The Rise Of Australasia

Chapter 1127: Chapter 845: France’s Dilemma Between Advocating War and Peace

As Arthur had anticipated, after declaring war on the Polish government, Germany swiftly undertook a nationwide mobilization.

The total number of the German Army was only 600,000, which made winning the war a considerable challenge.

With strategic planning by the German Army Headquarters, Germany formulated a detailed mobilization policy, aiming to increase the size of its army to around 1.5 million.

Although the Poles received the news of the war several hours later, the Polish government was not to be outdone; they issued a national mobilization order on the same day, expecting to call up a staggering 2.25 million troops.

In comparison to the Spanish Civil War, where the total mobilized forces on both sides barely reached 1 million after more than a year of conflict, the military forces committed at the outset of the German-Polish War are projected to be close to 4 million.

Clearly, this was a war on a truly grand scale.

From November 16, 1945, the German-Polish War instantly became the hottest news in Europe, capturing the attention of most European nations and peoples.

It was also on this day that France declared a partial mobilization of its eastern regions and issued a strong protest to the German government.

French President Albert, in interviews with domestic and international media, angrily condemned the German government for reneging on the contract they had signed, calling them deceitful warmongers, the harbingers of war, and criminals against the European people.

The reason for President Albert’s rage was clear; the swift declaration of war by Germany overtly disregarded the contract signed just a few months prior.

During this time, the entire French government, including President Albert himself, had constantly been promoting this contract as heralding an era of peace for France and the whole Europe.

Well now, in just a few months, Germany had torn up this contract, rendering all of President Albert’s previous propaganda null and void.

Encouraged by a few pro-war generals and officers, President Albert even submitted a proposal to Congress for France to declare war on Germany.

But swiftly, cruel reality slapped President Albert once more. The French Parliament firmly rejected the proposal to send troops to Germany, lambasting the officials who proposed it.

“Damn it, those good-for-nothings who only care about taxes and public opinion, they have no idea what France is facing!” One of the high-ranking members of the French pro-war camp, Congressman Léon Blum, faced the final decision of Congress with a face full of anger and cursed.

As a rare pro-war advocate in France, Léon Blum had not enjoyed a high status in the nation up to that point.

The reason for Léon Blum’s pro-war stance was quite straightforward; Léon Blum was a pure-blooded French Jew.

It’s common knowledge that the cruel policies of Germany and Italy towards the Jews have engendered profound hatred within the Jewish community towards these two countries.

As one of the more prominent Jewish figures in France, Léon Blum knew his position well, which had to be in staunch opposition to France’s entente with Germany and Italy.

Yet compared to the more traditional pro-war advocates, Léon Blum had a degree less of decisiveness and conviction.

Knowing full well that Congress was unlikely to agree to wage war, Léon Blum had no plans for any further action.

Until now, there was still a large number of so-called pro-war advocates in France who shared a similar stance to that of Léon Blum.

These pro-war advocates’ lukewarm attitudes meant that the French government missed the last opportunity to confront Congress and consequently lost the initiative in the German-Polish War.

If the French Parliament did not agree to wage war against Germany, what say could France have in this conflict?

Hoping that a slight threat of action could scare the Germans away would mean that the British and French wouldn’t have chosen the appeasement policy from the beginning.

Unsurprisingly, the German government paid no heed to the French threats.

When faced with inquiries from the French Ambassador, the German government nonchalantly replied, “If your government does not recognize our just war against Poland, then feel free to attack us.

The German Empire has never feared any enemy, nor will we cease our righteous actions due to any enemy’s provocation.”

In response to France’s partial mobilization, at the request of the Germans, Italy announced a partial mobilization on October 17th.

Since Italy’s army had long exceeded 600,000, even a minor partial mobilization would bring Italy’s military forces dangerously close to a million.

Now the pressure returned to the French government’s side.

Although the French claimed to have partially mobilized, in reality, they had only moved a small number of troops. Without the support of Congress, the French government was not truly capable of mobilizing its military.

In contrast, the mobilizations by Germany and Italy were tangible and serious. If their military mobilizations were not halted, France would be facing a German-Italian Alliance with a combined force of several million.

Sensing the threat, the French immediately contacted their ally, the Austrian Empire, requesting that Austria also conduct a partial mobilization to prevent a sudden attack by Germany and Italy.

