The War Court and Lap Pillow, Austria's Mandate of Heaven

Chapter 1627 A big dream

Russia used the Treaty of Kuchuk-Kenargi as the legal basis for intervening in the Orthodox Christian affairs within the Ottoman Empire.

Nicholas I always loved this excuse. The banner of "protecting the faith" had been the clarion call for intervention in the Greek War of Independence, the opportunity to seize the Balkans, and of course, the hope of reclaiming Constantinople.

He has always been proud that he was fulfilling his sacred duty to protect Orthodox Christians, rather than simply engaging in territorial expansion.

Nicholas I had already planned that as soon as the Treaty of Constanta expired on June 17, 1855, he would declare war on the Ottoman Empire.

By then, the Austrian Empire should have come to its senses and accepted its advice.
"Your Majesty, your actions are indeed commendable, but there are very few Orthodox Christians left in Constantinople, or rather, in Eastern Thrace."

In fact, after so many years of conquest, most of the Orthodox Christians in the Balkans are already in Russia. Moreover, the Ottomans are not fools. They couldn't deal with the large number of Orthodox Christians before, but now the Orthodox Christian population has been greatly reduced, and the Ottomans do not want to repeat the same mistake.

The Ottoman government went to great lengths to reduce the number of Orthodox Christians in the country. Fearing that this would become a pretext for Russian interference, the Ottomans did not dare to take a hard line. They could only try to persuade the Orthodox Christians in the country, and even promised to send troops to escort them and provide each of them with a resettlement allowance of 50 rubles.

50 rubles was equivalent to half a year's salary for most Ottomans, which was quite attractive to the local Orthodox Christians.

However, Queen Sheffield Zare believed in the idea that "if people are saved, the land will be preserved," which resulted in Eastern Thrace taking in many Orthodox Christians who had fled there.

Furthermore, we must mention the actions of the Russian army, which essentially shattered the so-called Greater Slavic dream and religious dream wherever they went.

Anyone who has witnessed or heard of the atrocities committed by the Russian army, regardless of their beliefs, will never go to the Russian-occupied territories again.

When the Austrian Empire first occupied the two principalities, Wallachia was relatively well-preserved as it had already been thoroughly infiltrated and riddled with holes, while Moldavia was devastated by Franz's decapitation strike, which eliminated its leadership.

But the resistance from the lower classes and rural areas never stopped. They fought under the banner of loyalty to the Tsar and to be Russians, and only stopped after the Russian army crossed the border.
In February 1850, in a village in southern Moldavia, Vasily, the only literate teacher in the village, stood in the center of an open space and kicked away a coyote that had sneaked into the village, shouting loudly.

"Brothers! We are all Slavs! We are connected by blood, share the same heart, and uphold the same doctrine! Right across the Danube, our great father—Tsar Nicholas I—is watching over us!"

He will not abandon us, nor will he let us continue to suffer.

Just as we will not bring shame upon him! We will drive the Austrians and the cowardly Gregory Alexandru Gica from our land!
Redemption is coming! And we will surely be reborn!

Words like "brother," "Tsar," and "redemption" seemed to possess a magical power to soothe the villagers' hearts. They had long been fed up with the endless taxes, the tyrannical officials and brutal soldiers, and the days of hunger and cold.

In the evening, Varisi returned home to find his wife, Eva, busy at the stove, her thin clothes making her appear even more frail.

The pot was steaming, filled with wild vegetables, berries and mushrooms that I had picked myself, along with some mixed noodles.

This is the most common kind of porridge at this time.

"Ivan, have you gone to the village again to spout those unrealistic fantasies?"

"This is not a fantasy! This is the destiny of our nation!"

In response to Eva's teasing, Ivan immediately retorted.

"Alright, alright. But even if His Majesty the Tsar is great, we're going to run out of food. Grand Duke Grigory Alexandru Gika's soldiers just finished collecting grain, and now the Austrians are here."

"The Austrians have already defeated Archduke Gregory Alexandru Gicca, and who knows what they'll do to us next time they come," Eva said despondently. She was too weak and frail; her two previous children had both starved to death due to insufficient breast milk.

Ivan knew his wife was thinking about something sad, so he tried to comfort her.

"Alright, don't be sad. His Majesty the Tsar will save us. Have you heard? His Majesty the Tsar's army is fighting the Ottoman army, and the Ottomans are doomed!"

Eva did not refute it; she knew that in this forgotten corner of the world, people had almost nothing but faith.

The harvest from the fields belonged to the state and the landlords, as well as the nearby mountain bandits and passing horse bandits, but not to them.

When tax officials and conscription officers arrived, young men, women, and children could only hide in the mountains, and had to be on guard against bandits who might appear at any time.

Besides Ivan, several other "important figures" in the village firmly believed in the bright future of the Third Rome. They thought that the Tsar's rule would end all suffering and bring order and justice, freedom and prosperity, and a strong and civilized society.

However, what they did not know was that Russia and Austria had already made an agreement, and they would be sold to the Austrian Empire as a bargaining chip.

The villagers learned an astonishing piece of news from some caravans they had never seen before: they were merchants accompanying the Russian army.

This was quickly interpreted as a signal.

"The Tsar's army is coming!"

The news from the small town quickly ignited the village, and people's emotions reached a fever pitch. They found some white cloth that they were reluctant to use and red and blue dyes, and carefully made a tricolor flag with white, blue, and red colors.

Actually, the Russian tricolor flag (white, blue, and red) has nothing to do with the French; it was originally designed by Peter the Great himself in 1699.

Furthermore, it's unrealistic to expect a group of farmers to dye an eagle flag; even if someone knew embroidery, it wouldn't be possible to complete the task in a short time.

People dug out hidden flour and vodka from their basements, and children and girls busied themselves picking wildflowers and making wreaths, wanting to give their brothers the best of everything.

Sure enough, a few days later, someone shouted at the entrance of the village.

"It's the Russian army! It's our Slavic army!"

The man was so excited he almost fainted, and the villagers quickly carried him away to rest. Ivan and Eva, like all the other villagers, wore their newly patched clothes, held up the tricolor flag, and looked on with tears in their eyes.

When the Russian soldiers in their dark green uniforms approached, they could no longer contain their elation.

"Long live His Majesty the Tsar!"

Long live the Slavic people!

"Glory to Russia!"

However, instead of showing any brotherhood, the soldiers seemed rather irritated. They scrutinized the entire village with their eyes, scanning the houses and women, which sent a chill down the villagers' spines.