Empire Rise: Spain

Chapter 227: Rout Like A Collapsing Mountain

While Spain’s reserve force and machine gun troops were conducting large-scale training, the war on the Balkan Peninsula had already entered a white-hot phase.

The Russian Army, which had suffered heavy losses, received support from Romania and domestically, assembling 150,000 reinforcements in a short time.

This also allowed Russia to relaunch an attack on the Plevna Fortress, deploying over a thousand cannons in the offensive, showing every intention of fighting the Ottoman Army to the death at the Plevna Fortress.

Although the Russian Army had borne nearly 100,000 casualties in the previous offensives, the Ottoman Empire’s casualties were similarly high.

The Ottoman Army’s weapons and equipment level was superior to Russia’s, but it was far inferior in cannon numbers.

This allowed the Russian Army to have sufficient cannon suppression over the Ottoman Empire’s cannons during the offensive, causing the Ottoman Empire to suffer heavy casualties as well.

Russia assembled 150,000 reinforcements in a short time, but where could the Ottoman Empire find another 150,000 reinforcements?

The Ottoman Empire’s 280,000 troops on the Balkan Peninsula now numbered just over 200,000, distributed across Serbia, Bulgaria, and Montenegro.

On the Bulgaria and Romania border, the mobilizable Ottoman troops numbered just over 100,000; facing Russia’s over 200,000 troops, the Ottoman Empire could only adopt a defensive posture of shrinking back.

The Plevna Fortress was quite solid, and it was also a very important military fortress for the Ottoman Empire. But even the sturdiest fortress would eventually be conquered; the Russian Army dug over 70 kilometers of trenches, engaging the Ottoman Army in a prolonged war of attrition around the Plevna Fortress.

In the end, after suffering nearly 50,000 casualties, the Ottoman Empire was forced to retreat southward.

This instantly placed the 30,000 Ottoman troops inside the Plevna Fortress in a besieged situation; after holding out bitterly for a month, the Plevna Fortress was formally conquered by Russia.

After the Plevna Fortress was conquered, the situation in the Balkan Peninsula war underwent a tremendous change.

The Russian Army smoothly broke through the mountain pass; south of the Plevna Fortress, there were basically no fortresses that could obstruct the Russian Army’s advance.

The Russian Army’s path to Constantinople and the Straits of Constantinople would be very smooth, and the Ottoman Empire had already lost its advantage in troop numbers.

After the Plevna Fortress battle ended, Russia’s position in troop numbers and armaments on the Balkan Peninsula had gained the advantage.

Conquering the Plevna Fortress cost Russia nearly 150,000 troops in total, with over 50,000 directly sacrificed on the battlefield and nearly 100,000 wounded to varying degrees.

But the Ottoman Empire’s side was equally grim; the 30,000 defenders of the Plevna Fortress were directly captured, and the previous battle had cost nearly 70,000 troops.

The Ottoman Empire’s troops on the Balkan Peninsula were down to fewer than 180,000, while Russia’s deployed troops on the Balkan Peninsula showed no sign of decreasing and instead grew to nearly 350,

In this back-and-forth, Russia’s soldier numbers on the Balkan Peninsula had become twice those of the Ottoman Empire.

This did not even count the militias of ethnic groups like Bulgaria and Serbia supporting Russia’s operations; in this situation, the Ottoman Empire had entered a huge disadvantage.

Tsar Alexander II naturally would not miss this opportunity; he personally went to the battlefield and issued decisions himself, ordering the Russian Army to press on southward beyond the Balkan Mountains undeterred by the cold.

After the Plevna Fortress was conquered, time had reached November November temperatures in Bulgaria were relatively low, especially near the Balkan Mountains, where they were generally below 5 degrees Celsius.

But for Russian soldiers living farther north, this was not even considered cold; the Russian Army was naturally unaffected by the low temperatures and launched a massive offensive southward beyond the Balkan Mountains.

Compared to the high-morale Russian Army, the Ottoman Army’s morale had sunk to rock bottom.

Even worse, the frontline commander, faced with insufficient troops, not only forbade retreat but ordered the Ottoman Army to hold position and organize a defense line.

Clearly, he had overestimated the Ottoman Empire’s army combat power; for an army that had just suffered defeat and heavy losses, the most important thing now should be to withdraw to the rear for rest and reorganization.

Thus, the Ottoman Army was overwhelmed by Russia’s offensive wave; key cities in the Bulgaria region, Sofia and Pernik, were successively occupied by the Russian Army, and the Russian Army’s spearhead had reached Plovdiv in southern Bulgaria.

Inside the Ottoman Empire’s new royal palace, Dolmabahçe Palace, a large group of empire high officials, nobles, and senior military officials had already gathered.

The purpose of these guys gathering in the new royal palace was singular: to discuss how exactly to deal with this war.

Russia’s army had reached Plovdiv; further southeast was the Ottoman Empire’s old capital, Edirne. Edirne was not far from Constantinople—in other words, the Russians were about to reach the doorstep.

