Chapter 193: Chapter 80, The Struggle of the Montenegrin People

Translator: 549690339

Montenegro

Ever since the breakout of the Near East war, this tiny nation had been aboil, immediately completing nationwide mobilization, with men, women, old and young all joining the fight.

The people of Montenegro were proud; they were the only ethnic group on the Balkan Peninsula that had not submitted to the Ottomans, and for hundreds of years, they had been at the forefront of resisting the Ottoman Empire.

It was a nation where every citizen was a soldier; without any need for government coercion, the people spontaneously took up arms and returned to military order.

Shkodër lay just ahead, and Montenegrins had fought their way to this point many times before, but this time was different, this time their chances of victory were significant.

Not long ago, they had successfully rendezvoused with Austria in the Bosnia and Herzegovina region, solving the issue of their weapons and ammunition constraints, significantly boosting the Montenegrin Army’s combat power.

Montenegro Army Command Post

Commander Mirkov spoke gravely, “We’ve just received a notification from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs that the Holst Armoury wants to come and test a batch of weapons.

Lasridge, take a company and be responsible for the security of our Austrian friends. Under no circumstances are they to suffer any accidents.”

Mirkov had good reason to be cautious; every rifle and bullet used by the Montenegro Duchy was supplied by Austria.

Austria had now replaced Russians as their most important ally, without any rival.

At this juncture, with Austria requesting to conduct weapons tests on the battlefield, they naturally couldn’t refuse.

For the impoverished Montenegro Duchy, no matter what the weapon’s performance, it was a boon just to have something to use. Now, by testing weapons for Austria, they could get a batch of weapon equipment for free, which to them was a win-win situation.

As for the risks of using new weapons, could it be any more dangerous than fighting the Ottomans with cold steel?

The quantity of equipment for combat testing was not small, for example, this rifle test brought in five hundred new rifles directly from the Holst Armoury. Equipping two Montenegrin infantry battalions, they were to be thrown into this war for combat testing.

With a gloomy face, Lasridge said, “The Austrians have come again. Your Excellency, the Commander, can’t someone else do it? I want to go fight the Ottomans.”

Although Lasridge was only a battalion commander, given the small size of the Montenegrin Army, his role had become that of a senior officer.

Watching his colleagues fight valiantly on the frontlines, he became the designated Guard Commander for the Austrian Delegation due to his knowledge of German. He had already seen off three weapon inspection teams.

As a Montenegrin, how could he not be eager for battle? When an opportunity finally came, it was interrupted by the unexpected weapon testing.

Mirkov glared at him and said sternly, “Don’t negotiate with me. There is no room for discussion here. If the test is successful, we can get five hundred rifles and a batch of ammunition for free, saving the country tens of thousands of shields.”

Speaking of funds, Lasridge had nothing to say. Tens of thousands of Austrian shields might not seem like much, but for Montenegro, that was the equivalent of one or two months’ fiscal revenue.

Not all weapon tests were successful. Many weapons performed exceptionally at the range, but once on the battlefield, various issues would come to light.

To encourage domestic armories to develop new weapons, all the costs of these combat tests are now covered by the Austrian Government.

Various Austrian armories took this opportunity to send a myriad of weapons to the battlefield for testing.

Combat testing not only measured weapon performance but also included logistical maintenance, the difficulty of battlefield weapon operation, and more.

There were successes, but there were more failures. Many weapons had great lethality but proved unreliable on the battlefield, or they were reliable but had prohibitively high maintenance costs.

Throughout his journey, Holman-Stellen was greatly shocked. Montenegro was indeed a nation of soldiers-in-arms; the promised mobilization of twenty thousand troops had been not only met but exceeded by the Montenegrins.

Everyone capable was serving the war effort. All along his way, he saw resources being relayed village by village towards the front, much like a relay race.

Scarcely any able-bodied adults were seen; from beginning to end, it was the elderly and children who managed this task. The old were nearly toothless, the young just a few years of age, all busily engaged.

“Mr. Lasridge, where are your country’s able-bodied men?” Holman-Stellen asked, puzzled.

Lasridge replied as if it were obvious, “They’re all on the battlefield!”

Seeing Holman-Stellen’s apparent lack of understanding, Lasridge added,

“This is our homeland; there’s no danger here. The logistics are handled by the people themselves. A bit further on, and you will see our army.”

Holman-Stellen said nothing but silently recorded everything he saw in his notebook and continued onward.

When he arrived at the frontlines, Holman-Stellen also saw the presence of women soldiers. Evidently, for this war, Montenegro had staked its national fate; they had bet all their chips.

To Austria, this Near East war was merely a local conflict to grab spoils of war, with the outcome merely affecting the degree of Austria’s gains—after all, the Ottomans didn’t dare to retaliate.

For Russians, it was a strategic battle, not yet a matter of life and death; the Russians were not desperate yet.

Should they lose, they could simply try again in a few decades. With vast lands and wealth, the Russians could afford the loss; one more war with the Ottomans wouldn’t concern them after so many.

But for Montenegro, it was a gamble on national survival; victory would bolster their development and strength, whereas defeat would mean the end of everything.

Holman-Stellen understood the Montenegrins’ stance; their enmity with the Ottomans was irreconcilable. For hundreds of years, this was their closest chance at victory.

The Ottoman Empire was in decline, and now it was simultaneously at war with both Austria and Russia. Had it not been for the meddling of England and France, this war would have already ended.

