Holy Roman Empire

Chapter 543: The Second Near East War

The world has never been short of smart people. The Austrian military’s plan quickly gained approval from the Russians, and the two sides reached an agreement on how to wage war against the Ottomans.

After some intense negotiations, the command of the allied forces ultimately fell into Austrian hands—not because Austria was putting in more effort, but because the Russian government was poor.

There’s a saying: “When you take something from someone, you owe them.” Since the Austrian government was providing the Russian military’s supplies, the Russian government naturally lacked bargaining power during the negotiations.

Although it was called a joint operation, in practice, each country fought its own battles. Austria was responsible for dealing with the enemy’s navy and escorting Russian landings, ensuring that sea transport routes remained open.

On land, the Russians could operate freely, and whether they lived or died had nothing to do with Austria. When necessary, the two sides would cooperate.

For instance, after enemy forces were drawn into combat, they could suddenly switch to a different battlefield and attack a new target, which would require Austria to provide ships.

Time passed quickly, and on March 1, 1874, Franz declared war on the Ottoman Empire in the name of “revenge,” marking another conflict between the Habsburg monarchy and the Ottomans.

On the same day, the Russian government also declared war on the Ottoman Empire, accusing them of “interfering in Russian internal affairs and conspiring to instigate the Bulgarian rebellion.”

Although the Ottoman government had not yet responded, it no longer mattered. The Second Near East War had already begun, and nothing could stop it.

Franz’s pretext for war, “revenge,” drew some criticism internationally. Compared to the Russian justification for war, Franz’s excuse seemed hastily concocted.

Luckily, the enemy was the Ottoman Empire, the common foe of Europe. After a few grumblings, most people moved on. Apart from a few individuals, the majority of Europeans became happy bystanders to the conflict.

For the few who sympathized with the Ottoman Empire, there were already people in the newspapers ready to criticize them before the Austrian government even had time to respond. Franz greatly appreciated these enthusiastic people—though he couldn’t help but wonder if they were plants working for the press.

News always needs to be sensationalized. If there’s only one side of the story, how can a newspaper increase its sales? So, when major news breaks, European newspapers usually divide into two camps, with both sides profiting from the situation.

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In the Balkans, the Russian army was gathering. One had to admit that the Russian government was straightforward. They had promised 150,000 troops, and 150,000 troops were sent—without mentioning weapons or uniforms.

Looking at the 150,000 unarmed Russian soldiers before him, Admiral Aleister was speechless for a long time. As the overall commander of the allied forces, however, it was his responsibility to address these issues.

The Austrian government had promised to supply these 150,000 soldiers with half a year’s worth of military supplies, and they had to follow through on that promise.

After thinking for a while, Aleister said to the Russian general, Ivanov, “General Ivanov, the weapons and equipment have already arrived. You can send men to collect them now.

However, the uniforms will take longer. Austria doesn’t have Russian standard-issue uniforms, so they are being made right now. You’ll have to wait a bit longer.”

As he said this, Aleister felt utterly defeated inside. Being made right now? Nonsense! They had never anticipated this situation. Who would have guessed the Russian government would even skimp on uniforms?

Well, uniforms for 150,000 men were no small matter. According to Austrian standards, new recruits were issued three sets of uniforms, and with each seasonal change, three more were distributed. If uniforms were damaged during training, replacements were also available.

Initial estimates suggested that equipping 150,000 Russian soldiers with uniforms would cost hundreds of thousands of guilders. It wasn’t that the uniforms themselves were expensive, but additional gear like canteens, boots, backpacks, and tents...

One couldn’t doubt it—looking at the situation, it was clear that aside from the soldiers themselves, the Russians had prepared nothing. To save money, the Russian government had completely disregarded face.

Aleister could understand the Russians’ approach. Sending 150,000 troops without equipment meant they could acquire gear worth six to seven million guilders.

During its peak, the Russian Empire might not have cared, but now that sum was almost a month’s worth of the Russian government’s revenue. Compared to actual benefits, who cared about appearances?

“When the cannons fire, gold flows like water.” This saying couldn’t have been more true. In the age of firearms, the cost of war had skyrocketed.

To prepare for this Near East War, the Austrian government had set aside a war fund of 150 million guilders, which would barely last a year.

If the war dragged on, more funds would be required. This was precisely why the Austrian government was reluctant to go to war—it was simply too expensive.

Hearing Aleister’s explanation, the Russian commander Ivanov’s face reddened. Not wearing uniforms was an order from the government, and the purpose wasn’t just to save this little money, but more to cry poverty.

The Russian government wasn’t confident about raising enough funds for the war, and Alexander II was worried that if the war dragged on, the government’s finances would collapse.

From the very start, they intended to fully rely on Austria. After all, Russia and Austria were allies. If halfway through the war, the Russian government suddenly ran out of money, what could Austria do?

