Chapter 769

At this critical moment, the Tsarist government's bureaucrats were unusually efficient.

They were all smart people and knew the seriousness of the consequences. If they didn't have the foresight, they would have been eliminated in the internal struggles of the bureaucrats.

The demand for weapons and ammunition was so large that it obviously couldn't be taken out all at once. They had to place an order for production. Even if Franz was prepared, it was impossible to hoard hundreds of cannons and tens of thousands of tons of artillery shells and place them there.

If the Russians didn't buy them, who could he sell them to?

The Austrian Army didn't need these big guys that were inconvenient to move. The Navy was poor and didn't have the money to purchase so many cannons. Moreover, coastal defense didn't need so many cannons.

After making the decision, the Tsarist government immediately sent people to Austria to place an order. Unfortunately, the production of the cannons was not enough.

In normal times, the Austrian Army would purchase 6-pound and 12-pound cannons at most. These were the most commonly used equipment. There were very few 24-pound field cannons. In this era, the Navy's cruisers were mostly equipped with 24-pound cannons, and the main force ships were equipped with 48-pound cannons.

Now that they were attacking the Constantinople's fortifications, the power of these cannons was obviously not enough. The Russians needed heavy cannons that were more than 68-pound. Obviously, these cannons were mostly used as shore cannons, and the actual demand was very low.

(Note: In this era, the difference in the caliber of the cannons was relatively large. It was common for the same type and the same batch of cannons to have a difference of a few millimeters. The same type of cannon produced by different munitions factories could have a difference of up to ten millimeters. Using the caliber to measure the size of the cannon was not appropriate.)

These heavy cannons were not only siege weapons, but they were also enough to pose a fatal threat to the British and French warships. Obviously, the Russians wanted to change the current situation of being passive.

The market demand was small, so the production lines of military enterprises were naturally less. Many munitions factories only had the ability to produce large cannons. They would only start the production line after getting the order. This all took time.

Not enough production? It didn't matter. Weren't Russia and Austria allies? Franz was a warm-hearted person. Active equipment could also be sold. As long as the Austrian Army had it, he could choose whatever he wanted.

The era of breech-loading cannons was coming soon. These cannons would soon be eliminated. Now would be an early replacement.

Old goods? You don't have to buy it. There would be new goods in a few months.

Obviously, the Tsarist government could not afford to wait, and the Russian army at the frontlines could not afford to wait either. It didn't matter whether it was an old product or not. As long as it could be used normally, it was fine. At most, he could ask the Austrians to provide after-sales repair services.

Even the Austrian Navy's order for cannons was intercepted by the Russians. Anyway, the navy didn't have a war to fight in a short period of time. For the sake of friendship between Russia and Austria, it was better to satisfy their ally first!

Reality proved that all plans were in the ideal state. After more than two months, Austria had only managed to gather a little more than 150 cannons. The rest could only be made up with 24-pounder and 48-pounder cannons.

After two months, Austria could only send the cannons. From Austria to Bulgaria by way of the Danube was easy, but to get it to the front was a great deal of trouble.

It was quite troublesome to transport a big guy that weighed tens or even hundreds of tons. Originally, these cannons were all used as shore cannons. As long as they were powerful enough, it didn't matter if they were a little heavier or bigger. Now, it was naturally troublesome to transport them.

Since the cannons were not in position, Menshikov slowed down the attack. He did not want the Russians to die for nothing. Gray beasts were worthless, but it would be a pity if too many of them died!

…

The Minister of War said in fear, "Your Majesty, the British crossed the border and entered our country.

The Minister of War said fearfully, "Your Majesty, the British crossed the border and entered our country under the pretext of pursuing the enemy. Otto I said. "Your Majesty, the British crossed the border and entered our country.

What should we do? "Otto I slapped the document away. Was there a need to ask such a simple question? Of course, they couldn't do anything.

They didn't have the strength to stop the British. It was even more impossible to help the British chase the retreating soldiers. The Greek government couldn't be so shameless.

