Solovyov in Tsarist Russia 1796

The title of Archduke of Austria and Holy Roman Emperor is actually very hot. Since the Thirty Years' War, people have been sitting uneasy.

Now, the hot throne is occupied by Franz II.

According to the usual Austrian tricks, the Russian army sent so many people to Vienna this time, and they will continue to fight in Italy. Naturally, they want to use this force to recover the lost territory.

All parties have their own ulterior motives, except for the two Roman tsars and sultans.

After all, the Ottoman Sultan was given an excuse by the French to "clean up the house". Although this statement sounds reasonable, the Mamluks of Egypt are all subjects of the Sultan of Constantinople, and you, an outsider, can't just fight them whenever you want.

They still don't trust the "Frank barbarians". In the past, they were friendly with each other during the Valois and Bourbon dynasties. It was not yet the turn of foreigners to help them "clean up the house". Now the Ottoman Sultan has declared war on France and has received support from European countries, especially the British are sending fleets to support the Pashas in Palestine and Syria.

And since Tsar Paul of Russia became the Grand Master of the Order of Malta, this nervous energy, even if he is not sick, is easy to be evaluated from behind, such as stupid and rich.

The Russian army has entered Austria and needs to let the French know that they are not easy to mess with.

Marshal Suvorov's carriage has now passed through Lingminsk-Brest-Krakow and has arrived at the outskirts of Vienna.

"Marshal, we have arrived in Vienna!"

"The journey was smooth this time! There is only one thing, Misha, we don't know how prepared the Austrians are, you have to watch carefully."

"Yes!"

In order to welcome the Russian Marshal Suvorov, the Austrian monarch still arranged a large battle. The Russian combat troops camped outside the city. When they arrived in the Austrian capital, they were warmly received.

"Marshal, I am very happy that you can come to our Austrian capital Vienna. The 80,000 Austrian troops commanded by General Melas in Italy will all be under your command!"

Franz II also signaled Suvorov that he only needed to nod and salute, which was to take care of his old age and only needed general etiquette, and they also rode in the royal carriage to enter Schönbrunn Palace together.

If it was in the era of Queen Maria Theresa, although Austria always failed on the battlefield, it could rely on diplomacy and its relatively strong national strength to suppress Prussia with its allies.

Now Prussia has finally stopped making trouble and temporarily sought neutrality in Europe, but France has made such a big thing again. Franz II's aunt has already put her head at the bottom of the coffin, and the war has been going on since the coalition organized the first anti-French alliance.

Speaking of which, Franz II is different from his father Leopold II. What happened in France, although the children of the Austrian empress are jealous of each other, they can still unite the flesh and blood relationship. If he lives longer, he will definitely pay more attention to family affection in addition to the interests of the kingdom.

And Franz II, after his aunt and uncle were beheaded and his cousin had died of illness in prison, he replaced his cousin, the eldest princess of France, which makes it hard not to think that he is a hypocritical gesture.

Now, this monarch, whose ruling ability is really average, still has to rely on the power of Russia and Britain. His main goal is to recapture northern Italy.

He used other people's tricks, but only wanted to benefit himself. It was even a bit ironic that he repeatedly wrote to Paul to implore Suvorov to come out of retirement, which was the result of repeated insistence by some ministers in his court and the British ambassador to Vienna. However, outsiders did not know anything at the time and thought it was the opinion of the Austrian emperor himself.

He still had to make a gesture. Now he welcomed Suvorov into Schönbrunn Palace and also played the role of host at the banquet.

However, Marshal Suvorov's diet was always different from others. When he arrived at the court of Schönbrunn Palace, his diet was still the same. As long as the loyal old servant added some bread and eels to him behind his back, he actually did not eat more.

"Your Majesty, I think what you want to say is that we don't need to be so anxious about the offensive against the French. Our army has to reach the predetermined position before we can officially start the war. What we need to do now is to ask General Melas to hold the French back. We still have time."

"Marshal, I still believe in you."

"Thank you for your trust in me to command the joint forces of Russia and Austria. To start the attack, we must act quickly and keep up with the supplies. At the same time, our infantry, cavalry and artillery..."

Suvorov deliberately said a little more, and also asked Franz II not to interfere too much in the actions of the army. When fighting against General Bonaparte in Italy, the performance of the Austrian army on the battlefield, from soldiers to some generals who led columns alone, was not bad, but the final result was failure.

It was this Austrian emperor who micro-managed again and again, and his veterans' command ability was not good, which caused a lot of trouble for the French, but in the end, because of the dispersion of troops and some mistakes, the French army seized the opportunity and almost beat Vienna.

At the same time, the French army of the Rhine Corps was said to be "strong and powerful", but was defeated by Archduke Karl one after another. The failure on the Italian battlefield also forced Archduke Karl to choose to return to his army. However, the battle had not yet started, and the final result was the signing of a peace treaty, which caused Austria to suffer huge losses and almost lost the entire northern Italy.

The old marshal put his words in front of him for one purpose, Your Majesty the Emperor of Austria, you should not get involved in the battlefield.

But this was only temporary. The army on the battlefield was commanded by Suvorov, but Franz still had to ask about the strategic direction. It would be fine if he had always delegated power, but he could come up with some new tricks every time.

As for Solovyov, he was always behind Suvorov. He watched the performances of the Austrian court nobles at the banquet, just like in St. Petersburg, full of farce effects.

Moreover, this was abroad, it was easy to dodge an open gun, but it was difficult to guard against an arrow from the dark.

He just watched Suvorov and the Austrian emperor talk. But looking at this Holy Roman Emperor, Solovyov still felt familiar. How could he look like the old king who had waited for decades to be officially elected in London?

