Holy Roman Empire

In the Vienna Palace, Franz was holding the year-end meeting when a sudden telegram interrupted the proceedings.

On November 27, 1879, the Russian Army, reinforcing Brest, was ambushed by the Prussian Army en route, marking a turning point on the Southwest battlefield.

On the surface, as far as the Vienna Government was concerned, the Prusso-Russian War only mattered in terms of the final outcome; the twists and turns on a local battlefield weren’t significant enough to warrant such grave preparations.

However, the Southwest battlefield was an exception. On one hand, this was because the Tsarist Government mortgaged the lands west of the Dnieper River to Austria, and should these territories fall into the hands of the Prusso Federation, it would make it very troublesome for the Vienna Government to collect the debt in the future. (Limited to the Ukraine Region)

On the other hand, it was about export trade; since the war’s outbreak, the Tsarist Government had been buying extensively from Austria.

Should the river Dnieper be cut off, restricted by transportation, the Russian-Austrian trade would definitely be severely affected.

To profit from the war, the Vienna Government had also made ample preparations. Many state-owned enterprises had increased their production lines, and if the Russian-Austrian trade volume were reduced, these businesses would suffer heavy losses.

When touching on self-interest, the government naturally had to take things seriously. As for the year-end meeting, it could be considered important or unimportant, depending on how one looked at it.

The year-end meeting included: a summary of the political, economic, diplomatic, and military developments of the current year, and the government’s plans for the coming year.

All departments had already done their homework, and reporting to Franz now was also preparation for vying for the next year’s fiscal budget.

These plans mostly revolved around national policies, the core of which was already being led by Franz himself. When it came to specific plans, he seldom intervened, leaving the Cabinet Government to take charge.

...

Franz, "Chief of Staff, give us the current situation on the front!"

"Yes, Your Majesty!" Chief of Staff Albrecht replied.

"Yesterday afternoon, Russian troops setting off from the Volen Region to reinforce Brest were ambushed by the Prussian Army just after crossing the Pripyat River.

Since these Russian forces were hastily assembled from various locations and their organizational relationships were not yet sorted, a division of Prussian Army routed thirty thousand Russian soldiers, with at least a loss of over eight thousand in manpower.

The rest of the troops have become scattered birds of a feather because of the scare, and a large amount of arms and equipment were abandoned, losing their capability to engage in combat again in the short term.

Disregarding these units that have completely lost their morale, the total strength of the Russian forces in the Volen Region has dropped from an initial 102,000 to 67,000, no longer holding any advantage in manpower over the Prussian Army.

If I were Mark, I would give up Brest and focus the main offensive on Koweli. Capturing it, whether deciding to move east to Kiev or north to Brest would be possible.

However, the Prussian Army only holds an advantage in the Southwest battlefield. To the north, the Russians have already reached Riga, and the Vezemé highlands defensive line is also in grave danger; the Middle battlefield has turned into a meat grinder at Smolensk.

Looking at the current situation, it’s likely that the Russians might adopt a joint sea and ground offensive approach. Relying on the advantage of the Russian navy, the probability of seizing control along the Baltic Sea coast is very high."

Franz, "So, Mark must be under a lot of pressure right now, right?"

Albrecht affirmed, "Indeed!"

If the Prussian Army cannot achieve a substantial breakthrough on the battlefield and the Russians take action in the Baltic Sea, threatening the homeland would escalate internal tensions, and the naval faction within the Berlin Government would rise to the occasion, which would be quite the spectacle.

When personal interests are at stake and the coastal populace creates an uproar, the naval faction would take the opportunity to exert force; even someone as respected as Mark would not be able to withstand pressures from all sides.

Franz sighed privately, any great commander felt so powerless in the face of internal crisis. Mark’s eagerness to break the impasse on the Southwest battlefield was likely due to this reason.

Starting purely from a military perspective, actually allowing the Russian forces into the Polish Region and then devising a strategy to encircle and annihilate them would lead to a greater chance of success.

Not only would there be a solid mass base to rely on, the pressure on logistics would be reduced, and even the battle line would shrink, allowing for the deployment of more troops to decisively fight the Russian Army.

What is the best military strategy politically is a blunder. If the Russians were really allowed in, the Polish people would be alienated from them.

Foreign Minister Weisenberg reminded, "According to the intelligence we’ve received, the Russians have also made a breakthrough in their diplomatic efforts.

It seems they’ve made a covert promise to the Danish people; just a week ago, the Danish Government submitted a naval exercise plan to the Nordic Federation Assembly, with the Danish Strait as the location.

If the plan goes through, the Prusso-Polish Federation’s sea transport channel would be cut off. The Russians must have offered a high price, as the Swedish people are already showing interest, and the chance of it passing is significant."

A sea blockade wouldn’t spell the end for the Prusso-Polish Federation; they could still transport supplies via the German Federation Empire, taking the River Elbe.

However, this would greatly increase the logistical pressure. Most crucially, the positioning of the Nordic Federation constitutes a very unfavorable diplomatic situation for the Berlin Government.

