Chapter 127: [California Republic]

According to the newspapers, there had been a rebellion in California in June, about two months earlier.

American Captain John Fremont incited the local American residents to rebellion, led an army of sixty people, took control of California, and declared independence from Mexico, establishing the California Republic.

Yes, sixty people.

Although he had known the situation in the United States at that time, Ma Shao still felt that the number was a bit outrageous.

That's California, the world's first provincial administrative region that later became extremely prosperous and powerful. Now, just a few dozen people have overthrown the regime as if it were a joke.

Ma Shao believed that if he wanted to, he could also organize such a subversion.

But he won't do that.

Because it was meaningless. California at that time was too vast and sparsely populated. What Fremont actually occupied was just a village. The so-called change of sovereignty was just a name.

And Ma Shao would definitely not accept this title.

California was one of the four goals James Polk promised during his campaign, and he certainly wouldn't allow anyone to take it away.

In fact, the California Republic existed symbolically for less than a month before becoming part of the United States.

Although Ma Shao was not sure of the exact time, he estimated that at the moment when he read the newspaper, the California Republic should have become a part of the United States and no longer existed as a country.

The Americans have coveted this for a long time and are determined to get it.

There is no doubt that if Ma Shao dared to overthrow California, he would instantly become the biggest troublemaker in North America. That super workaholic President Polk would also be sure to focus his fire on him.

But Ma Shao will not let California go.

He must seize this place, the American version of Guangdong Province plus, a super province that is more prosperous than most countries including Britain and France.

Even without mentioning the prosperity in later generations, California now has two things that make Ma Shao jealous - gold and the ocean.

One of the highlights of the westward movement was the discovery of gold in California.

He knew something of the history; at least he knew that the gold mine was near Sacramento and would be discovered in two years.

In order to obtain this gold, he must develop power in California in advance.

According to his plan, he would go to Sacramento next year to establish an Apache stronghold and search for gold mines.

In addition to gold mines, California is adjacent to the Pacific Ocean, and the ocean is undoubtedly an essential resource.

But before that, Ma Shao's attention to the outside world should still be focused on the Mexican-American War in the southwest.

By next year, the focus of the war will shift to the south, directly to the Mexican capital, and then he can go to Sacramento to look for gold mines.

…

James Magoffin never returned. General Kearney waited for a few more days, but still did not see him come back. He vaguely guessed the truth.

"Obviously, this guy failed!" General Kearny said angrily in the military camp.

"He probably left his head in Santa Fe, along with thirty thousand dollars," Cook said. "I thought he was as smart as he said he was, and that he could talk Armijo down with a little bit of persuasion."

Donifan said: "Maybe Armijo isn't as corrupt and cowardly as he's portrayed."

"Who knows." General Carney snorted, "Whatever the truth is, I think we can only prepare for the attack now."

"Since the Mexicans are unwilling to surrender, we will use bullets to make them regret this decision." He took a deep breath, "Notify the entire army to head to the canyon tomorrow!"

The U.S. military gave up its plan to defeat the enemy without fighting and began to prepare for an attack.

The battle took place not in the city of Santa Fe, but in a canyon.

The city of Santa Fe is not a fortified city with high walls. In fact, it is just an earthen city, so there will be no siege or anything like that.

But in the northeast corner of the city of Santa Fe there is a canyon, which is the only way for the US military to enter Santa Fe.

As long as the Mexicans are not fools, they must have made preparations near the canyon a long time ago.

And as long as Americans are not fools, they must have anticipated this.

Everyone knows that this canyon is the battlefield between the US Army and the Santa Fe Army.

Sure enough, when General Kearney led his troops to the canyon, they saw the Mexican defensive positions from afar.

The Mexican army was obviously serious, with at least two thousand men standing by, and several cannons on display.

In numbers, the Mexicans may even outnumber General Carney's troops.

However, Carney was not surprised by this and did not take it to heart.

Before the war, Mexico's army was larger than that of the United States. But as a professional officer, he knew that numbers were never the decisive factor in strength.

An elephant can be killed by a bullet that is not even as big as its toes. A mob can be defeated by an enemy force that is only one tenth of its size.

In the eyes of Americans, the Mexican army is almost a mob.

This is not to slander someone out of thin air, but the facts. The Mexican army is poorly equipped, poorly trained, and has little fighting spirit. It is a typical example of a lazy person.

If Texas can defeat Mexico, what about the United States of America, which is favored by God?

So Carney believes that defeating the Mexicans is a sure thing, or even a matter of course.

The only thing that made him unhappy was Magoffin's failure, which made his wish to "peacefully liberate" the city of Santa Fe come to nothing.

Mexican position.

Looking at the American troops opposite, Governor Manuel Armijo seemed very nervous.

He stood in the military camp, his uniform seemed to be stretched out, and his erect belly made him look undignified.

He repeatedly picked up the telescope to look, and repeatedly put it down to frown and think, like a bride in an arranged marriage, hesitating to know what the groom looked like.

In contrast, the young officers were full of fighting spirit, especially Armijo's nephew Chavez, who seemed to be almost looking forward to the upcoming war.

Chavez came to Armijo and said, "Relax, my uncle, we can defeat the Americans."

Armijo was not comforted at all, his brows were still furrowed: "Chavez, you are still too young, and sometimes very naive...I really shouldn't have let you join the army, I should have let you be my secretary."

"I don't want to be a secretary." Travis said, "And I don't want to bother you. You and that blonde secretary are obviously getting along very well."

"..." Amijo was silent for a moment.

"To be honest, I don't think we have much of a chance of winning. I admit those newfangled pistols are nice, but weapons don't decide wars."

He continued: "It is the will that matters, and our soldiers do not have the will to fight."

Chavez said: "The lack of will lies with the officers, not the soldiers."

If you like the story join my patreon as a free member

patreon.com/Theshadowreader179