"Let the local governments find a way to hide the soldiers who escaped. If not, send them to the rear. We must be careful. We can't let the British catch us, "Otto I ordered.

At this point, they had to pay the price. From a political point of view, the British's approach actually gave him a chance to escape.

The British Empire was the ruler of the ocean, a top power. Losing to them was more acceptable than losing to the Ottomans.

It wasn't that the government didn't work hard. The enemy was too strong.

If Otto I was more shameless, he could brag about how they defeated the Osman Empire. They didn't expect the British to sneak attack them. That was why they lost. It wasn't a war crime.

As for whether it would cause anti-British sentiment among the people, he couldn't care less. Since the last conflict between Britain and Greece, the relationship between the two countries hadn't been good. It wouldn't hurt to add to it.

The Foreign Affairs Minister reminded, "Your Majesty, the result of the war in the Near East has nothing to do with us.

The British army has entered the Greek peninsula. We've lost our choice. We have to think about how to deal with the aftermath. "

Although they had confidence in the Russians, the British were here. If they didn't think of something, they would become a government in exile before the Russians won.

Otto I had a headache. His family had just been chased out of the Kingdom of Bavaria. If Austria hadn't been careful and exchanged the throne of Lombardy, they would be a government in exile now.

Now that the family's resources were invested in Lombardy, they didn't have the energy to support him. After so many years of investment, many people in the family were dissatisfied with no returns.

In history, after Otto I abdicated, he asked the Bavarian royalty to send someone to take over the throne. In the end, his brother and nephew weren't willing to take over the mess, so it was George I's turn.

Without external support, the problem he faced was more troublesome than in history. One mistake and he would be ousted by the British.

After a few steps, Otto I said, "The Foreign Affairs Minister should send someone to negotiate with the British secretly. We can only cut our losses now.

At the same time, send someone to contact the Russians, French, and Austrians. I'm sure they don't want the British to dominate. We need their diplomatic support now. "

"Yes, Your Majesty!" the Foreign Affairs Minister replied.

It was the era of the great powers. Without the support of the great powers, it would be extremely difficult for them to get out of this crisis.

…

It turned out that Otto I's judgment was accurate. Although the Greek Kingdom wasn't strong, had an underdeveloped economy, wasn't rich in resources, and didn't have many interests, they had a good geographical location.

The Russians couldn't tolerate the British dominating here and blocking their access to the Mediterranean. The French also didn't want to see the British expanding their power in the Near East, which would affect their interests.

There was no need to mention Austria. Outside the Adriatic Sea was Greece. If the British expanded here, it would also threaten Austria's maritime security.

…

Vienna

After receiving the request for help from the Greek government, Franz decided to intervene in the British's actions in Greece. The problem was how to intervene.

It was impossible to intervene by force, unless he sent the Austrian army over. Forget about the navy, the Austrian navy wasn't qualified.

Metternich suggested, "Your Majesty, we can join forces with the French this time. Napoleon Iii wouldn't be willing to see the British seize their interests.

In the Mediterranean region, as long as our two countries reach an agreement, the British can't ignore it. "

It was true that the Fao and Navy together couldn't be a match for the British, but the British had many colonies, so naturally the navy was stationed in more areas.

In contrast, the Austrian navy was all in the Mediterranean, and it was second only to the British and French in the Mediterranean. The combined naval forces of the Fao and France in the Mediterranean exceeded that of the British.

Even if the British were the ruler of the sea, they couldn't ignore the common will of Austria and France.

Historically, the Greek Kingdom existed by taking advantage of the contradictions between countries. Now Otto I had made the same choice.

It could be said that in international politics, everyone was an ally on this issue in the morning, and then became an enemy on another issue in the afternoon.

Allies that had no conflict of interest almost didn't exist in this era. The core factor that determined the relationship between allies mainly depended on whether the mutual interests or conflicts were big.

