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

Chapter 1815 Solving the Problem (Part 2)

In fact, excluding nobles was not worthwhile for Franz, and the line between nobles and commoners in the Austrian Empire was not absolute; it was entirely possible to recruit outstanding individuals into the ranks of the nobility.

Another, more common, and more traditional practice was the staff system. High-ranking nobles held the power to control the army, while elite commoners served as advisors, providing practical solutions.

At the same time, in order to prevent powerful nobles from seizing power, the king would often require both parties to be directly accountable to him, and all orders would have to be signed by both of them to be effective.

With just the slightest provocation, the two sides will be drawn into a vortex of infighting. After all, one side thinks the other is an incompetent fool, while the other side thinks the other is an rude nerd.

With both sides disliking and monitoring each other, the king's power was secured.

However, this model is obviously not sustainable in the long run. It may work internally, but it will likely destroy itself when it encounters a strong enemy or a chaotic battle.

The inability to make quick decisions and the failure to clearly define responsibilities only lead to internal friction and serve no other purpose.

Unless there is an emperor who has a god-like perspective, performs precise micro-management at all times, and never gets tired or slackens.

Of course, politicians and advisors throughout history have also seen its shortcomings, and thus divided it into peacetime and wartime.

However, the Austro-Hungarian Empire's history tells us that patching things up is useless. This approach might be an excellent solution politically, but militarily it's utter poison.

Furthermore, noble officers are not necessarily inferior to commoner elites. Several members of Grand Duke Karl's family are examples of this. They received better resources from a young age, and coupled with their own talent and hard work, they naturally stood out more easily than others.

Franz didn't expect to encounter military geniuses every time, but to enter the upper echelons of the military, one should at least reach the elite level in that field.

The nobles, who have better resources, should be expected to do better. In the past, they seemed so useless because they didn't need to work hard.

But things are different now. Franz doesn't want a bunch of incompetent slackers in high positions. If they can't do it, then they should give the opportunities and resources to others.

Franz did not lie to Benedek; he was indeed carrying out reforms.

The upward mobility channels for commoners also needed to be opened, but given the Austrian Empire's system at that time, it was unlikely that a large number of commoner generals would emerge.

But the people needed to see hope, so Franz had to increase the rewards for military achievements and performance evaluations. Fairness, especially for officers at the field level, was paramount to ensure sufficient incentive.

As for generals, there aren't that many core high-ranking positions in the military, so the focus is naturally different.

Franz's reforms are also visible; the speed of promotion for commoners is much faster than before, and because of the clear system of rewards and punishments, even those who cannot be promoted can receive a large sum of money as compensation.

Some people even took the money and left the army to experience a different life, which greatly reduced the resentment and negative emotions in the army.

Franz abolished the system in which civilian military cadets had to risk their lives alongside privates.

The main reason is that with the changing times, line warfare tactics have become somewhat outdated, and there is absolutely no need to sacrifice valuable personnel to their deaths.

Franz returned to the main topic.

What are your thoughts on this war between the British and Americans?

Benedek was also keeping a close eye on the war in North America, since Britain was indeed attracting attention like a torch at the time.

However, precisely because of this, Britain has been studied more thoroughly. "If the British cannot come up with more leverage to change the situation in a short period of time, and allow the conflict to drag on in the long run, the Americans will be the winner."

Benedek's analysis was very pertinent but also very rigid, but Franz was already prepared and simply nodded before letting him leave.

Franz didn't really understand how this guy became a legend; even with Franz's military expertise, he only thought the other man was just an average person.

If the British cannot come up with more bargaining chips to break the deadlock in a short period of time
This kind of nonsense is as good as saying nothing at all.

Although Franz was already doing his best to wear down Britain, how many troops the British could still muster in the North American war at this point still depended on the British government's determination and the endurance of those so-called elites.

Theoretically speaking, it wouldn't be impossible for the British to send an additional 200,000 troops to North America in one go after the Near East War ended.

At least according to intelligence from the Austrian Empire, the British had the capacity to do so.

The main reason for not engaging in a direct confrontation with the Holy Alliance in the Near East was that it would be pointless, since the Holy Alliance had far more resources than Britain in terms of piecemeal tactics.

Let alone two or three hundred thousand, even if the British could mobilize a million troops to win against Russia and Austria, who were fighting on their home turf, it would be unrealistic, and their logistics would be too much to handle.

According to the Austrian Empire's estimates, Britain's theoretical maximum troop deployment at this time should have been 500,000. This was because any more than that would have resulted in insufficient supplies and could easily lead to social collapse.

Britain today is not what it was at the same time in history; the whole country is filled with a somber and desolate atmosphere.

A series of defeats, endless rebellions, and a persistent economic crisis had pushed the British to the brink of collapse.

If large-scale conscription continues at this point, the British Empire may collapse prematurely.

Of course, the British government is unlikely to take such a desperate gamble, after all, they are the ones who are most afraid of chaos.

However, Franz was unsure of the exact amount of courage and perseverance the British would possess. On the other hand, he was not worried about the United States, as the US government had already resolved to confront Britain to the end.

Franz's only concern about the United States was whether, after the baptism of this war, there would be another Civil War in the future.

Moreover, the US military has now updated a large amount of Austrian and Russian equipment, which has greatly improved its combat capabilities. The experience and strategies of its officers are also different from those of the US military, which has fought against the Mexican army for a long time in the past.

Franz was unsure how the battle would unfold, but his wish was for both sides to suffer heavy losses.

The Austrian Imperial Academy of Sciences has developed a new product, but this time their research results are still quite off.

Engineers at the Royal Academy of Sciences of the Austrian Empire believed that motorcycles were more cost-effective than cars because they were flexible enough, simple in structure and easy to repair, and had lower production, maintenance and operating costs.

The most terrifying thing was that this group of people even wrote Archduke Franz Karl's name in the inventor column, which gave Franz a huge headache.

It was impossible for Franz's father to invent a motorcycle, but his desire for a faster bicycle inspired engineers in the Austrian Empire.

These guys added engines to bicycles, and these engine-equipped bicycles were far superior to the bulky and expensive cars of the time.

There is no need for a complicated power and steering system. Anyone who can ride a bicycle can master the skills of riding a motorcycle with simple training.