Rise of Empires: Spain.

Chapter 459 The Peace Talks of Constantinople

Now that the Balkan states had quickly defeated the Ottoman Empire's garrison in the Balkans, European countries were forced to step in and pretend to maintain order in the Balkans.

Rather than maintaining order in the Balkans, it was more accurate to say that European countries, seeing the situation was dire, rushed to save the collapsing Ottoman Empire.

Britain did not want the Ottoman Empire to fall, because doing so would give Russia a dominant position in the Black Sea, and it would not be so easy for the UK to control the Russian Black Sea Fleet through the Constantinople Strait.

Germany and Austria-Hungary did not want the Ottoman Empire to collapse so quickly, because if the Ottoman Empire fell, the Balkan countries would be the ones to benefit, not Austria-Hungary, which was poised to attack the Balkans and whose war would end before it even began.

In particular, if the Austro-Hungarian Empire had stood by and watched the Balkan states grow stronger, its Balkan expansion plan would have failed outright.

Serbia, with its relatively small territory, was already a major headache for the Austro-Hungarian Empire. If Serbia and other Balkan countries were to acquire large tracts of territory and population, these countries would undoubtedly become obstacles to the Austro-Hungarian Empire's southward expansion, something the Austro-Hungarian Empire was unwilling to see.

The Austro-Hungarian Empire originally intended to sit back and watch the internal strife between the Balkan peoples and the Ottoman Empire, and then step in to reap the final victory once the two sides had fought to a sufficient degree.

But the Ottoman Empire was so weak and incompetent that even with the addition of a new army trained with German assistance, it could only defend the area around Constantinople and watch as large swathes of European territory to the west were divided up by the Balkan states, led by Serbia and Bulgaria.

The Austro-Hungarian government looked at the vast expanse of Ottoman territory in Europe on the map with such envy that it was almost bleeding from its eyes.

These territories, which were easily abandoned by the Ottoman army, were lands that the Austro-Hungarian Empire had coveted for decades but could not obtain.

Even the Russian government, plagued by domestic turmoil, publicly expressed its concern about the Balkan Wars. The fact that Bulgarian and Greek troops were able to reach the outskirts of Constantinople so quickly was something the Russian government had never anticipated.

Although the Russian government has always touted itself as the elder brother of the Slavic peoples, this does not mean that the Russian government is willing to see Slavic peoples such as Bulgaria and Serbia profiting greatly from this war.

When Serbia and Bulgaria were small countries, it was easy for Russia to control them. But as they have grown larger, it has become much more difficult for Russia to control them.

Serbia is in a better position because it faces the greatest threat from Austria-Hungary. Serbia must align itself with Russia, or at least maintain good relations with Russia, to ensure its security.

Bulgaria, on the other hand, didn't have as many troubles. Before this, Bulgaria only had three neighboring countries: Romania and Serbia, both Balkan states, and the Ottoman Empire to the south.

For Bulgaria, the threat from these neighboring countries is not that great, and Bulgaria has more options in terms of diplomacy.

It is worth mentioning that the current Prince Ferdinand I of Bulgaria comes from the Gotha dynasty of Saxe-Coburg in Germany.

Emperor Franz Joseph I of Austria was his uncle, Emperor Wilhelm II of Germany was his cousin, King Edward VII of England was his cousin, and Carlo could also be considered his cousin-in-law.

It was precisely because Ferdinand I had such a distinguished background that he developed extraordinary ambitions.

Before launching the war, Ferdinand I referred to it as "a new crusade" at an internal meeting of the Bulgarian government and declared that he would establish a new "Byzantium".

His ambition was obvious. After becoming a prince of Bulgaria, he was not satisfied with his title and eventually proclaimed himself Tsar of Bulgaria in 1908, raising his title to the same level as Nicholas II.

The term Tsar is a monarchical title exclusive to Slavic peoples, derived from the Latin word "Caesar," equivalent to the emperor title of the Slavic Empire.

Ferdinand I's self-proclaimed title of Tsar reveals his great ambition; at the very least, he was unwilling to submit to Russian rule.

To put it bluntly, the moment Ferdinand I proclaimed himself Tsar, he and Tsar Nicholas II of Russia had an irreconcilable conflict.

Russia has always touted itself as the leader of the Slavic peoples and hopes to gain the recognition of the Balkan peoples and become the de facto ruler of this land by sharing the same Orthodox Christian and Slavic heritage.

After Ferdinand I proclaimed himself Tsar of Bulgaria, he also had the legal right to rule the Yugoslav people, which conflicted with Russia's strategic objectives in the Balkans, and this conflict was irreconcilable.

On August 26, 1906, the seventh day after the Bulgarian and Greek forces captured Adrianople, the Russian government officially issued a statement demanding that all participating countries in the Balkan War guarantee the passage of the Strait of Constantinople and refrain from obstructing Russian ships in any way.

