Holy Roman Empire - Chapter 185

Chapter 185: Chapter 72: Do Not Dig Your Own Grave

Translator: 549690339

Belvedere Palace

Prince Windischgrätz marked the retreat route of the Ottoman Army on the map, and then a whole group of people from the Austrian Government just stared at the map, dumbfounded.

Yes, they were dumbfounded, and shocked at that. Anyone who understood the details would be surprised by the current actions of the Ottoman Empire.

Retracting the defensive line is very normal, but the Ottomans’ approach this time clearly went too far.

It’s understandable to give up the northern plains of Serbia since flat terrain cannot stop a single attack from the Austrian army, but why abandon the southern mountainous areas, the Kosovo area, and the Bosnia and Herzegovina region all at once?

Even if only a small number of troops were left behind to organize a militia using the terrain advantage, they could slow down the advance of the Austrian army.

If things didn’t go well, they could also take to the hills to raid the Austrian supply line, which could be said to be basic military common sense.

Other areas aside, at the very least in the regions of Bosnia and Herzegovina and Serbia, the Ottoman Empire still had many supporters; giving these up for nothing was a simply unfathomable move.

And why leave Belgrade in the middle after giving up everything else? Even if that city is that important, how could a solitary city hold out after abandoning everything around it?

Regardless, Franz could not understand what the Ottomans were attempting with such a move, neither from a military nor political perspective.

It was just like… giving up.

Feeling intellectually outmatched, Franz asked, “Can anyone tell me what the Ottomans are trying to do?”

Metternich speculated, “Your Majesty, perhaps after the defeat in the battle of Bulgaria, the Ottoman Government panicked and decided to consolidate their forces to deal with the Russians, making this hasty decision in the process.

The person left to defend Belgrade is probably one of the losers in the power struggles of the Ottoman Empire, trapped by political rivals.

It’s even possible that there aren’t two thousand troops left in Belgrade by now, and it’s likely just a collection of misfits intentionally placed there to die.”

Such occurrences are not strange for the miraculous country that is the Ottoman Empire. The Sultan Government’s performance is still decent, at least they haven’t abandoned the capital to flee, and they are still organizing troops to fight the Russians. What they’ve given up is just the “Savage Land” beyond their borders.

Everyone nodded in agreement. If normal logic failed to explain it, then the issue must lie with the Sultan Government. It seemed that was their perceived level of competence in everyone’s eyes.

It could only be said that the Sultan Government had a history of foolish actions; adding one more wasn’t too hard to accept. As one of the world’s two most peculiar empires, it would be odd if they didn’t do something that baffled and amused people.

Franz waved his hand saying, “Assuming the Ottoman Government has gone off the deep end, what should we do now? Do we send troops to follow the retreating Ottoman Army and reclaim our lost territories or find an excuse to hold our forces back?”

Don’t ask why it’s “reclaiming lost territories.” Just look at Franz’s long list of titles, and you’ll see there is always a legal basis that can be found.

It doesn’t matter if it’s a bit far-fetched, as this thing was always meant to serve as a fig leaf to prove that Austria isn’t waging a war of aggression, but reclaiming sovereign land.

The Habsburg Family is too ancient, and a little too strong in the marital alliance department, leaving behind a plethora of titles.

Even if these places were never ruled by the Habsburg dynasty, they were once ruled by families they had marital ties with, and if needed, the historical facts could always be dredged up.

Franz did not expect the rest of Europe to recognize it, as long as he could persuade a portion of the local population, or rather, it provided an excuse for those wanting to defect to the Austrians.

There are many pretentious people in the world, everyone cares about saving face, and “restoring order to recover legitimacy” is a good excuse.

So far, the approach had been quite successful in the principalities of Moldavia and Wallachia. Those willing to defect to Austria had acknowledged Franz’s legitimate status.

As for those unwilling to side with Austria, they were naturally remnants of the Ottoman Empire and deemed targets for suppression. With the assistance of collaborators, they had been mostly subdued.

Successful governance experiences could be replicated. Just as Romanians who had been assimilated into Austrian culture could rule Romania, so too could Serbians assimilated into Austrian culture govern Serbia.

It seemed as though Franz had thought of something else, adding, “I should state in advance that the Serbia region and the Bosnia and Herzegovina region are not within our targets for this operation.

Austria doesn’t have such a voracious appetite. No matter the final outcome, we will not annex these areas this time!”

Prime Minister Felix said, “Your Majesty, now that it has come to this, we should go the whole nine yards.

Arm a group of reserve forces and first take over the territories abandoned by the Ottomans. Even if we have to give them up later, we can leverage them at the negotiating table to secure benefits for us.”

In order not to distract the main forces, the reserve forces were the ones that could be called upon at such a time. Austria’s reserves were vast, and mustering tens of thousands was an easy task.

The combat effectiveness of these troops was limited, and they might struggle against the Anglo-French forces, but they wouldn’t balk at fighting the Ottoman Army.

Franz could proudly claim that Austria’s reserve forces had better training than the Ottomans’ regular troops.

Finance Minister Karl shook his head saying, “It’s not that simple. The Ottomans are prepared.

According to the intelligence we’ve received, the roads and bridges in these regions have all been destroyed by the Ottomans. They have also ruined the farmland, burned the untransportable food and supplies, and in the end, conscripted masses of the able-bodied to leave with them.

If we take control of these areas, we will be unable to get any support locally; even finding enough laborers to repair the roads will be challenging.

We’ll even have to provide a significant amount of food aid for the war refugees. This is the Ottomans’ way of trying to bog us down.”

