Holy Roman Empire

We are not alone if the Russians send troops, Britain and France will surely support us, even Austria would like to see the Russians lose.

We have a very high chance of winning now. It only takes one month to occupy the Kingdom of Denmark, catch the Russians by surprise, and then resolve the subsequent issues through negotiations. "

It was a gamble on whether the Russians would intervene in the war.If he wins the bet, he will naturally take back the two duchies, and by the way, bite off a piece of meat from the Kingdom of Denmark.

If you lose the bet, you will defect to Britain and France, act as their agents, and fight the Russians with the support of the two countries.

There is no doubt that there is no end to a full-scale PK Prussian military with the Russians, but it is different to fight a local war with the Russians with all the power of the country.

The Russian Empire was powerful, but unfortunately the tsarist government was poor.The reformed tsarist government was poorer than ever.

Although the Prussian government has no money, Britain and France are very rich.Since it is a thug, it is natural that the boss pays for it.

This explanation only slightly reduced William I's anger, and it was obviously not enough for him to expose this matter.

William I sneered and said, "That's right, my Minister of War, Minister of the Navy, and my chief of staff. Since when did you decide the internal and external affairs of the Kingdom of Prussia?"

Ron, the Minister of Army and Navy, and Mo Qi, the chief of the general staff, both lowered their heads and pretended to be ostriches.

It's not that they want to cut first and play later, the problem is that they reported it in advance, and this plan will not pass at all.

On the surface, the risk of this gamble is controllable.The most serious consequence is to fight a local war with the Russians. With Britain and France supporting Prussia, the odds of winning are not low.

Actually, this is only theoretical.In case there is a problem in a certain link, the Kingdom of Prussia may face catastrophe immediately.

For example: the tsarist government was confused and did not hesitate to fight them at all costs.Not to mention the support of Britain and France, even if Britain and France went to battle in person, they would still be finished.

If the Russians and Austria reached a compromise to carve up Prussia, Prussia's enemies would immediately become two.

Don't think that this possibility does not exist. The total area of ​​the Kingdom of Prussia in this era was more than [-] square kilometers, and Prussia accounted for less than half of it.

Austria did not dare to give up the territory of the Prussian-German region, but Prussian Poland was not included, and the Vienna government had no pressure at all to throw it out.

Under normal circumstances, the tsarist government would not do this.That's because Austria's annexation of these territories will quickly grow bigger. Without the check and balance of the Kingdom of Prussia, the German Federal Empire will not last long at all.

Another example: the bureaucratic groups in Britain and France were a step slower in responding, and when the aid came, Prussia might already be paralyzed.

Or: the attack on Denmark was an accident, and the war was not won in the first place.As a result, the Russians attacked again and were forced to fight on two fronts.

……

There are so many unexpected factors, any one of which is enough to end the Kingdom of Prussia.Prussia is doomed, and the nobles and capitalists in the country may not necessarily be doomed, but William I is doomed to be unlucky.

As a qualified king, why take risks?According to the current situation, wouldn't it be good to continue to develop step by step?

To put it bluntly, the Junker nobles dragged the Kingdom of Prussia to the gambling table for their own benefit, and they did so without sufficient preparation.

Prime Minister Frank persuaded: "Your Majesty, this is the end of the matter, let's put the matter of accountability later! The most important thing now is to communicate with other countries immediately and seek diplomatic support.

Recovering the Duchies of Schleswig-Holstein is a common event for the entire German nation, and we cannot let this burden be borne by our family. "

Like it or not, this ass must be wiped by the Prussian government.If the military is allowed to toss, who knows what will happen in the end?

Prime Minister Frank dared not take this risk, and the Kingdom of Prussia could not afford the consequences of failure.If he had been the one to operate from the beginning, he would never have taken this risk until the three countries of Britain, France and Austria had not been dealt with.

William I sighed and said: "I don't care what method you use, I will immediately order the troops to stop all actions.

We need a plausible excuse, the defense of German sovereignty has already been used once.

