That there was another route to Berlin, and one which possessed many obvious advantages, was overlooked by most of the strategists. The route in question lies along the banks of the Oder, through Silesia and Saxony. If Russia could crush the military power of Austria in Galicia and drive the remnants of her armies across the Carpathians, either pursuing them to Buda-Pesth and Vienna or confining them to the Hungarian plains, she would be free to advance upon Breslau and Berlin. There are many advantages possessed by this route. In the first place, it would be safe, assuming that Austria were thoroughly broken beforehand. The country is open and well provided with railways, excellent roads, and other means of communication; it contains only one fortress of any strength--Neisse--which could be easily masked, and is generally favourable to a rapid advance. An additional advantage is that Silesia is a busy mining and industrial province, with a population of nearly 6,000,000. The invading army would be preceded by armies of panic-stricken fugitives, who would impede any defensive measures and strike terror in Berlin long before the menace of the invaders became serious. There can be little doubt, in view of (1) that the chief Russian armies are engaged in Galicia and Poland, and (2) that no serious attempt has been made either to follow up General Rennenkampf’s remarkable advance in East Prussia or to retrieve the ground lost as a result of the defeat at Osterode, that an advance on the lines suggested through Galicia and Silesia is the main feature of the Russian strategy. It is the simplest, safest and most effective route by which Germany could be invaded. It is the one route an advance along which, supported by a vigorous offensive from Poland, would have an immediate effect on the war in the west. When once the Russians begin to march on Breslau, it will be only a matter of weeks before they reach Berlin, unless the Germans detach very strong forces from their western army and hurry them across to defend the capital. But first of all, Austria must be smashed, and Galicia and Poland swept clear of the enemy. At the end of the preliminary phase of the campaign, the Russians had already gained a footing in Galicia in the neighbourhood of the River Styr, whilst the Austrians had advanced northwards from Cracow and established themselves in Poland. This Austrian army, after being heavily reinforced, so that it amounted to about 500,000 men, began to march northward towards Warsaw. It was then still further reinforced by a German army which had advanced from Posen, and invaded the Polish province of Kalisch. In Poland, therefore, there was a very considerable army which seriously threatened Lublin and Warsaw, and would require heavy and probably extended operations before it could be forced back. A second Austrian army, smaller than the first, was in Galicia, with Lemberg for its base.