Rejection was inevitable. No matter how tempting the Government of Berlin's offer was, it was essentially an empty deal.
Moreover, the Prussian War wasn't as simple as it looked on the surface. It was also full of games between Britain and the Fao.
At first, Britain and France supported the Prussian Federation, while Austria supported the Russian Empire. Now, the positions of Britain and Austria hadn't changed, but the French had slacked off.
It was all decided by interests. If they could attack their competitors, why not?
The French didn't invest many resources in this war. Even if the Prussian Federation was defeated, their losses were limited.
These economic losses could be made up for in other ways.
For example, British companies were affected by debt, were in trouble, or even went bankrupt.
Not to mention the benefits brought by the loss of competitors. Just seeing the British suffer, the French had reasons to be happy.
As the French Empire grew stronger, the era of the pro-British faction was over. The increasing conflict of interests caused the two countries to drift further and further apart.
From the standpoint of France, in the long run, Russia winning the war was more in line with their interests.
The two countries' spheres of influence were far apart, and the possibility of a conflict of interests was almost zero. A strong Russian Empire could also contain Austria from behind.
No matter how good the relationship between Russia and Austria was, as long as the Russian Empire became stronger, the two countries would go their separate ways. National interests couldn't be changed by individual will.
Doing nothing, but being able to attack two competitors at the same time, the Government of France naturally knew what to choose.
The British had calculations, the French had calculations, and Austria was no exception.
The Russian Empire was indeed a threat when it became stronger, but this was a potential threat in the future, and there was no need to consider it for at least twenty or thirty years.
In the short term, Austria's biggest competitors were Britain and France. The Prussian Federation was defeated, and debt default was inevitable. The British economy would definitely be greatly affected.
The French economy wasn't much better. On the surface, they didn't invest much, and the losses were within a controllable range. Unfortunately, the French economy itself had problems.
The market was booming during the war, and the high cost of industrial raw materials wasn't a problem. When the Prussian War ended, there would be no more international orders, and this problem would erupt.
It just so happened that this period was the peak of the world's industrial overcapacity, and the market competition was the most intense. Cost would become one of the core factors of market competition.
With high costs, how could the French business community compete with Anglo-Austrian in the market?
Capital is profit-driven, and the profit will drive them from unprofitable manufacturing to finance, thus changing the structure of the French economy.
This was not the first time Austria had done this. After almost every economic crisis, the proportion of French manufacturing in the economy would decline.
Fortunately, no one realized the importance of manufacturing these days. Otherwise, the Government of Paris would have been anxious.
Of course, he was in a hurry now. In an era where the tertiary industry had yet to develop, it was still the manufacturing industry that could create jobs.
The shrinking of industrial production would inevitably lead to a decline in the employment rate. These people couldn't all rush to farm, could they?
The land in France had long been claimed, and there were many overseas colonies. The question was, would the French people be willing to go there?
Unfortunately, due to the influence of maritime culture, the people of France preferred to stay in the cities instead of going to the colonies to open up wastelands.
This has long been proven, whether in the original timeline or now, France's enthusiasm for immigration is not high.
When the economy was bad, people spontaneously controlled birth control. Condem's invention made a great contribution to the family planning work in France.
With fewer children, the pressure was naturally less. Anyway, the life of the people at the bottom of the society was short, and there was no need to consider the issue of retirement. It didn't matter if there was a next generation or not.
The decline in the birth rate was a long-term problem, and the harm wouldn't be reflected in a short period of time. The social crisis brought by the economy was unavoidable.
The merger of France and Italy was less than ten years ago. During the period of economic development, many contradictions were covered up. Once the economic crisis broke out, it would erupt.
In a sense, this was also the weakest moment for France. In just a few short years, the Italian people hadn't yet surrendered, and the rule of Napoleon Iv was not stable at all.
If they really let them run in for a few decades and explore a set of governing methods suitable for themselves, the great France would truly be the "Mediterranean Empire" in the true sense, and the threat would be much greater.
…
The Government of Berlin was at a disadvantage on the battlefield, unable to persuade Austria diplomatically, and the French were unwilling to increase their investment. All of a sudden, the pressure on the Government of Berlin increased.
On October 12, 1880, the Government of Berlin launched an expanded mobilization program. All healthy men between the ages of 16 and 50 were required to participate in militia training and be ready to be drafted at any time.
It could be seen that the Government of Berlin was really anxious, and they didn't trust Moltke that much. Although they didn't carry out extreme mobilization, they had already begun to make relevant preparations.
