Chapter Summaries

Austria and the Ottoman Empire sought diplomatic support as war approached, while France and Britain weighed the costs of intervention. France offered the Sultan aid and vague promises, and Gladstone concluded Britain had little practical way to help; the Ottoman Empire was left facing Austria and Russia with its prospective allies reluctant to act.

• Wessenberg told Franz the Holy See had proposed a new Crusade, but Franz rejected turning the conflict into a religious war.
• The Ottoman delegation failed to secure Prussian support because William I pursued a personal union with Poland instead.
• Crown Prince Eugène advised Napoleon III to wait and intervene only if the Ottoman Empire survived the first attack, and Napoleon agreed.
• Napoleon III sent the Sultan Government weapons, ammunition, and a promise of later French intervention to strengthen its resolve.
• Gladstone considered Britain's military and naval options and decided he had no interest in risking a costly war to save the Ottoman Empire.

After Britain and France declined to support the Ottoman Empire, Abdulaziz I prepared for war with Austria and Russia. Franz approved a plan to devastate Ottoman coastal regions while letting the Russians incur the hatred, weakening the empire without destroying it outright and preserving Austria’s wider political strategy.

• Abdulaziz I grew furious at the diplomatic setback and ordered the Ottoman Empire to mobilize its people for a holy war.
• Franz severed commercial ties with the Ottoman Empire, recalled Austrian diplomats and expatriates, and expelled Ottoman subjects from Austria.
• Albrecht proposed attacking the Ottoman Empire through the Arabian Peninsula and Palestine, using naval superiority to strike weakly defended locations and devastate coastal regions.
• Albrecht argued that Russian atrocities could make the Ottomans hate Russia enough to sustain a new regime and mislead Britain and France about Austria’s strength.
• Franz approved the plan in principle and ordered officials to consult the Tsarist Government before proceeding.

Austria and Russia declared war on the Ottoman Empire and began coordinating their campaign, but the Russian army arrived without weapons, uniforms, or amphibious training. Franz ordered Austria to follow the original plan, evacuate foreign nationals, and begin its offensive in half a month.

• Austria and Russia agreed that Austria would handle naval operations and transport while the Russians commanded their own land battles.
• Franz and the Tsarist Government declared war on the Ottoman Empire on March 1, 1874, citing revenge and alleged Ottoman interference in Russia’s internal affairs.
• General Arest found 150,000 Russian soldiers without weapons or uniforms and arranged for them to receive Austrian equipment while uniforms were made.
• Ivanov told Arest that the soldiers could fight without uniforms, but Arest said they would wait for the navy and receive uniforms before the landing.
• Franz learned that the Russians lacked amphibious training and ordered Austria to stick to the original plan, notify foreign countries to evacuate nationals, and launch a full-scale offensive in half a month.

British leaders discussed how to stop Austria from defeating the Ottoman Empire and gaining dominance in Europe, while France stayed inactive. In Vienna, Franz learned that Prussia had not acted on Poland and heard that secret meetings in Berlin appeared to be contentious.

• Gladstone presented the Cabinet with Austria’s battle plan, and Robert warned that Austrian sea power could devastate the Ottoman Empire’s coast.
• Gladstone argued that Austria might annex the German Confederation after the Ottoman Empire fell, and McLean proposed pressuring Prussia, France, and Russia while seeking a role in governing the Suez Canal.
• La Rook Lloyd questioned whether Britain would gain enough from the costly effort to contain Austria, and McLean argued that Britain should join France and Austria in administering the Suez Canal.
• Napoleon III remained bedridden, while Crown Prince Eugène’s government avoided taking action in the Near East War.
• Franz asked why Prussia had not moved on Poland, and Tyrone reported that secret Berlin meetings had ended with participants looking grim, suggesting disputes.

Franz ordered Austria’s navy to bombard Ottoman ports and send airships to scout defenses and prepare for landings. At Constantinople, Arest and Ivanov debated where Russian forces should land, while in Ava, blacksmith Akyol and his apprentice were forced to forge weapons for the coming war.

• Franz ordered the navy to bombard Ottoman coastal cities after sending airships to scatter warning leaflets.
• Arest reviewed the bombardment reports and asked General Ivanov to choose a Russian landing site.
• Ivanov favored Ava for its proximity to the Bosphorus Strait, but Arest persuaded him to begin elsewhere and draw Ottoman forces away from the straits.
• Arest proposed using the airship bombing squadron to attack Ottoman coastal batteries, and Franz transferred the unit to the Balkans for its first combat test.
• In Ava, Akyol forced his apprentice, Osman Agha's son, to hurry as they forged weapons for the Ottoman holy war.