The German region was split during the Paris Peace Conference, and the Kingdom of Prussia is no longer qualified to represent all the states in the German region. This reason cannot be used as an excuse for our war. "

In terms of boosting morale, maintaining German sovereignty can best stimulate the patriotic enthusiasm of soldiers, but politically this is a failure.

In the first Pudan War, under the pressure of the Russians, the Kingdom of Prussia gave up the two principalities of Schleswig-Holstein, which became notorious in the German region.

Using this reason again, neither Austria nor the German Federation will buy their account.

Because the international resolution of the Paris Conference to split the German region, using this reason as an excuse for war, Britain and France will not recognize it.

Ron replied with some hesitation: "Your Majesty, time is running out.

Although the plan was to launch an attack on the morning of 10 October, the units had now been cut off by telegraph.In such a short period of time, we could not notify the troops at all.

You see, how about just finding an excuse to make do with it, for example: saving German compatriots oppressed by the Kingdom of Denmark. "

Obviously, the military is well prepared.Regardless of whether the Berlin government cooperated or not, the attack would still be launched on time.The time left for the government is for the afternoon.

Delay strategy, stop dreaming.Everyone has been busy for so long, how could it be possible to say that if you don't fight, you won't fight?

Mao Qi, the chief of the general staff, hesitated to speak, and did not express his opinion from the beginning to the end.

This plan first came from the General Staff Headquarters, and he personally presided over the formulation of the supporting combat plan. Based on this alone, he did not dare to speak rashly, lest he would anger the king.

King William I glared at Ron and said with a sneer, "Are you all ready? Then why tell me? You are so capable, just do it yourself!"

After speaking, he went out without looking back.The king left in a fit of anger, but things still had to continue.At least the letter of war must be issued, and the Kingdom of Prussia cannot yet do undeclared war.

Prime Minister Frank said angrily: "Since your military has made a decision, then you can send someone to hand the letter of war to the Danes!

The work of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is very busy, and there is still a need to deal with the aftermath for you, so there is no need to trouble them. "

If it was normal times, who dared to take the job of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the foreign minister would have exploded long ago.Now it is naturally an exception. The prime minister wants to throw all the responsibilities to the military, so he will naturally not object.

Of course everything is easy to say if we win the war. In case of an accident and the war is lost, the military will fight all the thunder.

Moltke and Ron looked at each other and smiled wryly at each other.Apparently, what they did this time has hurt the king and the government, and they don't want to have a good life in the future.

But if this war did not achieve satisfactory results for everyone, the two of them would definitely leave, and they might even go to court-martial.

It is a taboo to mobilize troops without the king's approval.Now the government has added another crime, and the military rushed to send the letter of challenge.

If it wins, it is decided by the government. If it loses the war, it is estimated that this gauntlet will also become a forgery by the military.

If you win the war, all your problems will be wiped out, and if you lose the war, one more charge is the same as one less charge.

In short, all of this is because the military broke the rules first, so naturally it has to bear corresponding responsibilities.

Moltke replied: "There is no problem. However, the government must cooperate in other aspects. If the failure of the war is caused by the passive sabotage of some departments, then we will go to hell together!"

This is Prussia, a world where the army owns the country.As the chief of the general staff, Mao Qi only needs to be responsible to the king. He dare not make mistakes in front of William I, and he doesn't care about government officials.

Anyway, the relationship is already deadlocked, and direct threats are more efficient than persuasion.

Prime Minister Frank sarcastically said: "It's better to do your own work well, and don't make a bunch of troubles when the time comes, we don't have the time to deal with the aftermath for you every day.

Now we are going to hold a government meeting, you don't want to participate, both of you please! "

Passive sabotage does not exist. Once the war is defeated, none of the top government officials can escape.Even if there is no responsibility, he will be implicated and step down.

Chapter 41 The Truth Going Far Away

In the early morning of October 1864, 10, Franz, who just woke up from his sleep, was stunned by the news that the Prussian government had declared war on the Kingdom of Denmark.

