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

Chapter 1880 Herzen and His Dream
News of the turmoil in Bohemia quickly spread abroad, and it was clearly one of the biggest spectacles of 1859.

European countries, whether Britain and France, or Russia and Putin, are all waiting for the impact of this event to expand.

To their utter astonishment, the so-called rebels vanished completely overnight.

There are many theories surrounding this. Some say that the rebels defected at the last minute, causing the independence effort to fail. Others say that Franz carried out another decapitation strike. Still others say that the Empire summoned some kind of monster.
However, the fact that the Bohemian rebels, on whom so much hope was placed, were so easily defeated still left many people dissatisfied.

The most frustrated person was Napoleon III, who, after receiving Marquez's telegram, inexplicably wrote a reply.

Even Mark Rey himself didn't expect that he would be killed shortly after sending that telegram.

Now Napoleon III is worried about whether the Austrian Empire will receive the telegram, and if so, whether it will use it as leverage.

New technologies are indeed unreliable; they couldn't be withdrawn in time.
Prussia, on the other hand, was ruined by its own intelligence. According to official Prussian intelligence, the garrison in Bohemia was fully capable of confronting the main Prussian army.

So when the riots broke out in Bohemia, Wilhelm I even opened a bottle of champagne to celebrate, since such internal strife would not only damage Austria's military strength, but also its economy and control.

However, when he woke up with a hangover the next day, he found that the rebellion had ended.

This made William I wonder if he was still drunk, otherwise such an outrageous result would not have occurred.

Unfortunately, this was reality. Bohemia was defeated before William I could even make a decision, and militarily, it was a complete defeat that failed to cause any significant upheaval.

Such speed was indeed astonishing, but it was within Bismarck's expectations. He had traveled to many places in the Austrian Empire and gathered a great deal of intelligence.

Bismarck concluded that Franz's rule was far more stable than that of previous Habsburg monarchs, and that Austria was transitioning from a feudal state to a centralized empire.

While a rebellion might occur, its duration and destructive power would be greatly reduced, significantly decreasing the likelihood of forcing the central government in Vienna to compromise through separatism.

The Austrian Imperial government was determined that, given the strength to do so, no rebellion could escape being suppressed.

However, the Austrian Empire's suppression of the rebellion was much faster than Bismarck had anticipated, which further solidified his resolve to use economic means to reverse the situation.

St. Petersburg has finally been connected to the telegraph line, and many in Russia feel that now may be a good time.

As an ally, Russia could not directly attack Austria, but it could secretly help Bohemia.

In fact, Russia took in many Hungarian and Transylvanian exiles and even allowed them to study at Russian universities and in the military.

The purpose was self-evident, and the Austrian Empire did not restrict Russian exiles. However, the true Russian Westernists and radicals also looked down on Austria as an autocratic state.

These people felt that Austria, like Russia, was nothing more than a dying ember in a tomb.

They are ashamed to associate with such a country and regime; false prosperity and power cannot conceal their backwardness and ignorance.

Coincidentally, when Alexander Herzen, the leader of the Russian Western faction (who intervened between conservatism and radicalism), went into exile in Austria, the civil war of 1848 was just beginning.
Like many Russian intellectuals, Alexander Herzen had a special affection for Paris.

He arrived in Paris with an almost pilgrimage-like feeling when he left Russia. In the eyes of Russian intellectuals at the time, France was the beacon of Europe, representing freedom, civilization, ideals and all the beautiful things in life, and was the perfect country in their ideal.

"To see Paris is to die without regrets."

It wasn't a joke at the time, but a consensus. This influence lasted until the end of World War I.
However, the July Monarchy was already nearing the end of its life. Corruption was rampant, money was paramount, the gap between the rich and the poor was huge, and conflicts were sharp. The strong mercenary atmosphere almost suffocated it.

Herzen's ideal world began to crumble. He went from being full of expectations to being cynical and sarcastic, and in the end, he was left with only exhaustion.

Herzen was naturally unwilling to accept this, and soon after hearing that an uprising had broken out in Sicily, he gladly went to Italy.

In Herzen, Rome, he witnessed the Pope granting a general amnesty and easing censorship of books and newspapers, and he also met Mazzini.

