Chapter 628 Swiss Strategy
Although Franz did not invite Wheatstone himself, his books, patents and related research results were all sent to Austria. Franz spent 7,000 pounds for this, which was already a very high price in Britain at that time.
However, Franz felt that the money was well spent, because at this time, Austrian scientists' research results on electromagnetism were really limited.
At this time, the best electromagnetic masters in the world were all in England, while Siemens, who would change the history of generators in the future, was still in Prussia.
Wheatstone replaced permanent magnets with electromagnets and made the first reluctance DC motor, which was an important measure to enhance the output power of the generator.
It's just that the British research direction was wrong. Wheatstone threw a metal rod nearly 20 meters away with his device, so they began to consider the feasibility of the electromagnetic gun.
Of course, this mistake in the route eventually led to Britain being overtaken by the European continent during the electrical revolution. Even the first electromagnetic gun was invented by the French, not the British who were the first to get involved.
If Franz wants to complete his plan, he must seize the opportunity of the electrical revolution and gain an absolute advantage in order to break through the shackles.
At this time, the Austrian Empire had invested heavily in electromagnetism and had sufficient talent reserves. It only needed a little inspiration to improve the foundation of electromagnetism.
It's just that inspiration is sometimes more important than 99% of hard work and preparation.
Historically, Prime Minister Metternich, despite the pressure of economic deficit, also provided assistance to the Swiss Orthodox Union (Catholic League) with weapons, equipment, as well as money and materials that may be needed.
As a result, all these things finally disappeared into the sea, which in turn exacerbated the crisis in the Austrian Empire.
The Austrian Empire at this time can be said to be rich and powerful. After hearing about Archduke Karl's request, Metternich felt that the former was fully capable of fulfilling these requests.
Naturally, the reason cannot be because of his wealth, but to ensure the safety of Archduke Karl.
But the reality is that Archduke Karl went to Switzerland to retire in name only, not to fight.
According to the peace agreement signed between Austria, France, Britain, and Switzerland, the Austrian Empire theoretically needs to strictly maintain neutrality unless one of the parties breaks the agreement.
And now Metternich's behavior of transporting weapons to the Swiss Orthodox Alliance is undoubtedly a violation of the four-nation agreement.
In fact, the main reason is that Franz feels that both sides in Switzerland are not very willing to fight, and that the top leaders of the Orthodox Alliance are incompetent and weak-willed.
Metternich's ideal of fostering a pro-Austrian puppet state in Switzerland was not realistic. After all, France was also there. Even if the Catholic League won, the French could directly support the Protestant League.
After all, this kind of thing has never happened in history. Not to mention the Protestants, even the Ottomans and France in the Middle East have united. The "Sacrilege League" is the best evidence.
Rather than causing a lot of unnecessary trouble with state actions, it would be better to let the church do this. After all, professional matters should be left to professional people, and if we say it is relief, how will they know what we are transporting?
Metternich was still worried, because as long as the team was stopped for inspection, the truth would be revealed. But there is no need to worry at all, not to mention that Franz does not intend to transport a large number of weapons there, it does not matter even if he is discovered during the transport.
After all, the Austrian Empire has more voices than the Swiss Confederation. It can be called frame-up and slander, and then the dirty water of provoking civil war is poured onto the other side.
Secondly, the safety of Archduke Karl really needs to be guaranteed, so the number of guards should be increased from 800 to 3,000. But we can’t go all together, we just need to get them in place before 1847 in batches.
It was not that Franz looked down upon the combat effectiveness of the Swiss army, but based on the intelligence previously sent back, the areas where the two sides were most likely to fight were not plains, but canyons and mountains.
It's useless if too many people go to these places, and if the soldiers of the Orthodox Alliance cannot be mobilized to join the battle, Austria will not be able to defend it even if it sends 10,000 troops.
Archduke Karl was just a soldier, and the reason why he asked for help was probably because the Orthodox Alliance gave him some unrealistic guarantees.
From a military perspective, whichever side has more people and more guns has a greater chance of winning. But in fact, there are many factors that need to be paid attention to whether the battle can be won or even fought.
Before a clear conclusion is reached, random support is tantamount to endorsing the enemy.
However, Franz still needs to send someone to communicate with Archduke Karl, otherwise the old man may think that he has been sold.
In fact, there are quite a few people within the Swiss Orthodox Union who want to get some benefits from Austria. After all, Switzerland is suffering from natural and man-made disasters at this time and there is no profit at all.
In fact, in addition to collaborating with Austria, the Orthodox Alliance also has inextricable ties with the French, and even the Kingdom of Sardinia has joined it.
With many boats on their hands, they have no idea how they can lose, so rather than preparing for war, they want to gain more benefits.
The French had similar ideas to Metternich. They were planning to set up a puppet state in the Swiss mountains, but their purpose was more clear than Metternich's.
What France wanted was a trade route that could reach Germany in the north and Italy in the south.
The Kingdom of Sardinia is more practical. Alberto wants Ticeno State, which not only borders it, but also has a larger Italian population. More importantly, he can also fight against the republicans in exile in Switzerland.
Some supporters within the Swiss Orthodox Union even dreamed of becoming a king, and the song that once praised the monarchy during the Napoleonic period was sung again.
In contrast, Switzerland's Free Alliance is much more dedicated. They raise their own military expenses and import weapons from the UK. Although the reason is to strengthen public security, what kind of gang needs a hundred artillery? This is a question worth pondering.
Henri Dufour's reforms had a very obvious effect on the Free Alliance army. At least the temporarily organized mountain men were more like an army at this time.
He also did a lot of investigation. Based on reliable intelligence, the Liberty Alliance side developed at least five strategies to deal with possible situations.
Just speaking from an attitude point of view, if there is no external interference, the Freedom Alliance will definitely win.
Although both sides are actively preparing for war, whether with actual actions or just words, there is generally a lack of enthusiasm.
In contrast, the Indian subcontinent was much more lively. With the beginning of the Afghan invasion, the Sikh Empire became frayed again, and Sir Henry Harding had to concentrate his forces to deal with the situation in the north.
At this time, those feudal states that had long been dissatisfied with the British began a new round of rebellion. Even the feudal states that were not dissatisfied with the British wanted to take this opportunity to expand their territory or at least plunder some property.
War soon spread across the Indian subcontinent, and Sir Henry Harding once again had to write to Prime Minister Robert Peel to request reinforcements.
It's just that this time he was not as calm and calm as before. The letter was full of words such as urgent and precarious.