If the Prusso-Polish Federation is at a disadvantage on the battlefield, who can guarantee that the Nordic Federation won’t kick them while they’re down? Stay connected with NovelBin.Côm

The Danish people have always wanted to reclaim the Two Principalities, and if the Russians are willing to pay a price to buy off the Swedish people, anything is possible.

The perplexing situation caused Franz immense headaches. He had originally thought that the combination of Wilhelm I and Moltke was formidable, but he didn’t expect Alexander II to be such a tough opponent.

In the last Prusso-Russian War, Alexander II had not yet come into his own and could only be considered a semi-finished Emperor. He was slightly inferior in the strategic game, but this time, his resurgence was different.

Since the war began, Franz had yet to see any signs of uprising within Russia, which was an impressive feat.

It should be noted that in modern times, the Tsarist Government was quite peculiar, as every external conflict was accompanied by an internal uprising.

The absence of issues signified that Alexander II’s reforms were successful. A stable Russian Empire was undoubtedly terrifying.

After some hesitation, Franz said coldly, "For now, we should not act rashly in foreign affairs. Unless the Nordic Federation directly enters the war or the battlefield situation spirals completely out of control, we will continue to maintain neutrality.

The General Staff must pay close attention to the progress of the war and report back immediately upon detecting any possibility of a party gaining a decisive advantage.

From the current situation, it seems that the Russians have a greater chance of victory, so let’s not make a move for the time being and wait for England and Poland to transfuse blood to the Prusso-Polish Federation.

Once the balance of power is upset, we’ll secretly sell the technology for the Maxim machine gun to the weaker side and teach them trench warfare tactics, to prolong the war as much as possible. Mortars can be sold as well."

Maintaining balance on the battlefield, England, France, and Austria each had their roles. For instance, if the balance of power on the field was disrupted and the Prusso-Polish Federation was weakened, England and France would be responsible for their support; if the Russians were weakened, it would be Austria’s responsibility to offer support.

In any case, support the weaker party to ensure that both Prussia and Russia suffered damage, this was the pursuit of the old empires. Preventing the rise of a fourth power was the collective will of these three empires.

No, it should be said that it’s the collective will of France and Austria. The British stance remains uncertain. In this regard, their strategy is rather muddled.

As for weapons with low technological content, Franz had never seen any need to keep them secret. The reason he had not brought them forward earlier was simply that it wasn’t necessary.

To achieve strategic objectives, throwing a few technologies into the mix was not a big deal. If it were not for the issues of performance, Franz would even be prepared to throw tank technology into the fray.

Regrettably, this contraption, even if disposed of, would hardly achieve its potential effectiveness.

The fantastical steam-powered tank, being too large and slow, was extremely unmaneuverable and an easy target for artillery.

Tanks powered by internal combustion engines suffered from insufficient performance and were incredibly costly, making them too expensive to be feasible.

If Austria cannot afford them, Franz did not believe that Prussia or Russia could. Moreover, they were unable to produce the necessary engines.

Though internal combustion engines have been around for some years, they remain high technology.

Apart from Austria, which has advanced further in this area because of Franz, other nations have not invested much in research and development.

Technology is built on money. Without financial investment, it is naturally difficult to achieve results.

"Yes, Your Majesty!" Albrecht responded.

After the brief interlude, Franz asked again, "What’s the situation like in South America? Have the Chileans released our ships?"

The London Government played the ostrich and handed over the seized ships to the Chileans. Naturally, Austria then sought recompense from the Chilean Government.

The policy of bullying the weak and fearing the strong has always been the nature of the great powers. Asking the British for compensation versus asking the Chilean Government is entirely different.

Foreign Minister Wessenberg chuckled, "Those three little friends in South America are still at it, and it’s unlikely there will be a clear winner anytime soon.

Since the British handed over control of the seized ships to the Chilean Government, things have progressed much smoother. The only problem now is that the materials on the seized ships are gone, and we are in discussions with the Chileans about compensation.

If it weren’t for the sudden intervention of the British, we would have already signed an agreement with the Chilean Government.

It might be the British greed that has upset the Chilean Government, who now wish to involve the power of us and the French, to counterbalance the British."

This was good news. Although nitrates from Chile were not unique, and Austria had discovered some nitrate mines in its colonies, importing from Chile was still the cheapest option in terms of cost.

The conflicts between the two countries were utterly inconsequential in the face of mutual benefit. With that thought, Franz suddenly realized that this current Chilean Government was not so simple.

Appeasing both France and Austria might appear to be selling out national interests, but in reality, it laid the foundation for winning the war.

Without settling things with the two big bullies in advance, even if they defeated Peru and Bolivia, they wouldn’t be able to enjoy the fruits of victory.

There were too many instances where victories on the field were nullified by diplomatic concessions.

The Chilean Government obviously understood the true nature of the great powers and took timely remedial measures by utilizing the ship seizure incident.

Franz could not help but marvel: the emergence of any nation was never a fluke.