Holy Roman Empire

Napoleon III said hesitantly: "The folk customs in the Balkan Peninsula are tough, and the Russians are importing Great Slavism. I am afraid that the local people will not be willing to go to the colonies."

This is also a mistake in the French government's colonial strategy. It neither carried out a major purge immediately, nor did it send immigrants to the Balkan Peninsula for national integration.

If there is no external intervention, then relying on France's past experience, it will not be a problem to rule the Balkans.

It's a pity that the two neighbors of Russia and Austria are not very fuel-efficient lamps, but the two countries are allies, and the life of the French colonial government has become sad.

Fortunately, everyone is an imperial country and has not exported any national republican ideas, otherwise the French will be in greater trouble.

Now the most popular thing in the French Balkans is Great Slavism.Originally, Franz was also planning to play cultural export, but the cruel reality told him that there was really no market for Germanic culture here.

Chancellor of the Exchequer Pelisis said with confidence: "We can levy a poll tax and introduce preferential immigration policies. All we need is cheap labor, and we don't need local intellectuals.

For the stability of the colony, we can first carry out a major purge to kill all the local diehards, and then slowly organize immigration.

Now is the best opportunity. Alexander II and the nobles in the country are fighting so darkly that they have no time to interfere with us.

Austrians also don't like Great Slavism. We suppress these heresies, and the Vienna government will not intervene. "

Their respective starting points are different, and land power countries see problems differently from sea power countries.Initially, everyone dismissed Austria's colonial policy.

Up to now, just because of a cotton self-sufficiency, the French, who are also land power countries, understand Austria's approach.

Vigorously organizing immigrants to open up colonies, although the cost is a little higher, but the control of the colonies is also strengthened, and it can also provide raw materials and markets for domestic industrial production.

The French originally had direct control over the African colonies and wanted to digest North Africa. Austria's approach opened up new ideas for them.

The literacy rate of the people in the Balkan Peninsula is very low. If it weren't for the Near East War, these people would still be serfs and have no cultural traditions at all.

If it is to develop industry, these people are low-quality labor force. If it is to develop primary agriculture, these people will become high-quality labor force.

Because of the cognitive relationship, hiring these people only needs to pay salaries according to the salaries of the Balkan Peninsula, which is less than half of the salaries in France, and they can be made to work hard.

Because there is no cultural inheritance, I don't even know that I am a Shenma nation. After entering the French colony, it will not take long for these people to become French.

Previously, the group of refugees organized by Austria was an example.After arriving in the African colonies, it took only a few years to be initially Germanized.

Even if there are still differences in words and deeds, these people all regard themselves as Austrians, are they afraid that they will not be able to integrate?

Napoleon III made a decision: "Let's try it first, order the governor stationed in the Balkans to carry out a big purge, and kill all our enemies and potential enemies.

I remember that when the Austrians annexed the Austrian Balkans, they turned one-tenth of the local people into coolies, which is why they are now stable. We can also follow suit. "

Speaking of this, Napoleon III still secretly regretted it.

The Kingdom of Sardinia has not yet been eaten, otherwise, there would be more areas that can provide immigrants.

However, the Italian region is different from the Balkan Peninsula, where there is a complete cultural heritage.The influence in the world is also much greater, and you cannot act rashly.

Chapter 18 No Choice

Seeing the big powers stirring up the situation, the Prussian King William I, who had just succeeded to the throne, couldn't bear it anymore, maybe the Junker nobles couldn't bear it anymore.

The butterfly effect is powerful. With the re-emergence of Austria, the Prussian government found that their dream of a strong country was really about to become a dream.

The sense of crisis is the driving force for Prussia to become strong.In the first Schleswig War, the performance of the Prussian army was not outstanding, and it could even be said to be rubbish.

The call for military reform remained high in the Prussian army, and the main leader was Albrecht von Rohn, one of the three Prussian heroes.

Ron's popularity is low, but the things he did are earth-shattering.Not only presided over the reform of the Prussian army, but also single-handedly promoted Moltke and pushed Bismarck to the throne of prime minister.

