I Became A Hidden Powerhouse Of The British Empire [EN]: Chapter 508

< Sunset (3) >

Russia’s downfall was dismissing the protesters as mere rioters.

In a Europe where communism had become a laughingstock, they couldn’t imagine anyone advocating for a communist revolution, so what was there to fear?

In fact, even a glance at the French Revolution would easily show that communism wasn’t the only thing capable of overthrowing a government.

However, for the rapidly developing European powers, the French Revolution was a distant memory, and they were heavily intoxicated by the capitalist high of having crushed communism.

If Alexander II had recognized the gravity of the situation, things might have turned out differently, but with everyone around him unanimously turning a blind eye and deaf ear, there was no way to respond properly.

“I hear the workers’ strikes are quite serious. What measures are being taken?”

“Your Majesty, there’s no need to worry. Workers are always a discontented bunch. Just crack down on them, and they’ll shrink back as if nothing happened.”

“I heard over 100,000 people poured into the streets last time…”

“100,000? According to our precise calculations, it was 10,000. They inflated that number tenfold, and now they’re inflating it thirtyfold, claiming it’s 300,000. They’re exaggerating to make their power seem greater.”

With the nobles all saying the same thing, what reason did Alexander II have to doubt?

“So, what are their demands?”

“In short, they want to be treated like the workers in the British Empire. It’s an absurd demand.”

“…Then, we could compromise and offer one day off a week…”

“Your Majesty! With all due respect, if you give in to these underlings, they’ll only keep climbing higher. There’s an old saying that you should never compromise with those who resort to threats. Once they think their methods work, they’ll keep demanding the same things.”

That certainly made sense.

If they strike and get their working hours reduced, they’ll think, ‘Hey, it worked!’

Once that perception takes root, wouldn’t they keep doing the same thing in the future?

“If it’s only about 10,000 people, it doesn’t seem too serious.”

“That’s right. Moreover, we received word from the London embassy that the British Empire has no intention of interfering in this matter and considers it natural for us to exercise our rights freely.”

The reason for checking with the British Empire wasn’t because they were genuinely worried about British intervention in labor issues.

What was the magic weapon they were wielding to crush the labor union strikes?

It was branding them as ‘British Empire spies.’

They were going around selling the British Empire’s name to crush the labor unions, which could later give the British Empire a reason to find fault.

From the start, the British Empire was just pretending to care about the workers to maintain their public image; they weren’t genuinely committed to pro-labor policies.

Most politicians were lining their pockets with money from capitalists, so why would they care about the workers?

Alexander II roughly finished his calculations and once again issued a stern imperial decree.

“We cannot allow the rioters to believe they have negotiating power. Use force to suppress them, even if it means deploying troops.”

“Yes! We will swiftly suppress them and take measures to ensure the economy returns to normal!”

With Alexander II’s orders given, there was no need to show any leniency.

With government officials, the nobles influencing them, and the capitalists faithfully paying them off all united, this trend would never change.

“Minister, three days should be enough to disperse the rioters, right?”

“If we’re just arresting and dispersing them as we are now… three days won’t be enough.”

“Honestly, Minister, why are you being so soft? Didn’t His Majesty say that we can’t let them think they can negotiate with the state?”

“Then what do you suggest we do?”

“Suppress them, suppress them. How long has it been since the factories were running properly? How much cumulative loss are we incurring each day? Considering the damage they’ve inflicted on the national economy, we could execute them summarily.”

Even the nobles and key government officials weren’t entirely optimistic about the situation.

If this dragged on, even if they kept sending false reports to the Emperor, he would eventually find out.

Moreover, the scale of the rioters was continuously growing to an alarming extent, and if things continued this way, the situation might truly become uncontrollable.

Then, they would inevitably have to concede to their demands, and if things went wrong, all the corruption that had been accumulating might be exposed.

Russia had to keep going as it was.

“First, order them to disperse and stop the riots, and if they don’t listen, just order them to fire. Just a burst from a machine gun should scare them all away.”

“…Even so, ordering machine guns to be fired at citizens…”

“We’re not telling them to kill everyone, just firing once will make the rest run away, I’m telling you! Just close your eyes and issue the order! That’s the only way we survive.”

People are inherently self-preserving creatures, so anyone would be intimidated by machine guns firing in front of them.

Of course, that’s how people generally react.

However, the Russian leadership overlooked the fact that the soldiers receiving those orders were also human beings.

“…Excuse me? Fire?”

“…Yes. The order has been given.”

“There are so many people in the city right now. Are you saying we should kill them all?”

“We’re not telling you to kill everyone… just to execute the leaders as an example.”

“Isn’t that just a massacre to make an example of them!”

Soldiers don’t hesitate to shoot at the enemy, but turning their guns on citizens is a different story.

Until now, they had used the pretext that British Empire spies were lurking everywhere to undermine the country.

However, soldiers also have brains and can’t help but think something is wrong.

It seemed like all the workers in the city had come out.

Are they all British Empire spies?

If those hundreds of thousands of people are all British Empire spies, then Russia is already doomed, isn’t it?

“The textile factory union is all women. Ordering machine guns to be fired at women…”

“My wife works at the textile factory…”

“Suka,”

“Who doesn’t know that? Haa… No, this isn’t right. I can’t follow this order!”

“We’ll follow you, Captain!”

