Holy Roman Empire

If the stalemate continues like this, once French Africa falls, what can I do to fight Austria?Count on the British? "

It wasn't that Napoleon IV couldn't hold his breath, it was that the situation on the battlefield was too bad.The African battlefield suffered a crushing defeat, and the European battlefield did not go well.

As time went on, Austria invested more and more troops on the Rhine defense line, and the hope of the French army breaking through the defense line became less and less.

For this war, France has placed too many chips, and now they simply cannot afford to lose.

After hesitating for a moment, Luskinia said slowly, "Your Majesty, we need allies. We need real allies, not the British who stab us in the back at any time!"

This is a lesson learned in blood. If you read the history books, you will know that France is fighting alone most of the time.

In many cases, it is obvious that it has the strength of the most powerful country in the European continent, but it is terrible to be surrounded by the enemy.

It's not that no one has discovered this problem. The main reason is that by the time they realize it, all the countries on the European continent have been offended.

Now is no exception. Napoleon IV is also eager to gain allies, but he can't find them!

If he hadn't been forced to do nothing, he wouldn't seek skin with his old enemy, the British and the tiger.

……

Chapter 179 The Christmas Offensive

It turns out that allies are not easy to find either.There are not many countries that are eligible to be allies with France these days, and even fewer are able to be allies with France because of interests.

Forming an alliance also requires the principle of reciprocity. If the strength gap between the two sides is too large, then you are not looking for an ally, but a younger brother.

From the heart, Napoleon IV is naturally willing to accept the younger brother.The problem is that no one is stupid, why should they be France's younger brother for no reason?

Theoretically speaking, once France shows signs of failure, most of the British will support them for the balance of the European continent, and European countries will stop their small actions that drag their feet.

It is a pity that this only exists in theory, and the prerequisite must be that the high-level governments of all countries maintain absolute rationality and do not involve any personal feelings.

Obviously, this is impossible.Politicians are human too, and they also have the emotions and desires of ordinary people.Now that you have feelings, you will be more or less affected when making decisions.

Based on the relationship between France and other countries, there are many people who want to kill them. If they show weakness and pretend to be dead, they may really die.

Napoleon IV did not dare to gamble. Even if the situation in Africa deteriorated and France was gradually at a strategic disadvantage, he could only cover his head and pretend to be strong to intimidate European countries.

"ally?"

"Who can be our true ally?"

This is definitely torture from the soul.The only ally of France now is Britain, but unfortunately this ally is not reliable.

To sum it up in one sentence: the chance of stabbing a teammate is slightly higher than the chance of stabbing an enemy.

Of course, if the French government were thicker-skinned, Monaco could also be counted.But this is meaningless, a seaside park can't affect the strength comparison between the two warring parties.

Under the expectant eyes of his colleagues, Foreign Minister Karel Kadlec replied boldly: "Your Majesty, in order to break the political passive situation, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has conducted in-depth research.

The British have made an alliance with us. Although this ally is not very reliable, it still needs to stabilize them.

Since the outbreak of the war, nearly one-third of our strategic materials have been imported from Britain. It is of great significance to win over the British.

From a strategic point of view, if we want to change our unfavorable situation, it is best to win over the Russians.

However, this is difficult to achieve. The Russia-Austria alliance has lasted for many years, and it is simply unrealistic for the Tsarist government to suddenly defect.

In order to split the Russia-Austria alliance, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has made a lot of efforts, but unfortunately, it still has little effect.

Although there is no definite evidence, but through the analysis of some clues, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs believes that an agreement has been reached between Russia and Austria.The Austrians likely promised the Russians the benefits of India.

us……"

Before Karel Kadlec finished speaking, Napoleon IV interrupted impatiently: "My foreign minister, stop talking nonsense.

There are interest transactions between Russia and Austria. This is an open secret, and people all over the world know it.

After the Austrians occupied the Ottoman Empire, they stopped their expansion to the east. If there was no insider trading between Russia and Austria, there would be a problem.

As for the issue of India, that is what the British should worry about.You just need to tell me if it is possible to bring the Russians over.

If the Russians cannot be our allies, who else can be?

It doesn't have to be a great power, even a second-class country will do.Even if you bring Switzerland over, I will hold a celebration banquet for you. "

This is the truth, Napoleon IV is really not picky now.The bloody lesson told him that it is better to have more allies.

Just look at Austria next door. As soon as the European war broke out, a group of younger brothers were drawn to form an anti-French alliance.

Although most of them were soy saucers, the number of them directly overwhelmed France in terms of momentum.