"Extreme mobilization" was a test of a country's organizational ability. Not everyone was willing to go to the battlefield, and it required a lot of work.
Either it was the primitive feudal era, where the area of rule was limited, and all serfs picked up their weapons and went to the battlefield under the lord's command.
Either it was the severe humiliation, and nationalism was flourishing, and everyone was willing to fight for the country; or they encountered difficulties in survival, and had to use the weapons in their hands to obtain survival space for themselves.
Since the Pubo Federation couldn't rely on these, they could only rely on the organizational ability of the government. After all, war wasn't just about gathering people, they also had to carry out military training, and at the same time, they had to ensure logistical supplies.
Palace of Vienna
Putting down the information in his hand, Franz asked, "If the Pubo Federation carries out extreme mobilization, how many troops can they mobilize at most?"
After a moment of contemplation, Chief of Staff Albrecht slowly replied, "According to the analysis of the information we collected, the Pubo Federation can mobilize at most six million people."
"Six million people" didn't mean six million troops. People and troops were two different concepts, and not everyone could be qualified as a soldier.
This "six million" simply excluded the disabled and sick, which proved that the Pubo Federation had six million men of military age.
It was impossible to train these people into an army. The reason was very simple, there were still many positions in society that needed people, and they were indispensable.
Government agencies, hospitals, schools, military enterprises, scientific research institutions …
In addition to these positions, there were also a large number of special classes. Not just the nobles, but the European nobles would all go to the battlefield, and the honor of the nobles wouldn't allow them to retreat at this time.
The people who weren't willing to serve were mainly capitalists, the middle class, small businessmen, experts, and scholars … These people had money and social status, and they weren't willing to risk their lives on the battlefield.
If the Government of Berlin included them in the scope of military service, it would probably cause chaos in the country.
After deducting all of these, only the Government of Berlin could really mobilize. After the mobilization, there would be screening, and a portion of people who weren't suitable for the army would be kicked out.
In the end, the specific number of people would depend on the screening criteria of the Government of Berlin. Maybe three million, maybe four million. Before the extreme mobilization, no one knew how many troops the Pubo Federation could mobilize.
However, whether it was three million or four million, this number would shock the world.
The battlefield between the Pubo and Russia was also limited, and when the number of troops invested reached a certain level, it would reach the limit of the battlefield, and it couldn't be increased indefinitely.
After reaching the limit of the battlefield, the Russian Army would no longer be able to maintain the advantage of troops on the battlefield, and Ivanov's conservative tactics would be difficult to play.
In theory, as long as the Pubo Army had three million troops, not only would they be able to send two million to the frontline, but Moltke would also be able to defeat the Russians.
Franz asked doubtfully, "What, you don't think the Pubo Federation's extreme mobilization is good?"
Chief of Staff Albrecht nodded and explained, "The military of the same country has different combat power. Once the Pubo Federation's extreme mobilization, the Pubo Army's combat power will sharply decline.
There won't be enough officers, soldiers will lack training, and the quality of the soldiers will decline. With all these factors added together, the Pubo Army's combat power will be pulled down to the same level as the Russian Army.
What the elite troops can do, the ordinary troops won't be able to do.
The combat power of the troops will be greatly reduced, and the commanders will also need time to adapt, and time is what they lack the most on the battlefield.
The Tsarist government can trade with the Pubo Federation now, and it can do the same in the future. They don't even need to win the war, as long as they can cause heavy casualties to the Pubo Army, they can still win the war even if they lose.
Unless Moltke can make a shocking trade, they will be killed by the Russians' human wave tactics sooner or later.
On this issue, I agree with Moltke. The Pubo Army's advantage is mobility, and blindly expanding is equivalent to giving up this advantage. "
This was also a warning to Austria. If they wanted to play the human wave tactic, they had to learn from the Russians, who focused on quantity and not quality. If they wanted to do both, then they should just wash and sleep!
Perhaps Austria could prepare two to three million officers in advance, but once this number increased to five million, six million, or even more than ten million, it would be a dream to prepare in advance!
Train all the active soldiers into officers? It was a beautiful dream, but in reality, there were differences between people, and not everyone could become a qualified officer.
An excellent soldier didn't mean that they could also become an excellent officer. Many people were only suitable to be soldiers.
Even if they spent resources to train them, they would at most be ranked at the top. After a few years of retirement, they would be beaten back to their original state.
This problem didn't bother Franz for long, and he was relieved when he thought about his competitors. The advantages and disadvantages were determined by comparison, and they didn't need to be the best, as long as they were stronger than their competitors.
