Luring the Enemy Deep

In the Lombardy region, the situation was extremely unfavorable for Austria. The Italian-Austrian War was by no means as simple as the history books recorded; there were rebellions by the bourgeoisie and nobility within, and enemy forces pressing on the borders without.

The reinforcements dispatched by the Vienna government were currently suppressing the rebellion in the Venice region, leaving only a single Austrian division to reach the front line. Marshal Radetzky now had fewer than thirty thousand troops at his disposal.

This figure was double what it had been at the same point in history; otherwise, he would have long since retreated from the Milan region in disgrace, just as in the historical account.

After carefully studying the map on the table and considering the current international situation, Marshal Radetzky made a decision at the military conference that left everyone utterly astonished.

"Order the troops to prepare; we shall abandon the city of Milan on April 1st!"

"What? Your Excellency, are you certain this is not a joke?" Major General Victor asked in disbelief.

"Major General Victor, I am quite certain of what I am doing," Marshal Radetzky replied, his expression unchanging.

"But Your Excellency, we have not yet reached the point where a retreat is necessary. Once the rebellion in the Venice region is suppressed, our reinforcements will arrive, and there will be no problem in holding off the Kingdom of Sardinia!" Major General Victor challenged.

This was not the doubt of Victor alone; the many officers present all found it difficult to accept. If they could win, why retreat?

"It is simple. We can block the offensive of the Kingdom of Sardinia, but under the pressure of internal strife and external threats, we lack the ability to defeat the enemy. The insurgents in the Lombardy region have already colluded with the Kingdom of Sardinia; if we remain in a long-term stalemate, the rebellion will continue indefinitely. This also involves political and economic dimensions. In short, the Vienna government has authorized me to handle the Italian question with full authority; you need only execute the orders!" Marshal Radetzky explained coldly.

Abandoning Lombardy would bring him immense pressure, potentially even triggering a chain reaction. Under normal circumstances, no general would be willing to shoulder such responsibility.

Marshal Radetzky dared to do so because of the orders transmitted from the Vienna government: as long as the final victory was secured, the loss of a single city or territory did not matter.

In his view, the high-level officials in the Vienna government had also realized the perilous situation in the Italian theater. If the problem could not be resolved quickly, then the Papal States, the Grand Duchy of Tuscany, and the Kingdom of Naples would all pounce.

Dealing with the Kingdom of Sardinia and the insurgents alone was manageable with the forces Marshal Radetzky had on hand, but it would become dangerous if these other states joined the war.

Rather than that, it was better to abandon the Lombardy region first. If the Kingdom of Sardinia occupied these territories alone, the other three Italian states would not join the war.

After all, they had only declared war under the pressure of public opinion, and the main forces of these states had not yet been mobilized; those who had arrived were merely volunteer forces organized by the populace.

If the Kingdom of Sardinia occupied these regions, they would have satisfied the public, and even out of envy, jealousy, and hatred, the others would not send troops to help the Kingdom of Sardinia fight.

Without external threats, internal strife would erupt, as the internal contradictions within the various Italian states were equally significant. For now, the politicians simply needed to shift the hatred of the populace toward Austria.

However, this situation could not last. One could deceive people about anything, but one could not deceive their stomachs; people had to eat.

The economic crisis was still ongoing, and the number of unemployed in the Italian region was not small. If this problem could not be solved, the contradictions would still erupt.

Beyond the Italians, the attitude of the United Kingdom and France was also a problem.

The French hoped that Lombardy and Venice would become independent nations; while they wanted to drive out Austria, they did not want to see a unified Italy.

The British hoped for a unified Italy that could simultaneously check France and Austria, yet they did not want to see Austria collapse. They wanted to weaken Austria while preserving its strength so it could block the expansion of the Russians.

Against this backdrop, once the Kingdom of Sardinia occupied Lombardy, the two would inevitably merge, and the French position would immediately shift from current support to hostility.

British support for the Kingdom of Sardinia would remain merely verbal; they would urge the Kingdom of Sardinia to quit while they were ahead, but unfortunately, the Kingdom of Sardinia, held hostage by public opinion, would have no choice but to continue fighting.

After contracting the front lines, Marshal Radetzky's forces would be more concentrated, while the front lines of the Kingdom of Sardinia would be stretched thin.

The newly occupied Lombardy could not provide them with supplies; they would have to rely on domestic transport, which was an absolute burden for the Kingdom of Sardinia.

While fighting Austria, they would also have to feed the people of Lombardy; otherwise, if the people went hungry, they would rebel just the same.

Without substantive support from the United Kingdom and France, and with three fewer states participating, the outcome of this war was already sealed. The national strength of the Kingdom of Sardinia was limited and could not compare to Austria at all.

Marshal Radetzky was confident that he could defeat the army of the Kingdom of Sardinia with the forces he had, then recover the Lombardy region, and even carry the flames of war into the heartland of the Kingdom of Sardinia.

Strategically speaking, this was not a retreat, but luring the enemy deep.

Of course, the private letter from Franz, urging him to eliminate all insurgents in Austrian-held Italy as much as possible, was also a reason for his resolve.

The term "insurgents" was not so simple. Marshal Radetzky understood that it referred to the capitalists and nobles in the Italian region; without the exploitation of the populace by these people, where would the rebellion come from?

Once Lombardy was annexed into the Kingdom of Sardinia, it was estimated that the vast majority of nobles and capitalists would lean toward the Kingdom of Sardinia. After the war ended and the reckoning began, these people could all be classified as insurgents.

By using their assets to win over the hearts of the people, Austrian-held Italy would soon stabilize. After all, the people of Lombardy were Germans who had entered Italy; without the obstruction of the upper classes, the difficulty of ethnic integration would be much lower.

There were advantages and disadvantages, but Marshal Radetzky did not need to consider so much. In any case, he had already seen the favorable side: he could solve the Italian problem once and for all.

For the sake of final victory, both Lombardy and Venice could be temporarily abandoned; as long as they were recovered in the end, he would remain a hero of Austria.

In the quiet conference room, a voice suddenly broke the silence. A middle-aged general stood up and said, "Your Excellency, perhaps we can still do something. We cannot let the Kingdom of Sardinia occupy Lombardy so easily!"

"Edmond, what plan do you have?" Marshal Radetzky asked with concern.

"Your Excellency, since the people of Lombardy welcome the Italians so much, why don't we help promote it and make their impression of the Kingdom of Sardinia even better!" Lieutenant General Edmond Leopold Friedri said with a cold sneer.