Germany does not seek survival

Since Piłsudski had already left Warsaw with two divisions of the Polish Legion, Faust thought that there was no need for the Greater German Regiment to go to Warsaw to wait for the Poles. Instead, the Greater German Regiment should take a train to Königsberg in East Prussia and wait for Piłsudski and others to come to the north.

"We, the Greater German Regiment, must seize the initiative," Faust said. "In our future interactions with the Poles, we must pay attention to this and not let Piłsudski lead us by the nose."

The railways in Russia are broad-gauge. If you want to go from Krakow to Warsaw, you have to wait for the transfer carriage to be empty at the border between Austria-Hungary and Russia. But if you want to go to Königsberg, you can depart from Krakow at any time.

Faust immediately talked about this with Colonel Silkorski. When Faust said that the Great German Regiment wanted to go to Königsberg first, Colonel Silkorski became happy. It seemed that Piłsudski really didn't want the rest of the Polish Legion to be monitored by the Great German Regiment.

But if Piłsudski could avoid it temporarily, could he avoid it forever?

The next day, Colonel Sikorski arranged for the newly formed troops of the Polish Legion to leave Krakow by car along with the Grossdeutschland Regiment. In addition to the new troops that Colonel Sikorski himself recruited in Krakow, they also joined another Polish new army in Cieszyn on the way, forming a division of troops and heading north together.

In this way, the two troops, the Great German Regiment and the 3rd Division of the Polish Legion, traveled together to Königsberg, but they always maintained a very restrained and indifferent attitude.

The German soldiers were very polite to the Poles, but the Poles were always indifferent. The soldiers of the Polish Legion almost never spoke to the German soldiers alone. Colonel Sikorski explained that this was because the Polish soldiers did not understand German. Everyone knew that this was a perfunctory excuse. German was the official language of the Galicia region, and most Galician Poles could speak some German to a greater or lesser extent.

But Faust didn't care about this. He was already counting down the time until the Polish Legion would rebel against Germany.

This boring week ended only after the train entered East Prussia. At this time, Hindenburg and Ludendorff of the Eastern Front General Headquarters had been promoted to the post of Commander-in-Chief of the General Staff. The commander-in-chief of the Eastern Front General Headquarters was replaced by Prince Leopold, the uncle of Crown Prince Rupprecht.

Major General Max Hoffmann, Ludendorff's former operations staff, was promoted to Lieutenant General and became Chief of Staff of the Eastern Front General Staff.

Having the Bavarian Prince Leopold as a protector would definitely be a major benefit to the future of the Greater German Regiment on the Eastern Front. Faust was not very familiar with Chief of Staff Hoffmann, and only knew that he was an important participant in the Battle of Tannenberg.

Before meeting Prince Leopold, the commander-in-chief of the Eastern Front, and his chief of staff Hoffmann, Faust had never expected that the first person they would meet when they arrived in Königsberg would be Manstein.

Manstein did not go to the General Staff with his uncle Hindenburg, but stayed in Königsberg, waiting to meet Faust.

As soon as they met, Manstein's face was full of smiles. "Should I call you Major Faust? And you, Lieutenant Colonel Rommel, I am Manstein, the operations staff officer of the Operations Department of the Eastern Front General Staff. I really envy you. Your military ranks have been promoted so quickly. It took me three years in the Operations Department to be promoted from lieutenant to captain."

Paulus, the chief operations staff officer of the Grossdeutschland Regiment, knew Manstein. Both of them had served in the Operations Department of the General Staff. However, compared with Manstein, the young genius and star staff officer of the General Staff, Paulus was a low-key and unknown person. Paulus knew Manstein, but Manstein did not know Paulus.

Paulus immediately jumped in and said, "This is Captain Manstein of the General Staff, Erich von Manstein. He is the nephew of Field Marshal Hindenburg and was instrumental in many of the great victories on the Eastern Front. Everyone in the General Staff has heard of Manstein's name."

Manstein said reservedly, "It's better not to mention my relationship with the old marshal!"

