Holy Roman Empire

Some time ago, the Vienna government continued to launch municipal engineering projects to attract capitalists to invest. In essence, this is also a means of delaying the outbreak of the economic crisis.

The start of these basic engineering projects will naturally consume a part of industrial production capacity, alleviating the crisis of overcapacity.

Taking advantage of this opportunity, the Vienna government also sold many low-profit industries.To put it a bit darker, Franz is also buying time for himself to retreat, but this is also beneficial to the country.

This retreat must be carried out slowly and find enough takers, otherwise, if so many funds are withdrawn from the market and leave at once, won't they collapse immediately?

Uncertain when the economic crisis broke out, Franz began to slowly realize the property in his hands from the beginning of 1856, and it has continued until now.

John Stewart reported: "Your Majesty, the last batch of railway stocks have been sold out, and a total of 180 million Aegis has been cashed out; five cement factories have been sold this month, and a total of 78 Aegis has been cashed out...

It is expected that in the next two months, all the properties we are going to sell will be emptied, and about 6680 million Aegis can be raised. "

Franz nodded. He was still satisfied with John Stewart's work. Since the beginning of 1856, on average, he had cashed out 500 million Aegis from the market every month.

John Stewart deserves a lot of credit for not causing market turmoil.About one-tenth of this money is Franz's personal property, and the rest is the family property.

It is enough to see that the European royal family was still very wealthy in this era, and the accumulation of hundreds of years is no joke.

And these funds are only part of the royal family's assets, and more of them are real estate.Including Vienna is part of the territory directly under the royal family. How could the Habsburg family be poor?

Before Franz took power, the Habsburg family mainly lived on land and real estate income, and naturally there was not much liquidity.

Since the Vienna government implemented the land redemption policy, as the royal family, it is natural to take the lead. Franz released 70 hectares of land in remote areas in one go in exchange for a large amount of cash.

Most of this money has been invested in real estate and manufacturing, and the part that is currently being cashed out is the manufacturing industry. In an environment of overcapacity, the manufacturing industry has become a non-performing asset.

In contrast, real estate is much more stable.Building a house on their own land saves the land acquisition cost.In a big city like Vienna, it is still only renting and not selling.

Anyway, there is no property tax, and there is no pressure to hoard real estate.When the price reaches the limit, and a receiver is found, the property tax is about to be released.

It seems that this has nothing to do with it. The tax directly under the royal family belongs to the royal family. Otherwise, how could Franz raise a private army?

The city defense army, including Vienna, belonged to the royal private army first, and then the Austrian army.Otherwise, Franz could not have won the military power so easily in the first place without causing a backlash.

Reforms belong to reforms, and Franz will not touch aspects that are beneficial to his own rule.If all these rights are given to the government, who knows if the bureaucrats below will one day empty him out?

No matter how powerful a person is, it is impossible to defeat the entire bureaucratic group. The best way is to limit their rights from the beginning.

"From now on, monetary policy will be reduced, loan customers will be strictly evaluated, and stock and bond mortgages will no longer be accepted."

Franz has not forgotten his Royal Bank, which is already one of the largest banks in Austria. Once the economic crisis breaks out, he does not know how many bad debts will appear.

He was raising money to buy the bottom line, not to fill holes in RBC.Now without reducing a single loan, the risk is reduced by one point.

John Stewart explained: "Your Majesty, doing so can easily cause market turmoil and may cause a chain reaction.

At present, our loan review standards have always been the strictest among peers, and the chance of bad debts is not too high.

Since two years ago, we have focused on the development of the colonial loan business, lending to the lucky ones.So far, Royal Bank has successively issued 800 million Aegis loans.

In these loan businesses, most customers repay with gold. In addition to the gold purchased from the colonies, the current gold reserve of the Royal Bank has reached 58 tons, which is enough to deal with any crisis. "

After listening to John Stewart's explanation, Franz suddenly understood why the consortia didn't shrink their money before the economic crisis and cut their losses.

These losses are all necessary. If we shrink money ahead of time, it’s not telling everyone that a crisis is about to erupt—run away.

