Holy Roman Empire

It has always been Britain's national policy to provoke Russian-Austrian relations. Despite the lack of tangible results, the British government has spared no effort to promote it.

In terms of patience, there are few people in the world who can compare with the British.

At this juncture of two thousand years of unprecedented change, the entire human society has become impatient. Those who have been able to stick to a foreign policy for decades are definitely very few.

Along with the development of science and technology, people's patience is declining, and politics is no exception.

In an era of increasing emphasis on short-term gains, it is no easy task to stick to a national policy for a long period of time.

In this respect, it was no fluke that the British became the hegemon of the 19th century.

As a trendsetter of the times, Britain had always been pragmatic. In their view, conspiracy or conspiracy, as long as it worked.

Although Leandro's tactics were unorthodox, they still triggered Moros's discontent with the Vienna government. Although this discontent could not affect the international situation for the time being, emotions could be built up.

There are very few people who can restrain their emotions and remain rational, and Minister Moros was obviously not one of them.

In his telegram to St. Petersburg, Mr. Moros, who was full of dissatisfaction, naturally did not have anything good to say.

The title "Second Roman Empire" alone was enough to make Nicholas II furious.

The European world's obsession with Rome these days is far greater than any future generation could have imagined. Almost every European country was trying to get itself involved with Rome, as if it would make them more noble.

For Nicholas II, Rome was even more important. Knowing that the Czar's crown came from the Eastern Roman Empire, the Roman issue had become a matter of legitimacy.

If the Holy Roman Empire, the successor of Western Rome, became the direct heir to the Roman Empire, then the Russian Empire, the successor of Eastern Rome, would be embarrassed.

When it comes to the issue of the crown, Nicholas II naturally will not budge.

Only now shouting "Second Roman Empire" only the European media, all the way to the Vienna government has not made a clear position on this issue.

This is embarrassing. We can't just go to Vienna and protest because the European media are shouting slogans, let them change "Second Roman Empire" to "Second Western Roman Empire", right?

If we did that, the whole world would be laughing at us. Not only will it not solve the problem, but it will also expose their own guilty conscience.

After a period of depression, Nicholas II finally did nothing. However, the determination to get rid of Shinra became stronger and stronger.

In the adult world, once a rift is created, it becomes bigger and bigger, and it is almost impossible to close it.

The gap between Russia and Austria is not an overnight problem; it was created back in the time of Alexander II, and it is now only widening further.

The only difference is that the Vienna government's need for an alliance has been declining, and the impetus to bridge the gap between the two countries is diminishing.

......

On June 16, 1899, the Central Asian Railway, the main line that had a profound impact on Eurasian politics, finally opened to traffic with a resounding gun salute.

Anyone with a modicum of international common sense is aware of the impact of the opening of the railroad, which ran from Moscow in the west to Afghanistan in the south.

The eyes of the world were once again focused on London and St. Petersburg. Compared to the strategic conflict between Britain and Russia, the small gap between Russia and Austria was not a big deal at all.

After attending the opening ceremony himself, Nicholas II quickly turned from excitement to annoyance.

Along with the opening of the main railroad line, anti-British sentiment within the Russian Empire suddenly rose, and "South India" once again became a hot topic in society.

Compared to the popular frenzy, the Tsarist government's top brass was now acting extraordinarily calm.

Ordinary people, seeing only the wealth of south India, ignored the risks involved, and with a little guidance, could easily lose themselves.

Not as top government officials, they must make a comprehensive assessment of the risks and benefits of moving south to India.

......

Prime Minister Sergei Vetter: "The opening of the main railroad line in Central Asia is a good thing, as it will help us strengthen our control over the region. But the sudden rise of war fever in the country is problematic.

The British are not weak, and we have fought them before. Their army is not inferior to the Imperial Army, except in numbers.

Britain had been operating in India for over a hundred years, and our many failed attempts to bring about an independent India confirmed the deep-rootedness of British rule there.