After hesitating for a moment, Karel Kadlec replied in a slightly incomparable way: "Your Majesty, it will take time to divide the Russia-Austria... alliance... and it won't be done overnight.

We're trying to win over Switzerland, but... the results are... not very good, but we have stabilized the Swiss government, they are neutral in the war.

In order to reverse the situation, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is doing the work of the Allies and Colombia. They have always been interested in Austrian America, but they are afraid of Austria's strength and dare not act rashly.

And the Japanese, after the Meiji Restoration, the strength of that small country in the Far East grew very fast, almost catching up with Belgium.

There is a conflict of interest between them and the Austrians in the Nanyang region, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is going to win over them to carve up the Austrian Nanyang.

In addition, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is still wooing the Far Eastern Empire..."

Facing the emperor's questioning, he came up with a solution in a short period of time, and Karel Kadlec admired his own wit.

On the surface, as long as these allies are brought in, France can get rid of the embarrassing situation of fighting alone, and its strategic situation will be greatly improved.

In fact, everyone present knew that these were just a beautiful picture.

Theoretically speaking, winning over the Allied Powers and Colombia will not only attack Austria's colonial system in the Americas, but also help France import agricultural products from the two countries.

It is a pity that there are not only these countries in the Americas. Although the strength of the Confederate States is not weak, it is a pity that there is a feuding United States next door to hold them back.

Regardless of whether the fight can be won or not, is it true that the expedition to Austrian America is not creating opportunities for the enemy?

Not to mention Colombia, even if they participated in the war, it would be a matter of at most two infantry divisions.No matter how much, the Austrian army will sweep Colombia again.

The Americas can't open the situation, and the same is true for Asia.The Japanese these days are in the stage of groveling, and they are not as arrogant as later generations.

Before the European war is won or lost, it is impossible for them to take chestnuts for France.

The most important thing is their lack of strength. Although Karel Kadlec wanted to brag a few words for them, he really didn't know what to brag about. In the end, he could only compare Belgium.

Although Austrian Southeast Asia is not the center of gravity of the Vienna government, there are still tens of millions of people in the area, and it is still possible to arm hundreds of thousands of troops.If there is a fight, it is still unknown who will beat whom.

As for the Far East Empire, let's go to sleep.They are still busy fighting among themselves, neither in the mood nor have the guts to join in the fun.

"Since the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has made a plan, let's implement it as soon as possible. I am here waiting for your good news!"

At this point, the expectations of Napoleon IV have already fallen to the bottom.Although these potential allies are tasteless, who makes France lack allies now?

Anyway, something is better than nothing.Don't expect them to make much contribution to defeating Austria, at least they can help wave the flag and make the Austrians sick.

After a pause, Napoleon IV added: "The core of our strategy is still on the European continent. The focus of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs must also be on the European continent.

Whether it is the British or the Russians, as long as they can pull a family into the water, the embarrassing situation we are facing will be completely reversed.

If it doesn't work, you can still encourage the Nordic Federation.Don't the Danes never forget the Schleswig-Holstein duchies, so give them that.

There are also states within the German Confederation, you can also do work, don't ask them to turn back, just ask them to be passive and sabotage. "

No matter how low the success rate, Napoleon IV didn't mind giving it a try.Who made the French army fail to show its due combat effectiveness?

The promised autumn wind swept the fallen leaves, but the wind picked up, but the wind was not in the right direction, and the fallen leaves were swept into my home.

……

France is on the move, and Austria is not idle.Instigated by the Vienna government, the Russian army launched attacks on Afghanistan time and time again.

The temptation to occupy Afghanistan and open the door to India before the end of the European war is too great.

It made many senior officials of the tsarist government addicted to it, and they couldn't extricate themselves at all.

Visible benefits cannot be compared with illusory promises.Let Britain and France talk about it, the Russians feel that it is more reliable to seize India.

Of course, the most important thing is that most of the Afghan region has been occupied by the Russian army, and the victory is about to be won.

As long as the Afghan region is occupied, the subsequent battles will be easy to fight.Without the government's instigation, the officers and soldiers will enter India happily.

If the Tsarist government is willing, it can follow the example of Austria to open up overseas colonies, and let the nobles bring their private troops to solve the problem.

When robbing for himself, Mao Xiong's combat power can definitely be overwhelming, and it is simply not something that lobster soldiers can stop.

It is not an exaggeration at all, as long as the Russian army annihilates the main force of the British army in Afghanistan, the British will not be able to make up for it in a short time.Without the British army, the Indian colonial army is a joke.

