Holy Roman Empire

……

The Berlin government is worried, and the British are also worried.In particular, Sir Edward, who led the plan, regretted it as soon as he started to implement the plan.

Things are not as simple as imagined. Her Majesty the Queen agreed to do the work of the royal family of the "comedy empire", but the London government must ensure that the status of the royal family will not be shaken.

These are small issues, not just promises, Sir Edward said it doesn't matter.

After this war, the Pubo Federation will definitely have to recuperate. The Berlin government will not dare to play tricks in a short period of time. As for the future, that is something that the subsequent government should worry about.

The trouble is the special system of the comedy empire. It is useless to persuade the emperor, and he is restricted by the imperial parliament.

"Convincing these small states" is a very good idea, but it is not advisable to do so. Isn't telling them the same as telling Austria?

How "comedy empire" was infiltrated, even Franz didn't know.Anyway, the Aegis is the common currency of this country, and its circulation is more than that of the Rhineland issued by the central government.

It's not that the central government doesn't want to ban it. The key is that this is legal currency approved by the Imperial Parliament, and the emperor can't do anything about it.

Of course, the Vienna government also paid a price. It reciprocated and opened up the colonial market to these small states that voted in favor, and also provided economic assistance from time to time.

Although the two places are separated politically, economically, they have long been integrated into one.

In this context, Edward really finds it hard to believe in the secrecy capabilities of these small states.As long as the wind leaks, the "plan" can only be a plan. After all, it is much easier to do bad things than to do good things.

Without the support of small states, it is not impossible to bypass the Imperial Parliament, but in the subsequent wars, don't think about everyone's contribution.

All the troops of the "Comedy Empire" belonged to the state government, and the emperor could only command and mobilize the troops of Hanover, and barely a dozen or 20 troops was already the limit.

If the Imperial Parliament does not give the central government face, and then vetoes the resolution to allow the Pubo Federation to join the Empire, then even material assistance will not work.

At most, the emperor took the Hanoverian army directly under him to go to war with the Russians alone, which had nothing to do with the German Federal Empire.

With this little power, the Russians suffered a little more casualties, and it was not enough to change the outcome of this war.

Well, Edward admitted that he was overthinking.So far, the Berlin government has responded to his plan, and the German Federal Empire has not given an answer at all.

The pay is visible to the naked eye, but the reward is illusory.The legitimacy of the central government of the Comedy Empire has always been questioned by the public, and they have to be cautious at ordinary times to prevent the Imperial Parliament from getting caught.

Without enough interests, if you want others to take the risk of participating in the tragic Russo-Prussian War, even the British boss can't do it.

It's not that there is no other choice now, and people can change jobs at any time if they are in a hurry.Now that there are many buyers, changing one can also be sold at a good price.

Chapter 265

The British proposal caused an uproar at the top of the German Federal Government.Although after purchasing the Rhineland region, it made up for the shortcomings of heavy industry, and the comprehensive national strength of the "comedy empire" has grown considerably.

It is a pity that the German Federal Empire is not a unified country after all, and the problem of the alliance of states within the Federation against the central government has not been resolved for a long time.

The Kingdom of Hanover did not have an overwhelming advantage, and George I was not a master of great talents, so the problem was put on hold.

(Remarks: George I of the Federal Empire of Germany, George V of the Kingdom of Hanover)

The German Federal Empire, which cannot complete internal integration, is naturally far behind the Pubo Federation in strength.Personally, George I had no interest in the British "snake swallowing elephant" plan.

A group of small states in the country can make him feel ashamed, and another Pubo Federation, so what?

These days, if you have strength, you have the right to speak. Once the Pubo Federation joins the German Federation, it will immediately become the most influential state in the empire, and Hannover's status will inevitably be impacted.

George I: "Do you think the British proposal is feasible?"

Visibly, he hesitated.The comedy empire also needs to use the power of the British to fight against Austria and protect its own independent status. It is obviously not advisable to directly reject the British.

However, the risk of accepting the Pubo Federation was too great. Even if Queen Victoria made a guarantee, George I did not dare to fully believe it in the face of national interests.

Prime Minister Thorben Hoffmann: "Your Majesty, the British proposal seems very attractive, but in fact it is full of dangers. If it is not good, we will fall into the public eye.

Internationally, France and Austria do not want to see us merge with the Pubo Federation. Reckless actions will definitely arouse their dissatisfaction, and may even lead to armed intervention.

Many states in the country have their own calculations, and joining this war will not do them any good, and it is impossible for the Imperial Parliament to pass it.

In such a complicated situation, if we bypass the Imperial Parliament and forcibly accept the Pubo Federation, it is very likely that the Empire will fall into a state of division.

In addition to these risks, the Pubo Federation itself is even more troublesome.Their size is too large, we have no ability, and it is impossible to digest the Pubo Federation.

Relying on their size advantage, it will be a matter of time before they turn their attention to customers. This cannot be solved with a guarantee, unless the Pubo Federation can be split. "

Foreign Secretary Steve Lee: "The stakes are huge, but it's still an opportunity. Once we miss it, it's going to be very difficult for us to go any further.

