Chapter 195: German-Russian Negotiations and Australia
Although the Russo-Japanese War appeared to be a conflict between Japan and the Russian Empire over Far Eastern hegemony, in reality, the outcome of the war had implications for the global situation as a whole.
Japan suffered heavy losses, but it gained recognition from the Western world and was regarded as an industrialized powerhouse.
The Russian Empire, unlike in history, did not completely lose its hegemony in the Far East. Currently, the Russian Empire and Japan are in a balanced state in the region. Although there are no plans for further warfare, Russia has made many arrangements in the Far East to maintain its interests, barely holding onto its position.
As a result, Russia's attention shifted to the Far East, and its focus on Europe lessened.
This shift in focus angered France, which had supported Russia in the war, hoping that Russia would quickly end the conflict and return its attention to Europe to continue countering Germany.
Russia's focus on the Far East and its growing ties with Germany during the war made France increasingly dissatisfied. France repeatedly emphasized the importance of the Franco-Russian alliance.
The European situation was becoming increasingly chaotic. As early as April 8, 1904, the United Kingdom and France signed the Entente Cordiale, resolving long-standing disputes over colonies and establishing a solid diplomatic relationship.
Although the Entente Cordiale was not an alliance treaty and did not mention resisting Germany or contain any secret military clauses, the two nations' resolution of their colonial disputes left them with only one major concern: the rising new hegemon of Europe, the powerful and aggressive German Empire.
Germany saw the signing of the Entente as a direct threat to its security. The united front of the UK and France was enough to jeopardize Germany's position, prompting Kaiser Wilhelm II to immediately decide to take counteraction.
Germany's response centered around the issue of Morocco, with the goal of undermining France and weakening the Entente Cordiale.
After the signing of the Entente, France became more aggressive in its colonial ambitions in Morocco. In February 1905, France proposed a comprehensive reform plan to the Moroccan government, demanding the establishment of a police system under French supervision, as well as the construction of railroads and the mining of resources.
If the Moroccan government agreed, Morocco would essentially become a French protectorate, losing its sovereignty.
Germany also harbored similar imperialistic ambitions in Morocco, and immediately intervened, urging the Moroccan government to reject France's proposal.
In response to Germany's counteraction, Kaiser Wilhelm II made a surprise visit to Tangier, Morocco, on March 31, delivering a provocative speech in which he declared his intention to defend Morocco's sovereignty and independence, contributing to world peace.
Kaiser Wilhelm II also specifically denounced France's special position in Morocco, calling it a barbaric act.
Germany's chancellor, Bethmann Hollweg, then proposed convening an international conference to resolve the Moroccan issue and used the threat of war to pressure France.
This became known as the first Moroccan Crisis, one of the key events that nearly triggered World War I.
The Moroccan Crisis forced both France and Germany to seek international support.
Coincidentally, on October 22, 1904, the Russian Empire's Baltic Fleet, en route to the Far East, sank a British fishing vessel near the British port of Hull.
This incident immediately worsened relations between Britain and Russia. Britain not only protested diplomatically but also sent warships to track the Russian fleet. Some British capitalists and newspapers began to stir up sentiments for war with Russia, hoping to avenge their fallen compatriots.
At this time, Russia was in a state of diplomatic isolation due to its focus on the war. Besides limited support from its ally France, Germany was one of the few nations willing to support Russia.
Due to its diplomatic isolation, Russia was in great need of Germany and Austria-Hungary's friendship, which led to increased cooperation between Germany and Russia.
While Australia was exporting large amounts of arms to Russia, Germany signed a trade agreement with Russia, offering loans in exchange for the reduction of tariffs on German industrial products. This resulted in a flood of German goods and capital entering Russia, strengthening the economic ties between the two nations.
Additionally, with Germany's support, Russia and Austria-Hungary reached an agreement to maintain the status quo in the Balkans, which significantly eased tensions between the two.
After the incident with the British ship, Kaiser Wilhelm II called Tsar Nicholas II a few days later, warning that Britain was intending to block the supply of coal to the Russian navy and suggesting that Russia and Germany form a strong anti-British alliance to thwart Britain's designs.