Otherwise, Russia will use force to ensure the passage of the Strait of Constantinople, and may even occupy Constantinople directly if necessary, to avoid the war from affecting Russia.

Before Bulgaria could react to Russia's statement, the British government was the first to speak out.

If the Russian government were to actually occupy Constantinople, it would be disastrous. Not only would it allow Russian influence to advance smoothly southward, but it would also once again disrupt the situation in the Mediterranean.

Once the Russian Black Sea Fleet has free access to the Strait of Constantinople, they can easily enter the Mediterranean Sea to the south.

If the Russian fleet were allowed into the Mediterranean, the situation there would become uncontrollable. Although Russia had many internal problems, it still posed a significant threat to Britain.

Following the Russian government's statement, the British government also issued a statement, hoping that the participating countries in the Balkan War would exercise restraint and resolve the current war disputes through peaceful negotiations.

When Germany and Austria-Hungary saw that Britain and Russia had already issued statements, they naturally knew that Austria-Hungary had lost its opportunity to attack Serbia.

If we persist in attacking Serbia at this point, the Russians will almost certainly interfere.

If Russia were to forcibly intervene in the war in the Balkans, the situation in the Balkans would become very uncertain.

Germany and Austria-Hungary were not prepared to wage a full-scale war at that time, so they had to give up.

Following statements from Russia and Britain, Germany and Austria-Hungary also expressed their positions, hoping that the warring nations would engage in peace negotiations to avoid causing greater harm to their people.

With so many powers simultaneously demanding a ceasefire and negotiations in the Balkans, even though the Balkan states had gained a de facto advantage, they had no choice but to comply.

The great powers were respected by other countries not because of their advanced industry and economy, but because of their powerful armies and navies.

Offending one great power might just be a headache, but offending several great powers at the same time could be quite an experience.

Neither Bulgaria nor Serbia had the guts to offend so many powerful nations. Greece, needless to say, was practically a junior partner of Britain and would naturally obey the British government's demands.

The Ottoman Empire finally breathed a sigh of relief when it learned that Bulgaria and Serbia had each issued statements indicating their willingness to negotiate a ceasefire.

If the European powers hadn't intervened in the war, the fall of Constantinople would have been inevitable. Although the Ottoman army could currently defend itself using the terrain around Constantinople, as the war progressed, the troops stationed there would eventually face supply shortages.

Both weapons, ammunition, and food supplies were extremely scarce for the frontline troops. As for why the Ottoman Empire did not transfer supplies from its Asian region to Europe, the reason is simple: the Asian part of the Ottoman Empire, the Anatolian Peninsula, was experiencing a famine.

Although the famine was not severe, it essentially dashed the Ottoman Empire's hopes of requisitioning food from the Anatolian Peninsula and transporting it to Europe. The Ottoman Empire had indeed stockpiled large quantities of food and supplies in its European territories, but with the rapid collapse of its army, these supplies, food, and territory were all given to the Balkan peoples.

Serbs and Bulgarians, armed with captured weapons and ammunition and eating captured food, were vying for the land abandoned by the Ottoman Empire, and for a time they were having a great time.

The Ottoman Empire could only gaze longingly at Constantinople across the strait, shedding tears in vain. If you ask why the Ottoman government wasn't located in the capital, Constantinople, don't ask; the answer is that the Ottoman government had already fled in the early stages of the war.

Although the frontline army collapsed quickly, the entire collapse process could not have been completed in just a few days. After receiving frequent reports of defeats at the front, the Ottoman government was well aware that Constantinople was unlikely to hold out.

Constantinople is indeed an ancient capital with a long history spanning thousands of years. The Ottoman Empire did indeed spend a great deal of time and pay a heavy price to conquer Constantinople.

The problem is, times have changed. Constantinople's defenses have been greatly weakened in the age of firearms, and the enemy has a very high chance of breaching Constantinople.

Faced with the choice of holding Constantinople or fleeing to the Anatolian Peninsula across the strait, the Ottoman government hesitated little and decisively chose to temporarily relocate the government to Sakarya in Anatolia to observe the situation on the Balkan battlefield.

Since both sides in the conflict have agreed to conduct peace negotiations, it is natural to choose a negotiation location that is acceptable to both sides in order to ensure the smooth progress of the peace negotiations.

The British government originally intended to hold peace talks in London, but this proposal was resolutely rejected by the Russian government.

The Russian government isn't stupid; it knows that it wouldn't gain anything if peace talks were held in London.

More importantly, this war broke out in the Balkans, and peace negotiations should also take place there. Why hold the peace negotiations in London? It can't be done simply because the British Empire is the leading power in Europe.

A few years ago, the Russian government's reaction might not have been so strong. But after Spain defeated the British Empire, many European powers, including Russia, realized that the British Empire was not as powerful as they had imagined.