Franz wasn't planning to be the second Napoleon, and Austria didn't need to fight the entire European continent alone. If they encountered a single enemy, they wouldn't need so many troops.
After some thought, Franz made a decision. "The Pubo Federation hasn't reached its limit yet, and this war can still be fought. The original plan to sell weapons will be put on hold for now."
Even though the new weapons could make the war more tragic, Franz didn't dare to release them rashly. Austria wanted both Pubo and Russia to suffer losses, and not for the Pubo Federation to turn the tables.
The same weapon and equipment in the hands of different people would be able to display completely different battle prowess.
Looking at Ivanov's military strategy, it was obvious that he was a conservative. Like leader, like subordinates. The Russian Army definitely couldn't compare to the Pubo Army in the use of new weapons.
Whether it was "machine guns" or "mortars," these weapons didn't seem to be very powerful, but the destructive power they could unleash was shocking. If Mao Qi found an opportunity, he might be able to turn the tide of a major battle.
The Russians had a solid foundation, and losing on the frontlines wasn't scary. What was scary was losing the war and causing the Tsarist government to change generals.
While General Ivanov didn't have many bright spots, he was still the most suitable commander to command the Russian Army. If it was someone else, who knew what would happen.
It wasn't that Franz underestimated the Russians, but the overall quality of their officers was slightly lower, which was reflected in the level of education.
The high-ranking officers were better, and most of them received a complete education. Many of the middle and lower officers only received military education at home, and the proportion of officers who received military school training was very low.
Otherwise, an Austrian military student like Arden wouldn't be able to become a general in just a few years. (Previously mentioned, the commander of the Koveli garrison.)
It wasn't that foreign monks were good at chanting scriptures, but the key was that compared to others, his ability was indeed outstanding, at least in terms of theoretical knowledge.
When using conservative tactics, it was going to be a dull battle anyway, and there was limited room for the officers to display their individual abilities, this disadvantage wasn't obvious.
If there was a new commander, and the mode of battle changed, and the officers on the frontlines were required to freely display their individual commanding abilities, the Russians would suffer.
Perhaps a genius commander would emerge, but most of them would be idiots.
In a war of millions of people, the power of an individual was insignificant, and the outcome of the war was often decided not by a few geniuses, but more by countless idiots.
If there were no idiots to serve as a foil, where would there be geniuses? The miracles in military history were often created by these two types of people.
…
Foreign Minister Wesenberg: "Your Majesty, when I met with the British minister yesterday, he brought news.
As long as we stop supporting the Russians, the Government of the United Kingdom will recognize our annexation of the Russian The Balkans after the war, including the Constantinople. "
Franz rolled his eyes. What is this? Does Austria's annexation of the Russian The Balkans still need the British's recognition?
It wasn't that Franz was arrogant, but ever since the Suez Canal was opened, the British's influence in the Mediterranean had gradually declined, and the The Balkans didn't have a chance for them to intervene.
If Austria really wanted to annex these areas, the only real obstacle was the Russians, and the British's "recognition" wouldn't affect the final result at all.
If it was the French, it would be the same, at least they had the ability to interfere. As for the British, they would wait until the main force of the Royal Navy dared to enter the Adriatic Sea.
However, this could also prove that the Government of London was anxious. The French, who they had high hopes for, now chose to watch from the sidelines, and the British didn't have enough chips in their hands.
Franz: "There is no Ukrainian region?"
"No!" Wesenberg replied.
Franz shook his head. "It seems that the consciousness of the Government of London is still the same as it was 30 years ago, wanting to dictate everything.
Tell the British that the Russian-Austrian relationship has a long history, and we are not interested in the Constantinople. Tell them not to sow discord. "
Regardless of whether they were interested or not, Austria must not be interested now. It wasn't easy to take the Constantinople. Taking it meant that they had to fight to the death with Russia and share the hatred for the Pubo Federation.
Austria already occupied the Dardanelles Strait, and the Constantinople could only add icing on the cake. Other than the Constantinople, what else did the Russian The Balkans have?
Bulgaria?
It was now 1880, not 1850, and Bulgarian nationalism was already in full swing.
The Bulgarian region's culture and customs were very similar to Russia's, and the language was even more interchangeable. The Tsarist government hadn't digested it, and Franz didn't think that Austria could easily assimilate the local people.
To put it bluntly, Austria didn't lack any resources other than rose essential oil. The input and output were not proportional, so it was naturally difficult to arouse their interest.
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