Holy Roman Empire

Chapter 1135: Chapter 149, Americans’ America
 

Facing the formidable Continent United Army, the British Colonial Government of the Central and Southern Peninsula was completely dumbfounded. Losing maritime power, the Peninsula was like a house with leaks on all sides, unable to withstand the wind and rain.

Even ignoring the difference in combat capabilities between the two sides, the Peninsula could not muster a million men. Yet the enemy also possessed naval and air superiority, allowing them to strike from all directions.

Requests for help were sent to London, and then relayed to India.

After the Battle of Malacca, the Far East shipping lanes were interrupted. Even if reinforcements were immediately dispatched from the homeland, they had to take a detour from India.

Time waits for no one on the battlefield, and the Continent United Army was rapidly approaching. Now, the only support available for the British Central and Southern Peninsula was India.

After the outbreak of the hegemonic war, the Indian Colonial Army had rapidly expanded, with total troop strength surpassing four million.

On paper, these figures were absolutely impressive. Even adding up the army, navy, and air forces of the Holy Roman Empire, the total strength did not reach three million.

But now in the age of industrialization, while the human wave tactics could still be effective, their effectiveness was being diminished.

Governor Robert Jarvis knew all too well what kind of force these four million colonial troops really were.

Command, equipment, training, morale—none of it was up to standard, and one could imagine what their combat effectiveness would be like.

If they truly had combat capabilities, they wouldn’t have to worry about being besieged by the Russian-Austrian forces; instead, they would be the ones launching attacks to seek their adversaries.

Looking at the request for help in his hands, Robert felt inwardly desperate. To the north was the Russian Army moving southward, to the west was the advancing Shinra Army, and now a million-strong colonial army had emerged from the east.

Facing two of the continent’s strongest armies in a three-front war was enough to make anyone’s scalp tingle.

But difficult as it was, the Central and Southern Peninsula must be saved. Otherwise, if the enemy marched all the way, India would ultimately be the one to suffer.

Even if they couldn’t defeat the enemy, at the very least, they had to keep them tied down on the Peninsula to buy time for a domestic breakthrough.

After hesitating for a long time, Governor Robert commanded, “Order the Seventh and Eighth Armies to quickly reinforce the Central and Southern Peninsula.

Notify all department heads to come to a meeting tonight to discuss matters of army expansion.”

Sitting on an army of more than four million yet still feeling short on troops was incredible, yet reality told Robert that to protect India, they had to keep expanding the army.

Hearing this alarming news, an assistant nearby quickly tried to persuade, “Your Excellency, our army is already expanded to its limit, if we continue to expand now, I fear…”

“There are no ‘fears,’ the enemy is formidable, and we lack sufficient mobile forces. How do we resist without expanding?

If the number of junior officers is insufficient, we must train them quickly or promote directly from the veterans.

If we are short on weapons and equipment, we gather them from the civilians. It doesn’t matter what kind of weapons, as long as they can kill the enemy.

Besides, the homeland has already given us strong support. Didn’t they just send us the equipment for two divisions yesterday? Once we get past this immediate crisis, things will improve.”

It wasn’t that Robert liked to twist words or change concepts, but the situation was dire, and as the Governor, he had to show confidence.

Equipment for two divisions was not a small amount, yet compared to the several million colonial troops now, it was like a drop in the bucket.

To ensure each man had a rifle, even flintlock guns from previous centuries were found in the army. The age of some of the artillery was even greater than that of Governor Robert himself.

No matter how unreliable, having something is better than having nothing. They might not be suitable for field battles, but they could still serve a purpose in defending fortifications.

It was a situation without much choice, the disorder in weapons was not unique to the Indian Colonial Army. Even the troops from the British Isles couldn’t guarantee uniformity in their equipment.

It wasn’t that the British Government was ineffective, but rather inherent limitations. As a maritime nation, the British Army had long followed a path of “small but elite.”

In the capitalist world, it was always “market orders that determined the scale of the industry.” With few orders for the army, the related industrial chain naturally couldn’t expand significantly.

A brief understanding of Britain’s military-industrial system would reveal that the army’s industrial sector was largely dependent on the naval military industry.

Purely relying on army orders, the industrial chain would likely not even be sustainable. After all, those days of high added-value equipment were few, and rifles, machine guns, and common cannons had passed their peak profitability period.