If not for the navy, with British help, still blockading the Sea of Marmara, the Ottomans would probably now be discussing how to seek peace with Russia to avoid the empire’s collapse.

The Ottoman Empire’s territory was vast but divided into two parts by the Sea of Marmara and the Aegean Sea: the European part and the Asian part.

Both the European part and the Asian part were vital to the Ottoman Empire; they were indispensable.

But fatally, transporting troops to the Balkan Peninsula required passing through the Sea of Marmara; whoever controlled the Sea of Marmara and the Aegean Sea could directly split the Ottoman Empire in two.

What the Ottoman Empire domestically feared most was the Russians advancing all the way to Constantinople, directly driving the Ottoman Empire out of the Balkan Peninsula.

And now the Russians had shown exactly this trend; if unable to stop Russia’s offensive, the Ottoman Empire might be left only with the Anatolian Peninsula.

“Gentlemen, do you have any solutions? The empire has reached a moment of life and death; if we cannot repel the Russian offensive, the Ottoman Empire may cease to exist.” The Ottoman Empire’s new Sultan Abdul Hamid II said with a face full of sorrow.

Originally, the Ottoman Empire’s throne was inherited by Abdul Hamid II’s brother Murad V. But Murad V was excessively close to France and instead despised Russia, which was very near the Balkan Peninsula.

This led to Murad V being deposed after merely 93 days on the throne on grounds of mental illness, with the throne passing to Murad V’s brother Abdul Hamid II.

Abdul Hamid II had not previously been groomed as heir; he was just a 35-year-old young king. Faced with the empire’s survival crisis, his mind was filled only with panic, and he could only turn his gaze to his ministers.

The frontline army commander-in-chief Mehmed Ali Pasha shook his head somewhat helplessly and said to the expectant Sultan Abdul Hamid II: “Our frontline troops are already unable to resist; unless we are willing to abandon all land north of Plovdiv, we can only rely on British support.”

The Ottoman Empire’s own financial situation was extremely poor; even if wanting to organize reinforcements for the Balkan Peninsula, it had to wait for British aid to arrive.

It could be said without exaggeration that the Ottoman Empire had persisted to now thanks to British aid. Once British aid was cut off, the Ottoman Empire would immediately fall into financial crisis, and this war would be over.

Hearing this, Abdul Hamid II turned his gaze to his foreign secretary and asked: “Are the British truly willing to help us win this war? If we are defeated in this war, Istanbul will belong to the Russians.”

The Ottoman Empire certainly understood why Britain supported it: to prevent Russia from gaining control of Istanbul and the straits.

But though the British repeatedly promised support for the Ottoman Empire, aside from funds and materials, not a single British soldier had been seen on the battlefield.

Relying solely on the Ottoman Empire’s own troops, it was now impossible to obstruct Russia’s offensive. If the British were not ready to intervene with support, the Ottoman Empire could only seek peace.

“It has been half a month since our last contact with the British. Their attitude last time was unwilling to join this war, but they were willing to provide more funds and grain support,” the Ottoman Empire’s foreign secretary shook his head helplessly and replied.

Britain clearly was not yet prepared to fight a war with Russia; their support was mainly in weapons and equipment, funds, and grain.

This aid was indeed useful to the Ottoman Empire, but it fundamentally could not change the frontline battlefield situation.

“Contact the British again; I need to know their specific attitude,” Abdul Hamid II instructed. “Tell those British that if they are unwilling to support us in this war, out of consideration for preserving the empire, I will begin peace negotiations with Russia in one month.”

One month was the deadline Abdul Hamid II gave the British. If there was no action from the British within a month, the Ottoman Empire could only be forced to surrender to Russia.

This was also a reminder and threat to the British: if unable to provide more substantial support, Constantinople and the straits would belong to Russia.

The Ottoman foreign secretary nodded, indicating he understood.

Then, Abdul Hamid II turned his gaze to the frontline commander-in-chief Mehmed Ali Pasha and instructed: “General Mehmed, I hope that in this one month, the army can hold the Russians north of Plovdiv.

If after one month we welcome British reinforcements, that will be our chance to recapture Sofia and the Plevna Fortress.

But if the British are unwilling to join this war, we can still ensure the capital Istanbul is not captured by the Russians; we will still have a way out.”

As long as Istanbul held, the Ottoman Empire could still draw endless troops and materials from the Anatolian Peninsula to the Balkan Peninsula.

But if Istanbul was conquered, the Ottoman Empire’s government would be forced to withdraw to the Anatolian Peninsula, and the empire would completely lose control of the Balkan Peninsula.

Leaving the Balkan Peninsula was easy; returning would be far from simple.

Once the Ottoman Empire lost control of the Balkan Peninsula, countries like Serbia and Bulgaria would certainly declare independence with Russia’s support and carve up occupation of the Balkan Peninsula.

