Reborn As a Pirate

In the past two years, Pierce has made great progress in all aspects.

This kind of growth is holistic and comprehensive, which is reflected in the work report, which means that the report is not only concise and clear, but also has a certain degree of relaxation, leaving enough room for the old Dylan around him to supplement the background and characters.

This is also what Lorraine is most satisfied with.

Among the people present, Lorraine and Carmen are familiar with Pierce's experience in the past two years.

Because the special service formation is directly under the fleet, according to the procedures, each branch must obtain the consent of Lorraine if they want to use them, ask for instructions first, and report later.

But apart from Lorraine and Carmen, other people's whereabouts of the secret service formation in the past two years have only been heard, and most of them are scattered and unsystematic.

Dylan's supplement made it easier for Favna, who had never paid attention to the formation directly under her, to understand the cause and effect of the incident. In Lorraine's view, this is the key factor for a successful debriefing.

Pierce continues to debrief.

When I first arrived in Gibraltar, I didn't know anything about Barbary pirates. It's just that Admiral Artest said that the three pirates had been rampant in the Mediterranean Sea for more than 200 years, with a total of more than 300 armed merchant ships, and they were different from Turkish merchants. Their boats range from Arabian style to European style, and even some oriental hard sailing ships.”

Besides, the Barbary pirates are very cunning. In the commercial war in the Eastern Mediterranean, we have a large number of allies. European merchants have advantages in terms of fleet quality and quantity against Turkish merchants.

In the war with Barbary, Barbary relaxed the restrictions on other European merchant ships. We are fighting alone, and we are at a disadvantage in terms of quality and quantity, a great disadvantage...

Pierce, who had just arrived in Gibraltar, was still the impulsive and lacking in stability Pierce. Artest’s introduction failed to scare him away. In fact, Pierce was eager to prove himself at that time. He was more happy than worried about the strength of his opponent. .

After receiving the task, he began to plan the war. He persuaded Sir Taylor to suspend the supply of the Chamber of Commerce to the inland sea of ​​the Mediterranean Sea, and spent half a month preparing a fleet of 30 ships, including 5 Brigantines and 2 Brigs. fleet.

On April 3, 1786, when Miami was preparing to establish the Indian Labor Company, the fleet set sail for Alexandria, Egypt under the escort of a special service formation, and did not pay taxes to any Barbary pirates as usual.

This is the first time!

Previously, although the Barbary pirates had carried out targeted oppression against Drake, Sir Thayer, relying on his many years of dealings in the Mediterranean Sea, still defied the crowd and maintained the regular tax payment.

There are also his friends among the Barbary pirates. It is the cooperation between the two sides that allows the chamber of commerce to barely maintain its hard-won business base despite losses.

But because of Pierce's special status, this customary path was finally completely broken in two.

On the night of April 7, fierce fighting broke out between the two sides in the Tunis Strait in the waters west of Sicily.

In this campaign, the Barbary pirates dispatched more than 50 pirate ships, carrying more than 4,000 people, and Pierce led the special service formation to fight.

The fierce battle lasted all day and night. The Lady and the Future locked on the Barbary flagship with a successful roundabout raid. The 50-door Arabian galleon Lesvos was shot through and the pirates were routed.

Lorraine has read the summary of this battle a long time ago.

The Noble Lady killed all directions, injuring and sinking 16 pirate ships in nearly 18 hours of battle, and the Barbary pirates sank 17 ships and injured 22 ships, including the 50-class and 40-class admiral ships .

But Pierce himself was not feeling well.

The Tunisian Strait was too wide, the Mediterranean wind was too weak, and the fighting was chaotic and piecemeal.

The new code name is broken mast, big broken, the future is broken, and Freeman is injured. In addition, 8 brigantine ships, including the Sunflower, sank three times and were injured three times. The more than 20 Skuner ships used as bait sank 13 ships.

Pierce was forced to abandon the original voyage plan to Alexandria, and the whole ship turned to France and entered the port of Toulon for repairs.

In the study, Pierce frowned.

I was careless in this battle. He said, I underestimated the climate in the Mediterranean Sea. The wind there is too low, and our high-speed ship's advantage has been greatly reduced, especially the obvious lack of control over the battlefield.

But this battle is not fruitless. Compared with the outlaws in the Caribbean, the Barbary bandits whose ancestors are richer have lived comfortably in the small ponds of the Mediterranean Sea for too long.

They have degenerated into a group of rabble long ago. In my opinion, the Barbary Kingdom is a group of paper sharks!

Pierce's proclamation echoed his report back to Miami.

The Battle of Sicily had far-reaching consequences. The European branch paid a heavy loss, and it also made the entire Mediterranean see the aggressiveness of the Drake Chamber of Commerce, which is different from other chambers of commerce.

