War Palace and Knee Pillow, Austria’s Destiny

Palmerston, who thought he had a chance to win, was still imagining how his irreversible conspiracy would get Russia and Austria to take the bait, when the reversal disappeared in this farce-like reversal.

What he didn't know was that the mastermind behind all this was Franz himself. As the saying goes, the first step is to attack the enemy with the enemy, then the second is to attack the enemy, and then the second is to attack the city.

In fact, judging from the current situation of Russia and Austria, if the furry bear cannot win quickly after the war, it will probably be the first to be unable to hold on.

The Austrian side only needs to keep Belgrade and Galicia intact, and at the same time use the terrain advantage of the Carpathian Mountains to completely block the opponent.

Even if the Ottoman Empire wants to take the opportunity to get a piece of the pie, it must be prepared to "spill blood on Belgrade", otherwise it may be attacked by the Austrian army from both sides if it rashly attacks the Patna area.

Even if a coalition of Turks and Russians captured Patna, as long as the key to the Balkans was still firmly in the hands of the Austrians, the former would not dare to advance rashly, otherwise they would risk being cut off from their retreat at any time.

Moreover, the royal family has already approved the proposal to make Archduke Karl the commander of the Belgrade garrison.

As the best defensive commander in Austria and even Europe, coupled with the natural barriers on the terrain and the newly built fortifications and fortresses built by the Austrians in the past two years, it is almost impossible to capture such a strong city in this era. possible.

The most terrifying thing about the Key to the Balkans is that it is not afraid of being besieged at all; with the flow of the Danube and the convenient water transportation, the enemy cannot cut it off even with all their strength.

This means that the Belgrade defenders can continuously obtain troops and supplies. What is even more disadvantageous to the enemy is that there is no suitable place to camp around.

Getting too close to the fortress meant being exposed to artillery and cavalry strikes, and the natural gentle slope was a swamp of death for attackers.

Of course, the opposite side can also use cavalry to quickly move to a safe area, but they can hardly help in siege, let alone deal with the natural enemy of the trench.

If infantry is used directly, it will be useless except for killing people, and the setting of gentle slopes and trenches will make it impossible for the attacker to return.

Unless the city is completely captured in one go, the soldiers behind will have to witness a tragic scene of their comrades at the front fighting to the last man.

Finally, choosing to camp too far away from the city not only lacks threat and cannot cause mental pressure on the opponent, but also completely loses the meaning of siege.

To sum up, the Austrian defense system in Belgrade was composed of gentle slopes, trenches and bastions. The design significance of the gentle slope is to make it easier for the attacking enemy soldiers to be beaten, which can also be referred to as "easier to fight".

In addition, it is also a product of the development of physics and mathematics; because the defenders attack the attackers by shooting from above, the enemy will get closer and closer to the city wall when attacking the city.

The angle between the sight lines of both sides will also change accordingly, including the angle of the cannon. So in order to solve this situation, the fortress designers designed a gentle slope.

Due to the gentle slope, the siege team had to move at an angle to the defenders' artillery fire; even lateral movement was restricted.

This avoids the embarrassing situation where the soldiers on the defending side have to constantly adjust their shooting postures when the attacking side tries to get closer to the bastion, and even end up having to risk their lives by leaning out to shoot.

Therefore, the defenders can always hide behind the walls and shoot, and their own gunners no longer have to worry about the other party's damn marksmen.

(The range and hit rate of artillery in this era are very limited, and artillery is often threatened by skirmishers or sharpshooters. Of course, if you can hide behind walls or bunkers, you can greatly avoid this situation. )

For example, if the offensive side is facing flat ground, then the defender's shooting is a 3D model, and when the opponent steps onto a gentle slope, it becomes a 2D model.

This is a huge advantage for the defenders, as it means soldiers and artillery can more easily kill enemy targets.

For the attacker, no matter how agile the soldiers are, they will be as ridiculous as a turtle in the eyes of the defenders.

(Friends who have played Battlefield or World of Tanks should know how uncomfortable it is to rush downhill.)