To be precise, the two countries had already declared war yesterday afternoon.It was already late at night when the news reached Vienna, and the flexible staff did not report until Franz woke up.

There was absolutely no recruitment at all beforehand, and the two countries suddenly went to war.As for the Prussian "liberation of German compatriots" as an excuse for war, Franz directly ignored it.

As long as there is an excuse for war, the Prussians in history still carried the banner of safeguarding German sovereignty. Under the butterfly effect of Franz, the Berlin government no longer dared to resist this banner.

With the revival of Austria, slogans and slogans related to "German Unification" gradually disappeared from the official documents of the Prussian government.

Especially after the Paris Conference, both the Kingdom of Prussia and the newly established German Federal Empire tacitly suppressed the idea of ​​great unification.

Everyone is not a fool. If we continue to promote it, we will be making wedding dresses for Austria.

Once the idea of ​​great unification is deeply rooted in the hearts of the people, they become the objects of unification.For the people, unification may be a good thing, but for the rulers, it is completely different.

Don't look at the great powers of the governments of the states in the new Holy Roman Empire, but compared with being the masters of the country, the powers of the rulers are still greatly reduced.

Under the influence of interests, the international agreement of the Paris Conference to split the German region became the legal basis for Prussia to separate from the German region.

From a legal point of view, the Kingdom of Prussia is an independent country like Belgium, the Netherlands, and Switzerland.

Now if we continue to carry the banner of maintaining the sovereignty of the German region, wouldn't we tell the outside world that the Kingdom of Prussia is still a part of Germany and provide a legal basis for Austria to annex them?

The Berlin government will not do such a stupid thing.Although the reasons for liberating fellow Germans are a bit suffocating, it is better than planting a political bomb.

The Pudan War involved the two duchies of Schleswig-Holstein, and the Vienna government definitely needs to express its position.

After a simple breakfast, Franz held a cabinet meeting in the palace.

Foreign Minister Weisenberg analyzed: "Your Majesty, based on the information we have collected, it can be preliminarily judged that the Prussians had premeditated this war, including the Polish independence movement that happened not long ago, and they are inseparable from them.

The Berlin government dared to declare war on the Kingdom of Denmark, which probably has the shadow of Britain and France. They wanted to take this opportunity to attack the Russians.

The current situation of the tsarist government is very bad, domestic reforms are still in progress, the Central Asian War has already started, and the Polish independence movement broke out again.

With so many things happening at the same time, it was difficult for the Tsarist government's finances to support another major war.

If they intervene in the Pudan War, Britain and France will support Prussia to fight a proxy war with them, further consuming their national power and interrupting the reform of the Tsarist government.

If the tsarist government had chosen to back down, their international reputation would have plummeted.The little brother of Denmark cannot be kept, and the Russians are not qualified to call themselves the hegemony of the European continent.

No matter which choice the tsarist government makes, it will pay a huge price.

Perhaps the British are more inclined to fight a proxy war to weaken the strength of the Russians; the French are more willing to take the opportunity to pull the Russians from their hegemony. "

From the obvious analysis, the Prussian government suddenly declared war on the Kingdom of Denmark, it must be the collusion of Britain, France and Prussia, otherwise the Prussian government would not have the courage to challenge the Russians.

There are only a few people who know about the Junker nobles' self-assertion, and it is impossible for these people to spread it to the outside world.

Many people, including the Prussian military, believed that this was an action planned by the king, the cabinet, and the military. No one thought that this was a decision made by the top military.

Of course, the most basic loopholes will be plugged only if the high-level plan this operation.If it was planned by the bottom of the army, it is estimated that they foolishly shouted the slogan "For the unity of the German nation" and launched an attack.

This is also why Franz didn't notice the Prussians' actions in advance, otherwise he would have used a dark line to attack the Danes shouting the slogan of unifying Germany.

Those who are not politically savvy can imagine the political impact of this slogan.As long as it's passionate enough and inspiring, that's fine!