Austrian warships bombarded Ava to draw out its coastal guns, then Austrian airships launched a bombing raid that devastated the Ottoman artillery positions. Özgür’s garrison was left under attack from the sky with no way to defend itself.

• As shells struck Ava, Akyol and his apprentice hid in the blacksmith shop’s cellar.
• Özgür ordered Ava’s coastal guns to counterattack the Austrian fleet, and the Ottoman batteries opened fire.
• The Austrian fleet moved closer to draw heavier fire while its commander watched for the air force and ordered the ships to advance.
• Sartus recognized the falling objects from Austrian airships as bombs and fled the gun emplacements.
• The bombs devastated the coastal artillery positions, wounded Sartus, and left Özgür panicking at garrison headquarters.

After an airship and naval bombardment devastated Ava, Major General Özgür reported the losses and warned Ottoman command of the new threat. General Ivanov pushed to abandon the cautious allied plan and attack Ava immediately, and Franz approved letting the Russians proceed despite the risks.

• Major General Özgür surveyed the destruction at Ava, then received a report showing heavy casualties, lost artillery, and damaged supplies.
• Major General Özgür ordered a report sent to higher command and requested reinforcements while warning them about airships.
• General Ivanov argued that the allies should exploit the destroyed coastal batteries and land at Ava, while Arest warned that changing the plan could bring devastating Russian losses.
• Ivanov insisted the Tsarist Government could not afford to delay reopening the Black Sea Straits, and Arest agreed to report the dispute to Vienna.
• Prime Minister Felix and Army Minister Albrecht advised Franz that the Russians could proceed without undermining Austria's broader strategy, and Franz approved the change.
• Arest told Ivanov that Russia would bear the consequences of attacking Ava, but Ivanov remained confident in the Russian Army.

After Austrian airships bombed Ava City, looting and disorder spread while Ottoman commanders struggled to prepare for another attack. On April 18, 1874, Russian troops landed under airship and naval fire, gaining the overall advantage but meeting fierce resistance from concealed Ottoman fortifications.

• Akyol and Osman Raga's son defended the blacksmith shop from looters with hunting rifles and stayed inside amid Ava City's chaos.
• Major General Özgür asked for ways to counter airships, and Sartus advised harassing them with rifles while another officer proposed decoys and makeshift cover.
• On April 18, 1874, fifty thousand Russian troops launched a landing in the Ava region under Austrian airship and warship cover.
• Colonel Jules ordered the airships to climb to twelve hundred meters after Ottoman rifle fire hit two of them, reducing bombing accuracy but keeping the airships safer.
• Russian troops landed and came under fire from concealed Ottoman positions and Gatling guns, then set up artillery to return fire.
• Colonel Jules ordered continued bombing away from the harbor as the Allies gained the advantage, while Russian soldiers faced heavy casualties from Ottoman defenses.

The Russian landing in the Ava region prompted Ottoman leaders to seek airships and British officials to debate creating their own airship forces. In France, Napoleon III died after entrusting the Empire to Crown Prince Eugène, who began arranging the transition.

• Arest judged that the defenders could retreat beyond the reach of naval guns, reported his analysis to the Vienna Government, and left the fighting in Ava to Russian command.
• Abdulaziz I ordered the Ottoman military to hold the Black Sea Straits, while Elmed recommended buying foreign airships to counter the enemy.
• Robert and Fox argued over whether a British airship force should belong to the navy or army, and Gladstone refused to increase military funding before the forces could be developed.
• Gladstone focused on Ireland, which he considered a greater threat to Britain’s future security than the Near East War.
• Napoleon III advised Eugène to avoid starting wars and beware Britain and Austria, then died before finishing his final warning.
• Eugène suppressed his grief, set down Napoleon III’s hand, and summoned the officials to arrange the funeral and political transition.

After Napoleon III’s death destabilized France, Franz’s government continued balancing Prussia and Russia while Prussia moved to secure support for annexing Poland. In Warsaw, public pressure over the vacant Polish throne forced the provisional government to confront the succession question.

• Napoleon III died, and Franz told Wessenberg to proceed with Austria’s plans while France struggled with a power transition.
• Wessenberg warned that French infighting might prevent France from being drawn into Austria’s plan to oppose it in the Rhineland.
• Jeffrey Friedman proposed that William I win French and Austrian support for annexing Poland by promising territorial gains, and Moltke urged him to proceed.
• William I ordered Prussia to create an accomplished fact by moving toward annexation before negotiating with the powers.
• Polish newspapers and demonstrators blamed the country’s problems on the absence of a king, and Prime Minister Dąbrowski concluded that the government could delay no longer.

