African Entrepreneurship Records 2

Chapter 1579: Visiting the front line in person
Italy's position in the current European landscape is quite delicate. While it appears to be a neutral country with diplomatic initiative, in reality, Italy has conflicts with both camps.

Therefore, Italy's desire to have its cake and eat it too is feasible in the early stages, and if it has no ambition, it is also possible to remain neutral.

However, Italian Prime Minister Benito is clearly not someone who can sit idle; his ambitions are no less than Adolf's.

……

1934 9 Month 11 Day.

Rhine City.

In between his work on economic statistics, Crown Prince Frederick and other high-ranking officials in East Africa kept a close eye on the developments of the war in Austria-Hungary.

"Germany has now occupied Prague, and the major cities in northern and western Bohemia are also under its control. The German army is also making good progress on the southern front and is rapidly advancing towards Vienna."

"However, Germany did not go further south to support or incorporate the remnants of the Austro-Hungarian southwestern theater, probably due to concerns about Italy's attitude."

East African Defense Minister Schwager planted flags on a sand table: red for Germany, yellow for the Labour Party, green for Italy, and blue for Austria-Hungary.

It was visibly increasing in the number of red German flags, while the number of Italian troops represented by green flags, though considerable, was mostly concentrated along the western line of Venice.

Yellow Labour Party flags are gradually decreasing, but there is a trend of their expansion in the East.

As Schwager planted his flag along the Danube, he said, "The Austro-Hungarian government forces are facing a very serious problem. Because of the previous Hungarian events, the Austro-Hungarian Empire dismantled a number of fortresses between Vienna and Hungary in an attempt to strengthen its control over Hungary."

"But now, this has actually benefited the Labour coalition government that occupies the Vienna Basin. As they advance toward Budapest, the lack of military fortifications in Hungary has actually hindered the Austro-Hungarian Empire's counter-offensive."

"The distance from Vienna to Budapest is less than 300 kilometers, which posed a fatal threat to the Austro-Hungarian government in Budapest."

Vienna possesses a natural geographical advantage over Budapest, and this geographical advantage played a crucial role when the Hungarian Labour Party regime collapsed.

Now the situation has reversed. The Labour Party controls Vienna, while the Austro-Hungarian government is in Budapest. Furthermore, Austria-Hungary had previously dismantled some military facilities along the route between the two cities, putting the Austro-Hungarian government in a difficult position.

Schwager said, "The current war situation in Austria-Hungary is quite bizarre. The Labour Party's losses in the north and west have been compensated for in the east and south. According to our judgment, if nothing unexpected happens, the Labour Party may be on the verge of Budapest within a month."

"Although Budapest is nominally the capital of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, it is weaker than Vienna. Last time, in order to suppress the Hungarian Labour Party, Hungary's military industry was destroyed."

"This has led to a severe shortage of weapons and ammunition for the Hungarian army."

As a major industrial center in Hungary, Budapest was previously the site of military industry censorship by the Habsburg royal family, who were based in Vienna, in order to strengthen their centralized power.

Now, they themselves are reaping the bitter fruit, which is truly unexpected.

Schwager said, "Now, the only hope for Austria-Hungary to turn the tide is for Germany to defeat the Labour government. However, if the Germans defeat the Labour Party, Austria-Hungary, even if it exists, will most likely become a puppet of Germany."

Crown Prince Frederick said, "I'm afraid Germany's ambitions are even greater than we imagine, after all, restoring Greater Germany has always been one of Germany's obsessions."

"However, we are powerless to help Austria-Hungary now. East Africa has little influence in Europe, and judging from Britain's attitude, they do not want us to get involved in European affairs."

Whether East Africa could militarily intervene in Europe depended entirely on the British, since the only way East Africa could provide military support to Austria-Hungary was through the Suez Canal.

The British dared not include East Africa in the Mediterranean. Previously, the British ambassador to East Africa had subtly indicated to East Africa that European affairs should be resolved by Europe itself, implying that they did not want East Africa to get involved.

For Britain, East Africa was a bigger problem, posing a greater threat to its Mediterranean hegemony than Germany and Italy.

