Chapter 458

France and Russia began to move closer, which also accelerated the negotiations between Britain and Austria. In order to increase their voice, the British were even prepared to pull Prussia into the alliance.

Without a doubt, this was strongly opposed by the Fao and the Netherlands. The cake was only so big, and it was already difficult for three countries to divide it. How could they let another competitor in?

If the Kingdom of Prussia joined the alliance, would the Russian Empire have to join as well? If Russia entered, the Nordic Federation could also enter.

With one leading the other, it wouldn't be long before all the European countries entered, and this alliance would become useless.

The British's talent for causing trouble was unquestionable, and they were always thinking of causing trouble. As an ally, they had to be vigilant at all times. If they were not careful, they would be tricked. This was not much safer than being an enemy.

The changes in the situation in Europe still affected the war in South Africa. Ever since the British had reinforced the Indian army, Viscount Fickney's second plan had been rendered useless.

Even if they deliberately exposed a flaw, the British had no intention of leaving the city to fight. It seemed that no matter what they did, they would not move.

As time passed, the population of the Cape Town area also plummeted. Most of the war refugees had been relocated, and the rest were the army.

The British, who had relieved the logistical pressure, were not idle. They were stockpiling supplies for the winter, and it seemed that they were going to fight a protracted war.

Now, the war had also changed. A group of Indian soldiers and black soldiers were often seen in a melee, and the British and Croatian troops had become supervising troops.

Cannon fodder against cannon fodder, except for the finance department, no one felt heartache. The original strategy of using the cannon fodder to increase the garrison's casualties and force the British to retreat was ruined.

There was no other way. If this continued, the first to collapse would definitely be Austria. Conscription was difficult, and there was not enough cannon fodder.

The African continent was already sparsely populated, and with the previous immigration strategy, the number of indigenous people in the Austrian colonies had decreased.

Up to this point in the war, the colonial government had provided millions of cannon fodder, and almost all the tribes had been conscripted at least once.

These troops were either lost in the early battles, fell during the siege, or were executed by the supervising troops. The current speed of conscription could not keep up with the speed of consumption at the front line.

Of course, with so many casualties, there were naturally many deserters among the cannon fodder troops. South Africa was so big that any random mountain forest could be a hiding place.

As long as they hid in the forest, the Boer Republic army could not continue their pursuit. As long as they did not run in groups, it was easy to hide.

Needless to say, there was no need to mention the danger of a defeated army. The newly occupied British South Africa had yet to immigrate, so the local indigenous tribes were naturally the ones who suffered.

Defeated soldiers also needed to eat. Although there was plenty of food in the jungle, there wasn't enough to go around when there were too many defeated soldiers.

If there was not enough food, they could only go out and rob. Naturally, no one from the Boer Republic's army dared to rob a modern army with cold weapons, unless they were suicidal.

The law of the jungle. The native tribes that did not have strong youths were in bad luck. These deserters did not dare to act rashly when facing the Boer Republic's army, but they would not show any mercy when facing their own people.

No, they could not be considered their own people. Only those from the same tribe were on his side, and the others were his enemies. Naturally, they had to be fierce to the enemy. For a time, the area around Cape Town was in chaos, and many tribes were destroyed.

Viscount Fickney knew nothing about this change. He did not care about the internal disputes of the indigenous tribes. Unable to conquer Cape Town, Viscount Fickney was under a lot of pressure.

It was almost impossible to make the Englishman admit defeat. The enemy had the advantage of the sea. Unless Britain and Austria completely fell out and the Austrian African colonial troops joined the war, Viscount Fickney had no confidence in defeating them with his own forces.

Governor Delphi was under more pressure than him. No matter what, Viscount Fickney had won the war. It was just a matter of the results. Governor Delphi had been defeated all the way.

The siege that had lasted for almost half a year was not without effect. Looking at the artillery shells and human lives, Cape Town was almost destroyed.

If there was a satellite map, it would be found that most of the original Cape Town had fallen into the hands of the "Boers," and only a small area was controlled by the British.

But it was useless. There were still a lot of reinforced concrete fortresses. From Cape Town to the Cape of Good Hope, there were fortresses everywhere.

The quality was not good enough, but the quantity was enough! Governor Delphi's tortoise tactic seemed inconspicuous, but it was very practical.

Of course, only the rich and imposing British could afford to use this tactic. Don't look at these fortresses that were built with shoddy materials. Almost all the raw materials were transported from outside.

For example, cement and steel bars were transported from the mainland. Just the transportation distance alone made the cost go up.