Manstein's apparent identity was just a captain of staff in the Eastern Front Operations Department, but his voice and influence on the Eastern Front were certainly more than that. Perhaps ordinary division commanders and army commanders did not have as much say as Manstein.

Paulus hastened to introduce the officers of the Großdeutschland Regiment to Manstein. Manstein waved his hand and said:

"I know you all very well, Major Faust. Come, let's have a good chat. Actually, it was I who suggested to the old marshal that the Great German Regiment monitor the Polish Legion."

Faust nodded. "Captain Manstein, you want us to fight alongside the Polish Legion in Courland."

Manstein walked in front of everyone. He was indeed a talented and gifted military officer. In addition, he came from a prominent wealthy family, so he naturally exuded the superior temperament of a noble son.

In terms of military rank, among the officers present, even Faust's current rank is higher than Manstein's. Given the emphasis on hierarchy within the German army, Manstein's tone of voice alone is enough to be charged with disrespect for elders.

"Yes, Kurland, you know?"

Manstein turned around again, hands on his hips. "The General Staff has decided to establish the Grand Duchy of Courland. The territory of the Grand Duchy will include Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia along the Baltic Sea. In the future, Germany will establish a relationship with the Grand Duchy of Courland similar to that between Britain and Canada."

Faust said: "Our army has only occupied most of Lithuania, Captain Manstein. The Latvian and Estonian regions you mentioned are still under the control of the Russian army."

Manstein was full of confidence: "So what? The Russian Empire is like a dilapidated wooden house. Just give it a couple of kicks on the door and it will crumble. We will soon be able to occupy Latvia and Estonia. That's why I want to transfer you and the Polish Legion to the north. I hope that during this time, the Großdeutschland Regiment can help the German army on the Eastern Front capture Riga as soon as possible."

The man with the mustache interjected, "Russia is like a broken house. One good kick and the whole thing will collapse... That's a really vivid description. I'll have to remember it. But do we need to rush to attack Riga?"

Manstein didn't like being interrupted by the half-baked lieutenant with a mustache. After asking Faust about his name, he raised one eyebrow:

"Lieutenant Hitler, you know nothing about war economics. Riga is one of the most important transportation hubs for the Russians on the front line. Occupying it will not only disrupt the Russian army's railway operations, but more importantly, it will also affect the food supply to the Russian capital, Petrograd."

Manstein opened his hands, then clasped them together again. "Once Petrograd is out of food, the General Staff will take action, and ultimately the Russian Empire will face serious problems within its own ranks."

Manstein's prediction surprised Faust a little, but after thinking about it, it was not surprising. The German army had always been committed to inciting civil unrest in Tsarist Russia. The Russian Revolution was already within the plan of the General Staff. Anyone who could predict the specific time of the outbreak of the Russian Revolution would be a real talent.

Faust said confidently, "There is a real possibility of unrest in Petrograd. So, Captain Manstein, do you think Germany can win the entire European war by this means? That is, by winning the victory on the Marne through the victory on the Vistula?"

Faust's words made Manstein stunned for a moment. Manstein narrowed his eyes again and looked at Faust carefully: "This will definitely help us win the war against Russia."

Faust looked Manstein in the eye: "Our war is a war with the Entente. Defeating Russia is only winning one-third of the war. We still have two-thirds of the Entente to defeat!"

Chapter 61: Faust's Brilliant Plan

"The Imperial Army is invincible in Eastern Europe. We can certainly win the war against Russia."

Manstein's answer did not satisfy Faust: "The war against Russia and the war against the Allies do not seem to be the same thing. Defeating Russia does not mean that we will defeat Britain and France."

Faced with this question, Manstein simply smiled and did not answer immediately. Instead, he took the troops of the Greater German Regiment to the Wilhelm Barracks in Königsberg.

There are two larger barracks in Königsberg, one is Friedrich Barracks and the other is Wilhelm Barracks. Friedrich Barracks is close to the old town and adjacent to the Pregel River, while Wilhelm Barracks is closer to the railway hub. The Great German Regiment moved into Wilhelm Barracks for rest and recuperation, and the meaning was very clear: they must be ready to take the train and rush to the front at any time.

