The Rise of the Empire

Makanov did a really good job. Through maneuver and strategic deception, he created a situation that was beneficial to him, and killed a Japanese battleship, although there was some trickery in it. But generally speaking, the situation of the Russian fleet is not good. It is true that the Makanov fleet is very powerful, but Togo Heihachiro’s Japanese main fleet is even stronger. The Satsuma-class battleships are even stronger than the Borodino-class battleships on paper! And 8 Japanese battleships naturally took little effort to deal with two old-fashioned second-class battleships.

Just when the Tsukuba began to sink, under the siege of 8 Japanese battleships and at least 2 dozen destroyers and torpedo boats, the great Siysos and Navarin hurriedly finished their last journey in their lives! The dense barrage quickly swallowed the counterattack of the two Russian battleships, and then ten torpedo boats went up and fired three rounds of torpedo salvos. There were huge explosions on the two Russian battleships. Five minutes later, Siysos The Navarin was broken in two and the Navarin capsized and sank to the bottom of the sea.

The Japanese main fleet, which had completed its tactical turn, began to catch up with the Russian fleet. Makanov, on the other hand, used the last period of time to frantically attack the Japanese cruiser formation. Makanov's layout is still very characteristic. The four Borodino-class battleships are divided into two groups, with two at the head of the team and two at the end of the team. Ordinarily, this layout is unreasonable, because warships of the same level generally have similar performance and should be deployed together. However, Makanov also has reasons for doing so.

"If we put 4 battleships in front, then when the Japanese main fleet catches up, their Satsuma battleships are directly facing the weakest cruiser among us. I don't think the American cruisers are facing 4 How long can the Satsuma-class battleship last. Because of the limitation of the battleship, the speed advantage of the armored cruiser cannot be used at all. So I can only be beaten. Therefore, I decided to let the two stronger battleships be broken. As for the separation of the battleship and the cruiser? It is even more impossible to be caught and killed by the opponent one by one." Makanov explained after the battle.

When the Dongxiang Fleet arrived, the Russian fleet fell into a passive state again, and the advantage in the battle quickly disappeared. When the eight Japanese battleships gradually followed up, the more severely damaged Asama in the Japanese armored cruiser fleet temporarily withdrew from the battle, and then Uemura Hikoyuki and the officers of his command boarded the destroyer and transferred to the Kasuga. The Asama sailed to the mainland under the protection of the destroyer. The loss of a capital ship has already made the Japanese heartbroken. The Asama ship was hit many times at the bow and stern, and it was severely flooded, and it was not suitable for continued high-speed navigation and fighting. Therefore, when the own fleet was superior, it was natural to let it evacuate first.

The arrival of the Togo Fleet immediately made Makanov feel tremendous pressure. The four Satsuma-class battleships really deserved to be the masters of the British battleships of the same period. The powerful firepower and defense of these fearless battleships made it almost impossible for the Russians to resist, even if the Borodino-class battleships, known for their strong guns, faced the Japanese fleet with an absolute superiority in number Sometimes, it is also irresistible!

"Your Excellency, Commander, the Alexander III has been shot and caught fire, and the engine compartment has been damaged. It is estimated that it will be difficult to keep up with us." An officer said in a panic.

"Understood. Do what you should do, don't give up until the last moment, God will rescue us." Makanov looked around the panicked comrades around, and comforted him: "Concentrate all firepower and attack the Japanese cruiser formation."

The Russian main fleet continued to stare at the Japanese cruisers, while the Dongxiang Fleet, which was gradually coming up, knocked on the tail of the Russian fleet with peace of mind. The two battleships Alexander III and Eagle in the rear faced the saturation attack of five battleships alone.

What happened to the Asama class was repeated on them just now. Heavy shells flew towards the two warships like raindrops. Huge explosions continued to be heard from the two warships. The distance between the two sides quickly narrowed to within 5 kilometers. In terms of distance, each turret almost leveled the artillery. A round of heavy high-explosive shells is lifted from the armored ammunition depot and sent to the gun position. The gunners on both sides are like mechanical parts, reloading, locking the barrel, and firing. The most terrifying war machines on the planet fight desperately.

"Let the torpedo boats board, we don't have that much time to spend with them." This time, Togo Heihachiro was a little anxious. The loss of the Tsukuba just now made him realize that the enemy on the opposite side is by no means weak. Although the strength is far inferior to the United Fleet, But the old dog still has a few teeth. If he still loses a few battleships in Dayu's situation, even if he wins, he will have to face the censure of the high-level, and even Dongxiang himself cannot forgive himself.

More than a dozen torpedo boats passed between the fleet, and became a group with the Russian cruisers and destroyers. The Russians tried their best to prevent the opponent's lightning strikes, but when the Japanese battleships behind them aimed their guns at these less than 4,000 When the two battleships Fuji and Yashima successfully damaged a Russian 3,000-ton light cruiser, the Russian escort fleet was torn apart. In the gap, 8 torpedo boats took advantage of the situation and rushed in. These torpedo boats were divided into two groups and fired two rounds of torpedo salvos at the Alexander at the end of the team!

The fan-shaped torpedoes rushed forward like sharks smelling blood. At a distance of less than 800 meters, fifteen torpedoes criss-crossed, forming an almost unavoidable lightning strike net! Although the Alexander III destroyed three torpedo boats with the remaining artillery at the last moment, two torpedoes successfully hit the struggling battleship.

Two torpedoes hit the middle of the hull, tearing a ten-meter-square opening on the side of the battleship. Under the action of sea water and high-temperature, high-pressure air bubbles, the cracked steel plate tore apart the engine room's partition like a cannonball. With the surging seawater pouring in, the battleship stopped instantly. Then another torpedo was even more deadly. This fish hit the lower part of the ammunition depot in the bow, and the violent explosion directly ignited the gun compartment near the bottom of the ship!

"Everyone saw a water column with a height of nearly 100 meters soaring into the sky. The Alexander III seemed to be beheaded by a giant sword. It was broken into two sections from the main turret at the bow. In less than 2 minutes, this Russian ship The first self-made advanced warship disappeared from the sea, and only 3 of the more than 1,000 officers and soldiers on the whole ship survived. A destroyer ready to rescue was sucked into the bottom of the sea by the vortex when the warship sank. At that time, I felt like The sky is falling, and I don’t think I will ever be able to return to Russia.” After the war, an officer who witnessed the sinking of the battleship Alexander III said so.

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