Chapter 587 Almost Changed History
Another very important thing happened that afternoon. The Russian Ambassador to Austria met with the Austro-Hungarian Foreign Minister Berchtold and brought him The proposal was made by Russian Foreign Minister Sasonov and British Foreign Secretary Grey.
Both men recommended that Austria-Hungary use non-war means to resolve disputes.
Berchtold insisted that Austria-Hungary would not engage in any form of negotiation with the Kingdom of Serbia. Subsequently, the Russian ambassador left in disappointment.
But in Berchtold's later memoirs, he said that he meant that although Austria-Hungary would not negotiate with the Kingdom of Serbia, it could negotiate with the Russian Empire.
It can be said that the Russian ambassador did not correctly understand what Bechtold meant.
It can also be said that Berchtold was whitewashing his true intentions.
In any case, the last door to peace was closed, and at four o'clock in the afternoon, the Austro-Hungarian Empire bombarded Belgrade.
Although the Austro-Hungarian Empire had many problems, the artillery produced by Skoda was still good, comparable to Krupp artillery, and world-class.
The 305mm howitzer produced by Skoda for the Army has a range of 11,000 meters. It is deployed on the Osseb border and can directly bombard Belgrade.
At the same time as the bombardment, the Austro-Hungarian Army also crossed the border and invaded the Kingdom of Serbia, and the war officially broke out.
Fortunately, the border areas of the Kingdom of Serbia were mountainous and the terrain was complex. The Austro-Hungarian Empire moved extremely slowly. The soldiers trudged hard in the mountains and faced snipers from the Serbian army. For a while, the Austro-Hungarian Empire The Hungarian Empire was not yet able to capture Belgrade.
So this triggered a short interlude, Belgrade Terminal.
At this time, Nicholas still did not give up.
After the Austro-Hungarian Empire declared war, Nicholas sent three telegrams to William II. In the first telegram, Nicholas accused the Austro-Hungarian Empire of launching a disgraceful war against a weak country. war.
In the second telegram, Nicholas asked William: For the sake of our old friendship, can you stop your allies from going too far?
In the third telegram, Nicholas believed that if the Austro-Hungarian offensive stopped after capturing Belgrade, peace would still be possible.
William II called Nicholas back: I am using my influence to promote a satisfactory understanding between the Austrians and you.
Judging from William II’s call back, it seems that William II has not given up.
However, while responding to the call, William II commented on Nicholas's telegram: He admitted that he was cowardly, but he wanted to pass the responsibility to me.
It should be said that at this time, all countries have not given up their efforts for peace.
French President Poincaré immediately summoned Joffre after learning that the Austro-Hungarian Empire had declared war on the Kingdom of Serbia, and ordered Joffre not to do anything that would offend the Germans, and to withdraw the troops deployed on the border for 10 kilometer.
Xiafei refused to retreat on the grounds that the fortifications built by the French army on the border were all within ten kilometers. If the French army withdrew, once the German army attacked, the French army would be unsafe.
Xiafei not only refused to withdraw, but also asked France to immediately carry out war mobilization, because France's mobilization speed was slower than Germany's.
At this time, except for the Austro-Hungarian Empire and the Kingdom of Serbia, no country has yet carried out general mobilization for war. The mobilizations of Germany and Russia are partial mobilizations. Although France and the United Kingdom have not announced mobilization, they have actually entered a state of mobilization. .
Poincaré did not agree to Joffre's request and was waiting for a commitment from Britain.
Just when Joffre met Poincaré, Paris was falling into a "state of hysteria", with people pouring into the streets and shouting "Occupy Berlin". British philosopher Bertrand Russell said: "I found something that disgusted me extremely. People were ecstatic about the coming war."
Edward Gray was not excited. After learning that the war broke out, he expressed worry: Europe's The lights are going out and we will never see the light again in this lifetime.
Whether others could see the light is hard to say. In 1924, Gray suffered from a disease in his eyes and became blind in both eyes.
The most fanatical person about war in Britain was Churchill. He wrote in a letter to the wife of British Prime Minister Asquith: People may curse me because I love war and I know that war will break Thousands of lives, but I couldn't help myself - I wanted to enjoy every second of the war.
After the initial carnival, people finally began to calm down. All kinds of supplies on the market were sold out, bank runs broke out, investors panicked and sold, the stock market plummeted, and the stock markets in Berlin and Brussels were forced to close.
The reason why several major countries have not declared war yet is that they have to withdraw their foreign exchange reserves from foreign banks. Otherwise, once a war breaks out, these foreign exchange reserves may be frozen by the other party.
Nicholas and Wilhelm II were in frequent contact and were still exchanging telegrams until midnight.
In a telegram sent to Wilhelm II at midnight, Nicholas wrote: All military-related preparation measures were decided a week ago, and their purpose was to prevent Austria from mobilizing for war.
