Holy Roman Empire - Chapter 97

Chapter 97: Chapter 97, The Era Without a Bottom Line

Translator: 549690339

The Hungarian Revolutionary Party of 1848 was essentially not a pure revolutionary party. Starting as a small faction of about a hundred and eighty people, it grew rapidly to become the leader of the Hungarian Republic, filled with too many opportunists.

It’s easy to get on a boat but hard to get off. The Austrian Empire, which was on its last breath, was now fully revived, and the hearts of many were shattered.

If at this time, the Vienna Government issued a pardon, Budapest City would most likely surrender without a fight.

Clearly, this was impossible. Neither the Austrian Cabinet nor Franz, the Crown Prince, had any intention of passing up the opportunity to strike at the influential factions of Hungary.

Suppressing the rebellion was the perfect excuse to act. The wider the spread of the rebellion, the more Nobility involved, the more favorable it would be for Austria’s future rule.

In terms of concentration of wealth, Hungary could probably top the list. In name, five percent of the ruling class controlled the society. In reality, less than one-tenth of a percent of the population held 90% of the wealth, which included serfs and workers as their property.

Such an absurd social order, if not broken, was against all reason.

This revolution, in reality, was still a struggle for power within that five percent of the population. The remaining ninety-five percent were just passively involved.

This was also the reason Kossuth could disregard the military harming civilians. His supporters came from that five percent group. The rest, the ninety-five percent, were expendable.

“Are you sure the enemy will flood the city? With our current situation, even if they do nothing, it won’t be long before Budapest becomes a city of the dead!” Petofi roared.

There was no other way. The Austrian Government would not let go of the revolutionary leaders, and they did not want to die, so all they could do was to cheat the soldiers into fighting desperately.

Kossuth cheated so successfully that he even deceived himself. For the sake of the ultimate victory, he no longer cared about anything.

The Austrian Army advanced steadily and slowly, appearing to be struggling, but in fact, this was the best tactic, with no risk involved.

Including the building of a dam upstream, it was all just a feint. Any politician with ambitions to annex Hungary would prefer to besiege Budapest indefinitely rather than choose the most hated tactic of flooding.

Kossuth said incredulously, “You mean to say that the enemy intentionally puts pressure on us, forcing us to extremes, and then destroys Budapest? No, it can’t be, that’s impossible!”

After speaking, Kossuth sat there motionless, as if he had fallen into a stupor.

In Hungarian society, the vast majority of the upper echelons were concentrated in Budapest City. In this city, over half of the people were Nobility, capitalists, and their dependents.

For the Vienna Government, it was best if these people were all wiped out. Even if there were Habsburg Family supporters among them, Franz would not mind sacrificing them.

All being politicians, using the mindset of a politician, to sacrifice this city in exchange for a stable and long-lasting Kingdom of Hungary was a calculation anyone would make.

Petofi almost yelled, “Wake up, Mr. Kossuth, this is the enemy’s conspiracy!

The National Homeland Defense Troops have gone mad, and even some of the fallen Nobility, small merchants, and the middle class have not escaped their clutches.

If this continues, they will grow bolder and slowly extend their reach into high society, and by then, we will be too late to control the situation!

This is exactly what the enemy wants to see, using our hands to clear out the Hungarian national elites for them, and then pushing all the blame onto us, allowing them to annex Hungary smoothly!”

If Franz was here, he would definitely applaud their imaginative prowess, and indeed, he sought to eliminate adversaries by seizing the chance but he never intended to rely on the Revolutionary Party to do so—that was too unreliable.

In war, some people die, and all one has to do is pin the blame on the Revolutionary Party. Could the dead possibly come back to argue their innocence?

By now, the Hungarian Revolutionary Party’s reputation was thoroughly sullied, lending any nefarious deeds they committed a veneer of plausibility.

His pleasant illusion shattered, Kossuth’s face grew ominously dark. The thought that he nearly fell for the enemy’s trap, nearly destroying the Hungarian nationality himself, filled him with dread.

Don’t be fooled by Hungary’s population of over ten million; those he considered his own were a mere five to six hundred thousand, with Budapest City accounting for over one-third.

Without these people, the Hungarian nationality would cease to exist; they were the pillars of the nation.

After a long pause, Kossuth regained his composure: “Thank you, Petofi! I was so close to becoming the sinner of Hungary.

You’re right, the enemy is indeed plotting schemes. They could have taken Budapest much faster, yet they’ve been dragging their feet—it seems they’re aiming to snare us all in one fell swoop.”

By the time Kossuth wished to enforce military discipline, it was too late, the outcome of the Battle of Venice had already been received.

The Pro-Austrian Faction within the interim government continued to grow stronger, with opportunists all scheming to jump ship, increasing the pressure on Kossuth.

Small temples are prone to fierce draughts, shallow ponds to many turtles.

The Interim Government of the Hungarian Republic was a motley crew of all sorts, a byproduct of exceptional social circumstances.

Prior to the growth of the Revolutionary Party, government repression was inevitable. Many revolutionaries became the government’s wanted criminals, and in their flight, inevitably interacted with local gangs and social organizations.

Many of the Hungarian Revolutionary Party were also members of these gangs and societies. The ways of the world are applicable everywhere, and these groups that had contributed support found their place in the interim government through their connections.

If the Revolutionary Party had been strong enough, they could have kept these elements in check, but not anymore.

Everyone knew that the Revolutionary Party’s days were numbered, and the downfall of the interim government was a matter of time. Not seizing the last opportunity for profit meant missing out when the Austrian army marched in.

… (Omitting ten thousand words, just a taste)

But the gangs were not the only ones looting amid chaos.

The capitalists were not idle either. If they did not use this opportunity to eliminate their competitors, could they even call themselves ruthless capitalists?

Hiring assassins was only the most elementary tactic. A more sophisticated approach was to exploit connections within the government to frame their rivals with a charge of counter-revolution and execute them on the spot.

According to stats compiled afterward, the Interim Government of the Hungarian Republic, which lasted less than three months, executed over three thousand people under the charge of counter-revolution, most of whom were workers involved in strikes.

At its most extreme, the National Homeland Defense Troops could raid homes, murder and rob, and all they had to do was pin a label of counter-revolution on the homeowner first, kill the original owner, and take possession of their property.