There will never be a shortage of smart people in this world. Once the news leaks ahead of time, it will not be so easy to retreat.

In the time-travel novel, the protagonist warns in advance before the stock market crashes, in the name of reducing the losses of the people.Franz laughed when he thought about it, who will take over after running away?

If there is no one to take over the order, then it will fall to the bottom, and the wealth that will evaporate in the end will only be more, not less.

In order to confuse the public, there are experts predicting the stock market crash almost every day. After listening too much, everyone will become numb. Who can tell the truth from the false?

Franz thought for a while and said, "Now that you're ready, let's proceed according to your plan. Ship the gold from the colonies back to China as soon as possible. Once the economic crisis breaks out, the world will become less peaceful again."

"Yes, Your Majesty!" replied John Stewart

Chapter 28 Bonds

Chancellor of the Exchequer Carl said happily: "Your Majesty, the 5000 million pounds of bonds we issued in London have been sold out."

It was too smooth, or the British had too much surplus capital.Dominating most of the international trade market, the British have accumulated too much capital.

The domestic market cannot digest it, so naturally it can only be sold overseas.However, overseas markets also have thresholds. Not everyone is qualified to play, and those with insufficient strength can only invest in stocks and bonds.

The construction bonds issued by the Vienna government are high-quality assets no matter what, and are naturally favored by small capitalists and the middle class.

The 5000 million pounds was sold out in less than a week. This speed is completely panic buying. You must know that the annual interest rate of this bond is only 6.5%, which is not too high.

Of course, this is not the final cost of issuing bonds. You have to pay bond handling fees, publicity fees, printing fees, and exchange fees when you get the money.

Franz asked with concern: "What about Paris and China?"

Since it is a bond issue, it is naturally impossible to only target the London financial market. Paris, Vienna and Frankfurt are also the financial centers of Europe. How could Franz ignore it?

Minister of Finance Carl replied: "6.5 million francs have been sold in Paris, and the rest is expected to be sold out within a month; 9480 million Aegis has been sold domestically, and it is expected to be sold out within two months."

(1 pound ≈ 2 aegis ≈ 25 francs ≈ 7.32 grams of gold)

Franz asked in surprise: "How strong is Vienna's financial market?"

To play a full set, since it is necessary to fool the capitalists into the pit, the Vienna government must also have real money in its hands.The capitalists are not fools, they are all masters who do not see the rabbit and do not cast the eagle.

For this reason, the Vienna government issued construction bonds of 3.5 million Aegis to the outside world, and guaranteed that the money would be earmarked and used only for domestic infrastructure construction.

Among them, 1 million Aegis bonds were issued to London, 8000 million Aegis bonds were issued to Paris, and the remaining 1.7 million Aegis bonds were issued in Frankfurt and Vienna.

According to Franz's estimation, the economic crisis broke out before the construction bonds could be absorbed by the carrying capacity of the domestic financial market.

If private funds buy bonds, the funds flowing into the stock market will decrease, and the funds flowing into the real economy will also decrease.

After the outbreak of the economic crisis, everyone's loss can be minimized, and the number of people who jumped off the building should be reduced a lot, so as to preserve vitality as much as possible.

Karl explained: "Your Majesty, Frankfurt has great influence in Central Europe, attracting investors from the Federal Empire of Germany, Switzerland, Belgium and the Kingdom of Prussia, and its bond sales have surpassed that of Vienna."

After contemplating for a moment, Franz suddenly understood.Under normal circumstances, it is impossible for Frankfurt to stand shoulder to shoulder with Vienna, even if it attracts surrounding capital.

However, the capital consortium in Frankfurt has this strength. They can buy the bonds by themselves first, and then sell them to the outside world slowly.

In addition to showing favor to the government, they also meant to show their strength to the Vienna government in order to gain a higher political status.

The meaning was understood by Franz, so he naturally knew that he would reciprocate.Frankly speaking, if Vienna is not the capital, has too many resources, and has gathered a lot of rich people, otherwise it will not be able to compete with Frankfurt at all.

Frankfurt has been the financial center of Germany since modern times.In another time and space, in the 21st century, Frankfurt is the largest financial center in Germany.

