Chapter 422 Prussian Ambition

The defeat of the Winter Battle set Alexander II's resolve. Without an end to the war, the Russian Empire will be doomed.

There are rebels rioting inside, and powerful enemies peeping outside. Alexander II did not forget that the mastermind behind this war was the real enemy of the Russian Empire.

If the war is not ended as soon as possible, except for the Constantinople battlefield, where Austria can rely on and purchase strategic supplies nearby, the odds of winning are relatively high, and there is no hope in other areas.

Without the logistical supplies provided by the Moscow region, the fall of Central Asia is inevitable; without rear support, there is no need to count on the Far East battlefield.

Not to mention the Polish region, after the defeat in this battle, Belarus and the Baltic Sea area will become battlefields, and it will be a matter of time before they fall.

If Sweden were stabbed in the back, St. Petersburg might not be able to keep it. It also takes time to mobilize the army, and if the Russian Empire is dying, who knows if the British will continue to fall for it?

It doesn't cost much, as long as the Royal Navy reaches the Baltic Sea, the Russian Empire is truly over.

In this era, the Siberian Plain was not developed, and the core of the Russian Empire was St. Petersburg and Moscow. Now Moscow is in the hands of the rebels, and if St. Petersburg is lost, he will be the tsar.

"On the side of the Qing Jun, punish the corrupt ministers". The point is still to punish the corrupt ministers and kill all the cronies around him. Is the tsar still the tsar?

You dare not attack the tsar on the open face, but is it difficult to do it secretly? For example: accidental falling into the water, or sudden sudden death.

Throughout the ages, so many emperors have died unexpectedly. Is it really an accident?

Then this probability is too high, it is simply a high-risk occupation, or one of the top ones.

Alexander II will not put himself in danger. As long as he survives this catastrophe, the future lost now can be regained.

"The Ministry of Foreign Affairs sent a note to Austria, inviting them to mediate the war."

Having made this decision, Alexander II sighed. Now is not the best time to negotiate, but it is the time when negotiation is most needed.

Winter was the last line of defense for the Russian Empire, and if the war broke out again next year, the price they would have to pay would only be greater.

Foreign Minister Clarence Ivanov asked nervously: "Your Majesty, do you want to invite Britain and France to participate?"

There is no way, affairs on the European continent are simply inseparable from Britain and France. If the tsarist government does not invite them, they will still appear at the negotiating table.

Alexander II replied helplessly: "Let's invite together. At this stage, we don't have much choice."

This is subduing Britain and France. After this war, the weakness of the Russian Empire was exposed, and it no longer had the strength to compete with the British for hegemony.

Next, they must keep a low profile and reduce their presence as much as possible to avoid suppression from various countries.

It doesn't matter how many effects it has, but doing it is better than not doing it. In times of weakness, it is a good thing to reduce a little hatred.

...

Vienna, received the battle report of the Prussian winter battle, Franz was stunned. He really did not expect that the tsarist bureaucracy would kill to such an extent.

Falsely reporting losses, deducting military expenditures, and raising purchase prices are all minor problems, and they are nothing more than a little money from the Ken Tsarist government.

Even if you are a little more greedy and use shoddy products, you must ensure that your basic needs can be met! This is a war, and every mistake can kill people.

Now that it's good, let the Russian army on the front line be completely smashed. Now Alexander II has no time to look for their bad luck, and once the situation stabilizes, there will be a big purge.

Franz asked with concern: "How much did the Russians lose?"

Austria also sent military observers to both sides, with first-hand information on the battlefield, it is still possible to make a preliminary judgment on the loss.

Army Minister Albrecht replied: "The initial estimate is that the loss of troops is more than 300,000. The prisoners captured by Prussia are nearly 200,000, and about 40,000 to 50,000 people were killed. The non-combat attrition is very serious.

Now that the Russian defense line is open, if it is not limited by logistics, the Prussians will occupy the Belarusian region. "

Franz nodded, the Prussians picked up a big bargain this time, otherwise the war would drag on.

It can be said that William I won the special prize, and the whole world did not expect that they would counterattack in winter. Including Franz, he also believed that the Kingdom of Prussia would win the battle in the coming year.

The ability to kill the tsarist bureaucracy directly refreshed everyone's three views. It is estimated that European countries did not respond to the "scare".

"The Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a note to all parties to mediate this war. A warning to the Prussians not to go too far, and by the way, remind them that it is time to keep their promises."

Allies naturally have to look like allies, and Franz has always done a great job in this regard. Strictly abide by the covenant, even the anti-Austrian factions in the tsarist government have never accused Austria of this.

Small conflicts do not matter, and the general direction must be clear and firm to stand on the side of allies. The Russians lost the war, but saved the Russo-Austrian alliance and allowed the alliance to continue.

For example: Now warn the Kingdom of Prussia that it can actually do very little, and whether or not Austria interferes, they will not be able to fight.

This attitude is exactly what the tsarist government needs most now, and Austria's position can help them stabilize people's hearts and ensure that they don't have to pay too much in the negotiations.

For geopolitical reasons, on the battlefields of Eastern Europe and the Balkans, the position of the Vienna government can be decisive.

The fact that the Kingdom of Prussia won the war does not mean that they are a world power. On the contrary, their own strength has not increased but declined.

