Chapter 564 Ottoman Crisis

Compared with the ancestors who ravaged Europe, Asia and Africa, Abdul Aziz I can be called a good baby. Since he succeeded to the throne, he has been friendly with his neighbors, and he has been cautious in diplomacy, trying to avoid conflicts with European powers as much as possible.

Abdul-Aziz I never initiated a war on his own initiative, except in the Russo-Prussian War against the Russians. It can be said that he is one of the few pacifists in Sudan in all dynasties.

Moreover, the last war was also full of inside information. If it wasn't for the secret instigation of the foreign powers, Abdul Aziz I would probably choose to be a spectator.

Of course, he was not a "pacifist" of his own accord. It is entirely because the surrounding enemies are too powerful, and it is really impossible to win and can only choose peace.

When you come out, you always have to pay it back. When the Ottoman Empire was strong, it made enemies everywhere, and now it is necessary to pay the price.

Can't just let you bully people without letting others take revenge? This is not a fall of the Ottoman Empire. Austria and Russia both came to take revenge. If it wasn't for their strength, Persia might also intervene next door.

Now Persia and the Ottoman Empire are rotten brothers, and both are on the verge of decline. Because of the geographical location, the Ottoman Empire was neighbors with two great powers at the same time, so the tragedy happened earlier.

In contrast, the Persians in the east are much better, and only need to face the British. At any rate, there is still hope of victory. The Persians also smashed a British invasion more than ten years ago.

With a cold drink of "hum", Abdul Aziz I tore the battle report in his hand to shreds. Bad news again, no doubt, Abdul Aziz I is going crazy these days.

"Yesterday the Austrians just besieged Jerusalem, and today the Bosphorus is occupied again. Will the Dardanelles be lost in a few days, waiting for the enemy to parade in Ankara?"

Everyone bowed their heads and said nothing. It was not that the Ottoman army did not work hard, but that the gap between the two sides was too great. The Russians did not just fight blindly. Within a month after the outbreak of the war, the Russian army landed from five ports successively.

Without waiting for the reinforcements sent by the Sudanese government to pass, the Russian troops who landed had already withdrawn, and they continued to attack at another port.

It seems that there are not many victories, but in fact, the damage to the Ottoman Empire is not small. The scorched earth policy was implemented all the way, and a large number of people in coastal areas were forced to migrate to inland areas.

While fighting the enemy, the Sudanese government also shoulders the heavy responsibility of relocating war refugees. Don't look at the clamor of Abdul Aziz I, asking all the people and the enemy to fight to the end, this is not the case at all in actual operation.

After the Russians conquered a place, they immediately started to destroy, for example: destroying farmland, burning houses, destroying iconic buildings, and expelling local people into the inland areas.

The coastline of the Ottoman Empire is too long to focus on defense, and the weak areas allow the enemy to take advantage of the loopholes.

Every time the Russian army landed successfully, the Ottoman Empire would have to add tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of war refugees. The same law applies in the Ottoman Empire, and it is impossible for the Sudanese government to hold so many people accountable for their escape.

People always have to eat, and in just a short period of time, hundreds of thousands of refugees appeared in the Ottoman Empire. To relieve so many victims, the Sudanese government, which was not prepared in advance, was in a hurry.

All other materials are enough. The Ottoman people are not very demanding, just stuttering. Even the simplest request made the Sudanese government feel embarrassed.

Seeing that the food in stock is dwindling, Abdul Aziz I saw it in his eyes and was anxious in his heart. Now that the Bosphorus is occupied, this means that the war refugees will increase again.

One or two days can hold up. If the war lasts for a year or two, the Ottoman government does not have so much food reserves.

The Minister of War Elmed replied uneasily: "Your Majesty, the enemy has the advantage of the sea, and they come and go on the battlefield like wind. Before our reinforcements arrive, they will withdraw in advance, and they will not fight us at all."

