Holy Roman Empire

Even if they were fooled by the bureaucrats, it was useless for them to hold these supplies, and they would still have to sell them to the Tsarist government in the end, so Fitzroy Somerset didn't have to worry about food.

There is nothing to do with the weapons and equipment. Now that the Tsarist government has decided to change the equipment, these junk goods don't know where they are abandoned.

The same weapons and equipment, produced by Russian arsenals, will inevitably increase a little bit in weight, and the failure rate will also be a little bit higher, but they are absolutely durable.

Fitzroy Somerset wasn't fussy either, as long as he had it.Putting pressure on the St. Petersburg government now is to let them speed up the supply. If domestic production is too late, go buy it quickly!

In any case, the Russians in the Crimean Peninsula dare not give up. Once Britain and France gain a firm foothold here, the Black Sea will have nothing to do with them.

In order to combat the biggest competitor, the British must not mind paying for the annual military expenditure.As long as the Crimea Peninsula is blocked, Mao Xiong will not only end the Near East strategy, but also hold half of the import and export trade in their hands.

It doesn't need to last long, at most three to five years, the European hegemony of the Russian Empire will collapse, and then the British strategy will succeed if they instigate Polish independence.

Of course, this kind of good thing is obviously not so easy to succeed, at least Franz will not agree, he is going to cause some trouble for the British now.

The Russians cannot fall, at least not until the internal integration of the new Holy Roman Empire is completed, otherwise they will be human with their tails between their legs.

Franz asked with concern: "Marshal, is there any way to let the Russians conquer Constantinople?"

In Franz's view, Constantinople is the easiest place to break on the battlefield in the Near East. As long as the Russians conquer here, the war will not be able to continue.

The narrowest part of the Bosporus Strait is 750 meters, and the widest part is only 3.7 kilometers.As long as Russia is provided with a batch of shore artillery and deployed on the shore, it will isolate the Black Sea from the sea passages of the outside world.

Without a sea channel connection, the transportation of the Ottoman Empire was as good as that of the Russians. If the materials were transferred by land from the Asia Minor Peninsula, then there must be problems with the logistics supply of the British and French allied forces on the Crimea Peninsula. Law.

Marshal Radesky analyzed: "Your Majesty, Constantinople was originally a fortress city, easy to defend and difficult to attack, and it was stationed by elite French troops, and the navy provided fire support.

If you want to attack head-on, you can only rely on strength.It is possible to break through the city only when the French army can bear the limit.

The most correct choice for the Russians now is to mobilize a large number of artillery to bombard Constantinople. No matter how strong a fortress is, there is a limit.

The Ottoman Empire has long been decayed, and Constantinople has not been threatened for a hundred years, and they have long since relaxed the upgrade of the city's fortifications.

After the outbreak of the Near East War.The Ottoman government has just carried out emergency repairs and reinforcements, but the time is still too short. This is the opportunity for the Russians.

Most of these fortifications are unable to withstand heavy artillery attacks.As long as the Russians are willing to spend a lot of money and get hundreds of heavy artillery pieces, they can break the tortoise's shell. "

This is a purely stupid way, completely overwhelming people, but it is the only feasible way now.

The problem is that Britain and France can also get a lot of artillery to bombard the Russians, and in the end the two sides still have to pay for their lives.Hundreds and eighty thousand people will not die, it is estimated that Constantinople is impossible to be breached.

The artillery hit rate in this era is very low. The Russian army only needs to disperse the artillery positions and bombard the city of Constantinople. The target is so big that the shells can always be shot in. Britain and France want to destroy the Russian artillery positions. It is difficult.

Franz felt that the Russians could not be intimidated by casualties, and maybe the military expenditures would drag the Russians down first.There are only a few hundred heavy artillery pieces, and it can't be done without tens of millions of rubles, and dozens of tons of ammunition are needed for a round of salvo.

Since it is necessary to achieve the effect of violent bombardment, firing thousands of tons of ammunition a day is just a normal operation.To flatten Constantinople, God knows how much ammunition will be consumed in the end.

But if you don't fight like this, according to the current Russian offensive method, the exchange ratio is four to one. Even if the gray animals are worthless, they can't afford such consumption?

According to the current situation, Franz can say with certainty that the tsarist government will be forced to abandon it due to excessive casualties if it persists for another year or a half at most.