Franz thought for a moment and said, "Let's talk to France first and see what they want. Greece's domestic interests aren't worth mentioning. We don't have to ask for anything, as long as the British don't completely control Greece. "

No desires, that was Franz's attitude toward Greece. The reason was very simple. Putting aside strategic factors, all countries that had invested in Greece in history had lost money.

If there were no accidents, the Greek Kingdom would soon be unable to pay the loans of various countries due to financial difficulties, and then their finances would be seized by various countries for a period of time.

This wasn't the first or second time. Whoever accepted this underling would have to provide them with loans to keep them going.

Countries like Britain and France, which were dominated by finance, could still do this kind of business. Capitalists could use various means to raise funds and seek benefits. In the end, even if the loans and bonds couldn't be repaid, it would only be the ordinary people who were unlucky. They would get enough benefits in advance.

Austria couldn't play this way. There wasn't enough idle capital in the country to participate in this kind of speculation. If the financial groups dared to play this way, the Government of Vienna would be the first to object.

It was much more cost-effective to use these funds to develop the country than to bribe the Greeks. Under the concept of developing themselves, Austria's financial capital was very low-key in the international capital market.

It had to be low-key. Compared to the British and French financial groups, the financial resources of the Austrian financial groups were still too weak. If they were too active, they might fall into a trap and be swallowed.

Since the end of the westward expansion strategy, the Government of Vienna had been easing relations with the European countries.

When there was no conflict of interest, diplomatic relations naturally recovered quickly, especially with the small countries. As long as the Government of Vienna extended an olive branch, the relations between the small countries would immediately ease.

If you held a grudge in international diplomacy, then congratulations, in the near future, the whole world would be your enemy.

Including the issue of the dominance of the German Federal Empire, it was actually the result of the compromise between Britain and Austria. If the two countries had been arguing endlessly, it would have been impossible to elect an emperor so quickly.

Now, repairing the relationship with the German Federal had become the focus of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. It was estimated that the Government of Paris would make a similar decision. There was no other reason other than benefits!

Don't think that Britain and France were allies just because Napoleon Iii had always implemented a pro-British policy. In fact, they were only allies when dealing with Russia.

Most of the time, Britain and France were on opposite sides. The British were the world's strongest naval power, and the French were the world's second strongest naval power. The difference in strength between the two sides was not as big as in the future. The French Navy had the strength of the Royal Navy at six or seven levels.

This number was enough for the boss to suppress the second. Coupled with the conflict between the two sides in overseas colonies, the conflict between Britain and France was not small. It was just that the Hairy Bear's ability to attract hatred was too strong, and it directly covered up the conflict between Britain and France.

In this context, after gaining an advantage on the Crimean battlefield in history, Napoleon Iii immediately negotiated with the Russians, without considering the feelings of the British allies. It was because the French needed the Russians to contain John Bull.

The complicated international relations gave Franz a headache. Before going out to open up overseas colonies, Austria and other countries basically did not have much conflict of interest.

Once this step was taken, the situation immediately changed. It was only a matter of time before there was a conflict with the colonial countries. How to deal with these relations was the biggest problem facing the Austrian Foreign Ministry.

In this regard, the British also did a good thing. Although they were worried about missing the opportunity to contain Russia in order to avoid the outbreak of war in Europe, the establishment of the German Federal Empire also avoided a direct conflict between the FAO and Austria.

No matter how strong the buffer was, with the existence of this buffer, the FAO and Austria did not have to face each other's military pressure.

Franz was afraid of the French, how could Napoleon Iii not be afraid of Austria? On the surface, the strength of the two great powers was evenly matched. Western Europe and Central and Southern Europe formed a balance.

Balance meant stability. Before there was enough interest, neither Paris nor Vienna would rashly break this balance.

The French wanted to expand their colonies, so it was necessary to increase their naval investment. For the sake of home security, easing the relationship with Austria was an inevitable choice.

The Government of Vienna also wanted to join this feast, but for its own safety, it must ease the relationship between the two countries.

In this context, the warming of the relationship between the FAO and Austria became inevitable. The joint mediation of the Greek issue created an opportunity for the relationship between the two countries.