However, this period of good fortune was short-lived. The Austrian Empire swiftly quelled the Venetian rebellion, and the situation in Italy changed dramatically. Previously, Italy was considering how to unify itself, but now it had to start thinking about how to protect itself.

Herzen, due to his special status, was commissioned by the Roman government to contact Hungary to discuss a joint effort against the Austrian Empire.

When Herzen arrived in Hungary, he felt an instant connection with Petőfi, as if they were kindred spirits. He felt he had found a comrade.

However, Herzen was extremely displeased with Kossuth's performative politics, especially his repeated bargaining on the issue of supporting the Roman Republic, which tarnished Herzen's greatest cause.

That weariness returned, but Italy and Rome were already doomed before Herzen's patience ran out.

Herzen joined the Republic of Hungary at Petőfi's invitation, but he soon had a serious ideological conflict with Kossuth.

Hungary's so-called independence was nothing more than turning what belonged to others into its own. The general oppressive policies against ethnic minorities and the suppression of high-ranking officials from other ethnic groups hit Herzen's sore spot.

After witnessing one massacre after another, Herzen finally spoke.

"You resist the oppression of the Habsburg Empire while oppressing the Slavs and Romanians within your own borders. How are you any different from them?"
I refuse to be a pawn in your dynastic power struggles.

What Herzen found even more unacceptable was that those around Kossuth always had an almost religious, mystical worship of him, which Kossuth himself greatly appreciated.

"That girl may be a good speaker, but it's dangerous for people to worship her like a goddess."

The hope of saving Hungary cannot be placed on him alone.

Herzen's remarks nearly cost him his life, and he was ultimately forced to hastily leave Hungary with the help of Feodorfi.

This foreshadowed Petőfi's later death.
(The subplot from 1848. Many people opposed writing a travelogue at the time, so it wasn't directly included.)
After experiencing all of this, what would Herzen's assessment of the Austrian Empire be?

Positive reviews are naturally out of the question.

The reason why Kossuth was worshipped like a god was because the influence of the leader at that time was too strong.

Herzen's assessment was adopted as a standard by Westerners and radicals, inevitably causing the reputation of the Austrian Empire to plummet.

As for the Slavs in Russia, their resistance was not particularly strong to begin with, and coupled with Russia's continuous victories in recent years, they were actually among the more supportive of the Russian government. However, this also prevented them from opposing serfdom.

In fact, after studying the Austrian Empire for some time, the Slavophiles discovered a surprising fact: there were quite a few Slavs in Austria as well.

It wasn't the Western Roman Empire; it was clearly the West Slavs. However, this Slavic perspective pleased neither side: the Russians saw them as traitors, and the Austrians felt insulted.

Therefore, Vienna held absolutely no appeal for those political exiles who opposed Russia.

The Austrian Empire's intelligence agencies couldn't find any good countermeasures, but Franz directly pointed to Chechnya, the Balkans, and Poland.

Franz was not against clandestine activities, but he felt that as long as Nicholas I and Olga were alive, the two sides would not go to the point of truly breaking off relations.

Nicholas I may have been a tyrant, a butcher, but he did value family and was a devout man who believed in destiny and promises.

Most importantly, Nicholas I had no interest in Bohemia at the time; he was still studying how to move the capital to Constantinople.

Nicholas I's greatest dream in life was to return the old capital to its former glory, but there were not many people in Russia who supported doing so.

The glory and dream of the Third Rome could not sway the Russian leadership, but shifting the political center south would indeed affect their interests.

Despite the enormous victory, the Russian monarch and his ministers became increasingly estranged.

Of course, the reason things turned out this way was not due to just one thing Nicholas I did.

It is no secret that Nicholas I was fond of military affairs, soldiers, and everything related to the army.

He had a lot of plundering and violence, especially after the signing of the Treaty of Constantinople, when Nicholas I sent troops to carry out a very thorough purge in Constantinople in order to eliminate any future troubles.

According to Russian military regulations, these spoils belonged to the government and the emperor. Usually, more than 50% would end up in the pocket of the marshal, the general in charge of the troops would take 30%, the remaining 15% would go to the field officers, 10% to the junior officers, and the last 5% would be left to the soldiers.

