It was already three days since the news of the outbreak of the war in the Near East reached London. Even if they had been mentally prepared, after receiving this news, the top level of the British government still had a headache.

Even Queen Victoria, who rarely meddles in politics, couldn't sit still and held a high-level meeting at Buckingham Palace.

Queen Victoria asked: "The outbreak of the war in the Near East, the Russians and Austria are mixed together, the Ottomans are in big trouble this time, what is the government going to do to protect our interests in the Near East?" ”

The Ottoman Empire has been in power for a long time, and even in this era, it is still a little bit powerful. Coupled with the fact that the Ottoman government had just completed institutional reforms, on the surface they were already a modern empire.

In Queen Victoria's view, even if the Ottoman Empire is not an opponent of Russia and Austria, they have such a large land area and a million troops, at most they will cut some flesh and will not be able to die for a while.

This is also the mainstream view in Europe, how weak the Ottoman Empire was, no one knows at all.

Prime Minister John Russell, who had been prepared, replied: "Your Majesty, we have joined forces with France and are ready to intervene in this war together. ”

Prince Albert questioned: "Your Excellency, the Russian-Turkish war this time is different from the past, and the Austrians have also entered the war.

Even if we join forces with the French, we can't make them compromise, I'm afraid we can't do it, right? Otherwise, this war will not be fought at all! ”

Queen Victoria doesn't like to get involved in politics, but Prince Albert is different, and he has been a part of many major decisions in Britain.

John Russell explained: "Your Royal Highness, the alliance between the Russians and Austria is only temporary, because sooner or later the interests will diverge.

Our enemy now is Russia, Austria can put it aside first, and their appetite is like that, even if the Balkans are given to them, they will not be able to eat it.

The government was ready to join forces with the French to support the Ottoman Empire and the Russians in their fight, and the Austrian Foreign Ministry would be able to handle it. ”

Sending troops to intervene in the war in the Near East? Historically, and now, the British were not prepared to play in person at the beginning.

Historically, the British sent troops to participate in the Crimean War, which was established when the Ottoman Empire could not withstand it and the French were willing to act as the main force.

Now that the Ottoman Empire's million lions are still there, before the start of the fight, who knows that these troops are all like goods?

Many in the British government believed that it would be enough to give the Ottomans a loan and sell them some weapons and equipment.

Of course, it is okay to send the Navy to help, and it is also in the interests of the British to penetrate their tentacles deep into the Black Sea straits.

The army is facing the Russians, they have no self-confidence, and the navy is suppressing the Black Sea Fleet of the Russians, and they are not intimidated.

……

Paris

Compared to the British, Napoleon III was much more active. In his view, the war in the Near East was the best opportunity to divert internal contradictions.

If he can defeat the Russians and avenge his uncle's Waterloo, he will have unlimited political capital.

It doesn't matter if you lose, anyway, the battle was fought in the Ottoman Empire, and you can also throw the blame on the allies, as long as the French army can achieve a few victories, take it back for propaganda.

Napoleon III asked with concern: "Ruet, what did the British say, are they ready to send troops with us?" ”

Rue replied: "Your Majesty, the government of London is still hesitating, and it is tentatively judged that they are preparing to support the Ottoman Empire behind the scenes, and are not ready to send troops to the war themselves.

However, if we send troops to support the Ottomans, the British will also support it, and they want to teach the Russians a lesson on the battlefield. ”

This conclusion was made rather hastily, the Ottoman Empire had not yet been defeated, and the British, of course, could not play. If the Ottoman army suffered a major defeat, would the British still be able to sit still?

In case the Ottoman Empire cooled down, all their early investment would be wasted, and even their interests in the Mediterranean would be lost.

Napoleon III dared to send troops to intervene in the war in the Near East, also based on the fact that the Ottoman Empire had a certain strength, otherwise they would have singled out the Russians, in fact, the French were also cowardly.

For no other reason, there are too many grey livestock. Quantitative changes lead to qualitative changes, Napoleon was killed by the Russians with numbers, and there was also an Austrian Empire, so they couldn't afford not to pay attention to it.

"Humph!"

Napoleon III snorted coldly and expressed his displeasure in his mind. The British made it clear that they were going to make the first bird.

"Tell the British not to forget that there is also an Austria. If we don't send troops to support the Ottoman Empire, I'm afraid it won't be long before we hear the news of their defeat. Napoleon III thought for a moment and said

The use of diplomatic means to break up the Russian-Austrian alliance is very important for the British, and it is not impossible to pay some price for this.

But for Napoleon III, it was different. The stage has been set up, and the audience is waiting to watch the play, so they can't suddenly say that they can't act.

Since Napoleon III ascended the throne as Napoleon's successor, it was only natural to avenge his uncle, and the French people were watching him and could not allow him to retreat.

There is no way, the French people in this era are so willful. Since Napoleon III promised everyone before he succeeded to the throne, it must be fulfilled.

Historically, Napoleon III did just that, and the Crimean War ended the European hegemony of the Russians and won popular support.

"Your Majesty, if the Russians and Austria really join forces, we may not be able to defeat them in the Near East." Rue reminded

The vice emperor is not called in vain, in case he loses the battle, he will be the backstabber, and it is necessary to prepare for the slightest mistake.

"Rest assured, they can't really join forces, and with the appetite of the Russians, Austria simply won't dare to let them get the Black Sea straits." Napoleon III judged with certainty

It was not in the interests of Austria to have a Russian empire that was too strong, and when the Russians annexed the Ottoman Empire, the pressure on Austria increased.

……

Balkans

On April 11, 1852, after some consultations between the Austrian and Russian governments, the Treaty of the Balkans was signed.

The treaty stipulated: the transfer of Russian troops to the principalities of Moldavia and Wallachia to Austria; The Russian army was given the right of free passage; Austria provides logistical support for the Russian army in the Balkans.

The two sides took what they needed, and Austria got the territory agreed in advance, which successfully covered up the westward expansion strategy; The Russians were given the opportunity to continue fighting from the Balkans, increasing their chances of winning the war.

If you look at the map, you can see that without the material support of Austria, after the occupation of the two Danube principalities, the logistics supply will deprive the Russian army of the ability to continue the offensive.

The sudden letting go of the Russians dumbfounded the Sudanese government, which was ready to watch the Russian-Austrian conflict.

Without hesitation, 250,000 Russian troops were heading straight for Bulgaria along the lower reaches of the Danube.

Anyone with a modicum of military common sense knows that once Bulgaria falls, the capital of the Ottoman Empire is in danger.

In fact, if the Sudanese government had not brought the British and French navies into the Black Sea in time, the Russian offensive would have gone much more smoothly. It is much easier to transport supplies by sea than by land.

With the strength of the Russians, if they had not lost their sea power, they could have chosen to land at multiple points and make the Ottoman Empire exhausted.

A wave has not settled, and another wave has risen.

The Russians also came prepared, and through the Orthodox Church's connections, the Bulgarians are now ready to welcome the king.

Not only the Bulgarians, but also other peoples within the Ottoman Empire were ready to move. It's just that at this time, they still lack effective organization, nationalism has not yet spread, and the combat effectiveness that erupts is limited.

In short, the current Ottoman Empire is full of mountains and rains, and after one more Austria, they are facing even greater trouble.