Holy Roman Empire

Chapter 233: The Constantinople Demolition Team

St. Petersburg

When Tsar Nicholas I received an urgent telegram from Menshikov, he was disturbed, especially when he saw the estimated ammunition consumption in the following notes. His heart was bleeding. This was all money!

The Russian government had already spent three or four hundred million rubles on this war. If you add the economic losses caused by the war, this figure could easily double.

Where was the victory? This was a question that no one could answer. Looking at the situation on the battlefield, it seemed that the winner was far from being determined between the two sides.

If he had known in advance that the war would lead to the current outcome, Nicholas I could guarantee that he would never have started this conflict.

Casualties were tolerable; Russia was a large country capable of bearing them. But the cost of the war far exceeded his expectations.

Before the British and French entered the war, the Russian government planned to launch several offensives to take Constantinople directly, capture it within three months, and then defeat the Ottoman Empire within a year.

After the British and French entered the war, the Russian government believed that once the Bulgarian campaign was over, the capture of Constantinople would be relatively easy. Once they took Constantinople, negotiations could begin to resolve the issues.

Unexpectedly, when they reached the gates of Constantinople, they encountered the French blocking their way.

With two hundred thousand French troops defending the fortress city, this outcome was enough to make anyone despair. However, there was no choice; under domestic pressure, they had to proceed even if it meant facing seemingly insurmountable challenges.

Even the hardheaded Russians got hammered until they were dazed. After exhausting various means, the final conclusion was that they had to resort to artillery bombardment.

Nicholas I asked, “What do you think of General Menshikov’s proposal?”

Minister of War Chernyshyov replied, “Your Majesty, from a military perspective, General Menshikov’s proposal is sound.

Constantinople is one of the most formidable fortresses in the world, heavily defended by the enemy. There is no shortcut to conquering it; we can only methodically take one stronghold at a time.

Fortunately, the Ottoman Empire has decayed, neglecting the construction of fortifications. It is only with the use of artillery that we can advance.”

This answer was quite ironic — had the Ottomans not neglected the modernization of their fortifications, even the use of artillery might not have had any effect.

This was the fact — if the Russians could get heavy artillery, could the enemy not get some for themselves? If the war required it, Britain and France could easily produce thousands of artillery pieces.

According to General Menshikov’s proposal, artillery positions could be built a few kilometers away and bombard Constantinople. With such a large target, even if the people could hide, buildings could not.

Two hundred thousand French troops scattered throughout the city definitely don’t have enough bomb shelters to hide in. Just indiscriminate bombing can inflict heavy losses on the French, assuming there are enough cannons and ammunition.

Civilian casualties had never been a consideration for the Russian government. If they did not flee, even if they knew that war was coming, they were seeking death. Cannons and guns do not have eyes.

Finance Minister Vronchenko frowned and said, “Your Majesty, the number of cannons requested by General Menshikov and the terrifying amount of ammunition consumption are quite excessive. Can’t they be more frugal with their usage?

It is not cheap to have these heavy cannons and ammunition. Even if the Austrians don’t take advantage of the situation, it’s still an astronomical figure!”

He wasn’t against the plan itself. He just felt heartbroken about the money. Constantinople must be captured, or else there would be no way to explain it domestically. This was a consensus reached by all.

As for the broader perspective, Vronchenko still had some understanding. The problem was that the Russian government was indeed in financial trouble. It was extremely difficult for them to come up with several hundred million rubles at once.

The fact that Austria did not take advantage of the situation was one of the reasons why the Russian government supported Austria at the Paris Conference, instead of being influenced by the British and French.

Nicholas I was a man of integrity, and as long as it did not exceed his bottom line, he generally kept his promises.

Of course, if it went beyond that line, being the Tsar, he had the same hereditary talent as his ancestors, as evidenced by their practices.

“Mr. Vronchenko, the priority now is to take Constantinople. Once we have achieved this goal, I can negotiate a ceasefire with the British and French.

If the war continues, our military expenditures in the later stages may be even higher than now,” Foreign Minister Karl Nesselrode persuaded.

They were all in the same boat; everyone would be in trouble if the boat capsized.

Now the river had begun to rise, and there was a possibility that the waves would overturn the boat at any moment. The only solution was to reach the harbor as quickly as possible and take shelter from the storm.

To reach the shore, they must capture Constantinople. Capturing Constantinople would not only appease internal sentiments but also provide leverage in negotiations with the enemy.

Finance Minister Vronchenko grumbled, “Count Karl, am I the kind of person who can’t see the bigger picture?

The current problem is that the Ministry of Finance simply doesn’t have enough money to pay for the war expenses.

According to General Menshikov’s plan, it can’t be done without two or three hundred million rubles, and that’s if everything goes smoothly.

In actual battle, unforeseen circumstances are bound to occur, and the cost may increase even more.

On the battlefields of the Caucasus and Crimea, war is being fought on both fronts. Commanders on the front lines are urgently requesting new equipment, and this is an urgent matter that requires funding.