Without him, Bole, Moltke may still have a chance to climb up, and Bismarck, the public enemy of the royal family, would not have to think about taking the throne.

Now General Ron is very annoying. Not long ago, he served as the Secretary of the Army and the Secretary of the Navy. He is about to face a big problem: the domestic voice for opening up colonies is getting louder and louder.

Ron didn't know what other people thought. Anyway, he opposed the opening of overseas colonies for only one reason - lack of money.

In order to dispel everyone's unrealistic idea, he must obtain the support of William I.But now William I also wants to grab wealth from overseas colonies and change the financial difficulties of the Kingdom of Prussia, which is a headache for him.

……

At the Berlin Palace government meeting, Prime Minister Frank once again reiterated the benefits of opening up colonies and proposed to establish a colonial empire belonging to Prussia.

Portugal and the Netherlands, two small countries, have large colonies overseas. With the strength of the Kingdom of Prussia, it seems that it is not a big deal to open up overseas colonies.

Ron objected: "Your Excellency Prime Minister, I know that it is very important to open up colonies, which can provide cheap raw materials and markets for domestic industry and commerce, and change the government's financial difficulties.

However, you seem to have overlooked one of the most important issues, any colonial empire is a naval power.

With the few ships in our navy, I am afraid that even a large group of pirates may not be able to deal with it. Why should we open up colonies overseas? "

This is a fact. Just because the Minister of War can also serve as the Minister of the Navy, you know how poor the Prussian Navy is.But it is impossible for any country with a certain navy to have such a situation.

Prime Minister Frank explained: "The government is already preparing to expand the navy, and the Kingdom of Prussia needs its own ironclad fleet."

Ron asked with a livid face, "Where does the military expenditure come from?"

Frank replied calmly: "Now that the Vienna system has been rebuilt, the contradictions of various countries tend to ease, and the European continent tends to be stable, so the possibility of war is unlikely.

In this case, there is no need for us to urgently carry out military reforms.The army sacrificed for the country this time, and then lived a hard life for the next few years.

Some soldiers can be transferred to the navy to save military expenses, and the government will find a way to make up a little more and build an ironclad fleet first.

After the colonies are opened up, the problems of domestic industrial and commercial raw materials and markets are solved, and the domestic economy improves, then military reforms should be carried out. "

In response to the rise of Austria and the impact of the newborn France, Ron proposed a specific plan for arms reform not long ago:

It is required to extend the service period of the army from 2 years to 4 years; cancel the national reserve army; replace the standing army equipment, and allocate 1750 million thalers every year starting from the next year.

这些措施意味着征兵额从4万人增至8.5万人，军队从102个团增至163个团，平时兵力由20.8万人变为32.7万人。

This more radical military reform measure than in history was mainly based on the fact that the Kingdom of Prussia was under greater military pressure.

The current standing army of the Russians is 99, that of the New Holy Roman Empire is 58, and that of the French is 50.

The three neighbors are so perverted. If the army is not expanded, the status of the quasi-powers of the Kingdom of Prussia will be gone.

Moreover, it is well known that Franz wanted to unify Germany, and Napoleon III coveted the Rhineland region without concealing it.

The Junker nobles, represented by Ron, naturally had a heart of crisis.

Without the expansion of the army, the strength of the Kingdom of Prussia is less than a third of that of any opponent.If war broke out suddenly, they would not even have the strength to fight.

The bourgeoisie did not think so, they had faith in the Viennese system.Concerned about military expansion:

On the one hand, abolishing the reserve army and extending the period of active service will undoubtedly weaken their influence in the army;

On the other hand, 2/3 of the officers and 9/10 of the instructors in this huge army are served by Juncker. There is a danger that the army may become a tool for Juncker to oppose the parliament.

"Who assured it that its honed weapons would be used for its own purposes?"

As a result, the bourgeois liberals represented by the Progressive Party used the powers granted to the parliament by the 1850 Constitution to bargain with the government and delay the passage of the military expansion plan.

In order to prevent the worst from happening, the capitalists began to advocate the benefits of opening up colonies, drawing big cakes for the high-level government, trying to use the development of the navy to weaken the strength of the Junker nobles.