……

"Which idiot's order is to occupy Afghanistan before Christmas?"

In the Russian Army Command, Admiral Oginets looked at the order in his hand and cursed in disbelief.

It is true that the war in Afghanistan has reached a critical moment, but the more intense the enemy's resistance is at this time.

In addition to being willing to take their lives, the Russian army was able to advance smoothly. More importantly, the British army's logistics supply line was too long, and it was attacked by Afghan guerrillas every now and then.

According to the statistics of the Russian army, nearly two-thirds of the strategic materials of the British army will disappear in transit.

Whether it was killed by the Afghan guerrillas or divided up by the domestic bureaucrats is a matter for the beholder to see.

In short, this is a good thing for the Russian army.Restricted by logistics, the British army on the front line had powerful firepower, but they could not burst out at full strength.

In this context, even if there were natural dangers to rely on, the British army was still beaten back steadily.

In order to maximize the military exploits, it is naturally impossible for Admiral Auchinets to report the specific inside information.

In the eyes of the tsarist government, it was all because the Russian army was not afraid of sacrifices, difficulties and obstacles, overcame difficulties along the way, and wrote a triumphant song of victory with blood.

Everything has two sides. A series of victories, while stimulating the ambitions of the tsarist government, also consumed their patience.

Some people can't help it, and want to occupy the Afghan region before Christmas to add luster to the annual festival.

Hearing Admiral Oginets' cursing, the middle-aged officer who delivered the telegram hastily reminded: "Your Excellency, Commander, this is an order from the Ministry of War. It also attached the opinions of the cabinet, which is equivalent to a domestic consensus."

No disaster, that's it.Admiral Oginets dared to scold the domestic bureaucrats, which means that his own status has risen to the same level as the domestic bigwigs.

If nothing else, after winning this war, Admiral Oginets will be promoted to marshal.

And it's not that kind of guy, but after Marshal Ivanov, another big guy in the Russian army.

No emperor likes his subordinates to be monolithic, and the more Admiral Auchinets scolds, the happier Alexander III will be.

Admiral Oginets can scold, but it doesn't mean that everyone can listen.In case something happens later and a high-level conflict is triggered, maybe the scolding is all right, and the guys who listen to them are likely to be affected by Chi Yu.

In a sense, this is essentially standing in line.If you didn't stop it, it meant you agreed with Admiral Auchinets' point of view.

It doesn't matter if you have a backer, and those without a backer may become victims of political struggles at any time.

"Humph!"

After a cold drink, Admiral Oginets decisively cut off the idea of ​​continuing to curse.There is no way, there are too many people involved, and I really can't afford to offend.

It doesn't matter how you scold me when you don't know. If you know, you must pay attention to self-restraint. This is politics.

"Call the War Department back, we will launch the final offensive as soon as possible, but the logistics cannot keep up.

If we want to occupy the entire Afghan region before Christmas, we need at least 12 billion rounds of ammunition and 300 million artillery shells..."

A typical lion opens his mouth wide, but there is no way.Admiral Oginets had no confidence in occupying the Afghan region before Christmas, so he had to find a good excuse first so that he could easily shirk responsibility after the mission failed.

This is also the basic skill of Russian generals. Almost every high-level Russian commander is a master at shirking responsibility.

Insufficient strategic materials have always been the only way for the Russian army to respond to domestic urging.As long as this killer move is brought out, the government will have nothing to say.

1 Chapter [-] Military Purchase

"The Russians want to buy planes?"

Just after waking up from his sleep, Franz received the news.It's not surprising when you think about it. The tsarist government has been buying, buying, and buying in recent years.

Maybe it was the sweetness of the purchase, or maybe it was just that the bureaucrats simply wanted to make a fortune, but the Russians would soon follow suit with all the weapons that the Austrian army equipped on a large scale.

Seeing the aircraft shine on the battlefield, the tsarist government will naturally follow up.Especially as the Anglo-Russian war in Afghanistan continues, the Russian army urgently needs a weapon that can suppress the British airship troops.

"Yes, Your Majesty!"

"The tsarist government has just decided to launch a Christmas offensive, planning to seize the Afghan region before Christmas in the Russian calendar."

Foreign Minister Weisenberg explained with a smile.There is no doubt that Austria is behind the Russian Christmas offensive.

The British have not participated in the European war so far. It is not that the London government has suddenly changed its nature. It is mainly because it has been dragged down by the war in Afghanistan and has not had so much energy.

Judging from the current situation, unless the strengths of France and Austria are completely out of balance, the British will definitely give priority to the Afghan battlefield.