Holy Roman Empire

It is enough to be able to gain benefits. Now overseas, except for the strategic value of the Central American colony, which is a sharp weapon to restrict the Americans, other regions are only economic interests.

The tragedy is like Alaska, and every year, money is paid to enter.Franz conveniently circled several uninhabited islands near Canada, preparing to use them to disgust the British.

Foreign Minister Weisenberg analyzed: "According to the intelligence we have collected, the British approach is very weird. If they can win over the Portuguese, they can indeed occupy a dominant position in South Africa.

In fact, although they have no alliance, the two sides have long stood together on the South African issue.Our expansion is too fast, the Portuguese have always been very vigilant, and many times they have favored the British.

However, the Portuguese should not be so unwise to ask them to directly stand up against us.

Even if our influence is expelled from South Africa, it will only be temporary.Once the two sides have torn their faces, even with the support of the British, Portugal will not be able to keep its African colonies.

We can end Portugal's colonial empire at any time if we choose.In this context, I don't think Portugal dare to jump out.

We can think of it, and so can the British.Knowing that it can't be done, there may be a big problem here. "

Wesenberg saw a problem, and Franz saw it too, unfortunately not knowing what it was that prompted the British to do this.

It is not impossible to win over Portugal. If the interests are large enough, the Portuguese are likely to be recruited.

However, Franz did not believe that the British were willing to give.Besides, even if the British are willing to promise, do the Portuguese dare to believe it?

Not bragging, the reputation of the British is better than that of the Russians these days.

Portugal is the ancestor of the great powers. They have played these routines before, and it is not easy to fool them.

Could it be that South Africa's gold mine reserves were exposed, making the British desperate to take it down, and even turned against Austria?

Then, Franz dismissed the idea again.It is not so easy to ascertain the reserves of gold mines. Just discovering a few gold mines, even the discovery of the Rand mining area, is not enough for the British to take risks.

It's not that the temptation of the Rand mining area is less, the point is that no one will believe it. A gold reserve of 6 tons is a joke. Whether there is so much gold mined all over the world is a big question mark.

With the prospecting technology and mining technology at that time, the reserves were estimated at two to three thousand tons at most, and it was impossible to have more.

In later generations, 90.00% of the gold mines above five are worthless in this era.Including a lot of rich ore, because natural conditions have no mining value.

Otherwise, the gold in West Africa would not have been mined at random in just a dozen years.It is not that the gold mines have been mined out, but mainly the gold mines with economic value have been mined out.

Since it is not for gold, it is naturally impossible for diamonds, and the price of diamonds has not yet risen.

Most people are thinking about food and cannot afford such luxuries.Rich people are not good at fooling around, and they don't take diamonds too seriously.

"Pay close attention to the actions of the British, not only in Africa, but wherever our interests are involved, we must be more vigilant.

No matter what the British want to do, just find a way to destroy it.Since they have won over Portugal, let our people spoil the situation. "

If he couldn't figure it out, Franz simply didn't bother to think about it, and just destroyed it.In case it was just a fake shot by the British, it is not impossible that the real target is someone else.

This kind of thing, Franz has also played.In many cases, false information that is false and true is released in order to divert the enemy's attention.

If you are led by the nose, you will fall into the trap, and it is better to use inconvenience to cope with all changes.

Anyway, even if it is a real Anglo-Portuguese alliance, at most it will cause Austria to suffer a temporary loss in South Africa. Now the loss will come back after three to five years at most, and it will not threaten Austria's core interests.

……

In Lisbon, the British and Austrian ministers all took action, and the atmosphere in the Portuguese government became tense.

This multiple-choice question is not easy to do. If Britain and Austria go to war directly, then Portugal will naturally side with the British.

Anyway, there are France and Spain blocking the land, and the Royal Navy at sea, so Austria's tentacles cannot reach Portugal.

It is a pity that the two countries are only in colonial conflicts, and there is still a thousand miles away from the outbreak of war. It is dangerous to stand in line at this time.

