Chapter 194 Failed to Steal the Chicken
In the morning light, ripples suddenly appeared on the calm Danube River, and the water waves quickly separated to the two banks.
A steam speedboat is traveling at high speed in the center of the river. This ship is the Royal One designed by Franz. The entire ship uses the latest technology and has a speed of up to 17 knots. This is when the turbine is not operating at full load. If the steam turbine is operating at maximum power, the speed can easily exceed 20 knots.
The fishermen who got up early were preparing for a busy day on the shore. However, their eyes were focused on a boat that was traveling at high speed without sails or oars.
However, they were soon relieved because the ship carried the flag of the Habsburg family.
"It's nothing unusual for a royal ship to sail faster." They comforted themselves.
Franz wanted to return to Vienna before the start of the Five-Power Conference. Due to his participation, the entire Turkish-Egyptian War was very different from what it had been in history.
Although Austria got the coveted fleet, will the great powers allow it to exist? And Belgrade and Western Bosnia, will the Russians keep their word? Will the French stab Austria in the back?
Will the British have new tricks, and which side will the Ottoman Empire fall to? Franz must know the latest developments before he can make a decision.
And at this time, the city of Belgrade could not be compared with Vienna. Except for the Grand Duke's palace and the homes of a few important people, the other houses resembled the slums of Vienna.
The city's defenses are very strong, and the entire Belgrade is a huge star-shaped bastion. It's just that in just two years, this city has changed hands several times, which is really sad.
But before Franz had time to sigh, he received an explosive news.
Just one day ago, the Russian army stationed in Izmail suddenly launched an attack on the Ottoman army in Tulcea.
The Russian troops from the Bessarabia Fortress came out in full force, numbering 50,000. However, they were met with a powerful counterattack by the Ottoman army.
After Magid reached a deal with the Austrian Empire, the troops originally used to defend Austria were transferred to the vicinity of Tulcea.
Because Omar Pasha believed that the Russians would not be left alone, and their territorial ambitions were endless.
Megid followed Omar Pasha's advice and mobilized heavy troops to Tulcea to prevent the Russian army from moving south.
Omar Pasha even built four fortresses in Tulcea to prevent Russian raids.
Facts have proved that his efforts were in vain. Tulcea's Ottoman army not only blocked the Russian attack, but also drove them back to Bessarabia.
Bessarabia is the delta of the Danube River and the Black Sea. It used to be Ottoman territory. It was annexed by Russia in 1812 and has been one of Russia's forward fortresses ever since.
The Russian army in Bessarabia was not an elite, but peasants who were called upon. The literacy rate of this army was less than 0.1%, and only 50 people in the entire army could read and write.
Don't be surprised, because the literacy rate of the entire Russian army at that time did not exceed 0.2%. The Russian army at that time was a peasant army, and the main targets for conscription were serfs and official peasants. These people usually did not have the right to receive education, and were considered to be a group of people who did not need education.
In comparison, the 18% literacy rate in the Austrian army seems less shameful.
At that time, the literacy rate of the military was generally lower than the social average. If you look at the source of soldiers, it will be clear. The main source of soldiers for the Russian army is serfs, while the main sources for Austrian soldiers are refugees and recruited farmers (usually farmers will pay to have serfs from noble families replace themselves).
Of course, being able to block the Russian attack was not just the result of the fortress. After receiving support, the total number of the Ottoman army in Tulcha had reached an astonishing 130,000. It would be outrageous to be unable to stop the Russian army of 50,000.
Although the total strength of both sides was close to 200,000, in fact, the battle was not fierce, and there were only a few hundred casualties.
After the Russian army discovered that the number of Ottoman troops was far greater than expected, they prepared to retreat. After all, according to the orders of their superiors, the mission this time was to receive Tulcha, not to fight against an enemy with superior strength.
On the Ottoman side, although there were many people, the shadow of repeated defeats and the sense of security brought by the fortress made the soldiers reluctant to fight.
Because neither party wants to fight, but neither wants to be stigmatized. So the two sides only conducted a few short artillery battles and then launched a symbolic charge.
In the end, the Russian army left hundreds of corpses in front of the fortress and decided to retreat.
Facing the retreating Russian army, Omar Pasha did not order the army to pursue, but sent scout cavalry to follow until all Russian troops withdrew from Ottoman territory.
At the same time, Omar Pasha immediately sent someone to report to the Sultan that Tulcea was victorious. The Ottoman army won a complete victory and killed more than 200 enemies.
Magid was very happy after receiving the good news, because this was the first time in decades that the Ottoman Empire had successfully driven away the Russian invasion.
He just wanted to take the opportunity to publicize it, so he multiplied the number of enemies killed by ten. Under the exaggeration of unscrupulous Western media, this number has doubled again, and it is becoming more and more outrageous.
For example, the version Franz heard was that the Ottoman Empire had invaded Russia.
But no matter what, the two sides must not be allowed to continue fighting, otherwise it may even turn into a Crimean War.
After hearing the news of the defeat, the Tsar immediately ordered the execution of the generals of Bessarabia, and led 150,000 Russian troops with Prince Mainkov as commander to conquer Tulcha.
However, due to the vast area of Russia, it will take at least three months to mobilize troops. As soon as the British learned that Russia was attacking the Ottomans, they sent an envoy to ask Russia to stop the attack immediately.
At the same time, Austria also reached an agreement with Britain, Prussia, and France to convene the third Five-Nation Conference in Vienna to discuss the Near East issue.
This period of time was not enough for Russia to conquer Ottoman territory.
After the strong persuasion of Prince Mainkov and Neserlov, the Tsar gave up his plan to continue fighting against the Ottoman Empire and instead prepared a five-nation parliament to guarantee its privileges in the Straits.
In fact, this war should not have happened in the first place, just because after Austria occupied Western Bosnia, the great powers seemed indifferent, and even the victim, the Ottoman Empire, did not say anything.
Russia naturally believes that this is a good opportunity to expand its territory.
I wanted to take advantage of the fire, but unexpectedly I hit the iron plate. If we attack by force, it will inevitably bring even worse international consequences.
Because Russia's undeclared war at this time is not only a moral defect, but also a violation of the Russian-Turkish alliance.
In the end, Russia can only use what the Americans did before. This is a misunderstanding. In fact, a Russian soldier was lost, and the army was sent just to find the missing soldier. As for the exchange of fire, it was all a misunderstanding.
Although this explanation is very outrageous, the Ottomans are not qualified to question it, because the great powers have expressed their attitude with silence, and this has indeed avoided an armed conflict, which is not a big deal for the Ottomans who were victims of previous Russian-Turkish wars. A blessing.
No inspiration, I will write my daily routine tomorrow