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Chapter 47 Germany's Counterattack
Chapter 47 Germany's Counterattack
"While Russia may have prevented our conquest of Vienna, they'll never destroy the dream of the fatherland. We will fight to the death for the Deutschland and Austria will be ours one day."- Field Marshall Siegfried von Lohengramm 1847
"Heil dir im Sieger Kranz."-German National Anthem composed in 1848
"While I'm mad as hell that we lost Oregon I can see why the Queen wanted to support Germany. They'll make for some great allies down the line."- Captain Roger Church 1847
In all of German history there is no year that held greater significance for the nation than that of 1847. This was the year that the virtual existence of the Reich was laid down on the line and where many within Europe would see just who would come to dominate Central Europe. While Wilhelm could have easily ignored Austria and stuck to a lesser Germany solution, the die had been cast and the players set the stage. Now with Russian reinforcements it looked as though Austria would live longer and free from Prussian domination. Come the fall and winter of 1847, Europe would watch in anticipation as the German Empire finally got its act together and made its move to reclaim its territory. For the Second Reich had been born, and its rise was nowhere near stopping.
When word of the Russian entry into the war reached Germany, the one thought on the minds of all the Germans was that of treachery. While Germany and Russia never interacted closely in each others histories, Russia was seen by the Germans as a friend and ally for being the first nation to push back Napoleon's rampage on Europe and protect Eastern Germany from Polish nationalism. Now Russia had committed the unthinkable and they had dared to strike the Fatherland while they were on the verge of victory. While Nicholas had intended for this war to be one that would destroy German Nationalism, it actually did quite the opposite and united Germans all over the Empire together. Even the conservative nobility of the south was now in full support of the Kaiser as they would rather be subjects of the Hohenzollerns than puppets of the Eastern barbarians. Within months tens of thousands of Germans joined the new Imperial Army and wartime production of munition and arms was happening at an unprecedented rate. Meanwhile, Kaiser Wilhelm was directing the Imperial Army into total mobilization against the East and was calling in all reserves available to meet up with Ludendorff. The redeployment also included virtually all of the 4th Army which was stationed on the border with Alsace-Lorraine, while this might have been a death note for Germany with the possibility of French Invasion, it luckily didn't come at the time as President Bonaparte was busy dealing with political enemies while the border was soon reinforced by militia from Bavaria. By the time fall came the Germans were able to reinforce the Oder front with over 400,000 troops while the numbers of the 5th Army around 350,000 men in Danzig, adding to this was the near 240,000 troops of the 3rd Army under Stoffenburg. Adding to this was the 200,000 troops of the British expedition and the British naval superiority of the Baltic. On September 1st began the German campaign of liberation, Operation Hersbt Weiss.
Mobilization for Total War
On September 1st a three-pronged attack was launched against the Russian forces With the 4th and 3rd Armies launching a combined offensive on the Oder while the 5th Army would come down and encircle the Russians from the North and the rear. In the first week the Russians would become overwhelmed as they were facing a 4 to 1 numerical superiority by the Anglo-German alliance. At the Second Battle of Posen on October 17th, the German 4th Army was able to avenge the earlier defeat of the German defenders by encircling the Russian Army under Prince Menshikov and holding the army in a siege there while Russian positions were continuously bombarded with artillery and the German cavalry cutting off any hope of escape. During this time the 3rd Army and the GEF was spreading out among the German countryside and reclaiming as much of it as possible from the Russians while destroying supply lines and brutally attacking straggling Russian regiments. With the main force cut off the 4th Army attacked on the 23rd and sent its men into the streets of Posen in droves, the sheer quantity of the Germans more than making up for any skill that the Russians had, adding to this also came an uprising of the native Polish/German populace, with the Poles having enough of the Russians and deciding that it was better to live under German rule than their Slavic brethren. The battle ended at the end of the day with Prince Menshikov surrendering his force after receiving a near brush with death from a sniper shot in his camp. The near 150,000 Russian force had suffered 13,406 KIA, 12,632 WIA, and the rest taken prisoner. While the Germans had suffered 10,205 KIA, 8,689 WIA. Further up North another epic battle was waging as the 5th Army was in the midst of taking the city of Memel from the 120,000 strong Russian force under General Tolstoy. At first the battle was evenly contested as while the Germans did have numerical superiority, the Russians had a stable supply line due to being so close to the border. This was negated over several weeks as the Royal Navy had been systematically bombarding the Baltic shore while launching marines to occupy the coast and destroy the roads so that the Russians could not surrender. when word of Posen had reached Tolstoy and seeing little option of reinforcement, the man surrendered the Russian Army on November 2nd. The Russians had taken 11,456 KIA, 12,133 WIA, and the rest prisoner. The German/British casualties were 8,943 KIA, 9,003 WIA. For the rest of the year a gradual offensive would begin with the Germans making their way to the borders and soon crossing into Russian Poland. The furthest they had managed to reach was the city of Warsaw on December 16th before a great snowstorm came in and they had to lock down for winter quarters. A good thing to as more Russian reinforcements which had meant to arrive in Germany had already come.
