Chapter 385 Incitement

Pretorius the Younger then appointed Wiggins as the commander of the garrison of Pretoria, but Wiggins had to recruit soldiers himself because not many people responded to Pretorius the Younger's organization to resist the invasion of East Africa, and he did not have many soldiers.

Pretorius Jr. said to Wiggins, who was left alone, "At a time when the country's survival is at stake, many citizens still don't understand the Germans' ways. In fact, from the moment they invaded the Transvaal Republic, I knew they were not easy to deal with. The Germans attacked Transvaal just for land, but some citizens naively thought they were just changing rulers and chose not to resist, allowing the Germans to invade. In the future, they will definitely regret their choice today."

In fact, some Boers did not care much about the so-called East African invasion. Aren’t East Africans Germans? What is there to be afraid of? In fact, the vast majority of Boers did not dislike German rule. Boers were mainly composed of white immigrants from the Netherlands, Germany and France, and they had some affinity with Germany.

Of course, if the Boer farmers knew the policies of the East African Kingdom, they would definitely do as Pretorius the Younger said and say to East Africa, "Damn Prussian barbarians!"

Today, East Africa’s goal is to control the entire territory of the Transvaal Republic. The Boer farmers have not yet seen the ruling model and methods of the East African Kingdom, so many Boers who are unaware of the situation even actively welcome the "royal army". Before long, they will become the most determined anti-East Africans.

Wiggins: "Mr. President, since you have handed Pretoria over to me, I will definitely guard it until the last moment. However, I need manpower in return. Even if it is not much, I must ensure the completion of the initial conscription and mobilization, and use the full strength of Pretoria to fight against the East African gangs!"

Little Pretorius nodded and said, "Okay, but I can only leave you one team."

Wiggins: “That’s enough!”

Wiggins's opinion is consistent with that of Pretorius the Younger. East Africa is not here to help the Boers alleviate poverty. If they just want to rule the Transvaal Republic, there is no need to start a war. They can just talk first and then fight.

If Ernst knew about Wiggins' idea, he would definitely sneer at it. It sounds good to talk first and then fight, but I don't know whether the Boers talked with the British or with East Africa. The East African Kingdom did not have that much prestige. By convincing the Boers through negotiations, they could just sit back and negotiate between Britain and East Africa, or even choose no one and continue to be autonomous. Ernst's attack on the Transvaal Republic was to prevent the Boers from making any response, and then the Boers would have no right to choose. This is how war is, the winner takes all.

After handing over the administration of Pretoria, Pretorius the Younger led a group of his supporters south to the Orange Free State, while Wiggins, who was in danger, prepared to mobilize in Pretoria to resist the East African Army there.

Wiggins, who monopolized the military and political power in Pretoria, first faced the issue of conscription, so he launched a public opinion offensive against the citizens of Pretoria. Now the people of Pretoria were in panic. Everyone was familiar with war, and no one knew what the military discipline of the other side was like or what their attitude towards civilians was, so Wiggins used rumors to make the people of Pretoria re-acquaint themselves with the East African Kingdom.

"Citizens of Pretoria! You may not know much about the so-called East African Kingdom, but I believe some of you definitely know about Prussia. The East African Kingdom is a soldier kingdom that is even more barbaric than Prussia and practices terror. As a Boer who once served time in the East African Kingdom prison, I can tell you some of the conditions of the East African Kingdom 'truthfully'."

Sure enough, Wiggins' words sparked heated discussions among the citizens of Pretoria.

"Harald! Your ancestors are Prussians, so you should know what Prussia is like, right?" Willett, who was of Dutch descent, asked his neighbor.

"Willit, you've asked the right person. My grandfather fled from Prussia to Africa. He told me that under Prussian rule, people were indeed not taken seriously. They went to war every year and recruited soldiers from the civilian population. Moreover, the military discipline of the troops was extremely poor. The noble officers often withheld food and used sticks to educate the soldiers below..."

Haaled listed all the crimes of Prussia. In fact, these were all true. Prussian rule was like this in the era of Haaled's grandfather. It was not the Germany of today, nor the reformed Prussia. In the era of Haaled's grandfather, many German immigrants chose to leave for various reasons. The former German regions were indeed not suitable for living. Who could bear the wars and taxation every year?

Willett: "Oh my God! This is terrible. We must not let Transvaal become a country like that!"

Wiggins, who was giving the speech at this time, continued: "When I was captured by the vicious East Africans, I also noticed their composition and lifestyle. The entire East African Kingdom was a large military camp. There were no so-called free people. Everyone had to accept the sanctions of strict laws and accept the rule of the East African Kingdom like sheep. The king of the East African Kingdom was a member of the Prussian Hohenzollern family..."

What Wiggins said sounded very convincing, but in fact he had never had any contact with civilians in East Africa. In order to prevent him from stealing intelligence, the East African kingdom imprisoned him in the royal palace in Bulawayo and did not allow him to contact anyone. Therefore, Wiggins' rule over East Africa is speculation, exaggeration and smear.

However, the Boers below believed that what Wiggins said must be right. After all, many of the Boers' ancestors at the scene really came from Prussia, and Wiggins' statement was consistent with the image of Prussia described by their grandfathers.

Seeing that the public's emotions were being aroused, Wiggins said: "Can we allow the East African tyrant to impose Europe's backward monarchy on us?"

"Of course not!"

“Then can you allow the East African Kingdom to turn beautiful Pretoria into a gloomy and terrifying military camp?”

"Not allowed. Down with the East African invaders. Long live the Transvaal Republic!"

…

Wiggins mobilized public sentiment to achieve his goal of conscription, and it seems to have been accomplished so far. The citizens of Pretoria enthusiastically joined the army, allowing Wiggins to gather an army of more than 2,000 people.

The next headache for Wiggins was how to defeat the East Africans. Pretoria was originally a defensive town, so it was easy to defend and difficult to attack. The defense was not difficult. If he could use the strategy of Pretoria well, it would not be difficult to hold out until reinforcements arrived.

Based on the situation of the East African Army during the last Ndebele uprising, Wiggins began to carry out targeted education for his soldiers to weaken the image of the East African Army. "Although the East African Army imitated Prussia in every way, they did not learn the essence and only had a superficial appearance. In the battle between the Ndebele and the Germans, the performance of the East African Army was so flawed that any European instructor would shake their heads. The reason why they were able to win was entirely due to advanced weapons. In addition, the Ndebele people lacked training and many of them could not operate muskets. The weapons we provided became fire sticks in their hands. This was the reason for the failure of the Ndebele people."

According to Wiggins, the East African Army is vulnerable and will be defeated if it encounters an army with some experience. The Boers are not only a battle-hardened army, but they also have to confront the Zulu Kingdom in the east from time to time. Therefore, the advantage is in my hands. With the help of Pretoria's terrain and buildings, I can give East Africa a head-on blow.

(End of this chapter)