Napoleon III’s funeral became a spectacle for France’s enemies, while Franz dismissed the provocations and focused on Austria’s schemes in Poland and the Rhineland. He ordered his agents to help secure William I’s election as King of Poland, then use the resulting crisis to push the German Federal Empire into competing with France for the Rhineland.

• French workers received a holiday as crowds mourned Napoleon III, while many European nobles sent only representatives or stayed away.
• Victor Emmanuel II attended the funeral to provoke Eugène and rally support for the Italian independence movement.
• Franz dismissed the funeral’s provocations and continued funding Maximilian I’s restoration effort in Mexico.
• Tyrone reported that Prussia was using Polish newspapers to criticize the Dąbrowski Government and promote William I’s chances in a new royal election.
• Franz told Tyrone to activate Austria’s hidden contacts in the United Kingdom and keep their involvement concealed until William I was elected King of Poland.
• Tyrone planned to expose the alleged Prussian-French deal over the Rhineland and have the British encourage the German Federal Empire to contest France’s purchase.

After the Russian army captured Ava, its troops killed nearly all the civilians who remained, turning the occupation into a massacre. General Ivanov ordered the news suppressed and the deaths reported as an evacuation, while sending an account to Allied Command and Saint Petersburg.

• After five days of fighting, General Ivanov ordered Lieutenant General Vira Sol to request Austrian medical aid and Lieutenant General Kharosov to clear Ava of enemy forces.
• Akyol and his apprentice stayed in Ava with Ottoman defenders, while Russian troops entered the city and the remaining defenders prepared to resist.
• Russian soldiers attacked the armed defenders and killed most of Ava’s remaining civilians by evening.
• Lieutenant General Kharosov accepted responsibility for the massacre as the city’s surviving residents were nearly all dead.
• The next day, General Ivanov ordered the news sealed, directed that the public be told the population had been expelled, and instructed Kharosov to report the events to Allied Command and Saint Petersburg.

After Ava’s massacre became impossible to conceal, Franz left the diplomatic fallout to Russia while Alexander II weighed using the resulting panic to weaken the Ottoman Empire. Survivors Akyol and his master hid in Ava after the Russian army withdrew.

• Wessenberg warned Franz that Britain could exploit news of the massacre, while Felix argued that Austria could wait for attention to shift elsewhere.
• Franz left the choice between disciplining the Russian army and continuing its advance to the Tsarist Government.
• Alexander II learned that Austria would handle European diplomacy and considered turning the massacre’s notoriety into a source of panic among Ottoman civilians.
• Kristanval urged Alexander II to limit the violence, defeat the Ottomans, and pursue further territorial gains through later wars; Alexander ordered the army to proceed and rebuked Ivanov.
• Akyol and his master survived the massacre by hiding in a blacksmith’s cellar, and they remained in Ava after the Russian troops returned to camp.

After the massacre at Ava, the Ottoman Empire struggled under Austrian and Russian attacks while Britain debated whether and how to intervene. The chapter left the London Government weighing Prussia’s possible union with Poland and worrying that France and Austria were becoming too powerful to restrain.

• Abdulaziz I spared Major General Özgür and ordered the Ottoman Government to appeal to Britain and France, publicize Ava’s destruction, and urge resistance.
• Austrian airship bombardments spread panic in Ottoman cities, drove wealthy residents to flee, and deepened the empire’s economic and fiscal crisis.
• London newspapers rushed to report Ava’s massacre, using imagined details to condemn Austria and Russia and attract readers.
• Gladstone said Britain needed to find a way to intervene before Austria and Russia divided the Ottoman Empire and advanced toward Persia.
• McLean argued that Britain lacked strong continental allies because France was in turmoil and Prussia was focused on the Polish royal election.
• Gladstone and La Rook Lloyd debated whether Britain should obstruct William I’s bid for the Polish throne as France and Austria’s growing economic power threatened Britain’s position.

The Russian Army struggled to advance toward the Bosphorus Strait as Ottoman resistance and heavy casualties left Ivanov unable to secure Austrian airship support. In Saint Petersburg, Alexander II learned that William I was pursuing the Polish throne and heard Chris Basham explain why the great powers might let Prussia unite with Poland.

• Kharosov reported that Russian troops were suffering heavy casualties and asked Ivanov for airship support, but Ivanov refused to divert the airships from strategic bombing.
• Ivanov explained that relying on Austria would entangle the Russian Empire in political concessions, while strained Russo-Austrian relations left the Russian soldiers to bear the cost.
• News that William I was competing for the Polish throne unsettled the Tsarist Government, which feared that Poland and Prussia might unite.
• Alexander II asked his officials to assess William I's bid, and Chris Basham warned that France and Austria might tolerate Prussian expansion while Russia was tied down by the Near East War.

