Chapter 762: Mistakenly Attacking the Decoy Carriage |
The battlefield of the Near East had become a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood. By this stage of the war, both sides had been driven into a frenzy, with only one goal: to kill the enemy.
To secure victory, all limits had been cast aside. Acts of extreme brutality continued to unfold, each one worse than the last.
When religion and war intertwine, the results are terrifying. Human bombs became a routine weapon. Some even used children as tools of destruction. Bombs were strapped to their bodies, and they were driven forward with whips. There were cries of children mixed with the sounds of explosions, creating a scene of unimaginable horror.
When compassion was exhausted, the consequences became catastrophic. The bloodiest battlefields of war turned into desolate wastelands once the fighting ended.
As Franz reviewed the reports, even he fell into silence. His only conclusion was that the Ottomans had gone mad.
Defeat was not the worst outcome. As long as people survived, there was always hope for resurgence. If the people were gone, then nothing remained.
By the 19th century, international opinion had gained some influence. Everyone knew that Austria, as a government that valued its reputation, would never resort to genocide.
The Austrian government had already prepared a relocation plan. A site had been selected in advance: a picturesque Arctic island with a mild climate, plenty of sunshine, little rainfall, and an excellent living environment, making it ideal for tourism.
To acquire this island, the Austrian government paid a hefty sum of 15,000 pounds to the colonial government of British Canada in exchange for sovereignty.
According to data from the Coalition Command, as of Christmas, total coalition casualties had exceeded 547,000, with more than 117,000 soldiers killed in action.
The Austrian army alone had suffered heavy losses, with 59,000 dead and 287,000 wounded. The first wave of expendable troops had been nearly wiped out, while the second wave had also taken severe losses.
If the Coalition had suffered such high casualties, then the Ottoman Empire, as the side taking the brunt of the attacks, had fared even worse.
Incomplete statistics showed that the Ottoman military had suffered over a million permanent losses so far.
The main reason was that the Ottoman Empire had yet to establish an effective battlefield medical system. Medical personnel were in short supply, and even field hospitals could not fully guarantee treatment for officers, let alone ordinary soldiers. Those with minor injuries could only pray for recovery, while the severely wounded relied on their comrades to put them out of their misery.
With such massive losses in the military, civilian casualties were even more difficult to estimate, though the number of deaths was undoubtedly higher than that of the soldiers.
The brutality of the Near East War caused an uproar across Europe, reigniting anti-war sentiment.
Even in Austria, anti-war movements emerged. However, the dominant faction remained in favor of the war, mainly because beating the Ottomans was just too satisfying.
As long as one opens a history book, there is enough motivation to see the Ottoman Empire destroyed. The anti-war faction opposed the war itself but did not oppose the annihilation of the Ottomans.
While bystanders were busy commenting on world affairs, a significant event took place on a bright and sunny day: the Kingdom of Prussia and the Kingdom of Hanover officially merged.
It was done in a remarkably low-key manner. Although everyone knew that Prussia and Hanover had long been colluding, no one expected them to form a federal empire.
On February 14, 1883, George I was crowned Emperor of the Hanover-Prussian United Empire, adding yet another crown to the European world.
By forming a dual monarchy, Prussia and Hanover had effectively unified northern Germany.
Many smaller states in the German Federal Empire opposed Prussia’s inclusion in the imperial parliament, but their resistance ultimately failed.
Legally, Prussia and Hanover shared a single state representation, a privilege granted by the emperor, leaving no room for objections.
The House of Habsburg had set the precedent. Hungary and the Balkans had been considered part of Austria while also belonging to the Holy Roman Empire. Now, George I was merely following in their footsteps.
With northern Germany unified, the German Federal Empire could now claim the title of “North German Empire,” theoretically standing on equal footing with the Habsburgs’ new Holy Roman Empire.
In Saint Petersburg, Alexander III slammed his hand on the table and demanded, “Did you not swear to me that the Austrian government would never allow a Prussian-German merger?
Now, just as you wished, Prussia and Germany have truly merged. But where is the Austrian intervention you guaranteed?”
Many European countries supported the Prussian-German merger as a means to counterbalance Austria, but the Russian Empire was certainly not among them.
The Russo-Prussian War had been fought with such brutality that the two sides harbored deep-seated hatred, making reconciliation impossible.
While the unification of northern Germany did make it more difficult for Austria to unify the German states, it also created a new powerful adversary on Russia’s western border.
This was simply a matter of scale. Some believed that since Prussia had been split apart, with many of its territories absorbed into Hanover, its anti-Russian influence had weakened. However, that was a mistake.
No matter how the land was divided, the people remained the same, and their hatred ensured that they would stand against Russia.
From a population perspective, the majority of citizens in this new empire were hostile toward Russia, while most of the remainder had little goodwill toward the Russians.
There was no doubt that anti-Russian sentiment was the dominant ideology of this newly formed empire. Until this entire generation passed away, reconciliation was out of the question.
If it were just another hostile nation, the Russian government would not have been overly concerned. After all, Russia had many enemies worldwide, yet it had continued to survive.
But northern Germany was different as it was a formidable power.