Schwager said dismissively, "In the British mind, the Empire is much more difficult to deal with than Germany or Italy. Germany is not a maritime power, so it is not easy to threaten its Mediterranean interests and status in a short period of time."

"Although Italy also has ambitions in the Mediterranean, its own strength is weak, and its naval development is naturally limited."

Italy faces a similar problem to Japan: a severe lack of domestic resources. In fact, Italy's problem is even more serious, since Japan's geographical location makes it less susceptible to blockade and allows it to obtain stable coal and iron ore resources from outside. Italy, on the other hand, is trapped in the Mediterranean Sea.

The two vital passages of the Mediterranean, the Suez Canal and Gibraltar, are controlled by Britain, while the resources along the Mediterranean coast are either difficult to develop or not under Italian control.

Therefore, it was not difficult for Britain to suppress Italy. Italy was not like Japan, and was too far away from Britain. So when faced with Japan's betrayal, Britain could only watch helplessly.

In contrast, for Britain, as the dominant power in the Mediterranean, controlling Italy would be relatively easy.

As for Italy, it's basically impossible for them to break the deadlock on their own. Cooperating with Germany might be a gamble.

However, in East Africa, even Ernst was unsure whether Germany and Italy would join forces as they had in the previous life, because Italy's situation was too unique.

Schwager said, "Right now, Italy's attitude in Europe is full of uncertainty, and no one can guarantee which side Italy will choose to take in the future."

"Both the British and the Germans may think that Italy has value in winning them over, but who can ultimately bring Italy into their camp depends on which side is more in line with Benito's wishes."

"The conflict between Italy and the Austro-German camp was mainly a conflict between Austria-Hungary and Italy, and there was no possibility of reconciliation. Previously, Italy had always regarded Austria-Hungary as its number one enemy, and Germany, as an ally of Austria-Hungary, was naturally also affected to some extent."

"The contradictions between Italy and Britain and France are equally important. Italy has territorial disputes with Austria-Hungary, as well as with France over Corsica. At the same time, the two countries are also competitors in North Africa."

"As for the conflict between Britain and Italy, it is equally difficult to reconcile."

The conflict between Britain and Italy involves Italy's geopolitical interests; Italy's terrain resembles a dagger extending into the Mediterranean Sea.

Therefore, even Benito himself believed that the Mediterranean Sea was Italy's most important interest, calling it "our sea."

However, everyone knows that Britain is currently the dominant power in the Mediterranean, which creates a fundamental conflict of interest with Italy.

Italy is unlikely to prioritize expansion on the European continent, given the presence of the Alps, which naturally limits its interest in non-Mediterranean European territories. Schwager stated, "If Italy wants to become a world power, it must expand in the Mediterranean, and the actual beneficiary of the Mediterranean is Britain."

"Therefore, among the major European powers, Germany and Italy have the least conflict. However, the relationship between the two countries is now at a critical juncture where it will be put to the test."

"If Germany refuses Italy's request to reclaim Venice, Eastern Lombardy, and other territories, Germany may be regarded as an enemy by Italy."

"On the contrary, Germany may not be willing to give up these former Austro-Hungarian interests, which may be the main reason why Germany bypassed this region."

"However, Italy now has the support of both Britain and France, but its military progress in Venice is still far from ideal."

"Although Italy now has the strength of a major power, it ranks at the bottom among the major powers. Its military industry is far inferior to that of Austria-Hungary, and its weapons and equipment are not superior."

"Especially given that the Austro-Hungarian Empire still holds a geographical advantage and its army has more combat experience."

"If Italy cannot take Venice before the rebellion within the Austro-Hungarian Empire is suppressed by Germany, Italy will be in a very passive position."

It was not surprising that the Austro-Hungarian army was able to suppress Italy. Since the founding of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, it had been at war almost every so often, more frequently than Germany.

Therefore, the military proficiency of the Austro-Hungarian army was able to be maintained at a certain level.

At present, Austria-Hungary is still on the defensive, occupying high ground and possessing strong fortifications, making it impossible for Italy to defeat its southwestern garrison in a short period of time.

The biggest problem facing the Venetian Austro-Hungarian army now is the supply of weapons and ammunition.

