Chapter 194: The Stirrup
The relationship between Russia and Britain depends entirely on the strength of Russia.
When Russia is weak, Britain will maintain friendly relations with Russia.
When Russia becomes so powerful that it begins to threaten the balance of power in Europe, Britain will unite other countries to deal with Russia.
This is the notorious continental equilibriumism of the British.
In the ninth Russo-Turkish War, Britain participated in the war.
And Britain's pursuit and interception of Russia in Central Asia and the Far East are all concrete manifestations of the continent's balancing policy.
The counterpart to continental equilibrium is glorious isolation.
The differences between the two correspond to the different forms of Europe. When Europe's power is balanced, Britain will pursue glorious isolation and will not join any party.
When there is a clear gap in European power, Britain will join the weaker side.
This is why Britain is called the "shit stirrup."
If it weren’t for the British interference, France during the Emperor’s time might have unified Europe.
"Europe" here includes the UK.
British Prime Minister Churchill wrote in his autobiography "Memoirs of the Second World War": Britain's foreign policy over the past four hundred years has been to oppose the largest, most aggressive and domineering war on the continent. countries, Britain always joined the less powerful side and joined forces with them to defeat the continent's military overlord, no matter who he was or what country he ruled.
This is the best summary of British foreign policy.
The two world wars have not yet started.
Others may not understand the true face of the British, but George knows best.
This is the fundamental reason why Brian Godwin received a cold reception in Vladivostok.
What made Brian Godwin extremely angry was that Vladivostok even restricted his normal contact with the British mainland and did not allow him to send telegrams to the British mainland through the telegraph office in Vladivostok.
So if Brian Godwin wanted to send a telegram, he had to go through Japan or the telegraph office of the Qing Empire.
"The existence of Yurievsky Super Duke will cause the power in East Asia to completely lose balance, which will then lead to the further expansion of the strength of the Russian Empire and threaten European security."
If George knew about Brian Gold Wen should be very happy that he has such a high opinion of him.
"You mean that child? How is it possible-"
John Worsham, the British Minister to China, didn't take it seriously. He had never seen George at all.
“Have you been to Vladivostok?”
Godwin knew why Worsham despised George.
Before Godwin went to Vladivostok, Godwin did not believe that Vladivostok had the ability to threaten the balance of power in the Far East.
“I heard it’s very cold there——”
“Before the Tsar gave Vladivostok to Super-Prince Yurievsky, there was nothing there; now Vladivostok not only has steel plants, but also machinery plants and arsenals. Vladivostok is even building a railway to St. Petersburg. You should know what this means. ”
Godwin's words surprised Worsham.
"The Russians are going to build the Trans-Siberian Railway?"
Worsham was surprised.
The reason why the Trans-Siberian Railway has not started yet is thanks to the efforts of the British Empire.
The construction of the Trans-Siberian Railway is indeed a heavy burden for the Russian Empire.
The meaning is also very important.
There is no need to wait for the railway to be built.
As long as the railway construction is started, it can play a huge role in promoting the development of Siberia.
Britain does not want Russia to build the Trans-Siberian Railway.
Because in that case, Russia's strategic depth will extend from Europe to the Far East, which will almost make Russia invincible.
A Russia that cannot be defeated is completely inconsistent with British interests. In serious cases, it may even lead to the bankruptcy of the continental balancing policy.
"St. Petersburg has not yet made up its mind, but this is the scary place-"
Godwin was worried. He had also seen the miniature map of the Vladivostok City Hall and knew how big George's ambition was.
“The railway between Vladivostok and Khabarovka was built with private investment by Super Duke Yurievsky. Only the last section is left to be completed. Next year Vladivostok will have greater steel processing capacity and can produce more rails. St. Petersburg sees all this, and the Tsar has no reason to hesitate."
"How is this possible? ?”
Worsham muttered to himself, this matter is of great importance and Godwin cannot talk nonsense.
"If it were in St. Petersburg, then the possibility of this matter is indeed unlikely, but this is in Vladivostok, in the private domain of Super Duke Yurievsky. I am in Vladivostok I have taken the subway. Although I don’t want to admit it, I have to say that the subway in Vladivostok is faster, more comfortable, cleaner and more in line with the definition of civilization than the subway in London.”
What really caught Worsham's attention was Godwin's next words.
“Super Duke Yurievsky is also the commander of the Amur Military District. You should know that although the nominal commander of the mysterious oak regiment in St. Petersburg is the crown prince, Super Duke Yurievsky, He is the de facto commander of the Oak Regiment.”