The annual tax revenue of the Russian Empire is only so much. Because of the war, our tax revenues are expected to decrease further this year. Where am I going to get so much money?”

Lack of money was indeed a major problem, especially in times of war. It was manageable in peacetime, but when war broke out, the weaknesses of Russia were exposed. The Russian Empire lagged far behind capitalist countries in terms of raising funds.

To put it bluntly, countries like Britain, France, and Austria could resort to printing more banknotes even when they were running out of money. In the worst case, this could lead to inflation, but it could be a solution to urgent financial needs.

Can the Russian Empire do the same? They use rubles, which have always used real gold and silver. They don’t recognize paper money issued by other European countries, and the international capital market doesn’t recognize paper rubles issued by the Russian government.

Even domestically, not many people trusted paper rubles, mainly because of the government’s questionable reputation from past issues.

“How much are we lacking?” asked Nicholas I, showing his concern.

The shortfall was expected. The key was the magnitude of the shortfall. If it was not too big, they could still find a solution.

Finance Minister Vronchenko analyzed: “Your Majesty, if General Menshikov’s plan is implemented, the preliminary estimate is that our military expenditures in 1854 may exceed four hundred million rubles, which will exceed the total sum of the previous year and a half.

By issuing bonds we can raise 65 million rubles. Government tax revenues can provide 80 million rubles. We can also get 58 million rubles from domestic banks.

Now that Constantinople is within our grasp, we can levy a war tax, which we estimate at 120 million rubles.

The final deficit is 77 million rubles. This is under ideal conditions. If circumstances change, this figure may increase further.”

Nicholas I remained silent; the deficit was too great, and domestic tax revenues had reached their limit. Any further increase could lead to great unrest.

Minister of War Chernyshyov inquired, “Is it possible to obtain loans from abroad, perhaps from Austria?”

Finance Minister Vronchenko shook his head and said, “That is impossible. We have exhausted all the channels available for raising funds overseas.

If the Austrians had not initiated the war of unification last year, they might have been able to provide us with this loan. However, it’s not possible now.

Although they nearly annexed Bavaria without much bloodshed, to deter Britain and France, they mobilized nearly 1.8 million troops, consuming a considerable amount of their government’s financial resources.”

There was no way around it; Austria’s financial situation was only slightly better than Russia’s. However, the Austrian government was accelerating the process of industrialization and channeling a significant portion of its financial resources into domestic development.

Considering the expenses from the previous year’s war, from a professional perspective, Vronchenko assessed that the Austrian government could not come up with this amount of money.

After some hesitation, Nicholas I slowly asked, “If we temporarily suspend the war in the Caucasus, how much military spending can be saved?”

In the current three-front war, the capture of Constantinople was the top priority for the Russian government, followed by Crimea. Both places were non-negotiable.

As for the Caucasus, the Russian forces had an absolute advantage and held the initiative in the war. Stopping the offensive there would only bring relief to the ailing Ottoman Empire and would not provoke them to be active.

After careful consideration, Finance Minister Vronchenko replied, “Approximately 40-50 million rubles can be saved. If we negotiate a ceasefire with the Ottoman Empire, withdraw the majority of our forces, and deploy them to the Crimean front, we could save an additional 10 million rubles.”

This meant a reduction in the number of troops. Since the forces in the Caucasus were withdrawn, there would be no need for additional mobilization, closing the manpower gap.

As the saying goes, “When the cannons roar, a million in gold is spent.” This statement was not an exaggeration; in fact, it might even be an understatement. In this era, war required not just thousands but millions of taels of gold, at the very least.

Nicholas I said resolutely, “Very well, let’s do it this way. We will temporarily spare the Ottomans; in the Caucasus, we will switch from offense to defense, moving troops to reinforce the other two fronts. Once we take Constantinople, we’ll reassess the situation.

As for the remaining deficit, the Ministry of Finance will find a solution. In any case, this is a critical moment, and we cannot let a lack of funds lead to the failure of the war.”

“Yes, Your Majesty!” Vronchenko replied helplessly.

This was a difficult problem. Although it appeared that a significant portion of the deficit had been addressed, the remaining shortfall was still astronomical.

This was not an easy problem to solve, especially when all fundraising options had been exhausted.

But in his current position, Vronchenko could only steel himself to find a solution.

The problem of financing was solved by a narrow margin, and with unanimous agreement, the Constantinople Demolition Team was officially formed under the leadership of General Menshikov. Their rallying cry was to raze Constantinople to the ground.

As for concerns about preserving historical buildings, the current Russian government couldn’t afford to consider such issues. The priority was to capture Constantinople first, and post-war reconstruction could take care of any collateral damage.

If necessary, the blame could be shifted to the French. Once the Holy City was retaken, no one would care about minor imperfections. It could be said that the Russians ignored everything else in their quest to conquer Constantinople.

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