My Italy

As Cadorna becomes the new marshal in charge of the Army Ministry, as the saying goes, once the emperor and his ministers are equal, a series of adjustments will inevitably be made to the army. Of course, the most important adjustment began with the War Department. Within three days of taking office, Marshal Cardolna integrated and changed various departments under the Ministry of War. A large number of officers who were originally affiliated with the other four military heads were transferred, dismissed, and used for other purposes.

The vacancies left by these people were filled by the personnel brought by Cadorna from the General Staff.

The reason why Cardolna did this was not only to eliminate the influence of several retired generals, but also to slim down the bloated army. You must know that when General Saraguet was in office, the Army Department, which was controlled by several major military leaders, had as many as 591 officers at all levels. There were too many personnel, overlapping management, and hands on everything, which led to the inefficiency of the Army Department. This is true in Cardo Erner seems undesirable. Without building the Army Department into a capable leadership department, how can he be distinguished from his predecessors?

Of course, in the process of downsizing the Army Department, many powers will also be delegated to other departments. Among them, the one who has gained the most is the General Staff. At present, the Italian General Staff is not as good as the German army, which has a staff-first position, and even the Russian army is not as good as it is.

In previous military exchanges, the German side pointed out several times that the Italian Army Ministry had too much power and was not conducive to the construction and command of the army. The Italian Army did not pay attention to the opinions of the allies at all, and it seemed that the Qing Dynasty had its own national conditions here.

The reason for this is precisely because several military leaders are unwilling to lose their rights. They are not even willing to let the king intervene in the army, let alone the nonsense of others. After several talks with no results, Germany stopped talking.

However, Cadorna shared the power of the Army Department with the General Staff. In addition to complying with the development of the times, he also did not want to give the impression that he had great power. After all, several people who had previously controlled the power of the Army have now retired and are enjoying their old age, and he does not want to follow suit. He is only 68 years old now and can still fight for the kingdom for more than ten years.

The General Staff Department, where I had been for more than ten years, is a good target for decentralization.

On the one hand, this allows the government and the king to see the new atmosphere of the army. On the other hand, how can I say that I have stayed at the General Staff for so many years. Although a large number of officers have been transferred to the Army Department, my influence is still there. As for the fact that as time goes by, his influence in the General Staff Headquarters will become less and less, there is nothing that can be done about it and no one can avoid it.

When Marshal Cadorna vigorously purged the Ministry of War and reduced the power of Saraget and others, the troops stationed in the local area would inevitably be affected.

Currently stationed in the headquarters of the Sixth Army in Albania, Lieutenant General Baxter is as restless as an ant in a hot pot.

The reason is simple. Everything that is happening in the city of Rome makes him feel extremely worried. His old superior General Tapea and several others suddenly announced their retirement a few days ago, which shocked him. He knew that something big had happened in Rome, but he was left in Albania and could do nothing.

Therefore, he paid extremely close attention to the news in Rome and checked newspapers, telegrams and other contents every day.

Of course, the news in the army is the first to be paid attention to, and any disturbance must be seen with a magnifying glass, let alone Marshal Cadorna, who is going to war in the Ministry of War.

And it was by observing Cadorna's actions at the War Department that he became even more concerned. Because Cardorna, the newly promoted marshal, is vigorously purging other forces, and Lieutenant General Baxter is the second-in-command of Admiral Tapea's force.

For this reason, he had to use confidential military communications to personally contact several other colleagues to discuss everyone's way out.

Of course, he was also in contact with other forces, but the results after contact were not ideal. Those people are timid and simply impossible to work with. So there are some things that must be considered.

"General, Major Kazim has arrived."

Upon hearing the guard's report, Lieutenant General Baxter immediately spoke with a hint of anticipation. "Invite him in quickly."

Kazim is a key figure in the plan. As the commander of the army, his travels are very eye-catching, so he has Major Kazim take part in many private matters. After all, he is his adjutant and is much more concealed than himself. .

"How is it going?"

After the guards exited, Lieutenant General Baxter immediately asked the dusty former adjutant in a low voice.

"General, the situation of the trip is not good. Except for four people including Colonel Lane of the 18th Division and Colonel Uller of the 23rd Division, the others did not agree. They said that the general's move was too risky and it was very possible. There will be serious consequences.”

Kazim's words immediately made Lieutenant General Baxter's face darken.

Looking at the Lieutenant General's gloomy expression, Major Kazim asked softly. "Lieutenant General, what should we do next?"

"Since they are unwilling, then ignore them and continue to contact Ren and Uller. However, you must keep it confidential and wait for my instructions to tell you anything else."

"Okay, Lieutenant General."

After the former adjutant left, Baxter showed a frustrated look. It’s so hard to protect yourself. These people were all promoted by themselves. I didn't expect that they would be so withdrawn and ignore their own expectations after showing off their words.

But I am unwilling to accept myself like this. I have worked hard in the army for so many years and was ordered to retire. Isn't all these years of hard work in vain?

While Baxter was worried about his future, Kazim left with an equally uncertain expression. Like Baxter, he was thinking about his future.

Following Baxter for so many years, Kazim also knew the top brass of the military very well, and the retirement of several previous bosses also shocked him. However, considering that he had followed the general for many years, he suppressed it.

As for now, he felt that he needed to think about himself. Continuing to follow the general will only lead you to a dead end. Maybe it's time to think of other ways.

Thinking of this, he turned in a different direction and walked towards an unknown building. There is a row of letters on that building that clearly says Sixth Army Military Police Department.

Two days later, when Baxter was presiding over a military meeting, a group of soldiers with military police badges rushed in. Lieutenant General Baxter, who collapsed on the ground, was taken away directly after Major Galloppa, the captain of the gendarmerie, presented an arrest warrant from Rome.

Four others, including Lieutenant General Baxter, received the same treatment as Colonel Lane, Chief of Staff of the 18th Division, and Colonel Urrell, Commander of the 2nd Regiment of the 23rd Division. The reason for their arrest was that they were trying to create rebellion in the military.

It can be said that the arrest of Lieutenant General Baxter scared away the dissatisfaction felt by many people in the army. Many people feel that this rectification cannot escape the passers-by, and they directly request to retire due to their age, health and other reasons.

Facing the retirement application sent to him, Marshal Cardorna waved his hand and directly agreed.

In the past three months of cleaning, 38 generals and 126 school-level officers have been withdrawn from active service. As for those who are as bold as Lieutenant General Baxter, there are only a very small number of them, and most of them can go home and enjoy their old age.

Of course, this is because Cardorna is unwilling to expand the scope of the purge. After all, purging too many officers will reduce the combat effectiveness of the army.