Now many people have been tricked into it, and there are real examples in front of them.If there is no benefit in opening up colonies, why are France, Britain, France and Austria all opening up colonies.

Even the losses in Austria's overseas colonies were turned into profits by the data obtained by the capitalists.Using a bunch of economic terms, the prime minister and the king were fooled into it.

Convince them that the Austrian colony was only at an administrative loss.The Vienna government has realized profits through taxes on currency, mined gold, cheap industrial raw materials, and other taxes brought in by the market.

The specific performance is in the rapid development of the domestic economy and the rapid growth of government fiscal revenue.It also has the benefits of resisting economic crisis and reducing the outflow of gold and silver.

After a mess of data, it finally came to a conclusion: the Austrian colony brought 200 million Aegis in revenue to the Vienna government every year.

This is not a small sum, almost half of the financial revenue of the Kingdom of Prussia.Coupled with a lot of benefits, many people have been tricked into it.

In fact, this account is not clear at all, and the colony of Austria's rapid economic development has indeed contributed.However, there are too many industries involved, and the number of economic cycles is too complicated. Just add a little bit, and the final gap will be an astronomical figure.

The reason for everyone's belief is that the Vienna government has made a big move to open up colonies.If you judge others by yourself, if you can't make a profit, you will definitely not be so active.

The five countries, including Britain, France, Spain, Portugal, and the Netherlands, were all analyzed by capitalists as examples, and they came to the conclusion: the colonial empire has a large sphere of influence, and the country is strong; if the colonies are lost, the country will decline.

It doesn't matter if you listen to it once. If various experts say it in your ears every day, it will be deeply rooted in the hearts of the people after a long time and become a generally accepted truth.

Ron insisted: "No, the army's military reform must not be stopped. Open the map and you will know how much national defense pressure we are facing.

In the event of a conflict between us and any major country one day, with the current military strength of Prussia, there is no power to fight at all. "

Finance Minister Fiebel Adolf sneered: "Your Excellency, if it is based on fighting against the three major powers, even if your military expansion plan is doubled, I am afraid it will not be enough.

However, the financial resources of the Kingdom of Prussia are limited. Even if all the financial revenue is invested in the military, we cannot compete with any major country.

Modern warfare is not what it used to be.During the Near East War, the total strength of the Russians once exceeded 200 million; when Austria launched the Unification War, the total mobilized strength was also close to this figure.

The Kingdom of Prussia has a population of more than 400 million, and human resources have already determined the upper limit of our military expansion.It is the most suitable strategy for us to use the contradictions of various countries to maintain the balance in Europe.

You may not know it, but I will tell you a set of economic data, and you will understand.

In 1850, the fiscal revenue of the Kingdom of Prussia was 40.3% of that of Austria, 28.2% of that of the French, and 30.3% of that of the Russians;

After Austria established the new Holy Roman Empire in 1854, the financial revenue of the Kingdom of Prussia was 31.1% of Austria, 27.2% of the French, and 27.6% of the Russians;

In 1860, the fiscal revenue of the Kingdom of Prussia was 20.2% of that of Austria, 21.3% of that of the French, and 31.1% of that of the Russians.

Our economy is almost stagnant because of the huge amount of money spent on the military.We spent 20.2% of Austria's military expenditure with 43.2% of Austria's fiscal revenue. "

Military expenses not only support the army, but also the supporting military industry system. Under the compulsory military service system, this industrial chain is the most expensive.

At present, there are only seven countries in the world that have a complete military industry system, Britain, France, Russia, Opium, and the United States. Among them, the three countries of France, Opus, and Opus are at the forefront of army technology.

This is also the reason why the Prussian military industry is the only one, and their size really can't afford a second one.In order to reduce costs, all countries are working hard to sell arms to foreign countries.

Franz even exported the military industry system directly to the Russians.For financial reasons and in order to save costs, Russian military enterprises introduced production lines from Austria during Nicholas I's period.

After so many years, the equipment produced has filled the entire army, and it is difficult to change it back.

