The New Tsar

Petersburg, Ministry of Internal Affairs.

Imperial Minister of Internal Affairs Vyacheslav Plehve, Imperial Foreign Minister Lobanov-Rostovsky, Konstantin Pobedonostsev, director of the Orthodox Affairs Administration, and others had all gathered together.

Everyone wore a smile they could not suppress.

When the civil war first broke out, they had all believed that Grand Duke Mikhail could not possibly win.

After all, most of the military high command had been on Grand Duke Nicholas's side.

But to their surprise, Grand Duke Mikhail's troops had proved so formidable that they had defeated a larger force with a smaller one.

In less than two months, he had brought the civil war to an end and won.

That had left everyone immensely heartened.

"Gentlemen, His Highness Grand Duke Mikhail has won this civil war. Fairness and justice have been secured. His Highness will surely ascend the throne in Moscow next. We must get there as soon as possible to make the necessary arrangements," Konstantin Pobedonostsev suggested.

Vyacheslav Plehve and Lobanov-Rostovsky both nodded repeatedly.

They had been ministers under Nicholas II.

Now that the tsar was changing, it was hard to say whether they would still be trusted or entrusted with important responsibilities.

Grand Duke Mikhail had, after all, reclaimed the throne that belonged to him through his formidable military strength. The Tsarist Russian Empire's senior officials could be said to have very little influence over him.

To protect their positions and interests, they had to take the initiative and align themselves with Mikhail.

That also meant that once Mikhail became the new tsar, his power would be immense. Those tsars, Nicholas II among them, could not begin to compare with him.

"His Highness has won the civil war, so the threats facing the empire will undoubtedly be much smaller. At present, although the Germans and Japanese are making little moves, and the Ottomans have even invaded the empire,

"As long as the civil war is over and the situation in the empire quickly stabilizes, these threats can all be dealt with soon."

Lobanov-Rostovsky said.

"His Highness is a man of great talent and vision. Under his rule, the Tsarist Russian Empire will surely develop rapidly. When that time comes, the Tsarist Russian Empire will surely be able to reclaim its former glory and even become the most powerful country on the entire European continent!"

Konstantin Pobedonostsev had immense confidence in Grand Duke Mikhail's abilities.

He had been a close personal friend of the old tsar, Alexander III, and knew very well how dearly Alexander III had loved his youngest son.

Thus, after Nicholas II was assassinated, he had strongly supported Grand Duke Mikhail's succession to the throne.

Unfortunately, although the Orthodox Affairs Administration wielded considerable influence over the empire's religious affairs, it had been powerless against Grand Duke Nicholas and the others, who held vast numbers of troops under their command. It could only watch helplessly as the throne belonging to Grand Duke Mikhail was stolen.

Fortunately, Grand Duke Mikhail had risen to the occasion himself, swiftly winning the civil war and reclaiming the throne.

"Gentlemen, we can't go empty-handed to Moscow for His Highness's coronation!" Vyacheslav Plehve said.

"According to my people, Sergei Witte is secretly selling off his property. He intends to flee the empire!" Vyacheslav Plehve continued.

"What? We absolutely cannot let him escape! That fellow Sergei Witte was entirely on Grand Duke Nicholas's side before. For all we know, stealing His Highness Grand Duke Mikhail's throne was his idea.

"Besides, he's a notoriously corrupt official in the empire, and His Highness Grand Duke Mikhail despises corrupt officials.

"Arrest him and hand him over to His Highness to deal with!"

Konstantin Pobedonostsev suggested.

Lobanov-Rostovsky also expressed his support.

"Very well. Since you both agree, I'll have the Ministry of Internal Affairs take action!" Vyacheslav Plehve made his decision.

That very night, the secret police force under the Ministry of Internal Affairs was dispatched and arrested Sergei Witte on suspicion of treason. At the same time, it seized all of his family's property.

Sergei Witte was, after all, the empire's finance minister.

On top of that, he had been a very close personal friend of Nicholas II.

Relying on that connection, Sergei Witte had lined his pockets with a great deal of money over the years.

Preliminary estimates put Sergei Witte's fortune at as much as a hundred million rubles.

The Tsarist Russian Empire's annual revenue at the time was only 1.5 billion rubles.

Clearly, Sergei Witte was unquestionably a thoroughly corrupt official in the Tsarist Russian Empire.

Even though the Tsarist Russian Empire's bureaucracy was now rotten to the core, and corrupt officials were everywhere.

After Sergei Witte was arrested, many people cast covetous eyes on his wealth.

But they all knew perfectly well that Sergei Witte was a gift for the new tsar. So no one dared reach for it carelessly.

When Mikhail, far away in Moscow, learned what had happened, he was greatly pleased.

He had long wanted to deal with Sergei Witte.

With the civil war over, the situation at home would soon begin to stabilize, even though the Tsarist Russian Empire still faced an invasion by the Ottoman Empire. Or rather, the Ottoman Empire's troops were fighting the troops of the Caucasus Military District.

But that did not prevent Mikhail from ascending the throne and becoming the new tsar.

On June 18, 1898, Grand Duke Mikhail completed the entire coronation ceremony, presided over by Vasily Bogoyavlensky, the Most Holy Synod's bishop of Moscow, and took his seat on the tsar's throne.

The throne had been hastily made anew; it was not the one Grand Duke Nicholas had died on.

The Tsarist Russian Empire's senior officials and envoys from various countries also witnessed the entire coronation ceremony.

Regardless of whether these people genuinely supported Mikhail or would pledge their loyalty to him, they could no longer stop him from becoming the new tsar.

Before all those present, Mikhail swore to God that he would do everything in his power to lead the Tsarist Russian Empire to glory.

Those most displeased by Mikhail's accession as the new tsar were the hostile nations.

The German Empire, the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Japanese Empire and the Empire on Which the Sun Never Sets behind them, as well as the Ottoman Empire, which was at war with the Tsarist Russian Empire, were all greatly affected.

They had originally hoped that the Tsarist Russian Empire's civil war would continue, and that the larger its scale, the better.

Ideally, they wanted the fighting to reduce the entire Tsarist Russian Empire to ruins.

That way, they could seize enormous benefits as the Tsarist Russian Empire collapsed.

But now the civil war had ended prematurely, and the Tsarist Russian Empire had not been greatly affected by it.

The various countries would probably have to abandon their plans for the Tsarist Russian Empire for the time being.

The Ottoman Empire in particular, which was fighting the Tsarist Russian Empire, had already begun considering how to extricate itself.

Otherwise, once the Tsarist Russian Empire recovered its strength, it would certainly be more than the already declining Ottoman Empire could handle.