The Anti-Comintern Pact
The enemy and the ally.
On this day, as the Anti-Comintern Pact was being signed in Vienna between the three empires of Austria, Russia, and the others, Austria too received word of the agreement through the Russian ambassador.
In this world, Karl Renner—who in the original history would become the Federal Chancellor of Austria—had instead taken the position of Prime Minister of the Austrian Empire and was managing state affairs. He sought out the Kaiser, who had recently seized power with the help of Gajda’s army, to discuss the topic of the Anti-Comintern Pact.
“Russia has invited us to join the Anti-Comintern Pact?”
“Yes. For the first phase, it appears they have approached Poland and East Prussia as well.”
“Then we must accept it, of course. Don’t you agree, Commander Gajda?”
“Indeed, Your Majesty. In any case, that Germany will inevitably attempt to invade Austria. We must form alliances. While the Anti-Comintern Pact is formally limited to containing the Reds and is not a full military alliance, for us—surrounded on all sides by communists—it is no different from the old Three Emperors’ League.”
The Three Emperors’ League. Hearing it put that way, it did sound rather fitting. It was the very policy Otto von Bismarck of the German Empire had pursued as part of his strategy to isolate France. Now, it had been reborn through the Anti-Comintern Pact, championed by the Tsarina of the Russian United States after her journey to Poland.
“I see. Well, things are a bit different now, but with the Tsarina of the Russian United States and the Kaiser of East Prussia standing together, it makes sense.”
Of course, this new Three Emperors’ League was formed to isolate the communist-controlled German heartland, and Poland carried far more weight in it than East Prussia.
“Your Majesty.”
“Commander Gajda. You have something to say?”
“I was thinking it might be wise to support a man named Adolf Hitler from the National Liberal Austrian Workers’ Party.”
“Ah, the fellow who’s become quite famous lately as an anti-communist.”
Even Karl I had heard of Adolf Hitler. An Austrian who had fought in the German army during the war, and when Germany briefly became Britain’s puppet, he volunteered for the Russian side. There, he accomplished the feat of shooting Stalin—a major communist figure and close aide to Lenin—right in the groin. The story had made Hitler famous even within Russia. In Austria, he was the one loudly calling for retaliation against Serbia, denouncing the secretaries-general of Italy and Germany, and tirelessly spreading anti-communist propaganda.
“Yes. Hitler’s speeches are so powerful that the German communists dare not extend their influence into Austria.”
“I heard that a fellow named Tito is doing something similar in Serbia. They would make natural counterparts.”
“It is said that the man called Mussolini in Italy has even issued an official statement criticizing Hitler directly.”
Karl I fell into brief contemplation. Sitting on the Kaiser’s throne had sharpened his instincts somewhat. Thanks to Gajda, Austria’s military strength had been greatly reinforced. Since they had already committed to an anti-communist line, he wanted to preserve this empire, which was only barely holding together with Britain’s help.
At a glance, it was clear that Gajda was recommending this Hitler. Since the man had distinguished himself fighting communists in Russia, perhaps his words could be trusted.
“You said he received the Tsarina’s favor?”
“It is true that while in Russia, the Tsarina was deeply impressed by Hitler’s urban planning. I understand that Moscow itself is currently being rebuilt almost entirely according to Hitler’s designs.”
Gajda nearly laughed at his own words but held it in. Favor? What favor? If Anastasia heard that, she would be shocked. Still, he had to phrase it this way so the Kaiser would pay closer attention to Hitler. After all, if the man was said to enjoy the favor of the now-famous Tsarina, the Kaiser could hardly ignore him. The Tsarina would probably forgive this small exaggeration.
Karl I began to take an interest in Hitler. Indeed, the anti-communist speeches Hitler had given were already somewhat familiar to him. An anti-communist who had also earned the favor of the Tsarina of Russia—currently Austria’s ally—would surely work properly for Austria’s benefit.
“I think I would like to meet this man called Hitler.”
At last, Hitler had caught the Kaiser’s eye.