The Russian army can no longer pose any military threat to Königsberg, but the grim atmosphere in the city remains. Friedrichsburg, formerly used as a naval base, and Kronprinzburg, used for military training, have been rebuilt into large modern fortresses, housing fortress artillery and engineers responsible for operating heavy coastal defense artillery.

Manstein prepared dinner specifically for Faust and his party. The dining conditions on the Eastern Front were much better than those on the Western Front. Not to mention coffee and tea, even red wine was available in unlimited quantities. Beef, sausages, roast chicken, lobster and all kinds of seafood... were all available.

Faust had some understanding of why the German veterans returning home from the Eastern Front after Germany's defeat later became the main force in strangling the Red Revolution.

Even with such material conditions, Manstein, a captain of staff, had much better food and clothing than the colonel-level officers on the Western Front. The grassroots soldiers were certainly not as good as Manstein, but the German soldiers on the Eastern Front still had much better food and clothing than the German soldiers on the Western Front.

Different material foundations brought about different morale, and different morale determined the completely different ideologies of German soldiers on the Western Front and the Eastern Front at the end of the war.

On the other hand, at the end of World War I, although the German army on the Western Front still occupied large tracts of territory in Belgium and France, after the Battle of Amiens, the German army was increasingly unable to resist the Allied forces on the front battlefield, and the German army on the Western Front clearly felt the defeat on the battlefield.

The German army on the Eastern Front maintained a conqueror posture in the East until Germany's defeat. They did not directly feel that the enemy had defeated them on the battlefield, so it was easy for them to think that Germany's defeat was due to the betrayal of revolutionaries in the rear, rather than the German army's own inability to fight.

After Germany's defeat, the military force the bourgeoisie relied on to suppress the revolutionaries was mainly the Free Corps composed of veterans returning home from the Eastern Front.

Manstein gestured for everyone to pick up their knives and forks. "Enjoy your meals, everyone. This isn't any special treatment for you. Most officers on the Eastern Front enjoy this level of food. Below the officers, the soldiers don't eat as well, but the difference isn't huge either. Please enjoy your meals."

Faust sat down at the table and began to eat the fresh steak, the taste of which he had almost forgotten. "Captain Manstein, the supplies on the Eastern Front are truly plentiful."

Manstein boasted, "Over the past two and a half years, the German army on the Eastern Front has defeated the Russian army several times. We have seized from the Russians an area equivalent to the entirety of Germany. Since the Gorlice and Tarnow offensives, we have won a series of victories. The Russian army collapsed so quickly that they didn't have time to destroy the vast amount of supplies left in Warsaw. We have captured over 100,000 livestock alone."

Faust frowned, puzzled. "The situation on the Western Front and in the rear is terrible. Berlin is suffering from famine. Hundreds of thousands of people died of starvation during the Turnip Winter. What's going on on the Eastern Front? Why aren't they sending back the captured food?"

Manstein calmly responded to this question: "Brothers on the Western Front, don't be angry. The difficulty in transferring food to the Western Front and the rear is not primarily due to the availability of food, but rather to transportation. All trains must prioritize transporting military supplies, and only a few trains can carry food. Therefore, almost all food captured at the front has to be consumed locally."

Manstein went on to say, "The wide-gauge tracks built by the Russians have caused us great trouble. The Eastern Front has done its best to transport food to the rear, but a large amount of food is still piled up at the front. This is a difficult problem to solve. Our engineers are renovating the railway lines every day, but it is still not enough."

Faust remained silent. The German army's conquest of Romania could only temporarily alleviate the famine problem. Due to limited transportation conditions, no matter how much land Germany conquered in Eastern Europe, it could not solve the hunger problem in the country.

Not to mention Romania, Germany later controlled Ukraine, the granary of Europe, through the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk. However, the biggest problem was that the Germans had no way to transport Ukraine's grain to Berlin efficiently.

