Volume 3: Confrontation! The Run of Civilization Chapter 525 Everyone Has Their Own Ideas
Just as Tia boarded Zhu Shengmiao's cargo ship and prepared to return to America, in Vienna, Europe, Philip was also meeting with a group of local leaders who were dressed in various clothes and spoke similar but different languages.
"For you Balkan Yugoslavs, Bulgarians, Romanians, Greeks... I have only one attitude, which is to rescue you from the evil Ottoman Empire. Don't worry, I will do my best to discipline the troops during our march. I can't guarantee that I will not disturb the people, but I promise that if I find any troops that violate your legal rights without reason, I will punish them severely."
"Your Majesty, we are willing to trust your assurance. What do you need us to do?"
"It's simple. When our army is marching on the Balkan Peninsula, you will act as a guide for us, send people to assist our logistics transportation, organize militias, and fight against the destruction of our logistics routes by the Star-Moon Cultists on the peninsula."
"Your Majesty, we are willing to do these things for you, but we lack sufficient power."
"Hahaha, gentlemen, it is already February 18, 1625. In half a month, we will begin to march towards Constantinople. At that time, as long as you help us along the way, we will give you corresponding weapons!"
…
While Philip was appeasing the leaders of various Balkan tribes, in another room not far from his conference room, Wallenstein and Gustav, the two commanders on the northern front, were having a private conversation.
Both of them are famous generals who have never been seen before. They have always respected each other as opponents. Now they are comrades-in-arms...
"Your Majesty Adolf, this is the new marching plan made by the General Staff based on the recent movements of the Ottomans. In general, the Ottoman regular army is retreating in great strides. Whether it is Zagreb, Belgrade, Bucharest or Sofia, the garrisons in these places are retreating."
"… Your Excellency, I didn't expect that this Grand Vizier of Ottoman Empire is such a decisive person."
"Yes, it took the Ottomans nearly two hundred years to conquer the entire Balkan Peninsula. They gave up just like that. If I were in his shoes, I probably wouldn't be able to make such a decision."
After saying this with a heavy face, Wallenstein said: "It seems that we will have to fight a fierce siege near Constantinople."
"It's not just a siege." Gustav frowned, "Logistics is a big problem. God, I never led more than 30,000 troops before, and I felt that the logistics would collapse, and that was on the endless plains of Central Europe. And this time, 200,000 troops are marching on the rugged Balkan Peninsula, and these troops are from different countries... It's really terrifying to think about it."
Gustav was not complaining casually: he and Wallenstein commanded a total of ten divisions on the northern front, with 200,000 men. Among these ten divisions, there was not a single Spanish division. Instead, they came from Britain, Denmark, Northern Europe, France, Germany, and Italy. It was a truly international force.
Among these troops, the King of Sweden could command only one Nordic division, while Chief of Staff Wallenstein could effectively command three divisions from the German region - this was the biggest difference between Philip and Rudolf in military personnel arrangements. The latter was more pure in military terms, and focused on commanding in a convenient way. The former, on the other hand, wanted you to check and balance each other.
Moreover, unlike Spain, which had already completed military reforms and had a standard 15,000-man division, Gustav's ten divisions, because the reorganization had not yet been completed, had an average of 20,000 people per division: for the same cannon, the Spanish new army only needed five or six people to serve, while the coalition needed ten people. At the same time, because there were too many nobles at all levels joining the coalition, their attendants also followed them into the army. This made the 20,000-man division extremely bloated, and the relationship between its combat effectiveness and the soldiers in the army...
"Logistics is indeed a huge pressure, so His Majesty Philip is helping us to seek help from the local indigenous people."
"Well, Your Majesty always thinks long-term, and I admire that deeply." After licking Philip, Gustav said, "Your Excellency the Duke, have the Polish and Russian troops arrived?"
"The General Staff received news this morning that 20,000 Polish cavalrymen will enter Vienna tomorrow. As for the Russian cavalrymen, well, they are not far from here. But the problem is, they have made a request?"
"A request? You are not refusing to fight alongside the Poles at this time?"
"Yes, Your Majesty. As you know, the Poles and Russians have been fighting for many years."
"Nonsense! It's already this late, and you're still talking about this. Your Excellency, please tell the Russian leaders that when all the followers of the Lord of Europe are about to launch a holy war against the infidels, they can no longer consider the past grudges. For example, you and I were mortal enemies on the battlefield a few years ago, but now we are working together for this sacred goal, aren't we? If they insist on doing this, please ask them to take their troops back. We will come back to settle accounts with them after we defeat the Ottomans."
"As you command, I will convey your meaning to the other party without any compromise."
"Ah~" Gustav sighed and sat down weakly: "I have a feeling that this may just be the beginning. There will be countless troubles waiting for us during the march and battle."
"I agree." Wallenstein curved his lips. "However, I also believe that after this battle, the whole of Europe will be more united than ever before."
"Yes." Gustav stood up and circled his fingers around the magnificent hall. "It is said that this Hofburg Palace, as the royal palace of the Austrian Habsburg family, was built in the 13th century. It is now the 17th century, four hundred years later, and it is still expanding. I really cannot understand such behavior. In my opinion, instead of wasting a lot of wealth on this palace, it is better to concentrate the power of all Europe to fight a good battle with the Ottoman Empire like today. Thanks to the blessing of the Lord and the trust of His Majesty Philip, I can participate in this great war, and I will do my best for it!"
"I fully agree with your idea, Your Majesty. Please rest assured that I will do my best to cooperate with you in the upcoming war."
