Chapter 790

Franz did not make a decision on the future development strategy of the navy. It would have to wait until the end of the Near East War.

However, he approved the funding for the navy to build ironclad warships. No matter what, the political benefits of buying the world's first ironclad warship with a few million duns were more than enough to recoup the cost.

The new Holy Roman Empire had just been established, and the government needed good news to boost morale. Buying national pride with a few million duns was much better than doing a face-saving project.

A global cruise was not something that could be carried out in a short period of time. At least a fleet of ironclad warships would be needed to achieve a shocking effect.

Franz was not a prodigal. Before the first ironclad warship proved its superiority, he would not be able to produce a whole bunch of them at once.

When the first generation of ironclad warships was produced, the shipyards would have accumulated experience, and it would be easier to upgrade the technology later.

As for the performance of the early ironclad warships, Franz was not worried at all. At most, he could upgrade them in the future and sell them to the Merikans during the Civil War.

Not only the Merikans, but there were also many international customers. The Russians were a potential big customer, even though they were a little poor.

However, Franz was not worried. At most, he could bluff the Russians in the future and use the excuse of saving money to get both countries to do naval research together.

The French had done it before the First World War, and they dragged the Russians into the same trap. Everyone else was producing dreadnoughts, but the two countries did not react in time and created a bunch of warships that could be decommissioned before they even entered service.

In that case, it was even more important to fight for the honor of being the first ironclad warship. Branding was the basis for selling the warships at a good price.

Every technological innovation was half a step ahead of others, and it would naturally leave the outside world with the impression that the technology was awesome.

One should not think that the politicians were very professional. In fact, most of them could make decisions with a snap of their fingers. The first thing they weighed was the benefits, and the second was the impression.

This was the same as selling normal products. Products with a brand would always be sold at a higher price, while products without a brand could only be sold at street stall prices.

Military products obviously could not be sold at street stall prices. It would be a huge loss if they did that.

The weapons that Austria sold to the Russians were all pre-war weapons. The international market price had not risen at all, but the net profit would not be less than 30%. The huge profits in the arms market were obvious.

…

In the Balkans, ever since the United Kingdom, France, and Austria reached an agreement on the Greek issue at the Paris Conference, the allied forces naturally withdrew from the Greek Kingdom.

There was the duchy of Montenegro next door, to be settled; and Oliver had no leisure to entertain the Greeks any longer. Oliver did not have the time to play with the Greeks.

If they accepted the condition, they would be a semi-colonial and semi-capitalist country. With the major powers keeping each other in check, the Greek Kingdom could still preserve its territory and did not have to worry about the survival of the country. If they rejected the demands of the other countries, they would immediately become history.

The allied forces' morale was finally restored after the Greeks were defeated. Whether it was the British army or the Sardinian army, they did not put the Montenegro Principality in their eyes. On the contrary, the Ottoman army often fought with Montenegro and knew that it was a tough nut to crack.

Major General Oliver was very dissatisfied with the delay of the Ottomans. No, it was Lieutenant-General Oliver now. He had just won a battle; he had been promoted, of course, and made commander-in-chief of the expeditionary forces.

He couldn't help but sigh again at the importance of having a backer. Compared to other British generals, Oliver had become a lieutenant general before the age of forty, which was enough to make many people blush with shame.

The liaison officer, Amedeo Biavati, said unhappily, "Your Excellency, the Osman refused our request to send troops on the grounds that they needed to clean up the rebels."

From his point of view, everyone was helping the Ottomans fight. Their allies did not drop the ball, but the Ottoman army actually retreated first.

However, he could not blame the Osman government, because in the previous battle, Britain and France had directly killed the main force of the Osman army.

In order to appease the Osman, the two governments promised that they would not participate in the following battles.

Oliver thought for a moment, and said, "Forget it. The Principality of Montenegro is not worth mentioning. It doesn't matter whether the Osman participate in the following battles or not."

Oliver said this with confidence. The British army had not suffered any losses at all. Together with the Sardinian army, they now had 65,000 troops.

In contrast, how many troops did the enemy have? Even though the Principality of Montenegro had been frantically recruiting troops in the newly occupied areas, they had been plundered by the Osman, and there were not many young men left.

Even though they had incorporated their fellow captives, the Principality of Montenegro had only managed to gather 40,000 troops, and it was still unknown how much combat power they had.

Oliver was full of confidence that it would be a fool's dream to think that such a ragtag band of men, which had just been assembled, could resist their heavy siege.

Oliver didn't care about the loss of a group of Osman cannon fodder. As a high-ranking officer, Lieutenant-General Oliver knew and understood politics.

The Government of London hoped that the Osman Empire could retain some of its strength, so that it could continue to help guard the Black Sea after the war.