“Last year, Super Duke Yurievsky transferred a battalion from the Oak Regiment to Vladivostok and formed it on the basis of this battalion. Fu Tuan, if you go to Vladivostok and go to the Vladivostok City Hall to take a look at what Vladivostok will look like in the future, you will know that Fu Tuan is definitely not The end." "Okay, we're going to report this to London."
Worsham could sit still.
As for the Siberian Fleet, the British didn't take it to heart at all.
The Russian Empire's army and navy are completely different. In the Ninth Russo-Turkish War, the Russian Empire singled out Britain, France, and the Ottoman Empire. In the end, Britain, France, and Austria only won miserably.
If it were any other country, it might not be able to recover.
The Russian Empire did not accept defeat, and even the Tsar committed suicide in anger. This shows the attitude of the entire empire towards that war.
As expected, Russia made a comeback 20 years later. This time, even Britain and France did not provide substantial help to the Ottoman Empire.
The United Kingdom has a deep understanding of the combat effectiveness of the Russian Imperial Army.
The fundamental reason why Britain dared to pursue and intercept the Russian Empire in East Asia was that the Trans-Siberian Railway had not been completed, and St. Petersburg and the Far East were not connected.
After the Trans-Siberian Railway is completed, it will not be as easy for Britain to strangle Russia.
George still doesn’t know that Britain has quietly increased its emphasis on him.
The new year is approaching, and this year Yuriev Palace will issue more year-end bonuses, larger red envelopes, and more benefits.
Mu Linde returned to Vladivostok in early December. This year, he earned at least 100,000 rubles in the Qing Empire by acting as an agent for Vladivostok products.
This is only the first year.
Mu Linde brought back orders for 12,000 military rifles alone.
If Vladivostok can provide more advanced magazine-type rifles, Mulind is confident that he can bring back more orders.
"Even if we don't sell, there are countries that are willing to sell. The Qing Empire has sent people to Europe and the United States to purchase. The arsenals in Europe and the United States will definitely not refuse orders from the Qing Empire."
Mu Linde also has I am qualified to bargain with Mikhail.
Ability is confidence.
"Sell, not only magazine-type rifles, but also artillery!"
Mikhail is determined to do something big.
The local troops of the Russian Empire will all be reorganized into engineering corps, and the need for replacement equipment is no longer so strong.
The steel output in Vladivostok is getting higher and higher, and another set of steel equipment has been shipped out of Odessa. This is due to Nikolai.
Some things are just afraid of comparison.
Russia’s steel production capacity has remained at around 75% all year round, and has never reached the ideal output.
If calculated based on the output of the Russian Imperial Steel Plant, the annual output of the Vladivostok Steel Plant should be only about 12,000 tons.
In the first ten months of this year, the Vladivostok Steel Plant has produced 15,000 tons of steel.
It's steel, not pig iron.
That’s why the benefits can be maximized by locating the steel plant in Vladivostok.
George originally expected that Vladivostok's steel production within three years would be satisfied as long as it could reach 100,000 tons.
Now it seems that George still underestimated the potential of Vladivostok.
Now that there is enough steel, military production capacity will also reach a higher level.
So next year the Vladivostok Arsenal can produce not only magazine-type rifles, but also artillery.
It’s not a 305mm large-caliber naval gun.
It is just a field gun with a caliber of tens of millimeters. For the Vladivostok Arsenal, it is no more difficult than a heavy machine gun.
“That’s great! You don’t know how strong the demand for weapons was among the governors of the Qing Empire. Landowners in the Qing Empire could buy a hundred rifles at a time to protect their property. , the bandits of the Qing Dynasty——"
Mulinder looked embarrassed. He was an official official in Vladivostok, how could he deal with bandits.
“How did you do with the mission that the princess gave you?”
Mikhail doesn’t care who Murind sells the weapons to, even if he sells them to the Japanese, Mihail El didn't care.
Russia doesn’t sell weapons to the Japanese. Doesn’t it mean that European and American countries don’t sell them either?
The British can even sell warships to the Japanese. Vladivostok does not make money from this, but some people do.
"The princess is so discerning. The Su embroidery and Shu brocade of the Qing Empire are really ingenious. I have never seen such exquisite things. They are simply works of art -"
Mu Linde was full of praise at first , and then started to complain as soon as the conversation changed.
“The only shortcoming of the Qing Empire is that the Qing people are too conservative. I offer Qing embroiderers a salary of one hundred taels a year, but no one is willing to come to Vladivostok to work. . ”
“If 100 taels is not enough, just 500 taels. As long as the problem can be solved with money, it is not a problem!”
Mikhail finally got George’s true story about how to treat money. George's attitude has improved greatly from when he first met him.
(End of this chapter)