My Italy

The explosion of the Maine was known to the United States the next day, and major newspapers rushed to report the incident. The U.S. Navy also immediately launched an investigation into the matter.

Of course, until the investigation is clear, it is fair to say that no one knows what caused the explosion of the Maine. But it is a pity that there is no justice in this matter. After the news of the explosion of the Maine was published in the newspapers, all kinds of rumors and gossip spread.

Of course, what kind of gossip does this mean? Sorry, it really does. The New York News used a leading headline to attribute the sinking of the Maine to Spain, arousing public anger. For this reason, after the Spanish ambassador protested, a reward of $50,000 was directly offered for evidence of the crime.

The various excessive reactions of American newspapers all reflect the attitude of the US government behind them.

This is definitely not going to be good.

As the Prime Minister of Spain, Castillo immediately sensed the bad intentions of the United States. So when the news of the Maine's explosion in Havana Harbor reached Madrid, he immediately summoned the ministers to discuss countermeasures.

"Everyone, you must know what happened in Cuba. We need to think of a countermeasure immediately here."

From the very beginning, the Prime Minister made clear the seriousness of the problem.

Everyone present already knew what happened in the Port of Havana, Cuba, so they understood the current urgency and naturally agreed with the Prime Minister's words.

"At present, the United States has sent a request to our country for its own investigation. Taking into account the current actual situation, I have agreed to the request of the United States. In addition, in view of the situation that occurred on the Maine in our port, we can provide help to the surviving officers and soldiers , In addition, we can also provide other assistance to the United States, such as supplies, equipment calls, and inquiries of nearby personnel, etc. "

Foreign Secretary Gibbs briefed the Prime Minister and colleagues present on the current situation and strategies of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Although this may sound a bit condescending, if you consider the power gap between the two countries, then this problem will be easily solved.

In this era of the jungle, weakness is the original sin, and Spain, the former world hegemon, also wants to submit to its malicious neighbors.

After Foreign Secretary Gibbs spoke, other ministers also expressed their opinions. But basically they all have the same idea as the Foreign Secretary, and try to avoid conflicts with the United States as much as possible.

Facing the meaning of the ministers' words, Castillo also knew very well that in fact it would be good if we could talk about anything, but there were some things that had to be prevented first.

So he turned to Admiral Cervera, the Minister of the Navy, and asked. "Admiral Cervera, what do you think of this?"

Facing the Prime Minister's question, Admiral Cerveira felt a pain in his heart, but he answered without changing his expression. "Your Excellency Prime Minister, our navy is always ready to fight and ready to fight for the kingdom."

Admiral Cervera's answer was cunning, because he did not put forward any opinions and everything depends on the government's decision.

However, the Prime Minister didn't seem to care much. He ignored General Cervera and continued talking to other ministers.

This emergency meeting lasted for more than two hours, and the final result of the discussion was that Spain should try its best to cooperate with the US investigation regarding the explosion of the USS Maine. In addition, if the United States has other intentions, Spain needs to be prepared as soon as possible.

Yes, the people present are all high-ranking Spanish officials, and they naturally know the United States' greed for Cuba, so some things must be thought of ahead of time.

After the meeting was over, Castillo immediately spoke. "Admiral Cervera will stay here for a moment."

Other ministers were not surprised at all that Admiral Cervera, the Minister of the Navy, was retained. How could we not say a few words alone at this moment when the navy might be used.

"Let's talk in my office."

Before General Cervera could speak, Prime Minister Castillo spoke directly.

After arriving at the Prime Minister's Office and the secretary brought two cups of coffee, Prime Minister Castillo spoke. "Do you have any doubts about fighting the United States?"

"Yes, Prime Minister."

In fact, Admiral Cervera also wanted to say it without the Prime Minister asking, but it was not easy for him to say it in front of everyone. "Prime Minister, the current situation of the Spanish Navy is not good. If there is a war between our country and the United States in the future, there is a high probability that our country will be defeated."

Although Prime Minister Castillo did not have high expectations for the navy, the Prime Minister himself was a little surprised to point out the poor situation of his navy so bluntly.

"Didn't we just bring back two powerful Garibaldi-class battleships from Italy? I remember what you said at the time, but as long as there are two of these battleships, the Americans will think twice before they act?"

