My Italy

The arrival of 1898 was a continuation of tragedy for the Cuban people.

Under a series of brutal suppressions by Cuban Governor Weiler, the Cuban uprising suffered another heavy blow. The leader of the rebel army, Maximo Gomez, was even forced to hide in the mountains and forests.

If anyone familiar with history sees this scene, they may wonder why the Cuban uprising turned out like this. The reason is simple: Governor Weiler of Cuba has not been removed from office. The most dangerous enemy to the rebels has always been the governor of Cuba, and his encirclement and suppression of the rebels has never stopped for a moment. This step-by-step strategy allowed the rebels to never rest for a moment, and could only continue to deal with the Spanish encirclement and suppression troops in the mountains. Such a high-intensity battle was too difficult for the rebels. The constant casualties made people nervous. People left without saying goodbye every day, which gradually caused the rebels to collapse in the mountains and forests. The leader of the rebel army, Maximo Gomez, also had to hide and wait for the opportunity.

The reason why Governor Weiler was not dismissed is also very simple. Although Prime Minister Castillo was also assassinated, he did not die as a result. The anarchist who was assassinating, for some unknown reason, missed his shot with his pistol and did not directly hit his vitals. He only injured his shoulder.

Since the Prime Minister was not killed, Madrid did not fall back into political turmoil, and Governor Werler, who was strongly promoted by the Prime Minister's faction to come to power, did not step down due to lack of support from Madrid.

Facing the gradual quelling of the Cuban uprising, the attitude of the United States, separated by an ocean, has become somewhat meaningful.

At this time, the New York News and the New York World competed to report on Cuba. In their reports, the Spanish colonial army was causing a series of horrific tragedies in Cuba. It would be too childish to directly kill people. There are countless sensational reports about officers of the Spanish army being bathed in the blood of children, and the Spanish army using children to perform evil rituals.

Although the Spanish army did not do a good job in countering the rebellion, it did not act like a medieval wizard.

But no matter what, the reports in these two newspapers increased their sales.

Of course, if that's all, then we can describe these two newspapers as being for readers, not bottom lines, then the next report by the "New York Journal" will be a bit naked.

One day in June, the New York Journal published a letter said to be written by the Spanish Ambassador to the United States, Depp de Lome, to his friend in Havana. In the letter, the minister hinted at Spanish deception in negotiations for the pending trade deal and called President McKinley a "second-rate statesman."

Such naked remarks angered the American people, and one official called the letter "the worst insult to the United States in history."

Of course, we don’t know exactly how the letter got into the hands of the New York Journal, but at least we know one thing: all four U.S. cruise ships were put into service last month.

Faced with the accusations from the United States, Spanish Ambassador to the United States Lome, one of the parties involved, naturally denied it. He said that he had never written such a letter. As for the letter, like his own handwriting, it was forged and came from the Cuban rebellion. Sympathizers do.

However, Lome's words did not appease the American people because major newspapers did not report what he said at all.

In addition, the U.S. Navy also announced that it will send the battleship "Maine" to visit the port of Havana, Cuba.

Sending warships to Cuba at this time was obviously an act of demonstration, and Spain did not dare to openly refuse it when facing the powerful United States.

So on June 19, the battleship Maine entered the port of Havana.

Here we need to talk about the data of the Maine. Its length is 98.9 meters, its width is 17.4 meters, its maximum draft is 6.9 meters, and its displacement is 6682 tons. The main gun falls on the deck at the stern of the ship, which is not only vulnerable to bad weather, but also prevents the ship from stabilizing its center of gravity, reducing its stability during navigation. In addition, there are two main guns on both sides of the ship, arranged in echelons for firing front and rear.

It has four 10-inch (254 mm) Mark-II main guns, plus six 6-inch (152 mm) Mark 3-type guns, two each at the bow and stern, and the last two amidships.

In terms of crew establishment, the Maine has a total of 355 crew members, including 26 civilians, 290 sailors, and 39 naval officers.

From the data point of view, the Maine does not look like a new ship that only appeared in 1895. Instead, it should have been launched in 1885 to be innovative enough. But what can be done about this? The U.S. Navy's shipbuilding industry is like that. Besides, although this ship has only been in service for three years, it took nine years from the time it was launched to the time the USS Maine was put into service, just because it needed testing.

In addition, the Maine's backwardness is also aimed at a limited number of powerful countries. As for other countries, it is only drooling.

Of course, to the Spanish, the Maine was also a behemoth to them. At present, the Spanish Navy's largest warship in the Caribbean is the Alfonso XIII. Its 4,700 tons can only reach a speed of 14 knots. As a cruiser that has been in service for 24 years, its combat effectiveness is worrying.

So when the Maine arrived, the Spanish navy was left with nothing but envy.

Of course, the arrival of the Maine also inspired American planters. In recent years, the United States has invested heavily in sugar cane planting and sugar production in Cuba.

Every year, Cuba transports over 100 million US dollars worth of sugar to the United States across the sea. It is precisely because of this benefit that the United States values ​​Cuba so much.

But the Maine's visit would do the same to Cuba's colonial troops. Its warships cannot go ashore, so what threat can they pose?

Life still needs to go on, and everyone should do whatever they need to do. The officers and soldiers of the Maine also took advantage of their free time to stroll around Havana. Everything was so natural. Except for the topic of the Cuban insurrectionists (rioters) that made both parties unhappy, life was just like that.

Ten days passed quickly like this, and except for the addition of the Maine, everything was the same in Havana's port.

It was late at night on July 2, and the Port of Havana was as quiet as ever. The officers and soldiers of the Maine, in addition to their normal duties, also fell asleep.

At this moment, a violent explosion sounded, and the fierce explosion woke up the entire Havana. At this time, the Maine exploded. A large hole was blown directly into the bottom of the port side of the Maine, and ferocious seawater poured directly into the cabin of the Maine. At this time, the Maine was in a resting state, and the hatches were basically not closed. The ferocious seawater poured directly into the cabin. Flood into it.

The Maine sank into the harbor shortly after the explosion. The explosion killed a total of 261 people, and 16 of the 94 survivors were injured.

The explosion of the Maine in Havana Harbor directly pushed the already tense relations between the United States and Spain into a more dangerous situation.