Franz thought for a while and said, "The General Staff compiled a plan and handed it over to the Tsarist government. Let them go if they need it or not!"

He doesn't believe that no smart person in the Russian government can see that blindly taking human lives to fill the huge hole in Constantinople without the advantage of firepower is completely courting death.

According to the information received by Franz, since the outbreak of the Battle of Constantinople, the number of casualties of the Russian army has approached the sum of the two Bulgarian battles.

St. Petersburg is preparing to replace Menshikov. Under the command of this "genius" commander, the casualties of the Russian army have always remained high.

This plan is not for the St. Petersburg government, but for Menshikov, the commander-in-chief of the Russian Army in the Balkans. If he does not want to return to St. Petersburg in despair, he will definitely consider Austria's suggestion.

As a high-level general of the Russian army, no one can bear the temptation to conquer Constantinople. As long as this great cause is completed, it will be recorded in Russian history as a "national hero" of Russia.

Not only the Russians are interested, in fact Franz also wants to accomplish this great cause, the Habsburg dynasty and the Ottoman Empire are also feuds, and conquering Constantinople can also bring them a lot of political prestige.

Most countries in Europe have special feelings for this city. Now that the French are helping the Ottomans to guard Constantinople, Franz can be sure that Napoleon III would not mind taking the city if given the opportunity.

Accomplishing this feat was no less prestige than defeating the Russians.If the Battle of Crimea fails, Napoleon III will probably swallow Constantinople directly to save the political disaster caused by the failure of the war.

The London government would probably acquiesce in all this happening, and Constantinople would be better off in French hands than in Russian hands.The British are absolutely happy to see the success of France and Russia.

If possible, Franz didn't mind pushing to deepen the hatred between France and Russia.

It is a pity that the Russians did not live up to their expectations, the bureaucrats of the tsarist government held back, and the hope of the Russian army in the Crimea peninsula to win the war was too slim.

Failing to do this, Franz can only hope that the Russians will break out and conquer Constantinople, bringing the hatred of Britain and France to full value in one fell swoop.

Marshal Radesky's method is undoubtedly the most effective method from the standpoint of the Vienna government. In fact, for the Russians, it is a bad idea from beginning to end.

The reason is very simple, war consumes too much and is not suitable for an agricultural country like Mao Xiong.

This style of play easily exceeded the limit of the Russian Empire. Even if they conquered Constantinople, they would not be able to carry out the next strategy due to exhaustion of financial resources.

After all, there is a Dardanelles?Just mastering the Bosporus Strait is not enough for the Russians to control the Black Sea Strait. Moreover, after capturing Constantinople, they only mastered half of the Bosphorus Strait.

From a strategic point of view, the division of troops to seize the Gallipoli Peninsula and block the Dardanelles can also end this war.

There is not a Constantinople everywhere, and the difficulty of guarding the Gallipoli Peninsula is definitely much more difficult than guarding Constantinople.

Even if you can't win here, a divided attack can force Britain and France to station heavy guards and reduce the pressure on the Russian army on the Crimea Peninsula.

It can only be said that the temptation of Constantinople is too great, and the Russians couldn't resist this temptation, so they went straight up.

It is naturally impossible for Franz to remind the Russians that the Near East War ended early and failed to consume the strength of Britain, France and Russia to the maximum extent, which is not in the interests of the new Holy Roman Empire.

Moreover, no matter how good a strategy is, it needs people to implement it. Franz doesn't think the Russians have such a strong ability to implement it, at least General Menshikov can't do it.

With the efficiency of the Russians, it is undoubtedly a dream to make a surprise attack on Britain and France.Now there are only a few Ottoman garrison regiments on the Gallipoli Peninsula, which can easily be broken through.

Once Britain and France reacted, the coalition forces attacking the Greeks could immediately reinforce the Gallipoli Peninsula, and then there would be another big battle.

The national strength of Britain and France is strong. Even if they open another front, they will hold on to it with gritted teeth. The Russians will not be able to do it, and their domestic organizational capabilities will soon reach their limit.

If the front line is increased, I am afraid Mao Xiong will also feel what it means to be short of troops.Of course, this does not mean that they are short of troops, but that they cannot send troops to the front line in a short time.

Not to mention the logistical supplies, even if the materials can be obtained from Austria and transported to the front line with their efficiency, the day lily has become cold.