These ethnic groups’ hatred for the Ottoman Empire was beyond doubt; after they occupied these lands, for the Ottoman Empire to return to the Balkan Peninsula would require fighting them one by one.

For the currently weakened Ottoman Empire, this was almost impossible. Therefore, Abdul Hamid II’s orders were clear: he did not want the Ottoman Army to lose the Plovdiv Fortress, as that would expose Edirne and Istanbul to the Russian Army’s spearhead.

“I understand,” Mehmed Ali Pasha nodded.

He was a German who had converted to Islam, with quite excellent military qualities, which was why he became the Ottoman Empire’s frontline army commander-in-chief.

However, the Ottoman Empire’s army combat power was uneven; aside from a small number of new army troops trained in imitation of European countries, the rest had abysmal combat effectiveness.

This made it difficult for Mehmed Ali Pasha’s command ability to be fully utilized, as the execution power of the rank-and-file troops determined a command’s effectiveness.

Even if the command itself was excellent, with insufficient execution by the rank-and-file, the effect was merely passable.

After arranging all this, Abdul Hamid II finally breathed a sigh of relief.

The Ottoman Empire’s army had held the Plevna Fortress for months; holding the Plovdiv Fortress for a month should be easy.

As long as British reinforcements arrived within this month, the Ottoman Empire still had hope of winning this war.

Of course, if British reinforcements kept delaying, the Ottoman Empire could only prepare for the worst.

“Great Sultan, perhaps we can also borrow the Austro-Hungarian Empire’s help to relieve our pressure on the Balkan Peninsula,” the foreign secretary then proposed a new idea, brightening the eyes of Abdul Hamid II, who had just sighed in relief.

“Elaborate,” Abdul Hamid II gestured for the foreign secretary to continue.

“Apart from Britain not wanting Russia to control the Balkan Peninsula situation, the Austro-Hungarian Empire similarly does not want the Balkan Peninsula to fall under Russia’s control.

Although relying on the Austro-Hungarian Empire to drive out Russia would bring big problems, it may be our only hope besides Britain.

No other European great powers would be willing to go to war with Russia for us. Even if Britain is unwilling to join the war to help us, as long as the Austro-Hungarian Empire joins, we can still stabilize the Balkan Peninsula situation.

Russia’s army is much larger than ours; as long as we hold out long enough, Russia’s finances will surely buckle under the strain.

In contrast, with British help, finances are not an issue in the short term. As long as either Britain or the Austro-Hungarian Empire is willing to help us, even through attrition, we can wear down this behemoth Russia,” the foreign secretary said with a smile.

As the Ottoman Empire’s foreign secretary, he was quite clear on Europe’s situation, especially around the Balkan Peninsula, knowing exactly which great powers paid attention to it.

Currently, besides relying on British aid, the only thing the Ottoman Empire could rely on was perhaps the Austro-Hungarian Empire.

The Austro-Hungarian Empire’s main reason for remaining neutral in this war was Russia’s promise to let it gain Bosnia and the Serbia region after the war.

But would Russia really willingly cede such vast lands to the Austro-Hungarian Empire? Wasn’t that cultivating a stronger rival for itself on the Balkan Peninsula?

“Sultan, the foreign secretary makes a good point; it is worth a try,” before Abdul Hamid II could give his opinion, frontline army commander-in-chief Mehmed Ali Pasha stepped forward first, expressing his approval.

As a German who had converted to Islam, he was quite clear on the Austro-Hungarian Empire’s situation. After all, Austrians were also Teutons, only excluded from Germany due to Prussia’s unification of the German region.

“Since General Mehmed also believes the Austro-Hungarian Empire might help us, the diplomatic department should contact them together,” Abdul Hamid II nodded repeatedly, his face no longer showing panic.

“Whoever can pull in either the Austro-Hungarian Empire or Britain to join this war will be the empire’s greatest meritorious official. After this war ends, I will reward merits accordingly and commend your contributions one by one,” Abdul Hamid II, now with a solution, was beaming and repeatedly promised his ministers lavish rewards.

With Abdul Hamid II’s promises, the many ministers were all newly motivated and began acting for the Ottoman Empire’s future.

While the Ottoman Empire domestically discussed the dire war situation, Britain and the Austro-Hungarian Empire were also holding related discussions.

Although the British were unwilling to intervene in this war, their attention to it was unprecedented.

As early as when the Plevna Fortress was conquered, the British Government had urgently convened a meeting to discuss whether to increase support for the Ottoman Empire.

But unexpectedly, in just two and a half weeks after the Plevna Fortress fell, the Ottoman Empire collapsed like a landslide, with key towns like Sofia and Pernik already breached by the Russian Army.

The British Government had not even concluded whether to increase aid to the Ottoman Empire when it was on the verge of defeat in this war.

This shifted the British Government’s discussion from whether to increase aid to whether to join the war; after all, if the Ottoman Empire failed, Russia’s expansion on the Balkan Peninsula would be unstoppable.

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