The construction turned into shoddy materials because they were forced to do so. The sand and stone materials were local. The quality of the sand itself was not good enough. When there was not enough, soil was used to make up for it. When there was a shortage of water, seawater was used.

Too much helplessness added up, making the fortresses that the British built later on become more and more rubbish. Most of the time, they only pursued quantity and did not consider quality at all.

However, the attacking Boer Republic army still knew nothing about these problems. After all, they had fought hard in the early stages, and now they were fighting in the streets. They had not come into contact with these real shoddy projects.

Since they knew it was shoddy construction, why did they still build it? There were many reasons for this. They relied on fortifications to intimidate the enemy and used temporary fortresses to carry out strategic deception.

This was the reason that Governor Delphi reported to the Government of London, and it could only be regarded as barely satisfactory.

This level of strategic deception might be effective before the outbreak, but the war had already begun. As long as the artillery shells flew over, the truth would soon be exposed.

But the fortresses still had to be built. Otherwise, how would the capitalists who raised the raw materials earn money? These special businesses were all owned by the big shots in the country.

The kind Governor Delphi would never do something like cutting off someone's source of income. This was also the reason why he was nervous now. Once the last area of Cape Town was lost, the shoddy construction behind it would be exposed.

If the fortifications, which cost millions of pounds, could not withstand a single blow on the battlefield, then it would be difficult for Governor Delphi to retreat safely. He would definitely be the scapegoat.

"Will, how is the negotiation between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Austrians going?"

The cruel reality made Governor Delphi pin his hopes on the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. As long as the Government of Vienna was dealt with, the "Boer Republic army" outside the city would immediately disperse.

Did they really think that they would not know who was who just because they wore a sockpuppet? If the Boers were so strong, they would not have had to move inland back then.

"Sir Governor, the negotiation this time went very smoothly, but it did not involve the South African issue. The Austrians insisted that it was the Boers who were fighting us, and if they wanted to negotiate, they should talk to the Boer Republic government. "

Will was very depressed. No one was willing to open this cover. There was no way to start the negotiations regarding the South African war.

Unless they were willing to put down their pride, listen to the Austrians' suggestion, and negotiate with this sockpuppet "Boer Republic government."

The Government of London could not put down their pride, so they put the issue aside. This was just a superficial statement. Governor Delphi knew very well that the real reason was that no one was willing to be the scapegoat.

They had already failed on the battlefield, so how could there be any good results at the negotiation table? On the South African issue, Britannia's concession became inevitable. If they suffered a loss in the signed treaty, it would be a stain that could not be washed away in their diplomatic career.

It was the instinct of politicians to lean towards the interests of others. Governor Delphi was open-minded and did not complain. After a deep sigh, he said, "Forget it, there is no turning back now!

Will sent a message to the Government of London. In order to protect the interests of the Empire and reduce the losses caused by the war, the Cape Town colonial government applied for diplomatic negotiations with the Boer Republic. "

This meant that the British strategy in South Africa was completely ruined. As the frontline executor, Governor Delphi was definitely responsible for this.

But it was better to negotiate now than to negotiate after the war was lost. If they were really pushed all the way to the Cape of Good Hope by the enemy, if they did not want to be court-martialed, Governor Delphi could only die on the battlefield to give his country an explanation.

In that case, he might as well take the initiative to take the responsibility. Based on the fact that this war would feed many powerful people, his ending would not be too miserable.

There were plenty of people who had been defeated, and not all of them had to be held accountable. The only problem with Governor Delphi was that he initiated the war and was unable to win the war.

As long as he signed a barely passable treaty and returned to his country to avoid the limelight for a few years, the matter would be over.

Governor Delphi had a backer, and after the limelight passed, he could continue to be an official.

In the face of a crisis, the British were still efficient. On the same day, they proposed a negotiation request to the "Boer Republic government."

Viscount Fickney was dumbfounded when he received the invitation to negotiate from the British. For this war, he had also racked his brains but could not think of a way to take Cape Town. He did not expect the British to admit defeat.

Negotiations had to be discussed. If they could not take Cape Town by force, there was no need to continue fighting.

The Austrian nobles who participated in this war all had their own family businesses and could not leave for too long. Once they had earned enough military merits, their goal would be accomplished. If they continued to fight to the death with the British, it would not be good for anyone.

The British's shoddy construction at the back was indeed easy to deal with, but the problem was that Viscount Fickney and the others did not know about it at all. They still thought that it was a genuine fortress.

Viscount Fickney naturally did not dare to take the risk due to the asymmetry of information. Otherwise, he might really take a gamble and directly launch an all-out attack to drive the British out of South Africa at all costs.