Tsar Nicholas II, understanding the strained relations between Britain and Russia, quickly agreed to the treaty and requested that Kaiser Wilhelm II send the draft for both sides to discuss the formal treaty.
The first article of the draft clearly stated that if either of the two empires were attacked by a major European power, the other would be obligated to use all of its land and naval forces to provide support.
In certain circumstances, Germany and Russia were also supposed to act together to remind France to fulfill its obligations under the Franco-Russian alliance, which included aiding Russia in war.
The first article of the treaty directly tied Russia and its ally France to Germany's war efforts, revealing Germany's obvious objectives.
However, the negotiations soon stalled over the question of whether the treaty needed to be approved by France.
Russia felt that since the draft involved France and it had an alliance with France, the treaty should be submitted to France for approval. Germany, considering the enmity between France and Germany, doubted that France would agree and preferred to avoid notifying France, even if it meant there would be no treaty.
Germany's stance made Russia cautious, as Russia's diplomatic situation was already precarious, and it did not want to lose France, a key ally.
The deadlock was broken by the mention of a new player: Australia.
Surprisingly, Kaiser Wilhelm II did not expect that Australia would change Russia's attitude. His reference to Australia was merely a test of Russia's stance on the Far East.
However, Russia, still harboring resentment from its defeat in the Far East, was already preparing to rebuild its strength and launch another war with Japan in the coming years to reclaim its dominance in the region.
In May 1905, just a month after the end of the Russo-Japanese War, Russia and Germany resumed negotiations on the Russo-German alliance, and the pace of the negotiations quickly accelerated.
The reason for Russia's urgency was that internal problems had begun to surface during this war.
Russia's internal troubles stemmed from an event that started in the 15th century when petitions were established as a way for individuals or groups to express their grievances to the Tsarist government.
This tradition continued into Russian society even at the turn of the 20th century.
In 1904, inspired by the liberal movement, the legal workers' union "St. Petersburg Workers' Council" decided to submit a petition independently, which was completed by the council's leader, Father Georgi Apollonovich Gabon.
In December 1904, four workers from a factory in St. Petersburg who were members of the Workers' Council were dismissed by their factory manager.
This would have been a common occurrence in Russia, but it led to one of the most severe crises Russia had faced in recent years.
The four dismissed workers demanded to be reinstated, but the arrogant factory management not only ignored their requests but also gave a sarcastic response: "Go back to your council and let them support you!"
The Workers' Council appealed, but their appeal was ultimately rejected.
In January 1905, the Workers' Council organized a strike. The next day, the strike spread to other factories, and within three days, more than 10,000 workers had joined.
As factories repeatedly rejected workers' requests, the intensity and scope of the strike grew, eventually affecting other regions of the Russian Empire.
Father Gabon and the council's leadership believed that, instead of going through officials and capitalists, the workers' grievances should be presented directly to the highest authorities, the Ministry of the Interior, and even Tsar Nicholas II himself.
After gaining majority consent, the council decided to use the opportunity of the strike to directly submit the petition to the Tsarist government.
Within days, the petition was drafted and publicly distributed to all sectors of society.
By the time the petition was made public, over 150,000 workers in the capital were participating in the strike, and it was starting to affect other regions as well.
The original intent of the workers' march was to protect their interests, but the highest authorities viewed it as revolutionary unrest. After issuing warnings that had no effect, they resorted to brutal suppression.
The massive casualties from the day of the march angered the St. Petersburg workers, who built barricades in the streets and confronted the military and police.
The crisis was not confined to St. Petersburg. Protests and strikes spread across Russia, deepening the conflict between the Tsarist government and the working class.
Of course, this issue was not the only crisis facing Russia. Before this event, most of Russia's population had supported the Tsar, as he had maintained the image of the benevolent "little father" cherished by the Russian people.
However, this bloody incident turned public opinion against the Tsarist regime, sparking a series of revolutionary events to follow.
(End of Chapter)
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