In some sense, the emergence of Armored Troops had also saved the army’s military industry.

Unfortunately, for Britain, this was not practical at all.

Normally, there was no need for such heavy weaponry, and by the time it was needed, the enemy had already landed on the British Isles, and the situation was irrecoverable.

…

When peace could no longer suppress the world, the devil would be unleashed, and the entire world would plunge into “bloodshed” and “panic.”

From Africa to Europe, and then from Europe to the Near East, Far East, and Indochina Peninsula, the entire World Island was engulfed in flames.

However, this was just the beginning. The American Continent, isolated overseas, also couldn’t keep to itself—after the secret negotiations failed, the Oceanic Alliance launched an attack on Shinra’s colonies in America.

Overnight, Latin America, South America, and the Caribbean Sea became battlefields, and the scope of the World War expanded again.

Austrian Central America was a prime region, where Shinra had operated for decades, with a population already exceeding ten million, and the territorial area reaching over one million square kilometers. They could muster a million-strong army in a full mobilization.

Even when facing attacks from both the northern and southern fronts, they held their ground and even managed to push the war into the heartlands of Mexico and Colombia.

Austrian South America scraped by, though its population barely exceeded one million. Yet, with the strategic advantage of the Andes Mountains, blocking the enemy’s advance wasn’t an issue.

Besides, Shinra had allies in America. Although they hadn’t taken an explicit side, it wasn’t difficult for them to slow down the Oceanic Alliance.

Up to now in the war, except for the fall of Alaska in North America, Shinra hadn’t lost any major territories.

It’s better to pick on the weak if you can’t defeat the strong, and then Spain faced tragedy.

The Americans, who had long coveted Cuba, couldn’t restrain their ambition and reached out a devilish hand toward the Caribbean Sea.

Unfortunately, the United States was not fortunate enough. After the Spaniards quashed the rebellion, they didn’t disband the French Mercenary Army but instead retained them for long-term employment.

The US-West Cuba War, taking place in a different context, naturally unfolded differently. Unlike the original timeline’s one-sided situation, the war initially turned intense.

As it turned out, modern American troops truly weren’t suited for war; even with an absolute numerical advantage, they were still pressed hard by the mercenaries.

If it weren’t for the limited numbers of the French Mercenary Army and their unwillingness to die for the Continental Alliance, the landing U.S. troops might’ve been entirely wiped out.

With all three major battlefields stalling, the situation became awkward. As the planner of this operation, Theodore Roosevelt felt an immense pressure.

Deep inside, a voice kept reminding him: put in more effort, else he would end up like the unfortunate Lincoln, becoming one of the worst presidents since the establishment of the United States.

Though Roosevelt took the lead, the decision of various countries to deploy troops at this time was actually compelled.

After unsuccessful private contacts with the Vienna Government, everyone knew that if they didn’t act promptly, once the British ship sank, it would take everyone down with it.

The war had continued up to now, and Britain had been struggling enormously, utterly overwhelmed by their adversaries.

Sending troops to attack the European Continent to help Britain win the war was naturally out of the question.

Everyone was self-aware, and even combined, the Oceanic Alliance was no match for Shinra alone on the European front.

Since striking was not an option, President Roosevelt consequently proposed “America for Americans,” attempting to “secure the ocean for self-preservation.”

To achieve this, it was not only necessary to have a strong navy, but more importantly, to remove the thorns close by, leaving no foothold for the enemy.

However, plans could not keep up with changes. The enemy’s thorns were too stubborn, and their methods of removing these thorns were too crude.

Not only did they fail to remove the enemy’s thorns, but they also accidentally injured themselves.

As frontline battle reports came in one after another, Theodore Roosevelt’s temper progressively worsened.

“They’re all incompetent!”

“A bunch of incompetents!”

“The United States is being ruined by…”

…

Faced with the President’s relentless scolding, the military representatives all lowered their proud heads. There was no choice; having lost battles, they had to be meek.

For this operation, apart from Japan, all member countries of the Oceanic Alliance sent their most “elite” troops to battle.

A king’s start, a bronze performance. The Allied Forces, seemingly with an absolute advantage, were directly toyed with by the enemy.