The result was still a drop in the bucket. The German army plundered millions of tons of grain, sugar, meat and oil in Ukraine, but probably less than one-tenth of it was shipped back to the country.

This is also one of the fundamental reasons for Germany's defeat. It was impossible for Germany to improve its transportation system in a short period of time, nor could it use its victory in Eastern Europe to alleviate the famine. Even if the Allies did not directly defeat Germany on the Western Front, as long as the blockade continued, Germany's collapse was only a matter of time.

Germany is doomed to fail.

Manstein was still discussing the General Staff's grand strategy for the Eastern Front:

"...and there are hundreds of thousands of Baltic Germans living in Courland. They are all German military nobles who came to Riga with the Northern Crusaders. During Catherine's time, the Baltic Germans were granted the privilege of monopolizing the political affairs of the Courland region. However, since the war began, the Russians have been oppressing the Baltic Germans. If we capture Riga, we can liberate these hundreds of thousands of Germans, increase our military strength, and further undermine Russia's political stability..."

Faust placed his right hand on the table, resting his chin on it, and asked calmly, "Captain Manstein, do you think Germany can win the entire war?"

Faust's words interrupted Manstein's passionate speech. Manstein's expression quickly turned cold. He stood up with a stern look on his face: "Major Faust, this is not the place to promote defeatism."

Faust said casually, "We can win on the Eastern Front. As Captain Manstein said, the transportation conditions on the Eastern Front are too poor. No matter how much grain there is in the fields, it only counts if it can be transported to the big cities. This is not just the case with us, I'm sure it's the same in Russia. So, as long as Russia loses railway hubs like Riga and Warsaw, it will be much more difficult for the Russians to transport grain to Petrograd. No matter how vast Russia is, or how high its grain production is, what good will it do if we can't transport it to Petrograd?"

Faust also stood up and walked up to Manstein, their faces almost touching.

"Without food, revolution will soon break out in Petrograd, and we will take advantage of this opportunity to defeat Russia."

Manstein said expressionlessly: "As you said, we can win the war."

Faust approached Manstein, saying, "Winning the war against Russia does not mean winning the war against the Allies. As long as the Allies maintain their blockade of our country, Germany will face the same problems as Russia. Food from Eastern Europe will be difficult to transport back to Berlin due to poor transportation conditions. Over time, the same thing will happen to Berlin as happened to Petrograd."

Manstein asked, "Are you preaching revolution?"

"I am only stating the facts," said Faust, "Captain Manstein, and a man of your intelligence must have thought of this."

Manstein took two steps back and returned to his seat. "No one can predict the outcome of the war. If Germany is inevitably defeated in the West, we must at least preserve the gains Germany has made on the Eastern Front."

Faust smiled. These words hit the mark. "Right! Germany must find a way to preserve its victory on the Eastern Front! I have a plan that will ensure that Germany's victory on the Eastern Front will not be taken away even if the Allies win on the Western Front."

Faust shook his finger. "We are powerless. This plan can only be implemented if we get Marshal Hindenburg's approval."

Manstein was a little surprised: "So, you hope to convince the old marshal through me."

Faust smiled and said, "Captain Manstein, you are very interested in my plan, aren't you? You won't lose anything by just listening to it. My plan is actually very similar to General Ludendorff's idea, which is to establish a satellite state for Germany on the Eastern Front. Even if Germany is defeated in the future, this satellite state must be preserved."

Manstein was still wondering what kind of brilliant idea Faust had, but he didn't expect it to be anything more than this. He sneered:

"This... I thought it was some amazing plan. If Germany had been defeated, the Allies would definitely support Russia in retaking this satellite state. Besides, Germany wouldn't be able to continue to control the Eastern European satellite states after its defeat."

Faust held out his hand and retorted, "No, we can. We only need to do two things. The first is to cause a revolution in Russia, causing a major shift in the nature of the Russian regime, turning Russia into a hostile country that Britain and France cannot accept. The second is to immediately relocate the families of soldiers from the German-occupied areas on the Eastern Front. After the defeat, the German soldiers will not have to return home, but will remain in Eastern Europe with their families."