If they wanted Russia to continue contributing to the war effort, the Austrian government would have to lend money. Otherwise, the Russians could justify slacking off and still share in Austria’s final victory.

As one of the key players, General Ivanov didn’t have the thick skin needed for this. Hearing Aleister’s words, he felt a bit embarrassed.

“There’s no problem, Commander. Not having uniforms won’t affect the fighting, and we can replace them later.”

Ivanov didn’t see an issue, but Admiral Aleister thought differently. If Russian soldiers went into battle like this, he, as the commander-in-chief, would likely be ridiculed for centuries.

“Don’t worry, the uniforms will definitely be distributed before the landing operations. For now, let your men rest. You’ll go into action once the navy has done its job,” Aleister reassured him.

As a navy admiral, Aleister was appointed commander-in-chief of the allied forces primarily because Austria’s main responsibility in this operation was at sea.

Franz didn’t like remote commanding from thousands of miles away. The allied headquarters was in Constantinople, over a thousand miles from the Middle East. Assigning command of the Middle Eastern front to the allied headquarters would be no different from remote commanding from Vienna.

As a result, the allied command in this war was largely a coordinating body. Its main task was to ensure the sea routes were open and to support the Russian army’s offensive on the Anatolian Peninsula.

As for combat on land, the Russian forces would handle their own operations, and Aleister wouldn’t be responsible for the outcomes.

The only battles under his command were at sea. If the Ottoman Empire’s few decrepit ships could even be considered an enemy, then the Austrian navy still had a sea battle to fight.

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At the Vienna Palace, upon receiving Aleister’s telegram, Franz was instantly displeased. The once-proud Russian Empire had vanished, replaced by a calculating Russian government.

This change clearly indicated that the Russian government had become more pragmatic. Sometimes, reputation was extremely important, and other times, it was worthless.

Undoubtedly, for the current Russian government, “money” was the most important thing, as reputation couldn’t be eaten.

Since their defeat in the Russo-Prussian War, the Russian government’s face had lost value. This shift in mindset was proof that Alexander II had matured.

“Just follow Aleister’s suggestion. There’s no need to let such a trivial matter affect our plans.”

A batch of uniforms was indeed a minor issue from the perspective of the Austrian government, so naturally, no one opposed the decision.

Minister of War Albrecht added, “Your Majesty, according to the plan, we were supposed to launch an offensive in the Middle East after the war began on the Anatolian Peninsula.

Due to the Bulgarian rebellion, the Russian forces initially prepared for the war and were sent to suppress the uprising, leading to insufficient preparation.

The current batch of soldiers hasn’t undergone any sea-to-land combat training, and since they’ve just received new equipment, they’ll need time to adjust. In the short term, they likely won’t be able to launch an attack.”

Franz retracted his earlier thoughts. The Russian government remained as unreliable as ever. The war had already started, yet they suddenly revealed that the Russian soldiers hadn’t undergone sea-to-land combat training.

What had they been doing all this time? This war had been in preparation for over half a year, with Austria responsible for the equipment and logistics, while the Russian government only needed to provide manpower.

If it wasn’t to give the Russians time for sea-to-land combat training, what had they been waiting for? Could the Russian Empire not even field 150,000 active-duty soldiers and had to resort to recruiting new troops?

Naturally, there was a reason for starting the Anatolian Peninsula campaign first. For the Ottoman Empire, the Anatolian Peninsula was their central territory.

Once the war broke out, the Ottoman government would inevitably concentrate its forces on defending the peninsula. Even if the troops deployed in the Middle East were not reduced, they certainly wouldn’t be increased. This would be very advantageous for Austria, which wanted to seize territory.

“Don’t worry about it and proceed with the original plan. The Russians not having sea-to-land combat training is their own issue. We will follow the agreement and just get them ashore.

The Foreign Ministry should notify other countries to evacuate their citizens as soon as possible. In half a month, we will launch a full-scale offensive, and if there are any unintended casualties, we can only express our regret.”

Launching an attack right after declaring war is something reserved for special circumstances. In this Near East War, Austria was certain to bombard Ottoman coastal cities, and civilian casualties would be inevitable.

In this situation, Austria needed to give other countries time to evacuate their citizens. If large numbers of foreign nationals were killed, it would become a diplomatic headache for the Austrian government.

Franz didn’t want to face universal condemnation. Sometimes, public outrage can be lethal. There was no rush to attack the Ottomans—after all, they weren’t going anywhere.

Even though Franz spoke lightly, if Russian soldiers really suffered heavy casualties and failed to complete their assigned tasks, Austria would still have to send troops to clean up the mess.

The saying “allies are made to be taken advantage of” seemed to be entirely true. The war had only just begun, and Franz already felt like he’d been set up.