Everyone knows the situation in Europe. The Prussian-Russian War was a small episode, and the future must be a game between Britain, France and Austria.

Other countries can choose to be neutral, but we cannot.Austria's ambitions have never been concealed. What's even more exasperating is that many people in the country have been fooled by nationalism, and they can't wait to join Austria immediately.

The only way to get rid of this crisis is to make the empire stronger.Only when the empire is strong can it prove that nationalism is wrong and dispel their unrealistic illusions. "

Thorben Hoffman shook his head: "Li, you are still too idealistic.

I admit that it is indeed tempting to annex the Pubo Federation. Frankly speaking, I am tempted. The problem now is that we simply cannot do it.

Even if the British were able to persuade the French and keep Austria at bay, we have successfully persuaded the states in the country to agree, and the possibility of annexing the Pubo Federation is less than [-]%.

Don't ignore the gap in strength, the Pubo Federation looks miserable now, but their population is twice ours, and their territory is five times ours.

After the merger of the two countries, it is very obvious who merged whom.

Moreover, the cruelty of the Prussian-Russian War is also an urgent reality.To accept the Pubo Federation, we must help them win this battle.

After the war, we have to spend a large amount of money to pay off their debts and help them rebuild after the war. Our income is just an illusory dream of a great country.

If you really pay such a high price, just to gain the status of a big country, you might as well cooperate with the Austrians.At least we don't need our boys to go to war, and the government doesn't need to tighten its belt to live. "

The speaker has no intention, but the listener has intention.

Deep down, George I had planted the seeds of doubt. "Suspicious" is an emperor's instinct, and it is not a derogatory term here.

Doubts are doubts, and it seems that George I is still calm, and he doesn't seem to care.

Foreign Secretary Steve Lee: "Your Excellency, you are right. We really do not have the ability to swallow the Pubo Federation, and the price we need to pay for participating in this war is indeed very high.

But this is not important, the Pubo Federation has never been a member of the German state, what do we want them to do?

We only need to absorb the Principality of Brandenburg, the Principality of Schleswig, and the Principality of Holstein, and other non-German territories can be completely abandoned.

Now we don't need to do much, just buy time, wait until the Russians win this war, and then do it.

The three countries of Britain, France and Austria will not allow the Russians to annex the Pubo Federation. After they intervene, we will take the opportunity to take back the territory of the German region. Not only can we gain the support of the British, but the reaction of France and Austria will not be so violent. "

Steve Lee's proposal is obviously much more feasible than the British plan.After abandoning the Pubo Federation and only absorbing the German states, the comedy empire will not have to worry about being choked to death, and the risks to be taken are much lower.

If you open the history books, you will know that the Kingdom of Prussia was formed by the merger of the Principality of Brandenburg and the Principality of Prussia.

The Principality of Brandenburg is one of the German princes, while the predecessor of the Principality of Prussia was the Teutonic Knights. Because most of the domestic nobles were Germans, they were gradually assimilated.

No matter how assimilated, from the perspective of geographical division in a narrow sense, the Principality of Prussia does not belong to the German region, and it is reasonable to kick it out.

George I was tempted. Although the territories of the three German states were small, they were the most elite areas of the Pubo Federation.

If he can get it, whether it is national strength or his personal prestige, he will go one step further.Moreover, there is no need to take the risk of going to war with the Russians.

After taking back Poland and Lithuania, and annexing the Principality of Prussia, if the Tsarist government is not satisfied, the three countries of Britain, France and Austria will explode.

It didn't cost much to get a piece of plump fruit. King George I really couldn't think of a reason to refuse.

After a little thought, George I said happily: "Li, your plan is great, you will definitely be able to become a great diplomat, just like Prince Metternich.

You will be responsible for this matter, tell the British that we agree with their plan, but the details need to be negotiated.

Next, your work will be very heavy, not only to delay the time until the end of the Prussian-Prussian War, but also to obtain the support of Britain, France and Austria after the war.

Do you have a plan? "

Delaying time is not difficult, and excuses are easy to find. The Imperial Parliament is the biggest blamer. If it doesn't work, you can "leak the wind" and use the hands of the Austrians to terminate the plan.

The trouble is that after the war, Britain, France and Austria did not do charity. It is impossible for them to contribute their work and efforts for nothing, and there is a price to pay.

After hesitating for a moment, Steve Lee replied: "This requires the cooperation of the Russians. The more greedy the Tsarist government is, the more likely we are to succeed.

If the Russians stop after regaining their lost territory and leave a complete Prussian kingdom, we will naturally have no chance.

But this is impossible. The tsarist government paid such a high price for this war. Without spoils, how can they make up for the loss?

As far as I know, the tsarist government mortgaged a large amount of territory to Austria, and it is very difficult to repay the money with the tsarist government's finances. After the war, they are likely to use the land in the Pubo Federal German area to pay off the debt.

This is not what Britain and France want to see. Austria took the initiative strategically after acquiring these territories, and no one can stop them from unifying the German region.