Around the time Austria was viewing the Anti-Comintern Pact favorably, Hungary too received an invitation to join. In the original history, Hungary had seen Kun Bela establish the communist Hungarian Soviet Republic with Soviet support. Here, that was out of the question. Although Kun Bela’s communist revolution had occurred, it was brutally crushed by the forces of Miklos Horthy, the Regent of the Kingdom of Hungary, who had received Romanian backing.
At first glance, aside from the fact that the Hungarian Soviet Republic had never been established, Horthy’s path seemed unchanged. As Regent of a kingdom without a king, Miklos Horthy pondered Anastasia’s proposal for a moment.
“Should we join the Anti-Comintern Pact?”
“From our perspective, it is not a bad offer.”
“Didn’t we nearly fall to a Red regime ourselves? There are even rumors that the underground communists are currently receiving support from the German Communist Party.”
Horthy’s close aides strongly urged him to join the pact, and Horthy himself saw no particular harm in the Anti-Comintern Pact itself.
“Yes. It is not bad. However—”
The problem was that the Austrian Empire was part of it. The Entente powers had no desire to see the revival of Austria-Hungary. The very condition for maintaining the Austrian Empire had been the dissolution of the dual monarchy. Horthy, who had once been the naval commander of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, had returned to Hungary and reached his current position.
Joining the Anti-Comintern Pact alongside Austria, with whom he had once stood shoulder to shoulder, felt somewhat uncomfortable. He pondered for a moment, but with rumors that Yugoslavia was about to turn communist, there weren’t many other options. Moreover, he disliked the Yugoslavs who had declared they would declare war if Karl I were placed on the Hungarian throne to revive the dual empire. On top of that, Italy was loudly calling for revolution in Hungary.
“I will go to Moscow. Arrange a date with the Tsarina.”
Ferdinand I, King of Romania. The king who had greatly expanded Romanian territory was also presented with Anastasia’s proposal for the Anti-Comintern Pact. The agreement was filled with all sorts of flowery language, but when summarized, its content was extremely simple: unite solely to crush the Reds. In the process, the signatory nations would guarantee one another’s independence. There was no reason to hesitate. The fact that the pact offered recognition of Transylvania, Bukovina, and Bessarabia as Romanian territory was more than enough. Relations with neighboring countries were not bad on the surface, either. Romania had even supported Horthy’s Hungarian army to prevent the emergence of a communist regime in Hungary.
‘A pact to oppose communism.’
That part was slightly concerning, but since both Austria and Hungary were under pressure from the German Communist Party, they were unlikely to treat Romania as an enemy. If one was already suffering from family troubles, at least diplomacy should be handled well. Once this pact was signed, Romania would enjoy peace until that communist Germany collapsed.
While Ferdinand I of Romania was dreaming of peace for his country, Boris III of Bulgaria—who had established an absolute monarchy the previous year—was also dreaming his own dream.
“Serbia. Perhaps it is worth taking a shot at them?”
Recently, it was said that the Reds were desperately trying to seize power in Yugoslavia, and Russia had lodged a protest over it. At a glance, it was clear that relations between Russia and Serbia had weakened. After all, from the Tsarina’s perspective, how could she accept the very people who had murdered her parents and siblings taking control of the Serbian government? If Yugoslavia turned communist like this, the Tsarina—who had proclaimed the Anti-Comintern Pact—would surely support Bulgaria.
And so, the nations invited to the Anti-Comintern Pact were each swelling with their own ambitions.
As the Anti-Comintern Pact was announced, the Reds naturally reacted. In particular, General Secretary Karl Liebknecht, as the leader of the communist forces, issued a grand statement to the international community.
The Anti-Comintern Pact is an act aimed at the German Free Socialist Republic and the Italian Socialist Republic. We will not sit idly by.
Oh. How. Ter. Ri. Fy. Ing.
If they heard that Austria, Hungary, Romania, and Bulgaria were all joining the Anti-Comintern Pact, what kind of article would they write next? Germany was one thing—those were variables I didn’t know much about. But the fact that this Germany had dragged the Italian Socialist Republic along with the slogan “Let’s go together” made me chuckle. The secretary-general of that Italian Socialist Republic was Benito Mussolini, after all.
If it had been someone else, I might have thought, Well, Italy’s a bit of a mystery to me. But Benito Mussolini? How could I not laugh?
