My Italian: Chapter 394 Maine Incident

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

Under a series of brutal repressions by Cuban Governor Wirral, the Cuban uprising suffered another setback. The leader of the rebel army, Maximo Gomez, was even forced to hide in the forest.

If anyone who is familiar with history sees this scene, they may wonder why the Cuban uprising became like this. The reason is very simple. The Cuban governor Weiler has not been removed from office. The most dangerous enemy of the rebel army has always served as the governor of Cuba, and the siege and suppression of the rebel army has never stopped for a moment. This step-by-step strategy prevented the rebel army from resting 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 insurgent army. The constant casualties made people nervous. Every day people left without saying goodbye, which made the insurgent army gradually collapse in the mountains and forests. The leader of the rebel army, Maximo Gomez, also had to hide first and wait for the opportunity.

The reason why Governor Weiler did not remove his post is also very simple. Although Prime Minister Castillo was also assassinated, he did not die because of it. The assassinated anarchist, for some unknown reason, missed his pistol and didn't hit the point directly, but injured his shoulder.

Since the Prime Minister was not killed, Madrid did not fall back into political turmoil, and Governor Wirral, who was the prime minister's faction who pushed hard to come to power, did not step down because of the lack of Madrid's support.

In the face of the Cuban uprising being gradually subsided, the attitude of the United States, separated by a sea, is somewhat meaningful.

At this time, the "New York News" and "The New York World" were competing to report on Cuba. In their reports, the Spanish colonial army created a series of tragic tragedies in Cuba, and direct killing is too childish. There are countless sensational reports about the officers of the Spanish army who need to bathe 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 in any case, the reports in both newspapers boosted their sales.

Of course, if that's all, then we can use these two newspapers for readers, not the bottom line to describe, then the next report of the "New York Journal" will be somewhat naked.

One day in June, the New York Journal published a letter from the Spanish ambassador to the United States, Depp de Lomé, to his friends in Havana. In the letter, the minister alluded to Spain's deceit in negotiations over a pending trade deal and said President McKinley was a "secondary statesman."

Such blatant remarks angered the American people, and some officials 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 a little bit, all four American cruisers entered service last month.

In the face of the accusation from the United States, the Spanish ambassador to the United States, Lome, who is one of the parties, 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 what sympathizers do.

It's just that Luo Mei'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.

At this time, sending warships to Cuba was obviously a demonstration, and Spain did not dare to refuse openly when facing the powerful United States.

So on June 19, the battleship Maine pulled into Havana Harbor. Valley

Here I need to talk about the data of the Maine. Its captain is 98.9 meters long, 17.4 meters wide, with a maximum draft of 6.9 meters and a displacement of 6,682 tons. The main gun falls on the deck at the stern of the ship, which is not only vulnerable to bad weather, but also makes the ship unable to stabilize the center of gravity, and the stability of the ship is reduced when sailing. In addition, there are two main guns on each side of the ship, arranged in echelon for front and rear fire.

Has four 10-inch (254 mm) Mark-II main guns, in addition to six 6-inch (152 mm) Mark 3 guns, two each in 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 during the period.

From the data point of view, the Maine is not like a new ship that appeared in 1895, but should be taken out in 1885 to be innovative enough. But what can be done about this, the US Navy's shipbuilding industry is like that, and although the ship has only been in service for 3 years, it took nine years for the Maine to be launched, because it needs to be tested.

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 Spaniards, the Maine was just as huge. At present, the largest battleship of the Spanish Navy in the Caribbean is Alfonso XIII. Its 4,700-ton speed is only 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 those plantation owners in the United States~www.mtlnovel.com~ In recent years, the United States has invested a lot in sugarcane cultivation and sugar production in Cuba.

Cuba sends more than 100 million US dollars of sugar to the United States, which is just across the sea every year. It is precisely because of this interest that the United States values ​​Cuba so much.

But the visit of the Maine will be the same for the Cuban colonial army. Its warships can't go ashore, so what kind of threat can it pose.

Life still needs to go on, and everyone should do whatever they want. And 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 Cuban insurgents (rioters) that would make both parties unhappy, life was like that.

Time quickly passed like this for ten days. Except for the addition of the Maine, the port in Havana was no different.

In the middle of the night on July 2, the Port of Havana was as quiet as usual. In addition to being on duty, the officers and men of the Maine also fell asleep.

At this moment, a violent explosion sounded, and the ferocious explosion woke the entire Havana. At this time, the Maine made an explosion. The bottom of the port side of the Maine was directly bombed with a large pit, and the fierce seawater was directly poured into the Maine's cabin. pour into it.

The Maine sank into the harbor shortly after the explosion. A total of 261 people were killed in the explosion, and 16 of the 94 who survived were injured.

The explosion of the USS Maine in the port of Havana directly pushed the already tense U.S.-Spain relationship into a more dangerous situation.