The British could easily have armed millions of Indians to fight us if they had wanted to. We had learned this the hard way in our last war against the British.

Although these colonial armies were not very effective, they could not withstand the sheer number of Indians. They were like maggots in a cesspool, they could not be stopped.

Once the southward strategy was launched, it was destined to be a protracted war. The empire's limited financial resources simply could not sustain a long war.

In light of the current international situation, it would be easy to make a profit by launching a southward strategy now.

It would be just as well if they could capture India, and the empire would not have worked in vain. I am afraid that the British will be forced to compromise directly with the Holy Roman Empire and choose to confront us to the end."

Sergei Witte's fears were not superfluous; India was the lifeblood of the British. The hegemony of the British in the world was essentially built on the premise of having India.

Without India, the power of the British Empire would shrink by at least forty percent, second only to the mainland in importance. If push came to shove, the London government could have given up its hegemony to defend India.

If you look at the colonial habits of the Vienna government, you will see that they clearly preferred sparsely populated colonies, and that a populous India was not their cup of tea.

As long as the Vienna government did not seek the Indian region, and the British were willing to give up their world hegemony, there was a possibility of compromise between the two countries.

If the British and Austrians had compromised, the Russian Empire would have been a tragedy. Not only did it make a wedding dress for others, but it also put itself in a dangerous situation.

The Russian-Austrian alliance could only guarantee stability on the Western Front, but it did not necessarily mean that the Vienna government would support them. In the past years, Russia and Austria have been at each other's throats.

Foreign Minister Mikhailovich: "The prime minister is right, the current international situation is indeed not suitable for launching a southbound strategy.

The main line of the Central Asian Railway has been opened, but the construction of the branch line has just begun. The Austrian aid program for us has ended, and we need to do the rest of the work ourselves.

With only one main line, we could not support the logistics of the army's southward operation. Rushing into action would only be a futile effort and a waste of valuable national strength.

The trouble now was that the British did not trust us at all. Since the news of the opening of the railroad in Central Asia spread, the British government has repeatedly increased the number of troops in Afghanistan.

The number of British troops stationed in the border areas has now exceeded 500,000, and although most of these troops are colonial troops, there is still considerable pressure on our front line.

If the British take the lead in starting a war while we are building a rail spur, the Empire will be very passive."

Distrust was inevitable. Numerous experiences have taught the world that, as a neighbor of the hairy bear, if you are not on high alert at all times, sooner or later you will suffer a great loss.

The Anglo-Russian conflict has been going on for more than a day or two, and relations between the two countries have never been better since the First Near East War (Crimean War).

......

The southward strategy was opposed by the civilian group, and Evgeny, as the Minister of War, looked very ugly.

In his opinion, there was indeed a risk in going south to India, but the risk was definitely not as serious as the people said.

If the "Anglo-Austrian compromise" were really that simple, there would not be so much strife in the world. Nothing can be simple once interests are involved.

World domination is not just a title, but also comes with a lot of interests. Whether it is the financial harvest or the convenience of foreign trade, it is enough to make people flock to it.

Such huge benefits are not something that a politician can just give up. Otherwise, there would not be a war for hegemony in this world.

He knew, but Evgeny didn't know where to begin with his rebuttal, for it had always been the strong point of civil servants to be clever with their mouths.

After some hesitation, Evgeny, who had organized his language well, said slowly: "Gentlemen, the risks of going south to India are not small, but the benefits are even greater.

Competition in today's world is becoming increasingly fierce, and the struggle between the great powers is heating up. Over the past few decades, several great powers have fallen in the competition.

If we look in the history books, we will find that the situation is different than ever before, and it is a great loss to continue to look at things in the same old way.

Right now, the only countries in the world that can be called great powers are Britain, the Holy Roman Empire, and us.

The number of great powers is decreasing, which means that the era of multipolarity is dying. If the Empire does not want to be the next great power to decline, then increasing its power is the only option we have.

