Solovyov in Tsarist Russia 1796.

Chapter 405 047 After Disbanding the Illegal Organization
Before setting out on the expedition, Alexander had to listen to the opinions of the two ministers of foreign affairs and the ministry of war, as well as the director of artillery, Arakcheev, in his office in the Winter Palace.
Speaking of Arakcheev, if he hadn't been lucky in his early years and accompanied Paul in Gatchina, he would not have been promoted so quickly in just a few years.

In fact, the only battle he had fought was commanding a troop at Austerlitz, and it was over before he could show his might.

Apart from this, there is no military achievement worth mentioning at present, and his job is even to stay away from the battlefield.

Although Solovyov had gone through the Dolgorukov brothers when selecting rifles in the past, he still had no good impression of him.

While Alexander was listening to opinions, he followed Langeron to the Buckholden Corps at the front to understand the situation and investigate it thoroughly.

Anyway, the appointment has been made and they all have to take office.

"What do you think Arakcheev will do in the end?"

Langgeron asked this question, and Solovyov had to give an answer.

"It's nothing more than following the court tradition. But I'm curious, what was the 'tradition' of the Bourbon royal family in the past?"

"You mean those people who are proud to serve the king as a chamber pot? We nobles who are in the army don't think highly of them."

"Ah, the one who carries the urinal."

Langgeron obviously looked down on the nobles who carried chamber pots and cleaned up urine and feces. If it were Louis VI at that time, he might still be eating bear heart raw.

And Solovyov was thinking that if you have cats and dogs, you also need this.

In the past, before Maria married and moved to Weimar, the cats and dogs in the palace were cleaned by servants.

As for the French nobles, I don't know if I should say they are the ones who would go to such lengths to get a job as a chamber pot carrier. Although the Russian nobles are even worse at flattery, they can't go to that extent and it's usually just lip service.

No matter what needs to be done, servants are always needed.

Although this is true, but considering the situation of the Russian court.

The future is not optimistic.

"By the way, Arakcheev still needs to elect a corps commander. Who do you think he will choose?"

"It's either Rosen or Essen. As for the others, we can't let Wittgenstein go, right?"

"Wittgenstein? If he leads a cavalry unit, he's just average. But if he wants to command a corps, it's better to let Bagration go. At least he is in the corps at the front and has made many contributions in the past."

"But German officers are now the mainstream, and you should know that Arakcheev likes the Prussian stick discipline. Although I have served as an officer in the Guards for a long time and His Majesty Paul has taken good care of me, I still have to say that the Prussian system will not work in Russia. Russian soldiers are already hardworking and obedient enough, and this kind of tenacity is not possessed by soldiers from other countries. I have no intention of offending you. What French soldiers lack is tenacity and obedience, and they are better in other aspects."

"That man did mobilize soldiers, but they are no longer under the banner of the Republic."

"What does this mean?"

Solovyov knew that Langgeron was a royalist and had come to Russia from France very early, but he had never thought deeply about some issues, such as the fact that he often mentioned the republic.

"It means that for France, they are fighting for a new monarch, not for a belief."

"Even freedom has its limits. France has become a barracks. I saw this when I went to Nantes. When recruiting soldiers, there are always people who escape. But don't underestimate them. Bonaparte will pursue his own ambitions, while French soldiers will protect their achievements."

"You do have some truth in this regard. If the Russians themselves didn't know that now is not the right time for revolution, I'm afraid they would have done it from top to bottom."

"It's hard to say in the future. Maybe it was overturned from the bottom up. The reason why all Russians overseas were asked to return home and no unauthorized travel abroad was strictly prohibited was because of this."

But when it comes down to it, both Langgeron and Solovyov know that some people are indeed quite scared.

Solovyov knew even more. He had even seen the Tsar respond to some of the peasants' opinions beside Paul.

He knows that farmers are powerful, but he also knows their bad habits, and he is worried that this will lead the country astray, but this is only limited to the current environment.

In the future, it will be very suitable for workers and peasants to unite, as they will be natural allies.

As for Solovyov, since he already had a family and a career and was about to get married, it was unlikely that he would take the initiative to join the torrent of history.

What he could do was probably to do the same as some enlightened Russian nobles, and first achieve some relaxation and freedom in his own territory. As for the liberation of all serfs, that would also take time, and even the Tsar himself would find it difficult to solve this problem.

The good thing about him is that he can directly influence Nicholas.

But Solovyov was also worried that this boy would be lazy in his studies when he was not in St. Petersburg.

Therefore, he instructed Mr. Mara, who was the teacher at the time, to report to the Queen Mother according to the situation, increase homework appropriately, and set strict requirements in monthly exams.

In the future, I would be able to influence a tsar, and if I lived long enough, maybe one or two more.

He thought to himself that the people he could not let go of the most were probably the young girls, wives, widows, and children with whom he had been in a relationship.

He himself also believed that he did not have the ability to change his fate, but he could climb up step by step with his own talents.

If the road is too smooth, it will be difficult to get up after you fall.

When they arrived in Riga and were preparing to start their work, they also received a piece of news.

That is, the Holy Roman Empire, which had a long history and was crowned in Rome but had none of the three items, was finally disbanded in August as an illegal organization and completely entered the dustbin of history.

Napoleon also created a Rhine Confederation to replace it, but this confederation was still more or less dominated by his own people, and the way it was eaten was still very ugly. In general, it was a prototype of French usury imperialism, which sucked the marrow out of the bones while turning the economically developed German and Italian regions into the downstream of French industry. On this basis, it did not want to share any benefits with neighboring countries.

