Greece to roman road

Constantine also felt heavy pressure from the expanding Slavic power in the Balkans.

After suffering setbacks in the Russo-Japanese War for nearly ten years, Russia, which has gradually regained its strength, has once again set its sights on the Balkans and once again waved the banner of Pan-Slavism.

Obviously, Bulgaria, Serbia, and Montenegro, the three Balkan Slavic countries, were able to form an alliance this time, obviously with the support of the Russians.

Slavs are widely distributed throughout Eastern Europe and are numerous in number. The Russian Empire and the Kingdom of Poland (the Kingdom of Poland exists in name only, with only the title of King of Poland, concurrently held by the Russian Tsar), are all countries dominated by Slavs.

A large Slavic population also lived in the large territory under the rule of the Austro-Hungarian Empire.

For example, the Czech Republic, Eastern Ukraine (near Lviv) belonging to the Austro-Hungarian Empire, as well as Slovenia and Croatia. In 1908, the Austro-Hungarian Empire took advantage of the civil strife in the Ottoman Empire and annexed the Bosnia and Herzegovina region, which was also occupied by Slavs. subject area.

If you add in the Slavic population in Montenegro, Serbia, Bulgaria and other countries in the Balkan Peninsula, the total Slavic population in Eastern Europe is nearly 200 million!

The late 19th century and early 20th century were a time when nationalism was surging. A large number of nationalist fighters hoped that their nation would gain independence.

It is conceivable that the Austria-Hungary Empire naturally hated the Russian Empire for advocating Pan-Slavism.

Precisely under the rule of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the status of the Slavs was not high.

As a strange dual empire, the Austro-Hungarian Empire, as its name suggests, was dominated by the Germans (the main ethnic group of the Kingdom of Austria) and the Magyars (the main ethnic group of Hungary).

It was precisely out of fear of the integration of Slavic forces that Austria-Hungary reacted so violently to the union of Serbia and Bulgaria and directly mobilized some troops on the Serbian border.

As the ruler of Greece, Constantine now heard that Montenegro had also joined the alliance, which also touched Constantine's sensitive nerves.

"Before, the Russian bear had been hiding in the corner, licking its wounds. Nearly ten years have passed. Stolypin's reform policies have achieved remarkable results, and Russian power naturally intends to make a comeback," Venizelos said worriedly.

"The situation in Europe is tense now. Germany, which has always been Britain's iron ally, has now replaced Russia and become the British's primary target of attack. Instead, it is Britain's traditional enemy, and Russia has become Britain's potential ally."

"The Russians will naturally not miss this rare opportunity to exert influence in Eastern Europe." Constantine was unwilling to accept the failure of the two countries to make concessions to Greece.

If Britain's attention had not been firmly attracted by the Germans, it would have been impossible for the British to watch the emergence of an alliance of Slavic countries in the Balkans with the support of the Russians.

Under normal circumstances, as long as Russia shows signs of integrating Slavic forces in Eastern Europe, countries will definitely join forces to beat the Russians like the Berlin Conference in 1878.

Now Greece has only reluctantly reached an alliance agreement with the two countries to jointly deal with the Ottoman Empire. With the concerted efforts of the three countries, dealing with the Ottoman Empire is no longer a problem.

The crux of the problem is, what should we do after carving up the European part of the Ottoman Empire?

Although the Ottoman Empire was still lingering on, it was getting weaker and weaker. Like other countries, the transformation into a capitalist country exposed severe internal contradictions and conflicts.

The national conditions of the Ottoman Empire were very complex. It was not only a multi-ethnic country, but also a multi-religious country.

Ethnic and religious conflicts were intertwined, making it difficult to carry out reforms in the Ottoman Empire.

Judging from the current situation, even the revolution and reforms organized by the ideal young Ottoman officers have not had any obvious effect in changing the declining national power of the Ottoman Empire.

Under the pressure of the Three Kingdoms, the territory of the Ottoman Empire was bound to shrink to Asia Minor.

So, who should fill the gap left by the Balkans?

To put it more directly, who among the three Balkan countries will replace the Ottoman Empire’s previous hegemony in the Balkans?

The reason why the two countries have extremely strong attitudes and firmly disagree with Greece, the strongest comprehensive power among the three countries, occupying most of Macedonia is that they do not want to see Greece become the hegemon in the Balkans.

The Slavic states of the Balkans were united, and Constantine felt a thorn in his throat.

Constantine was still confident when comparing the two countries alone with Greece, but when the two countries were united, Greece felt tremendous pressure.

Not only the hard power of the two countries, but also the power of the Slavs in Eastern Europe looms behind the two countries.

The war against the Ottoman Empire had not yet begun, but Constantine had already smelled the smoke of the three countries competing for dominance in the Balkans.

For the sake of the future of the country and the destiny of the nation, Greece cannot give up this good opportunity for development.

Since 1881, Constantine had tried every means and overcome many difficulties to allow Greece to take the lead in industrialization, gain some advantages, and have no room for retreat.

The road to industrialization is not a broad road. Once you embark on it, you are destined to experience the test of blood and fire.

Resources are always limited, but there are many people who want to share the cake.

The international society, just like human society, follows the 80/20 rule, with 20% occupying 80% of the wealth, and the remaining 80% sharing 20% ​​of the wealth.

He held the cigarette between his fingers and took a long drag. The fireworks were bright and the smoke was pouring out. Constantine said in a deep voice: "The Balkans are about to undergo a round of reshuffle. Greece needs to prepare in advance. Your government Departments should be prepared for shocks.”

After thinking for a moment, Venizelos nodded: "In this case, I will summon all the heads of government departments to hold a state meeting."

Constantine raised his hand and looked at the watch on his wrist, and said: "It's better to be urgent than later. Let's hold the meeting this afternoon."

After that, he hurriedly turned around and left the Prime Minister's Palace, heading to the Palace of Constitution Square.

When Constantine arrived at the Royal Palace in Syntagma Square, he happened to meet King George in casual clothes in the garden, lying on a wicker chair and taking a nap.

So he informed him of the convening of the State Council.

King George heard his son's voice, looked at Constantine, and sighed: "I will not participate in today's meeting. You can host it on my behalf."

Constantine looked surprised. You must know that the previous important meetings, regardless of their substance, were nominally presided over by the king.

Seemingly noticing Constantine's confusion, King George explained: "My energy has declined greatly, and although I don't want to admit it, I am indeed getting old."

Only then did Constantine notice that the old king, who was born in 1845, was 68 years old this year, nearly 70 years old.