Operation Herbst Weiss
Further down south the fronts on Austria had been mostly static as while von Lohengramm was able to regain some territory in Bohemia, most of the German army was either too busy trying to keep the Austrians at bay in Southern Austria or were in the middle of the Siege of Vienna. Hypothetically if the war went on for more years than Germany could have easily conquered Austria and prevent the Second War for German Unification from needing to happen. However, Germany was on the balancing point of success as while they had been able to protect their territory and push Russia out, they were still nowhere near finishing the conquest and everyone knew that it was virtually impossible to conquer Russia. France also would not be waiting on the sidelines forever as it was only a matter of time before they joined. Adding to that were the tens of thousands of German casualties and the increasing anxiety and unruliness of the German nobles and Conservatives who wanted to restore the Old Order. Before Wilhelm could conquer Austria he knew that he needed to secure Germany first so that way his legacy could continue for generations. So with his gains already being in a significant amount, Wihelm called for Franz Joseph and Nicholas to send delegations to Stockholm so that the Germans along with the British and the Hungarians could finally restore peace to Central Europe.
A/N: I'm back! Now with exams finally over I have two weeks that I can dedicate to Lone Star Republic and I intend to use them to the fullest. Expect the 1846 Revolutions to end in a few days and for us to come back to Texas sometime next week.
"While Russia may have prevented our conquest of Vienna, they'll never destroy the dream of the fatherland. We will fight to the death for the Deutschland and Austria will be ours one day."- Field Marshall Siegfried von Lohengramm 1847
"Heil dir im Sieger Kranz."-German National Anthem composed in 1848
"While I'm mad as hell that we lost Oregon I can see why the Queen wanted to support Germany. They'll make for some great allies down the line."- Captain Roger Church 1847
In all of German history there is no year that held greater significance for the nation than that of 1847. This was the year that the virtual existence of the Reich was laid down on the line and where many within Europe would see just who would come to dominate Central Europe. While Wilhelm could have easily ignored Austria and stuck to a lesser Germany solution, the die had been cast and the players set the stage. Now with Russian reinforcements it looked as though Austria would live longer and free from Prussian domination. Come the fall and winter of 1847, Europe would watch in anticipation as the German Empire finally got its act together and made its move to reclaim its territory. For the Second Reich had been born, and its rise was nowhere near stopping.
When word of the Russian entry into the war reached Germany, the one thought on the minds of all the Germans was that of treachery. While Germany and Russia never interacted closely in each others histories, Russia was seen by the Germans as a friend and ally for being the first nation to push back Napoleon's rampage on Europe and protect Eastern Germany from Polish nationalism. Now Russia had committed the unthinkable and they had dared to strike the Fatherland while they were on the verge of victory. While Nicholas had intended for this war to be one that would destroy German Nationalism, it actually did quite the opposite and united Germans all over the Empire together. Even the conservative nobility of the south was now in full support of the Kaiser as they would rather be subjects of the Hohenzollerns than puppets of the Eastern barbarians. Within months tens of thousands of Germans joined the new Imperial Army and wartime production of munition and arms was happening at an unprecedented rate. Meanwhile, Kaiser Wilhelm was directing the Imperial Army into total mobilization against the East and was calling in all reserves available to meet up with Ludendorff. The redeployment also included virtually all of the 4th Army which was stationed on the border with Alsace-Lorraine, while this might have been a death note for Germany with the possibility of French Invasion, it luckily didn't come at the time as President Bonaparte was busy dealing with political enemies while the border was soon reinforced by militia from Bavaria. By the time fall came the Germans were able to reinforce the Oder front with over 400,000 troops while the numbers of the 5th Army around 350,000 men in Danzig, adding to this was the near 240,000 troops of the 3rd Army under Stoffenburg. Adding to this was the 200,000 troops of the British expedition and the British naval superiority of the Baltic. On September 1st began the German campaign of liberation, Operation Hersbt Weiss.
