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

Chapter 1784 An Ordinary Battle, An Extraordinary Strategy
With the collapse of the right-wing mountain defenses, the Ottomans' main position on the Strymon River also became precarious.

The Ottoman army offered no resistance when the airship force attacked, while the British army, on the other hand, showed little fear and held their ground.

It must be said that the kill efficiency and hit rate of the airship force are very worrying. Even though the airship has been around for nearly ten years and has undergone many iterations, its inherent problems still cannot be solved.

There's a joke circulating in the airship force that they scare more people to death than they bomb.

Statistically speaking, however, this is not a joke. The number of enemy soldiers killed directly by airships is far less than the number of enemy soldiers who suffer natural losses.

However, it must be said that the airship's destructive effect was quite explosive. A single heavy bomb could instantly blast a target to pieces, not to mention that the Austrian Empire also had a deadly weapon like the white phosphorus bomb.

The Ottomans' level of education meant they believed more in metaphysics than in science.

"What is that! That's an airship? It looks like a giant dark cloud!"

An Ottoman soldier on the banks of the Strymon River shouted, which immediately drew the attention of the others.

"Why can it fly without wings? Is it really a demon?"

As those colossal creatures slowly approached, and their side was powerless to stop them, finally someone shouted.

"Run away!"

The others seemed to wake up suddenly from a dream, and even many officers wavered, instinctively following the flow of people to retreat.

Commander Ahmed Yilmaz had seen this situation far too many times, and he drew his sword and shouted.

"Advance, sir! Anyone who retreats will be executed! Hold the line!"

Only then did the lower-ranking officers who had fled realize what was happening, and they all raised their whips to lash out.

"Go back now! Prepare for battle!"

"Why are you running?! Go back inside!"

Amid a chorus of shouts and curses from officers, the Ottoman army managed to regain its footing temporarily, but this situation did not last long.

The Austrian Empire also began its bombardment, but this time it was significantly different from the previous bombardments, with a greater emphasis on striking deeper into enemy territory.

In fact, this was an old tactic of the Austrian Imperial Army: using airships and infantry as cover to move artillery positions forward for precision strikes.

Of course, the main targets of the airship force were those immobile cannons, and the generals of the Austrian Empire were well aware of the principle of playing to their strengths and avoiding their weaknesses.

Since the hit rate is low, then go shoot at stationary targets.

Even if the airships are slow, they will still outpace the artillery units, and as long as the artillery positions can be moved and cannot be deployed and fired in time, the Austrian military's tactical objective has already been achieved.

Although the Ottoman lines were at the forefront, the British were not going to stand idly by. In fact, they also wanted to test the effectiveness of the anti-aircraft guns in actual combat.

Hamilton Connolly, a Royal Artillery Major, was both a commander and an excellent artillery engineer, a pragmatic old-school officer.

At his command, all 12 anti-aircraft guns fired simultaneously.

This was the first time the British Army had deployed anti-aircraft artillery units in actual combat, but while the effect was not negligible, it was almost negligible.

These so-called anti-aircraft guns were simply modified field guns, with the main increase being the elevation angle, which made it possible to hit high-altitude targets.

However, the targets shot at were balloons suspended in place, not moving targets like these, so the effect was naturally much worse.

As the first country to use airship forces, how could the Austrian Empire not study countermeasures?

Therefore, the Austrian Empire's airship forces only flew at low altitudes when pursuing targets or when a high hit rate was required.

Otherwise, it will always fly at the maximum distance of ordinary anti-aircraft guns, which can greatly reduce the possibility of being hit by anti-aircraft guns.

Of course, if you still get hit, there's nothing you can do, since the higher an airship flies on the battlefield, the less effective it is at deterring enemies.

If the enemy cannot be seen clearly from a high vantage point, then the enemy will not be affected in the slightest.

In fact, everything at this time was aimed at eliminating the enemy's artillery. After being harassed by the airships, the Ottoman artillery at the front line was subjected to precise artillery fire before they could even rest.

This is another major role of airship units: to provide rear artillery with information on the positions of enemy artillery.