They had seen the strength of the Russians, and the Government of London did not want to have another Near Eastern war. They had lost confidence in defeating the Russians.

Even if they won in the The Balkans and the Crimean Peninsula, they still wouldn't be able to kill the Russians. They couldn't afford to continue to attack Russia.

Under such circumstances, they naturally had to find a way to use diplomatic means. Although the Osman Empire was rotten, it was precisely because of this that the Government of London felt at ease letting them guard the golden waterway.

This required the Government of Sudan to restore its strength as soon as possible, which was obviously very difficult. After a Near Eastern war, the entire The Balkans had been destroyed.

Since the Osman was unwilling to participate in the following battles, Lieutenant General Oliver couldn't force them. Didn't they see that the French were guarding Constantinople alone?

Now that they had suffered such heavy losses, they didn't even ask for help from their allies. Of course, this didn't rule out the possibility that the French were afraid of being cheated by their teammates.

Great countries still needed credibility. Since they had made a promise, they had to keep it. If they repeatedly broke the promise, no one would play with them anymore. Even the British Empire wouldn't be able to take it!

Without any hesitation, Lieutenant General Oliver led the Anglo-Saxon coalition army to attack the Albanian region in a mighty manner. A great battle was about to break out.

…

Looking at the aggressive coalition army, the Duchy of Montenegro panicked. Unlike the Osman, they often fought with them, so they didn't fear them. They were still very afraid of the British.

Although they were small, they had all the organs.

The various departments of the Montenegro government were complete, which fully proved that they were a country, not a counterfeit.

Danilo I said solemnly, "Everyone, the Near Eastern war has progressed to this point, and the developments on the battlefield have completely exceeded our control.

After a hard battle, we successfully took down Skutai Fortress, took over half of Albania, and obtained the sea that we dreamed of.

After this glorious victory, we also paid a heavy price. Nearly 4,000 warriors fell on the battlefield, and the war emptied our treasury. Now, we owe Austria a huge debt.

Strategically, we have gotten everything we wanted. The Duchy of Montenegro is tired and doesn't have the strength to continue fighting.

Now, everyone should think about how to take over the land that we already control. "

Obviously, Danilo I's desire to fight had been exhausted, and he wanted to settle down.

There was no other way. The capital of the Duchy of Montenegro was too small. Taking over several times their own territory at once was already beyond their limits.

For other countries, the loss of four thousand people might be a number, but for the Black Mountain Principality, it was a huge blow to their vitality, almost to the point where every family had to wear mourning clothes.

Even if they knew that the enemy was going to attack, they could only passively defend. They had played too much in the early stages and lost a lot of capital. Now, Danilo I didn't dare to continue playing.

The Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Claude Dreilich, analyzed, "Duke, if the Russians want to take over the territory that we have occupied, it will only be possible if they can win this war.

However, judging from the current situation, the outcome of this war was still unclear.

England and France have the upper hand on the Crimean Peninsula, but they can't defeat Russia in a short period of time. The Russians have the advantage on the The Balkans, but they can't conquer Constantinople.

If the Russians lose the war, then we will be in big trouble. After the war, we will definitely be attacked by the enemy.

I'm afraid that we can't resist the enemy's counterattack with our own strength. "

The commander-in-chief of the Duchy of Montenegro and Minister of War, Mirkov, said, "There's no need to wait. According to the information we received, the enemy is already on the way. In less than a week, the war will break out.

Those useless Greek people were boasting about dividing Albania with us. I didn't expect them to be so weak. They don't even have the ability to wear down the enemy's troops.

We will soon face the attack of 65,000 British troops. The difference in strength between us and the enemy is too great. This war is going to be fought. "

Although he was complaining, when he said this, Mirkov was still a little eager. Although they were afraid of the British, they were not intimidated by them.

In order to get the estuary and change the poor situation of the Duchy of Montenegro, they had worked hard for several generations. Naturally, they would not give up the benefits in their hands just because they were afraid of the enemy's strength.

Danilo I asked, "Is it possible to solve the problem through diplomatic means?"

As a pacifist, he really didn't want to fight anymore. The Duchy of Montenegro could not fight anymore. As a small country, they could only be reckless. Now that this wave of war was over, it was naturally time to rest.

"Your Majesty, I'm afraid that won't work. Although England and France have sent people to contact us, they don't have much sincerity.

Not only do they want us to join the coalition and declare war on the Russians, but we also want to give up most of the gains we have now after the war, "the Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Claude Dreilich, replied.

Negotiating terms also depended on strength. No matter how brilliant the Montenegro army's performance on the battlefield was, it could not hide the fact that they were not strong enough. Without strength, England and France would naturally not pay a high price.

Moreover, there was a price to pay for rebelling. The Russians were not pushovers. The situation on the battlefield was currently in a stalemate. If they chose the wrong side, it would really be over.