Chapter 172: Each One Depends on His Own Ability

The Times said that "this policy has an amazing effect" and "has greatly changed the British and French public's view of the Ottoman Empire."

Unlike the British's flattery, the experienced Prince Metternich concluded that Magid's reforms were just a trick to decorate the window.

Because the timing of this imperial edict in the flower hall was too strange, normally national reforms would only be carried out during a stable period.

Now that Mahmud II has just passed away, the front line has been defeated, the future of the war with Egypt is unclear, and there are tigers and wolves around. The Ottoman Empire, which is at the center of the storm, actually wants to reform.

There is no doubt that this move is a retreat to advance. The collapse of the Ottoman Empire is obviously not in the interests of Britain. Magid knew that he could only ask Britain for help at this time. Russia would definitely take the opportunity to ask for greater benefits if it sent troops, which would make the Ottoman Empire more passive.

But Britain seemed to intend to stay put, so he would let the British take action. And even if Magid wanted to rely on the Ottomans' own strength, it would be almost impossible to reverse the decline.

First of all, the Ottoman Empire has lost more than half of its navy. If it has another maritime conflict with Egypt, it will definitely lose.

Secondly, once the troops on the northern line retreat to the south, Russia and the Austrian Empire may participate in this feast of dividing the Ottoman Empire. At that time, even if Britain takes action, it will not be able to change the situation.

Simply give up. If Britain really does not take action, then make unilateral peace with Egypt. After all, the current situation is stronger than people, and there is no need to worry about firewood.

The size of the Ottoman Empire is still much larger than that of Egypt. As long as it is given enough time to reform, it will definitely train an army that can defeat the Egyptians.

However, Metternich also smelled a glimmer of opportunity. Perhaps this smart Sultan would be willing to make a deal with Austria and exchange the worthless Bosnia for the peace of the Ottoman Empire.

But in any case, due to the influence of the imperial edict of the Flower Hall, more and more Europeans came to the Ottoman Empire to seek opportunities. They hoped to gain benefits from this reborn empire.

The imperial edict of the Flower Hall set off a wave of military enlistment among non-Muslim subjects in the Ottoman Empire, and countless pagans and low-status minorities declared to fight for the Ottoman Empire.

At the same time, a large number of guerrillas appeared behind the Egyptian army, seriously hindering the Egyptian army's progress.

Ali's eldest son Ibrahim felt a little worried. In his eyes, the guerrillas were more difficult to deal with than the Ottoman army. The Sinai Peninsula was already difficult to supply. If the war lasted too long, Egypt's national strength might not be able to bear it.

Moreover, the British and Russians were like two sharp swords on his head, making him always uneasy.

On the other hand, Muhammad Ali also prepared the stage. He had been preparing for this drama for ten years, and now he was waiting for the British to enter.

French representative Guizot was a British licker. He always believed that if France wanted to rise, it must have a good relationship with the British, so he also tried his best to praise Magid's reforms.

Thiers once again urged Muhammad Ali to reach an agreement with the Ottoman Empire as soon as possible to avoid interference from the great powers, but he also reiterated France's attitude that France was not afraid of Britain.

However, the influence of the imperial edict in the flower hall still could not completely offset the impact of the death of Mahmud II.

Britain expressed concern about the prospects of the Ottoman Empire. After all, the current war situation was not favorable to the Ottoman Empire, and the death of the monarch would have a great impact on this ancient empire.

However, this also strengthened the determination of Palmerston and Canning, at their repeated requests.

A British naval fleet consisting of three 74 battleships and five frigates will pass through the Mediterranean and demonstrate in Beirut controlled by Egypt. It is already on the way.

Another powerful fleet led by the first-class battleship "Monarch" is on the way. In addition to the Monarch, this fleet also has 11 third-class battleships and more than ten auxiliary ships.

At this time, the Egyptian Navy had two second-class battleships, fifteen third-class battleships, and hundreds of light gunboats of various types.

In addition, the Ottoman Navy surrendered three first-class battleships, four second-class battleships, and four third-class battleships.

Egypt's main battleships at sea have reached an astonishing 28, and it even has behemoths like the Mahmoud.

The naval forces sent by the British seem to be a little insufficient, but in fact, the shipbuilding technology of the Egyptians and the Ottomans is far inferior to that of the British, and the quality of the navy is also very different. The Egyptian first-class ships may not be as good as the British third-class ships.

From a historical perspective, this time the British have given the Egyptians enough face. The last time the British only used two 74 ships (third-class battleships) to defeat the Turkish-Egyptian coalition.

Ali planned to let the Egyptian Navy ambush the British Mediterranean Fleet first to warm up.

Russia wanted to send troops to the Sinai Peninsula, but was rejected by the Ottoman Empire. This was of course the British behind the scenes. Otherwise, even if they had the courage to borrow Magid, they would not have dared to reject the Tsar's proposal.

At the same time, Nesherlov's Anglophobia came back, and he tried his best to dissuade the Tsar from being impulsive. The Tsar still trusted him very much, but the British made him unhappy, so he simply did not send a fleet to join the British advance fleet.

Austria did not join the British fleet for its own reasons. After all, Austria did not reach an agreement with the British at this time, and was not willing to be a younger brother of Britain as it had been in history.

Friedrich learned from the intelligence of the Karamanli family that the Egyptians had assembled a powerful fleet to attack the British advance fleet.

How could Friedrich miss such a good opportunity to watch the show? He immediately ordered all the ships of the Austrian Navy to hide in the Adriatic Bay and not to attack.

Friedrich did not attack, on the one hand because Austria and Britain had not reached an agreement, and on the other hand because the negotiations between Austria and the Ottoman Empire had not yet resulted.

At the same time, he did not think it was time to attack, as the Egyptians were nervous and had sufficient troops. Choosing this time to attack was tantamount to hitting a rock with an egg.

The King of France, Louis Philippe, was not interested in Thiers' proposal. He felt that war should be avoided as much as possible because it would destroy the good situation in France at this time.

France was not very interested in economic colonization, and they preferred to occupy directly as they did in Algeria. Coupled with France's great success in Texas, they were more convinced of this.

In addition, the civil war between Spain and the Central American Federation also greatly involved France's energy.

Even within the Bonapartist faction, there were few people who supported Thiers. He could only hope that the Egyptian navy could defeat the British navy.

The Five Powers Conference did not reach a consensus, and now the powers were ready to compete for the interests of the Near East with their own abilities. Metternich also came to Istanbul, and he was ready to meet this wise man in person.