With the Labour Party severing the connection between the Venetian Austro-Hungarian army and the Bohemian industrial region and Vienna, the Austro-Hungarian Empire now heavily relied on its stockpiles for ammunition on the Italian front.

Therefore, if we exclude the changes in the internal situation of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, Italy alone could take over the region by dealing with the Venetian garrison, provided it paid a price. The problem was that Italy did not want to drag it out for that long.

……

1934 9 Month 30 Day.

While the Italian and Austro-Hungarian armies were fiercely fighting in Venice, Benito, who was stationed in the rear, finally could not hold back any longer.

This Italian dictator risked his life to go to the front lines and address the Italian generals.

"Just a few days ago, the Germans captured Prague. On the other hand, our carefully prepared army is now being held up along the Brenta River by a remnant of the Austro-Hungarian army, unable to advance an inch."

"Is this what you promised me before the war: to take Venice within a month? Now we can't even see a trace of Venice."

Faced with Benito's rebuke, Italian General Hearst lowered his head and explained, "Your Excellency, it's not that we don't want to break through the Austro-Hungarian defenses, but it will take time."

"The Austro-Hungarian Empire had spent decades building this defensive line, so it's not surprising that our army was temporarily bogged down."

"Not to mention that the Austro-Hungarian Empire's firepower was much stronger than ours in the early stages. Now, although all of their firepower has declined, they still cause us a lot of trouble by taking advantage of the terrain."

"If we attack blindly and only pursue progress, we will inevitably suffer huge casualties."

Benito completely disagreed with Hearst's explanation, saying, "I'm not here to hear your explanations; I just want to see the changes in the battle lines."

"If we wait until the Germans stabilize the situation in Austria-Hungary, we will be put on the defensive, and Italy may lose the chance to take back Venice forever."

"We will all become historical sinners of Italy. Therefore, from now on, even at a huge cost, we must reclaim all lost territory. This is related to the future of Italy and is the key and foundation for Italy to rise and become a world power."

"Therefore, from now on, I will give you a maximum of one more month. The army must cross the Brenta River and capture Venice, and completely retake Trieste within three months."

In Benito's view, the land, including Trieste, was originally Italian territory. Of course, as the largest seaport of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, Trieste would be a huge victory for Italy if it could be brought into its possession.

However, the fact that Italy couldn't even cross the city of Venice made Benito very dissatisfied, so he had to go to the front lines to supervise the battle and boost morale.

Hearst said, "Your Excellency, we will certainly follow your instructions and do our utmost from now on, but we also need to make a request."

Although Benito was not satisfied with Hearst's bargaining, he still said, "Tell me!"

Hearst replied, “We need more artillery and shells, preferably more heavy artillery, since the Brenta River defenses are very strong, with enemy military fortifications and fortifications.”

"We cannot use our soldiers' flesh and blood to face the machine guns and cannons of the Austro-Hungarian Empire; it would be meaningless to do so."

Although the Italian army was larger, the supply of weapons and ammunition for the army was always a problem because Italy's industry itself was underdeveloped.

This was unavoidable. Before Benito, Italy was a fragmented country. Although the Kingdom of Sardinia wanted to develop its army, it was constrained by its finances, while the Papal States and Naples showed a passive attitude towards military development.

After all, these two countries were puppet states supported by the Austro-Hungarian Empire after the Austro-Italian War in the last century, so their defense development was restricted by the Austro-Hungarian Empire.

It wasn't until Benito unified the three countries that Italy had the conditions to develop a complete defense industry system. But by then, Italy had been out of touch with the world's major powers for far too long.

Many weapons research and development and manufacturing processes had to be started from scratch, and Italy clearly could not compare with the Austro-Hungarian Empire, which had many excellent military industrial enterprises such as the Škoda Arms Factory.

Italy's military industry needs time to develop, but the Battle of Venice won't wait until then.

Benito frowned, pondered for a moment, and then said, "I will purchase a batch of heavy artillery from abroad as soon as possible and transport it to the front line to solve the firepower problem. However, once the weapons arrive, I hope you will not make excuses for failure."

(End of this chapter)