The Shadow of Great Britain

376: Chapter 225: Friend of Poland (4K8) 376: Chapter 225: Friend of Poland (4K8) Arthur, the Great Dumas, and Thomas Campbell were seated around the coffee table, each holding a cup of tea while discussing their respective knowledge of Poland.

Ever since last year, when intelligence about disturbances in Poland was intercepted from the Russian Embassy, Arthur had occasionally come across news of the Polish uprising in London’s newspapers.

But it was mostly vague, generalized news that didn’t delve into the specifics or progression of the situation, and even if Arthur wanted to understand more deeply, his London Police Intelligence Bureau lacked both the manpower and the energy to do so.

He could only sporadically learn some scattered details from Fiona, who worked at the Russian Embassy.

All in all, ever since the large-scale uprising erupted in Warsaw last November, the Polish rebels seemed to have faced difficulties after their initial victories.

And now, thanks to Thomas Campbell, the images in Arthur’s mind finally started to become clear.

Just as the Great Revolution in France in 1789 had influenced the European continent, so too had the July Revolution that erupted last year in France inspired a number of places in Europe to pursue their large-scale armed uprisings.

And this was the main reason why Austria’s Prime Minister Metternich, Tsar Nicholas I of Russia, and King Frederick William III of Prussia wanted to prevent Belgium’s independence.

As the three most powerful autocratic monarchies in Europe, they were very worried that compromising on the Belgian issue would offer an opportunity to domestic rebels, which could then undermine their own ruling foundations.

Indeed, even before Russia had conceded on the Belgian issue, the Kingdom of Poland, under its control, had already ignited a large-scale armed uprising.

This ultimately led Russia to relent on Belgian independence, agreeing to a solution that appointed King Leopold of Belgium, uncle of the British crown princess Victoria, as the king of Belgium.

Having been bested in diplomacy, the iron-fisted ruler Tsar Nicholas I naturally wanted to regain ground on internal issues.

During peace talks held on December 10th last year in St.

Petersburg between the provisional Polish government and the Russian government, Nicholas I emphatically refused the Polish delegation’s petition.

He refused to respect the Polish constitution established in 1815, to return the land requisitioned in Poland, and stated that he wouldn’t engage in any negotiations or concessions that could appease Polish public opinion on the uprising.

The Poles only had two choices—either lay down their weapons and surrender unconditionally, or else wait for Warsaw to be flattened by the Russian Army!

As expected, when the Tsar’s response reached Poland, it provoked outrage among the Polish public.

The Polish National Parliament publicly condemned Yezhovski, the head of the negotiating delegation who had always advocated a conciliatory stance towards Russia.

As for another Polish government leader who had held a conciliatory position, Ksawery Lubieński, he was so frightened that he dared not return to his country from Russia.

On January 25, 1831, a large-scale demonstration broke out in Warsaw.

University students gathered in Warsaw’s landmark Castle Square, holding placards with the names of five revolutionaries from the Russian Decemberists’ uprising, while Polish Army Marshal Ostrofsky gave a war mobilization speech under the flags of Poland and Russia, and a banner reading “For your and my freedom.”

At the same time, Polish peasants also began to refuse to perform labor services, laying down their hoes and spontaneously taking up arms to join the rebel army.

On the same day, Poland issued a diplomatic announcement to the embassies of various European countries in Poland, declaring that due to the infringement on Polish sovereignty by Tsar Alexander and Nicholas, the Kingdom of Poland formally announced its independence from the Russian Empire.

The new government would be led by Prince Chartoryski, the former chairman of the ministerial council of the Russian Empire, the Foreign Secretary.

And Nicholas I’s response to Polish independence was not contradictory.

On January 25, when Poland declared independence, by February 5, a 120,000-strong Russian force’s army under the leadership of Russian Army Marshal Zabalkansky entered the territory of the Kingdom of Poland.

However, the mighty Russian force didn’t swiftly and powerfully reconquer Poland as anticipated.

Zabalkansky was dealt a significant blow near Warsaw; at the Battle of Grochow, they were defeated by numerically inferior Polish rebels and chased all the way to the Bug River.

By April, a large-scale cholera and typhoid epidemic broke out within the Russian Army, severely impairing their combat effectiveness.

It was not until June that the Russian forces finally began to recover.

They achieved their first battle victory over Poland in Ostrowinka.

But Tsar Nicholas I’s patience with the slow-moving Marshal Zabalkansky had clearly reached its limit.

After yet another attempt to advance on Warsaw was thwarted, the incensed Tsar couldn’t hold back his fury: “Whatever the case, with battle forces of 120,000 against 60,000, the advantage is mine.

Damn it!

Zabalkansky is incompetent; it seems I must personally take to the field!”

However, just as Nicholas I was raring to personally lead the campaign, a loud noise burst across the sky of St.

Petersburg; a rising star was about to enter the stage.

“Your Majesty, hold fast, witness my small stratagem ensure those Poles come begging to surrender!”

The speaker was none other than the famed Russian general who had grown up in the fires of the Napoleonic Wars, the victor who had marched into Paris, the hero of multiple victories in the seventh and eighth Russo-Turkish Wars, the nemesis of Ottoman Turkey, the Middle Eastern ruler who had beaten down the Qajar dynasty of Persia, the conqueror of the Caucasus region, the old comrade who had fought side by side with the previous emperor Alexander I, and a trusted brother deeply favored by Tsar Nicholas I, the Earl of Erivan, Marshal Ivan Fyodorovich Paskevich.