Had Prussia not suffered such heavy losses among its young and able-bodied population, the Prussian-German merger would have made it just as strong as the former Prussian-Polish Federation.
Even with Prussia weakened, the newly established North German Empire still retained seventy to eighty percent of the former federation’s strength. That alone was enough to put significant pressure on Russia, which was still recovering from its own wounds.
The Austrian government’s inaction left the Russian government utterly baffled.
Under the piercing gaze of Alexander III, which felt as though it could kill, Foreign Minister Nikolay Girs, who was directly responsible for the situation, had no choice but to force out an answer.
“Austria’s full attention has been on the Near East battlefield, causing them to overlook the shifting dynamics in Central Europe, allowing the British to exploit the situation.
Caught off guard by this sudden upheaval, the Austrian government likely hasn’t yet had time to react, which is why they have yet to take any action.”
As he spoke, his voice grew weaker, and cold sweat began to bead on his forehead. He simply couldn’t continue making up excuses.
After all, he was Russia’s foreign minister, not Austria’s. Not knowing the true reasons behind Austria’s inaction was perfectly reasonable. If he did know, that would make him the greatest diplomatic strategist of the century.
On the surface, none of it made any sense, making it impossible for Nikolay to explain.
Alexander III sneered. “Nonsense! Now that the damage is done, you come to me with this excuse? Where were you before? Do you really believe Austria would simply ignore Central Europe?”
It was no surprise that Alexander III was losing his composure. The two previous Russo-Prussian wars had been disastrous for the Russian government. He had no desire to go at it again a third time.
…
It wasn’t just the Russians who opposed the Prussian-German merger. Far away in Paris, Napoleon IV was also flying into a rage.
There wasn’t a complex reason behind it. The mere fact that it obstructed his plans was enough. The birth of the North German Empire had made France’s eastward expansion strategy even more difficult.
The recent French Revolution had been caused by multiple factors, one of which was an energy crisis.
In the aftermath, all sectors of French society reached a consensus: France needed a stable coal supply to secure its domestic energy needs.
Until a new coal source was found, the eastward expansion strategy remained irreplaceable.
Had France not still been in a period of recovery, with anti-war sentiment still strong, the country’s interest groups would have already taken action.
After venting his anger, Napoleon IV calmed down and asked, “If we intervene now, how likely are we to disrupt the Prussian-German merger?”
Foreign Minister Terence Bourquin, visibly panicked, quickly responded, “No, absolutely not! Your Majesty, the Anti-French Coalition may appear to have dissolved, but in reality, hostility toward us remains strong throughout Europe. A single misstep could…”
Napoleon IV impatiently waved his hand. “Stop with the alarmism. Only Britain, Russia, and Austria are truly worth worrying about.
Now that the Russians have openly opposed the Prussian-German merger, and Austria has yet to take a clear stance, I refuse to believe they would willingly give up on unifying the German region.
If we join forces with Russia and Austria to intervene, even if the rest of Europe opposes us, they won’t be able to stop us.”
There was nothing wrong with the idea. France, Russia, and Austria were the three great land powers of the world. If they joined forces, they could sweep across the land without opposition.
Foreign Minister Terence Bourquin forced a bitter smile and explained, “Your Majesty, Russia and Austria will not ally with us.
Austria wants to unify the German region, which means it must protect its reputation. When it comes to internal German affairs, they will never join forces with any outside power.
As for the Russian government, they might want to intervene, but their finances are in terrible shape. They simply cannot afford the military expenses needed for an intervention.”
Hearing this explanation, Napoleon IV immediately backed down.
France’s own situation wasn’t great either. Had this been before the revolution, Napoleon IV might have been willing to finance Russia’s intervention himself. But now, France’s coffers were not nearly as full.
Without allies, Napoleon IV didn’t dare act alone. If his interference provoked widespread outrage, the consequences would be catastrophic.
After a brief moment of contemplation, he slowly asked, “Do we know why the Austrians haven’t taken action yet?”
The more illogical a situation seemed, the more suspicion it aroused. Austria’s silence on the unification of northern Germany made Napoleon IV suspect there was a hidden scheme at play.
As the room fell into deep thought, Minister of War Lusquinye Hafize speculated, “Could it be that the Austrians are holding back because they’re wary of us?”
It was a somewhat arrogant theory, but no one opposed it. Even after experiencing internal turmoil, France was still seen as the most fearsome beast in Europe.
Footnote: Context of the title
During the Qin Dynasty (221–206 BCE), the tyrannical Qin Shi Huang (China’s first emperor) faced numerous assassination attempts due to his harsh rule. Zhang Liang, whose family had been aristocrats of the defeated Han state, harbored deep resentment against the Qin emperor. He sought revenge and conspired to assassinate Qin Shi Huang.
In 218 BCE, Zhang Liang hired a strongman assassin (力士) to ambush the emperor’s convoy during an imperial tour. The plan was to hurl a massive iron hammer (weighing 120 jin, ~60 kg) at the emperor’s carriage. However, Qin Shi Huang, wary of assassination attempts, employed decoys. His convoy included multiple identical carriages (副车), with the emperor switching between them to confuse attackers.
https://postimg.cc/gallery/PwXsBkC (Maps of the current territories of the countries in this novel made by ScH)