Italy will become a farm and a source of raw materials, and Germany's handicrafts and developed industries will either be matched by France or eliminated.

If Prussia does not surrender, war between the two sides will be inevitable.

At this time, Alexander had returned to St. Petersburg. If he were in Jelgava or Riga, he would probably listen to Langeron's opinions, even though he didn't like this complaining Frenchman who always spoke in a sarcastic tone.

"what do you think?"

"War is inevitable, but Buckholden's army's combat readiness is not very good. You need to let him have a complete staff to run it. If that doesn't work, we can invite people from Prussia."

"You don't like Prussians very much, do you?"

After hearing this, Langgelon did not deny this statement. He really disliked the Prussian approach, but it was not without merit.

"They always need a ready-made staff. You dispersed the power of the Quartermaster General in Petersburg and created a general staff, which is obviously different from what Bonaparte used. Bonaparte's staff can give full play to his personal talents. Others can control it, but not so skillfully. As for you, the cavalry generals who may not even have a bright mind in the future, can calmly command troops on the battlefield under the leadership of a resourceful chief of staff."

"If you say so, I'm afraid I can win the battle even in my sleep."

"Even if he's a lunatic, that's fine."

Not only did Langgeron's complaint directly report Blücher's house number, but if Hindenburg appeared again in the future, he would definitely be shot.

As for the important persons, that would have to wait until the formal treaty was signed.

Considering that the army assisted Prussia, there were still many German officers and people who knew German, it made sense for Arakcheev to choose Marshal Kamensky, who advocated the Prussian way of using sticks, but it was also untenable.

While Langgeron and Solovyov were still in Riga, in St. Petersburg, Alexander finally made the decision to appoint Kamensky as the corps commander. However, the appointment would arrive relatively late. After the personnel of the front corps were organized, the old commander would be sent directly from Oryol to the western border area to take office.

"Well, for the last choice, how about we have Wittgenstein serve as the commander of the vacant army?"

"But Wittgenstein is leading a cavalry unit and is on his way to help Michelson."

"Then let him come back. Your Majesty, do you think this is feasible?"

Arakcheev said this, but Alexander still had no definite idea.

But it was more to his liking to let Wittgenstein serve as the army commander. On the surface, he respected Suvorov's style, and even the old orderly of the Grand Marshal took the 1200 ruble senior officer's pension and went home. However, in actual operations, Alexander was still willing to use German officers.

Buckholden, a drunkard, was at a loss during the Battle of Austerlitz, but he was not punished at all and was still able to lead the army.

As for Wittgenstein, we cannot deny his bravery, but commanding a battle does not rely entirely on courage.

At such times, although Alexander would not interfere in the front line, he would still intervene in personnel arrangements.

In fact, in the Battle of Austerlitz, Miloradovich, who fought his way in and out of the French army, and Bagration, who covered the retreat of a large group of troops, were both promoted by Suvorov and received daily instruction.

Then, because the "Three Kingdoms" became popular among Russian officers, Miloradovich, who had no beard and was very popular with women, became the "Russian Zhao Zilong". What's more, he had never been touched by any shrapnel and had never been injured.

But Bagration. Although he didn't whip the soldiers, he became an outlaw.
After they made great contributions, one of them was promoted to Kiev, while the other remained in his original position.

Solovyov sometimes felt unfair for his senior brother. He had always been responsible for the most difficult tasks, but because of seniority issues within the Russian army and the fact that he married the Tsar's younger cousin, his military rank was obviously delayed.

But his wife, although she still loved her husband and probably thought that the intimate stage could provide a more stimulating experience, was also coaxed into bed by Metternich, a master at pretending to be an old lady, with sweet words in Vienna.

If this kind of scandal were to ferment, it would indeed be a problem.

Alexander should always give appropriate compensation to his soldiers who have worked hard and made great contributions, and in this respect he is even worse than Paul.

Solovyov knew that Paul would often make exceptions to promote young officers he liked. This sincerity was not physical, but it was useful to build closer relationships through promotion and conversation so that he could form his own officer corps.

It is a pity that the project was not completed before he was murdered, and there were still many opponents within the army. Even though his relationship with Suvorov improved, he still employed soldiers from this faction.

Unfortunately, there is still some gap.

Alexander's approach is still far from perfect, but it cannot be blamed on his youth. Everyone knows that if you are not good at it, you should practice more, or stay away from areas you are not good at.

However, Alexander's personnel arrangements are often incomprehensible. The people recommended by Arakcheev, a treacherous minister, may have some internal conflicts.

This is a serious matter. Once conflicts arise, it will be difficult to deal with.

As for his "habit of collecting descendants of famous generals", which made Arkady return to the army from a court attendant, Solovyov also said that he couldn't understand it. When the master was alive, he still hoped that his son would stay away from the army. Now that he was in the palace, he should live a happier life.

As for others, such as Admiral Apraksin, the Kamensky brothers, and some others, in short, Alexander's personnel arrangements were indeed unsatisfactory.

What's more, Arakcheev was a reactionary who made the army like a prison. Soldiers could get bonuses during the Empress' time, and could be promoted in Paul's time. During Alexander's time, it was okay if you were at war, but it was always very uncomfortable during peacetime. In the future, Russians will use Arakcheev's name, changing the spelling of a few letters, to satirize his police methods and reactionary measures.

If Solovyov had not been unable to jump out and create conflicts before the war, he would have always learned the abstract methods passed down by the Grand Marshal and mocked the Director of Artillery and the future Minister of War.

But Langgeron didn't seem to care about all this. When he spoke, he didn't care about his wording, and sometimes it was quite outrageous.

(End of this chapter)