Playing Dirty

Considering that the U. S. military, in terms of organization and training, could not yet be considered a fully regularized army—in the Qing Dynasty, it would probably be considered a trained guerrilla force—and in many ways, the United States. military at that time was quite similar to that of the Qing Dynasty. In the Qing Dynasty, the equipment, morale, and treatment of the regular army were generally inferior to those of the trained guerrillas; in the United States, the equipment, morale, and treatment of the federal army were generally inferior to those of the state soldiers.

This time, the situation should have been different, since the France weapons were obtained by the federal government, right? But when the weapons were distributed, they were still mainly allocated to the states because the federal army was too small.

Since the army United States at is basically just a bunch of training soldiers, its methods of deployment naturally need to differ from those of a regular army. Therefore, French Army Sevige, an advisor to the France advisory group, based on their research in Turkey, proposed a set of tactics specifically targeting armies that possess a significant material advantage but lack training and organization:

"We don't need to pay attention to the British Army's various actions. We just need to make our fortifications extremely solid, so that their various schemes and tricks will be useless. Then we can drive them out of Cleveland with real strength!"

This strategy of "building strongholds and fighting a protracted war" would have been unacceptable to the United States had it proposed earlier. However, after suffering two consecutive defeats, and even having the presidential palace turned into an adult arts center, even the proud Southerners had to admit that they were indeed lagging behind militarily, and that this was no longer an era where bravery alone could guarantee victory.

So the U. S. military set up camp near Cleveland and began to build fortifications on a large scale, digging trenches, setting up barbed wire, laying mines, and surrounding Cleveland by land.

However, simply encircling Cleveland. As a port city, Cleveland could maintain its supply of personnel and materials via the Great Lakes. Without cutting off Cleveland's waterways, retaking Cleveland would not be an easy task.

In fact, the France had a way to cut off Cleveland's waterways. France possessed small mines specifically designed for shallow waters like inland rivers. Each of these small mines weighed only a few dozen kilograms, and even a small boat could carry several. Furthermore, inland waterway vessels were far less sturdy than ocean-going ships; even these miniature mines were enough to easily sink an inland vessel. Using nighttime and small boats, they could gradually blockade Cleveland's waterways.

However, the France advisors did not raise this point. The reason was quite simple: they were unaware that the France possessed such a weapon. And the reason they were unaware was that selling this to the United States would not have been in France's interest.

For the France, the best outcome would be for both sides to bleed profusely in this war, forging a deep-seated, perhaps even generation-long, feud. Keeping them in a constant state of confrontation would prevent them from posing a significant threat to Louisiana. Conversely, if the United States possessed these mines, the Britain would likely withdraw once they discovered the American mine-laying. This would allow the United States to retake Cleveland without incurring substantial losses.

Therefore, the France suggested first encircling the British Army, then slowly chipping away at their defenses through repeated artillery bombardment. This tactic was, of course, time-consuming and labor-intensive, but wasn't that exactly what France needed—for the United States and Britain to spend so much time and effort?

Thus began a protracted and bloody battle between United States and Canada in Cleveland.

Meanwhile, in Europe, the France military exercises in the Calais area have also successfully concluded. During the exercises, the French Army invited observers from various countries to observe. In these exercises, the France once again demonstrated their new amphibious warfare techniques to the world, especially to the Britain. For example, in the follow-up phase of the landing, the France demonstrated a concrete-made floating pier that could be deployed quickly, as well as a floating breakwater that could move on the sea surface and sink to a suitable location.

These technologies meant that once the France gained a landing site, they could quickly send large numbers of men and supplies ashore without having to rely on capturing the enemy's ports. This naturally put greater pressure on Britain defenses.

However, how to bear this pressure is a matter for the future. For now, with the France fleet returning to its home port and the French Army gradually leaving the exercise area and returning to its bases, the Britain can finally breathe a sigh of relief.

After organizing such a large-scale exercise, the Britain felt that the France would not, and were unlikely to, launch an invasion of Britain in the short term. In this respect, the Britain, at least for the time being, gained the freedom to act.

The Britain immediately made a decision to send a fleet, including the newest battleship Queen Elizabeth, to escort an expeditionary force to the Americas to defend Britain territory in North America.

The fact that the Britain sent an expeditionary force was no secret in Europe. For one thing, just as there were Britain merchants or those with economic ties to the Britain doing business near every important France naval port, there were also "legitimate" France merchants operating near those important Britain naval ports.

One of the key tasks for these men was to count the warships anchored in the harbor every day. "Hmm, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 5... The main force of the British Navy is still there..."

On that day, a count revealed that the Queen Elizabeth and several other ships were missing. The news that Britain had dispatched a fleet was quickly confirmed.

However, Atlantic Ocean communication still relied on ships, and ordinary civilian vessels could not keep up with the speed of warships. Although the Queen Elizabeth was not particularly fast, the speed at which messages reached North America could certainly not keep up with the speed at which the Britain fleet arrived in North America.