The business path has become smoother, and perhaps the friction with Barbary has never stopped, but Drake no longer pays high taxes, and the frequency and scale of the friction have not escalated accordingly.

Both sides are restraining.

On April 25, Pierce abandoned the special service fleet that was being repaired in Toulon and returned to Southampton on the Sunflower, preparing to ask Ramos for a group of excellent sailor supplies.

In Ramos' office, he unexpectedly met Cotterence, the Oceanic Admiral of the American Chapter who was escorting the transoceanic fleet.

A bold idea began to sprout in Pierce's young heart.

The following May, Drake abruptly reduced shipments to the Mediterranean and voluntarily resumed paying taxes. The Barbary pirates thought that Drake couldn't bear the loss, and became domineering again, claiming to avenge the Battle of Sicily, and let Drake withdraw from the Mediterranean.

Sir Thayer urged the three Barbary pashas several times to maintain the Mediterranean business environment, but each time they were humiliated.

The episode was played until June 16.

On June 16, Sir Thayer's last negotiation failed and he officially declared war on the Barbary pirates in the port of Toulon.

On June 17, a huge fleet flying the white pirate flag set sail from the port of A Coruña in Spain, joined the direct fleet in Gibraltar, and jointly marched towards the Mediterranean Sea.

This fleet is composed of the special service formation and the second formation of the fleet directly under the Drake Chamber of Commerce, the Drake American Branch, the European Branch, the African Branch, and the seven hard-core allies of the Drake Chamber of Commerce in Northwest Europe.

Chief flagship Artis Lady, Admiral Piers Artis.

The First Squadron consisted of two frigates, eight destroyers, and 16 Brig and Brigantine ships, commanded by Deputy Admiral of the Fleet and Oceanic Admiral Strence of the American Branch.

The Second Squadron consists of six destroyers, and 12 Brig and Brigantine ships. The commander is the deputy admiral of the fleet, directly under the deputy admiral Dylan Spooners of the special service formation.

The Third Squadron consisted of nine destroyers, Brig and Brigentine 17, and was commanded by the deputy admiral of the fleet, directly under the admiral of the second formation, Frain, who was known for his bad-mouthed and complaint-loving.

The Fourth Squadron consisted of one frigate, seven destroyers, and nine Brig and Brigantines, commanded by Vice Admiral of the Fleet and Admiral Barto of the African Chapter.

Summoned by Pierce's special identity, this super-large fleet with a strong Drake color rolled towards the Barbary Kingdom like an avalanche.

On June 18, the Pierce Fleet and the Barbary pirates had their first battle in the Balearic Islands. The First, Third and Fourth Squadrons relied on the complex sea area of ​​the archipelago and intensive artillery fire to resist the attack of nearly a hundred pirate ships. Pierce led a full-speed After the second squadron composed of warships attacked the island, the pirates were routed.

After defeating the pirates, Barto led the No. 1 and No. 4 Squadrons to the south to surround Algiers, and Pierce's No. 2 and No. 3 Squadrons, with the direct fleet as the backbone, headed straight for the port of Tunis, the heart of the Barbary pirates.

On June 21, Pierce overwhelmed the perimeter defense.

On June 22, Pierce began bombarding Tunisia.

On June 23, Barto began shelling Algiers.

On June 26, a joint mission of three Barbary pashas visited Gibraltar.

On June 27, the joint fleet stopped shelling, and the two sides started negotiations at the port authority in Rabat, the colonial capital of Morocco.

Drake's side was attended by President Ramos of the European Chapter, Vice President Thayer, and President of the African Branch Eddie. The three pashas of the Barbary side had plenipotentiary representatives. In addition, the seven participating chambers of commerce also had their own representatives. To attend, representatives from four chambers of commerce from Turkey attended.

On July 9, the Rabat Agreement was announced, and all participants participated in the alliance.

The agreement stipulates that the members of the alliance respect the Barbary Kingdom's maintenance of the Mediterranean commercial order, but the maintenance fee charged within the framework of the agreement shall not exceed 0.5% of the total value of the goods, and the maximum value of each ship shall not exceed 20 pounds.

Within the framework of the agreement, armed attacks of any kind are not allowed, and disputes are submitted to the agreement committee for judgment. At the same time, the Barbary Kingdom must unconditionally release the captured personnel of the alliance members.

Within the framework of the agreement, the minimum bargaining price system for commerce and trade is implemented. When internal commercial competition occurs, the minimum bargaining price must be followed, and price wars must not be started. There are a total of 7 major clauses and 66 items.

On July 11, the Pierce fleet withdrew from the siege, and the Barbary Chamber of Commerce War ended.