Chapter 149: Military Report of French Popularization
"Adjutant Conrobel! If it were you, which side would you choose to support!"
Jérôme Bonaparte was not in a hurry to express his attitude. Instead, he asked Colonel Canrobert unhurriedly.
It is certainly a happy thing when a neighbor is unlucky. After the happiness is over, he must consider how to fan the flames and make the conflict between his neighbors more intense.
No one understood better than Jérôme Bonaparte that the crisis in France did not lie in Paris or the republicans, but in the German region next door.
If the integration of the German region is completed, not to mention the Greater Germany of 70 million people in Felix Schwarzenberg's grand blueprint, even the small German Empire with Prussia as the core excluding Austria will be a population-based empire.
, the military is slightly superior, and the economy is slightly lower than France's huge empire.
At that time, France will withdraw from the position of the first army in Europe, just like history, and the German Empire at the crossroads will become the new favorite of Europe.
This is an ending that Jerome Bonaparte cannot accept in any case.
In his opinion, the best result is that Prussia and Austria fight each other, one is killed and the other is injured (Prussian death and Austrian injury), and Uncle France protects the Rhineland and Germany as the guardian of order in Germany.
Jérôme Bonaparte's question made Canrobert startled for a moment, and then he cautiously said: "Your Majesty! I am a soldier and I don't know the twists and turns of diplomacy. If we only have a military perspective,
, I think we should give Prussia some support."
"Do you agree to support Prussia?" Jérôme Bonaparte's voice trembled slightly.
Canrobert thought and did not hear the change in Jérôme Bonaparte's tone. He nodded naturally: "Yes! From a military point of view, we must weaken Austria! Austria has the potential and population
They are all unmatched by Prussia, not to mention Prussia's army which is so bad that it couldn't be worse."
Canrobert's expression made Jerome Bonaparte realize that the current French army's perception of Prussia was still stuck in the Napoleonic War.
Prussia during the Napoleonic Wars can be said to have lost the face of Frederick the Great. It was once able to support Peter III of Jeopardy until Peter III came to power despite the huge disadvantages of the French, Austrian and Russian armies with an army of 1:3 and a population of 1:20.
In less than 30 years, the army degenerated into a "junk army" that was defeated by Davout's partial division, and then it took Emperor Napoleon two weeks to enter Berlin in a leisurely manner.
Even in order to plead for Emperor Napoleon's "understanding", the Queen of Prussia had to submit herself to Napoleon on a pillow, and King Frederick William III of Prussia had a green glow on his head.
You must know that the Kingdom of Prussia does not agree with the "open" Paris. The "hospitable" Parisians never mind the cheating of their wives in political marriages. They are even proud to have a charming wife.
The typical representative here is "The Bank of Nucingen" in Balzac's Human Comedy. After witnessing the death of Goriot, Rastignac made up his mind to climb to the top of power. He climbed up to Goriot's daughter, Nucingen.
Baroness Nucingen, under Rastignac's powerful "offensive", the Baroness and Rastignac soon became as close as each other. Of course, all this was seen by Baron Nucingen, and he was happy with himself.
His wife got involved with the Chevalier Rastignac, and he tried his best to bring his wife and Rastignac together. Whenever they were at odds or even about to break up, Nuchin and the Baron would pretend that they were about to discover their affair.
The two of them were so frightened that they reconciled.
A counter-example is the unlucky King Louis XVI. He became the object of ridicule by the Paris citizens because Louis XVI loved his wife so much that he had no mistress.
Of course, it is different from the "weird" products bred together by Catholicism and Paris.
As Prussia is under the rule of Protestantism, the Puritan conservatism has been deeply rooted in the bones, and it is impossible for Prussia to treat infidelity as a kind of showing off capital.
Therefore, the Queen of Prussia's act of recommending herself as a pillow was the greatest insult to Prussia.
Under the leadership of Emperor Napoleon, French people throughout Germany set off a wave of love for the German sisters.
The Guardsmen wearing French dragoon uniforms became even more popular among German ladies, so much so that a ridiculing saying was circulated at that time: "You deserve to marry a German."
Even when Prussia followed the Russian Empire in its counterattack, Blücher used his powerful cavalry mobility to effectively support the Wellington Battlefield and "bloodbath" the stain that destroyed the country in two weeks.
But in the eyes of the French and even the entire European powers, Prussia was still the last great power that was wiped out by a blitzkrieg.
