Chapter 236: Chapter 123, Cruelty Despite the British bureaucrats’ best efforts to conceal it, the tragedy unfolding on the Crimea Peninsula still made it onto the London newspapers.
Public outcry ensued, and numerous soldiers’ family members took to the streets to demonstrate and protest. It was all to no avail; the bureaucrats in the Department of Army Supply were simply following procedures, fully compliant with British law, and thus bore no responsibility.
The bureaucrats were fearless, but the British Cabinet faced tremendous pressure. If they couldn’t resolve this issue, the results of the next election would be quite poignant.
Prime Minister Stanley didn’t need to wait for the election to feel the pressure.
“Prime Minister,” said Minister of Army Stanley, “public opinion is severely against us, and the media’s exaggeration is causing significant issues with our recruitment efforts.”
The dismal logistics system saw over a third of British soldiers fall ill, unable to receive effective treatment, with a mortality rate of forty-two percent for common injuries—a brutal reality that would make anyone hesitate.
With the media’s artistic embellishment, the Crimea Peninsula had naturally turned into a hell on earth, so it was no wonder that the public resisted conscription.
One could say that if the Russians had been a bit more financially robust and dragged the war out for three to five more years, England and France would have had no choice but to leave in disgrace.
This had nothing to do with the war itself; the Alliance of England and France could be brought down by disease alone, without any military force being able to withstand the devastation of epidemics.
After some thought, George Hamilton-Gordon said, “The opposition party stirred up public opinion, which is out of our control. What we can do now is find a way to change the current situation.
The situation at the front is indeed dire, and the bureaucrats from the Army Supply Department should be sent to the gallows. If this condition doesn’t change, we might lose this war not to the Russians but to our own bureaucrats.”
Clearly, he intended to take action against the bureaucrats of the Army Supply Department. These people were essentially the Russians’ best allies; had they not been acting as a drag, the Russians would have already won the war—it’s just that the Tsarist Government’s bureaucrats were, in the same manner, the allies of the British.
Both sides were on the same level, holding their respective armies back, which kept the war at a stalemate.
Minister of Internal Affairs Henry cautioned, “Prime Minister, the bureaucrats of the logistics department do indeed deserve the gallows, but we are powerless against them.
Their actions are all carried out according to regulations, and they bear no responsibility. There are too many interests involved here, and acting rashly would cause significant trouble.”
Why is the bureaucratic system so mechanical? The answer is simple—interests.
Being strict to regulations allows those who set the policies to exploit loopholes for their benefit without bearing any legal responsibility.
After consideration, George Hamilton-Gordon reluctantly said, “If we can’t touch them, then we can at least order them to change the current situation, right?”
Compromise was inevitable; the real masters of the Great Britain Empire were the vast bureaucratic cohort, who had long since formed their own interest groups. If relations were to sour, the Cabinet might not necessarily be a match for them.
At least the coalition Cabinet established by George Hamilton-Gordon was helpless against the bureaucratic cohort. Even if the British Army Supply Department had only 178 people and those responsible for the Crimea Peninsula numbered just 44, they dared not make a rash move.
Minister of Internal Affairs Henry replied, “Of course, that’s within our rights.”
A single order for rectification meant glossing over everything that had happened before. And so the deaths of tens of thousands of British soldiers were all in vain.
In response to public pressure, the London Government decided to improve the medical conditions for the expeditionary force and started recruiting medical staff nationwide. Against this backdrop, Nightingale’s medical rescue team stepped onto the stage of history.
The historic city of Constantinople, now shrouded in gunsmoke, appeared elusive. Awaiting Russian artillery finally arrived, and Menshikov hesitated no longer before ordering an assault.
Constantinople was large yet small. The suburban areas of the outer city had already been lost, with the French Army now defending based on fortress bunkers. Sadly, these fortifications were a bit too ancient. Despite their reinforcements, they could not withstand the bombardment.
The 6-pound guns could not overcome these fortifications, nor could the 12-pounders. But when they switched to 24-pound, 48-pound, and even 100-pound guns, those ancient city defenses simply could not hold.
A single projectile from a massive cannon could destroy a building, causing significant casualties amongst the French Army, who never knew when a cannonball from the sky would claim their lives.
It was no longer safe within the city; the French Army headquarters had already moved into bomb shelters, as Aimable Jean Jacques Pelissier’s original headquarters had been destroyed.
A middle-aged officer defending the city said with a lingering fear, “Commander, the enemy’s firepower is too fierce; our city defenses simply cannot withstand the ordnance. We have suffered heavy casualties among the soldiers.”
An officer tasked with maintaining order in the city said bitterly, “Commander, the situation inside the city is even worse. The enemy’s projectiles could come flying in at any moment, causing widespread casualties. The city’s order has already collapsed.
Just yesterday afternoon, the Ottoman Government building collapsed under enemy fire, and the Sultan Government official Mustafa Pasha, who had stayed behind to work with us, died on the spot.”
The reality was even grimmer than what they described. Had it not been for the Russians’ inaccurate artillery fire, their losses would have been even greater.
Originally, residents left inside the city were there to serve the French Army, allowing the soldiers to enjoy normal life in their downtime from combat.
That was an excuse. The real reason was that the Sultan Government lacked the capacity to evacuate so many people from the city. Those who had the means to leave had already done so, while the remaining civilians, wanting to flee, did not know where to go.