But in reality, we were not prepared to continue the war. Occupying these areas would bring us nothing but a heavy financial burden, except for potential gains at the post-war negotiations table.

“I don’t think the benefits gained from the negotiation table can compensate for our current expenditures. It’s better to support a local regime there, since we have no intention of annexing the place anyway.”

Faced with the Ottoman Empire’s tactic of killing eight hundred enemies at the cost of three thousand of their own, Franz had to admit—he was impressed.

After such trials, even if we were to hold onto these areas in the future, they can forget about ruling them peacefully.

Of course, it could also be said that they had the foresight to know that the Balkan Peninsula couldn’t be held onto, so they might as well abandon it and concentrate their forces to defend the core areas along the strait.

Since they were going to abandon it, naturally, they couldn’t leave anything good for the enemy. If it were not for the fact that the cities were built of stone and could not be burned, they would even have learned from young Dong Zhuo and set fire to the city.

Prince Windischgrätz objected, “No! Even if we leave these areas in the hands of the Ottomans, it’s still better than establishing a local regime.

In the hands of the Ottomans, they won’t have the people’s support, and we can take it back whenever we want. If they become independent, it may be easy to conquer these areas, but ruling them will be difficult.

The borders of the European Continent have basically stabilized. The only place we can continue to expand into is the Balkan Peninsula, and we absolutely cannot let this route be blocked.

This is connected to Austria’s long-term future development. Once the overseas colonization strategy encounters obstacles, we will have to seek expansion in the Balkan Peninsula.

In this age of great conflict, we are rowing against the current: if we don’t advance, we will retreat, and we must reserve space for future development.”

After hearing Prince Windischgrätz’s explanation, Franz’s eyes lit up. Indeed, those who left a significant mark in history all had their exceptional qualities.

Prince Windischgrätz’s military capabilities might only be average, but his strategic vision for the nation’s development was very precise.

Especially that phrase, “future development space must be reserved,” seemed very classic to Franz.

Under a capitalist economy, if the route for external expansion is blocked, then everyone must rely on internal development. This means that external plunder turns into internal oppression, and then disaster will come.

Why did the German people challenge the world order in history? Was it really because of ambition?

Reality is very cruel. Having developed to its limits, Germany faced only two fates if they did not provoke a war:

Either internal conflicts would intensify to the point of a revolution with a redistribution of wealth,

Or they would artificially slow down development, use extreme measures to weather the crisis, and then slowly decline.

The German government could not accept either of these fates. Lacking both industrial raw materials and a market for their goods, they chose war in order to gain space for further development.

“From a military standpoint, taking Belgrade is very important for Austria’s national defense security. If we have control of that city, the Pannonian Plain will be safe,” Marshal Radetzky analyzed.

The Pannonian Plain is spread across Hungary, Austria, Croatia, Czech, Slovakia, Serbia, Ukraine. Surrounding areas include Slovenia and Bosnia.

This is where Austria’s granary is located, and it is of great strategic importance. By occupying Belgrade, we not only solve the military threat from the Balkan Peninsula but also turn passiveness into activeness; strategically, we become able to attack or defend.

Leaving such a strategic location in the hands of the Ottomans was something Franz felt reassured about. The decaying Ottoman Empire didn’t have the courage to cause trouble. However, it would be hard to say the same for the newly-formed Balkan states.

Throughout history, the Balkan Countries have invariably engaged in various self-destructive acts. Should the proxy we support stab Austria in the back at a critical moment, it would be fatal.

Franz wouldn’t dare gamble on their integrity. Before national interests, all kindness is void; only interests are real.

A Greater Serbia ideology alone could cause the new regime to part ways with Austria and become an inextricable enemy. It’s not as if Franz could simply surrender half of Austria to his junior, right?

Franz spoke with righteous indignation, “The Serbia region absolutely cannot become an independent state. No matter the cost, we cannot allow a major power to rise in the Balkan Peninsula. If there has to be one, it can only be Austria.

If I were to choose, I would rather let the Ottomans occupy the Balkan Peninsula or share it with the Russians than see it become independent.

Austria is a multi-ethnic country, and now is the critical moment for ethnic integration. The establishment of any independent states could lead to uncontrollable consequences.

Nationalism in the Balkan region has just begun to emerge, and we cannot give them the space to develop and strengthen. At least the Serbian and Romanian cannot be independent.

Otherwise, think about it: if an independent Serbia and Romania appear, what would the Serbian and Romanian within our country think?”

One’s interests determine their thinking. Perhaps in a former life, Franz even sympathized with the Balkan Peninsula nations, but that was no longer the case.

In this era where the strong prey on the weak, everyone is struggling to strengthen themselves. It’s not about right or wrong; it’s about interests.

If we consider the other’s position, the historical struggles of the Balkan Countries are quite tragic. However, with such severe conflicts of interest, concessions mean death; thus, they must fight.

Unfortunately, because of their overemphasis on immediate interests, the Balkan Countries all ended in failure, with not a single country achieving its goals.

The independence of other Balkan ethnic groups doesn’t matter since Austria hardly has any of them. But the situation with Serbia and Romania cannot stand, as these two ethnic groups together comprise nearly nine percent.

We had just begun the process of assimilation. If two independent states were to emerge, if we don’t want trouble, the only thing Franz could do is to package these people up and return them to the two countries.

Franz definitely couldn’t do such a foolish thing. He had not forgotten that historically the Austro-Hungarian Empire had supported the independence of Serbia and Romania, and then fell into the very pit they had dug themselves.