No matter who you support, you will offend the other family.In the game of great powers, no one can do anything to anyone, but revenge against Portugal can be done.

The tense atmosphere in the government soon spread to the people.It is clear to many that the moment has come to decide the fate of Portugal.

Now Portugal is divided into two factions. Generally speaking, there are still more supporters for the British, but Austria has lower requirements and takes fewer risks.

It is just to make them neutral, and they do not need to directly participate in the confrontation between major powers, so they have won the support of the neutral faction, and now the two factions are evenly matched.

As a businessman engaged in overseas trade, Rolston is also very concerned about international politics. Seeing the prowess of Britain and Austria, he even turned down the recent ocean shipping business.

There are many opportunities to make money, but definitely not now.Aren't you afraid of encountering pirates when you go to sea at this tense time?

There is no doubt that once the Portuguese government does not handle it properly, their chances of encountering pirates will greatly increase.

The integrity of the great powers is so high, if you are upset, you will have to play tricks behind your back.Britain and Austria are both world empires, and it is simply impossible to avoid their sphere of influence.

For the sake of safety, the frequency of Portugal's merchant ships going to sea has been greatly reduced recently. Offshore trade is still so-called, and everyone is very cautious in ocean trade.

If you are ransacked by pirates, you still have a chance to survive; if you are unfortunately ransacked by the navy, you will die.

When pirates want to shear sheep, they usually don’t kill passing merchants. They are their parents. It’s different when it’s a navy robbery, and they have to be killed for the sake of reputation.

Of course, under normal circumstances, the navies of various countries will not hang out with pirates, and it is understandable that there are a few black apples occasionally.

It is best not to gamble on this luck, after all, the integrity of Britain and Austria is not high.In case the government stood in line just after going to sea, and the enemy retaliated, they would be in danger.

In this era, thousands of ships encounter accidents every year, and more than [-] ships are missing. Ocean trade is a real high risk.

As soon as he arrived at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs building, Roston met an old friend.You don't need to ask him to know that they are all concerned about this Anglo-Austrian conflict.

"Julian, what's going on?"

Roston asked expectantly, if it continues like this, it will miss the best ocean season.This era is mainly powered by sails, and the sea monsoon is also a very important factor.

Julian shook his head and said teasingly, "There is still no result. These officials and gentlemen are still arguing endlessly, as if Portugal's position is really important."

Rolston said with the same hatred: "Damn bastards, if this drags on, we will eat dirt this year!"

The Portuguese bourgeoisie had long been dissatisfied with the government. Although Louis I made some reforms, he still failed to satisfy the capitalists.

Now the government's hesitation has aroused the dissatisfaction of the capitalists.In the eyes of most capitalists, standing in line now is a joke.

Both Britain and Austria are indeed wooing Portugal, but the problem is that their attention is very average and they have not given much benefit.

That being the case, why take the risk of standing in line, isn't it good to be neutral?Participating in the Anglo-Austrian conflict, one of the bad things is bloodshed.

It’s okay to think so, but not to do so.Portugal has long been in bad decline, and they were able to keep a large number of colonies because of their diplomatic means.

Louis I also wanted to declare neutrality and not participate in the mess between Britain and Austria, but things were not up to him.

The British are unwilling to let go, and Austria also wants to see what kind of medicine is sold in the British gourd. The Portuguese government can only accompany the show.

Chapter 29 Redefining 'Italian Regions'

In order to test the British, Franz decided to speed up the process of the French annexing Italy. Now Naples, the Papal State, Tuscany and other states are bargaining with the French.

The absolute disparity in strength made them lose their plans to confront by force.Originally counting on Austria to intervene, it is a pity that the Vienna government chose to watch the show.

The excuses are all readily available, old accounts left over from 1848.At that time, due to public opinion, the Italian states stood on the opposite side of Austria.

Although the nobles and the king were still good friends of Austria, they dragged their feet decisively and did not cause substantial harm to Austria.