Secondly, the trenches of this large fortress are not the soldiers' trenches that are 1-1.5 meters wide and 2-2.5 meters deep in our usual sense.

Instead, it is a large trench 20-30 meters wide and 2-5 meters deep. The scary thing about the Belgrade Trench is that it is connected to the Danube River. If it cannot be defended, the embankment can be blown up and turned into a moat.

At the same time, the gentle slope also has a function, which is to keep as many attacking soldiers as possible under the defending city. Facing a fortress on flat ground, if the attacking party cannot defeat it, they can still choose to escape.

However, with the existence of this gentle slope, it became a luxury for them to escape with their lives. The only thing left was to hope that the other party was not a red-eyed butcher.

The bastion is nothing new, but it was its appearance that made Europe fight sieges for more than two hundred years without daring to choose large-scale sieges. Of course, not everyone dared to launch a strong attack on it. For example, during the Napoleonic Wars, the famous Marshal Lannes was stunned. Unfortunately, his legs were blown off during the battle with Archduke Karl and he died.

If you want to capture the bastion, you must have artillery with large caliber and strong penetrating power. Obviously the Ottoman Empire and Russia did not meet this condition. The British Royal Navy is equipped with this type of artillery, but it takes both time and luck to transport heavy artillery weighing several kilograms from the sea to the city of Belgrade over the mountains.

Once the war breaks out, Galicia will also become the main battlefield, but in this area, the Russians also have no advantage.

At this time, Austria was not the Austria-Hungary during World War I. The troops had no fighting spirit, and one general was incompetent and exhausted the three armies. During this period, neither the young Archduke Albrecht nor the veteran General Marshal Radetzky were soft persimmons. They all had the same characteristics. Not only were they good at attacking, they were also experts in the use of cavalry.

The second is the basis of rule. Austrian Galicia was the only region that did not participate in the rebellion in 1848, the other being Tyrol. On the other hand, in the Russian-controlled Poland, there are three minor rebellions a year and one major rebellion every three years, which have nothing to do with stability.

Therefore, Austria can definitely contact the Polish Restoration Organization and make a promise. In this way, Russia's rear may not be peaceful. Likewise, the Jews, Cossacks, Caucasians (Chechens), and Siberians within Tsarist Russia will also be ready to take action.

Once Russia falls into decline, Austria can take the opportunity to raise the banner of liberating Poland and form a coalition with it to attack the three Baltic countries and the southern Russian steppes. At that time, the Russian army will be overwhelmed and forced to sign an armistice agreement.

As for the newly opened overseas colonies, Franz estimated that Namibia would be the first choice for the British. After all, the Austrians discovered gold and diamonds here. At that time, colonization by various countries was mainly about plundering mineral resources, and gold and diamonds were naturally particularly attractive.

The so-called Gate of Hell is not just talk. After the British army occupied Whale Bay, they had to face the problem of supply difficulties. At the same time, they would realize that they had to march inland if they wanted the local defenders to surrender.

The harsh local natural environment will greatly weaken the will of the Red Shirts. Of course, they will also have to face unfavorable factors such as diseases, mosquitoes, and warlike indigenous people.

The fortress located inland will also be a nightmare for the Red Shirts. A storm is almost impossible, and the cost of siege is the lives of a large number of soldiers.

In recent years, under the design of Franz, Albrecht and Friedrich, and with reference to the opinions of Archduke Karl, the West African colonies have been centered on fortresses close to the interior, which allows invaders to try to pass through. The quick-fix model of capturing the port became a fantasy.

Going deep into the interior of Africa to attack fortresses is undoubtedly a bad move. Of course, the best way is to defeat the enemy without fighting, so Franz chose to clarify the stakes with Miloš. As a generational hero, the latter naturally cannot be willing to be cannon fodder for the British.

So he once again resorted to the "gongzi sacrifices his head" strategy. It seems to be a self-destructive path, but it has bought time and opportunities for Serbia's development and growth.