Chapter 473: Chapter 467: Not a Smooth Alliance
Jerome Bonaparte and Fitzroy James Henry Somerset (Baron Raglan’s full name), the old and the young gazed at each other for a long time, neither speaking first, as if time and space had frozen in the hall of the Tuileries Palace.
From Baron Raglan’s perspective, Jerome Bonaparte seemed to be a "reflection" of a bygone era, an era rife with conflicts and the clashing of swords and spears!
While from Jerome Bonaparte, Baron Raglan felt a youthful vigor and an unmistakable aura of ambition.
If Count Laglen were to name the person most likely to become a formidable enemy to the Kingdom of Britain in the future, it would certainly be the person in front of him, surrounded by generals and dignitaries like stars around the moon.
Young Albert might just be about to shoot himself in the foot!
Baron Raglan couldn’t help but resent Albert internally. Clearly, he had heard from someone about the transactions between the royal family and Jerome Bonaparte.
However, in an instant, Lord Raglan was relieved since he was already seventy-five years old and probably wouldn’t live to see the day France surpasses Britain.
Each generation has its own fortunes, and if the younger generation is not capable, he, as the older generation, can’t crawl out of his grave to admonish them!
With this thought, Baron Raglan’s attitude toward Jerome Bonaparte slightly changed; he stepped forward and stopped just a few steps away from Jerome Bonaparte, bowing and saying, "Gracious Majesty, I represent the British Army in offering our highest gratitude to you and your forces for helping us in times of crisis! May the friendship between the French Empire and the Kingdom of Britain last for generations!"
It turned out that during Lord Raglan’s wait to be summoned by Jerome Bonaparte, Jerome Bonaparte had already received a telegram from the Constantinople embassy.
Valerovsky claimed that Britain, stationed on the Gallipoli Peninsula, was suffering from harsh cold weather, with non-combat attrition increasing daily.
The British Ambassador Canning specifically came to the embassy to seek his assistance, hoping the French Empire could help the Kingdom of Britain out of its plight.
He also hinted that if they successfully rescued the Kingdom of Britain, the Kingdom of Britain would offer some "preferential treatment" to the French Empire, including but not limited to the discounting of British bonds held by the French, to maintain the financial environment within the French Empire.
However, the corresponding demand was that the French Empire could not proactively report this action.
After all, the Kingdom of Britain prides itself on its public image, and having already lost substance, it could not afford to lose face as well.
Upon receiving these conditions, Valerovsky immediately sent a telegram to Paris, and Jerome Bonaparte, upon receipt, couldn’t help but find it absurd.
He hadn’t expected that the French Empire’s first "battle" in the Near East was not against the Ottoman Army in Chiyuan Silistra, but rather to "rescue" its imperialist ally.
The actions of the Kingdom of Britain on the Gallipoli Peninsula reminded Jerome Bonaparte of the future "pig teammate," the "Kingdom of Italy."
However, upon carefully considering the Kingdom of Britain’s subsequent military achievements, Jerome Bonaparte found that besides fighting African natives and in the Far Eastern regions, they had hardly fought any formidable nations.
If not for Jerome Bonaparte needing to break the shackles of the Holy Alliance imposed on France, relying on Britain’s own strength alone would likely make it difficult for them to end the battle in a short time.
However, the Kingdom of Britain would surely win the war.
Overall, the Kingdom of Britain, as a "thorn" ally second only to the Kingdom of Italy, is stronger than the Kingdom of Italy precisely because it is wealthy; as long as there is money, there is nothing they cannot achieve (except in the case of a certain Middle Eastern tycoon in later generations).
Although the British Army’s combat power might not match that of the French Army, the cost spent on each British soldier equates to that of one and a half French Imperial soldiers.
With sufficient supplies and salaries, the Kingdom of Britain only needs to proceed steadily to eliminate opponents weaker than itself.
That being said, adhering to the principle that not taking advantage of opportunities makes one a fool, Jerome Bonaparte immediately appointed Valerovsky to take full responsibility for the liaison work.
Later, he sent a telegram to the headquarters located on Rhodes Island, ordering them to prepare the weapons, equipment, and surroundings for 20,000 men as quickly as possible for the Kingdom of Britain to choose from.
If the British Army, having hastily abandoned their supplies, wishes to assemble a full set of equipment without relying on the French Empire, they might have to wait two to three months.
After all, the Kingdom of Britain had not yet begun mobilizing, and the newly formed corps still needed to be equipped.
After all the arrangements were complete, Jerome Bonaparte then "considerately" informed Ambassador Cowley about the situation concerning the British Army and notified him to arrange an audience with Baron Lagren on February 1st.