On this issue, most European countries will support Britain and France.The Russians are just to pay off their debts, not to see Austria unify the German region.

This is our opportunity. In order to prevent Austria from unifying the German region and strengthen our strength, it is also a good choice.

Of course, this is not enough.In order to gain everyone's support, it is necessary to exchange interests, for example: we can sign a coal supply contract with the French. "

The value of land and land is also different, and the value of the same piece of land is completely different for different countries.

Steve Lee judged that after the Russians won the war, they would use the territory of the German region to repay the debt, mainly because this part of the territory was of political significance to Austria and could be sold at a high price.

After all, after taking over the territory of the general German region, the road to German unification will be left with the "comedy empire", and public opinion will form a unified trend.

Once the idea of ​​great unification is deeply rooted in the hearts of the people, it can no longer be stopped.For Austria, the "general trend of unification" cannot be measured by pure money.

In contrast, the land in the Russian Balkans, Poland, and Ukraine has no political significance and is dispensable to Austria. It would be good if the Vienna government did not lower the price.

From the standpoint of the German Federal Empire, if you want to continue to maintain the current independent status, you must interrupt the trend of Austria's unification.

To achieve this, it is necessary to annex the general German region to form a political structure of North and South Germany, so as to stabilize people's hearts.

This is also the reason why Steve Lee is confident of gaining the support of European countries. Austria is already strong enough, and if they are allowed to unify the German region, they will be a proper European hegemon.

Chapter 266 Peak Showdown

Under the bridge of the British, Prussia and Germany sat on the negotiating table and started protracted negotiations.

The diplomatic actions did not affect the peak duel between Prussia and Russia on the battlefield.

Due to the severe situation on the battlefield, after abandoning the Latvian region, the Prussian army had to continue to abandon the Lithuanian region, and the flames of war had already reached East Prussia.

The situation continued to develop in a direction that was beneficial to the Russian army, and the frontlines reported frequent successes. Not only did Marshal Ivanov not relax, but he became more and more nervous.

He clearly knew that behind the victory, the front of the Russian army was constantly being stretched.Not only is the logistical pressure increasing day by day, but the fortifications prepared in advance will no longer be effective at this time.

If this is the case, that's all. The key is that the domestic calls for a decisive battle are getting louder and louder, and there are endless voices calling for a battle within the army. Even with Alexander II behind him, Ivanov feels heavy pressure.

An officer said loudly, "Marshal, the Fourth Army has sent an urgent call."

Ivanov said lightly: "Read!"

"Yes!"

"...On October 1880, 10, our troops captured Pulawi, wiped out 18 enemy troops, and captured 1.2 enemy troops.

The gate of Warsaw has been opened, and soldiers are very fast. In order to seize the opportunity, our department decided to march down the Vistula River to Warsaw first.

It is hoped that the Seventh Army and the Fifth Army will cooperate and attack the Warsaw area from the north and east respectively.

......"

With a "bang", the water glass in Marshal Ivanov's hand fell.

After all the calculations, he still underestimated the desire of his officers to win.Of course, there may be other forces behind this, forcing him to start the decisive battle ahead of time.

Ivanov didn't want to complain about the reason that "Warsaw's gate is open". The enemy is going to fight them in the Warsaw area, so it is naturally impossible to stop them outside.

Occupying the upper reaches of the Vistula River seems to have gained a strategic advantage. In fact, anyone who understands the terrain of Poland knows that the endless plains have gentle water flow, not to mention damming and flooding the Seventh Army, even if they want to wash away the farmland downstream. are difficult.

Things have come to this point, Ivanov can only follow the aftermath.The Fourth Army has eight infantry divisions, one garrison division, three cavalry divisions, four artillery regiments, and various auxiliary troops, with a total strength of [-].

With so many troops, it is impossible for anyone to give up easily.If possible, Ivanov would not mind shooting those who made their own claims immediately.

It's a pity that he can't reach it now. If he wants to settle accounts after the autumn, he must wait until the end of the war.

Looking at the map, Ivanov muttered to himself: "On October 10th Pulawi was conquered, and now it is the afternoon of October 18st. Even if it takes two days to rest, they have set off for one day.

If the speed is fast, the Battle of Warsaw has already started, and it is impossible to recover.

Good Obodo, this is calculated, knowing that I can't give up the Fourth Army, I can't fight this Warsaw battle. "

After hesitating for a while, Marshal Ivanov ordered: "Since the deployment has been disrupted, let's fight!

The order went down, ordering the Seventh Army and the Fifth Army to launch the Battle of Warsaw; ordering the Third Army and the Sixth Army, which were being repaired, to assemble immediately and march towards the Warsaw area.

Order the First Army and the Second Army to launch an offensive in East Prussia, and the navy will cooperate with them.

Order the Eighth Army, Ninth Army, and Tenth Army to abandon their current defensive tasks and launch a battle on the southern front.

Order the new No.11 Army, No.13 Army, No.15 Army, and No.17 Army to receive the defense they left behind. "

Although he didn't know the enemy's conspiracy, Ivanov knew that as long as he was strong enough, the enemy would be choked to death.