Untitled - OUDL Home

The struggle was renewed in the Seven Years' War,but 'the diplomatic revolution of 1756' had changed thealignment of the powers. Bourbon and Habsburg forthe first time became allies against the HohenzoUern whenthey found he had won to his side Great Britain withHanover. Bestuzhev, completely taken by surprise bythis last move, was badly shaken, for he had but justmade an agreement with England directed againstPrussia. He did not budge, however, from his adherenceto Vienna and his fears of Berlin. Nor did most of hisRussian rivals differ fundamentally from him in this,although they strongly disagreed with his conduct ofaffairs and intrigued successfully against him.The confusion of counsels in St Petersburg lastedthroughout the war (1756-62). The empress Elizabeth,a determined enemy of Frederick, was ailing and thoughtlikely to die shortly. The heir-apparent, Peter, duke ofHolstein, was a fanatical admirer of Frederick. Catherine,his wife, ambitious and utterly estranged by his repellentcharacteristics and his follies, yet leaned strongly towardsPrussia. The intrigues of policy and personal rivalrieswere multiplied by veering calculations as to the healthof the empress. A conference of ministers not onlyattempted to co-ordinate and direct strategy from StPetersburg (a very necessary aim), but insisted on issuingdetailed instructions which tied the hands and tore thehair of the four successive commanders-in-chief in thefield, only one of whom possessed even second-ratemilitary abilities. Co-operation with the Austrians wasat best fluctuating, frequently non-existent. The allianceof Russia with France was as nominal as her hostility toGreat Britain, where Pitt refused to give Frederick navalaid in the Baltic or to break off relations with StPetersburg.The senior Russian generals in the main deservedFrederick's whole-hearted contempt for them, but he hadgood cause to rue disparagement of their soldiery. Thedepredations of the Cossacks and irregular cavalry madea terrible and permanent byword of the whole Russianarmy. In fact, however, the regular troops were, almostthroughout, well disciplined and did not live off the393