Chapter 30

Due to the first Japanese cruiser fleet's shift to the right, when the distance between the two forces narrowed to 5,000 meters, the 283 mm main guns on the battleship Kaiyuan were still in the loading state. Although 5,000 meters was still some distance from the optimal firing range of the Beiyang Fleet's large-caliber guns, if no action was taken at this moment, the first cruiser fleet would almost unscathed move to the right flank of the Beiyang Fleet, which was something Liu Buzhan absolutely did not want to see. At this point, he had to use the large-caliber guns to make a powerful first strike!

Following the order from the gunnery officer Shen Shoukun of the Dingyuan, the main gun turret on the starboard side let out a deafening roar; two 292 kg shells, propelled by the immense pressure in the gun barrel, were accelerated to a supersonic speed of 500 meters per second in an extremely short time, spinning and whistling through the air towards the Japanese fleet 10 kilometers away. This ship, long hailed as the "mightiest in the Far East," symbol of the Beiyang Fleet's power, finally unleashed its fierce and mighty roar after 9 years of silence.

Liu Buzhan pulled the cotton out of his ears and eagerly looked out the window of the command tower. He saw two bright red fireballs trace beautiful arcs in the air, striking the sea 200 meters in front of the warship Yoshino, sending up water spouts over 10 meters high. To be fair, the Dingyuan, using the old sextant, achieving this level of accuracy at 5,000 meters was no small feat, but Liu Buzhan felt no joy. Due to the limited speed of the formation, all he could do was silently pray that the large-caliber guns would soon make the enemy suffer.

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

The firing of the Dingyuan was the signal to attack. Soon after the flagship's guns fired, the forward main guns of the other ships in the Beiyang Fleet let out deafening roars. Countless shells flew across the vast sea, like a rain of meteors, and water columns shot up one after another, making the sea seem to boil!

"Commander Ding, look, we hit them!" The foreign officer Hannagan suddenly shook Ding Ruchang's body vigorously, shouting excitedly.

Ding Ruchang was overjoyed and quickly looked. He saw a warship at the end of the Combined Fleet engulfed in fierce flames, with thick black smoke rising higher than the ship's mast. From the shape of the ship, it seemed to be the old ironclad Fusou. Hearing the thunderous cheers of the sailors around him, Ding Ruchang felt greatly elated. Although the ship hit was not a main warship of the Japanese Navy, scoring a hit in the first round of firing was undoubtedly a good start for the subsequent battle! In the armored command tower, Liu Buzhan, seeing a warship at the end of the Combined Fleet hit and on fire, finally showed a hint of a smile on his dark, round face.

In these few short minutes, the Japanese officers and men of the Combined Fleet felt as if they had entered hell. They had to muster great courage to expose the large, unarmored sides of their warships to the large-caliber guns of the Beiyang Fleet. The only thing that the commander of the cruiser fleet, Heihachiro Tōgō, was relieved about was that due to his timely order to turn the fleet, the accuracy of the Beiyang Fleet's largest battleship was not as terrifying in the second round of firing. The next two rounds of shells all missed. A shell came and raised a huge water column on the starboard side of the Matsushima. Through the splashing water, the Combined Fleet's commander, Tōgō Heihachirō, saw that the Qing fleet had become quite clear. Just as he was about to ask his adjutant, the rangefinder outside the command tower shouted, "General, the Qing fleet is only 3,500 meters away from us!"

Although before the battle, due to the characteristics of the small-caliber quick-firing guns, the Combined Fleet had a strict rule not to fire until within 3,000 meters, the rules were dead, but the people were alive. Tōgō Heihachirō was very clear that in this situation, if the sailors strictly followed this rule and waited until 3,000 meters to counterattack, his new recruits might not be able to withstand the psychological impact!

Seeing the expectant expressions of the officers in the command tower, Tōgō Heihachirō sighed lightly and said, "Fire!"

"Hai!" A group of Japanese officers responded excitedly, as if they had grabbed a lifeline.

"Boom!" Just 10 seconds later, the 320 mm main gun at the stern of the Matsushima cruiser spewed out large patches of purple-red light. The red-hot shell soared through the air, breaking the sky with a long howl, its power even several times stronger than the 283 mm main guns on the Kaiyuan! However, the result greatly disappointed the Japanese sailors; the shell, aimed at the Kaiyuan, landed 200 meters in front of the Dingyuan, raising a mountain of rolling waves.

