Chapter 461: The Decision of Gustav IV
Sweden, Stockholm, Swedish Royal Palace.
The atmosphere was somewhat depressing. King Gustav IV of Sweden sat on the throne. Below him sat Prime Minister Gutt, Minister of Foreign Affairs Aubrey, Minister of War Alfred and Minister of the Navy Jarvi. s. It's just that the faces of the four of them are very ugly. Especially the three of Aubrey, Alfred and Alves, their faces had long since lost their complacency and arrogance.
Gustav IV glanced at his four ministers with a displeased expression on his face. "Four gentlemen, you are all my most trusted people. Now the kingdom is facing such a huge danger? Don't you have anything to say?" Gustav IV's voice was very cold.
"Your Majesty, I don't think it is necessary to continue this war. We are no match for the French at all. We should immediately send someone to start peace talks with France to end the war decently." Prime Minister Gut said. At the beginning, he was not optimistic about this war, but because Gustav had already made up his mind at that time, he couldn't listen to other people's advice at all.
"Peace talks? Do you think the French will accept our peace talks now? I think the French may not accept even if we announce our surrender." Gustav said bitterly. To realize his ambitions, his country will now have to pay a huge price.
Hearing what Gustav said, Gut had no choice but to shut up and say nothing.
"Your Majesty, Oslo was captured by the French army two days ago, and all members of the Norwegian royal family and cabinet have fled to the United States." Minister of War Alfred said.
For this news, Gustav IV just nodded to show that he knew it, and did not express anything else. Although Norway's battle report, for Sweden, it is undoubtedly worse. But now Sweden is turning to a crazy gambler, and Norway is just a bargaining chip of little value. Sweden's previous losses have long been far greater than this bargaining chip. After one sentence, Gustav IV has become numb to such bad news.
"Aubrey, what's the news from the United States?" Gustav said. Now, the United States has become the last straw for Sweden. If the United States sends troops to attack Europe, the situation of the war may change. This is also their last chance.
Aubrey's face was a bit ugly, because the efforts of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs did not have any effect. Facing Gustav IV's inquiry, Aubrey had no choice but to bite the bullet and replied: "Your Majesty, we have not received any reply from the US side at all, and our ambassador in Washington cannot be received by the US Foreign Ministry."
"American son of a bitch." Gustav cursed angrily. The Americans are simply crossing the river and tearing down the bridge. The reason why Sweden dared to resist France at the beginning was because the United States stood behind them. But what I didn't expect was that the war in Europe was extremely difficult, and now the United States is desperate.
"Your Excellency Aubrey, if we ask France for peace talks, how likely do you think it is?" Gut asked.
"Your Excellency, this may be very difficult. If we propose peace talks before the war in Eastern Europe is over, the French government may agree. But now that Eastern Europe has been pacified by the French army, hundreds of thousands of French troops can go north and enter the Nordic region at any time. , At this time, it is basically impossible to have peace talks with France." Aubrey said dejectedly.
"What if we agree to pay enough to satisfy France?" Gut asked a little unwillingly.
Aubrey still shook his head: "The French are now in sight of victory, and the whole of Sweden will be theirs in the future. Will they give up the occupation of the whole of Sweden for a little profit?"
Gut was speechless now. If Sweden had an absolute advantage in the war, I am afraid Sweden would not agree to the peace talks.
"Hmph! Let's talk about failure now. I don't think so. Although we are temporarily at a disadvantage, it does not mean that we have no chance to turn defeat into victory. You must know that we still have hundreds of thousands of elite troops and tens of millions of people. Support. As long as we can persevere to the end, I believe we will be able to win the final victory." Alfred said with a cold snort.
Hearing what he said, Alves quickly agreed. As the Minister of the Navy of Sweden, Alves' status is not as good as before. By now, the Swedish navy has long been exhausted. And Alves, apart from a few staff officers, was almost a polished commander.
Gut and Aubrey smiled wryly at each other, and they didn't know that they were dying. The current battle situation is very clear. If Sweden wants to turn defeat into victory, it is simply a dream.
