The Rise Of Australasia

Chapter 475: Chapter 376: The Austro-Hungarian Empire Declares War

Prime Minister Patrick of Serbia understood that the current situation was beyond his control. The path Serbia would ultimately take depended on the attitudes of the Austro-Hungarian Empire and Russia Nation.

As a result, Patrick hurriedly forwarded the 48-hour ultimatum issued by the Austro-Hungarian Empire to Russia, asking for the stance of Tsar Nicholas II and the Russian Government.

As a bulwark against the expansion of the Austro-Hungarian Empire in the Balkan Region, Serbia was highly valued by the Russian Empire.

Upon learning of the harsh 48-hour ultimatum from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, Nicholas II was very angry, accusing them of completely ignoring Russia's special interests in Serbia and attempting to undermine Russia's position.

The Russian Minister of Foreign Affairs angrily said, "Russia cannot absolutely allow the Austro-Hungarian Empire to defeat Serbia and become the most dominant country in the Balkan Region."

Not only did Serbia relate to Russia's interests in the Balkan Region, but also to the safety of the Russian Black Sea Fleet's export.

If the Balkan Region fell into the hands of the Allied Nations, Russia's Black Sea Fleet would be trapped, and Russia would have only the Baltic Sea and the Far East as its exits.

Although Nicholas II had long supported Arthur's proposal to try the masterminds behind the assassination of Archduke Ferdinand,

at such a crucial moment, a joint royal declaration was clearly not as important as Serbia.

Soon, Nicholas II summoned the Austro-Hungarian ambassador in Saint Petersburg to express Russia's attitude.

Nicholas II declared firmly, "Russia does not agree with the two agreements in the final ultimatum that damage Serbia's sovereignty, nor does it agree with the Austro-Hungarian Empire's investigation of the Sarajevo assassination on Serbian territory."

Even if an investigation were to take place, it should be led by the Four Great Powers of the Allies – Britain, France, Russia, and Australia – organizing the necessary manpower for an investigation in Serbia.

As for the other countries in the Allied Nations, even the victimized Austro-Hungarian Empire had no right to investigate on Serbian land.

Even if the Austro-Hungarian ambassador explained several times that they were only suppressing terrorist activities and riots that threatened European royal families, which would be beneficial for all European monarchies,

how could the fiery temper of the Russians believe the Austro-Hungarians? The Russian Minister of Foreign Affairs strongly stated, "If the Austro-Hungarian Empire persists with the 48-hour ultimatum, it will provoke war throughout Europe."

Russia could never back down on Serbia issue. Besides, the Allies had a strong bond, and with the financial support of Britain and France and the material support of Australasia, Nicholas II believed he had the confidence to face any challenges from the outside world.

However, the Austro-Hungarian Imperial Government did not care about the relatively tough attitude of Russia. Berchtold, who had control over the government's discourse, believed that with the blank check issued by Emperor William II of Germany, the Russians would be wary of Germany and would not directly join the war.

This would mean that the war between the Austro-Hungarian Empire and Serbia would only escalate into a small-scale local conflict.

It was because of this idea that under Berchtold's insistence, the Austro-Hungarian Empire did not withdraw the 48-hour ultimatum and constantly urged the Serbian Government to respond to it.

On July 25, 1914, Serbian Prime Minister Patrick personally rushed to the Austro-Hungarian Embassy with the Serbian Government's reply.

The Serbian Government's reply was filled with the wishful thinking for reconciliation. Patrick explained to the Austro-Hungarian ambassador, "Serbia is prepared to formally condemn all actions against the Austrian People and requests the Austro-Hungarian Empire not to violate Serbia's sovereignty.

If the Austro-Hungarian Empire is not satisfied with this outcome, Serbia is willing to accept arbitration from The Hague Court."

This reply exhausted the minds of the Serbian government officials. Not only was it revised repeatedly, but also it was handwritten by Prime Minister Patrick because the only typewriter was broken by the exhausted secretary.

Moreover, the ministers of the Serbian Government believed that taking the reply to the Austrian Embassy would humiliate them, so they all refused to go.

This humiliation forced Serbian Prime Minister Patrick to personally deliver the letter, which was a great humiliation, even though Serbia was a small country.

Although the Serbian Government's reply was full of sincerity, such concessions were obviously not enough to satisfy the appetite of the Austro-Hungarian Government and Berchtold.

Moreover, even before the Serbian Government's reply, the Austro-Hungarian Empire had already deployed its army to the Serbian border.

For the Austro-Hungarian Empire, there were only two acceptable conditions: either Serbia surrendered, or they fought Serbia into submission.

On July 26, 1914, after the 48-hour ultimatum of the Austro-Hungarian Government expired, the whole of Europe fell into boundless silence.

William II understood that his firm stance could not shake the Russians' determination, and he wanted to resolve the conflict through negotiation.

On the other hand, the British also joined the mediation effort, as the sudden outbreak of war was not good for either party.

However, it was evident that William II's long-standing firm stance on war had led Germany's military and government officials to develop an irresistible war impulse.