As soldiers, they had to follow orders, but that was only when the orders were reasonable.

March 14, 1874.

The guard unit, which had been ordered to suppress the protesters, refused the order to deploy, murdered the command staff, and declared their intention to join the protesters.

Subsequently, the engineering corps and even the elite guards infantry, the core of the defense, joined the rebellion, or rather, the revolution.

“The Emperor has ordered the massacre of citizens!”

“A country that kills its own people is not a country! I refuse to be part of Russia!”

“Death to Russia!”

March 15, 1874.

All the courthouses in the city were burned down, and the St. Petersburg and Moscow regiments joined the revolution.

A total of 57,000 troops sided with the citizens, and even the units formed to suppress the rebellion were rapidly losing control.

Alexander II, finally realizing the gravity of the situation, promised to uphold the constitution and dissolve and reorganize all government organizations, but it was all in vain.

“Death to Russia!”

Now, the people’s goal was no longer the abdication of the Emperor.

Even if the Emperor stepped down and a new Emperor ascended the throne, the country of Russia would remain the same.

The state system was nothing more than a system for exploiting and oppressing the people.

In this situation, where Mikhail Bakunin’s ideas were winning victory after victory, the elated citizens called for the complete dismantling of the state.

Breaking free from the shackles of centralized power and creating an ideal political system based on consensus rather than a top-down command structure.

A society of mutual aid and solidarity, rather than exploitation and oppression.

The citizens and soldiers, exhausted from long years of tyranny, eventually occupied the Imperial Palace and brutally murdered the capitalists and nobles who had caused this situation.

Alexander II survived but could not avoid abdication, and on March 20th.

Less than a week after the start of the full-scale armed protests, black flags were flying all over Russia.

It was a historic moment when the world’s first anarchist revolution succeeded, and Tsarist Russia disappeared into the annals of history.

* * *

“…Russia is collapsing?”

“What nonsense. Why would Russia collapse?”

“Did Alexander II suddenly die or something? Huh? Not that, but it collapsed?”

“What nonsense… What? It really collapsed?”

The British Empire, France, Prussia, and even the Ottoman Turks, who had been at odds with Russia for a long time.

They were all stunned for a moment by the news that had suddenly arrived via telegram.

Everyone was surprised when the communist revolution broke out in the South before, but the collapse of Russia was on a different level of shock.

In fact, how could the South, which barely had the semblance of a state, be compared to the collapse of a great empire that had once stood at the pinnacle of the world alongside the British Empire?

Moreover, the fact that anarchists were at the center of it all sent shivers down the spines of the rulers of each country.

“…What if those anarchists cross over to our side?”

“After communism, now it’s anarchism… How is it that those bastards keep becoming more extreme?”

“Shouldn’t we sweep away the rioters and re-establish the Romanov dynasty, even now?”

Even if they didn’t like Russia, it was a fully recognized sovereign state in the international community.

How could they remain calm when such a country suddenly became a playground for anarchists?

All the parliaments of Europe simultaneously convened their members, and despite the sudden summons, no one complained and rushed out to put their heads together and discuss.

However, even in the midst of this, the British Imperial Family surprisingly showed no particular movement.

“It’s surprising, but there’s no need to make such a fuss.”

“Your Majesty, a great empire has collapsed like that in less than a week, and if that’s not something to fuss about… wouldn’t it be a disaster if those revolutionaries spread throughout Europe?”

“They won’t spread. Absolutely not.”

“…Yes? Why?”

“Because Bakunin is someone who has actually tasted power in the South.”

It was a meaningful statement, but except for a very few people, no one knew what Killian meant.

However.

“…Damn it, what do we do now?”

As he said, Mikhail Bakunin, the revolutionary of the century who had achieved this great feat, couldn’t smile at all, even as everyone was going crazy with the joy of the revolution.

“…I can’t see a solution. Even if we manage the public order with the militia… what about the economy and diplomacy?”

In the past, when he was active as an anarchist, Bakunin had presented the process of rebuilding society after a revolution based on anarchism.

However, he was now not just a simple revolutionary or theorist, but an experienced person who had actually participated in national management.

That’s why he knew so well how complex society was becoming.

His old arguments might have been valid in an 18th-century state, but it was difficult to establish them in today’s highly complex society.

“Worker collectives and cooperatives manage production facilities… but if there’s no central management, there will be serious problems with efficiency. And who will do research and development?”

To avoid losing competitiveness in the international market, they had to develop heavy industry, but he didn’t have the confidence to develop it based on the ideas he had advocated in the past.

It wasn’t just the economy that was a problem; diplomacy was just as hopeless.

Even if other countries didn’t like them, there was a high possibility that they would insist that Russia, without a central government, would not be protected by international law.

But if they created a foreign ministry to respond to this, wouldn’t that itself be a remnant of the central government?

No matter how much he racked his brains and worried, he couldn’t see a clear breakthrough.

It was so difficult to harmonize ideals with reality.

Whether it was a misfortune or a blessing, Bakunin knew a very good example of how to solve this situation.

Someone he criticized more than anyone else, but on the other hand, someone he wanted to emulate.

A compromiser who tried to harmonize ideals with reality but ended up painting over all ideals with reality.

“…Yes. I need to lay the foundation of the country first and then think about it.”

Bakunin finally felt like he could understand why Engels had become that way.