Holy Roman Empire - Chapter 468

Chapter 468: Chapter 41, Boer Republic
 

South Africa, the sweeping British Army finally encountered trouble. After penetrating into the Transvaal region, they were harshly struck by the Austrian Nobility’s prepared Aristocratic Private Army, with the vanguard suffering heavy losses.

This was also due to the British’s arrogance. A series of victories had made them proud, causing them to overlook that their earlier success was aided by local guides. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have split their forces and advanced recklessly.

In fact, since the outbreak of war, there had been people providing information to the British, but it didn’t receive the attention it deserved.

What’s a mere trading convoy? In Africa at that time, who didn’t have blood on their hands from running trade? The concept of an Aristocratic Private Army in the minds of the British was equivalent to convoy guards.

Hearing that they numbered only two or three thousand, and that these were divided into a dozen or so companies, the British were completely reassured. In their view, faced with such situations, of course, the thing to do was to take flight immediately.

This piece of intelligence was not even reported. Although the Boer people had defected to the British side, they didn’t hold high status and lacked the qualifications to be in contact with the upper echelons of the British.

From start to finish, Governor Delf never received relevant intelligence. And of course, even if he had, he might not have paid it much attention, given the vast difference in numbers, which didn’t pose a threat.

It was not until the front line suffered defeat that Governor Delf received the report. By then, the numbers were no longer just two or three thousand.

Under the threat of the British, Viscount Feckney successfully took over the military and political power of the Boer Republic, and incidentally sent the upper echelon of the Boer Republic to the rear, in the Central and Southern African region (Zimbabwe region).

Taking over power, the first thing naturally was to expand the army. The Boer Republic also had universal conscription, and even though the training had been neglected in recent years, the skeleton of the militia system was still there.

By the time the British fought their way over, the number of troops under Viscount Feckney’s command had already surpassed 15,000. Although the numerical gap between the two sides was still enormous, the balance of power had nevertheless changed.

The vanguard of five thousand British soldiers became the first victims of asymmetric information. These losses did not concern Governor Delf much, as those who died were mostly native cannon fodder.

What troubled him was how to fight the subsequent battles. With the involvement of Austrian nobility, the enemy he was facing was no longer the unsophisticated Boer Republic, but Austria, the European land power.

The spirited Lieutenant General Friedman had now lowered his proud head. Despite nearly having an army of 26,000 troops, the actual number of white soldiers was less than 8,000. The rest were Native Troops.

The initial purpose of training these native troops was to use them to cause trouble for the Austrians in revenge for their driving native tribes into South Africa in the past.

One must know that the reason the South African colony didn’t expand over the many years, aside from the London Government’s lack of attention and minimal investment, was primarily due to the Native Tribes expelled by the Austrians.

In the mid-19th century, the number of white people in Cape Town had exceeded one hundred thousand. Yet now, the number of white people in Cape Town remains the same, with virtually no growth.

Apart from the opening of the Suez Canal, which weakened the economic value of the Cape of Good Hope’s port, there were the losses brought by the influx of the Native Tribes in the past.

To stabilize the situation, the Cape Town Colonial Government had constantly incited internal warfare among Native Tribes and occasionally suppressed the larger tribes themselves, taking years to resolve the problem.

This was why South African colonists deeply resented Austria. That major operation back then caused them severe losses, and many Colonial Teams were forced to shift their developmental focus.

Madagascar fell into British hands under such a backdrop, which was one of the few achievements that the British had on the African Continent in recent years.

However, this achievement had nothing to do with the Governor of Cape Town, as the British had also set up a colonial government on Madagascar, without incorporating it into the Cape Town Colony.

With a grim face, Governor Delf said, “Lieutenant General, I want to know if you are capable of fighting? If you can’t fight, I can request that the London Government send someone capable to replace you.”

No wonder he was angry; the battle had been a mess. They attacked without even knowing the enemy’s situation. Winning would have been one thing, but they lost.

Lieutenant General Friedman didn’t say a word. After a defeat, whatever he said would be wrong. Purely from a military deployment perspective, his performance had been by the book.

The failure at the front wasn’t merely an issue with command. More significantly, it was the troops’ lack of combat effectiveness.

After all, the forces now under Viscount Feckney were mostly new recruits, in their period of integration. If the British troops had been strong enough, it might have been a resounding victory.

Having vented his frustration, Governor Delf’s tone softened, “Lieutenant General Friedman, what is your plan moving forward?

The enemy is not the natives we have encountered before. This war will be very difficult to fight. It could be said to be the toughest battle since the establishment of the Cape Town Colony, but you must achieve victory!”

Indeed, Governor Delf wanted to make a change. He had long been dissatisfied with Lieutenant General Friedman, who was full of bluster, but turned out to be all talk and no action on the battlefield.

However, finding a replacement was necessary. The Colonial troops were not particularly strong to begin with, and most colonial officers were rejects of a sort.

The kind of capable officer, who is extremely skilled but gets sent to the colonies for being headstrong and offending people, only exists in novels.

In reality, if anyone seriously offends others, they would be sent directly home, without any chance of a comeback.

Despite the poor conditions in the colonies, they are good places to gain military honors. There’s no shortage of nobles’ sons who come here for a gilding of their credentials, so why would they give opportunities to their enemies?

In the original timeline, Napoleon IV, engaged to the British Royal Family, had an unfortunate end while seeking glory in the colonies before his wedding.