Fortunately, Frankfurt is a free city, and it has economic strength, but there is no possibility of making it bigger, otherwise Franz will have a headache.

Franz thought for a while and said, "In the Navy's new shipbuilding plan, we will add another Frankfurt."

"Yes, Your Majesty!" Secretary of the Navy Felcos happily replied

Franz himself opened the mouth, and it is naturally impossible for the increase to be a sailing warship, and now only the ironclad ship deserves everyone's attention.

As a country with land power, the navy's military budget is naturally limited.Even if it has an advantage in this naval technological revolution, the Vienna government has no plan to expand the navy.

The Ministry of the Navy fought repeatedly, and finally got the budget for two ironclad ships. This is not a one-year, but a three-year shipbuilding budget.

One was the Imperial, or "New Holy Roman Empire," and the other was the Vienna.

There is nothing wrong with it, and it is all full of strong political overtones.At this time, the addition of a Frankfurt undoubtedly reflects the importance of Frankfurt in the empire.

This is Franz's affirmation of the goodwill of the Frankfurt capitalists. If other state governments are willing to sell to the central government, he does not mind adding a few more ironclad ships.

To put it bluntly, an ironclad ship costs hundreds of thousands of Aegis, and large quantities are preferred.The cost of the first "Frederick" was 80 Aegis. Now the second batch of improved warships has slightly improved performance, but the cost has actually decreased.

It is mainly the early research and development, testing new technologies, and increasing shipbuilding expenditures.Now that two ironclad ships are being built at one time, the unit price has dropped to 58 Aegis. If three ships are started, the unit price will continue to drop.

The number of states in the new Holy Roman Empire is not large, even if each state names one, it will only increase the cost of two or three million Aegis, which is completely within the acceptable range.

The navy's real money-burning began in the era of dreadnoughts. A battleship worth several million Aegis is the real gold-swallowing beast.

Moreover, the military expenditure is not borne by one state of Austria, and all states must share it in proportion according to their respective fiscal revenues.

Franz said solemnly: "Now that the funds raised have been obtained, the capitalists who won the bid are urged to start construction as soon as possible, and all projects are carried out according to the contract.

The Ministry of Finance and the local government cooperate with each other, and the Anti-Corruption Bureau strictly supervises and absolutely does not allow any violations of regulations and disciplines. "

It is necessary to start construction, otherwise the economic crisis breaks out, and the capitalists who won the bid admit defeat, give up the deposit and leave the market, it will be embarrassing.People still don't say that the Vienna government defrauded everyone of their deposits.

In order to avoid such a dire outcome, Franz had to get everyone started, and among so many projects there were also small ones, which could be completed in a few months.

Once the work is completed, the settlement will be settled. As long as the money is received, no one can say that the Vienna government is cheating on the deposit.

Due to the outbreak of the economic crisis, the capital chain is broken and the large project cannot be completed, and that is the responsibility of the successful bidder himself.If you don't have the strength to pick up projects indiscriminately, you also need to pay a price.

"Yes, Your Majesty!"

……

Chapter 29 Encouraging immigration

Looking forward to the stars and the moon, news of the Indian uprising finally reached Vienna in July, and Franz knew that the British were in trouble.

During this period, 4 British troops and 23 Indian troops controlled the Indian subcontinent.Since the beginning of 1857, there have been reports of mutiny in the Indian Legion, but they were all suppressed by the British.

On May 5, three Indian regiments launched an uprising, occupied the ancient capital of Delhi, and announced the restoration of the Mughal Empire, which caused a shock in India, and the uprising quickly spread to the whole country.

Not to mention, Franz fulfilled his ally obligations and immediately notified the St. Petersburg government of the news.What will happen next, then don't know.

If the Anglo-Austrian negotiations go well, then the Vienna government will be very peaceful and will not do anything in the future; if the negotiations fail, then it is not a bad idea to support the independence movement of the Indian people.

Prime Minister Felix said murderously: "Your Majesty, the time has come.

The war between the British and Persia is still not over, and now that the Indian uprising has broken out, St. Petersburg's ambitions for India may be unbearable.

