After dinner, besides Monge, Bertolet, Brues, Gantum, Cafreri, and other high-ranking generals also participated in the discussion. Napoleon was never tired. His mind was filled with countless questions and suggestions. He constantly induced his subordinates to think about various political and military issues. After that, he would turn the topic to religion, or whether there were people living on other planets, or the age of the Earth and whether the Earth might be destroyed by fire or flood. He was also very interested in dream interpretation.
However, as the transport ships and fleets of the entire Eastern Army sailed day after day at sea, Napoleon had to consider the more serious and urgent reality, which was the fate of his huge fleet and the success or failure of his expedition plan. Napoleon did not forget that the British might launch a surprise attack on the sea, nor did he forget that the fate of the French naval fleet would be decisive for the success or failure of this battle.
There was no doubt that neither Napoleon nor Bruise knew that while the French fleet was still on standby in Toulon, the British admiral Nelson's fleet had reached the Strait of gibraltar on May 9. Although Nelson's mission was to destroy Napoleon's French fleet in the Mediterranean Sea, he did not learn until May 28 that the French fleet was not heading for gibraltar but to an unknown destination. At this time, the two fleets were already 800 miles apart.
On June 2, Bruise's fears seemed to have come true. The French spotted British ships in the distance, convinced that they were the vanguard of the British Mediterranean Squadron. Bruise immediately ordered four warships with 74 cannons and three three-masted fleets to scout.
Fearing that the transport ships would fall into the hands of the British, Bruise ordered the fleet to form an attack formation and sail for Malta as soon as possible. Bruise planned to capture and capture Malta within a few days. If they could not capture it for a long time, malta might call for the British to rescue them. If that happened, the expedition to Egypt might be delayed or even never realized.
The Knights of Saint John of Jerusam-also known as the Knights of Malta-was established in 1113 during the Crusade. After the fall of Jerusha in 1187, they established a new home in the strategic Rhode Island. In 1522, the powerful Turkish Sultan of the Middle East's Turkish Empire occupied the island. In 1530, the Hapsburgs found a new sanctuary for the knights on the island of Malta. They built a huge city wall on the island and equipped it with a large number of cannons. In 1565, the Turks launched another attack on Malta, but it was soon discovered to be a mistake. Although the Turks had used hundreds of warships and tens of thousands of troops to besiege Malta for 233 days, they had returned empty-handed, leaving behind only 30,000 Turkish corpses.
In December 1797, before the Governor authorized the expedition, Napoleon had sent an envoy with a box of gold to secretly go to Malta to scout the defenders and terrain of malta, and bribed the defenders with gold. On March 3, 1798, the emissary returned to Paris with a detailed military report for Napoleon.
Despite the miles of battlements, Napoleon knew the military layout of the island like the back of his hand. The Malta garrison consisted of 10,000 militia (used only in emergencies), most of whom were untrained civilians who had never participated in any war. In fact, there were only 1,500 garrison soldiers and 900 ancient cannons (most of which had never been used) guarding the city wall. There were only 322 knights in the garrison, 50 of whom were old and only 272 could still wield their swords. Of these, 200 were actually French. Based on this background, coupled with a considerable amount of bribes, in June 1798, Napoleon naturally easily captured the island.
On June 8th, Bruise's fleet finally saw the island of Malta. They found Desai's small fleet from Civitaveccia and Decris 'escort three-masted frigates waiting for them. The next day, the fleet of 365 warships finally anchored at Valletta after 21 days of sailing.
Needless to say, on June 9th, when the Malta woke up in this ancient port on the Mediterranean Sea, they found that the sea in front of them was endless warships and masts and sails that were like floating forests. They couldn't help but be shocked. Similarly, the French naval officers were anxious when they saw the seemingly impregnable battlements and fortresses on the island through their binoculars.
To capture the island, but not to appear as a conqueror, Napoleon sent a signal to the defenders of Valletta, requesting that the entire fleet be allowed to enter the port to replenish fresh water. At 10 o'clock, the island replied,"Only four ships are allowed to enter the port to add water at a time." This was good. In order to attack them, they would always need an excuse, no matter what the excuse was. General Desai immediately boarded the Vostok to discuss the deployment with the commander-in-chief and decided to attack the island from four directions.
Before the attack, for the sake of the public fishing boat and history, Napoleon had to carry out the last procedure. On June 10, he ordered the French Consul in Malta to submit a formal protest to the commander of the Maltese garrison, stating: The fleet had the right to enter the neutral port to obtain fresh water, and the commander-in-chief was furious at the denial of the island's defenders. He also pointed out that he was familiar with the preferential treatment given to the British by his predecessor (in 1793, when the Malta refused to recognize the newly established French Republic). Therefore, Napoleon decided to use force to get the courtesy he deserved…and I don't expect you to stop him.
In fact, the sudden appearance of the French fleet should not have been a surprise to the Knights of the Malta Island. Because as early as mid-May, the Austrian diplomat of Rushtat had informed them of the situation in a secret document: "I am writing to remind you that the Toulon expedition is directed at Malta and Egypt…Your island will certainly be attacked, but if you surrender without a fight, you will be a disgrace to all of Europe (and will not receive any support).
Among the many fortresses that the French faced, the three main fortresses that controlled the throat of the port of Valletta were the main ones. However, facing the long front line on the island, the 1,000-strong garrison, and the 900 artillery, mortars, and howitzers, Napoleon was not worried. He gave the signal to attack.
He was proven right again. Less than twenty-four hours after the war began, at nine o'clock in the morning on June 11th, a Malta messenger came to ask for a truce. The Frenchman quickly agreed. At 10 o'clock that night, a group of six Malta ambassadors boarded the Vostok. After a few hours of face-saving bargaining, the ambassador group signed the surrender at 3 o'clock in the morning and ceded malta to the French Republic. The French side only paid the price of three deaths and six injuries. On the Malta side, only a few people died and hundreds of people were imprisoned.
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