So much so that Tolstoy openly mocked France in "War and Peace" for not bullying the Germans.
Jérôme Bonaparte knew that the French army, with its arrogance and arrogance, would become even more arrogant after the Crimean War.
It wasn't until they were killed by Moltke's 800,000 troops that they realized how far behind they were.
"Bad army? My dear adjutant, we cannot look at new things with old eyes. Prussia also carried out a reform after that battle (Battle of Jena). The current Prussian army is different from what it would have been.
The Prussian Army before the war.
Don't you think the Prussian army is too large?" Jerome Bonaparte asked tentatively: "Prussia has a population of 14.33 million, a standing army of 145,000, and reserves at all levels of 385,000. Every year
It costs less than 50 million francs, keeps costs low during peacetime, does not occupy too much labor, and can quickly mobilize a large number of combatants during wartime. However, our country only has less than 300,000 field troops, and soldiers recruited every year
It is already seriously inadequate, and we have to allow others to spend money to exempt themselves from military service.
Long-term military service has indeed made our soldiers more brave, but the long period of military service also prevents us from recruiting more soldiers. One has served for three years, and the other has served for ten years. Once a war breaks out, those who have served for three years will
The army can easily recruit more troops, and if a war breaks out, they will call back all the personnel. By that time, what situation will France face?"
Jerome Bonaparte gradually extended the topic from supporting Prussia or Austria to France's own system, in order to let his adjutant understand that France's military service system really should face a change.
"Your Majesty, please forgive me, do you mean that the Prussian army can equal France?" Canrobert looked at Jerome Bonaparte suspiciously. He even suspected that the monarch in front of him was mentally abnormal.
.
Even Pesini, who was beside him, also showed a shocked expression. He really couldn't imagine that the "Prussian threat theory" could be uttered by the emperor's nephew.
In the face of major issues of right and wrong, Jérôme Bonaparte also found it difficult to say that France's military system had completely lagged behind that of neighboring Prussia. He could only respond vaguely: "From the current point of view, the Prussian army may be far worse than France's."
, but they have a reserve force of nearly one million, and how many troops do we have in France?"
"Your Majesty, please forgive me for being rude!" Canrobert bowed slightly to Jérôme Bonaparte, and then said bluntly with a hint of arrogance: "How can an army composed of lawyers and citizens defeat us?
Troops who have fought hundreds of battles, we only need to put two shots on the battlefield, and they will scatter and run away.
Please rest assured that if one day Prussia really dares to invade us, we will defeat them before they are fully mobilized. War is not an arithmetic problem, and no matter how prepared you are, you may not be able to win on the battlefield."
"Is it really possible?" Jérôme Bonaparte said to Canrobert in a questioning tone.
"It will definitely be possible, Your Majesty!" Canrobert said with enthusiasm: "Please believe in this army created by your uncle!"
It's because of the army my uncle created that I don't want to believe it.
Jérôme Bonaparte complained in his heart. If his uncle hadn't forced the French army to become the first in Europe, why would the French army have become arrogant? They just wanted to stay on his uncle's credit book.
Willing to move, completely forgetting the differences of the times, the war gradually changed from an aristocratic recruitment system to a total war.
Of course, a century later, with the emergence of nuclear weapons, total war also gradually came to an end. Especially after the disintegration of the Soviet Union, most national troops except for a certain major country returned to the era of recruitment system.
In particular, the military powers led by the United States and Russia have pushed scalpel strikes by small groups of elite troops to the peak.
Jérôme Bonaparte stopped talking, and Canrobert also remained silent.
Now when Jérôme Bonaparte and Colonel Canrobert were in an unhappy situation due to issues of military philosophy, Pesini, who was inclined towards Canrobert's theory of "the French army is invincible", hurriedly came out to smooth things over and said: "Your Majesty.
, we are not discussing who wins and who loses between Austria and Prussia! How come it has become France and Prussia! Adjutant Canrobert, do you agree that Austria can defeat Prussia? "
"Austria versus Prussia is like an adult beating a child, and the result is self-evident!" Canrobert said firmly, and then added euphemistically: "Of course, this is just my military opinion."
In order to help Jerome Bonaparte regain his face, Pesini hurriedly said: "Adjutant Canrobert, I also had experience in the army for several years! I think Prussia is very likely to go to war with Austria!"
After saying that, Pesini subconsciously glanced at Jérôme Bonaparte.