Well, the Prime Minister still remembers the Haikou that Admiral Cerveira boasted about, so he is cheating himself.

However, Admiral Cervera still had answers to the Prime Minister's questions.

"Prime Minister, the result of the United States thinking twice is the launch of four Pennsylvania-class cruise ships. Although this cruise ship is not as powerful as our Garibaldi class, we cannot make up for the numerical advantage. In addition, the United States also has 4 battleships, and our country Except for the Columbus and Francisco, no other warships can currently compete with it."

Yes, the Spanish Navy led by Admiral Cervera also has difficulties, that is, although Spain's current naval tonnage seems to be okay, it does not have many warships that can fight. Currently, in the Spanish Navy, in addition to the two Garibaldi-class ships, the next most powerful ones are the first-class armored cruiser Carlos V and the second-class battleship Pelayo.

Unfortunately, it may be difficult to get these two warships to fight. Among them, the Carlos V is still being launched and outfitted and has not officially entered service. As for the Pelayo, this ironclad ship customized in France is being overhauled and refitted after more than ten years of service. It is currently unable to go to sea.

Well, in addition to these two ships, the Spanish Navy can only use three armored cruisers: Queen Maria Theresa, Admiral Oquendo, and Vizcaya (historically known as These three patrol ships carried the Garibaldi-class Columbus purchased from Italy. After adding a few small ships, they went into battle. The other warships were either in the dock or not strong enough to take them out).

As for other warships, they either have no actual combat effectiveness or are still under construction. One more thing, there are several sailing wooden warships in the Spanish Navy (Numancia, Victoria, etc.).

It can be said that even if Spain has added two of its most powerful patrol ships, its strength is still not as good as that of the U.S. Navy. The opponent has 4 Pennsylvania-class cruisers, 3 Indiana-class battleships, and 1 USS Iowa (a major modification of the Indiana-class, the first true ocean-going battleship in the United States).

In addition, the U.S. Navy also has two large armored cruisers, the 8,200-ton New York, the more powerful 9,200-ton Brooklyn, two Columbia-class protected cruisers, and a 5,800-ton protected cruiser Olympia. These three battleships They all have good fire protection and can run at a speed of 21 knots.

There are also five protected cruisers, all of which are around 4,000 tons. They were all in service from 1989 to 1990. Their speed is only 18-19 knots, which is not outstanding enough.

In addition, there are a variety of coastal defense armored ships, small cruisers, destroyers, torpedo boats, etc.

Apart from anything else, once the wealth of all parties is revealed, it is obvious that the Spanish Navy is not satisfied.

So after Admiral Cervera finished talking about the gap in naval strength between the two sides, Prime Minister Castillo looked unhappy.

"So, the Navy can no longer guarantee Cuba's maritime security?"

Although he knew that it was rude to say this, Admiral Cerveira, who knew that he could no longer hide it at this time, immediately answered. "Yes, Prime Minister, unless we can have at least three new battleships and supporting well-trained officers and soldiers, it will be really difficult to keep Cuba."

Admiral Cervera's words plunged the Prime Minister into deep thought, and suddenly a flash of inspiration flashed through him, "What did you just say? Repeat it again."

Although he didn’t know why the Prime Minister asked this, Admiral Cerveira still repeated his words. "I said that unless we can have at least three new battleships and well-trained officers and soldiers, it will be really difficult to keep Cuba."

"Okay, I get it!"

Prime Minister Castillo now feels somewhat confident, but whether it will be successful or not still needs to be discussed. After seeing off the Navy Minister, he picked up the phone. "Please ask the Foreign Secretary to come over. I have something to talk to him about."

Cuba is Spain's treasure, and nothing can be taken away from it. If necessary, there might be another way to save it. Look at Spain's attitude towards Cuba. Both Cuba and the Philippines were in rebellion at this time, but the Philippines received no support at all and basically relied on its military garrison. Even if the Philippine rebels have grown in size, Spain still prioritizes ensuring that Cuba and its nearly 200,000 troops on the island speak for themselves.

Compared with Cuba, there are only more than 30,000 troops stationed on the Philippine island. At this time, some negative assets may be sold.

In order to save Cuba, Prime Minister Castillo will also take ruthless measures.