Page - 133 - in THE FIRST WORLD WAR - and the End of the Habsburg Monarchy, 1914 – 1918

The ‘Skirmish’ near Temes-Kubin 133 this purpose did not seem too great a sum to him.296 However, Italy also declared its neutrality and did not want to align itself with the Central Powers. In the night from 29 to 30 July, Vienna was certain that there would also be a war with Russia. The Imperial and Royal War Ministry sent the supreme monetary author- ities a notice to that effect.297 Early in the morning, the finance ministers of Austria and Hungary met with the governors of the central bank and the post office savings bank and discussed which financial measures would be necessary in order to maintain payment transactions. Consultations lasted until the afternoon, as Austria and Hungary favoured differing approaches. The discussion was then interrupted in order to await the decisions made during a session of the Joint Council of Ministers that afternoon. Even afterwards, however, the viewpoints of the financial experts continued to diverge. Agreement was only reached on the question of closing the stock exchanges for the next few days. It was still disputed, however, how they should react to the general mo- bilisation. On the same day, 30 July, Moltke had Conrad urgently advised to mobilise immedi- ately against Russia, though it was only a question of the necessary countermeasures to the partial Russian mobilisation. For it was necessary both due to the Triple Alliance as well as for the benefit of the global public for Russia to be regarded as the aggressor. This ‘hanging on’ through the European crisis was, according to Moltke, the last means to ensure the consolidation of Austria-Hungary.298 Simultaneously, Moltke pressed for the largest possible concessions to Italy, as the Chief of the German General Staff sought to activate the Triple Alliance in its entirety. Then perhaps even Great Brit- ain could be kept in check. At the same time, the German Empire mobilised against France. Now it was merely a question of declaring war. But was it really important who officially declared war on whom ? Everyone was mobilising, no-one wanted to fall behind and everyone wanted, if possible, to have completed their deployment a few days before anyone else. When the Joint Council of Ministers discussed the British mediation proposal on 31 July, the mood was that the mediation would be politely but firmly rejected.299 Such an intervention was no longer possible. Above all, and Emperor Franz Joseph had said this explicitly to Berchtold, the deployment against Serbia and the war against this country should be carried out as arranged. The Emperor was once more absent from the session of the Joint Council of Ministers, although he had returned to Vienna from Bad Ischl on 30 July. However, on the same day he had summoned Berchtold and the next day he granted both Tisza and Stürgkh a long audience. On 1 August, it was the turn of the senior military men, Archduke Friedrich, General Conrad and finally once again Minister Berchtold. Here the question of expanding the war was at stake. And it was the Emperor who decided that an offensive should be undertaken both in the south and in the north.300 It was presumably Conrad who had suggested this to him.