African Entrepreneurship Record-Chapter 742 - 46: Official Declaration of War
The old port of Mogadishu after the bombardment was a scene of devastation, and the commercial ships that were operating here also suffered significant losses.
Alex, who managed to escape back to the port area, luckily survived, but his command ship and another gunboat both suffered severe injuries, likely requiring a major overhaul back at the factory.
Meanwhile, from the "Andres" sunk offshore, only more than twenty survivors watched as the lifeboats returned to Mogadishu, while over a hundred others were missing.
...
Only four minutes after the battle in the Somali seas occurred, the East African navy and the Central Government received news. Although the result of the Somali sea battle was somewhat expected, it nevertheless caused an uproar in East Africa.
Especially within the navy department, Grand Duke Ferdinand was furious, and subsequently, he had no mood to further investigate the losses of the Mogadishu navy. The British fleet was clearly headed for East Africa, and unsurprisingly, they might take advantage of the night to approach the eastern coast of East Africa.
This means that the first battle of this war was initiated by the navy, and next, the East African navy would face a tough fight.
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First Town.
"The British have already initiated an undeclared war, and the damages in Mogadishu are currently being assessed. However, the Mogadishu navy has already announced its scrapping. We will be facing an even more severe situation next. The Ministry of Defense and the General Staff will immediately begin deploying for full-scale war, and East Africa will enter a state of war. From the embassy side, directly deliver the Declaration of War. We must win this war."
With the orders issued, the East African military began officially taking over railways and highway transportation hubs, while the East African munitions factories entered wartime mode to expand production capacity.
Before any major moves could occur from East Africa, in the Allied command in Maputo, Count Roberts also officially issued combat orders.
Britain, Portugal, and the Boer Republic simultaneously declared war against East Africa, and military forces from various countries began gathering on the South African land.
Meanwhile, the eyes of the world were drawn to this "abrupt" war in South Africa.
Originally, South Africa had little international attention, but once the British entered the scene, all eyes were focused on the African continent.
Britain is the world's strongest nation, and every move it makes will be scrutinized. This time, Portugal clearly aims to join Britain in the war against East Africa, making the South African war destined to capture global attention. As for the Boers, their strength is "too weak" to warrant attention from other countries.
Berlin, Paris, Washington, Beiping... various overseas nations are contemplating the reasons behind this war and its scale.
Embassies in First Town, Dar es Salaam, Zanzibar, through telegraphs, are relaying the war news to their home countries in real time.
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Austria-Hungary Empire.
"What is going on with the British, why are they initiating such a war in South Africa?" This is the question Franz was pondering at the time.
As an ally of East Africa, Austria is now in a very awkward position. East Africa silently went to war with Britain, so should they join or not?
Also, why didn't the East Africans previously inform the Austrian government of the relevant information, was this directly dragging Austria-Hungary down?
The Austrian-Hungarian Empire government held a neutral stance regarding the war between East Africa and Britain; although East Africa was weak, it had the advantage of native combat, and it was still quite strong, unlikely to be instantly crushed by Britain.
Indeed, including Franz and the countries led by him, no one believed East Africa would have an advantage in the war, even if they managed to drive back the British and Portuguese allies, they would have to pay a heavy price, therefore the Austrian-Hungarian Empire currently did not want to intervene in the war between the two countries.
However, as an ally, there is still concern; Franz said, "Ask the East African government what's going on? How did they go to war directly with Britain? Such a significant matter wasn't revealed beforehand at all!"
There are many who share Franz's confusion, but most countries, although surprised by this sudden war, even unaware of East Africa's position, believe that anything that can bring Britain and Portugal together must be formidable.
However, everyone still treats this war with a "spectator" attitude because Africa holds a "not important" position in the world map, aside from North Africa and previously divided West Africa, East Africa and South Africa are very unfamiliar to everyone, and anyone who can create trouble for Britain is truly… delightful!
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Berlin.
The newly enthroned Frederick III did not expect that just after ascending the throne, the East Africans would give him such a gift.
Compared to William I, Frederick III was not familiar with East Africa, so he summoned Bismarck to help analyze the cause of the war and discover what could lead Britain and Portugal to unite.
Bismarck: "The East Africans are too extreme, this war is probably planned from the start; Britain and East Africa each have their own agendas, and they aimed from the beginning to establish dominion over the South African region."
Although due to early national regional issues, the name has already been fixed, overall for the African continent, East Africa actually is South Africa; it's in the southern part of the African continent, including the forces engaged in this war, so the war is termed as the South African war. 𝕗𝚛𝚎𝚎𝐰𝗲𝗯𝗻𝚘𝚟𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝕞
And unlike other countries, who are completely clueless about the South African war, Germany immediately guessed the intentions of East Africa and England.
This mainly benefits from Germany's efficient intelligence system, as early as three years ago, Germany detected the British adjustment of military forces towards South Africa.
However, at that time, Germany did not expect the British were preparing for this war, mistakenly believing it was for colonial needs, after all, in terms of colonization, Germany is not proactive, and the intelligence system focuses more on Europe.
Thus, they did not deeply analyze the British military shifts in South Africa. If Germany had thoroughly investigated, they would have certainly found the British military presence in South Africa could support a large-scale war, which clearly cannot be borne by the natives.
As for East Africa, a nation under the Hohenzollern family, Germany holds in high regard; whether win or lose, East Africa will continue to strengthen its ties with Germany in the future.
Bismarck: "East Africa's power is not considered weak; their army is trained according to our army's methods, and they have their own industrial systems. This is likely a key reason why the Heixinggen royal family dares to challenge Britain and Portugal alone."
Before ascending the throne, Frederick III served in the military for years and was not very familiar with East Africa, so he asked: "Can East Africa ensure its production capacity during the war? Moreover, the nation has been established so briefly, the industrial development status might not be very strong, it's very bold to suddenly declare war on a global power like Britain, I'm afraid it won't have a good result."
"That's not something we should be concerned about. We only need to pay attention to the direction of the war; if East Africa withstands the pressure, then it's worth us pulling closer. The positions of Germany and Austria-Hungary are awkward; if there's a powerful overseas ally, it would be beneficial for us in handling European affairs, and East Africa's economic power is not weak; we import a lot of raw materials from East Africa, so it's necessary to lend East Africa a hand during crucial moments in the war, and we can probe Britain's power without directly intervening." Bismarck said.
Bismarck's attitude can be summarized as "wait and see," but Germany must take action; East Africa is an important German nation, but cooperation between the two countries is still not close enough. If Britain can teach East Africa a lesson to understand the importance of "allies," it would save Germany a lot of trouble. Of course, if Britain intends to directly destroy East Africa, Germany cannot stand idly by, and at the "necessary" moment, Bismarck plans to mediate the war.
