Artillery can be divided into three categories according to the ratio of its muzzle diameter and barrel length, namely mortar, howitzer and cannon.

Generally, the ratio of the diameter of the muzzle to the length of the barrel is less than one to ten, which is the mortar.

For example, during this period, the earth cannons and shells were basically held up with both hands, with a diameter of about twenty centimeters, while the length of the cannon barrel was basically not two meters. In this way, the ratio of the diameter of the muzzle to the length of the cannon barrel is less than one to ten, which means that the earth cannons at this time are basically mortar cannons.

The characteristic of this kind of artillery is that the shells are relatively large and the range is relatively short.

In fact, the Ming army's tiger squat cannons and the Qing army's red barbarian cannons, General Weiyuan cannons, and General Zhenyuan cannons were all mortar cannons.

Generally, if the ratio of the diameter of the muzzle to the length of the barrel is between one to ten and one to twenty, it is a howitzer.

This kind of artillery has a relatively long range and is relatively large in shells, which is the most common type. The field artillery in later generations was basically howitzer, and most of the artillery in World War I and World War II were also howitzer.

Generally, the ratio of the diameter of the muzzle to the length of the barrel is more than one to twenty, which is a cannon.

The biggest feature of this kind of artillery is its long range, large initial speed of the shell, strong penetration ability, and the ballistics are basically straight, not parabolas. For example, the cannons installed on tanks are usually cannons.

So, why were the earth cannons cast by the Ming army and the tiger squat cannons cast by the Qing army at this time, and even the Weiyuan General cannons cast by the Qing army behind them, all were mortar cannons instead of howitzers or cannons?

There are many reasons for this.

First of all, the gunpowder explosion at this time is not very powerful, and most shells rely on their own weight and high speed to smash people.

In this case, the bigger the shell, the better.

Then, at this time, the visual range limits the range of the artillery. Before the telescope is invented, ordinary people can see things one or two miles away, and they can't see clearly any further. What's the use of creating a long-range cannon? It can't be seen wherever the shell falls.

Finally, the most important point is that it is difficult to process a cannon barrel of more than two meters at this level of processing, while a fist-sized shell is about ten centimeters in diameter. At a ratio of one to twenty, it is really difficult to build a cannon.

In fact, Zhu Qizhao also knew that the ratio of the diameter of the muzzle and the length of the barrel determines the range. The problem was that he thought of creating a slender barrel was also frustrated. With his initial level, it would be good to build a mortar.

How did the Dutch make cannons at this time?

He walked over and took a closer look, and immediately understood.

It turned out that the Dutch made shells smaller.

Their secondary cannons of about 200 kilograms have a very small muzzle and are not as big as their fists.

To be honest, this kind of artillery is not very effective in land warfare. The shells are not as big as fists. How many people can be killed?

Even if the cannon has a strong penetration ability, with the current power of this cannon, it would be amazing that a shell could smash through one or two people.

In other words, if this kind of artillery is used in land warfare, it will kill at most one or two people with one shot, and it will not be as powerful as the mortar cannon in terms of practicality.

You know, the shells of the mortar cannons are always held with both hands. The head is almost the size of a head. One shell can kill a row of people.

Therefore, this kind of artillery has basically no effect in land warfare.

However, it is different in naval warfare, because naval warfare is not mainly about smashing people, but about smashing ships.

This kind of shell with small size and strong penetration will have a great effect. Ordinary small boats can't stand it at all, and they can be bombarded with one shot. If a large boat is shot, the main gun of four or five hundred kilograms will probably not be able to withstand it on the side or even the deck.

It seems that the Dutch designed this cannon for naval warfare.

Zhuqi Garbage Station pondered for a while and had an idea in his mind. From now on, the side guns of the tower ship's gunboat and the main gun tail gun of the wheelboat will be used. With his current processing level under his command, it is still no problem to manufacture small cannons.

Immediately afterwards, he turned around and went into the cabin to take a look.

The structure in the cabin is nothing special. It seems that the Dutch made tower ship gunboats in the initial stage, and there is not much to learn and learn from.

He walked out of the cabin with some excitement and was about to return to his flagship, but Zheng Zhilong suddenly rushed over and asked, "Brother Zhu, what do you think of these prisoners?"

This is really a problem.

Killing them all is a bit too cruel.

It's a bit of a waste of food when locked up.

All were released, and that was cheaper for the Dutch.

What to do?

He thought about it and shook his head, "Forget it, tie it up and throw it into the cabin to take care of it. Are there some armed merchant ships in the harbor? It seems that there is a large stronghold on the shore, so let's take it all down."

Armed merchant ships, that's mine!

When Zheng Zhilong heard this, he couldn't help but say excitedly: "Okay, I'll take people there now. Just wait on the flagship. There are only a few armed merchant ships that don't need to use building ship gunboats."

In fact, he was afraid that Zhu Qi would run over and bombard him, smashing his armed merchant ship.

Zhu Qizhu was not interested in those armed merchant ships either. He nodded slightly and said, "Okay, let's leave the rest to you."

After saying that, he raised his foot and walked towards his flagship.

Soon, Zheng Zhilong took more than a thousand warships of all sizes and sizes under his command and rushed into the bay.

Zhu Qizhuo thought about it and then called Qi Yuanfu and explained: "Yuanfu, you can search the fortress next to him to see if you can find the drawings for them to build the fortress."

The fortress next to it cannot be called a fortress at this moment, because the Dutch had just built a bottom wall, and as for the second and third floors, there was no sign yet.

However, once this multi-layered bastion is built, its defense will be more terrifying.

You should know that in history, Zheng Chenggong led an army of more than 100,000 to surround the completed fortress and failed to capture it for several months. In the end, the Dutch in the fortress had run out of ammunition and food and surrendered, and he took it down.

This is enough to prove how terrifying this fortress is after completion. He naturally needs to find a way to build this fortress with super defensive power.

Qi Yuanfu and more than a thousand people landed on the island next to him without much resistance. Not long after, he rushed back in a carriage boat and bowed breathlessly: "Prince, there are many prisoners in the fortress. They seem to be all maritime merchants and boatmen on the coast of Fujian, and they don't know how to deal with it."

It seems that the Dutch should have escorted these prisoners and forced them to build forts.

I just don’t know how these people built fortresses.

When Zhu Qizhu heard this, he said with great interest: "Let's go and take me to see."

He followed Qi Yuanfu onto the wheel boat, climbed the island, and walked into the unfinished fortress with great enthusiasm, and his face turned black.

These Dutch people were too much and tortured the prisoners into this way!

There were three or four hundred people in front of him, but these people were all ragged and thin, and they could not see the appearance of the marshals and boatmen.

What's even more excessive is that the Dutch also put shackles on them, and many people were worn out by shackles and had pus on their ankles. It is conceivable how painful they were when they worked.

He was secretly angry when a guard suddenly ran over and whispered: "Prince, the villain just asked, they originally had more than a thousand people. In recent years, they have been forced by the Dutch to build fortresses with the officials in Penghu with the Dutch, and they have exhausted seven or eight hundred people."

It's outrageous!

Zhu Qizhu was furious when he heard this.
Chapter completed!