Chapter 312 Crown Prince Karl

Austria-Hungary, Vienna, Schönbrunn Palace.

The elderly ruler of the empire, Franz Joseph I, leaned on his emperor's throne and closed his eyes slightly, as if he had fallen asleep. The important ministers of the Austro-Hungarian Empire are reporting the war situation and the current international situation to him.

The Crown Prince of the Empire, Karl, stood aside respectfully, listening to the teachings of Franz Joseph I.

After the assassination of Archduke Ferdinand, Karl became Crown Prince of Austria-Hungary. After all, as a first-class power in Europe, the Austro-Hungarian Empire cannot live without a crown prince. Karl is the grandson of Archduke Karl Ludwig, the younger brother of Franz Joseph I. Since Franz Joseph I had no heir to the throne, he had no choice but to choose Karl to inherit the crown prince and become Franz Joseph I. Emperor of the Empire after the death of Lanz Joseph I. Although Franz Joseph I was not satisfied with this, there was no other way. Although his son is long gone?

The current international situation is very unfavorable to the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Franz Joseph I did not expect that the battle would turn out like this, which was completely different from what he had expected at the beginning. You know, the current Austro-Hungarian Empire is definitely one of the top powers in the world.

The Austro-Hungarian Empire was a traditional European power (Russia, Britain, Austria, and France) and one of the eight major powers in the world at that time (England, France, Germany, the United States, Russia, Austria, Italy, and Japan). Austria-Hungary was the great empire of Eastern Europe. The vast land area ranked third in Europe at that time, second only to Russia and the Ottoman Empire; the total population was large, slightly inferior to Russia and Germany, ranking third in Europe; Strong, ranking fourth in the world, second only to Germany, the United Kingdom and the United States; its extensive resource reserves and mobilized troops are also the fourth in Europe, only less than Russia, Germany and France; and the types of agricultural products The variety and richness of crude oil production surpass France, which has sophisticated agriculture, and Russia, which is oriented to grain export, and ranks first in Europe; the advanced technology of heavy artillery weapons produced by Skoda Arsenal is far ahead, ranking first in the world First.

With the strength of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, its performance in this war should be far from this. However, the performance of the Austrian army on the battlefield made Franz Joseph I, the great emperor, feel ashamed.

On the southern front, they have dispatched two armies to deal with a small Serbia, but they still cannot defeat Serbia. Even though Belgrade has been captured, Serbia's resistance continues. As a result, the Austro-Hungarian Empire had to continue to deploy heavy troops in Serbia, and the casualties were still increasing.

Not to mention the battlefield on the Eastern Front, if the deployment of the German 8th Army defeated the Russian Northwest Front and caused heavy damage to the Russian Army, forcing the Russian Army to dispatch troops from the Southwest Front, the Austrian Army might have been defeated. The ferocious and savage Russians have rushed into the rich wasteland of the Austro-Hungarian Empire and have begun to plunder.

Now, Italy has betrayed the covenant again and has become the enemy of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. It can be expected that the Italian offensive will begin soon. At that time, the southern front of the Austro-Hungarian Empire will also face the attack of powerful enemies, which will make the situation facing the Austro-Hungarian Empire even more critical.

"Your Majesty, the imperial government has declared war on the Kingdom of Italy. The German Empire has declared war on the Kingdom of Italy two hours before us," said Mario Weber, Prime Minister of the Austro-Hungarian Empire.

"Well! The Kingdom of Italy betrayed the covenant and became our enemy. The Empire should declare war on it. But, is our army ready to fight against the Italians?" Franz Joseph I asked .

"Your Majesty, the 1st Army has returned from the Eastern Front. They will be deployed to the Southern Front to prevent the Italians from attacking us. In addition, the German Empire will send three infantry divisions to help us defend against the Italians. We are confident that With the help of the terrain of the Alps, resist the attack of the Italians." said Duke Kasbah, Austrian Minister of War and Minister of War of the Central Government of the Austro-Hungarian Empire.

Franz Joseph I nodded: "If this is the case, the Italians are nothing to worry about. After we have dealt with the Russians, we will turn around and deal with them."

"Yes, Your Majesty!" Duke Kasbah agreed deeply. For the Austrian army, the brutal Russians are obviously more difficult to deal with. As for the Italians, they have never been taken seriously by them. The two countries have been competing in the Balkans for many years, but the Austro-Hungarian Empire almost always suppressed the Kingdom of Italy.

"After the deployment of the 1st Army, what should we do on the Eastern Front?" Crown Prince Karl asked. The Russians on the Eastern Front are not easy to deal with. For a long time, the Austrian army has struggled to support on the Eastern Front and suffered heavy losses. If a main group army is transferred, won't this make the Austrian army's situation more difficult?

"Regarding the battlefield on the Eastern Front, Germany proposed to cooperate with us to deal with the Russian Southwest Front Army. The German Eighth Army will go south to attack the Russian Southwest Front Army. With the combat effectiveness of the German Eighth Army Army, plus us, we will defeat the Russian Southwest Front Army. It's definitely not difficult." Duke Kasbah smiled. Before, he was still worried about the situation on the Eastern Front, but after learning that the German allies would lend a helping hand, he was greatly relieved.

"Well, Crown Prince Oscar's 8th Army has a strong fighting capacity. In less than two months, nearly one million Russian troops have been wiped out. With their support, we will definitely be able to defeat the Russian Southwest Front Army." A smile appeared on Franz Joseph I's face full of age spots. For him, this is undoubtedly one of the rare good news he has heard in the past few months.

"Yes, Your Majesty. The 8th Army of His Royal Highness Crown Prince Oscar is already the most powerful among the several legions of the German Army." Grand Duke Kasbah sighed.

"Crown Prince Oscar is really a genius. The German Empire has him as the Crown Prince, and it is God who favors the German Empire!" Franz Joseph I sighed. If the Austro-Hungarian Empire had such an heir, it might not be what it is now.

Crown Prince Karl couldn't help curling his lips after hearing Joseph I's approval. He was full of disdain for the German Crown Prince who was one year younger than him. In his opinion, Qin Tian was just lucky. If he was the Crown Prince of the German Empire, he would definitely do better than Qin Tian.