Nicholas' original intention was to show Wilhelm II that Russia's mobilization was not aimed at Germany.
But this telegram conveyed an important signal to William II, namely: the mobilization of the Russian Empire had been underway for a week.
After dawn, Falkenhayn and Moltke went to see Bateman together, and then the three of them went to see William II together. Their demand was that Germany should immediately start war mobilization.
Falkenhayn and Moltke knew very well that Germany's mobilization was lagging behind, and with every day of delay, Germany was one step closer to a death trap.
William II considered it again and again and issued an ultimatum to the Russian Empire and France at the same time.
Germany demands that the Russian Empire stop mobilization immediately, otherwise Germany will start general mobilization for war in 12 hours.
Regarding France, Germany demanded that France declare neutrality, and the time limit was also 12 hours. Bateman played another little trick at this time. He also had an additional condition in his ultimatum to France: requiring France to temporarily hand over the military fortresses of Verdun and Tours and let the Germans take over them. After the war, they Germany would return these fortresses to the French.
This condition is a disguised request for the immediate surrender of the French army.
Xiafei rejected the Germans’ unreasonable demands without hesitation.
After St. Petersburg received the ultimatum from Germany, Nicholas signed the document brought by Sukhomlinov and agreed to carry out general mobilization for war.
Nicholas also stated that without his confirmation order, this document would not take effect.
Little Nicholas was very angry. He came to the summer palace and demanded that the war mobilization take effect immediately.
Nicholas was on the verge of collapse. He shouted angrily to little Nikolai: Do you know that if I sign, thousands of Russians will die? I don't want this, I don't want it!
What Nicholas didn't know was that something was happening right now that might determine the fate of the Russian Empire.
After William II decided to mobilize, he summoned senior generals to discuss the mobilization plan.
Halfway through the meeting, Foreign Minister Jagau brought a telegram from Karl Linknauski, the German ambassador to London.
“Garbage!”
Falkenhan cursed disdainfully. At this point, these word games are meaningless.
“Take a look, at least take a look!”
Jia Gao sent the telegram directly to William II.
Karl wrote in the telegram: He had just spoken with Gray, who asked Karl if he could guarantee that Germany would not attack France if France remained neutral in the war between Germany and Russia.
Karl replied in the affirmative.
Gray asked Carr to give a guarantee at the British Cabinet meeting held today.
"Great! We should concentrate all our troops on the Eastern Front!"
William II was ecstatic. If France can remain neutral, then Germany can unite with Austria-Hungary Empire, all out against the Russian Empire.
Therefore, the British and French diversion of troubles from the north did not occur only during World War II, but had already been implemented during World War I.
Little Moltke and Falkenhayn looked at each other. The German army was ready to implement the "Schlieffen Plan". All troops were concentrated on the western front, and it was impossible to transfer troops to the eastern front in a short time.
"Your Majesty, this is impossible. Deploying an army with millions of people is not an easy task. It will take a whole year to do it. Once the army's timetable is determined, It cannot be changed. If we concentrate all our troops on the Eastern Front, then behind us will be the French army with 62 divisions. They must also have plans to attack Germany. How can the British guarantee that France will not take advantage of us to attack Russia? What about sneak attack on us? "
Little Maoqi said politely, idiots who don't understand military affairs should not speak.
William II was very disappointed and said very offensive things.
"If your uncle was still here, he would give me a completely different answer."
Little Maoqi was very sad. His uncle, Old Maoqi, had always been his idol.
The controversy over whether to implement the "Schlieffen Plan" was not over yet, and Linknausky sent a second telegram.
In the just-concluded British cabinet meeting, it was difficult for Britain to adopt a neutral attitude because Germany was unable to make a commitment not to invade Belgium.
William II was very angry. He cursed the British as liars, and then ordered Moltke to continue implementing the "Schlieffen Plan."
A storm evaporated, and Nicholas should have thanked the British for their capriciousness, otherwise war would have broken out between Germany and the Russian Empire.
George did not know that all countries were making last-ditch efforts for peace, but unfortunately these efforts were destined to be in vain.
After the Austro-Hungarian Empire launched an attack on the Kingdom of Serbia, Peter came to Constantinople again and asked George to provide immediate assistance to the Kingdom of Serbia.
George's response was simple. If the Kingdom of Serbia handed over the command of the army to George, George could immediately order the 11th Army led by Brusinov to enter the Kingdom of Serbia and assist the Serbian army against the Austro-Hungarian Empire.
"Grand Duke, you can't do this. Serbia is an ally of the Russian Empire. This is your obligation!"
Peter I was very angry.
"Sorry, the empire has not yet entered a state of war."
George is indifferent, wants both, and George can do it.
(End of this chapter)