Chapter 1056, led by Germany
East Africa’s support for the Ottoman Empire and Persia is relatively simple and straightforward, that is, to help the two countries, especially the Ottoman Empire, establish certain military capabilities.
The Ottoman Empire, which used to be a powerful force in Europe and Asia, is actually not bad in military terms even now. In fact, it can basically manufacture all kinds of mainstream military weapons in the world by itself, which is the same as the Far Eastern Empire.
After all, the Ottoman Empire had a population of only more than 30 million. If its military capabilities were not good enough, it would have been eaten alive by Tsarist Russia or the Austro-Hungarian Empire.
The fact is that the Ottoman Empire dragged its ancient body into a war with Tsarist Russia for hundreds of years, and its exchanges with European countries have never been interrupted. The reason why the Ottoman Empire has difficulty doing anything is that it is slow to establish a modern industrial system. This is the case for many traditional ancient countries. common problems.
"Constantinople, the Istanbul of the Ottomans, the Ottoman Empire was at the junction of the Eurasian continent, so it had frequent cultural, political, and economic exchanges with Europe. For various reasons, when Europe was rapidly industrializing, the Ottoman Empire's ships were in trouble. , but it does not hinder the prosperity of Constantinople in the slightest," said Moslade, the head of the East African Mission, standing on the bow of the ship and looking at Constantinople.
The Ottoman Empire can be regarded as half of a European country, especially when its capital was still Constantinople. The entire Constantinople was not inferior to other European cities in all aspects.
Of course, this will not be the case if you go deep into the entire Ottoman Empire, because the capital is not representative. In previous generations, the capitals of African countries were also beautifully built, but it is not an exaggeration to say that outside the capital, you can actually see the entire large countryside.
As the core of the Ottoman Empire and on the front line of exchanges with the Western world, Constantinople does not lack some characteristics of industrial civilization, and many modern things have been applied in urban construction.
Of course, Moslade's trip was not just to enjoy the beautiful scenery of Constantinople. The location of Constantinople can be said to be quite advantageous, but as it faces the threat of war, Tsarist Russia and the countries on the Balkan Peninsula have Watching this place with eager eyes.
Mosleder's deputy Hans introduced him: "The Germans have had a closer relationship with the Ottoman Empire in the past few years. For various reasons, Germany hopes to support the Ottoman Empire as its potential ally. Through commercial and military cooperation, Germany The influence of the Ottoman Empire is increasing day by day. The economic exchanges between the Austro-Hungarian Empire and the Ottoman Empire are also relatively frequent. It is one of the main markets for the industry of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. The Ottoman Empire is also one of the main trading countries in our country. In the past, a large part of our country's black slaves It was sold to the Ottoman Empire.”
Mosled: “In this way, the relationship between the Ottoman Empire and us, Germany, and the Austro-Hungarian Empire is relatively close, but the relationship between East Africa and the Austro-Hungarian Empire and the Ottoman Empire involves more economic aspects.”
Hans: "Yes, the territory of the Ottoman Empire involves North Africa, the Red Sea coast, a small part of Europe and many areas in Asia. It has the foundation of a great power, and it is a natural commercial power due to its geographical location. All European countries are connected with the Ottoman Empire. There is a certain degree of business dealings.”
"However, the internal problems of the Ottoman Empire are very prominent. Today, the power of the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire has almost been eclipsed. The forces of all parties within the Ottoman Empire are complex, especially many areas where there is a risk of splitting or being invaded. For example, the Ottoman Empire's territories in North Africa, because of Egypt's independence , inconvenient communication with the Ottoman Empire, and coupled with French instigation, the Ottoman Empire’s local rule actually existed in name only.”
The situation of the Ottoman Empire in this life was slightly better, at least its land area was slightly larger than before.
France has always paid more attention to North Africa, even more than West Africa. If it can establish effective rule in North Africa, it will be of great benefit to France's Mediterranean strategy. Therefore, when there is no unified Italy as a competitor, France acts as Italy's predecessor. Role.
As for the Libyan issue and other influences, the relationship between the Ottoman Empire and France was very poor, which further strengthened the cooperation between the Ottoman Empire and Germany. Hans: "Germany helped the Ottoman Empire build factories, military facilities, and train troops. Our mission here is to cooperate with the Ottoman Empire on this basis, so we need to get in touch with the Germans in advance."
The East African government's support for the Ottoman Empire this time should still be mainly based on Germany. On the one hand, East Africa did not really help the Ottoman Empire in its construction. It just wanted to use the Ottoman Empire to threaten Britain and Tsarist Russia, thereby gaining influence in the Middle East, especially the Persian Gulf. Gain influence along the coast.
The territory of the Ottoman Empire extends all the way to the Persian Gulf. It is the main country along the Persian Gulf. Iraq and Kuwait both belong to the core territory of the Ottoman Empire.
On the other hand, Ernst hoped to strengthen the Ottoman Empire so that Germany would become even more swollen in the future, ultimately leading to a continental war.
In the previous war, at least before the war began, the three Allied Powers of Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Italy faced off against the Entente Powers led by Britain, France, and Russia. At least the number of powers was similar. Now Italy is only a regional power, not a great power, and because It is impossible for Austria-Hungary to join the Allies, even temporarily.
As a result, Germany lacked allies on the European continent. If it relied solely on Austria-Hungary, the two countries might not dare to launch a war.
Although Italy was a weakling in its previous life, as a great power, even the weakest one could be considered a psychological comfort to Germany and the Austro-Hungarian Empire.
Without Italy, Germany will inevitably support new forces in European countries to help Germany seize European hegemony. As far as East Africa is known, Romania, Bulgaria and the Ottoman Empire are all Germany's most interested targets.
In fact, if William II was more honest and did not threaten Britain's maritime hegemony, Germany would not be in such a bad diplomatic dilemma.
The United Kingdom is happy to fight between Germany and France. Without British participation, the war would not be fought. At most, it would develop into an enhanced version of the "Franco-Prussian War."
In fact, at the moment, the British sentiment towards Germany is rather complicated, because the core of British foreign policy is continental balance, so it would be best not to end directly.
However, Germany's vigorous development of its navy has violated the British bottom line. Coupled with the growth of Germany's industrial strength, it has posed a huge threat to British industry. Various factors have now made Germany the number one target of Britain's suppression.
Of course, any country that is the most powerful on the European continent will become the UK's primary target of suppression. Russia has already lost face due to the Russo-Japanese War, and France is far less powerful than Germany, so Germany is currently the most powerful country on the European continent. , so the United Kingdom is bound to try its best to weaken Germany to a certain extent, so as to maintain balance on the entire European continent.
So the key to the outbreak of World War I was Germany. Germany's "arrogance and domineering" before World War I led to the formation of a huge "anti-German alliance" in Europe.
(End of this chapter)