Mobilization for Total War
On September 1st a three-pronged attack was launched against the Russian forces With the 4th and 3rd Armies launching a combined offensive on the Oder while the 5th Army would come down and encircle the Russians from the North and the rear. In the first week the Russians would become overwhelmed as they were facing a 4 to 1 numerical superiority by the Anglo-German alliance. At the Second Battle of Posen on October 17th, the German 4th Army was able to avenge the earlier defeat of the German defenders by encircling the Russian Army under Prince Menshikov and holding the army in a siege there while Russian positions were continuously bombarded with artillery and the German cavalry cutting off any hope of escape. During this time the 3rd Army and the GEF was spreading out among the German countryside and reclaiming as much of it as possible from the Russians while destroying supply lines and brutally attacking straggling Russian regiments. With the main force cut off the 4th Army attacked on the 23rd and sent its men into the streets of Posen in droves, the sheer quantity of the Germans more than making up for any skill that the Russians had, adding to this also came an uprising of the native Polish/German populace, with the Poles having enough of the Russians and deciding that it was better to live under German rule than their Slavic brethren. The battle ended at the end of the day with Prince Menshikov surrendering his force after receiving a near brush with death from a sniper shot in his camp. The near 150,000 Russian force had suffered 13,406 KIA, 12,632 WIA, and the rest taken prisoner. While the Germans had suffered 10,205 KIA, 8,689 WIA. Further up North another epic battle was waging as the 5th Army was in the midst of taking the city of Memel from the 120,000 strong Russian force under General Tolstoy. At first the battle was evenly contested as while the Germans did have numerical superiority, the Russians had a stable supply line due to being so close to the border. This was negated over several weeks as the Royal Navy had been systematically bombarding the Baltic shore while launching marines to occupy the coast and destroy the roads so that the Russians could not surrender. when word of Posen had reached Tolstoy and seeing little option of reinforcement, the man surrendered the Russian Army on November 2nd. The Russians had taken 11,456 KIA, 12,133 WIA, and the rest prisoner. The German/British casualties were 8,943 KIA, 9,003 WIA. For the rest of the year a gradual offensive would begin with the Germans making their way to the borders and soon crossing into Russian Poland. The furthest they had managed to reach was the city of Warsaw on December 16th before a great snowstorm came in and they had to lock down for winter quarters. A good thing to as more Russian reinforcements which had meant to arrive in Germany had already come.
Operation Herbst Weiss
Further down south the fronts on Austria had been mostly static as while von Lohengramm was able to regain some territory in Bohemia, most of the German army was either too busy trying to keep the Austrians at bay in Southern Austria or were in the middle of the Siege of Vienna. Hypothetically if the war went on for more years than Germany could have easily conquered Austria and prevent the Second War for German Unification from needing to happen. However, Germany was on the balancing point of success as while they had been able to protect their territory and push Russia out, they were still nowhere near finishing the conquest and everyone knew that it was virtually impossible to conquer Russia. France also would not be waiting on the sidelines forever as it was only a matter of time before they joined. Adding to that were the tens of thousands of German casualties and the increasing anxiety and unruliness of the German nobles and Conservatives who wanted to restore the Old Order. Before Wilhelm could conquer Austria he knew that he needed to secure Germany first so that way his legacy could continue for generations. So with his gains already being in a significant amount, Wihelm called for Franz Joseph and Nicholas to send delegations to Stockholm so that the Germans along with the British and the Hungarians could finally restore peace to Central Europe.
A/N: I'm back! Now with exams finally over I have two weeks that I can dedicate to Lone Star Republic and I intend to use them to the fullest. Expect the 1846 Revolutions to end in a few days and for us to come back to Texas sometime next week.
- Kaiser Chris
- Word Count: 1.4k