Holy Roman Empire

Under Britain’s mediation, Prussia and Germany sat down at the negotiating table, beginning a prolonged series of negotiations.

The diplomatic efforts, however, did not affect the intense showdown between Prussia and Russia on the battlefield.

Faced with the dire situation on the front lines, the Prussian army had to abandon the Latvian region and subsequently retreat from Lithuania as well. The flames of war had now reached East Prussia.

The situation continued to tilt in favor of the Russian army, with victories being reported from the front lines. Yet, instead of feeling relieved, Marshal Ivanov grew increasingly uneasy.

He was well aware that behind the victories, the Russian army’s frontlines were being stretched thinner and thinner. Not only was the logistical burden mounting daily, but the pre-prepared defensive fortifications were now rendered useless.

If that were all, it would be manageable. The real issue, however, was the growing domestic clamor for a decisive battle. Within the military, calls for engagement were also becoming increasingly frequent. Even with Alexander II providing full backing, Marshal Ivanov felt the heavy pressure.

A voice rang out from a staff officer that said, “Marshal, the Fourth Army has sent an urgent telegram.”

Ivanov replied calmly, “Read it.”

“Yes, sir!”

“...On October 18, 1880, our forces successfully captured Puławy, annihilating 12,000 enemy troops and capturing 1,876 prisoners.

The gates to Warsaw are now wide open. Speed is of the essence, and to seize the opportunity, our forces have decided to advance downstream along the Vistula River toward Warsaw.

We request the Seventh Army and Fifth Army to coordinate by launching offensives on Warsaw from the north and east respectively…”

With a loud “bang,” the glass Ivanov had been holding slipped from his hand and shattered on the ground.

No matter how meticulously he had calculated, he still underestimated his subordinates’ eagerness for victory. Of course, there were likely other forces at play behind the scenes, pressuring him to initiate the decisive battle prematurely.

“The gates of Warsaw are wide open”—a justification so contrived that Ivanov didn’t even feel like criticizing it anymore. If the enemy intended to fight a decisive battle near Warsaw, they would naturally ensure that Russian forces could reach the area instead of blocking them outside.

Occupying the upper reaches of the Vistula River might seem like a strategic advantage, but anyone familiar with Poland’s geography would know otherwise. The vast plains and the river’s gentle flow made it almost impossible to flood entire regions, let alone devastate downstream farmlands by breaching dams.

With the situation already unfolding, Ivanov had no choice but to focus on damage control. The Fourth Army, consisting of eight infantry divisions, one garrison division, three cavalry divisions, four artillery regiments, and various auxiliary units, had a total force of 183,000 troops.

With such a large force, abandoning them was out of the question. If he could, Ivanov wouldn’t hesitate to execute those who acted without orders.

Unfortunately, Ivanov couldn’t reach them now. If he wanted to settle accounts after the fact, he would have to wait until the war was over.

Looking at the map, Ivanov muttered to himself, “Puławy was captured on October 18th. Now it’s already the afternoon of October 21st. Even if they spent two days resting, they’ve already been on the move for a day.

If they’re moving quickly, the battle for Warsaw might already be underway. There’s no way to pull them back now.

Well played, Obodov. He calculated this perfectly, knowing I couldn’t abandon the Fourth Army. Now I have no choice but to fight this Warsaw campaign.”

After hesitating for a moment, Marshal Ivanov issued orders, “Since the deployment has been disrupted, we’ll fight separately!

Pass the orders down. The Seventh and Fifth Armies are to commence the Warsaw campaign immediately. The Third and Sixth Armies, currently resting, are to assemble and march to the Warsaw region at once.

The First and Second Armies are to launch an offensive in East Prussia, with naval support.

The Eighth, Ninth, and Tenth Armies are to abandon their current defensive positions and initiate a southern campaign.

The newly-formed Eleventh, Thirteenth, Fifteenth, and Seventeenth Armies are to take over the vacated defensive tasks.”

Although Ivanov didn’t know what schemes the enemy might have, he was certain that as long as his own forces were strong enough, the enemy would choke on their ambitions.

By launching simultaneous offensives from three directions, committing a massive force of over two million soldiers, Ivanov refused to believe that the enemy could swallow it all in one bite.

If they couldn’t, the situation would change. Ivanov didn’t expect total victory in all three battles. As long as one of them succeeded, the strategic objectives would be achieved.

To put it bluntly, the Prussian-Polish Federation’s territory wasn’t that large. A decisive victory in any one direction would tear open the path to the enemy’s rear, allowing them to march directly.

Even though the Prussian-Polish Federation had intensified its mobilization, could a farmer who just set down his plow instantly become a competent soldier?

Of course, farmers in the Prussian-Polish Federation had undergone militia training, giving them slightly better combat skills than the average farmer, but they still had a long way to go to match a professional army.

It wasn’t that the Prussian government was unaware of the benefits of nationwide training, they simply didn’t have the budget to support it. Reserve training costs money, and the expenses of annual training for one to two months involving the entire population are not something a poor nation can afford.

In addition to the gap in training, weaponry and equipment were also major issues. The Prussian-Polish Federation’s military industry was largely self-sufficient, equipping its main forces with domestically produced arms.

After military expansion, due to insufficient domestic military industrial capacity, Prussia was forced to purchase British and French equipment. The ammunition calibers were all different, and the second and third-line units of the Prussian army were developing towards using a mix of foreign-made weapons.