Those capable of commanding tens of thousands of troops are highly skilled. In Britain, they are treasures; even if they are doing poorly, it’s improbable that they would stoop to serve in a colony like Cape Town.

The current South Africa lacks dazzling radiance. Until the gold mines were discovered, it was just another ordinary colony.

Lieutenant General Friedman, although somewhat annoying, still passed muster in terms of capability, at least somewhat stronger than the others. Governor Delf could not possibly put an incompetent fool in charge, it would be digging his own grave.

Setting aside the question of the capabilities of those sent from the homeland, there simply wasn’t enough time. This war was a battle against time, and if it dragged on for three to five months, it would become a war of attrition in the end.

At that time, both sides would have to rely on their manpower and financial resources. Perhaps the British would not falter in terms of finances, but it was hard to tell about manpower.

If tens of thousands were to die, he could not explain it to the people back home. They were facing the “Boer Republic”, and to pay such a price for attacking a tiny nation, it would be difficult to avoid a military tribunal.

Lieutenant General Friedman hurriedly answered, “Your Excellency, the situation has exceeded expectations, and I hadn’t expected the Austrians to be so shameless, impersonating the Boer Republican Army to fight against us.

No one knows how much they are investing, but just the enemy in front of us numbers thirty thousand, and it’s already quite difficult for us to defeat them. If the enemy continues to reinforce, I fear the eventual outcome will be unpredictable.”

This attempt to deflect responsibility did not please Governor Delf at all. However, he didn’t say anything, as they were all in the same boat now.

It was always right to exaggerate the enemy’s strength first, if we won, the glory of our victory would be even greater. If we lost, it was because the enemy was too powerful, and the fault was not ours to bear.

With an unchanged expression, Governor Delf said, “That’s right, the Austrians are exceedingly shameless, actually impersonating the Boer Republican Army to partake in the battle. We must crush their conspiracy.

Cage, send an urgent telegram to London for reinforcements, explaining the difficulties we face, and have the Foreign Office protest to Austria.”

If it weren’t for fear that the figures were too large and might lead to external suspicion, Governor Delf wouldn’t mind exaggerating the size of the enemy forces by double.

As for having the Foreign Office lodge a protest, that was a joke. The Vienna Government would never admit to such a thing. The Boer government had already fallen into the hands of the Austrians, who took all the responsibility upon themselves.

No matter what, as long as the Boer Republic insisted, the lawsuit would not proceed.

Unless they caught a big fish, which was highly improbable. The Austrian nobility commanding this war, none of them were active military officers, and they had little international notoriety.

From the beginning to the end, the Vienna Government never participated in this war. As for the merchants providing arms and ammunition, it was the Boer Republic who bought them.

As a member of the free trade world, selling arms and ammunition was nothing out of the ordinary for Austria.

Even the origins of the Boer military funds were clear; the Vienna Government didn’t sponsor a single penny. The Boer Republic mortgaged land and borrowed 300 million Divine Shield from the Imperial Bank.

There’s no need to talk about risk; this was usury, with a monthly interest rate of eighteen percent. Given such high interest, the risk obviously could not be small.

All the aftermath was well managed by Franz, fearing no one could pick out any issue.

After the war, it was inevitable that the Boer Republic couldn’t repay the debt, without this reason, how could Austria justify annexing the Boer Republic after the war?

As an Emperor, Franz most certainly did not wish to see a Republic within the Empire. Not repaying the debt and confiscating the collateral, it was only right to dissolve the Boer Republic.

One could say that this Anglo-Ebura war provided Austria with a perfect excuse, and even significantly lowered the costs of bribing local notables.

If Franz were to be shameless, he could even choose to default. Since the terms weren’t met, the initial promises naturally became void.

It could be said that Viscount Feckney shipping the upper echelon of the Boer Republic to the rear, was a stroke of genius, completely cutting off their bargaining chips.

Of course, those who chose to cooperate with Austria from the beginning were definitely not going to suffer such a fate. Franz, ever magnanimous, would not do something so shameless.

The unfortunate ones who hadn’t negotiated their terms now had no need to talk. Only three options remained: either follow Austria’s lead; or defect to the British; or flee right away.

Viscount Feckney was not coercive in any case; without eliminating a handful of interest groups, how to accommodate the contributors?

This war was not fought in vain; the more that was invested now, the greater the returns after the war. Without adequate returns, so many from the Nobility would not have brought their own provisions here.

The lands in the South African region were indeed very good, not only fertile but also with a very hospitable climate. These Plantation Owners had long wanted to come here and claim land.

Luckily they didn’t know about the gold mines below; otherwise, not just these nearby Nobility would come, but even the local Nobility would be unable to resist taking part.

Not just these individuals, but even thinking about the terrifying gold reserves of the Rand mines, even Franz was tempted, but he could still restrain himself.

Having too much money was just a number; gold mines attracted too much attention and could easily stir up enmity. Even if mining for gold, one would have to keep it hidden in the background.

Purchasing gold was a fine business, the profits earned might not be less than what the mine owners made, and it wouldn’t draw attention.

On the surface, it seemed the profits from gold purchases weren’t very high, just slightly below the market price.

In reality, once it went through a round in the financial market, and then processed into art pieces, and entered the gold consumption market, the profits were entirely different.

What’s more important is that the cost of capital for banks purchasing gold could be disregarded. Gold was a form of currency, as a reserve it was more reliable than any currency.

Even in a banking crisis, no one would refuse gold as payment.