One did not operate well and did bad things with good intentions. Because the logistics supplies were not in place, the Russians lost the war. Franz had to cry with Nicholas I.

Chapter 118 Balkan Peninsula Development Plan

In a quaint castle in Prague, an elder over fifty years old asked seriously: "Holst, are you really ready?

Once you accept the deployment of the government, you will have a hard time for a long time in the future, and it will be too late to regret it. "

Holst replied seriously: "Father, the Vickers family has fallen, and our network in the government suffered heavy losses during the last power struggle.

If you want to enter the government to seek a job, you can only pass the civil service examination.There are too many competitors on this road, and our family has always been developed in the army, so we have no advantage in this aspect, and I am not sure how to get ahead.

The situation on the European continent is stabilizing, and there will be no war in Austria for a long time in the future, which cuts off the chance to fight on the battlefield.

Now is an opportunity, relying on the accumulated military exploits on the battlefield, the most I can stay in the country now is to become a Glory Knight.

The family can buy a manor from the government in exchange for some money, but now they can go to the Balkan Peninsula to become a hereditary knight and directly own a manor with double the area.

Under normal circumstances, I may not be able to succeed in my 20 years of struggle in China.That being the case, why not take a chance? "

To tighten its grip on the Balkans, the Vienna government mobilized at home.As Prime Minister Felix expected, the low-level nobles who wanted to go further could not resist this temptation.

Compared with opening up overseas colonies, the Balkan Peninsula is at the doorstep anyway. Even if it is a little poor now, future development can still be expected.

As one of the strongholds of conservatism, Austria still maintains the ancient tradition, the eldest son inherits the family business, and the second son goes out to make a living.

The big nobles still have the ability to provide enough titles for their direct descendants, and the descendants of the offshoots or minor nobles can only fight on their own.

In order to limit the number of nobles in the country and ensure the quality of the nobles, the Vienna government is still considering promulgating a "Law of the Nobles".

Once this law is implemented, nobility succession must pass the assessment of the Nobility Council, and it will be difficult for dudes to inherit the title.

Except for the eldest son who inherited the title, even the non-military titles obtained by the children of the great nobles will lose the ability to be hereditary.

Because the influence is too great, it is still under discussion in the noble council.After all, this law is too unfriendly to the declining nobles, and it is too difficult for them to pass the examination.

Franz planned to implement this law when he opened up the colony, and let these declining nobles go to the colony to fight for wealth.

The domestic plate is so big, it is obviously not enough for everyone to share, even if the territory of the Balkan Peninsula is increased, the cake is still not big enough.

The collapse of the British and French colonies was largely due to the uneven distribution of benefits. The capitalists took too many benefits, but needed others to work for them. How is this possible?

Since ancient times, the enfeoffment system has been a sharp weapon for expansion.The counties and counties directly managed by the central dynasty are often lost; but the land that has been entrusted is rarely divided.Even if it is independent, it cannot be separated from the influence of local culture.

Of course, this is only one factor, and the bigger reason is class solidification.Either make a big cake and leave everyone with an upward channel, or you can only revolutionize. This multiple-choice question is easy to do.

After pondering for a while, the old man said: "Well, I respect your choice of children. The family can't provide you with much help now, but you can recruit a group of people from the manor to leave, which can just relieve the population pressure.

These people have been attached to the family life for generations, and loyalty is not a problem. With their help, I believe you will be able to open up the situation soon. "

The influence of nobles in this era is not only because of their status, but also because they have a group of vassals.

Although serfdom was abolished, this influence has not dissipated.

Now the Austrian government encourages these nobles to go to the Balkans to develop, not just let the nobles themselves go there.If you are fighting alone, and you are in a place where you are not familiar with your life, whoever rules whoever you are may not know.

What's more, everyone's early property is land now, so the nobles can't cultivate it in person, can they?

It is much easier for these people to organize immigration than for the Austrian government.

The densely populated German region has reached the limit of its population capacity in the era of agricultural countries, and now diverting some people to leave is just to ease internal conflicts.

Anyway, industrialization does not have a great demand for labor these days. Austria is still the second most populous country in Europe, and the population in the Balkans is already approaching the 5000 million mark.

The most important thing now is to promote national integration. In the context of unified language and writing, a large number of mixed-race children have appeared in the next generation. Who can use nationalism to make things happen?

It can be said that the current new Holy Roman Empire, as long as Franz does not waver, has a promising future.