But now we are wavering, sometimes to the west, sometimes to the east, constantly dispersing our national power, without a clear strategic goal, and we will be at a great disadvantage if we continue this way."

With his shaky accusations, Evgeny did not even bother to disguise them. It was evident that he was quite dissatisfied with the strategy of the Tsarist government in recent years.

"Westward", naturally, refers to the garrison in France. To the outside world, the Tsarist government's presence in France was mainly intended to extort war reparations.

However, this was only apparent. In addition to seeking profit, the Tsarist government also had a deeper purpose - "to preserve the vitality of the French and to leave an enemy of the Holy Roman Empire in Western Europe".

However, the plan did not change quickly, because of a miscalculation of the Russian army's ability to carry out the plan and a neglect of the military discipline of Russian officers and soldiers.

As a result of an unexpected conflict, the Tsarist government, which had wanted to preserve the vitality of the French, became the vanguard of a crackdown on France.

Either do nothing, or do nothing. On this issue, the Tsarist government saw it very clearly.

Seeing the failure to support the French, for its own interests, the Tsarist government soon fell to Vienna and became the vanguard of the suppression of France.

What you sow, you reap.

Although the plan to preserve enemies for the Holy Roman Empire failed, the Tsarist government also reaped the benefits of the suppression of the French resistance.

The top wave of talent in France had been raided as early as the European War, but there was still plenty of second-rate ordinary talent.

The outside world only saw the Russian army in France forcibly drafted strong, recklessly, but ignored the hidden strong doctors, engineers, skilled workers ......

If the Russians hadn't been fighting on the front lines and acting as if they were at odds with the French, it would have been impossible to scavenge talent from France.

After the war, the free labor to build the railroads was available, as well as the basic talent to drive the country's industrialization process.

The most important thing was the military expenses, which were paid by the Vienna government, a war to suppress France, the Tsarist government actually only contributed people.

In this respect, the "westward" strategy was undoubtedly a success. In addition to being an embarrassment to the Russian Empire, it was actually a blood profit.

If these talents could be utilized, the industrialization of the Russian Empire could be accelerated for at least ten years by this wave of sucking the blood of the French.

In contrast, the "eastward" strategy was far from satisfactory. The Trans-Siberian Railway is under construction and is still far from opening.

In any country, talent is a tiny minority. The French blood is not unlimited, and as things stand, the "westward" strategy will soon come to an end.

Evgeny's message is very clear: the Western Front can no longer be counted on, and the eastward strategy is limited by the indefinite traffic, the short term south is the best choice.

As for staying put and waiting for the Trans-Siberian Railway to come into operation, the plan to move east will be implemented. Just think about it, not every country is so patient.

Even if the top level of the Tsarist government could wait, the people below could not. There was no way around it, India was just too rich, and the wealth had already lost the eyes of many Russians.

Picking up on the topic, the mood of the crowd was suddenly heavy. Although the Russian Empire did not have a tradition of the lower class being superior to the upper class, it was not uncommon for people below to make things up as they went along.

No one knew better than those present how bad Anglo-Russian relations were. Especially with the opening of the Central Asian railroad, the slightest spark on the border could lead to a war.

......

Nicholas II: "In any case, the Central Asian Railway is only the main line at the moment. There are many areas along the way that still require a lot of manpower to transfer supplies.

If war breaks out before the completion of the construction of the regional railroad, we will not be able to guarantee the logistics of the front-line troops. The Reich had already suffered many similar losses, and we could not afford to make the same mistakes again.

To avoid a worst-case scenario, the Reich should make every effort to avoid a conflict with the British. The military must keep an eye on the troops on the front lines, and the Reich cannot afford to go through that now."

With no solution in sight, Nicholas II decided to stall. The main war faction of the military was stabilized by the reason that the construction of the branch line railroad needed time.

As to when the construction of the branch line railroad will be completed, it depends on how the situation develops.