arrived yet, right? Hmm, the Balhae army, which is outnumbered, is going to attack first.”

Yujeong felt anxiety creeping up inside her.

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