African Entrepreneurship Record-Chapter 776 - 80 Threatening Benguela

Although the colonial government of Angola has various complaints, if the colony is lost, nobody would be spared from responsibility, which could even possibly trigger a new round of political upheaval within Portugal itself.

However, the 331st Division and the 421st Division don't care whether the current Angolan government's emotions are stable or not, they have already begun their rapid march towards Luanda.

As for General Madrid's suggestion of military reinforcement, it seems quite difficult, because the East African troops and the Portuguese troops have already descended into chaos on the front lines.

At this moment, everyone has become entangled together, and some East African units are advancing faster than the Portuguese troops can retreat.

The newly formed 416th Division from East Africa encountered such a situation; the division had been assembled for less than two months, but performed exceptionally well on the Angolan battlefield.

Upon their first entry into the battlefield, they defeated two Portuguese brigades and then engaged in a race against time to pursue and dodge with the Portuguese military.

Major General Kapuqi, commander of the 416th Division, was originally a brigade commander in the East Africa's Eastern Military District's 112th Division, promoted to lead the newly constituted 416th Division during this expansion.

Kapuqi asked his staff officer Hans: "How is our troop movement now?"

"The second brigade advanced too quickly, according to the message they sent back yesterday, now the vanguard of the second brigade has reached the Mutongbo Region, while the first brigade is still engaged with the enemy on the east bank of the Kwanza River. This enemy is a Black auxiliary troop of the Portuguese military, because they failed to cross the river in time, they were besieged by our troops on the east bank."

The Kwanza River is a north-south flowing river. Most African rivers are natural and undeveloped primitive waterways, making them very meandering, with many lakes and forests surrounding them.

So even the Angolan natives, in their panicked flight, deviated off course. According to their original plan, they should have retreated northwest, but instead veered southwest and collided with the oncoming first brigade of the 416th Division, after which the first brigade seized the opportunity to prepare for the annihilation of this enemy force.

This caused a slowdown in the progress of the 416th Division, although such unexpected situations are rare and hard to come by, most Portuguese troops managed to escape successfully.

For the unfortunate Portuguese unit encountered by the first brigade, the choice left was either annihilation or surrender to East Africa.

"Order the first brigade to speed up; if it takes too long, they won't even get a sip of soup," said Kapuqi.

Hans: "I believe the first brigade should have nearly annihilated this Portuguese force by now, considering the battle report was from over seven hours ago."

Indeed, as Hans mentioned, the first brigade had completely wiped out the Portuguese force more than an hour ago, but the message hadn't been relayed back to the division headquarters due to Angola's extremely backward infrastructure.

There was no telegraph, and scarcely any proper roads, compounded by the dense jungle near the Kwanza River, just clearing the battlefield consumed considerable time for the first brigade.

Moreover, the most troublesome issue was that the first brigade had captured more than seventeen hundred prisoners, and the custody of these prisoners was a major problem, a task that had to be delegated to subsequent units to handle.

In addition to the regular army, East Africa also organized considerable militia forces this time, consisting of those evacuated from the Danube River province previously.

If nothing unexpected occurs, these prisoners will likely be handed over to them, and simultaneously the militia will manage the supply transport for the East African army.

The interior of Angola is far too backward, so the primary modes of transportation are through human and animal power. Fortunately, East Africa has plenty of livestock, but scheduling is still necessary.

Western supplies are primarily managed by the Hohenzollern and Swabia provinces, while the Matebel province is responsible for supplies to the eastern battlefield.

Of course, supplies from the east and north are also transported via rail line to the central three provinces, mainly comprising grain and equipment.

...

August 24, 1888.

"Ahead is Benguela, it appears the Portuguese are severely lacking in forces now; we've basically encountered no troops along the way," said the commander of the second brigade of the 421st Division.

As a cavalry unit, the 421st Division's marching speed is very fast, arriving at Benguela's outskirts in just a few days.

Throughout this journey, the 421st Division encountered no Portuguese troops, only scattered small units, the reason being that the Portuguese had long withdrawn their forces to Benguela city.

The Portuguese military presence in southern Angola was already sparse, and at the beginning, even the stubborn 421st Division was tough to deal with, not to mention the south has little value, leading into Southwestern Africa.

Hence, the Portuguese military did not focus on the south, although Benguela carries significant importance as the second most critical city after Luanda, it received only limited force allocation.

Upon receiving news from Luanda, the military commander of Benguela city decisively abandoned southern Angola, pulling forces back to Benguela city.

The small units encountered by the 421st Division's second brigade en route were actually those Portuguese troops unable to retreat to Benguela in time.

Currently, the 421st Division, like the 331st Division, is split into two groups, with the second brigade's destination being Benguela, while other units under Helmunt's lead head towards Luanda.

Thus, the upcoming battle for Benguela is entirely the responsibility of the second brigade. This is indeed bad news, as the second brigade's total force is less than four thousand men.

Of course, being cavalry, the numbers are relatively low, so relying solely on their strength to resolve Benguela city is extremely challenging.

Currently, Benguela's defending forces number over fourteen thousand, which constitutes nearly seventy percent of southern Angola's troops before the war.

"Commander, we've already surveyed Benguela's fortifications; the city's defenders are highly prepared, with virtually no vulnerabilities, this battle will be difficult to win."

The second brigade commander said: "No rush, we can gradually wear down Benguela, eventually they'll show openings. Now that division headquarters have moved northward, it means we're the only main force in southern Angola, giving us ample time to wear down Benguela city's defenders."

Of course, while saying this, he is still pondering how to breach this Portuguese stronghold.

The second brigade also possesses numerous artillery pieces, though none with large calibers, while Benguela has top-tier artillery throughout Angola, having been operated by the Portuguese for over a hundred years.

However, Portuguese artillery was previously used primarily to counter maritime threats; perhaps they never envisioned a scenario where an adversary would pose a threat to Benguela from land.

As the second brigade contemplated how to breach Benguela, the Portuguese defenders of Benguela were extremely fearful; the arrival of the second brigade signified for Benguela that East Africa had already penetrated deep into Angola!

Of course, this is a misconception caused by Benguela's location; Benguela lies at Angola's westernmost side and the second brigade actually approached from the southeast.

Meanwhile, most regions of Angola are still under Portuguese control, with the 331st Division and 421st Division effectively operating independently deep within enemy territory.

If the Portuguese can seize the opportunity, they might deal significant blows to these two East African units, though regrettably the Portuguese are too outdated.

Lacking a modern military communication system, the Luanda government cannot entirely grasp East Africa's intelligence, or even its own military information; presently, many Portuguese troops on the front lines are effectively fighting on their own, such that if they fail to swiftly deal with the 331st and 421st Divisions, Luanda and the troops on the front lines might end up completely disconnected.