Chapter 844 Unmoved

In fact, the life of the coalition forces was not much better. They laid siege for several months. Although they were gradually encroaching on the Russian army's positions, they were still unable to take Sevastopol, especially as winter was coming soon. Just think of it. The allied forces were shuddered by the encounter last winter.

The anxiety of the coalition soldiers naturally affected the attitude of domestic elites. For example, the French, from Napoleon III to Foreign Minister Walewski, all believed that ending the war as soon as possible was the best policy. Walewski in particular was a strong supporter of peace as soon as possible.

After a series of internal quarrels, Napoleon III also agreed to make concessions, telling Valewski: "I want peace. If Russia agrees to neutralize the Black Sea area, I am willing to make peace with them, regardless of the British objections . But if there is no result by spring, I will appeal to all European peoples, especially the Poles. The purpose of our war is not for the rights of Europe, but for the interests of every country."

Of course, these words were not meant for Walewski, but as a warning to Britain. After all, Palmerston is a die-hard anti-Russian and has always demanded that the scale of the war be expanded to completely solve Russia.

It can be said that this man was the biggest obstacle to the entire peace talks besides the Russians. Napoleon III threatened that the British might make peace with Russia alone, which undoubtedly severely dealt a blow to Palmerston's ambitions.

It's just that Palmerston's stubbornness and will are not generally strong. Faced with the threat of Napoleon III, he remained unmoved and persisted in pursuing his solution.

This undoubtedly made Napoleon III furious, so he immediately ordered Duke de Morny, his half-brother, to try to contact Russia directly and send out a signal to leave Britain alone and go it alone!

The Duke of Morny soon established contact with the Duke of Alexander in Vienna and proposed a plan for a peace negotiated separately by France and Russia.

Interestingly, the French's actions immediately aroused Austria's vigilance. The Austrians have been trying to exploit the contradictions between Britain, France and Russia to gain interests in the Balkans. Once the French make peace with Russia alone, they will have nothing to do.

So they immediately intervened in the contact between Morny and Duke Alexander. The Austrian Foreign Minister, Count Buol, took the initiative to make an appointment with Bourconet, the French ambassador in Vienna.

At this time, Bourconet, Morny and Duke Alexander had almost reached a peace agreement. Due to the intervention of the Austrians, the three parties finally reached an agreement: requiring Austria to "defend the Ottoman Empire with the support of Britain and France" "Integrity of the Reich," a peace-making ultimatum to Russia.

On November 18, this ultimatum was delivered to London. To be honest, this makes the British very embarrassed, because this ultimatum is completely dominated by France and Austria, and has nothing to do with Britain at all.

Palmerston was naturally deeply offended, and he firmly disagreed with the terms of the ultimatum. The official reason was suspicions of Russian influence in softening the peace terms, and that the peace agreement did not mention the Baltic Sea and did not explain how. Ensure that countries will not commit acts of aggression in the Black Sea region.

He said: "We still insist on thoroughly solving the Russian threat before and must use the strictest terms to limit Russian aggression. This is the cornerstone of European peace!"

In response to possible changes in France, he wrote specifically to Foreign Secretary Clarendon: "If the French government changes its course, they will have to bear responsibility in the future, and the people of both Britain and France should be informed of this!"

However, Clarendon was much more cautious than Palmerston. He was worried that France might actually reach a peace agreement with Russia alone. If this were the case, Britain would not be able to ignore it and continue fighting alone.

So Clarendon immediately contacted the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and after a series of efforts, he succeeded in convincing France and Austria to make some minor changes to the peace agreement: the neutralization of the Black Sea region would be guaranteed by a comprehensive treaty. A special clause will also be added stipulating that the victorious party retains the power to add conditions during the peace negotiations "in order to ensure the interests of Europe".

Eventually, with the help of Queen Victoria, Clarendon persuaded Palmerston to accept the agreement. According to Clarendon, Alexander II might reject the agreement anyway, so that Britain could continue to resume war and propose more harsh terms. condition.

It should be said that Clarendon was more sophisticated, because he basically guessed Alexander II's thoughts. Alexander II had been in a war mentality throughout the autumn. It is said that he was reluctant to reach a compromise with the enemy because he felt that winter would soon come again, and Napoleon III's "desire" for peace would allow Russia to negotiate better terms to end the war.

While waiting for the domestic conflicts in France to intensify, Alexander II wrote to Duke Mikhail and Kornilov: Revolutions have happened like this in the past, and it is very likely that a great revolution is not far away in France. . I think this is the most likely outcome of the current war. I do not expect France or Britain to have a sincere desire for peace and accept peace conditions that suit our ideas. As long as I am alive, I will not accept any other peace conditions!

Almost no one in Russia could persuade Alexander II to make concessions. Duke Alexander sent the Tsar a private letter from Napoleon III, calling on the Tsar to accept the peace agreement, otherwise the coalition forces would resume operations against Russia.

At this time, Frederick William IV of Prussia also wrote to Alexander II that if he continued to wage a war that "threatened the stability of all legitimate governments in Europe", he might be forced to join the coalition and stand on the side The antithesis of Russia.

“I beg you, my dear nephew,” he wrote to Alexander II, “to make the greatest concession you can accept, and to consider carefully the real interests that will arise for Russia and for Prussia if this cruel war continues. and all Europe. What revolutionary effects will there be if destructive passions are unleashed!"

But this was still useless, because Alexander II was not moved at all. He wrote back to his uncle and said: "I will never accept a humiliating treaty. I believe that every real Russian has the same feeling as me. The idea. All we can do now is to sign the cross on our hearts, and then move forward bravely, unite with our own strength, and defend our motherland and national honor!"