The magnanimous His Majesty Franz didn't care about it, but the Italians still need to pay the price for their waywardness, and now Austria has decided to stand on the sidelines.

These are all claims on the surface, but secretly the connection between the Habsburg family and the Italian nobility has never been broken.

Even now, Austria is behind the scenes supporting them in fighting for their rights, otherwise the governments of these states would not have the confidence to bargain with the French.

Vienna normally promised France to annex these Italian states, but how to annex depends on the actual situation.

As a member of the aristocratic class, it is no problem to protect class interests now.Napoleon III is also a vested interest, it is impossible to break this unspoken European rule, otherwise the European continent will not be able to get along.

The precedent of Austria's reconstruction of Shinra has set an example for Napoleon III, and now he also wants to serve as the emperor of Italy.

As for the issue of Italy having no emperor, he decisively ignored it. How did the French emperor come to be? The Italian emperor can also copy it. I believe the pope will make the right choice.

Soldiers came to Rome to force the Pope to be crowned. This kind of thing has already been done by many predecessors. Napoleon III does not mind following the example.

It is naturally impossible to completely annex the Italian region peacefully.Austria rebuilt Shinra, because the Germans themselves wanted to unify and build a powerful country.

The Italians also want to be unified, but they don't want to be unified by the French.Without the basis of public opinion, Napoleon III had to coerce and lure.

Now French soldiers have appeared in various Italian states.No force action was taken, which means that the governments of various states are barely cooperating.

At most, it's just talking about conditions. No government has publicly opposed it, so the French can't find a chance to do it.Now these slippery guys are all asking sky-high prices.

This is what Franz would like to see, and it would be even more interesting if Napoleon III couldn't help but kill them.

Without the cooperation of these local snakes, the Italian region will immediately become chaotic. At that time, not only will it not be able to enhance the national strength of France, but it will consume their strength.

Even if these local snakes are recovered, it doesn't mean that everything will be fine.If the French do not intervene at all and rely on the governments of these states to rule, it is estimated that they can barely maintain it.

Once involved, anti-French will become the mainstream in Italy in the future.Even if it is to divert social conflicts, these people will also attract hatred to the French.

Moreover, there are conflicts of interest.Don't look at the fact that capitalists seem to be very cooperative now. When there is a conflict between French and Italian capital in the future, you will know how serious the consequences will be.

It is almost impossible to level this bowl of water. Once Italian capitalists think that the government is partial to French capital, it would be strange not to support the Revolutionary Party.

This thinks that personal subjective tendencies are too strong, and it can almost be said to happen inevitably.This kind of situation happens from time to time in Austria, and people often go to the Supreme Court to litigate.

Many times there will be an embarrassing situation where both parties are justified, so that the judges don't know what to do, and finally they have to negotiate in private.

Of course, once this kind of thing happens, the legislative body will patch it up in a targeted manner, and the improvement of the legal system is completed step by step in this way.

If you arrive in France, I'm afraid that before the lawsuit is over, the crowd of demonstrators outside will be able to toss the Paris government to death.

It is estimated that the French are also prepared for these problems, but they cannot predict how serious the consequences will be, otherwise they will not be so active now.

After all, the problems that occurred in Austria were finally resolved properly, and there was no trouble.

Why can't we do what others can do?This arrogance is not lacking in the French.

Napoleon III has begun to pave the way for his son. If he cannot satisfy the French desire for a great power, I am afraid that the future Napoleon IV will have a headache.

Napoleon III, who was already good at manipulating people's hearts, could not have known the horror of this kind of thinking.Now imitating Austria to form Shinra to establish a French-Italian United Empire, it was also forced out.

Napoleon III was still full of confidence in the combat effectiveness of the French army. Once the United Empire was established, it became the European hegemon.

This can already satisfy the pursuit of most French people, and the foundation of the empire will be stable.Of course, being able to ascend the Italian throne is also a temptation for him personally.

