monarch

The enthusiasm for the wedding of the first queen lasted for about two weeks, and was quickly replaced by a new topic: to celebrate the coronation of the king, the fleet will hold a ship viewing ceremony at Spithead near Portsmouth. The previous religious turmoil has been delayed for several months.

When the clock struck ten o'clock in the morning on October [-]th, the king arrived in Portsmouth harbour.In the welcome of the mayor and harbor officials, the king boarded the royal yacht "Anne", which was named after the second wife of the previous king and the mother of the new king. It is a [-]-ton displacement yacht with elegant curves. The galleys are intricately decorated by craftsmen who once built carnival flower boats for the Doge of Venice.

The king was joined by some prominent figures: Princess Mary, Princess Elizabeth, and the queen who is now Mrs. Seymour.The Lord Protector and Bishop Gardner, two old enemies, stood together, one looked livid, as if he had just crawled out of the grave, and the other wore a flattering smile that made people sick, like a comedy show The character in it has just stepped off the stage.

The commander of the entire Royal Fleet, Lord of the Admiralty John Dudley, Earl of Essex, stood behind the king with his son. If the Lord Protector is the sunset that is already fading, then the Earl of Essex is the slowing down on the horizon. The slowly rising sun.

Now the new king Gan Gang's arbitrariness is an inevitable trend, and he will be used to replace the Lord Protector, and there is no second choice except the Earl of Essex.And given the king's favor for his friend Robert Dudley, many people think that after the Earl of Essex, it will be his son who will take power.If the new king can live to his father's age, then the two generations of powerful ministers will influence the political situation in England for more than 40 years, and the Dudley family will undoubtedly become the chief noble family in England.

However, contrary to most of the power ministers before, His Excellency John Dudley is still very cautious even though the market is skyrocketing now.Even though his son has a closer relationship with His Majesty than anyone else, he is still cautious in front of the king and cautious in his words and deeds.Many thought he was either genuinely loyal or simply ambitious.

Standing behind the Lord of the Admiralty was Sir Thomas Seymour, Second Sea Lord.The newlywed admiral had never commanded a ship and in fact preferred to stay ashore rather than aboard—Sir Thomas had always suffered from seasickness.Yet the temptation to stand not far behind the king and to be the center of attention as a member of the dignitary was so irresistible that it even outweighed the pain of seasickness.

The yacht slowly left the shore with the sound of horns.Those who are not of sufficient status can only look enviously at the people on the yacht, and they can only watch the grand occasion of the ship from the shore.

The waves on the sea are as smooth as a mirror. Traveling by boat in such fine weather is undoubtedly a kind of enjoyment.The warm sunlight poured down on the sea surface, and fish jumped out of the water from time to time, causing ripples.On the headland of Spithead in the distance, the shadow of a huge fleet has appeared in front of us.

The oarsmen on the lower deck rowed vigorously, and the yacht passed through the waves leisurely, like seagulls gliding across the water.

Under the clear sky, the English fleet lined up in order to welcome the king.In the past, a small country could arm a huge fleet if necessary, and city-states such as Lübeck once held hegemony over the North Sea and the Baltic Sea.However, with the development of new technologies, warships are getting bigger and bigger, and their prices are getting higher and higher. Large fleets have also become money black holes that only big countries can afford.

Now it is the huge Spanish fleet that dominates the ocean, and after that is England.Although it is difficult to match Spain in size, the English fleet is already a fearsome and majestic force compared with other countries.

At the forefront of the fleet is the flagship of the fleet, the "Mary Rose", and behind her are the "Big Harry", "Jesus of Lübeck", "Triumph" and "Victory", these ships with a displacement of more than a thousand tons Battleships, each equipped with hundreds of cannons.They have a tall forecastle and stern building, and the boards on it are built like roof tiles, coupled with resplendent and magnificent decorations, it looks like a castle on the sea.

