Re: Blood and Iron

Chapter 195: A Grim Reminder of the Cost of War

Chapter 195: A Grim Reminder of the Cost of War

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Bruno came out a fortnight after his father's retirement on a public radio broadcast, speaking about his father's achievements, both on the battlefield and within the field of politics, throughout his lifelong career of service to the German Reich and the Kingdom of Prussia.

The radio broadcast went on for some time, and it was only thanks to the substantial investment in both German infrastructure, as well as scientific talent, that such things were able to occur across the country so early in the 20th century.

But eventually, the subject came to the recent retirement of Bruno's father, as well as the award he had been granted personally by the Kaiser for his decades of service to the German Reich.

However, there was a third question mixed in, one which Bruno suspected was arranged by the Kaiser for Bruno to advocate for Ludwig to fulfill the role, a man who had yet to be even considered a candidate for the newly vacant position.

Bruno was quiet at first as he took a drink from a glass of water that was provided to him by an aide for the sake of the interview. It was clear to those listening that he was thinking through his exact words.

And evidently, he had put some thought into them as he went on a long-winded speech about his thoughts on the subject that conveyed some deeply personal opinions and excessive emotions toward one particular subject that nobody expected.

"First of all, I would like to say that it is the foremost honor that a son could ever ask for in this life to be the progeny of a war hero like my father. For those who are not aware, my father is a man who spent the better half of his life serving the interests of the House of Hohenzollern and, by extension, the German people through selfless sacrifice via military service.

My father is a highly decorated senior officer and a veteran who fought on the front lines of three wars that had been waged over the course of the previous century for the purpose of unifying our people into the great Empire that we are today.

And I would also like to mention that this honor extends to my grandfather as well, who had the esteemed fortune of fighting alongside His Highness King Frederick William III and his Royal Army at Waterloo, where we earned our nobility by sending that French bastard Napoleon into exile where he belongs.

Now, I mention this because it is entirely relevant to the point I am about to make. So please bear with me as I continue with my thoughts. After his retirement from the German Army, my father went on to have an exceptional career as a politician, both in the Reichstag and the Bundesrat.

As you all should be aware, the Bundesrat is where my father spent the final days of his political career until his retirement a mere two weeks prior to this day. And it is because of my father's exceptional military career and the battles he has waged on behalf of our great Reich that he is a man who understands all too well the price that men like my brother and I, his sons, have paid in times of war.

With my father now retired, there is a vacant seat on the Bundesrat, one that several candidates have come forward expressing their interests to fulfill. It is a seat that represents the Kingdom of Prussia and everyone in it.

Now, I can't speak for these men. I am sure they are attracted to such a position of power purely out of interests of serving the German people as my father was, rather than out of any nefarious motives.

But what I do know about these men is that not a single one of the candidates presented has ever once served in His Majesty's Armed Forces, let alone stepped foot on a battlefield and witnessed what happens there.

And it is because these men do not understand the price that must be paid, should the time come that, God forbid, we need to declare an offensive war, that I cannot in good faith trust them to cast a vote in favor of such a horrific conflict while fully being aware of the brutal and gruesome price men like me will have to pay for their ignorance.

No, I do not agree with any of these men who have stepped forward to fulfill my father's esteemed shoes. Rather, as controversial as this may seem, as I know there will be those among you who think what I am about to say is an act of nepotism.

I assure you that I only have myself in mind, along with the brave young men currently serving beneath my command in the 8th Army, as well as any other lad who currently and proudly wears the uniform of His Majesty's Armed Forces or even those who may find themselves serving yet, when I say that it is my personal belief that there is nobody better suited to replace my father than my elder brother Ludwig.

And before any of you interrupt me, I will outline my reasons for saying this publicly forthwith. Like my father, my brother has spent years commanding men in battle. Sure, he was a volunteer in a war that many of you say was not one we should have been involved with. But the men serving beneath him were your brothers, your sons, and your fathers. We chose to take up arms in some foreign land, waving the banners of our forefathers, to fight against an enemy that we believed would one day march through the very streets we call home and bring hell with them.

And believe me when I say, my brother was there for the worst of it. From the moment we arrived in the besieged city of Saint Petersburg, we slugged through rivers of mud and blood as we cleaned out Ingria and Volga together side by side.

Now it is no secret my brother left the conflict earlier than I did. He had seen enough to understand what price must be paid, and nobody could ask any more of a man who volunteered for a conflict beyond our borders.

I mention all of this because it is my genuine belief that there is only one type of man who should ever be permitted to cast a vote toward declaring an offensive war. The man must have personally commanded troops in the field and have borne witness to the price that is always paid by other men when you send them off to fight a war you have started.

A price that is paid not only by the brave soldiers who wave the colors of the fatherland as they charge into gunfire and into certain death, but also the toll that is exacted on the people who are left behind to bury their remains once they are gone. Only such a man should ever be given a position of power over the life and death of the citizens he represents, and my brother is

such a man.

As expressed earlier, I am afraid that this arbitrary qualification that I have to endorse any candidate seeking such a powerful position over the life and death of our people cannot be found among any of the candidates who have been proposed to replace my father, both within the Bundesrat as a representative of the Kingdom of Prussia, but also on the committee of the Land Army and Fortresses.

I confess that I pray to God every day that such a grim reality never befalls this world. But should the day come where I am called to war, along with your fathers, your brothers, and your sons, then we better have a man like my brother Ludwig making the decision whether or not our blood, our lives, and our souls are worth the price of such a war.

And with my life in the hands of a man like Ludwig, then I can go do God's work, knowing that the right choice has been made, and without question do what is required of me.

For if my brother is not even considered among the candidates, and instead a man like those already presented has been chosen to succeed my father, then how could he possibly know whether or not a war waged beyond our borders is worth the price that will inevitably be paid for his mistakes?"

There was a long pause following Bruno's statement, which he had prepared in advance for this meeting. But the way in which he spoke made it sound as if he had come up with it on the spot. It was very naturally stated, and because of this, even the producers who were already prepared in advance with the speech were awestruck.

It would take a moment or two before the radio broadcast got back in full swing, but Bruno's words had far greater effect than he would ever have thought, especially among the Reich's active-duty soldiers and many veterans, as well as their families.

Bruno made it clear, though he may be a general, that did not mean he had ever once disregarded the lives of the soldiers beneath his command. In fact, by the way he spoke about the subject, the price that was paid for any war that he had ever, or would ever, wage was

already far too great.

The blood of the men who followed him into battle was worth far more than could ever be justified to spill for the sake of a few petty disputes between politicians who were all too unwilling to sacrifice themselves and their sons for the conflicts they had started. Bruno's image, especially among those who had personally witnessed the horrors of war, immediately skyrocketed, and so too did Ludwig, as Bruno's praise immediately secured the goodwill of the people necessary to see him appointed to the Bundesrat as their father's

successor.