However, Gustav felt that what the two of them said made some sense. The situation in Sweden now seems very dangerous, but Sweden is not without a chance of winning the war. Now the struggle between France and the United States and Canada has become more and more acute. It is believed that the two sides will start a war in the near future, and as long as Sweden can survive until then, it will be able to achieve a very big turning point. At that time, let alone driving the French army out of Sweden, it is not impossible to take over Europe.
"Alfred, how many troops do we have?" Gustav asked. He has made up his mind to fight France to the end.
"Your Majesty, we still have 350,000 'elite' troops. In addition, we can recruit more than 300,000 troops within half a month." Alfred said with some self-deception. His so-called elite troops are not as effective as the armies of France's many dependent countries. Sweden's truly elite troops had already been lost in the First World War in Gothenburg and the Battle of Finland. The current 'elite' troops are basically second-line troops and newly recruited troops.
"The French army has more than 600,000 troops in Northern Europe. However, they have to use at least half of their troops to defend the coast of Norway. The army that can be used in the war is no more than 400,000 troops. After being recruited, our army can have nearly 700,000 troops. Thousands of troops may not be able to withstand the attack of the French army." Gustav IV murmured.
"Your Majesty, the fight cannot be continued. If the fight continues, the whole of Sweden will be destroyed." Gut persuaded loudly.
Gustav IV's face turned livid in an instant, and he finally made up his mind. "Your Excellency Gut, it's getting late, you should go back and rest first. Alfredo and Alves stay here." Gustav IV said with a straight face.
Gut was taken aback, and then sighed helplessly. He knew that Gustav IV had made up his mind and would not listen to his persuasion. If he persisted, he might even be killed. So, had to leave.
After Gut left, Aubrey also had to leave the palace. He knew very well that Gustav IV had fallen into his own imagination, trying to continue the war with France with Sweden's already very weak army. However, going on like this will only push more Swedish youth into the fire pit. However, he also knew that Gustav IV could no longer listen to anyone's advice. The Swedish ship is sinking. But he didn't want to sink to the bottom of the sea with the wrecked ship. As a result, Aubrey's mind became active, and he began to arrange for himself a way out.
"Your Majesty, I think that in addition to gathering a large army to confront the French in the Norrköping area, we should also deploy heavy troops in Sodertalje, Örebro, and Eskilstuna to build a second line of defense. In this way, even if the front line changes, we can still use the two favorable terrains of Lake Wiens and Lake Bolaren to curb the route of the French army going north." Alfred pointed to the map and said.
Gustav IV nodded, this is a good idea. In this way, Sweden can concentrate its limited forces. At the same time, the risk is much smaller. "Then how many troops do we need to deploy to defend these three places?" Gustav IV asked.
"At least 150,000 people are needed, 50,000 people in each place." Alfred said.
"How many troops do we have available now?" Gustav IV asked ~ www.mtlnovel.com ~ there are only 100,000 people at most. And these 100,000 people are also responsible for guarding the capital. "Alfred said. Now, the serious shortage of troops is Sweden's most serious constraint.
"How about this, send 20,000 troops to one place first. In addition, the army will be recruited immediately. 100,000 troops must be recruited within a week, and the remaining 200,000 troops must also be recruited within half a month. When the troops are recruited Finally, send 30,000 people to each place." Gustav IV said. After all, as the capital of Sweden, it is impossible not to station some troops in Stockholm. What's more, the sea is now completely controlled by the French navy, which requires strict precautions.
Seeing that Gustav IV had been discussing with Alfred, Alves was very jealous. He thought it was Alfred deliberately showing off in front of him. So, taking advantage of the gap between the two of them talking, he also expressed his opinion. Through the study of the battle situation, he also clearly discovered a loophole in Alfred's defense line: "Your Majesty, I think His Excellency Alfred has forgotten one thing. That is the threat from the sea. According to the information we have obtained, The French 3rd Army has been gathering in the Åland Islands, and the French Baltic Fleet has also begun to gather in the Åland Islands. If the French launch a landing from the Åland Islands, then we will have no troops to stop their attack."