This explanation obviously does not satisfy Abdul Aziz I: "Other areas do have these problems, but the Bosphorus Strait was captured all the way by the Russian army. Don't tell me, you don't have time to mobilize reinforcements? "

The number of Ottoman troops stationed in the Bosphorus Strait exceeded 200,000, while the attacking Russian army was only around 100,000. On the surface, the Ottoman army had absolute strength, but unfortunately it was still defeated.

War is not just about numbers, but more about the deployment of troops. It seems that the number of Ottoman troops is larger, but in fact they have to be stationed in various places, and when they are at war with the Russian army, their troops are not dominant.

Elmed hurriedly explained: "Your Majesty, although the Bosphorus was lost, it also severely damaged the Russian army. The Russian army that landed in the short term has lost the ability to continue the war.

We are mobilizing heavy troops to drive them into the sea.

Now that the Russian-Polish war broke out, the tsarist government should not increase its troops any more. We lost this battle on the surface, but strategically the situation is developing in our favor. "

With this explanation, it is enough to fool Abdul Aziz I, whose military capabilities are not up to standard. Subconsciously, Abdul Aziz I wanted to hear good news.

As for whether the counter-offensive plan can be realized or not, that is not important. The battlefield is ever-changing, and it is normal for a little accident to happen.

Seeing the problem, the interior minister, Muhammad, frowned and glanced at the sultan's face. He decisively chose to play stupid.

After hesitating for a while, maybe it was because of my uneasy conscience, or maybe because I was worried that the ship of the Ottoman Empire would sink and everyone would be finished.

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Muhammad reminded vaguely: "Up to now, the domestic war refugees have exceeded the 750,000 mark, and this number is already very dangerous.

If it continues to increase, we won't have as much food relief, and it will probably cause a big mess. "

It's not that it might cause chaos, it's bound to cause chaos. The Ottoman Empire has a population of only more than 16 million, and the number of refugees has accounted for 4.7% of the total population.

So many people have lost their livelihoods, and there are simply not so many job placements in the country, and they can only rely on government relief to survive.

If the battlefield continues to fail, the number of refugees will continue to climb. The Ottoman Empire was not a big grain-producing country, overseas trade was blocked again, the number of refugees continued to increase, and the outbreak of a food crisis was almost an inevitable result.

The actual situation will be even worse. So many people have nothing to do every day, waiting for government relief, and public security is a big problem.

These words fall into the ears of different people and naturally have different interpretations. Originally, it was to put pressure on the military, but when Abdul Aziz I heard it, his taste changed.

"In order to save food, we will treat refugees differently in the future, give priority to the people who are blessed by the ***, and let them fend for themselves for the rest!

Concentration of refugees is also a problem, and the government finds ways to disperse them. If you can't think of a way, let the pagans make room. "

Hearing the Sultan's words, Muhammad broke into a cold sweat. Does this mean that the country is not chaotic enough? If someone else said it, he would think that he was bought by the enemy and came to the Ottoman Empire for cholera.

Originally, the ethnic and religious conflicts in the Ottoman Empire were serious, but now they are treated differently. Isn't it forcing people to rebel?

The two idioms have already popped up in Muhammad's mind, and he hurriedly persuaded: "Your Majesty, no!

We are now in a time of war, and there must be no trouble in the country. If the conflict is intensified now, this heretic is likely to collude with the enemy, and the empire will be in danger. "

It is a pity that Abdul Aziz I is no longer the ambitious sultan who just succeeded to the throne, but the brain-dead sultan who was defeated by reality and broke.

Before 1872, Abdul Aziz I's performance could still be called a wise man. In internal affairs, he recuperates with the people, establishes a university, establishes a code of law, and carries out secular reforms to the Ottoman Empire.

Under the strong backlash of conservatives, the reform of the Ottoman Empire failed in 1872, and Abdul Aziz I was degraded, and he never regained his talent.

Do things more and more radical, simply can not listen to persuasion. When faced with religious issues and ethnic groups, they did not want to solve the problem at the root, and directly and brutally carried out military repression.

The original time and space Abdul Aziz I was tossing too much, was overthrown by the people in 1876, and finally died in depression.

If it is done according to Abdul Aziz I's intention, maybe it will not have to wait two years, maybe two months later, the owner will be changed.

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