Political propaganda slogans cannot be shouted indiscriminately. Once the slogan is shouted, it cannot be taken back.

Prime Minister Felix asked suspiciously: "But why did the Prussian government take the millet out of the fire for Britain and France?

Just because of the Schleswig-Holstein principalities, they formed a death feud with the Russians. Even if the tsarist government doesn't care about them now, they will definitely retaliate in the future.

Even if the Prussian government is governed by anti-Russian factions, they can't ignore the power gap between the two countries and blindly make enemies with the Russians, right? "

The current situation is different from that in history. In history, the Russians lost their European hegemony during the Crimean War. The importance of the Kingdom of Denmark to the Tsarist government has declined, and it is only a matter of face.

At this time, the Kingdom of Denmark is not only a matter of face for the Russians, but also their status as the hegemon of the European continent.

Hegemony is not only about strength, it also needs to be recognized by everyone.

A small kingdom of Prussia can challenge their hegemony. If it cannot be suppressed, why does the Russian Empire become the hegemony of Europe?

Even if Alexander II endured it for domestic reforms now, as long as the Russians want to compete for European hegemony in the future, they must sacrifice the flag of the Kingdom of Prussia.

In this regard, the approach of the Prussian government is very unwise.Even if there are short-term benefits, the future will be endless.

If you are unlucky, the tsarist government will call you regardless.Even with the support of Britain and France, even if they win the war, they will be seriously injured.

After thinking about it for a while, Franz replied: "I'm afraid the Prussian government has regarded the Russians as their mortal enemies from the very beginning, and it doesn't matter whether they are offended or not.

I remember that in the European expansion strategy of the Russians, the first target was Poland.

Prussian Poland occupies 46.3% of the territory of the Kingdom of Prussia. From the standpoint of the Prussians, there is no possibility of compromise.

(Remarks: After the Anti-French War, the Warsaw region of Austrian Poland fell into the hands of the Russians, but parts of East Prussia and West Prussia were also recognized as Prussian Poland by default. This part of the territory did not come from the three partition wars, and offset each other.)

Facing a powerful Russian Empire that may attack them at any time, they can only move closer to Britain and France.

Now the two bosses, if they want to jump out and make trouble for the Russians, the reward is the duchies of Schleswig-Holstein.

The Berlin government also does not want to see the success of the Russian reforms. Since there are people who support it, they should act first and catch the Russians by surprise.

It is not that they have no chance of winning. As long as they take the risk of defeating the Russians once, not only can they eat the two duchies, but they can also make Russian Poland independent and become a buffer between the two countries, changing their strategic passiveness in one fell swoop. "

Franz's level of brain supplementation is still very good, and many people in the Prussian government think so, but the truth is getting farther and farther away.

The Junker nobles who were in charge of planning this operation can guarantee with their family glory that they did not think so far at all, and they were only fighting for their own interests.

Defeating the Russians was simply not part of their plan.

Moltke's strategic plan is only to defeat the Danes as soon as possible, and then be able to hold the border fortress under the attack of the Russians.

Anyway, the tsarist government is now a poor ghost, and there are conservatives who oppose reform in the country. As long as it drags on for a few months, the Russian army will collapse without a fight.

Moreover, there is also the Polish Independence Organization.Before suppressing the Polish rebellion, the Russian army sent troops to attack the Kingdom of Prussia, and there was a possibility of being cut off by the rebels at any time.

In the eyes of many people, when the tsarist government suppressed the Polish rebellion, their wallets would have been exhausted long ago. Where would they have money to continue fighting?

The truth of the matter has no direct causal relationship with the decision of the Vienna government.Even if the Prussians suddenly lost their minds, it would not affect Austria's decision-making.

After trying to make himself accept the Prussian ideas, Prime Minister Felix said: "Your Majesty, since Prussia and Russia are about to confront each other, we have to make a choice.

The duchies of Schleswig-Holstein were involved, and we had to support the Prussians in the Pudan War.