In contrast, the Russians had it much easier. Their standardized equipment could be directly purchased from Austria, saving them the logistical headache.

These factors combined meant that once the Russian army breached the enemy’s defense lines, the newly formed units in the rear would struggle to stop the Russian advance.

Ivanov had avoided adopting this strategy earlier primarily to minimize risks. Superiority on paper remains just that, strength on paper. The war’s outcome can only be determined on the battlefield.

In his view, rather than gambling on a decisive battle, it was better to advance steadily, tightening the noose step by step and gradually wearing down the enemy’s forces.

…

When the Russian army made a move, the Prussian army naturally had to respond. Having painstakingly maneuvered the enemy into action, Moltke was not about to waste this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

The only regret was that the enemy had stretched their front line too far. With limited manpower, the Prussian army couldn’t possibly handle all three battlefronts simultaneously.

In a way, this strategy also countered Moltke’s strength of concentrating superior forces for a decisive battle. Fighting on three fronts simultaneously meant that concentrating forces for a decisive engagement was tantamount to suicide.

Dividing forces to cover all three battlefronts, however, played directly into the Russians’ hands. In this era of firearms, with airships providing reconnaissance from above, even the most brilliant strategist is bound by the constraints of available resources.

To compensate for the disadvantage in manpower, Moltke had to both make military deployments and urge the Prussian government to accelerate mobilization efforts.

Quality could no longer be a priority as quantity had to come first. Even if the new recruits lacked combat effectiveness, they could still serve as cannon fodder or be used to buy precious time in critical moments.

…

The Russians were preparing for a decisive battle, and the eyes of all Europe were fixed on the Prussian-Russian front. To gather intelligence on this epic confrontation, even the Austrian Air Force had been busy.

If not for the ineffectiveness of anti-air weapons at this time with low accuracy and high cost, along with the fact that Austria’s military observation teams were too numerous to avoid detection, the commanders on the ground might not have hesitated to “accidentally” cause a few incidents.

These were minor issues. Flying over enemy territory to gather intelligence without being shot down was already a stroke of luck so expecting a warm welcome was out of the question.

In the Vienna Palace, Franz stared at the troop deployments of both the Prussian and Russian armies, thoroughly baffled. He couldn’t make sense of it. In a word, it was chaos. Both the Russian and Prussian forces seemed utterly disorganized.

“Albrecht, can you make sense of their deployments?”

After a moment’s hesitation, Albrecht replied with some difficulty, “Your Majesty, Prussia and Russia are preparing for a decisive battle.”

From Franz’s expression, it seemed he was dissatisfied with the answer. Albrecht continued to explain, “Your Majesty, the total number of troops involved in this war has already set a historical record.

No one has experience in commanding an army of over a million men. In the early stages, the Russians were steady and cautious, and the frequency of troop movements wasn’t too high.

Now, as the decisive battle approaches, both the Russians and Prussians are rapidly moving their forces, and with so many troops involved, some confusion is inevitable.”

This answer enlightened Franz. Even great generals are still ordinary people, and no matter how strong their personal abilities, they cannot guarantee the same strength from their subordinates.

The movement of over a million troops involves too many aspects, and it’s not something a commander can accomplish alone. It still requires coordination from various departments.

Due to the limitations of communication, there are often delays in transmitting orders from the commander to the troops below.

The military is relatively better since orders can be executed immediately once received. But the logistics department is different. No matter how big the task, the supplies in the warehouse can’t just be moved to the right place overnight.

No matter how skilled the logistics officers are, they cannot change the outdated transportation methods. Due to the constraints of logistics, the troops naturally cannot move too quickly.

If another mishap occurs and the logistics get separated from the troops, it would be disastrous.

Such incidents are not unheard of, and now both the Prussians and Russians have learned their lesson, emphasizing cooperation between the combat units and the logistics departments.

Of course, this is a secondary factor. The main responsibility for the current confusion in both the Prussian and Russian armies lies with the general command.

The commanders have never had experience in leading battles of this scale, and many of their previous experiences do not apply here, which has led to the chaos.

Franz asked with concern, “So, you’re saying our army also has these issues?”

Albrecht nodded slightly, “Our commanders also lack this experience. If they rashly command an army of over a million men, it’s inevitable that confusion will occur in the early stages.

There is no experience like this in the world. Compared to others, we’re relatively better. Every year we organize training for over a million reservists, so we can just barely call it a large-scale troop movement.”

This is truly unavoidable. Experience is something that needs to be accumulated. The active Austrian forces are fewer than a million, where would they go to gain this kind of experience?

Aside from drawing lessons from the military deployments of Prussia and Russia, Franz is powerless. It’s not like he could mobilize millions of reservists for a nationwide exercise, right?

Never mind how much money it would cost or how much material would be consumed. Just the thought of mobilizing over a million troops at once is terrifying.

If they did go ahead with it, it would probably frighten all of Europe. If things went badly, it could escalate into a continental war.

European countries are very sensitive in this regard. Perhaps it’s because they’ve suffered too many losses in the past, or because there have been too many cautionary tales. Once one country starts mobilizing, its neighbors will immediately become alert. If relations are strained, they may also start their own mobilization.

Creating unnecessary tension, increasing the warlike atmosphere in Europe, and destroying friendly relations with neighboring countries is not something Franz wants to see.

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