Chapter 259 Italy: It’s my turn this time!
The next day, after the sun rose.
The results of yesterday's battle were just counted, and the Heixingen Brigade suffered 256 casualties, including 78 killed in action and three missing.
The French 54th Brigade lost 2,324 men last night and 687 were killed in action. The remaining men fled into the forest. By the next day, more than 100 of them had lost their way and returned to surrender to the Hechingen Brigade.
The commander of the 54th Brigade of the French Army, Aled, was stabbed to death in the chaos last night. He had two knife wounds on his body. Because it was dark, it was unknown who killed him.
This battle was undoubtedly a great victory, but the casualties of more than 200 people still made Heinrich feel a little distressed. However, Leopold, who was used to it, said: "War is so cruel!"
…
Prussia and France fought to the death, and Prussia now had the upper hand, while the Kingdom of Italy finally couldn't hold back any longer.
"Your Majesty, our intelligence personnel have found out that the last French troops withdrew on July 28. Now that Germany and Prussia have begun a fierce battle, this is a good time for us to recapture Rome!"
King Emmanuel II said with some concern: "The current situation of the war on the front line is unclear. We don't know whether the French have the ability to interfere with the unification of Italy. What if Prussia fails and the French settle accounts with us later?"
"This is not something we should worry about. Now both Prussia and France have to act according to our wishes. Whichever side we join, the balance of victory will tilt towards that side. So both Prussia and France will only try their best to win us over. So if we annex the Papal States at this time, they will just remain silent." said the Italian Foreign Minister.
"If we don't take the initiative now, there won't be such a good opportunity in the future. Now France and Prussia are deadlocked in Alsace and Lorraine, and the Austro-Hungarian army is also distracted by Prussia and Tsarist Russia. All obstacles to Italy's unification have disappeared!" Garibaldi, one of the three founding fathers of Italy, also said: "Last time, if it weren't for Napoleon III's betrayal, we should have completed Italy's unification long ago. Now Napoleon III, the stumbling block, has been held back by the Prussians. We can't hesitate any longer, Your Majesty!"
Unifying Italy was Garibaldi's long-cherished wish. After France declared war on Prussia, Garibaldi saw an opportunity, which was also the reason why he appeared in the Italian royal palace.
King Emmanuel II was a relatively cautious person, but after his subordinates advised him, he became somewhat shaken and was about to speak.
"Your Majesty, something bad has happened!" An intelligence officer rushed in with a telegram.
"What happened?"
"Just yesterday, His Holiness the Pope in Rome issued a joint statement with the Austro-Hungarian Empire. The Austro-Hungarian Empire declared that Rome was a common holy place for Catholic countries and its sovereignty was sacred and inviolable. The Pope also announced that the Papal States would be under the protection of the Austro-Hungarian Empire."
…
Let’s go back to one day ago.
Rome.
The French soldiers withdrew. If you were to ask who was the most panicked, it would undoubtedly be the Roman Catholic Church. Even though Pope Pius IX pleaded repeatedly, the French still withdrew.
Without French protection, Pius IX knew that no one could curb the ambitions of the Kingdom of Italy.
Of course, Pius IX did not want to become a prisoner, but the problem was that once the French withdrew, how would his weak and incompetent men resist the Italian army?
I don't believe that the Kingdom of Italy will show leniency just because of my status as Pope. The last time, that guy named Garibaldi almost captured Rome.
Just when Pius IX was panicking and at a loss, the Austro-Hungarian envoy came to his door.
"Your Majesty, we, the Austro-Hungarian Empire, are willing to provide asylum to your country, but as a condition, the Papal States must stand firmly on the side of the Austro-Hungarian Empire and oppose the atrocities of the Kingdom of Italy."
This condition was not a condition at all for the desperate Pope Pius IX. If there was anyone who was most resistant to the unification of Italy, it must be himself.
Subsequently, under the guidance of the Austro-Hungarian envoy, the Papal States signed a large number of agreements with Austria-Hungary, including the right to station troops.
Then both parties summarized the contents of the agreements and published them, which was equivalent to telling the Kingdom of Italy that the Papal States was under my protection.
…
"This is too much!" No matter how tolerant Emmanuel II was, he could not stand this humiliation. Although the last war between the Kingdom of Italy and the Austrian Empire was not very pleasant, it was a victory for his side after all.
Now the Austrian Empire is a thing of the past. As a neighbor, Emmanuel II knows best what the current Austro-Hungarian Empire is like. It is not at the same level as the former Austrian Empire.
Moreover, this time the Austro-Hungarian Empire was threatened by the Russian army in the east and was strictly guarded by Prussia in the north. How could it compare with Italy?
The most important thing is that right after the French left, they made some bullshit statement with the Pope. Didn’t they ask for our opinion?
Emmanuelle II was more inclined to believe that this time Franz wanted to use the Austro-Hungarian Empire to blackmail him. Now that the French were gone, Rome was basically at the mercy of the Kingdom of Italy.
The Austrians chose this time to defend the Papal States because they were actually afraid that Italy would annex the Papal States to complete its unification. After a unified Italy, Emmanuel II himself felt that he was challenging the current Austro-Hungarian Empire.
“Your Majesty, Austria-Hungary only wants to exert diplomatic pressure to make us retreat. This is also in line with the Habsburg style. However, Franz has made a wrong idea this time. Rome is now isolated and helpless, and it is impossible for the Austrians to fly across the Adriatic Sea to personally support the Papal States.” said the Foreign Minister.
"The only thing the Austro-Hungarian Empire can do is to make some small moves in the Venice area. Their main force now has to guard against Tsarist Russia and Prussia. So as long as we strengthen the defense of the Venice area, they will have no choice but to watch us annex the Papal States." Garibaldi also said.
Garibaldi certainly had the capital to say so. The last time, he led more than a thousand volunteers to annihilate an Austrian battalion and captured more than 400 people. Through guerrilla warfare, he caused great trouble to Marshal Radetzky of the Austrian Empire. Garibaldi had also fought with the French army several times, so he was not too afraid of these so-called powers.
Although what Garibaldi and the Foreign Minister said made sense, Emmanuel II was still undecided. He always felt that this was not a good time for Italy to take action.
So he asked, "Will Austria-Hungary dare to target us like it did to France last time..."
Last time, France pulled Austria and Spain together under the banner of Catholic countries to prevent Italy from unifying Rome.
"No, France is too busy to care about other things right now. Spain has just gone through turmoil, and the King of Spain is one of our own. Therefore, the Austro-Hungarian Empire cannot win over any country this time."
The current King Amedeo I of Spain is Prince Amedeo, the second prince of the Kingdom of Italy, so Spain may support Italy instead. Of course, it is also possible that the king himself supports Italy.
After repeatedly confirming all possible backup plans of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, Emmanuel II finally felt relieved.
"In this case, let's march to Rome! However, in order to prevent interference from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, we still need to place more troops in Venice and draw the kingdom's elite to guard against the Austro-Hungarian Empire. As for Rome, Mr. Garibaldi and the rest of the kingdom's army will conquer it together!"
(End of this chapter)
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