How long will it take for a superpower like the Ottoman Empire, which spans thousands of miles across Eurasia, to be destroyed?
Many people thought that this would be a long and tortuous process.
But in fact, snap, it’s very fast!
When the news came that the Ottoman Empire was besieged, the internal situation immediately agitated, and all the forces in various places began to prepare for action.
The reason is that although the Ottoman Empire was large, it was very weak in cohesion.
The territorial expansion of the Ottoman Empire relied on force and religion.
Force can be very strong, but it cannot last long. Sooner or later, there will be times when it is beyond its capabilities.
Although religion is very subtle, it cannot replace ethnic and cultural conflicts.
Especially within the areas ruled by the Ottoman Empire, both the Egyptians and the Arabs had extremely long and splendid civilizations.
Although they were conquered by the Ottomans, how could they willingly accept the oppression of the Ottoman Empire?
Even if they have the same religious beliefs, they are still oppressed when they deserve it.
To explain in a Chinese sentence, you can understand why these ethnic groups hate the Ottomans so much.
[Why do you deserve the surname Zhao? 】
Although everyone believes in Allah, there are some differences.
Therefore, various ethnic groups that have suffered from oppression are always looking for opportunities for independence.
For thousands of years, they have launched rebellions again and again. Although they all ended in failure, they never stopped.
This time the Ottoman Empire was collectively besieged by Eastern and Western countries, and these people immediately saw an opportunity.
Commander of the Western Fleet Zhao Shenkuan received visitors from afar in Djibouti.
There are two waves of guests.
A wave came from Egypt, the leader was Ahmed Saul;
Another wave came from the Arabian Peninsula, led by Khalid Aziz.
"Egypt needs the empire's help to get rid of the evil Turks. We are willing to establish the most friendly relations with the empire, and we are also willing to contribute people and efforts to build the canal."
Ahmed gave the conditions.
In any case, the Suez Canal is on Egyptian territory. To accomplish this, Egypt's help was necessary.
"The empire sympathizes with the suffering of the Egyptians. If it can help you, the empire will be happy. But you also know that many countries and interests are involved in the canal. We must be cautious, and we hope that you can show your best sincerity."
Ahmed couldn’t agree more.
The most urgent thing for the Egyptians was to get rid of the rule of the Ottoman Empire. As for the others, they were all secondary contradictions.
Although they can see the huge benefits of the Suez Canal, they also understand that in the face of so many powerful forces, Egypt does not have much choice.
Otherwise, Egypt may become the next Ottoman Empire.
Finally, after negotiations, the two parties agreed on a term.
The empire and its allies would help Egypt seek independence, provide money and weapons, and help Egypt train its army.
The benefits of Egypt's transfer include: the area around the Suez Canal will become a complete neutral zone. A joint governing body was formed by the Empire, the Allies, and Egypt.
This governing body is responsible only to the allies and is outside Egypt's political and legal provisions.
Allied countries will station troops in the canal zone to ensure the safe movement of the canal.
Egypt was responsible for organizing large numbers of workers for the construction of the canal, paid for by the Allies;
Egypt holds a 15% interest in the canal and is one of its shareholders.
The terms were agreed upon, and Zhao Shenkuan immediately reported them and notified European countries for review.
After all, this matter requires the unanimous consent of all countries.
But it's not a big problem.
Even a fool understands that building the Suez Canal is inseparable from the local snake of Egypt.
Aziz's purpose was the same as that of the Egyptians, and he also hoped that the empire could help the Arabs become independent.
Zhao Shenkuan took the lead in having preliminary discussions between Aziz and representatives of the Safavid dynasty.
For example, the Arabs need to recognize the Safavid dynasty's ownership of the Mesopotamia. This is the key to the Arabs being able to join the allies.
Faced with this condition, although the Arabs were very unhappy, they had no choice but to hold their noses and admit it in order to seek independence.
The Safavid dynasty got what they wanted and gave the green light to Arab Rao to join.
Then came the chat between the empire and the Arabs
The empire would support the Arabs with money and weapons, and would also help the Arabs train their armies.
In return, the empire claimed land around the mouth of the Persian Gulf.
This was strongly requested by Zuo Mengeng, and the people below did so even though they didn't know why.
In their view, Zuo Mengeng's purpose is to control the Strait of Hormuz, an important passage into and out of the Middle East.
Only Zuo Mengeng woke up laughing from his dream.
Controlling this place is tantamount to blocking the lifeblood of future oil transportation in the Middle East.
From now on, all countries in the world will have to look at the empire's face, otherwise the price of oil will rise and fall at the whim of the empire.
At this point, the number of allies expanded again.
In addition, in North Africa, rebellions occurred in places occupied by the Ottoman Empire such as Algeria, Libya, and Tunisia.
The Ottoman Empire was in dire straits, but was unable to deal with it.
In Europe, the Allied forces had begun to attack the Ottoman Empire.
The Habsburg family, with the cooperation of local forces in Hungary, suddenly launched an attack.
The Ottoman Empire failed to respond in time, suffered a major defeat, and had to retreat to the Balkans.
But this suddenly became a chain reaction.
Those peoples in the Balkans who were closer to Europe and suffered from Islam quickly mobilized and harassed the Ottoman army to the extreme.
This seriously affected the Ottoman army's preparations for war, and they had to retreat in large strides in an attempt to shorten their logistical supply lines.
But the Southern Route Army also invaded the Balkans from the Apennine Peninsula at this time, and reached Sarajevo in just over half a month.
Facing the aggressiveness of the European coalition forces, the Ottomans were powerless.
Because the ocean fleet is also dispatched.
The entire Mediterranean is within the radiation range of the ocean-going fleet, so it can naturally provide good support to the European coalition forces.
When the ocean-going fleet suddenly attacked Athens, the Ottomans finally felt like a thorn in their backs.
However, their fleet had already been completely destroyed by the Imperial Navy, and their artillery and long-range weapons were unable to compete with the Imperial army. They could only watch as Athens was beaten to pieces.
The Ottoman Empire's rule in Greece also began to face a crisis.
The Greeks were encouraged and also began to revolt.
Suddenly, the huge Ottoman Empire was full of holes, and it was even impossible to counter the rebellion internally.
While the Ottoman rulers were struggling, the IDF and the Safavid dynasty also began their offensive from the east.
The smoke of war in the direction of the Caucasus was equivalent to sounding the clarion call for the disintegration of the Ottoman Empire.