After the Ottoman artillery units suffered a devastating blow, the outcome of the battle was no longer in doubt.

In this era, the status of artillery had been greatly elevated, and many generals believed that no army could withstand endless bombardment, and the Ottomans were no exception.

At this point, Ottoman army commander Ahmed Yilmaz faced only two options: either abandon the position and regroup, or at least find firepower to counterattack and then hold the position in place.

The second option is to launch a glorious charge.
Ahmed Yilmaz commanded the Ottoman Empire's newly formed army, fully equipped and trained in the French style, embodying Murad V's boundless hopes.

"retreat!"

Ahmed Yilmaz was not about to waste his life here, while the British troops behind him were speechless as they watched the Ottomans hand over their position.

At this point, would the British army reinforce the line, attempting to use that thin red line to halt the advance of the Austrian imperial army?
The answer is no.

The British forces along the Strymon River defense line numbered just over ten thousand, and their objective from the beginning was clear: to assist in the defense. They were not going to cover the Ottomans' rear.

This quickly escalated into a complete rout, with British and Ottoman troops scrambling to escape in a chaotic and disorganized manner.

However, General Gablenz, the commander-in-chief of the Allied forces, was in a dilemma.

"Congratulations, General. You have achieved another brilliant victory."

Otto I, standing to the side, stretched out his only arm.

Gablenz was stunned for a long time before replying.

"Thank you, Your Majesty."

Although Gablenz said this, he was not at peace inside.

"The Ottomans and the British are failing in such a rigid way. Why are they running away as soon as the war starts?"

And such a widespread rout?

Of course, he could only think these things in his mind and couldn't say them out loud, since the Greek army in front of him wasn't much stronger than the Ottomans on the other side of the river.

Most importantly, Gablenz felt it was perfectly acceptable to send the Greek army to scout ahead first, in order to avoid falling into a trap set by the enemy.

Even if Gablenz really wanted to pursue them, the Austrian army, which had not yet fully crossed the river, did not have the necessary conditions.

"General Gablenz, aren't you going to order a pursuit?"

Otto I did study military affairs, but his level of knowledge remained at the level of the 18th century.

“Your Majesty, we lack the resources to pursue them now. Let’s consolidate our beachhead first.” Otto I wanted to say something more, but after looking at his severed arm, he ultimately chose to give up.

The entire battle was so uneventful that it was almost boring; the Austrian Empire's elite mountain infantry didn't even have a chance to make their mark.

Because the Ottoman defenders fled so quickly, they didn't give the Austrian army a chance to attack them from both sides.

Although the Austrian army achieved the expected victory, the manner of the victory was completely unexpected by the General Staff.

The results were pitifully small; the manpower of the Ottoman and British forces was not reduced much, only the space for the other side to operate was compressed.

According to the plan of the Austrian Imperial General Staff, the Battle of the Strymon River should have entered a stalemate, and then be ended by elite mountain troops attacking from the flank.

In fact, the Austrian army had a backup plan: small groups of troops that landed on the coast would attack the Ottoman logistics teams.

However, all of these plans have now come to naught.

Franz personally didn't dislike these boring victories; in fact, he wished he could receive such news every time.

Continuing to weaken the Ottomans would not have brought much benefit to the Austrian Empire. If it weren't for Nicholas I's desire to seize Constantinople, Franz would have preferred to maintain the status quo.

However, this battle also convinced Franz of one thing: the British fighting spirit was lower than he had imagined, which was a good thing for subsequent operations.

Although defeating Britain was no longer impossible at this point, with many successful precedents, Franz would still be eager to minimize his losses.

"The British and Ottomans have abandoned their positions! Your Majesty, they are terrified! We should continue our assault so that we can enter Constantinople before the Russians!"

Count Latour is recounting his grand dream.

"If the Russians could reclaim Constantinople, why can't we Austria do the same?"

Schwarzenberg seemed to be infected by the other person's emotions and also spoke very excitedly.

This statement actually represents the thoughts of a considerable portion of the Austrian Empire's high-ranking officials; they genuinely wanted to compete with the Russians.