Speaking of which, these European royal families are more or less related, so it is not surprising that they look alike.

In fact, this one may not be as good as him.

The reception at Schönbrunn Palace was just so-so. After a while of greetings, Marshal Suvorov and his entourage also stayed temporarily in Vienna, and then they had to prepare to continue to move forward.

The Russian army that was already here was also full of energy. On the day Suvorov arrived, there was an urgent letter from Brest, indicating that the "Grand Duke Konstantin Pavlovich's Guards Regiment" was about to set off. The Tsar finally decided to send the Izmailov Regiment to the battlefield, which also expressed the determination of Russia and Austria to unite in this war.

With this statement, Soloviev could guess that in the court of Petersburg, Alexandra must have escaped the marriage successfully. The engagement failed, but the Tsar decided to send the second heir to the throne to lead a guard regiment and the Mariupol Lancers on the border to cross the border.

It was a kind of compensation for the failed marriage, and this news was quickly passed on to the Austrian emperor.

"The failure of the marriage between Archduke Joseph and the Russian princess is not a big deal. My brother does not necessarily want a "barbaric" Russian woman to be his wife."

"Your Majesty."

"It doesn't matter. It doesn't matter which family you marry. There has never been a Russian princess in the court of Vienna in the past. To be honest, I am worried that the Russians will interfere because of various problems!"

Speaking of which, this is a bit unfair to Paul. The Tsar came to support out of "morality", which is different from the practice of Empress Catherine. In addition, Russia and Austria have always been traditional allies on the European continent except for the reversal of Peter III.

The Austrians were more worried because Paul was also a commoner, and if France had not aggressively started wars everywhere and finally stepped on the landmine in Russia's sphere of influence, there would not be 100,000 Russian troops waiting for dispatch here.

However, this is a bit of a petty mind, judging the knight's belly.

Paul wanted to use the Knights of Malta as the spirit of the Knights Hospitaller to set up a set of moral standards for the nobles.

Marshal Suvorov attended the banquet today and also wore the medal of the Knights of Malta and the Order of St. Alexander Nevsky, which also showed that Paul came for "morality".

After he went back, he rested in the guest room provided by Franz II. He was definitely not used to such a soft bed.

"Misha, is our luggage cart coming along?"

"Yes, Alexander Vasilyevich, Andrei has taken care of this."

"An old man like me can only lie on a camp bed. This thing is too soft and should be prepared for women."

When he said this, he was already firing a map cannon at the lifestyle of the courts all over Europe.

Soloviev actually went to the luggage cart to take down the camp bed and blanket. The old marshal still had a few days to rest after entering Vienna.

The reason was also that the Austrian emperor had to determine the final corps dispatch, and the local officials of Austria after the winter, the material support was not in place, so that before setting off again, the nearly 30,000 Russian troops around Vienna needed to replenish a batch of food.

But during the march, it was not like this. Suvorov always had requirements for the marching column.

Anyway, soldiers can eat enough at ordinary times, but during the battle, they always have to endure hunger, experience long-distance marches, eat inferior food, live in dilapidated huts, and even have to cover the ground with a broken blanket to spend the night.

If we follow the old marshal's own words, it is: "The head cannot wait for the tail, and the soldiers cannot eat too much!"

As long as you enter the battlefield, whether it is strategy or the big tactics in the battle, as well as the actions of the columns and columns in the battle, speed is required.

In this regard, it is obvious that he and the French on the opposite side have something in common. When the French pass by, they are very good at robbing houses, taking food on the spot, and asking for "contributions" from the rich to "liberate" them.

The French approach sounds very familiar.

But for the Italians, there is no essential difference between the French Directory and the Austrian Emperor. They still have to send their people to collect taxes and grain, but they have changed the master.

On the contrary, the passing Russian army, because they are guests invited by the Austrian Emperor, seems to come and go, but it has no great impact on the local people in Italy and Austria.

As for the passing Russian army, it is the Austrian masters who are the villains, but the impression of them is not bad. It is just that these "barbarians" are a bit disturbing when staying overnight.

After all, they lit a bonfire and jumped there, making the quiet small town lively, and attracted many people to watch.

Unlike the stereotype of Russians, although the Russian army is mainly composed of soldiers recruited from serfs, many of them are honest farmers in the countryside, which is different from those cavalry officers who are always making trouble.

In this regard, even the Cossacks are not as capable of causing trouble as these cavalry officers. In the order issued by Marshal Suvorov, Russian soldiers must maintain basic discipline when passing through Italian cities and villages. Supplies are provided by Austria, looting is strictly prohibited, and money must be paid when requisitioned.

Now, it is a question of the command of the coalition forces. In the absence of Suvorov himself, these Austrians may disobey orders. Of course, with General Melas's practice, he often conducts battlefield command on one side according to his own needs, without considering who the commander is.

This practice is common in the Austrian and Prussian armies. Seydlitz often did this when he led the Prussian cavalry reserve in the mountains.

In order to solve this problem, Franz II also awarded Suvorov the rank of Austrian Field Marshal before the Russian army set out, which temporarily made this small problem justified.

The wrangling and various arguments between the two sides, as well as the problems that occurred later, are all things for the future. Looking at the present, it can be said that the morale of the Russian-Austrian coalition is still high. After a winter of waiting, relying on their own strength, they were once ready to bluff and finally come to a peace agreement. The Austrian army, which did not dare to make any moves despite its superior military strength, finally got help.

The war in northern Italy finally arrived in March 1799 after waiting for a winter.