A Constellation of Generals

Under the terms of the alliance, Austria, Russia, Greece, and Montenegro respectively dispatched 350,000, 336,000, 26,000, and 3,000 troops, with Austrian Chief of Staff Albrecht serving as commander-in-chief of the coalition forces.

One look at those numbers made it clear—they were aiming to destroy a nation. In the last Near East War, Austria and Russia had each deployed fewer than 300,000 troops, yet they had beaten the Ottoman Empire into doubting its very existence.

The most important thing in joint operations was coordination. The greatest obstacle was still the language barrier; communication difficulties increased the difficulty of cooperation among the various forces.

Throughout the latter half of May, the four nations worked on this problem. Albrecht, the coalition commander-in-chief, held joint conferences several times to coordinate the organizational structure.

The coalition's sluggish movements gave the Ottoman Government hope, and Abdul Hamid II ordered nationwide mobilization.

The Ottoman Government had gone mad, lowering the mobilization age to twelve. Anyone above that who could carry a rifle counted, with no so-called upper limit.

Over the years, the Ottomans had made far too many enemies. All four members of the Anti-Ottoman Alliance were their hereditary foes, leaving no possibility of reconciliation.

Nothing was more likely to unleash a nation's potential than a crisis of life and death. Under the pressure of national ruin and extermination, the Reform Party, conservatives, and religious forces of the Ottoman Empire tacitly ceased their infighting.

At Downing Street, inside the Prime Minister's residence, British Foreign Secretary George said, "The Ottoman Government has performed well. They have already prepared to fight for their lives.

"Ottoman Grand Vizier Midhat Pasha has announced an extreme mobilization, mobilizing two million troops to fight the Anti-Ottoman Alliance to the death."

Prime Minister Gladstone said in shock, "The Ottomans want two million troops?