However, the soldiers could obtain more supplies, and the Cossack cavalry often sold their horses to buy alcohol, which was considered a gray area.

All of this is unwritten rule or can be attributed to tradition.

But Nicholas I, having conquered Constantinople, became arrogant and ordered all the spoils to be given to his soldiers as a reward.

This caused the bank that had previously lent money to Prince Menshkov to go bankrupt overnight, and the officers were extremely angry.

Although they didn't get much benefit either, what those soldiers had in their hands should have belonged to them in the first place.

The officers, who were of noble birth, felt insulted when their belongings were stolen by peasants, and their Slavic nationalism seemed so weak in the face of self-interest.

However, Nicholas I theoretically did have this power: all spoils of war by the Russian army belonged to the state, but "I am the state."

The officers had plenty of ways to get their hands on those valuables while the soldiers were in the army.

However, Nicholas I then ordered the release of soldiers who had rendered meritorious service from serfdom.

This offended not only the civil and military officials, but also the nobles.

Such a large-scale abolition of serfdom was far more excessive than what Alexander I had done in the Baltic states.

Even more problematic was the suggestion that Nicholas I should be exempted from serfdom, as this would prevent him from getting along with his serf family members and disrupt family harmony.

Nicholas I slapped his forehead.

"That's easy! Just exempt them all from the process, right?"

In fact, Nicholas I did not want to abolish serfdom; on the contrary, he was one of the most steadfast supporters of serfdom.

Nicholas I did this mainly because after Constantinople was ravaged by the Russians, the Ottomans were wiped out, the Greeks were expelled, and only a group of Armenians and Jewish merchants remained.

(At this time, Armenians were stereotyped as Eastern Jews by Europeans. Moreover, both Protestants and Catholics regarded them as heretics.)

They were considered an inferior race by the Russian population.
Nicholas I thought, how could he allow these guys to take over the capital that the Russian warriors had fought so hard to reclaim?
What if those people in China don't want to come?
He had a sudden inspiration: wasn't this something that was already there?

My army is loyal, capable, and composed entirely of pure-blooded Russians.

What? They have families?

That's great! Perfect for registering my residency directly!
Nicholas I was determined to rebuild his Eastern Roman Empire, but the Russian leadership could not accept it.

Liberating serfs would shake the very foundations of the state, and if Nicholas I had actually liberated those soldiers with military merit...

Then they would become Nicholas I's private army, and they would absolutely support whatever the Tsar wanted to do.

Furthermore, with Nicholas I's intention to move the capital, the Russian leadership had to consider the possibility that the Tsar might want to discard him after he had served his purpose, since it wasn't unheard of for a Tsar to do so before.

Nicholas I was the Tsar, and once he established his own regime, the old forces would become the targets of purges.

Extending their own feelings to others, they felt compelled to stop Nicholas I. Thus, the Russian high command united like never before, making things extremely difficult for the Tsar.

Ultimately, the amnesty for 100,000 households was reduced to granting freedom to only 500 households, shrinking to five-thousandths of the original plan.

Nicholas I was naturally very unhappy. He traveled back and forth between St. Petersburg and Constantinople many times in order to move the capital. During this time, he contracted typhoid fever and was attacked several times, almost losing his life.

However, the ministers paid him no attention, so Nicholas I had only one assessment of what the Russian leadership considered a good opportunity at this time.

“A bunch of lunatics. Anyone who tries to sabotage the relationship between the two families, I’ll strip them naked and send them to Vienna.”

It's said that Franz enjoys raising fish; he might just turn those talkative fellows into fish food.

Nicholas I was actually quite happy, after all, this was the first time he had caught up with hot news, unlike before when something happened in Europe and by the time it reached Russia, it was already mostly over.

Britain, on the other hand, was somewhat overwhelmed. The rebellion in Bohemia was good news for them, but Britain was unable to attend to other matters at the moment.

Palmerston, however, knew that a nation cannot only look at its current situation, but must consider the overall picture and the future. Unfortunately, before he could even get a chance to debate, the rebellion was suppressed.