39) End of Uprising
Never overestimate the modesty of politicians!
Perhaps the Greeks acted when they saw that the Armenians were doing well and increasing their chances of winning. Again, they offered money and weapons to encourage the Ottoman Greeks to start an uprising in Asia Minor.
The incompetence of the Sultan's government boosted Geórgios I's ambition. They can not manage all the problems of Armenia, and now even with constant revolts in Constantinople, it seems that the Ottomans have really fallen!
Likewise, he is now very dissatisfied with Bulgaria as an ally. If not for fear of being caught, Geórgios I would have been ready to go it alone.
Perhaps there are people within Greece, who can't help but want to do it, and it's troublesome to suppress radicals as a king!
One of the ways he diverted his conflicts was by staging an uprising in Asia Minor.
In order to suppress the Armenian uprising, the Sultan's government drew additional troops from Asia Minor, which also gave hope to the Greeks.
You should know that at the end of the 19th century, Greeks were the second largest ethnic group in the Ottoman Empire, with a large population that was vastly different from that of Armenians.
As soon as they started an uprising in Asia Minor, the Greek government could support them through the navy or even intervene directly with troops.
Theoretically, the insurgent army would be unable to suppress the several tens of thousands of Turkish land forces in Asia Minor as long as they could produce an outbreak of Armenian combat power and millions of Greeks revolted.
If the Greek government declares war on the Ottoman Empire, the troops in Asia Minor and the insurgent army may be able to swallow this piece of meat. If not, Greece can also have a piece of the pie in Asia Minor!
As for whether the Sultan's government will send reinforcements, you can rest assured about that! There will be reinforcements, but the number is definitely not too many!
More than 200,000 troops in the Balkans simply do not dare to move. If the Ottoman army moved, Bulgaria and Montenegro could sit? Every minute will take advantage of the fire!
The Greek navy would not let them pass unless they went to the Marmara Sea, and now the main force of the Ottoman navy was held in check by the Bulgarian 'navy that exists' and did not dare to leave the Bosphorus for a moment!
Even if the Sultan's government breaks its back, gives up the Balkans, and takes the Marmara Sea, with the Sultan's government's ability to organize, it will not be able to commit to combat without a few months!
Not to mention the Constantinople area, where the Armenian rebels are still present! Withdrawing now is the same as giving up Constantinople, which the Russians crave!
The Sultan's government could give up the rest of the Balkans, but giving up Constantinople would be completely unacceptable. Especially in the hands of the Russians, which is the same as giving away the Turkish Straits for nothing!
Moreover, it is important to quell the rebellion quickly. Suppose time is delayed so that the rebels and the Russians collude and give the fortress city directly to the Russians. It means the Sultan's government can not cry!
Without this golden channel, the Ottoman Empire is not far from collapse!
...
Ferdinand was not concerned about how the Greeks played as they wished, but now the main force of the Ottoman Empire's land forces, which basically gathered in the Balkans, it was impossible for him not to worry!
There are Armenian insurgents, but Bulgaria has not felt the pressure. Once the rebellion subsided, if the 400,000 to 500,000 troops still stayed in the Balkans, it would be an eyesore!
At least a hundred thousand troops defending Constantinople, it is not easy to conquer. It may turn into a war of attrition!
Now that the Ottoman Empire had blocked the Bosphorus and the Armenians had been surrounded in Constantinople, Ferdinand could not give them support even if he wanted to.
Sitting in a lonely city, it is a fact that they will extinguish the uprising sooner or later!
Ferdinand was not yet aware of how much damage the uprising had caused to the Ottoman Empire, or he would not have been so worried!
The revolt, especially under the command of Victorikis, a professional, was fighting with the Ottoman government forces, and the two sides were at the point of no return.
In May, the outer walls had all fallen because the insurgents had run out of artillery shells. No artillery, naturally, can not stop the enemy's attack!
The weakness of the mob has now been exposed. With the blind expansion of the revolutionary rivalry, the Armenian interim government is incapable of commanding the troops!
If it was fine before, the Ottoman army did not enter. People still had the hope of victory and could work together to try to fight!
But with the loss of the outer defenses, everyone's confidence in holding Constantinople has gone. The key is that the interim government has been looking forward to the intervention of the Great Powers. More than three months have passed, and there is no sign!
Today there is booze; tomorrow's concern will come future sorrow!1) Military discipline is a false hope. Military orders are also selective to execute, depending on the mood decision. It is the status quo of the rebel army!
Victorikis, the nominal commander-in-chief of the defense, was powerless against the rest of the troops except for a few thousand of his direct troops.
Therefore, he never had any illusions about the insurgents. After directly assigning the defense zone, let it go, do what you like! Anyway, they are on the criminal ship and can not escape! When the Turks come, in order to live, we have to fight with them!
The city is full of bones, and if the Turks don't know what's going on, they're blind!
The atrocities of the insurgents enraged the Turks. Are you kidding? When did the lowly pariahs get to slaughter the aristocrats? Rudolf Pashar, the commander-in-chief of the rebel army, ordered blood to be shed!
There was no more room for peace between the two sides, and the Turks, bent on revenge, were already burning with rage. Well, they can't help but kill. So many aristocrats died. Who dares to let the rebels go? Their families and friends will not rest!
Both sides were cornered. The insurgents, even if they were a mob, put up a fight and still caused a lot of damage to the Ottoman army!
Time passed in a hurry and swiftly entered the month of June. Anti-rebellion army did not disappoint the Sultan's expectations. It had taken half of Constantinople, and the rebellion was reduced to a couple. The uprising is about to be extinguished!
But the commander-in-chief, Rudolf Pashar, was not happy. The heavy casualties were only one aspect when he was the military commander. Other than the loss of soldiers, other losses have little to do with him!
Since ancient times big wars have often been followed by pandemics, and this time is no exception. Now that it's summer, the city is filled with the stench of rotting corpses, and the plague has broken out!
Faced with the plague, Rudolf Pashar could not help but worry, he instantly decided to withdraw from Constantinople, but the epidemic had already begun to spread in the army!
It's a good thing that this plague, as in history, didn't spread very far, and with Rudolf Pashar blockading Constantinople again, it didn't spread in the Ottoman Empire!
The arrival of the plague created a chance for Victorikis to make a good escape. Now that both sides were exhausted, Victorikis easily convinced the ruling faction of the insurgent army to fight for their lives! (10,000 words omitted)
After all, after the plague outbreak, people were dying of the disease every day, and the mental pressure on people was enormous. Rather than live and wait for death, it is better to go and fight with the Turks to earn a way out of life!
On July 8, 1896, the Armenian uprising, which lasted for more than four months, failed! The remaining 100,000 or so insurgents launched a surprise sally! But the mob was a mob, and there was no surprise that the sally failed, and they almost completely wiped out the rebellion!
Translator:
1)It is part of a poem from Luo Yin's 'Self-pity' of the Tang Dynasty. This line is often used to describe the negative sentiment that one should be happy in a time when life is not. The poem portrays the condition of the late Tang Dynasty, which is a politically corrupt society.