The London government is too busy to take care of itself. It is necessary for us to pay a friendly state visit to the Ottoman Empire to enhance the friendship between the two sides. "

Friendship, when did the Habsburgs have friendship with the Ottomans?

Looking at the family history, it is a history of blood and tears with the Ottoman Empire, not just an ancestor who wanted to bring the Ottoman Empire down.

In the generation of Franz, the dawn finally came. The Ottoman Empire was driven out of the Balkan Peninsula. The behemoth that once threatened the survival of the Habsburg Dynasty has now become a soft-footed shrimp.

Franz smiled and said, "Then choose a sunny day and pay a state visit to the Sudanese government!"

In view of the long-standing traditional friendship between the two countries, it is an unshirkable sacred responsibility for the heirs of the Habsburg dynasty to attack the Ottoman Empire, and it must be implemented without any discount.

Colonial Secretary Josip Jeracic suggested: "Your Majesty, we should also move on the African continent. Now that the French have accelerated the pace of expansion in the African continent, we will fall behind if we delay."

Interest is always the best catalyst. Only three years ago, with the support of Franz, the Vienna government only passed the national policy of overseas colonization with a slight advantage.

Now, even traditional conservatives, no one opposes overseas colonial activities.

On the surface, the Austrian colonies are still in a state of loss as a whole, but the accounts are not calculated that way.The colonies increased the market for domestic industrial and commercial products, and the gold excavated solved the embarrassment of Austria's lack of gold reserves.

The gold mines excavated in this era are rich ore that are easy to mine. Dozens of tons of gold flow into Austria every year, stabilizing the currency value of Aegis.

It can be said that without the gold in the Gulf of Guinea, the reform of the gold standard system by the Vienna government would not have been so smooth.

In addition, there are fewer unstable elements in the country, and the colony has given careerists room to display, and many people have made a fortune.

Franz thought for a while and said: "Yes, but the Kingdom of Tekrull in Nigeria is ambitious and wants to further build an empire and has launched a so-called jihad. We'd better not rush to join in.

Let the locals fight among themselves first, and then we can sell them some old-fashioned weapons when they are almost done fighting. "

Leaving aside the underground resources, Nigeria is close to the equator, with fertile land and abundant rainfall, suitable for growing tropical crops, such as: peanuts, palms, cocoa, rubber...

This is a treasure trove of land for those keen to start a farm.The area of ​​arable land that can be developed is as high as 6000 million hectares, enough to feed hundreds of millions of people.

At present, it is the domestic nobles who are pushing to move to Nigeria. Many people who lost their land in the Great Revolution want to make up for it overseas.

This is the result of the guidance of the Vienna government. It works from top to bottom, and it is common in any country. In this regard, the Vienna government has done a very good job.

High-level government officials have opened up plantations overseas one after another, which made many people feel that it was profitable and joined this activity one after another.

The royal family was the first to staking land in the colonies of Guinea and the Congo. At present, seven or eight plantations have been planned, including rubber plantations, cotton plantations, coffee plantations, and cocoa plantations... with a total area of ​​more than 150 million hectares.

Of course, this is only a theoretical plan, and it is still unknown when it will be completed.

Up to now, the royal family has developed more than 5000 hectares of land, and a group of loggers are still working hard in the remaining areas.

First, the trees must be cut down, the grass on the ground burned, the water in the depressions drained, and the local poisonous insects wiped out before the farmland can be developed.

In the absence of sufficient labor, forced to use local people as labor, it is difficult to improve the efficiency of this work.

Franz has sent people to bring in labor in East Asia. Farming is also a technical job, especially for land reclamation. The local aborigines are obviously not suitable for this job.

The use of slaves was prohibited in Austria. For the long-term stability of the colony, the colonial government also prohibited the use of slaves, and even labor protection laws were required to be strictly enforced.

Of course, "strict enforcement" also depends on the situation. Of course, immigrants from China are strictly protected. These are precious assets.

For local labor, the supervision is naturally not so strict, and the biggest problem is a fine.Unless someone made a mixed race, they wouldn't go to jail.