"So, the warships we leased to the United States won't be in danger, will they?" Lucien, a little worried. "I'm not worried about the 'Free Trade' and the 'Common Market.' I know they can't beat that old Britain spinster, but they're faster than Britain ships. The Britain can't catch them. But I'm a little worried about the two cruisers Louis later leased to the United States. You know, those are colonial cruisers. Theoretically, they're faster than Britain battleships, but not faster than Britain cruisers. Will there be any problems?"

"No, there will never be any situation where our warships are sunk or captured by the Britain, causing trouble for your propaganda," Napoleon said nonchalantly. "We have long been prepared."

The France in North America were indeed well-prepared. Although they didn't know when the Britain fleet would arrive, they knew when their exercises would end, so they could roughly guess when the Britain would arrive.

Therefore, at the earliest possible time when the Britain arrived, they had already sent the two colonial cruisers away from the most dangerous Cabot Strait under the pretext of "mechanical maintenance" and back to New Orleans for "repair".

In fact, both ships were new and didn't need immediate dry-dock repairs. However, the crew was all France, and they said the ships had some mechanical problems and needed maintenance. Could the few United States on board possibly disagree?

So the two colonial cruisers left first.

If the Britain went directly to the Cabot Strait, they might run into the United States fleet carrying out a blockade. This fleet included the Free Trade and Common Market, as well as two United States hybrid cruisers.

But...

"If we go directly to the Cabot Strait, we can certainly capture the United States fleet. But do you all think we can keep those two France ships?" Fleet Commander Admiral Nelson said to his officers in the spacious conference room of the Queen Elizabeth.

"General, you know those two ships are much faster than us. Unless they enter the narrow waters on their own, we have no chance of stopping them," replied Captain Hardy of the Queen Elizabeth.

"Based on the intelligence we gathered before our departure, the US fleet, in addition to these two France ships, likely includes two more steam-sail hybrid cruisers. We are confident we can keep those two ships here," General Nelson's adjutant continued, providing further information.

"General Nelson, if we can only sink two completely outdated old warships, and allow the United States to prepare for our arrival, I think it's pointless," an army general said.

"General Wellesley, what are your thoughts?" General Nelson asked.

"I don't think we can just see ourselves as a merchant fleet engaged in transportation," said General Arthur Wellesley. "The France won't give us much time. In two or three months at most, they'll cause trouble in Europe. So our fleet can't stay here for more than a month and a half. Within that time, we must inflict a significant blow on the United States, otherwise, it's hard to say how the war will unfold. If my troops go into Canada first and then slowly advance south from Canada, it will be difficult to inflict a decisive blow on the United States within a month and a half. Therefore, my suggestion is that we don't go to Canada; we go directly here!"

General Arthur Wellesley tapped a spot on the map with his white-gloved hand.

General Nelson glanced down at the map, nodded, and said, "I agree."

Two France colonial cruisers were sailing south along the North America coastline. The cruiser "Floréal" was in the lead, while the cruiser "Wind Moon" followed slightly behind.

"In another hour, we should reach Savannah. We can rest there, replenish our supplies, and let the lads go ashore to relax," Captain Alençon of the Floréal said to First Officer Edmond.

Savannah is Georgia's oldest port city, and even today, it remains the Georgia's capital and one of the South's most important ports. Much of the American South's cotton, tobacco, and other produce was loaded onto ships here and continuously transported to Europe.

This is why Savannah is quite prosperous, with many entertainment options for sailors. Everyone looks forward to resting in Savannah, especially after receiving combat pay from the United States.

Savannah Harbor quickly came into view through the telescope, but at that moment, the lookout shouted, "Fleet spotted, at ten o'clock!"

Alençon quickly looked in that direction and, sure enough, some plumes of smoke appeared on the eastern sea. However, they were still far away, and he could not see the fleet's flags yet.

After a while, the masts of the fleet finally rose from below the sea. At the very top of those masts flew a proud St. George's Flag —this was the Britain fleet!

However, Alençon wasn't worried at all, because when they decided to return to New Orleans, they had already lowered the United States flag and hoisted the France tricolor. In this way, they were no longer American warships, but France warships. Would the Britain dare to fire on a warship flying the France flag?

Although the British Navy has always been reckless, the current situation should make them wise enough to think things through. Moreover, if they do dare to act, the France could then have a legitimate reason to launch a full-scale attack on Britain colonies in the Americas.

Therefore, Captain Alençon was not worried about his safety at all.

Soon, the British Army fleet came into full view of Captain Alençon. He immediately recognized the Britain battleship Queen Elizabeth.

"The Britain have even sent out this old maid? The United States are in for a world of trouble now," Captain Alençon immediately concluded.

To be honest, Captain Alençon and the crew of the HMS Flower Moon had a fairly good impression of the United States, since United States were paid in gold and silver coins. However, after recognizing the "Old Maid," Captain Alençon had no desire to engage the Britain in naval combat. Two colonial cruisers going to fight a massive fleet, including the Queen Elizabeth —did they think they were sailing teardrops?

The problem, however, was that there were United States on board the Floréal.

"Captain Alençon, it's the Britain fleet! We must stop them and give Savannah time to prepare!" shouted Major Francis, the American representative.