Austria's occupation of Kuwait prompted British protests, and Franz considered using negotiations to secure influence across the Arabian Peninsula. He proposed a railway scheme as leverage, leaving Austria's actual plans deliberately ambiguous.

• Austria's forces captured Kuwait after overwhelming its small Ottoman garrison.
• Franz reviewed Britain's diplomatic protest, and Wessenberg said the British wanted Austria to stop while Felix and Karl speculated about Britain's motives.
• Franz told the Foreign Ministry to negotiate slowly and demand the entire Arabian Peninsula if Britain sought an exchange of interests.
• Franz proposed a railway connecting Jerusalem, the Gulf of Aden, and Kuwait, then said Austria only needed the British to believe the plan was real.

Mikhail and Roon secretly negotiated over Poland, with Prussia seeking a path to absorb it and Russia trying to limit Prussian gains. Their bargaining ended without an agreement, as both weighed the risks of involving Austria and the shifting balance of power.

• Mikhail offered to accept Prussia's annexation of Poland in exchange for Russia's prior conditions, but Roon objected that Russia would take half the country.
• Mikhail argued that Prussia intended to absorb Poland and threatened to invite Austria into a partition if Roon refused to negotiate.
• Roon warned that an Austrian partition would leave Russia vulnerable to Austria's rise and suggested Prussia could eventually return to the Holy Roman Empire.
• Mikhail considered the danger of Austria dominating the continent and the possibility that a defeated Prussia might join Austria.
• The passage abruptly shifted to an unrelated promotional blurb about Jia Xu, his son Jia Mu, and a Three Kingdoms novel.

As the Polish Republicans met to stop William I’s election and prevent Prussian annexation, they faced a divided military and weak foreign support. The meeting ended with news that Polish and Russian troops had clashed in the Kyiv Region, leaving the government facing another crisis.

• Prime Minister Dąbrowski convened Republican leaders to discuss Poland’s threatened independence ahead of the royal election.
• Foreign Minister Walery Wróblewski and Finance Minister Badlevsky warned that France and Austria might stay neutral, while Poland lacked the military strength to resist Prussia alone.
• Dąbrowski decided to prevent William I from being elected, even if the government had to interfere with the vote.
• A messenger reported that a clash with Russians in the Kyiv Region had killed eight Polish soldiers and wounded twelve.
• Dąbrowski read the telegram and accused the Russians of deliberately provoking a war.

Franz recognized that Prussia and Russia were secretly preparing to divide Poland, while Britain, France, and Austria maintained a continental balance. After Russia demanded Polish territory and the surrender of border-conflict suspects, Dąbrowski ordered mobilization, unaware of the full Russian forces massed nearby.

• Franz inferred that Prussia and Russia planned to carve up Poland and judged that Britain, France, and Austria were unlikely to be drawn into their conflict.
• On May 18, 1874, the Tsarist Government gave Poland twenty-four hours to surrender the border-conflict culprits and cede the Kyiv Region.
• Dąbrowski learned that Britain offered mediation, France had not committed, and Prussia promised military support, while Austria was expected to remain neutral.
• Dąbrowski ordered nationwide mobilization and prepared to make temporary concessions to Prussia in hopes of surviving Russia's first attack.
• The Tsarist Government assembled twenty infantry divisions and five cavalry divisions on the Polish border and twenty more infantry divisions along the Prussian border, leaving Poland unaware of the scale of the threat.

Britain assessed the Russo-Polish War and considered using the crisis to strengthen the German Federation by bargaining over Prussia’s Rhineland. Austria declared neutrality in the war, leaving Abdulaziz I disappointed that the conflict would not ease Ottoman military pressure.

• Prime Minister Gladstone learned that Russia had invaded Poland and heard McLean describe Prussia’s suspected deal with Russia and its efforts to secure European support.
• Gladstone and La Rook Lloyd discussed preventing France and Austria from cooperating to reshape Europe, and proposed that the German Federation acquire the Rhineland in exchange for concessions.
• Gladstone ordered Britain to inform the German Federation that it would have to pay for the Rhineland and directed officials to persuade Prussia and France.
• On May 23, 1874, the Austrian Foreign Ministry announced that the Vienna Government would remain neutral in the Prusso-Polish War.
• Abdulaziz I was disappointed by Austria’s neutrality, while the chapter explained that Austria had little reason to fight over Poland without legal grounds or the prospect of recovering its military costs.