Holy Roman Empire

While expanding in Europe, the French also stepped up their expansion on the African continent, such as invading Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia and other regions.

At the end of 1859, Spain, unwilling to decline, sent [-] troops to invade Morocco, captured Tuan and approached Tangier. Under the mediation of the British, the two countries signed the Treaty of Tetouan.

In contrast, Austria has behaved quite peacefully this year. Of course, the colonies have expanded a bit, but they are advancing normally and have not engaged in large-scale military operations.

The biggest move is probably to frantically send immigrants to various countries in the Americas.

It is worth mentioning that Franz held three state funerals during the year, two of which were of the highest standard.

First Marshal Radesky died, then Metternich died again, and then Marshal Julius followed to see God.

Fortunately, Marshal Radesky said that he was highly respected, and no one objected to his state funeral.

Metternich became a stain in his political career because of the Vienna Rebellion in 1848, and he offended many people for so many years in power.

When he was alive, these people didn't dare to make trouble, but after his death, many people jumped out.Find out a bunch of reasons, think he is not worthy of the highest standard of state funeral.

Undoubtedly, this small disturbance would not affect Franz's resolution, and strongly suppressed the voice of opposition.

No matter how the government promotes it, Marshal Julius' reputation as a butcher cannot be washed away. When suppressing the rebellion, he killed all the rebels and offended more people.

After the news of the state funeral was announced, there were demonstrations and protests.There is no doubt that these people got the concept wrong and were finally thrown into prison for reflection.

Give Marshal Julius high-standard treatment, this is what Franz did for everyone to see.The purpose is to tell everyone that as long as they do things for him, even if they are notorious, he, the emperor, will still protect them.

In this context, the idiot who jumps out to make troubles will naturally be unlucky.

Illegal connection, gathering crowds to make trouble, disrupting public order, endangering public safety...

The sum of these series of crimes is enough to reflect in prison for more than ten years.This is almost the same as no period. With the current conditions, more than [-]% of the people will not survive ten years in prison.

Those who join in the fun will also be criticized and educated, fined, and sentenced if the circumstances are serious.

Those who accept other people's money and property to participate in the parade will face high fines and more than one year in prison.

That's right, parades are also beneficial transactions.Many parades, because they can't attract enough people to participate, the organizers will hire ordinary people to participate.

Franz severely cracked down on this kind of behavior.

It is directly stipulated in the law that a fine of one thousand times the illegal profit will be imposed, and depending on the severity of the case, they will be put into labor reform for more than one year.

The organization or individual who pays and hires people multiplies this basis by ten.

In order to combat the consortium's manipulation of politics, Franz is also worried, and targeted laws are added from time to time.

Now is the period of severe crackdown, criminals who are not serious will basically be exiled.All felons who have been convicted for more than three years will be sent to the road construction army to serve their sentences.

During the crackdown period, the punishment was so severe.It can only be considered unlucky for you if you catch up. Who told you to do something at this time?

Although the constitution has not yet been released, everyone already knows that organizations and people with any criminal records are deprived of the right to participate.

When attacking the enemy, Franz was not soft at all.In this ever-changing era, if strict order is not established, Franz very much doubts whether Austria can withstand the impact.

……

The maid Jenny said softly: "Your Majesty, the arsenal has sent another machine gun sample, please have a look."

Franz said calmly, "Okay, let's arrange a gun test tomorrow."

Machine guns have already appeared. In 1851, Belgian engineer Gatling designed the world's first machine gun. Unfortunately, the actual combat value of this machine gun is too low.

The advent of the Gatling machine gun immediately attracted the attention of Franz, who ordered the arsenal to develop and improve it.

Before and after, it has been updated for four or five generations.The designers had a big brain hole and came up with more than 30 machine guns with different shapes.

However, with so many machine guns, none of them could satisfy Franz.It's not that he is demanding, it's that these guns are too bad.

How to use a machine gun that jams when moving?Who can handle a machine gun weighing [-] tons?Who can afford a machine gun that costs tens of thousands of Aegis?

In short, none of the high quality and low price that Franz imagined could be achieved.These machine guns are barely used to defend the stronghold, because the corners are not enough, they can only fire in one direction.

This is the case with the research and development of new technologies. There is no reference point, and progress is all based on groping.The Maxim machine gun that Franz wants is currently not even visible.

The Gatling machine gun has almost been modified. It was tested in actual combat in African colonies and barely met the actual combat requirements.

It is not installed in the army. The main reason is that the armies of various countries are not equipped with machine guns, and now it is a peaceful age and there is no rush.

Franz still wants to wait and see if there is a machine gun with better performance.You must know that the lightest machine gun now weighs several hundred kilograms, and it needs to be pulled by a cart.

The cost of refitting the army is very high. Many countries have backward weapons and equipment.

In this era, weapons and equipment are updated very quickly. The new weapons that have just been replaced have fallen behind in a few years.