Now the trouble had intensified; in the bustling city of Constantinople, Russian projectiles could land anywhere and cause massive losses.
The sudden intensity of the artillery strikes had immediately collapsed the city’s order. The Sultan Government had long since fled, relocating the capital, and the officials left to maintain order were now gone.
After a moment of contemplation, Aimable Jean Jacques Pelissier furrowed his brow and resolutely said, “Order the troops to maintain order within the city, and drive out those scattered crowds. Allow the soldiers to shoot those who do not heed the warning.”
This order was extremely cruel. There were hardly any who spoke French in Constantinople, and even if they wanted to listen to the advice, they could not understand it!
Driving people out of the city was essentially pushing them to a dead end. Don’t think that leaving the city would ensure safety, as both sides were exchanging fire, weren’t they? Just imagine the consequences should a group of people suddenly appear between the two armies.
Did they really expect the Russians to cease fire out of consideration for them, allowing them free passage before resuming their assault?
What a joke, a multitude of destitute people turning up in the Russian-occupied area, just think about what would happen.
The Russian Army’s logistical support was barely sufficient for themselves, let alone adding hundreds of thousands of refugees—it would be surprising if it didn’t break them.
The Russian Army was here to fight, not to engage in charity. If they were to delay their offensive on Constantinople for the sake of rescuing refugees, the Tsarist Government would likely have their heads.
Aimable Jean Jacques Pelissier was, of course, fully aware of all these matters.
Originally, with a sea route connecting Constantinople, supplying logistics was not a concern, and even with a large population of civilians inside the city, it was bearable, so leaving them there would not have been an issue.
But now it was different. Under the barrage of Russian artillery, the city’s order had collapsed, and the Ottoman Government’s dreadful execution capability simply lacked the strength to maintain order.
To restore normal order in a short period of time, suppression was indispensable.
In order to leave no opportunities for the enemy to exploit, Aimable Jean Jacques Pelissier had no choice but to make this ruthless decision.
“Yes, Commander!” the middle-aged officer replied solemnly.
Constantinople was too important for the French Army. Losing this place would mean losing the majority of the Near East war. Everyone present knew that no one could hope for good days ahead.
The French Army general Anthony proposed, “Commander, we must organize a counterattack. Continuing to take hits without striking back will inevitably lead to the fall of Constantinople.”
Clearly, he was advocating for naval firepower support. At the start of the war, the Anglo-French navies had provided them with firepower support, but the accuracy was simply moving.
Due to the distance, the English and French navies could not even see the Russian forces, instead bombarding the direction they believed the Russians were in.
It appeared very imposing, but the actual impact was extremely minimal since it was impossible to aim properly without even finding a target.
Of course, even if there was a target, it wouldn’t matter, with Constantinople itself in the way.
With artillery from over ten kilometers away, most of the navy’s guns couldn’t reach the Russian positions but instead caused numerous accidental falls within the city.
The young officer Tadzic objected, “No, looking at the firepower, the enemy’s guns are all heavy artillery, which we typically can only use as coastal artillery, and even the navy’s firepower falls far short of theirs.
Moreover, we must take into account the risk of friendly fire. The naval firepower support provided earlier caused us more losses than the Russians.”
We are still in the age of sail, where naval guns emphasized quantity over power. After all, a 48-pound cannon could sink an enemy ship, and swapping for hundred-pound guns would have the same effect.
Considering the navy’s pitifully low hit rate, rather than increasing the power of the guns, it was better to mount a few more guns and rely on numbers to improve accuracy.
The ships, each with over a hundred guns, naturally couldn’t be fitted with large-caliber armament. If they were to mount hundred-and-eighty-ton behemoth guns, they would probably reach their limit after installing just a few.
That could have perhaps been overlooked, but the massive recoil of large-caliber guns was too much for wooden ships to withstand.
Whether they could hit the enemy was uncertain, but after a few rounds, their own ships would likely be sinking first—a dreadful consequence no one dared to test.
For the English and French navies’ artillery support to be effective, Constantinople would first have to lose much of its territory, otherwise unavoidable collateral damage would occur due to extreme range limitations.
To give up most of Constantinople, Aimable Jean Jacques Pelissier was not insane. Don’t forget that most of the city’s defensive fortifications were on that side.
To let the Russians come in and fight, the twenty-thousand-strong French Army would be confined to an even smaller area, having lost most of the city’s fortifications. Wouldn’t that be courting death?
Aimable Jean Jacques Pelissier ordered, “I have already requested reinforcements from the homeland. It won’t take long before we have more artillery than the enemy. Everyone must hold their positions tightly and not give them any chance to exploit us.”
Using artillery to counter artillery was the most effective measure. Yet, Aimable Jean Jacques Pelissier was not at ease, as this would take time.
Before the homeland’s artillery could reach the front lines, they had a hard time ahead of them. If they failed to hold the line during this period and let the Russians breach their defenses, compressing the French Army’s maneuver space,
then even if they were to receive the artillery later, it would be a significant problem whether they had enough space to deploy it.
Aimable Jean Jacques Pelissier was no military novice; he knew that simply concentrating artillery use didn’t necessarily mean greater power.
If the area was too constricted, artillery positions would be forced together, potentially becoming an easy target for the enemy.
