Holy Roman Empire

The tsarist government has been delaying without expressing its position in order to put pressure on Austria and increase their right to speak in the war.

It is a pity that the outbreak of the French Civil War left Austria with no worries, and the importance of Russia in this war was greatly reduced.

……

Putting down the fishing rod, Alexander III stood up and adjusted his clothes: "The third Near East war is about to break out, and now we need to make a choice. What do you think?"

Marshal Ivanov, the leader of the military, was the first to speak: "Your Majesty, this is a rare opportunity. This is the best time for us to revive the Russian Empire."

Minister of the Interior Zirnomyer: "Your Excellency, this war means little to us. What the empire needs now is to recuperate and recover, not to expand its territory.

After the first two Near East Wars, the Ottoman Empire has lost the threat to the empire, and the only thing of value in their hands is to hold the other side of the Black Sea Strait.

If it was really important to us 20 years ago, it's just that it's dispensable now.

The Black Sea Fleet, which the empire worked so hard for, is gone, and with the current financial resources of the government, it is unable to rebuild it in a short time.Even if we get the key to the Mediterranean, it means nothing to us. "

Hearing this explanation, Ivanov was furious and said: "How can it be said that it is meaningless? Being able to kill Ottoman, the old enemy, in one fell swoop and fulfill the wishes of the ancestors of the Russian Empire is the greatest meaning.

The Resurgence of the Empire..."

Listening to Marshal Ivanov's eloquent speech, Alexander III felt that it was a mistake for him to attend this meeting.

However, the Russian Empire is a place that believes in the strong. With that dazzling military exploits, no one can ignore the opinions of Marshal Ivanov.

The good-tempered Alexander III quickly adjusted his mentality. The main battle of the military is inevitable. If any military general comes over, the result will be the same.

Without war, how can there be military exploits?If the copy of the Ottoman Empire, which is a sure win, is not used, how can the military boss explain it to the people below?

Do you really think that "the tsar who does not attack the Ottomans is not a real tsar" is just a joke?

The Russian-Turkish war, which averages less than once every 20 years, is not just about capturing Constantinople.In fact, most of the time, before launching a war, everyone knows that it cannot be done.

The tsarist government still insists on brushing this dungeon, mainly because the tsarist needs prestige, the military needs military exploits, and the government needs...

Beating up the Ottomans has a lot of benefits. After nearly 200 years of fermentation, the benefits of destroying the Ottoman Empire will be even richer.

Ivanov started out fighting the Ottomans. If the Ottoman Empire can be wiped out, the historical impact it will bring will definitely go down in history, at least it will be exaggerated in Russian history books.

Minister of Finance Alisher Gurov couldn't help but interrupted: "Your Excellency Marshal, we all know the benefits of killing Osman, but the problem is that the government has no money now.

If we participate in this war, we will have to rely on the Austrians financially and use their money to fight the war, and we will definitely suffer in the distribution of benefits after the war.

From the standpoint of the empire, delay the Near East War and wait until we recover before proceeding with this war to maximize our benefits. "

This is a fact. It is not a problem to keep the half-dead Ottoman Empire, and it will not be a big problem to get it after more than ten or twenty years.

On the contrary, the demise of Ottoman now, and most of the Near East fell into the hands of Austria, and it was really insulated from them.

Ivanov said unmoved: "You are completely idealistic, Austria already has the strength to destroy Ottoman independently.

European countries are limited by the wave of revolution, and they simply cannot spare a hand to interfere with Austria's actions in a short period of time.

Unless we lose our minds and join hands with Osman, the end of the Ottoman Empire is already doomed.

I don't think there is such a fool among all of you present.As for the question of interests, this needs to test our diplomatic ability.

But no matter how bad it was, it was better than sitting idly by and watching the Austrians destroy Ottomans. "

Although the words are not pleasant, there is really nothing wrong with the logic.It is indeed impossible for the Tsarist government to support the Ottoman Empire, otherwise there would be a coup in the country without waiting for Austria to retaliate.

The hatred between Russia and Turkey has penetrated into the bones of the Russians, especially for the nobles.

All Russian aristocrats that have been passed down for more than 200 years, their ancestors have fought against the Ottoman Empire, and their relatives and friends always fell on the battlefield. The blood feud has been passed down from generation to generation.

Looking up the history books, Russia and Turkey have PKed twice in the past 30 years. Even if the government wants to downplay the hatred, it is too late to do so.

Putting aside the hatred factor, interests are also the key.If you don't participate in this war, after Austria's demise of Ottoman, its power will extend to the Black Sea, which is a real threat.

……

On May 1882, 5, the Tsarist government proposed to the Ottoman Empire to redraw the border line. Everyone knew that there was another family in the protagonist of the war.

Perhaps stimulated by the joining of the Russians, the Principality of Montenegro also jumped out to join in the fun.

On May 1882, 5, the Montenegrin government submitted a huge claim list of "12 million Aegis" to the Ottoman Empire.