Seeing the Matsushima cruiser fire first, the sailors of the Combined Fleet, who had been suppressing their nervousness, began to fire at the Beiyang Fleet. Since the 320 mm giant guns of the Matsushima missed in the first round, Tōgō Heihachirō placed all his hopes on the warships Yashima and Hashidate behind him. If their 320 mm giant guns could hit one of the evil Qing warships, with the picric acid explosives equipped by the Combined Fleet, it would be enough to cause devastating damage!

The deafening explosion shook the heavens.

Seeing the towering water column rising 500 meters from the port side, Claude could not help but sneer, his square face full of contempt. As a senior officer who had served on warships since the establishment of the German Navy, he was well aware of the drawbacks of small ships with large guns; on such a small hull, to have both heavy guns and high speed, and still be accurate, would it still be a warship that humans could build?

The 320 mm giant guns were not to be feared. Claude shifted his gaze to the Takachiho and Naniwa of the first cruiser fleet. These two armored cruisers, built by the British Armstrong shipyard in 1884, had a standard displacement of 3,650 tons, a main engine power of 7,000 horsepower, and a twin-screw propulsion system, capable of reaching the same speed of 18.5 knots as the Zhiyuan and Jingyuan. That was not all; the key was that they were equipped with two 260 mm main guns, which, apart from the 320 mm giant guns on the three-decked warships, were the most powerful guns in the Combined Fleet!

At this moment, a very tempting opportunity presented itself to Claude. The first cruiser fleet had navigated to the right flank of the Beiyang Fleet, and his flagship Kaiyuan was moving in the opposite direction, with the distance between the two fleets breaking 3,500 meters. The main gun turrets of the Kaiyuan were all arranged along the centerline, like Japanese warships, designed for broadside combat. If he chose to fire at the second ship in the first cruiser fleet, the Takachiho, the six main guns would be able to unleash their full combat power!

"Pass the order, turn the gun barrels, and fire at the second Japanese ship equipped with 260 mm guns!" Claude adjusted his snow-white naval cap and conveyed this latest order to the officers.

A century later, naval historians in China still debated Claude's order. Most believed that if Claude had not changed his target and continued to attack the Yoshino, the German battleship's accuracy in this sea battle would have likely severely damaged or even sunk the fastest ship in the Combined Fleet within half an hour, shattering Tōgō Heihachirō's tactical layout. If the Yoshino had been heavily damaged at the start of the battle, what would have happened afterward?

However, many others argued that Claude's decision was not unreasonable. From the formation at the time, if he continued to attack the Yoshino, only the rear and midship main gun turrets of the Kaiyuan would have a clear line of fire, while the forward main gun would have to find another target, causing a significant dispersion of firepower. Claude, a traditional naval officer, had a deeply ingrained belief in the power of large-caliber guns, while the small-caliber quick-firing guns were still a novelty. Even the Combined Fleet's commander, Tōgō Heihachirō, did not know the significant impact these fast-firing small guns could have on the battle. In Claude's view, the two ships equipped with 260 mm guns posed a much greater threat to his side than the Yoshino, which was only equipped with 152 mm guns; the small guns could not penetrate the heavy armor of the Kaiyuan, and even the 120 mm thick gun shields could deflect 4.7-inch (120 mm) shells with their excellent ballistic shape. If a 260 mm shell hit the gun turret, it would be a catastrophic disaster!

Following Claude's order, the hydraulic system controlling the horizontal angle of the main guns on the Kaiyuan battleship began to operate, and each movement of the 45-ton guns was thrilling. At a distance of less than 3,500 meters, the two main gun turrets at the bow and stern of the Kaiyuan were almost at a flat angle, while the main guns in the midship turret still had a certain angle with the horizontal line. This was because, to save costs during construction, the barrels of the two 283 mm guns in the midship turret were shortened from 40 calibers to 35 calibers, reducing the muzzle velocity to 685 meters per second, so a larger angle was needed to achieve the same range as the bow and stern guns.

Due to the inconsistent trajectories, this compromise in the midship guns indeed made it difficult to fire a full broadside, but in the late 19th century, there was no concept of a full broadside in naval battles; each gun fought independently, a situation that did not improve until the first decade of the 20th century. During this period, the accuracy of the guns on warships was directly related to the personal experience of the gunners.

"Boom!"

Crimson light burst forth, and red flames shot up. The rear main gun of the Kaiyuan battleship let out a thunderous roar for the first time in this battle. Before Claude could recover, the four heavy guns in the midship and forward turrets fired in quick succession, the thunderous sounds rolling and exploding, instantly filling every corner of the battleship!

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