Chapter 62: Eastern Master Plan

Faust's grand plan almost made Manstein laugh out loud. Manstein shook his head repeatedly: "How can we afford to send so many immigrants to Eastern Europe! Too many immigrants, and the transportation system will simply not be able to handle them. Too few immigrants, and once Germany loses the war, the immigrants will become prey to the enemy's knives."

"Furthermore," Manstein said, "a revolution in Russia might lead to Russia's withdrawal from the war, but it wouldn't cause Britain and France to completely disrecognize Russia. France is also a republic. Even if a revolution broke out in Russia and overthrew the Romanov dynasty, France would certainly continue to maintain ties with Russia."

Faust explained each one to Manstein: "The transportation difficulties are more about transporting food from the Eastern European front to the interior. It is easier to transport people from the interior to the front. And we don't need to transport too many people. We can't really hold on to Courland, Poland, Ukraine...everywhere. Germany's transportation capacity means that if we implement the military dependents immigration plan, we can only try to hold on to a few places."

Faust said: "Strategically speaking, Courland is of the utmost importance to Germany. Courland already has hundreds of thousands of Germans. We don't need to immigrate too many people to ensure that the Germans will have an advantage in Courland after the war."

Manstein still found the plan absurd: "Lithuania and Latvia each have a population of two million, and Estonia has a population of one million. We must at least migrate one million Germans to Courland to ensure that ethnic Germans have a say in the region after the war! Where will we get so much rail transport capacity?"

Faust believed that so many immigrants were unnecessary: ​​"After the war on the Eastern Front ends, General Ludendorff will undoubtedly want to transfer a large number of troops from the Eastern Front to the Western Front. There will no longer be a need for millions of German troops on the Eastern Front. We can reduce the remaining troops on the Eastern Front to 200,000, and simply relocate the families of these 200,000 people to Courland."

"Lithuania's demographics aren't conducive to immigration. Most of its two million-plus residents are Lithuanians, Poles, and Russians, who are hostile to the Germans. Latvia's situation is much better. Its population is less than two million, but it already has hundreds of thousands of Germans. If another 200,000 German troops and their families from the Eastern Front were to move in, Latvia could become a German nation."

Faust said: "As for the revolution, if Russia only breaks out a republican revolution, it will not make Russia an enemy of Britain and France. But if Russia breaks out a socialist revolution, Britain and France will no longer be able to ally with Russia."

Faust laid out a grand blueprint for Manstein: "Captain Manstein, please think about this. If Germany is in danger of defeat, we should act sooner in Eastern Europe. After Russia's collapse, Eastern Europe will become a playground for all sorts of small ethnic groups to attack and slaughter. The Germans can easily seize a piece of land of greatest strategic significance to Germany from this chaos."

"The price we have to pay is just to sacrifice some transportation capacity and spend some time. There is no need to rush. We just need to complete the immigration of hundreds of thousands of military dependents to the Courland region before Germany's defeat becomes apparent."

"This is my Generalplan Ost!"

Faust's brilliant plan was not a plan for the German Second Empire. His idea was first to weaken the strength of the German army on the Eastern Front at the end of the war, and then to prevent hundreds of thousands of royalist German troops who had won the battle on the Eastern Front from returning to Germany after Germany surrendered.

Historically, the veterans of the Eastern Front who returned home became the main force of the German bourgeois reactionary forces. The hastily formed Red Armed Forces were no match for the hundreds of thousands of veterans of the Eastern Front, so they were quickly and brutally suppressed.

The morale of the millions of German troops on the Western Front was low, and anti-war thoughts were rampant. In addition, the Allied forces were still keeping an eye on these millions of German troops on the Western Front. Neither Britain nor France would easily allow the German troops on the Western Front to return home and move freely.

In fact, in later history, millions of German troops on the Western Front were indeed disarmed by Britain and France after the armistice, and the German reactionary forces could only transfer troops from the Eastern Front to suppress the revolution.