If you're unlucky, maybe just after the outfit change is completed, more advanced equipment will come out again.

What should I do?

If you don't change your clothes, you will fall behind, and if you change your clothes again, the finances will not be able to bear it.

Besides, even if it is a change of equipment, who can guarantee that more advanced weapons will not appear again?

In this case, everyone's judgment will be tested.

Chapter 60 The new three-legged strategy

Time flew by, and it entered 1860 in a flash.The first major event at the beginning of the year was that Nicholas I went to see God.

If it happened in other European countries, this would be a small problem, wouldn't it be a change of emperor, and life would go on as usual.

What happened in Tsarist Russia was different. The change of the Tsar also meant that the foreign policy of the Russians was about to change.

As the European hegemon, the foreign policy changes of the tsarist government will definitely affect the international situation, and the Vienna government must take appropriate measures.

Foreign Minister Weisenberg analyzed: "According to the information we have collected, Alexander II's character is not as strong as that of Nicholas the Great, and he is better at the art of compromise.

Alexander II's political stance was different from that of Nicholas the Great. He advocated more thorough social reforms and opposed blind external expansion.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs judged that Alexander II might compromise with the British, stop supporting Indian rebels, and ease relations with the British.

Without the support of the Russians, the Indians cannot stop the British, and it will not be long before the rebellion will be suppressed.

In a maximum of two years, the British will be able to withdraw from India.At that time, it is still uncertain whether the British will return to the European continent or launch a new round of colonial expansion.

In this context, the French should speed up their actions in the Kingdom of Sardinia.

The Paris government has successfully persuaded countries such as Belgium, the Netherlands, and Switzerland to withdraw their troops from the Kingdom of Sardinia.According to the agreement, after arresting the murderer, we will also withdraw from the Kingdom of Sardinia.

As long as France and Russia reach an agreement and the Russians withdraw their troops in the Kingdom of Sardinia, the British will be left alone, and the remaining European countries will not have the confidence to be enemies of France.

It is not difficult to convince the Russians.Alexander II wanted to carry out social reforms, but the biggest problem was lack of funds.The tsarist government would sell the Kingdom of Sardinia as long as the French would provide a loan. "

Chancellor of the Exchequer Karl shook his head and said: "The London government will not stop, providing loans to the Kingdom of Sardinia. Although it was done by previous governments, the British government has provided guarantees for the loans after all.

It is impossible for the British Parliament to assume this debt, and it is even more impossible for capitalists to give up this loan, not to mention the huge interests behind the loan.

Now the Kingdom of Sardinia is where their industrial and commercial products are dumped, and there are millions of pounds in export trade every year, and they are reluctant to let go.

Once the French occupied the Kingdom of Sardinia, all their privileges were gone, and the loans became bad debts.

Now the British have lost half of the market of the Kingdom of Sardinia, almost reaching the limit of their tolerance.

Unless the French take advantage of the British's lack of time to take care of the Kingdom of Sardinia, they cut the mess quickly and cause the established fact of occupying the Kingdom of Sardinia.

It's a pity that the Paris government can't make up their minds. They are worried that they will directly occupy the Kingdom of Sardinia, causing everyone's fear, and even triggering an anti-French war. "

This is a sequelae. Napoleon left the French a glorious era, and also made the French stand under the spotlight. Any actions they made on the European continent were viewed by everyone with a magnifying glass.

Napoleon III could not accurately judge the true positions of various countries, so he chose to seek stability.Cannibalizing the Kingdom of Sardinia, on the surface, alleviated the fear of all countries, but in fact it was useless.

Regardless of whether they annexed the Kingdom of Sardinia, the fear of them from all countries has not diminished.No action was taken, mainly because of interests.

Insufficient interests, without the leadership of a big country, how can a small country be the leader?

Of course, this is only clear to the bystanders.If Franz stood in the position of Napoleon III, he would also choose to seek stability, even more stable than him.

The Italian region has never been easy to enter. Even if it wants to expand on the European continent and push the border to the Rhine River, it has more development potential than developing in Italy.

It is not a problem at all to bring Algeria, Tunisia, and Morocco into the mainland by virtue of the national strength of France.

Napoleon III has already seen the importance of the African continent.After succeeding to the throne, the pace of expansion was stepped up.If it weren't for the Kingdom of Sardinia to disperse their energy, it is estimated that the largest colonial area in Africa is not Austria.

Prime Minister Felix put forward a different opinion: "The choice of the French is not wrong. According to the current rate of encroachment, even if the British withdraw and return to Europe, the French can eat half of the Kingdom of Sardinia.

Even if the rest of the site is saved, it will be their meal sooner or later.Slowly, the British will discover that the death of the Kingdom of Sardinia is actually not worth the candle.

As for their losses, they can completely make up for it elsewhere.As long as the balance between Russia, Austria and France is not broken, the British's continental European policy will be realized, and there is no need to care about the small Kingdom of Sardinia.

