Chapter 144: Protecting the Consulates
Bruno entered the headquarters of the German Army's Central Division where he found that for the first time in a while, things seemed rather exciting, with calls being connected and telegrams coming in from all over.
Having not been aware of the declaration of war between the Young Turk rebels and the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire, he was surprised to find that war broke out in the near east several months earlier than it had in his previous life.
On January 12th, 1908, a formal memorandum was drawn up by the Committee of Union and Progress, which was the largest of the Young Turk groups rejecting foreign intervention and nationalist activism. They also called for constitutional government and equality amongst Ottoman citizens.
Copies of this message were sent to the consuls of the Great Powers, and the Sultan himself, where the Young Turks were swift and decisive in their aggressive actions. Raiding Ottoman armories and caches for weapons to use in battle if their demands were not met.
Frankly speaking, there were two ways to treat this act. One was to ignore it and let the Ottomans handle the battle themselves, or two was to send a punitive expeditionary force to put down these rebels, who had essentially insulted the Great Powers.
Considering these rebels had yet to attack the German Consulate, unlike the Boxers in the Far East eight years prior, sending a punitive expedition was deemed to be a bit overkill, and instead methods of dealing with this crisis in the near east was being discussed by the various generals.
Bruno stepped forward after listening in long enough to understand the situation and immediately made his opinion known. Causing all the other generals to silence themselves and heed his words as if they were coming from some divine authority.
"I am forced to agree with Generalfeldmarschall von Mackensen. Sending a punitive expedition at this time without provocation could be taken as an act of unnecessary aggression by the other powers at best, and an outright act of war at worst.
Simply put, we need to defend our assets in the region, dispatch the Seebataillon to protect the Consulate, and issue a travel warning to all of our citizens. The Ottoman Empire, for the foreseeable future, is in a state of potential civil war and it is ill advised to travel there. Also, we should begin evacuation operations for all of our citizens currently within their borders. Our first priority should be the safety and wellbeing of our citizens. Anything else can wait until this objective has been secured. Or is there any disagreement among the rest of you?" Though Bruno had yet to even reach the rank of GeneralOberst, which was technically the third highest rank in the German Army, behind Generaloberst mit dem Rang als Generalfeldmarschall and Generalfeldmarschall.
Despite the fact that Bruno wasn't the highest ranking general in the room, his words were worth their weight in gold. By now, every man in this room had immense respect for the young prodigy, who seemed to understand warfare on a level comparable with history's greatest conquerors.