How was the Spanish treasure fleet destroyed?

1765438+On July 24th, 2005, a Spanish fleet consisting of 1 1 ships set sail from Havana and returned to Spain. This is the largest treasure shipped from the New World, with a value of140,000 pesos, including newly minted gold and silver coins, pearls and jadeite in Veracruz. The fleet sailed for six days and was hit by a powerful hurricane on the Florida coast on June 3 1. Except for one Griffin, two 1000-ton flagships and the other eight escort ships were all destroyed by the hurricane. More than 1000 people drowned and about 1000 people survived.

General Zhu An esteban Ubilla and his soldiers spent two years collecting a lot of treasures to dedicate to Spanish King Philip. There are 4000 boxes of gold, silver, emeralds, pearls, silk and porcelain under the smooth deck under his and the captains' feet.

Uvira once thought that the hurricane season in the Caribbean was about to begin. When watching the fleet of ships 1 1 ready to set sail in Havana harbor, he knew in his heart that the voyage was an adventure and he might encounter a hurricane. But he told his subordinates that as long as they crossed straits of florida, the fleet could reach Spain safely. It is thought that there will be no hurricane before August. In that case, he is likely to get through this difficulty. He was ordered by the royal family to deliver this treasure, and Philip's orders were more important than the weather. So, General Ubira raised his hand and gave the signal to set sail.

The galleon full of precious treasures crunched away from Havana. More than 2000 sailors and soldiers who operate sails don't care about possible disasters. Wan Li is clear and the wind is full of sails. That was June 24th, 17 15.

On June 29th, the fleet sailed northeast. At this time, the weather is gloomy and sultry, and the wind blows in waves. The sea set off huge waves and violently hit the slow-moving galleon. Yubira and his men felt a strange fog hanging over the fleet. The next day, the wind became unpredictable and the ships of the fleet were blown in several directions.

On the morning of 3 1, the fleet entered straits of florida. General Ubila has stood motionless on the deck since nightfall, and then he turned to the adjutant and said, "Here he comes."

"What's coming, General?" The adjutant asked.

Yubila still looked ahead and said nothing.

Just after two o'clock in the afternoon, the hurricane struck. The sailors were exhausted from repairing the sails and rigging damaged by the strong wind the day before. At this time, their fleet was in a storm, and the strong wind with a speed of 100 miles per hour blew the fleet to the rocky waters of Florida.

Yubila and his officers shouted orders, but people couldn't hear them because of the strong wind. The mast began to break and fall, killing dozens of sailors. Every ship tried to escape from the hurricane and desperately sailed to the high seas, but the huge waves washed them back and pushed them straight to the hellish reef area. Several ships disappeared. Only the Griffon, commanded by its captain Antono Dari, escaped destruction because it sailed on the edge of the hurricane. The other ships of the fleet 10 were all buried in the vortex of the storm. The "Capita Nas", where Yubila was located, hit the rocks first, and the hull was smashed, and the storage items such as gold, silver and jewelry in the cabin immediately sank to the bottom of the sea. As both sides of the ship's side were hit by rocks, the crew on board fell off the ship's side and plunged into the sea and drowned. All 230 people on board, including General Yubira, disappeared instantly.

Another "Capita Nas" was overturned by strong winds and rushed into the reef. Antonio, General Echevertz and another 1 15 people were drowned. The rest of the ships were smashed and sank into the sea.

Within five minutes, the Spanish monarch's fleet and treasure were lost. This disaster is second only to 1588, when the Spanish fleet was submerged in the English Channel. More than 65,438+0,000 people died, most of them were stoned to death. About 1000 people survived and they managed to reach St. Augustine in the north. According to the order of the provisional governor, all sailors who rob in troubled waters and have gold, silver and jewels on board will be hanged once they are found. Spanish fishermen once spent three years trying to salvage treasures worth 6.5438+0.4 million pesos, but only 6 million pesos were salvaged. Zhu An Huou Solozano, who was in charge of the salvage operation, drove 300 Indian divers with whips and spears, and kept diving into the seabed to find the lost gold and silver jewelry. Half of them drowned while diving into the dark seabed to find gold and silver coins buried in the sand.

1765438+On July 3, 20051day, the Spanish treasure fleet was wrecked. Except the Griffin, all the other ships were swallowed up by the crazy sea water. The fleet was ordered by the royal family to deliver jewels for Philip, but General Eubila knew in advance that the voyage was an adventure and was likely to be hit by a hurricane. However, in order to respect the king's orders, he still ventured to set sail from Havana harbor. It seems that Philip's orders are not only more important than the weather, but also more important than the lives of more than 2000 people in the whole fleet. It can be said that this voyage was completely child's play, which eventually led to 6500. This is not the tragic ending. After the shipwreck, about 65,438+050 Indian divers were killed while searching for gold and silver coins buried in the sand for the rulers, driven by whips and spears. I wonder what Philip will think when he hears the news.