Persian Empire 1845

Chapter 383 The Tsar's Wrath

Russia was too preoccupied with Iran's territorial expansion to care about Poland, which was on the verge of being lost. This uprising unleashed the pent-up resentment of the Polish people, and it was even on the verge of spreading to Brest-Litovsk and Riga.

Alexander II was getting really frustrated; how could a seemingly overwhelming victory turn into a stalemate? And where did those well-trained Polish troops come from?
"Your Majesty, our troops are holding Brest, and they have also discovered something."

"What is it?"

The minister handed the Tsar a musket, more sophisticated than the Russian ones, but with Persian writing on it.

"Oh, it's him again!"

Alexander II angrily threw down his gun and shouted, "Tell the army to take Warsaw quickly and teach these people a lesson!"

Since Nasser al-Din came to power, Iran has been opposing them at every turn. Alexander is under immense pressure, and the infidels in the south, seeing Iran's rise, have become more ambitious. The Kazakh region, in particular, is incredibly stressed. Two governors have even fallen ill from exhaustion.

"Tell me, what should we do?"

Chairman of the Council of Ministers Peter Valuyev spoke first: "Your Majesty, we should increase our troops in the Caucasus to deter Iran."

As a conservative, Valuyev was a staunch supporter of military expansion, believing it was the only way to restore the glory of the Russian Empire. Therefore, he demanded not only the suppression of the Polish uprising but also a bold plan: to exile millions of people from the Baltic region and Poland to Siberia, followed by the migration of millions of Russians there. This, he argued, would stabilize their rule in the region.

“Your Excellency Valuyev, have you forgotten that our country is undergoing reforms to the gold standard? Increasing spending at this time is not a good option,” Finance Minister Mikhail Reiten retorted to the Prime Minister.

“Your Majesty, we must be wary of an uprising in Poland, but the most important thing now is to develop the economy. The railway plan has been finalized, and construction has begun on the railway from St. Petersburg to Kyiv. At this time, we must not allow fiscal expenditures to increase.”

Mikhail also left out the fact that one-fifth of the funding for this railway project came from Iran. Furthermore, Iran is one of Russia's most promising customers, as Russia exports large quantities of grain and timber to it. Ukrainian landowners are unlikely to relinquish this client.

"But this is our best option. It's just a weapon, and who knows what might happen in the future?"

“Probably not,” Foreign Minister Gorchakov said, pulling out documents. “Currently, Iran is discussing the status of Mecca with the Ottoman Empire. It’s likely just a simple arms deal.”

If that's the case, Alexander's anger might subside somewhat. Because every country has done these things in secret. Given the animosity between the two nations, this isn't surprising.

"Your Majesty, we can send an ambassador to inquire about Iran's movements and see if they will declare war on us for Poland's sake. Additionally, we can seek mediation from Austria." Alexander II was still pondering how Austria had betrayed Russia in the Crimean War. However, Austria was also one of the closest allies to Iran and could potentially influence the situation. Making contact wouldn't hurt.

"That's the only way, Milyutin. You go to Minsk yourself and make sure to suppress these traitors."

"As ordered!"

Army Minister Milyutin confidently declared that the unrest would be quelled within six months. Indeed, after the emancipation of the serfs, Russia seemed more vibrant, albeit perhaps too much so. Uprisings were rampant, and the Russian army certainly got a good workout.

At this time, Russia was thriving, thanks to the abolition of serfdom and the flourishing of local industry and commerce. This was largely due to foreign capital. Iranian capital also seized the opportunity to invest locally, in mining in the Ural region, textiles in Moscow, and forestry in Finland. All of these ventures were profitable.

With the development of industry and commerce, Russia's fiscal revenue has increased. This allows for investment in the military, indirectly strengthening its military capabilities.

However, the dangers are also apparent. Although they gained freedom, peasants needed to redeem their land from landlords, and the high ransoms left many peasants with heavy debts, preventing them from fully developing their productive enthusiasm. In some areas, peasants still used traditional farming methods, and the modernization of agricultural production was relatively slow.

However, the agricultural boom spurred the development of related industries, and the commercialization and export orientation of livestock products also increased significantly, with exports of butter, milk, and other products reaching new highs. Hired labor became an increasingly common mode of agricultural production.

As agricultural commercialization increased and production surged across the board, the differentiation among farmers accelerated and deepened. Farmers were divided into rich farmers, poor farmers, and middle farmers who moved in between. They produced large quantities of grain and exported it all over the world.

Russia's industrialization was a combination of government and private sector efforts. Due to Russia's participation in Napoleon's Continental System, imports of cheap British textiles were blocked. Private enterprises that relied on import substitution emerged as a result. However, Napoleon's invasion in 1812 and the Great Fire of Moscow destroyed these enterprises, severely damaging the textile industry.

The biggest obstacle to the industrialization of Russia's textile industry was the institutional constraints of its feudal, patriarchal, and natural economy. This coincided with a period when industrialization gained overwhelming dominance in the global economic structure. Countries like Britain, France, Prussia, Austria, and Iran all began to industrialize through the textile industry, and naturally, Russia wanted to follow the same path.

However, the Russian textile industry also faces some constraints. Systemically, the Tsarist government imposed high protective tariffs on textiles, which deprived the entire industry of the incentive to enter the international market and the conditions to accept the test of international market competition. The main consumers in the domestic market—farmers and workers—have low purchasing power and cannot become the demand pillar to support the expansion of the textile industry's production scale. They cannot obtain funds for in-depth industrialization development from the demand channel. Textile enterprises generally have low capital and machinery structures and still focus on extensive expansion of reproduction with low labor input.

Therefore, Alexander II's single serf reform was insufficient. More changes were needed, but the Tsar currently faced not only conservative elements like the landowners but also populists advocating for the equal distribution of land. These were the very foundations for destabilizing Russia, and both had to be resolutely suppressed.

Alexander II looked at the map on the wall, his hatred for Iran deepening. They were so close to reaching the Indian Ocean… so close.

(End of this chapter)