Not to mention the severe losses, but the strategic plan also went bankrupt. If they couldn’t drive the enemy out of the American Continent, once the post-autumn accounting came, they would be unable to withstand it.

The law does not punish the many, but its applicability also depends on the context. Partaking in a high-stakes game like World War, there is always the saying, “better to execute erroneously than miss an enemy.”

For other countries, surrender might offer a slim chance of survival; once the United States surrendered, the fate that awaited them was redivision.

A failed private contact was the best proof. If it weren’t for the intent to harshly target the United States, the Vienna Government would not have directly demanded unconditional surrender.

From this aspect, other member countries of the Oceanic Alliance were indeed dragged down by the United States.

Without this big boss, the small nations hardly warranted the Vienna Government’s targeted persecution; they would have been ignored.

Perhaps because Roosevelt’s scolding was too harsh, or maybe to preserve some dignity for the military, Secretary of State Melchio spoke up, “Mr. President, what’s done is done, finding fault will not help, our priority should be to quickly deal with the aftermath.

The strategy of driving the Holy Roman Empire out of America must not waver. We can’t rely on the strength of our allies; we must find our own solution.”

Cheating, after all, is not a long-term strategy, and national governments aren’t fools, they would eventually realize.

Once they understood that the Vienna Government was primarily targeting the United States, everyone knew how to choose.

Even if the reactions from other governments were slow, the Vienna Government would remind them at an appropriate time, guiding them to make the right choices.

“To not be able to fight, join them,” is not that shameful; what is truly embarrassing is making repeated mistakes.

The difference between allies turning traitors is just a message away. As soon as it’s confirmed that the Great Britain Empire is doomed, all countries would instantly opt to cut their losses.

To withdraw would be one thing, but it would be far worse if these countries then turn around and backstab the United States.

In this regard, the Vienna Government was professional, best at turning an enemy’s underling into their own.

The conversation shifted, yet the military representatives dared not respond. Relying on their own strength was straightforward, but the truth was they were simply unable to win!

The most elite domestic troops had been deployed, yet they hadn’t even managed to take Spain’s Cuba, let alone face the more formidable Holy Roman Empire.

Of course, this didn’t mean that the United States was powerless against Shinra’s colonies in America. Given enough time, their national strength could still suffocate Shinra’s colonial presence in America.

The reason for their current worry was the lack of time. The hegemonic war had reached a critical moment; one wrong move and the Great Britain Empire would be gone.

Without Britain to shield them, the United States alone didn’t have the power to confront the Holy Roman Empire.

Having a foothold in Central America, even separated by a vast ocean, wouldn’t hinder Shinra’s power projection.

Although this power projection couldn’t possibly be complete, nor even one-fifth of it.

But the U.S. Army, inexperienced in combat, facing double the military strength of Shinra, still lacked confidence.

Especially since the enemy was skilled at rallying support, even the mighty Britannia had fallen into a siege; it could be even worse for the United States if they ended up joining the siege.

Seeing this scene, President Roosevelt’s inner anger intensified. But the military’s ineptitude wasn’t just a matter of days, and further reprimanding was futile.

The United States’s military misfortune also had historical reasons. The immigrants who came to the United States did so to escape wars in Europe and were naturally anti-war.

Especially after the Civil War, the anti-war sentiment deeply permeated the public consciousness. To secure votes, members of Congress strove to align with this sentiment, transforming into anti-war advocates.

The military forces that had risen during war periods were soon suppressed by politicians. Not only was the military downsized, but Congress members were even stingy about issuing general ranks.

Under these circumstances, the military had indeed become well-behaved, but well-behaved children are not good at fighting!

Including this war, the civilian反战的呼声更高, if not for the near-unanimous support of major domestic capitalists, the United States would not have gotten involved.

“Does the military have no plans?”

Facing Roosevelt’s piercing gaze, realizing he couldn’t avoid it this time, Brigadier Matthias grimaced and replied, “The enemy has long been entrenched in Central America, even appointing a prince as a governor, which shows their level of commitment.

As is well known, the Holy Roman Empire governs its colonies through the most ancient system of feudalism. Under this system, the noble feudatories all possess extensive private armies.

Currently, these nobles are mostly first-generation, all tough warriors risen from battlefields. Though they have retired, they still hold military positions in the reserves.

…”