"This is the Royal Carrack, Your Majesty," said the Lord of the Admiralty in the king's ear. "As you can see, these ships are the largest and most powerful in our fleet."

"Impressive." The king nodded with satisfaction.

"It is a pity, however, that these ships are outdated, many of them three or forty years ago and very heavy. But they are still symbols of the fleet and it would be a pity to dismantle them," the Admiralty added.

As His Majesty's yacht passed by, the ship's watch officer shouted, "Three cheers for Your Majesty!"

"Hip~Hip~Hooray! Hip~Hip~Hooray! Hip~Hip~Hooray!" The sailors on board waved their hats and cheered to His Majesty's yacht, and the king took off his hat.

The ships behind these monsters looked significantly smaller, their bows and sterns were obviously much flatter, and they didn't look so bulky, but the cannons on them were much less visible to the naked eye.

"This is a galleon, the so-called Spanish galleon, Your Majesty." The voice of the Secretary of the Navy sounded again, "As you can see, they seem to be more suitable for ocean voyages. The Spaniards used these ships to transport gold and silver from America to Europe. , this sailing ship is also the main force of the Spanish fleet."

The sailors on the galleon gave the same cheers as before.

The king asked, smiling and waving, "How many galleons do we have, my lord?"

"A total of 26 ships, Your Majesty."

"Where are the Spaniards?"

"The Spaniards have eighty."

The king frowned, "Is the gap so big?"

"Unfortunately, it is true, Your Majesty." The Admiralty sighed. "Spain is a world empire, and her resources are difficult for us to match. However, compared with other countries, we still have a huge advantage-France The Humans had ten, the Portuguese fifteen, and the Danes five."

"But for the French, the fleet is just a dispensable luxury, but for us it is a necessity. Once we lose the ocean, the fall of this island is only a matter of time." Edward was a little displeased, "I would like to expand the fleet as much as the finances allow."

The Secretary of the Navy nodded, "I would like to follow your wishes."

After the galleon came a lone new sailing ship, with a smooth and elegant hull, which was more slender than the galleon, with a smaller superstructure and a gently sloping quarter deck replaced.The mast of this ship is also different from that of the galleon, and there are more sails hanging from it.

"This is the 'Revenge', Your Majesty." The Secretary of the Navy could not hide his excitement. "This is a new type of warship created by the Navy Shipbuilding. We call it the 'Improved Galleon'. Unlike the previous warships, The ship was designed as a stable artillery launch platform. The Spaniards often used close-range jump gang tactics, using infantry to board enemy ships. We did the opposite and destroyed enemy ships with accurate artillery fire from a certain distance .”

"Good idea." The king nodded approvingly.

"We also plan to modify the fleet's giant Carrack sailing ships according to this idea, so that they also have such characteristics. Although they are not comparable in maneuverability, their firepower is very fierce. After such modifications It will then become the center of fire for the fleet."

"You did a really good job, Earl." The king patted the Earl of Essex's arm approvingly, and the face of the Lord Protector behind him had already started to turn purple.

Beside the Lord Admiralty, Sir Thomas was very pale, and looked like he would faint at any moment.

"What is the matter with you, Sir Thomas?" asked the King, somewhat surprised.

"Your Majesty, I..." Sir Thomas tried to force a smile, and suddenly the features on his face began to contort.Under the watchful eyes of everyone, he no longer cared about being rude, rushed to the side of the boat, and began to vomit.

The dignitaries on the ship covered their mouths and laughed snickeringly, but the sailors on the opposite battleship were not so well-mannered, they burst into laughter, and the officers on the ship yelled and tried to maintain order.

The king gave Sir Thomas a dissatisfied look, "Call a boat to take Sir Thomas back to shore."

"This is what happens when a man who has never been at sea becomes an admiral." Bishop Gardiner whispered, the voice was just loud enough for the king to hear clearly, and the face of the Lord Protector beside him had already changed. Gradually turns green and looks like an unripe apple.