This led to the scene of Baron Lagren expressing his gratitude.
"It’s nothing; the French Army and the British Army should naturally support each other and jointly oppose the enemy of the free world, the Russian Empire! Fight for the peace of the free world!" Jerome Bonaparte declared righteously.
"Exactly! We are fighting for the freedom of the Balkan nations!" Baron Lagren echoed without feeling any shame.
After a brief conversation, Jerome Bonaparte and Baron Lagren warmly shook hands, while smiling and encouraging the adjutant behind Baron Lagren to learn from this capable and battle-ready general.
Baron Lagren, after receiving the praises from Jerome Bonaparte, allowed a slight smile to appear on his lips, and his hostility towards Jerome Bonaparte diminished a bit.
Baron Lagren, who considered himself of a higher military rank, also accepted requests to shake hands with Minister of War Kuzen Montebon, Vice Chief of Staff Nie’er (a position Jerome Bonaparte particularly added, feeling that Nie’er’s power and rank did not match), Commander of Strasbourg Marshal Renio, and others.
However, a small unpleasant encounter occurred between Baron Lagren and Marshal Renio during their handshake.
The reason being, Lord Lagren, who rose to prominence during the symbolic period of Napoleon, believed that Renio, who had no exceptional military achievements, was merely a sycophant unworthy of the marshal title.
Therefore, he looked down on Renio and equally held disdain for Marshal Saint Arno, the Chief of Staff commanding the French Army in the Near East.
After the meeting concluded, the political dignitaries left one by one, leaving only Jerome Bonaparte and his generals, along with the far-traveled Baron Lagren, in the Tuileries Palace hall.
Jerome Bonaparte then invited Baron Lagren and his adjutant to proceed to the internal operations meeting room of the Tuileries Palace, where he would have a detailed discussion with Baron Lagren regarding the recent actions of the Russian Empire in the Near East.
Baron Lagren, holding a critical mindset, agreed to Jerome Bonaparte’s invitation, and the group entered the operations meeting room converted from a reception room.
Upon entering the meeting room, Baron Lagren saw firsthand the Near East map hanging on the wall. Compared to the map he found in travel notes, this map was far more detailed, with every area meticulously marked, making it a near-perfect military map.
Seeing this map, Baron Lagren could not help but curb his disdain.
In any case, the French Ministry of War, at least in terms of military maps, showed more responsibility than the Kingdom of Britain.
With this thought, Lagren became more convinced that the Anglo-French Alliance Army would surely achieve victory.
Sitting below the platform, Baron Lagren watched Vice Chief of Staff Nie’er, who was responsible for the explanation, and could not help but feel somber. At Nie’er’s age, he was still serving as the military secretary for the Duke of Wellington, and the logistics (armament) directorate, which Nie’er also held, was a position he had only taken on last year.
It can be said that if not for this war, Baron Lagren might never have had the chance in his lifetime to hold the position of the Expeditionary Army’s Commander-in-Chief.
A subtle sense of jealousy surged in Baron Lagren’s heart.
As the main speaker, Nie’er took a deep breath, glancing down at the general, having prepared extensively and consulted the map countless times to deliver this lecture well.
Nie’er began to explain the deployment of the Russian Empire, "According to our intelligence, the Russian Army located in the Danube River Region is now divided into three parts, with one part stationed at the Silestra Fortress, which is also Russia’s largest corps! A month ago, this enormous army attacked Silestra day and night, nearly breaching it several times! However, the garrisoning Omar forces repelled them with resilient determination. Perhaps due to excessive casualties, this army stopped its offensive two weeks ago and switched to a defensive stance!"
Nie’er, speaking, placed his hand on the Ruse Fortress and continued: "Here is Ruse, second only to Silestra Fortress. Since the Russian Empire began its offensive, the troops here have been rather quiet. I suspect they aim to hold back the viable forces of the Ottoman Empire using Ruse! The third part, located in the northeastern Danube, is likely positioned there to guard against possible Austrian Empire attacks! In short, the Russian Empire in the Near East is launching attacks in all directions but cannot create an advantageous situation in any! Therefore, our recommendation is to generally send small reinforcements to support the garrison troops of Silestra, utilizing the powerful fleets of Britain and France to destroy the naval forces stationed at the Odessa Port, and then attempt a landing to cut off the Russian Empire’s Danube supply line!
If we cannot land at Odessa, we could also consider a landing at the Sevastopol Fortress!"
Having finished, Nie’er glanced below.
Jerome Bonaparte, sitting next to Baron Lagren, whispered to inquire how Baron Lagren viewed the situation.