"Thank you very much. Then, Mr. Chief of Staff, please contact His Royal Highness Crown Prince Władysław. After his Polish cavalry arrives in Vienna, I will give him three days to rest. On February 22, his cavalry will go south first and deploy quickly."
"As you wish. Your Majesty, after the cavalry reconnaissance begins, who will be the vanguard of the new army?"
"Oh?" After looking at Wallenstein with interest, Gustav hesitated for a moment, but still said, "Let the First German Division take charge of this."
“Thank you for your generosity.”
Everyone knows that the early stages of this battle were very easy: the Ottomans were retreating in great strides. At this time, being the vanguard, wouldn't it be easy to recover a large amount of land without losing a single soldier along the way? Regardless of whether there was a battle or not, newspapers like Marca would definitely report it in a high-profile manner: a certain division recovered Belgrade or something like that.
Therefore, the Chief of Staff was really grateful to Gustav for entrusting the vanguard mission to Wallenstein's direct troops.
Alas, there is nothing we can do about it. The population of Northern Europe is sparse, so we only have one division this time. But it doesn't matter. You go ahead to build bridges and roads, and I will stay behind to strengthen the relationship with the commanders of the British, Danish, and Apennine divisions. In order to avoid a real war in the future, I will be completely controlled by you.
Besides, with your temper as a commander, Wallenstein, your soldiers might have a violent conflict with the residents of the Balkan Peninsula. Then I will be able to catch you.
Of course, the above were only Gustav’s personal thoughts, and at the moment he had no intention of using tricks to replace his chief of staff: Wallenstein’s talent was unquestionable, and all Gustav was thinking about was how to make his chief of staff more obedient.
…
At the same time, on the southern front, Sicily, Palermo, front-line headquarters.
"Commander, Chief of Staff, the navy has found out that the main fleet of the Ottomans in the Mediterranean has been completely withdrawn. At the same time, Tripoli has become an empty city except for ordinary residents and merchants."
"Well, it seems that the Grand Vizier of the Ottoman Empire is really powerful. He is willing to completely abandon a place like Tripoli. So, Mr. Barudis, where did the enemy retreat to?"
"The navy saw more fortifications in Alexandria, but it has not yet been determined where the enemy fleet went."
"Where do you think the enemy's navy will retreat to?"
"It is said that there are many islands in the Aegean Sea, which is very conducive to hiding. However, our Spanish fleet has never penetrated into that sea area and has no idea about the sea conditions there. So..."
After listening to the report of Fleet Commander Barudis, Marquis Spinola, Chief of Staff of the Southern Front, turned to Duke Albrecht, the commander of the Southern Front, and said, "Sir, the situation is now clear . The enemy knows that their navy will be destroyed by our Invincible Fleet once the war starts, so they withdrew in advance. They also clearly realized that Tripoli, which has insufficient output, cannot be defended, so they stationed heavy troops in Egypt and wait for us to hit them. In view of this situation, I suggest that we abandon the previous plan of landing in Tripoli and switch to landing the entire army in Egypt."
Duke Albrecht in this life is a devout Catholic. In the original historical plane, he served as the Governor of the Netherlands and brutally suppressed Protestants in the northern Netherlands, causing the intensity of the Dutch War of Independence to continue to rise.
Originally, this gentleman died in 1621, but thanks to the medical progress brought by the time traveler, he is still alive and kicking at the age of 63. According to Philip, such an old man should not preside over a war dominated by a new army. But on the one hand, he has a long history and a high seniority, and on the other hand, the junior officers of Spain's new army are all loyal fans of Rudolf. Therefore, after considering for a long time, Philip appointed him as the commander-in-chief of the southern front: this is the actual commander of the southern front.
Of course, in order to prevent this foolish old man from messing around, Philip also assigned him the Marquis of Spinola as his chief of staff. The Marquis's loyalty to the kingdom is unlimited: in history, in order to fight for Spain, the Marquis lost all his property. At the same time, the Marquis is also a good fighter. When Rudolf carried out military reforms, he also actively accepted and worked hard to learn. In short, if it were not for his qualifications, this person should be the commander-in-chief of the southern line.
"Hmm..." After thinking for a while, Duke Albrecht spoke: "The enemy has stationed a large number of troops in Egypt. Do we have to ram them? I think that because our navy is strong and we have complete control of the sea in the eastern Mediterranean, why don't we use this advantage and land directly in Jerusalem?"
"Sir!" Spinola and Barudis shouted at the same time. "The order sent to us by the Chief of Staff from Rome is to complete the landing in North Africa before March 1. Jerusalem is not considered North Africa, right? And we are leaving the enemy's heavy troops in Egypt and heading directly to Jerusalem? What if Jerusalem is also heavily guarded by the enemy?"
"Divide the troops. We have 300,000 troops, and we can't deploy them in one place. Let's split into two groups, one to Alexandria and the other to Jerusalem."
"Sir, should we report this new plan to Rome?"
"It's too late. It's already February 18th." Duke Albrecht frowned. "Besides, since I have been appointed as the commander-in-chief of the front line, there is no need to consult the Roman mercenary on everything."
"Your Mightiness!"
"Hey, you two, think about it. Our army will definitely win this war. And if we take Jerusalem first, and let this city of the Lord return to the Lord's embrace after hundreds of years, such glory will be enough for us to go down in history. Don't you want this supreme honor?"
This was the sequelae of Rudolf's sudden death: the military did not have a person with an impressive record and absolute strength to suppress this group of nobles who always had various ideas, especially the military nobles in Spain! And Philip still needed to learn military skills. Therefore, this unprecedented gathering of the largest military force in Europe was a bit chaotic from the beginning.