If you want to become stronger, you must first get the loot this time and digest it.

Not to mention the Ottoman Empire, their strength is limited, and the completion of the reform does not mean that the country is strong, and it takes time to develop.

In this war, they were originally forced to go to the battlefield by everyone, and they were not very active in the war. It was a wave of soy sauce, and there was no outstanding record.

In Berlin, William I's face has been all smiles lately, and he is dizzy when he breaks through the falling pie, and now he does not wake up from the joy.

Because of the victory on the battlefield, the original whimsical plan became feasible. The road from the Kingdom of Prussia to the Empire is about to set sail.

The sudden warning from the Vienna government interrupted his good mood and brought William I back to reality. One's own family knows their own affairs, and winning the war is not without cost.

The Prussian army has lost 460,000 troops successively, including 176,000 killed in battle and 12,000 killed by other causes.

Strategically, the losses are worth it. It not only solved the eastern threat of the Kingdom of Prussia, but also played its own prestige, so that no country in the world dared to despise Prussia.

In addition to military losses, population and economic losses made William I even more headaches.

The population loss has exceeded one million, and the East Prussia region is the most serious, with only one-twelfth of the local people left.

Economically, with the exception of the Rhineland region, which is still struggling to support it, all other regions are doomed.

This is the credit of the Russian navy, which is destroying the coastal areas every day, a large number of refugees poured into the rear, and the economy has been severely hit.

If it weren't for the support of the gold master, the Kingdom of Prussia would have collapsed long ago. It's not much better now. The domestic economy is considered a waste, and there is no hope of recovery.

William I asked: "What do you think of the diplomatic note from the Vienna government?"

Mao Qi said without hesitation: "Now we have reached the limit, and continuing to fight is not worth the loss. It is better to determine the interests of the hands at the negotiating table."

The war was won, and the military's political influence went further. As the commander of the war, Mao Qi is also in full swing.

In the past, he would never have stated his position so clearly. Now it is different. As a successful person, Mao Qi has more voice than the Prime Minister.

William I breathed a sigh of relief, the military is willing to stop, otherwise he can only use the pressure of the foreign powers to let the military stop the war.

As for Mao Qi's attitude, it's all a small problem. There is no shortage of such things as William I. He can endure even a Bismarck in the original time and space, not to mention only a Moqi?

Except for Ron, the three heroes of Prussia, Mao Qi and Bismarck have flaws in character, and most people can't help it.

Prime Minister Frank frowned and said: "It's not that easy. It's not a big problem to get the duchies and parts of the Baltic Sea, but I'm afraid it's difficult to get the Polish region.

In addition, there is another problem before us that is 'Silesia'. We promised the Austrians earlier, and now we must consider whether we want to honor this promise or not. "

The two principalities of Schleswig-Holstein are the least controversial, the Tsarist government will not entangle on this issue, and the Kingdom of Denmark has no confidence to entangle.

It is also relatively easy to gain access to the Baltic Sea region. The locals are staunchly anti-Russian. As long as they can break away from the rule of the tsarist government, many issues can be discussed.

(Today: the three Baltic countries, the area should extend part of the inland area)

The most important thing is that the British supported Prussia's acquisition of the Baltic Sea region, and France and Austria also tacitly agreed on this issue.

It is really difficult to annex Poland. First of all, the current Polish interim government is the first obstacle.

Although Mao Qi has been using the opportunity to fight against the Russians to consume the strength of the Poles, and the military power of the Provisional Government suffered heavy losses, they still want independence!

Wanting to swallow them in one go is not as simple as it sounds. The provisional government of Poland does not agree to the merger, and Prussia cannot directly attack its allies, right?

If these factors can be overcome by force, the reaction of the great powers is hopeless. After the annexation of Poland, the territorial area of ​​the Kingdom of Prussia was only the existence of Russia and Austria, and the population also caught up with France.

Such a giant, it is absolutely impossible for France and Austria to watch them appear, and the Russians who have just been defeated will not agree.

As long as the powers intervened, the Kingdom of Prussia was doomed to be unable to annex Poland. If they dare to force it, they must be prepared to be beaten to death.

Ron, Minister of the Army and Navy, said: "The annexation of Poland is not an overnight problem, we can make Poland independent first, and then look for opportunities later.

The Silesia region must not be ceded out just like that. Austria did not remain absolutely neutral in this war, and if they hadn't been supporting the Russians, the war would have ended last year. "

The Silesia region is a bad debt. The two parties only agreed verbally and did not fall into paper. It is not impossible for the Prussian government to directly default on the debt.

The main problem is that Austria is not easy to provoke. If you default on your debt now, take it

Come to be revenge.

Perhaps this is not enough to cause a war between the two countries, but just diplomatic difficulties are enough to make the Kingdom of Prussia uncomfortable.

The atmosphere in the conference room became tense, which was a dilemma. No one wants to cede land, and no one wants to face Austria at this time.

Especially since the Prussian-Russian negotiations are imminent, if the Vienna government fully supports the Russians, will they be able to get everything they want?

No one can answer this question, and no one knows where the bottom line of the Vienna government is!

After pondering for a while, William I said cautiously: "The problem of Silesia should be delayed first. We cannot give up every inch of our country until it is absolutely necessary!"

Procrastination is not the best way, but it is the most effective way.