Wealth always needs to return home. For the Bonaparte family, the Italian throne is also very meaningful, even though Napoleon had established the Italian king.

Now there are still many Napoleon fans in Italy. These people are the confidence that Napoleon III dared to be the emperor of Italy.With force, supporters, and opportunities, why not go up?

As for legal issues, at worst there will be another election.This time, there is no need for a general election, just let the state government choose it.

As the king of the Kingdom of Sardinia, he is also eligible to run for the election. Besides Napoleon III, who else would dare to grab this position?Since it is the only candidate, it is natural to be elected.

Theoretically, Ludwig I of the Kingdom of Lombardy is also eligible to run, and Lombardy is also considered a member of the Italian region.Even Franz, who has the crown of Venetia on his head, is also one of the candidates.

However, neither Franz nor Ludwig I considered themselves a member of Italy, so naturally they would not run over to disrupt the situation.

Apparently, Napoleon III didn't think so.Holding multiple positions in Europe is standard for veteran nobles, especially the title of emperor, which no one thinks too much.

How to kick the two kingdoms of Lombardy and Venetia out of Italy became Napoleon III's biggest headache.

Napoleon III did not think that in the face of interests, a treaty could bind Austria.If something happened in the middle, and Franz jumped out to run for the emperor of Italy, he would make the wedding dress for someone.

After all, in terms of family influence, the Bonaparte family is still inferior to the Habsburgs. The deepest background of the old aristocrats is that they have many relatives and sufficient legal principles.

In order to speed up the pace of the French, Franz decided not to embarrass Napoleon III, but to withdraw voluntarily.

……

Schönbrunn Palace, Franz summoned Foreign Minister Weisenberg and ordered: "The Ministry of Foreign Affairs notified the French to hold an international conference in Vienna to redefine some disputed areas in Europe.

For example, the Venetia and Lombardy regions should belong to the German region, not the Italian region, which is now the German-speaking cultural circle. "

This is something Napoleon III wanted to do, but dared not do.Nominally dividing the Italian region, in fact, this is also the definition of the sovereignty of the upcoming Italian Empire.

No matter how fierce the trend of unification in Italy is, it is an indisputable fact that Italy has never been unified since the collapse of the Roman Empire.

The so-called legal sovereignty does not exist at all.Now Lombardy and Venetia are unwilling to mix with them, and there are no legal problems.

A region is not a country, so how can we talk about sovereignty?Before the birth of the Italian Confederation Empire, changing the geographical terms in advance was a political signal sent by Franz to Napoleon III.

Anyway, geographical divisions are all artificial.It is not impossible to re-divide now.As long as France and Austria remain consistent, what's the point of changing the geographical scope?

This will not involve the interests of all parties, even if someone objects, it will not be a big problem.Franz had already thought about the reasons for the division, and formed them according to culture.

In this way, the definition of the German region is broader.With the exception of Lombardy and Venetia, most of the Balkans became German.

Regardless of whether the outside world recognizes it or not, Austria's official documents can be changed anyway.These areas are indeed the German cultural circle now, and there is nothing wrong with dividing them according to cultural traditions.

Weisenberg thought for a while and said, "Your Majesty, I'm afraid it will be troublesome to do this. These areas are just called according to the custom. If the areas are divided according to the cultural circle, I'm afraid it will arouse the vigilance of many countries."

Vigilance is inevitable. Who made Austria's propaganda slogan unify the German region?The political slogans have been shouted like this, so it's no wonder everyone is not vigilant.

Of course, not shouting this slogan is not much better.Randomly pull someone in Europe and ask: Does Austria have the ambition to unify the German region, and the answer is the same-yes.

Anyway, I can't hide it, so it's better to yell it out.Over the years, the Vienna government has shouted earth-shattering slogans, but the result is still the same.

Vigilance is vigilance, but it will not make everyone hate.After all, Franz is not a radical, holding high the banner of "peaceful unification", so many countries in the Shenluo Empire are role models.