In the Lombardy region, the situation was very unfavorable to Austria. The Italian-Austrian War was definitely not as simple as recorded in the history books. There were rebellions of the bourgeoisie and nobles inside, and enemy forces outside.
The reinforcements sent by the Vienna government were suppressing the rebellion in the Venice area at this time. Only one Austrian division had reached the front line, and the total number of troops that Marshal Radkis could now use was less than 30,000.
This number is twice as high as in the same period in history, otherwise it would have retreated from the Milan area as in the past.
Taking a closer look at the map on the table, and considering the current international situation, Marshal Radkis made an extremely surprising decision at the military conference.
"Order the troops to prepare, we will abandon the city of Milan on April 1!"
"What? Your Excellency Marshal, are you sure this is not a joke?" Will asks Viktor in disbelief
"General Vic, I'm pretty sure what I'm doing!" Marshal Radkis said without changing his face.
"But Your Excellency Marshal, we are not at the point where we must retreat now. Once the rebellion in the Venice area is suppressed, our reinforcements will arrive, and there is no problem in blocking the Kingdom of Sardinia!" Viktor will ask.
This is not the doubt of Victor alone. Many officers present found it difficult to accept. Why should they retreat when they can win
"It is very simple, we can block the attack of the Kingdom of Sardinia, but in the case of internal and external troubles, there is no way to defeat the enemy's ability.
The rebels in Lombardy have already colluded with the Kingdom of Sardinia, and if we hold each other for a long time, the rebellion will continue forever.
This also involves political and economic aspects. In short, the Vienna government has authorized me to handle the Italian issue with full power. You just need to execute the order! " Marshal Radkis explained coldly.
Abandoning Lombardy, the pressure he has to bear is definitely not small, and it will even cause a series of chain reactions. Under normal circumstances, no generals are willing to take this responsibility.
The fact that Marshal Radkis dared to do this was not unrelated to the order from the Vienna government. As long as the final victory was achieved, he did not care about the gains and losses of one city and one place.
In his opinion, this is a high level of the Vienna government who also discovered the crisis in the Italian theater. If the problem cannot be solved as soon as possible, then the Papal State, the Principality of Tuscany, and the Kingdom of Naples will all come forward.
To deal with the Kingdom of Sardinia and the rebels alone, Marshal Radkis has enough troops. Once these states are involved in the war, it will be dangerous.
Instead, it is better to give up the Lombardy region first, and the Sardinian family will occupy these territories, and the other three Italian states will not participate in the war.
Anyway, they were forced to declare war because of public opinion. The main armies of several states have not yet been dispatched, and now they are all volunteer soldiers organized by the people.
If the Sardinian Kingdom occupied these areas and the people explained it, even if it was out of envy and hatred, they would not send troops to help the Sardinian Kingdom fight again.
If there is no foreign aggression, there will be internal conflicts. The internal contradictions of the Italian states are also not small. Now it is only necessary for the politicians to transfer the hatred of the people to Austria.
But this situation cannot continue. Everything can be deceived, but the stomach cannot be deceived. People always have to eat.
The economic crisis continues, and there are many unemployed people in Italy. If this problem cannot be solved, conflicts will still break out.
In addition to the Italians, the attitude of Britain and France is also a problem.
The French wanted Lombardy and Venice to be independent states, and they didn't want Italy to be unified while driving out Austria.
The British wanted a unified Italy that could balance both France and Austria, but they didn't want to see Austria collapse.
While weakening Austria, it is necessary to preserve Austria's strength, which can block the expansion of the Russians.
In this context, once the kingdom of Sardinia occupied Lombardy, the two sides will definitely merge, and the French position will change accordingly, from the current support to the hostility.
The British's support for the Kingdom of Sardinia will only remain in words. They will let the Kingdom of Sardinia accept it as soon as possible. Unfortunately, the Kingdom of Sardinia, which was kidnapped by public opinion, can only continue to fight.
After the contraction of the front line, the troops in the hands of Marshal Radkis were more abundant, while the front line of the Kingdom of Sardinia was stretched.
The newly occupied Lombardy cannot provide them with supplies, and they mainly rely on domestic transportation, which is definitely a pressure for the Kingdom of Sardinia.
While fighting against Austria, they had to feed the people of Lombardy, otherwise they would rebel if they were hungry.
Without the substantial support of Britain and France, three less states participated in the war. The outcome of this war is already doomed. The Sardinian Kingdom's national strength is limited, and there is absolutely no way to compare it with Austria.
Marshal Radkis is confident that with the strength in his hand, he will defeat the army of the Kingdom of Sardinia, and then regain the Lombardy region, and it is not a problem to even burn the war to the territory of the Kingdom of Sardinia.
From a strategic point of view, this time, it is not a retreat, but to lure the enemy deeper.
Of course, Franz sent him a private letter asking him to eliminate all the chaos in Austrian Italy as much as possible, which is why he made up his mind.
The word "disorganized party" is not so simple. Marshal Radkis clearly refers to the capitalists and aristocrats in the Italian region. Without the exploitation of the people by these people, where would the rebellion come from
Lombardy was incorporated into the Kingdom of Sardinia. It is estimated that most of the nobles and capitalists will fall to the Kingdom of Sardinia. After the war is over and liquidation is carried out, these people can become members of the chaos.
Buying people's hearts and minds with their family property will soon stabilize Austrian Italy. After all, the people of Lombardy are Germans who entered Italy. Without the upper-level obstacles, it is much less difficult to achieve national integration.
There are advantages and disadvantages. Marshal Radkis does not need to think so much. Anyway, he has already seen the advantages and can solve the Italian problem once and for all.
For the final victory, both Lombardy and Venice can temporarily give up, as long as they are finally recovered, he is still a hero of Austria.
In the quiet conference room, a voice broke through, and a middle-aged general stood up and said, "Your Excellency Marshal, maybe we can do something to prevent the Kingdom of Sardinia from occupying Lombardy so easily!"
"Edmund, what are your plans?" Marshal Radkis asked with concern
"Your Excellency, since the people of Lombardy welcome Italians so much, let's help spread the word so that they have a better impression of the Kingdom of Sardinia!" Lieutenant General Edmund Leopold Friedley said with a sneer
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