Another unintended benefit of developing the Balkans was a reduction in immigration to the United States.

After all, traveling across the ocean in this era is also risky. Compared with the unknown America, the risk of the Balkan Peninsula at our doorstep is much lower. It is connected by the Danube River and has convenient transportation. You can return in ten days and a half months.

Especially if you have a small family, you can still bring your family with you when you immigrate to the Balkans. If you go to the United States, it will be life and death.

After the Great Revolution, an upsurge of immigration broke out in the German region, with an average of 7 to 3 people leaving each year, and almost [-] to [-] people leaving the Austrian region every year.

These immigrants caused the population of the United States to skyrocket. In 1850, the United States received 31 immigrants. In 1851, the United States received 37.9 immigrants. The national population of the United States in 1850 was only 2319.2 million. In 1860, it increased to 3144.3 million. .

The immigrants of this era are all young and strong, the old, weak, sick and disabled can't bear the bumps at sea, and they are all high-quality labor.

Every time he thinks of this, Franz can only lament that the countries in South America are not up to snuff. They don't know how to compete with Americans for immigrants even though their own conditions are not bad.

Don't say that they act together, as long as several countries attach importance to attracting immigrants and divert the population of the United States, the Americans will not be able to develop so fast.

In this situation, Franz is also helpless. European countries have not yet realized the threat of the United States, and have not taken measures to limit their growth in strength.

Of course, he didn't do nothing, at least he smeared American upstarts in the newspapers every now and then. This is also a popular entertainment program among European people, and it is very popular with everyone.

In any case, the number of immigrants going to the United States can be reduced by tens of thousands, which is not a small number after a long period of time. This can also be regarded as weakening the strength of competitors.

You must know that thanks to these immigrants, the Germans came from behind and became the largest nation in the United States. It can be said that the Germans have made great contributions to the rise of the United States.

Vienna

Franz is carefully reading the "Development of the Balkan Peninsula Plan" submitted by the cabinet.

The strength of a country lies not only in its large territory, large population, and rich resources. These are just one of the necessary conditions, but more on the degree of development of its territory.

The Russian Empire is big enough, larger than the two European countries. From the perspective of land area, resources, and population, their strength should be like the strong Qin Dynasty, sweeping Liuhe and engulfing the world.

The reality is that the Russian Empire, which has so many advantages, not to mention encroaching on Europe, any two major powers joining forces can make them unable to eat.

The biggest problem is that the level of local development is too low. If the Russian Empire has now completed industrialization, then there is no doubt that it is not a dream to embezzle the European continent.

The new Holy Roman Empire is not as proud as the Russians, and it can become a member of the top powers with its extensive management system.

In Franz's view, if the acquired territory cannot be effectively developed, then these territories that cannot be transformed into national power will become a heavy burden.

It is already difficult to continue to expand on the European continent. Intensive cultivation and development of the existing land is the kingly way.

Prior to this, the Vienna government had formulated many development plans. Except for several states with a high degree of autonomy, the remaining areas have entered the government planning outline, and many places have already begun to organize and implement them.

The current development plan for the Balkan Peninsula is only a preliminary idea, and there is still a long way to go before its actual implementation.

Franz thought for a while and said, "Prime Minister, according to this development outline, the two principalities in the Danube River Basin in the future will be the second granary of the empire.

But we have to consider a problem. Once the relationship between Russia and Austria deteriorates, the products exported from these regions can only be sold along the Danube to the German region, or transported to the sea by land.

There are also these supporting industries, which look more like the custom-made business of the Russians. I doubt that the Russians have such a strong purchasing power?

Now they are still a serf empire. Even if social reforms are carried out in the future, I think the purchasing power of their ordinary people can reach half of the Austrian people at most.

If the industry is aimed at the Russian market, it is best to take two routes, either sell high-end to their nobles; or take a low-end route and sell to civilians. The prices of these products must be cheap enough. "

Due to geographical location, the economies of the two duchies in the Danube Basin will inevitably be influenced by both Austria and Russia. The domestic market is the Austrian market, and the external market is the Russian market.

Economic development must also be centered on these two markets, and other European countries will be considered further away.

Prime Minister Felix explained: "Your Majesty, no one can say clearly about the future relationship between Russia and Austria. But even if the relationship deteriorates, the possibility of them blocking us is very low.