It's just that the French are ambitious. Once they occupy the Kingdom of Sardinia, they may plan to plot other parts of Italy. At that time, we will be in big trouble. "

Foreign Minister Weisenberg said a news that was caught off guard: "Maybe we can make a big deal with the French and give them the Italian region!"

Everyone's face changed drastically, France + Italy is completely a giant.

Chancellor of the Exchequer Carl objected: "No, paying for the entire Italian region can indeed be exchanged for the French acquiescing to our unification of the German region, but there are also British and Russians.

The strength of the Kingdom of Prussia is not weak, and the barely unified German Federal Empire also has considerable strength. It is difficult for us to achieve a quick victory.

Unless we win over a family between Britain and Russia, or if the operation is not good, that is, France and Austria will join forces to challenge the entire European continent. We have little chance of winning. "

This proposal is indeed very tempting, but unfortunately the risk is too great.

Franz was not worried that France and Austria would fail in their joint challenge to the European continent. Now that the Russians are out of shape, without Mao Xiong as the main force, the chances of winning are not low.

The problem is, this is just wishful thinking on their part.The French people may be willing to make this deal, but Napoleon III, who loves convulsions, may not be.

If you are cheated, you will have to be ashamed, and you may have to spit out a lot of benefits, unless...

Unable to think about it any longer, Franz immediately stopped fantasizing.The international situation did not obey his command, and Napoleon III's ambition had just been ignited, and he had not yet reached that point.

"Today's content is archived as top secret, and everyone can bury it in their hearts.

The ever-changing international situation is beyond our control.

Unifying the German region is still our core strategy, but we must be cautious about how and when to unify the German region.

Any idea can be brought up for discussion. What cannot be done today may have an opportunity tomorrow.

The most important thing now is development. Blindly disrupting the international situation is not in our interests.Compared with European countries, we have a great advantage.

Population, territory, resources, these three core elements, except for the Russians, no country on the European continent can compare with us.

The longer the delay, the stronger the comprehensive national strength transformed from these advantages will be.Now the strength of the French is not far from ours, and the gap between the two sides will be completely widened after ten years.

It will be easier to talk about this issue when the time comes.Napoleon III will not look at being thrown off by us. If they want to catch up, they must expand outward. "

In this era, news transmission is inconvenient, and Austria's economic development data has not been disclosed to the public. Countries have not yet noticed the development advantages brought about by population and territory.

However, this cannot be kept secret for long.As everyone communicates more and more frequently, you will definitely notice the changes in Austria.

At that time, Napoleon III will definitely not be able to do it.The French, whose spine has not been broken in this era, will not tolerate being surpassed and gradually decline.

Either fight a war to contain Austria's development; or expand abroad to increase its strength.

This multiple-choice question is easy to do, and there is another bear with more population, territory, and resources. These are the enemies of the French European hegemony.

It is obviously impossible to fight by force.The Russian-Austrian alliance has not yet disbanded, and military operations do not see any chance of success.

Even if Napoleon III did not want to expand abroad, fanatical nationalism would force them to the battlefield.Either externally or internally.

At that time, the French government will have little choice.Lure it, and the possibility of a deal between the two parties is very high.

Chancellor of the Exchequer Karl reminded: "Your Majesty, the French will pose a great threat to us. At that time, even if we unify the German region, we will be trapped in the center of France and Russia, and we will be very passive strategically."

Foreign Secretary Weisenberg explained: "On the contrary, when Russia, France and Austria formed a three-pronged alliance to carve up the European continent, we were very safe.

As long as the British don't abandon the continental balance policy, we don't have to worry about being isolated.France, which annexed the Italian region, is not the current France.

Similarly, the Russian Empire that annexed Northern Europe is not the current Russian Empire.

The three huge empires stand side by side, but in fact they are the most stable. Unless there is a problem in a certain family and the balance is broken, a war will break out.

As long as we ensure that the problem is not our own first, the danger is still within the controllable range.Judging from the current situation, we are stable in the Three Kingdoms.

The Russians are still reforming, and success or failure is unpredictable.If the reform fails, the Russian Empire may collapse one day in the future.

Napoleon III was not in the right position, and many people in the country refused to accept his rule.This crisis will be exacerbated by the annexation of the Italian regions. "

I have to admit that Weisenberg's strategic vision is still very good, but it is a little too radical.

This is not a big problem. It is impossible for the cabinet to be all moderates, and Franz is also ambitious.

Wesenberg is only 35 years old and can stand out from many competitors.In addition to Metternich's strong recommendation, it is superhuman strategic vision.This is also the most important prerequisite for being a foreign secretary.

Prime Minister Felix asked: "Since the hidden danger of annexing Italy is so great, how can we guarantee that Napoleon III will be fooled?"

Foreign Minister Weisenberg explained: "Your Excellency, Napoleon III has been fooled since the annexation of the Kingdom of Sardinia.