It contains a detailed list of the losses caused to the Principality of Montenegro due to the Ottoman military invasion in the past hundreds of years.

The allies are not afraid of having too many allies, and it doesn’t matter if they make up the number or have a sense of presence. The Vienna government expressed a warm welcome to the sudden emergence of the Principality of Montenegro.

At this point, the anti-Turkish alliance headed by Austria was formally established.

Chapter 12 The Third Near Eastern War Begins

In London, the emergence of the anti-Turkish alliance directly bankrupted all previous plans of the British government.

At this time, Prime Minister Gladstone was no longer concerned about rescuing Ottoman, but how to ensure India's security.

"How is the situation in France?"

Foreign Secretary George shook his head: "It's very bad, this empire is just paper and weak.

Bourgeois Revolutionary Party, Republican Party, Socialist Revolutionary Party, Orleans Restoration, Bourbon Restoration, Italian Independence...

With so many anti-government forces in a country, it is hard to imagine how the Bonaparte dynasty survived. "

Looking at the worried British Foreign Secretary, it is estimated that no one can imagine that these messy organizations have basically received funding from the British government.

After unremitting efforts, these investments finally began to work. Unfortunately, the timing was wrong, and all the explosions were counterproductive.

Nothing to blame, everyone does it.The London government is supporting the French anti-government groups, and the Paris government is also supporting the anti-British groups.

Gladstone nodded heavily: "The French are indeed a little more active. The magic box that Napoleon opened with his own hands finally took revenge on his empire."

After speaking, Gladstone realized that something was wrong. It seemed that the current situation in Britain also shot itself in the foot.

Without their selfless dedication, the French Revolutionary Party would not have grown, let alone the current French Civil War.

If there is no civil war in France, Austria will never dare to launch a war without guaranteeing the safety of the Western Front.

Thinking of this, Gladstone showed a bit of bitterness: "It seems that we and the French have been fooled by Austria, and have been led by the nose to the present."

Foreign Secretary George waved his hand: "Prime Minister, you are too pessimistic. It is completely a coincidence that the situation has developed to this point.

There may be Austria pushing hands here, but they never imagined that France would be so weak. "

From the perspective of interests, Austria has become the biggest beneficiary.Britain seems to have fallen into a passive position, and their income is definitely not low.

Whether it is shorting the franc in front; or dumping goods to suppress competitors; or snatching the interests of the French overseas, Britain is the winner.

The only mistake was ignoring the internal contradictions in France.

The internal conflicts in France are caused by various reasons. Ying-Austria's capture of the French financial system and the dumping of commodities are only catalysts for the conflicts.

In the early days of the Industrial Revolution, France relied on abundant capital to complete industrialization quickly.

With the advancement of industrialization, the shortage of industrial raw materials has become increasingly serious.In order to ensure the smooth development of industrial production, the French had to import heavily.

Affected by the "import" of raw materials, French industrial production costs have remained high.It doesn't matter when you close the door and play by yourself, but after joining the free system, the situation will be severe.

In order to gain an advantage in market competition, capitalists have tried every means to lower the cost of industrial production, which also includes increasing the exploitation of the working class.

Where there is oppression, there is resistance.The brutal exploitation of the capitalists directly led to the outbreak of the French labor movement.

In addition to internal factors, France's annexation of Italy is also an important factor intensifying the conflict.

After the merger of Greater France, the commodity market has increased significantly compared with before. However, it is not only the market that has increased, but also the demand for industrial raw materials and greater employment pressure.

Because of the gap in economic development levels, labor prices in Italy are much lower, and a large number of Italians have poured into France to work.

Sufficient labor force, while promoting the development of French industry and commerce, also provided the capitalists with the confidence to squeeze the working class unscrupulously.

In the era of Napoleon III, the scale of French industry was still very limited, and the demand for raw materials was not very large. French industry and commerce did not need to bear higher production costs, and the economy was naturally good.

During the period of Napoleon IV, the total amount of French industry increased, industrial costs increased significantly, and corporate profits began to decrease.

Especially after joining the free trade system, market competition has become more brutal, and labor conflicts have become increasingly severe.

Dangerous, mainly confined to the lower classes.Capital controls the media, the labor crisis is downplayed, or the concept is secretly changed, and the crisis is hidden in a blind spot that the ruler cannot see.

Before the outbreak of the revolution, the French economy seemed to be very prosperous, and the London government naturally did not know that the empire had become strong from the outside.

Strong appearance + inherent concept + geopolitics + domineering of the French government, finally the London government concluded that this is the conclusion of the greatest threat.

Needless to say, the biggest threat is of course the highest level of suppression.

Austria also regards France as the biggest threat. France, which is sandwiched in the middle, has unfortunately been jointly suppressed by the two most powerful countries in the world.

After a set of combined punches, Huwei was punctured.The intensification of internal conflicts made the situation in France completely out of control.