If any nation could pose a naval threat to the British Empire, Britain's power would crumble instantly. Britain could only rely on its navy; its army was only average among the great powers and posed little threat to the others.

It wasn't just Russia that disagreed with holding the peace talks in London; Serbia and Bulgaria also did not want the talks to take place there.

After consultations among the participating countries, it was ultimately decided that the peace talks would be held in Constantinople.

Although Constantinople was theoretically still the capital of the Ottoman Empire, the Ottoman government had already moved there in the early stages of the war, so holding the negotiations in Constantinople did not offer much advantage to the Ottoman Empire.

One of the reasons this peace negotiation was initiated was that the armies of the Balkan states were close to reaching Constantinople.

From this perspective, holding the peace talks in Constantinople is quite appropriate, at least the Russian government agrees to it.

Carlo and Spain did not express much interest in the Balkan Wars or the peace negotiations in Constantinople.

Spain and France were the only two superpowers that did not participate in this matter, since France, like Spain, had no interests in the Balkans.

Although I haven't paid much attention to the Balkan Wars, I imagine the outcome of this war was not much different from that of historical wars.

The Balkan states held a significant advantage on the battlefield. Had the European powers not intervened, they could very well have conquered Constantinople and divided up all of the Ottoman Empire's European territories.

Even if the European powers intervened forcefully and facilitated peace negotiations, it would not have been able to reverse the outcome of the war. At most, it would have allowed the Ottoman Empire to pay a lower price, retain some of its European territories, and allow this extremely weakened empire to linger on for a while longer.

As for Constantinople, the capital of the Ottoman Empire, it goes without saying that it would eventually belong to the Ottoman Empire.

The reason is simple: neither Britain nor Russia wanted the other to control Constantinople. Therefore, the relatively weak Ottoman Empire became a suitable alternative.

Allowing the Ottoman Empire to continue controlling Constantinople was acceptable to both Britain and Russia. After all, Constantinople was already in Ottoman hands, and its continued control meant that the situation in the Balkans remained largely unchanged.

The most noteworthy aspect of these peace negotiations is actually the issue of the partitioning of the Ottoman Empire's European territories by Serbia, Bulgaria, Greece, and Montenegro.

If we're talking about who contributed the most to this war, it would definitely be the ambitious Bulgaria. Although it was a joint force of Bulgaria and Greece that captured Adrianople, the main force was actually Bulgaria, while Greece only deployed a portion of its troops and played a largely passive role most of the time.

Besides capturing Adriafort, the Bulgarian army participated in many other battles, suffering heavy casualties.

Under normal circumstances, Bulgaria, which contributed the most, would certainly receive the most land, since the purpose of forming the Balkan League was to jointly divide up the territory of the Ottoman Empire.

But if that were to happen, putting aside what Montenegro, the weakest of the three, would think, Serbia and Greece would certainly not be willing to accept it.

If the policy were to award the most territory to whoever contributed the most, the land that Serbia and Greece originally wanted would have belonged to Bulgaria.

After all that hard work, Bulgaria ultimately benefited the most. What do the Serbians and Greeks think about that?

Although Bulgaria did contribute the most, this issue involving territorial distribution cannot be decided solely based on honesty and trustworthiness.
In other words, as long as Serbia and Greece still have ambitions for territory, they are unlikely to distribute it according to the original agreement when the alliance was established.

This was also the reason for the outbreak of the Second Balkan War in history. To put it bluntly, it was the uneven distribution of territory among the victorious countries that ultimately led to an internal conflict among the Balkan states.

The content of the peace negotiations was not much different from what Carlo had expected. The Balkan countries soon fell into infighting during the peace negotiations, each unwilling to let the other gain a greater victory.

First, let's talk about Bulgaria, which contributed the most. According to the Bulgarian government, because Bulgaria contributed the most to this war, the Bulgarian government hoped to obtain the entire Macedonia region and all the Ottoman Empire's lands east of Macedonia and west of Constantinople.

If the Bulgarian government had followed its plan, Bulgaria's land area would have doubled after the war, bringing it one step closer to the "New Byzantium" envisioned by Ferdinand I.

The Serbian government initially did not intend to stop Bulgaria's insatiable appetite. After all, Serbia wanted to rely on Bulgaria to counter the Austro-Hungarian Empire, and Bulgaria's expansion was mainly southward, which would not affect Serbia to the west.

Serbia is demanding large tracts of land in the south, extending to Macedonia, as well as Albania, which has not yet gained independence, in the peace negotiations.

According to the Serbian government's vision, they could establish a Greater Serbian Kingdom after the war, encompassing Serbia, Albania, and Montenegro, which would greatly enhance Serbia's overall strength.

If Bosnia could be seized from Austria-Hungary, then the Greater Serbian Kingdom would be fully formed, becoming the dominant power in the Balkans and qualified to confront Austria-Hungary.

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(End of this chapter)