Franz was speechless for a moment. He really wanted to tell these people the stories of Liu Bang and Xiang Yu.

However, that's not quite right, since Liu Bang was still very weak at that time.

"I would like to make one thing clear to you all. I have emphasized this many times: our Austrian Empire will not lay a finger on Constantinople."

"But it's right in front of us."

“No need, Count Latour. Our strategic objective is to assist Russia in forcing the Ottomans and the British to surrender, and to reduce the British manpower as much as possible.”

Franz's tone left no room for argument, so naturally no one would dare to cause trouble at this moment.

Franz pointed to the map and said.

"We still have the Nestos River defense line and the Meritch River defense line ahead of us. Moreover, as our army advances, it will inevitably draw the main force of the enemy. It's a bit too early for you to celebrate now."

"Your Majesty, the enemy is utterly vulnerable."

"I don't need speculation; I want results. I want everyone to understand that we are at a critical juncture, and every decision we make could potentially alter the course of the entire European military and political landscape."

If you don't want us to end up like the Russians, then you'd better follow my plan.

The members of the Imperial Council were somewhat surprised by Franz's repeated warnings. After all, Franz had rarely interfered with the Council's decisions recently, giving the impression that he was about to give up.

This was actually in line with the ministers' expectations. After all, a person's energy is limited, and His Majesty the Emperor should be enjoying his time instead of spending all his time immersed in government affairs.

However, His Majesty's actions today were very unusual, resembling both a warning and a declaration.

"Should we head north directly to support Russia?"

The Nestorth River defenses are stronger than the Strymont River defenses, and as you said, as we advance, the Ottomans and the British will devote more of their energy to dealing with us.

If what you say is true, I think going north is the best option right now.

Grand Duke Albrecht said without a trace of emotion.

Franz could only manage a wry smile at this.

"Your Excellency, your analysis is correct from a purely military perspective. However, we also need to consider our allies."

Franz's words confused Albrecht.

"Aren't the Russians our allies?"

Prince Schwarzenberg then understood.

“We also have an ally – Greece.”

After Schwarzenberg's explanation, everyone understood the crux of the matter: without the help of the Austrian Empire, the Kingdom of Greece would not have been able to defeat the Ottomans, let alone seize their territory.

However, the Kingdom of Greece was key to counterbalancing Russia, so the Austrian Empire had to help this ally acquire as much spoils as possible.

"Breaking through the Nestorus River defenses should not be a problem for our army, after all, the combined forces of the Ottomans and the British have performed terribly."

However, the Ottoman Empire's influence is deeply entrenched in eastern Macedonia, and a forced occupation could result in heavy casualties.

Count Latour was well aware of the horrors of guerrilla warfare. After all, the Austrian Empire had to invest a huge amount of manpower and resources every year to deal with bandits, mountain bandits and rebel forces in the country in order to maintain a superficial state of peace and prosperity.

Of course, if it were for the sake of the Austrian Empire itself, then he would do it without hesitation. However, Count Latour felt it wasn't worth it for the sake of Greek territory.

At this time, conquering the territory of the Ottoman Empire seemed like an easy task to the high command of the Austrian Empire.

However, the lessons learned from experience tell them that maintaining stability is the most difficult and arduous task.

"Do not underestimate our enemies."

Behind the Nestorus River defense line lie numerous Ottoman landowners and minor nobles. They lack the privileges of the greater nobles and are unable to leave this area, so they will undoubtedly fight us to the bitter end.

"Then can we ask the Greeks to persuade them to surrender?"

Lord Haberscu, who had just returned to Vienna, had a sudden thought: he saw many Greeks living in Constantinople who still considered themselves subjects of the Ottoman Empire.

Based on this reasoning, wouldn't those Ottomans also be willing to become Greeks?

This is actually a viable approach. At that time, the Ottoman Empire had not yet formed a nation-state, and Greece was far from being as advanced as they boasted.

However, there is a problem: this is inconsistent with the Greek nationalism promoted by Otto I, and it also poses a huge hidden danger to the future stability and development of Greece.

Franz did not object.
(End of this chapter)