This is the common responsibility of successive governments, and Gladstone decisively shifted this sensitive topic: "This is the end of the matter, and it is useless to say more.

The key now is to find a way to help Napoleon IV stabilize the situation, restore his strength, and ease the pressure we have to face. "

Chancellor of the Exchequer Hugh Childers analyzed: "To stabilize the situation in France, the French economy must first be stabilized.

This is very difficult, and our domestic economic situation is also very bad. The government cannot stop capitalists from dumping.

The Paris Revolution had terrified the French bourgeoisie, Napoleon IV had secured the support of his domestic consortium, and now he was not short of money. "

The economic crisis in France is largely caused by the transfer of overcapacity in Ying-Austria. The most effective way to restore the economy in the short term is to protect the market.

However, this violates the free trade agreement and belongs to the core interests of Britain and Austria. The London government has no spirit of self-sacrifice, and it is impossible to let this happen.

If France unilaterally breaches the contract and is not punished, and other countries follow suit when encountering problems, the free trade system established by the British government after decades of hard work will collapse.

Napoleon IV has never announced his withdrawal from the free trade system, because he was afraid of stimulating Britain and Austria and losing international support.

Gladstone fell into deep thought, this is a dilemma.If the London government is willing to let go, the French will definitely adopt trade barriers.

The consequence is that the domestic economic crisis will intensify, the situation will become more turbulent, and the bourgeoisie whose interests have been damaged will throw them out of power.

After hesitating for a moment, Gladstone chose Congxin. He is the British Prime Minister and needs to be responsible for the British people.

"Increase diplomatic support, mobilize our influence, and lobby more people to support Napoleon IV.

Stabilize Orleans and Bourbons first if possible.As long as they don't take action, the French army will not be chaotic, and the rebellion will soon be quelled. "

There is no way, although Napoleon III took the opportunity to cleanse the military forces loyal to the previous dynasty after he came to power, but there is no way to eradicate influence.

The revolution in Paris has not been suppressed for a long time, but some people in the French army are holding back, and many troops have not worked hard on the battlefield.

George nodded: "The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has already contacted the Orleans Dynasty and the Bourbon Dynasty, and the current situation is not what they want to see.

We are planning to arrange a meeting of representatives of the three royal families in the near future to reconcile the conflicts among all parties as much as possible. "

The situation in France is very bad now. Both the Orleans dynasty and the Bourbon dynasty are at a disadvantage in this round of reshuffle. Even if the Bonaparte dynasty is finished, it will not be their turn to restore.

If there were a few royal families in the eastern countries, they would have been slaughtered long ago, and there would be absolutely no possibility of compromise.

However, the situation in Europe is special, and the situation in France is even more special. The three royal families represent the interests of the three waves of nobles, and they are essentially launched by interest groups.

The Orleans dynasty did not kill all the nobles loyal to the Bonaparte dynasty, and Napoleon III did not massacre the nobles loyal to Orleans when he came to power.

Under the tradition of not killing nobles easily, the so-called purge is nothing more than letting these guys who have failed in political struggles go home.

After returning home, a large part of these losers are still wealthy, and they also have considerable strength in the local area.

No one is willing to be marginalized. These frustrated people are the sponsors of the restoration activities, and those responsible for the restoration operations are the nobles who failed in the power struggle and caused their families to fall.

They want to return to the center of power and restore the glory of the family. The best choice is restoration.

Now that there are patrons, there are also those who are willing to fight hard. This is why the restoration of the French royal family has continued to flourish.

When it comes to the royal family in the audience, all they have is influence, and they don't have the strength to command the heroes.

Except for Napoleon III, the Bonaparte dynasty, the other two royal families were not active in the restoration.

To reconcile the contradictions between the parties is actually a distribution of interests.Restoration activities can also be postponed as long as the interest groups behind it reach a compromise.

……

The actions of the British did not affect the actions of the Anti-Turkish Alliance.Under the leadership of the Vienna government, Austria, Russia, Montenegro, and Greece held an anti-Turkish meeting in Vienna.

After a brief contact, the representatives of the four countries agreed that only by overthrowing the barbaric and brutal Ottoman government can the Ottomans be helped to enter a civilized society.

On May 1882, 5, representatives of the four countries formally concluded an anti-Turkish covenant in Vienna with the overthrow of the Ottoman government as the core and the demise of the Ottoman Empire as its mission.

The day after the signing of the covenant, the Vienna government officially declared war on the Ottoman Empire on the grounds that Ottoman refused to hand over the murderer.

In the following week, Greece, Montenegro, and the Russian Empire declared war on the Ottoman Empire for their own reasons, and the third Near East War broke out.

Having a few more allies has advantages and disadvantages.The most direct impact is the change of Austria's combat plan.

This war came too suddenly, and Russia, Montenegro, and Greece were not ready for war.Supplies can be provided by Austria, but there must be time for the army to build up.