ASTONISHING THE WORLD mk2
“Kinda New, Somewhat Improved!!”
“Kinda New, Somewhat Improved!!”
In the year fifty-four of the nineteenth century, much of Europe descended into war. This war, known to us as the Crimean, was begun by Russia and the Sublime Porte (called Turkish Empire), and drew the Turkish allies of the British and French Empires. For a time, it seemed that all Europe would become involved in what would be the first real War in Europe since Napoleon was defeated at Waterloo, near three decades ago. However, Prussia declared neutrality in the conflict, and Austria, expected to be on the Russian side, refused to participate. Russia fell after three years as a result, and was forced to give up its claims on the Turkish lands.
But history is fickle beyond our comprehension, often seeming to sway one way before suddenly flicking to the other, or even switching onto an entirely new path. Very often, a path will emerge seemingly out of nowhere, the path having silently progressed for years. It could be described in terms of rocks on a mountain-side, collecting slowly over years, until one day a single pebble is shifted infinitesimally by the wind, and a Swiss village is wiped out as a result of the consequential landslide. Sometimes, this even could be a literal description of the course of events.
The Austrian-ruled Kingdom of Galicia-Lodomeria was notoriously unstable, mainly due to the racial tensions within the region. Just six years before the war began, in the Year of Revolution, uprisings had hit Galicia. A Polish National Council and a Ruthenian Supreme Council had been formed by nationalists in the city of Lemberg, only to be thwarted by Vienna. It would not take much to reignite these fires – a single pebble, perhaps, thrown at the wrong person at the wrong time. At sunrise the populace would be at peace, but by sunset outright war could have been declared. Riots are regrettably easy to cause. It would take some time for troops to arrive from Vienna, and by then the entire Kingdom could be enflamed in war, rising up to cast out the German oppressors. But the city was situated closely to the Russian border, and Russia had no particular interest in seeing Polish nationalists seize a kingdom. Moreover, they had troops nearby, what with the war and everything. The Tsar could agree to aid the Austrians in suppressing the rebellion in exchange for their aid in the war… And why not, after all the help Russia had leant the Habsburgs in securing their realms? The Turks would hardly be a great opponent, after all...
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Well, it's back! Comments?
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