Chapter 783: The Fall of Maputo

December 20, 1888.

Maputo, which had enjoyed peace for more than half a month, once again sounded the alarm because the damn East Africans were coming again.

"Just three hours ago, the East African Navy engaged our army in the north, and the enemy troops landed east of Marakwane. We just discovered the enemy navy at the lookout on the north side of Cape Town Bay, and they are heading into the bay."

The exit of Maputo Bay is nearly twenty kilometers long, so it is impossible to be completely blocked. Of course, the city of Maputo is built at the inner mouth of the bay, so there is no risk of being attacked from the sea.

Just facing the enemy ships' artillery fire coverage was enough to make Davis, the current top military commander in Maputo, feel suffocated and frightened.

"Prepare the troops for combat. Once each artillery position spots an enemy ship, open fire immediately without hesitation." Davis gave the order after calming down a little.

At this time, there is no time to care about the landing troops in northern East Africa. Who knows whether East Africa is just a feint and will directly attack Cape Town.

In fact, even if we know that the East African troops in the north are the main force, we cannot mobilize too many people to eliminate the East African troops landing in the north.

Because just three days ago, a small unknown force infiltrated between Maputo and the southern defense line and dealt a devastating blow to the supply channel between Maputo and the southern defense line.

In order to wipe out this East African force, Maputo has sent its last reserve force to the south to encircle and suppress this small East African force.

This small force was exactly the regiment led by Schwall. If the enemy wanted to wipe out Schwall's troops, they would have to dispatch at least a brigade. However, since Earl Roberts and the Governor's Office moved, they took nearly half of the original Maputo troops to Chokwi.

At this time, dividing the troops to encircle and suppress the Schwal tribe made the situation even worse for Maputo, which was already weak in military strength. Therefore, the troops in the city could no longer be divided, and even some troops had to be withdrawn to consolidate Maputo's defense.

Davis felt heavy in his heart and said helplessly: "It seems that the East Africans are ready for a decisive battle in Maputo! Quickly send the messenger to withdraw our troops. Now only Maputo City can be our last resort. Let's give up other areas first!"

At this time there was no way to take care of the areas outside the city of Maputo. Based on the experience of these days, Davis was clear that the East African encirclement of Maputo had been formed, and a small force was sent into the encirclement to cut off the connection between Maputo and the main force in the south.

Davis' idea now is to keep the main force of the southern defense line, otherwise they are likely to be besieged by East Africa. The southern defense line is not like Maputo, which has cities, military fortresses and defense projects, as well as sufficient material supplies to hold on.

Once East Africa moves south from the north or west, I am afraid that the southern defense line will be directly wiped out, and Maputo also needs reinforcements now.

"The troops in the north must be the elite of East Africa. The artillery fire we heard just now lasted for nearly an hour, which means that they carry a lot of artillery and ammunition, at least a division's strength. Now all the northern troops are withdrawn to the outskirts of Maputo. This is no longer something they can handle!"

Before the Guards Division landed, the area north of Maputo belonged to the hinterland of Mozambique, so there were not many troops there. And there was only one battalion that came to support the landing area, which was why the First Brigade of the Guards Division made a direct and violent landing.

All the troops in the north of Maputo only have the strength of a brigade. Under such circumstances, they certainly cannot confront East Africa head-on.

At the same time, Davis withdrew his troops from the south for this reason. If the East Africans landed in the north, there would be no point in the southern defense line continuing to exist.

After all, the original idea of ​​the coalition forces was to keep the East African army out of Mozambique through the narrow terrain in the south. Now that the enemy has appeared behind Maputo, the so-called defense line will collapse. In this situation, Davis can only prioritize the safety of Maputo.

There are many examples in history of relying on cities to resist enemies. To be frank, there is an example in the South African War, when East Africans were trapped in the port city of New Hamburg, which lasted for three months.

Davis thought that based on the current construction in Maputo, it should be able to hold out for at least a year. Even if it was finally breached, it should be due to running out of ammunition and food and surrendering, rather than being conquered by the enemy.

…

The East African General Staff was unaware of Davis's idea. After the Navy and the Guards Division arrived, the General Staff issued an order for a full-scale offensive to the Western and Southern Military Regions.

At this time, Schwall finally waited for the large force that had made a detour. After the two sides joined forces, Schwall's troops and the 9th Brigade switched from defense to offense.

The hope of the coalition forces on the southern defense line to withdraw to Maputo was completely cut off, and at this time the main force of the Southern Military Region also launched a full-scale attack on the southern defense line.

Only one day later, the southern defense line of the coalition forces, which was attacked from all sides, was completely broken. At this time, the Western Military Region also attacked the coalition forces in western Swaziland and marched towards Maputo in a mighty manner.

Davis's messenger was captured by the East African Defense Force before he could deliver the letter. As various defense lines were broken, Maputo was also in a bad situation. The East African Navy launched a new round of attacks on Maputo.

This century-old military fortress in the Western Indian Ocean could not withstand the repeated bombardment of the main ironclad warships of East Africa, and large areas of ruins appeared in the city.

Before the coalition forces had time to clean up the ruins in the city, the Northern Guards Division began to move south, leaving the coalition forces with only the ruins to fight in East Africa.

However, the situation was not too bad. Although many buildings in the city were destroyed, the city walls of Maputo did withstand the attack of East African artillery fire.

This fortress, reinforced by the Portuguese over hundreds of years and nearly a decade, is far more impregnable than any city in Africa.

However, the biggest problem facing the coalition forces at this time was the shortage of troops, not the problem of city defense. Without sufficient troops to defend, loopholes would easily appear.

But a situation that made Davis despair occurred. The next day, intelligence from the south and the west was transmitted back, bringing absolutely bad news. The main forces of the coalition forces in the south and the west were almost completely lost, and only less than one division of troops escaped. Together with a brigade withdrawn from the north, the current number of defenders in Maputo was less than 30,000.

The East Africans may have several times the number of Maputo's defenders. At this time, Maputo was surrounded by enemies, but Davis remained calm.

Although less than 30,000 troops were too few, it was still more than enough as long as some outer areas of Maputo City were abandoned, so Davis still wanted to fight to the death.

Subsequently, the East African Guards Division, the Western Military Region, and the Southern Military Region completed their meeting in the city of Maputo, taking advantage of their troop strength and firepower advantages.

The East African Army achieved good results, but it was not enough to capture this strong fortress in a short time, but an accident occurred.

After a day of artillery bombardment, and under extremely pessimistic circumstances, a Portuguese regiment declared an uprising under the planning of the East African Defense and Security Agency in Maputo and took the initiative to bring the East African Defense Force into the city of Maputo.

Davis could never have dreamed that such a situation would happen on the battlefield. That night, a fierce street battle broke out between the East African Defense Force that entered the city and the British army that was resisting stubbornly. After seven hours, Davis, who had no other choice, had to lead his troops to surrender to East Africa.

(End of this chapter)