Sir Thomas was helped into the boat and taken to shore, and the yacht sailed on.

In front of the yacht was a group of smaller three-masted sailing ships, most of which only weighed two to three hundred tons. Compared with the huge warships in front, they looked a bit crude, and the sailors on board did not look as well-dressed as before.

"These are privateers, Your Majesty," continued the Lord of the Admiralty. "They are at His Majesty's command to attack the enemy's transports across the ocean, and to transport the enemy's treasures to His Majesty's treasury."

"It's a pirate ship." The Duke Protector sneered.

"The Royal Corsairs," replied the Lord of the Admiralty. "They have a privateer's licence, and are ordered by His Majesty to attack the enemy's lines of communication."

"Don't you think this is an insult to the state?" The Lord Protector pointed to one of the privateers, "These pirates are flying the royal family's flag on board. You recruited these scum, where did you put the country's honor?"

"I think losing a war is the real humiliation of the country and the disgrace of the country's dignity!" The Secretary of the Navy looked at the king, the smile on His Majesty's face became more obvious, and he became more confident, "These privateers Ships have made a great contribution to the treasury of our country, and many aristocrats who have invested in this business have made a fortune from it. As far as I know, your Excellency has also invested in several privateers and made a lot of money from it... . . . are you not afraid of injuring your honor?"

The Lord Protector snorted coldly and stopped talking.

The king watched the privateer fleet with interest.Suddenly he seemed to see something, and stretched his finger forward, "Who is that?"

The Secretary of the Navy looked in the direction of the king's finger, and a young man climbed to the top of the mast, waving his hat vigorously.

"Ah, that's John Hawkins, the youngest captain of the entire fleet. His father, William Hawkins, is a MP for Plymouth. Their family is one of the famous maritime merchant families."

"Ah, I remember his father." The king nodded, "So this ship belongs to his family?"

"Yes, Your Majesty, John Hawkins is very talented, and he has been in charge of the family business very early."

"Please come here, I'd love to see him."

A traffic hall hurriedly sailed to John Hawkins' "Salome" with the king's order.

After about a quarter of an hour, John Hawkins came to the king's yacht in a traffic boat, and he bowed gracefully to the king.

The king looked at this rather handsome young man. He had big sly eyes and a beautiful mustache. His skin was dark and shiny due to years of life at sea.

"Mr. Hawkins, when did you start sailing?"

"I have been going to sea since I can remember." Captain Hawkins smiled, showing his white teeth, "This is our family's business, and I will take it over one day. Naturally, I have to learn from childhood."

"Have you ever sailed far?" the king asked curiously.

"Yes, Your Majesty, I once sailed with my uncle to the coast of Africa, where we exchanged some glass beads with the local chiefs for a batch of slaves, and then we sailed to those small islands in the Caribbean Sea full of plantations, and used slaves Exchange it for sugar, and ship the sugar back to England." Captain Hawkins said happily, "We made a lot of money that time! I bought my ship with that money." He said, He pointed to the "Salome" not far away.

"Don't you think it's dangerous to go out to sea in such a small boat?"

"A few times it was very dangerous indeed. During a storm, the huge waves threw our boat up and down like a leaf blowing in a strong wind. The sea came in from every crack, and the hull The creaking of the wood is horrible." He shrugged, "but I like it better than the normal life."

"why?"

"The only life worth living is the life of adventure," said Captain Hawkins emphatically.

The king laughed loudly, "You are right!" He shook the other party's hand enthusiastically, and a blush appeared on Captain Hawkins' dark face, "I wish you a prosperous business!"

"I don't care about money, I would rather serve His Majesty." The young captain looked into the king's eyes, and the blush on his face became more obvious.

The king was a little surprised, but then he laughed again, "Then I look forward to the day you become the commander of the fleet."

The fleet began to fire salutes, and the sound of the guns was like thunder, shaking the entire sea area.The seagulls cruising in the air were frightened by the rumbling gunfire, and fled in panic.