The Kingdom of Prussia is a tragedy, because it is too low-profile in the world, it is difficult to sell arms, and the military industry system has lost its ability to generate blood.After all, what they sell is only arms and cannot attach political effects.

The era of industrialization was cruel, because of the lack of markets and cheap industrial raw materials, Prussian capital naturally could not compete with rivals in the process of industrialization, and could only stick to the domestic market.

The customs union that supported the development of the Kingdom of Prussia in history has long since ceased to exist because of interests.

Even the Russian market has been robbed of part of the share by the Austrians due to the deterioration of Prussian-Russian relations.

With so many unfavorable factors fed back to the economy, the outcome is naturally not optimistic.Not surprisingly, the Prussian economy stagnated.

Faced with this situation, it has become inevitable for capitalists to open up overseas colonies and solve the problems of raw materials and markets.

Now that the Prussian government is rushing to the doctor in a hurry, they really have no better choice. If this continues, the Kingdom of Prussia will be directly dragged down.

Looking at the faces of everyone, Ron hesitated to speak.Although the Kingdom of Prussia is used to militarism, it is really unable to support it now.

In this era, the military expenditures of all countries are very large, and it is very normal for more than ten percent, twenty percent, and thirty percent.

The military expenditures of several major countries can exceed their fiscal revenues, so how can they fight?

If it is only a short period of time, the government will find a way to endure it.But now that the Kingdom of Prussia is expanding its army, there is no value at all.

Ron knew that if he continued to fight, it would not be long before the Kingdom of Prussia would fall behind due to financial problems.

In this case, the only solution is to launch a war, annex more territories, and resolve domestic conflicts through expansion.

This is what the Kingdom of Prussia did in history, betting against each other all the way, unifying the Little Germany area, and finally losing the empire.

There is no doubt that there is no iron-blooded Prime Minister Bismarck now, and the ruling Prime Minister Frank is not so radical. He advocates temporarily abandoning the struggle for land power.

After hesitating for a long time, Ron said: "Everyone, these questions are really troublesome, but don't forget to look at the map.

The Kingdom of Prussia is now divided into two. If there is not a strong enough army, we may be eaten at any time.

It is very unreliable to pin your own safety on a treaty.The three northern court systems that originally guaranteed our safety no longer exist.

Although we are trying to repair the relationship between Russia and Austria, but still have little effect.

Our desire to join the Russia-Austria alliance was rejected by the two countries. There are not so many reasons. It is entirely because of the distance in strength that we are not qualified to form an alliance with them.

To change this situation, we must expand on the European continent.Otherwise, the Kingdom of Prussia will sink in a short time and become a small country struggling to survive in the gap between big countries. "

William I frowned, he also wanted to expand, but his strength did not allow it.Don't look at the fact that the Kingdom of Prussia can hang and beat any neighbor except Russia and Austria. In fact, they dare not move any neighbor.

Denmark is the younger brother of the Russians. The current Russian Empire is still strong, and the Russian-Austrian alliance is on its side. Maybe they didn't get any meat and got involved instead.

The German Federal Empire is not easy to mess with. Not only is it supported by Britain and France, but its own economic strength is still higher than that of Prussia.

If one operation is not good, these states will directly transfer to Austria, and they can only cry.

Don't think it's impossible.From the perspective of interests, everyone's rights to stay in the German Federal Empire can be preserved to the maximum extent. Joining Shinra will benefit the most economically, and there will be nothing with the Kingdom of Prussia.

Whether it is a Junker aristocrat or a capitalist in Prussia, life has been difficult in recent years.Everyone is hungry and crazy, how can they care about eating?

There is no doubt that in the Netherlands and Belgium, there are also bosses, and the whole body is affected by a single hair.

William I said: "Ron, your ideas are too idealistic. We have not yet ignored the strength of the rules. If we really do something unwise, I am afraid that we will be suppressed by various countries immediately.

It is said that the French have fiddled with a plan to divide the three countries of Russia, Austria and France.It's just that because of the uneven distribution of spoils, the interests of the three countries have conflicted, so there is no follow-up.