Although later generations often hailed Josip Jelacic, Prince Windisch-Grätz, and Marshal Radetzky as the three great heroes who saved the Austrian Empire,
in truth, Prince Windisch-Grätz and Jelacic were rather limited commanders. It didn't take a master strategist to deal with either of them. Even Franz didn't take them seriously, and Albrecht privately thought even less of them.
Count Stadion was a man of both letters and arms, but as luck would have it, he came down with the plague at this crucial moment.
It was called the plague, but in reality, it was some strange disease that medicine of the day had yet to identify. The doctors were powerless to treat it, so to avoid looking quite so incompetent, they pinned the blame on the refugees and the plague.
Haynau had talent, and later generations would regard him as a great general, but at this point, he still lacked both the ability and the experience to hold such a high position.
Haynau did have ability, but he was far too reckless.
As for Marshal Anton von Pinkre and Tim Schidra, veterans of the Napoleonic Wars, their loyalty wasn't in question, but their thinking was still stuck in the previous century.
And wild cards like Amherd, along with young officers such as Heinrich Belaim, stood no chance. Benedek was still only a lowly major.
Of course, putting the General Staff above the War Department was only a temporary measure, meant to make unified coordination and command easier during the war.
Franz wasn't about to let a bunch of staff officers lead him around by the nose.
Vienna, Hofburg Palace.
Metternich's downfall had brought nothing like the peace people had imagined. The situation at home grew ever more chaotic, and Count Kolowrat's corruption and bribery were exposed as well.
The sums