I wondered if this guy would still target Ethiopia like he had in the original history.
“You look pleased, Your Majesty.”
Minister of Internal Affairs Boris Savinkov was carefully watching my expression. Of course I was pleased. It was obvious these people would be the first to start a war. I had tried to imagine a future where they focused on domestic affairs and patiently endured without fighting, but seeing this, it was clear they would eventually launch a war for the sake of world revolution.
“Ah, they’re already showing open hostility, aren’t they? It really seems like they’ll be the ones to start the war first.”
These people who spouted nonsense about imperialism and whatever else would surely use the same old justification: “To liberate the Austrian workers suffering under the Kaiser’s tyranny.” Using that as an excuse, they could then try to spark a revolution in Poland as well. They might poke at us in exactly that way.
“Now that you mention it, that might actually line up perfectly.”
“What do you mean, Minister of Internal Affairs?”
Boris Savinkov muttered with a serious expression.
“One of the pledges Benito Mussolini of Italy has publicly declared is to take revenge on Abyssinia.”
Abyssinia. The name Ethiopia used before its current designation. Until 1931, the country was officially called Abyssinia. Wow, how is it exactly the same? But can a communist nation really do something like that?
“Is that true?”
“Yes. Of course, he framed the revenge as a revolution, but the mere fact that he specifically mentioned Abyssinia gives us the answer, doesn’t it?”
Well, no. They would probably come up with some plausible justification when the time came for war. Something like, “We shall liberate the Ethiopians oppressed by their emperor!” In any case, they would surely invade Ethiopia one way or another.
Wait. Couldn’t we interfere with that?
It was still quite far off, but perhaps before the Italo-Ethiopian War broke out, we could supply Ethiopia with plenty of new weapons and let them fight. That seemed like a rather good idea. Making it impossible for them to even consider war with us was one option, but obstructing them as much as possible was another excellent approach.
“How would you all view the idea of sending our military advisors to Abyssinia? What do the Foreign Ministry and the military think?”
Since I was just the face of the empire, I hoped they would speak freely without hesitation.
“To an African nation?”
“Hmm. Specifically Abyssinia?”
Oh, these people. They shouldn’t underestimate Ethiopia. After all, Ethiopia had actually defeated Italy in the First Italo-Ethiopian War. Of course, unlike the first war, the second one saw Italy commit its full strength, and with the technological gap, Ethiopia had been at a severe disadvantage. Still, if we could at least give them proper weapons…
In the original history, foreign advisors had told them to wage guerrilla warfare, but they had insisted on frontal clashes and suffered heavy losses. If we supported them with weapons, perhaps that could be mitigated to some degree. Even if they lost, we should make sure Italy took as much damage as possible.
“Ethiopia is not merely a Black nation. It is a country with a long and venerable history.”
Ethiopia, a Christian nation since ancient times, was not simply dismissed as a Black country; it was one that received a certain level of respect. There had even been claims that it was the successor to Rome. Of course, calling them true descendants of Rome was a bit of a stretch. In any case, if Italy took some losses there, what would happen? Wouldn’t it weaken the strength of the communist Axis somewhat?
As for Japan, they hadn’t really fought on the European front in the first place, so we could treat them as nonexistent for now. If we wanted to stab Japan in the back later, we needed to minimize the damage in Europe.
“Since the war is going to break out anyway, it would be best to sap their strength in advance. It seems wise to make contact with Abyssinia.”
“Abyssinia, huh. Can tanks even operate there?”
“It should be possible, right?”
Probably. Tanks should be able to run there. After all, tanks had been deployed during the Second Italo-Ethiopian War. The terrain there must allow for some tank movement.
Yes, that was true, but there was something I had been curious about for a little while now. I was currently attending the Duma to play my part as the ceremonial face of the empire, but the person who had just asked if tanks could run there sounded suspiciously like an American.
“By the way… um, why exactly are you still here?”
“Well, I thought it would be better to remain here and properly study this mobile warfare doctrine! Hahaha!”
Right. This Patton fellow. Why hadn’t he left yet and was still hanging around here? Good grief.