The Montenegrins naturally had to take this chance. As a Balkan nation, if they didn’t dare to bet their national fate, could they still call themselves Balkan citizens?

The only pity was that the population of Montenegro was too small. If they had ten million, not just five million people, they could have driven the Ottomans out of the Balkan Peninsula and established their own empire.

At this thought, Holman-Stellen smiled slightly. If the Montenegro Duchy had that many people, they would not have become allies with Austria.

The entire Balkan Peninsula had just over thirteen million people, with almost half of the population in the Istanbul area.

In the remaining regions, the Bulgarian region had two million, the Kingdom of Greek had nearly one million, the Serbia region had over nine hundred thousand, the two Danube principalities each had over one million, the Macedonian Region had over one million, the Albania region had several hundred thousand, and Bosnia and Herzegovina had several hundred thousand.

Even if the people of Montenegro tried their best, the limit on their population determined the ceiling for their development.

They could not possibly become a threat to Austria, so everyone could be good friends. For example, supporting Montenegro to expand into the Albania region, helping to plant a thorn to prevent the unification of the Balkan Peninsula.

Holman-Stellen shook his head, dismissing these thoughts. These were issues for politicians to consider; as a weapon designer, thinking about these matters was overstepping his boundaries.

The war soon began; through binoculars, Holman-Stellen and his companions watched the Montenegrin Army launch an attack on the Ottomans’ position.

The sound of gunfire roared, and flesh and blood were scattered everywhere.

Holman-Stellen had no time to care about these details as he observed the combat capability of the new rifles, revealing a satisfied smile from time to time.

During volley fire, because they could lie down to reload, the soldiers equipped with these new rifles had significantly fewer casualties.

Although the combat lethality was slightly lower, the advantage of a higher hit rate in close combat made up for this shortfall.

As long as the enemy was hit within effective range to inflict effective damage, that was enough; these were not sniper rifles, and the chance of hitting the enemy at long distance was too small, so a little lower lethality was not a big deal.

The first round of testing was a success, and Holman-Stellen let out a sigh of relief. As long as maintenance standards were met in subsequent care, the initial requirements would be considered fulfilled.

Compared to Holman-Stellen’s satisfaction, Lasridge by his side had a worried expression. After having many interactions with the Austria weapon testing team, he inevitably learned some professional knowledge.

“Mr. Holman, isn’t the ammunition consumption of this rifle a bit too high? Have you noticed that its high hit rate is actually based on the consumption of ammunition?” Lasridge asked.

Without thinking, Holman-Stellen asked, “Is the ammunition consumption very high?”

Lasridge answered affirmatively, “Of course. Ordinary rifles typically fire two or three bullets per minute, but this new rifle can fire up to a dozen shots per minute.

That means the ammunition consumption has increased several times, while the hit rate has only increased slightly, though our casualties have decreased somewhat.

This kind of gun is too expensive to use. We can’t afford it, anyway. I fear the manufacturing cost is not going to be low either.”

Holman-Stellen nodded and noted all this information in his notebook. High ammunition consumption would be very fatal in war, meaning an increase in logistical supply difficulty.

For Montenegro, the consumption of these breech-loading rifles was too great; neither their financial capacity nor their industrial strength could support it, making it unfeasible for them to equip.

Yet for Austria, that might not be the case; the intensity of the ammunition consumption had not yet surpassed their limit of endurance.

The advent of the breech-loading rifle also meant an increase in the cost of war, widening the gap in strength between industrial powerhouses and weaker nations once again.

Without strong industrial strength, it was simply impossible to support the terrifying ammunition consumption demanded by future wars.

If, in this recent Near Eastern war, both sides had been equipped with breech-loading rifles, Russia would not have been able to sustain the conflict.

In a war of attrition, Russia and Austria were truly no match for England and France. They could bear the cost now due to early preparations and also because the ammunition consumption of muzzle-loading rifles was not so high.

“Mr. Lasridge, it’s clear you’re very experienced with weapon testing. Would you be interested in joining our team? The salary will definitely satisfy you,” Holman-Stellen invited.

Testing weapons on the battlefield was a high-risk job. Working in this field, one never knew when they could get hit by a stray bullet from nowhere.

High risk naturally comes with high income, at least several times higher than the salary of Lasridge, the Montenegrin Army regimental commander.

No, it could even be several dozen times higher. Due to financial difficulties, the soldiers of Montenegro were paid very low salaries, and most of the time, they did not receive any military pay.

This was not coercion; rather, it was a voluntary renunciation by everyone. Unless their families were truly destitute, they would generally give up their pay of their own accord.

Lasridge laughed and declined, “Thank you, Mr. Holman. But I think it’s not necessary; this is not a matter of money.

There are many things in the world more important than money. Right now, my homeland is engaged in a bloody battle with the Ottomans, and centuries of humiliation must be washed away with blood.

For me, the goal of destroying the Ottoman Empire is my life’s ambition. Once this goal is achieved, I’ll reconsider my life.”

Holman-Stellen bowed and said, “Mr. Lasridge, please forgive my presumption. You are a true soldier, and should not be insulted by money.”

In that moment, Holman-Stellen truly acknowledged Lasridge, or perhaps Montenegro itself.

Perhaps they were not strong enough, but their spirit of persisting in the fight against the Ottoman Empire for hundreds of years for their nation, without ever wavering in their beliefs, deserved respect from everyone.

After this small episode, Holman-Stellen and his companions changed their views of them. Gone was the previous arrogance, and the relationship between them improved greatly.