At the same time, President Albert urgently called British Prime Minister Baldwin, seeking the diplomatic support of the British government.

Speaking of Prime Minister Baldwin, he could be considered an evergreen figure in British politics. His current term marked Baldwin’s third stint as Prime Minister, with his high influence in British politics persisting from 1923 to the present.

“Prime Minister Pierre, what did the British say?” President Albert anxiously looked at Prime Minister Pierre and asked in the French cabinet.

“The British Government has stated that due to His Majesty King George V’s condition, they are preoccupied and will not get involved in European affairs,” Prime Minister Pierre replied with a hint of helplessness to President Albert.

“Damn it, are they not afraid that the Germans will completely defeat us and challenge their dominance in Europe?” President Albert asked somewhat hysterically.

“The British said they will ensure the war remains limited to Germany and Poland and are willing to offer some assistance to Poland,” Prime Minister Pierre said with an odd look on his face.

“Damn it, do they really expect me to believe these words that fool the people?” President Albert scoffed, having lost faith in the British, “Tell the British that Germany poses a threat not only to France but to Britain as well.

If the British do not wish to take concrete action to help us, we won’t hesitate to cease resistance to avoid civilian casualties.”

One of the reasons for France’s extreme weakening after World War I is that it directly became the bulwark against Germany.

For the defense of their native land, the French mobilized a large military, suffering immense casualties.

At that time, although Britain also mobilized part of its army, a significant portion of them were from the indigenous armies of the colonies.

For colonial empires like Britain and France, the death or injury of hundreds of thousands or millions of indigenous peoples was not too great a loss, which is one of the reasons why the British quickly restored order after the war.

But it was different for the French. If France had to rely solely on those colonial troops, it was only a matter of time before it would be conquered.

The French mobilized millions of soldiers, causing casualties among the French that were some of the most severe of any country in World War I.

Only Germany and the Russian Nation could compete with France in terms of casualty numbers, as Germany’s casualties were high due to fighting on two fronts.

The Russian Nation simply had inferior equipment, resulting in a weaker fighting force and, consequently, massive casualties.

But compared to France, these two countries certainly had larger populations. Russia, needless to say, had a population of over a hundred million before World War I, and the loss of tens of millions of its population did not leave the nation prostrate.

Germany may not have had as vast a population as Russia, but its population was still much larger than France’s.

This led to France being one of the most devastated victors, although it won a major war, the benefits did not match the French casualties.

A considerable part of the pacifism from the top down in France is because the costs of World War I far outweighed the gains.

Coupled with the public’s war weariness, if the British do not take concrete actions to support France, it is indeed possible that France might deliberately perform poorly in the war.

“Yes, Mr. President,” Prime Minister Pierre nodded, showing no sign of surprise on his face.

Prime Minister Pierre Laval had previously introduced himself as an extreme pacifist, even opposed to World War I.

With such a background, it is only natural for Prime Minister Pierre Laval to oppose the possible war at present.

Prime Minister Pierre strongly agreed with President Albert’s threat to Britain. Even in Pierre’s view, France should not face war at all.

If Germany wishes to expand in Poland, then let them. After all, Poland can mobilize an army of two to three million, which would greatly deplete the Germans’ living strength.

As for who would win between Germany and Poland, the answer to this question is not important.

Both parties mobilizing armies of two to three million on a large scale, the winner of such extensive warfare, compared to France, which did not participate in the war, would also be considered a failure.

Would the British give in to the threats of the French?

Of course, they would not.

In the eyes of the British, although Germany and Italy were indeed powerful, France joined with Austria and Poland would be entirely capable of resisting them.

With another ally of Germania and Italy being tied down by Australasia and because of the distance, it was nearly impossible for them to provide assistance to Germania and Italy.

This also meant that the worst outcome of the war between Germania and Poland would be that it evolved into a war between the Axis Powers and the Franco-Australian Alliance plus Poland, pegged as prime prey.

The British were most eager to see such a war between two militarily blocs of relatively equal combined strength.

The benefit was that such a war would not result in a disastrous outcome, and the British need not fear that one side would emerge too powerful to threaten their own position.

Moreover, the British could sell a large number of armaments and other supplies during such a conflict, extracting sufficient nourishment from these countries.

In the end, a strong and unscathed British Empire could act as the arbitrator of the war, reaping the biggest share of the spoils. It was simply the perfect strategy.