If the families of the German troops on the Eastern Front were all relocated to Eastern Europe in this immigration plan, the remaining German troops on the Eastern Front after the war would not be able to return to their country easily. They would be more likely to stay in their new homes in Eastern Europe, and the German reactionary forces would lose a large source of troops.

The balance of revolutionary forces in Germany will undergo significant changes.

At that time, if the German military wanted to suppress the revolution, it would have to start from scratch and raise an army.

Manstein seemed a little shaken, but he still had doubts: "Is it really possible that the Russian revolution will become a socialist revolution that Britain and France cannot tolerate?"

Faust said: "Everything depends on human efforts. Germany can help some Russian revolutionaries return home and promote the socialist revolution in Tsarist Russia."

Manstein remained unconvinced: "I doubt whether the railway can transport hundreds of thousands of military dependents to Courland."

Faust said: "Don't worry, as long as the number of German troops left on the Eastern Front is greatly reduced, a lot of transportation capacity will be freed up. I think only 200,000 German troops will be left on the Eastern Front, or even less. I think only 150,000 German troops will be enough."

Manstein said, "One hundred and fifty thousand German troops! Even if Russia surrenders to us after the revolution, we cannot guarantee that the Russian army will not tear up the treaty and launch a counterattack after we weaken the remaining troops."

Faust said, "It would be absolutely sufficient to inflict a more severe blow on Russia before she surrenders. General Ludendorff would approve of this."

Ludendorff was determined to win a decisive victory on the Eastern Front and then transfer more troops to the Western Front to fight his "Emperor Offensive". Faust was very confident that Ludendorff could accept this proposal.

Manstein still felt that Faust's Eastern General Plan had many major problems, but the direction of the Eastern General Plan was indeed very groundbreaking, which opened up areas that Manstein had not considered before.

Manstein thought it over carefully again, and finally asked, "Major Faust, your overall plan for the East, all of the above, all imply one premise, that is, Germany will definitely be defeated..."

Faust said nonchalantly, "Captain Manstein, only those who don't consider supplies, logistics, or economics in a war think Germany can still win. Anyone who understands the economics of war should know that it's difficult for Germany to win the war! I believe you understand this, so we should formulate a general plan in the East in advance to limit Germany's losses."

"If we follow my plan, after Germany's defeat, we can at least preserve a German-dominated state of Courland in the East. With hundreds of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of German veterans remaining in Courland, we can also ensure that Courland will not be overthrown by other foreign powers in Eastern Europe. Perhaps, Courland can even gain more territory in the chaos of Eastern Europe."

Manstein said: "With only one million Germans, they can only rule Latvia at best. With so many people, it is impossible to maintain long-term rule even with more land."

Faust emphasized, "There's no need for long-term rule! After the war, even if Germany is defeated, twenty years should be enough for Germany to recover. The Kurland Germans don't need to wait too long."

Manstein pondered for a moment. He always thought that Faust's general plan for the East was not very reliable, but he had no other more compelling reasons to refute it.

Faust said, "Captain Manstein, you only need to report the Eastern Master Plan to Marshal Hindenburg. As for the rest, let Marshal Hindenburg and General Ludendorff make the final decision."

"Also, Captain Manstein, there are only a few hundred thousand Germans in the Baltic region, but within Russia, such as in the Volga River basin, there are nearly a million more. If we can help the Russian socialists succeed in their revolution, we can use this as a condition for them to relocate the Volga Germans to Courland as well. That way, the Germans' demographic advantage in Courland will be even greater."

Faust didn't care at all about the Germans in Courland. To be honest, most of the Baltic Germans and Volga Germans were local nobles and landlords, and their reputation among the people was quite bad. The Latvian riflemen once became the most elite troops in the Russian army because the Latvians had a deep hatred for the Baltic German nobles.

The Eastern General Plan had only one purpose, which was to keep all German troops on the Eastern Front in Eastern Europe and prevent them from returning to Germany to cause trouble.

As for the future, after the victory of the German Revolution, there will naturally be many ways to deal with these Kurland Germans. Whether it is to deal with them in a good direction or a bad direction, there will be ample policy space at that time.