Russia was having enough difficulty holding Georgia down, it was still fighting the clans in Circassia, and the Caucasus "front" such as it was was hardly the major one in this war.
Delusions of grandeur, which is what "Great Armenia" is, are not reflected by realities on the ground, and quite why Russia would even decide to set up independent states when everywhere else they annexed territories I can't see. If by some combination of miracles they broke out to Erzerum, Erzincan etc the Empire would have looked to annex the area. Holding them would have been as major a headache as Georgia was proving to be.
The war was fought and won or lost in the West, and whilst Istanbul could be seen as the ultimate goal, the real aims of the war were being fought over in the Principalities
This is where Austria was vital - its threat of war was enough to force Russia to withdraw, which ended Russia's aims. Now, HAD Austria taken a different attitude, Russia might have fought on the defensive there, and the war might have taken a different course
But what would have made Vienna act differently ?
Best Regards
Grey Wolf
Delusions of grandeur, which is what "Great Armenia" is, are not reflected by realities on the ground, and quite why Russia would even decide to set up independent states when everywhere else they annexed territories I can't see. If by some combination of miracles they broke out to Erzerum, Erzincan etc the Empire would have looked to annex the area. Holding them would have been as major a headache as Georgia was proving to be.
The war was fought and won or lost in the West, and whilst Istanbul could be seen as the ultimate goal, the real aims of the war were being fought over in the Principalities
This is where Austria was vital - its threat of war was enough to force Russia to withdraw, which ended Russia's aims. Now, HAD Austria taken a different attitude, Russia might have fought on the defensive there, and the war might have taken a different course
But what would have made Vienna act differently ?
Best Regards
Grey Wolf