Holy Roman Empire

The coldness of Russia-Austria relations was originally handled by the London government.Any contradictions are accumulated little by little. Some people in the tsarist government felt that they were at a disadvantage from the alliance with Austria, and there were such people in the Vienna government.

Against this background, they met the British who were sowing discord, and the usual small conflicts were naturally magnified infinitely.

When Franz finds out, there is nothing he can do but let the relationship between the two countries continue to deteriorate.The same is true for Alexander II, even if he discovered this situation, he could not stop it.

In addition to benefits, everyone also needs face.The benefits brought by the Russia-Austria alliance are no longer enough for them to take action to suppress the conflict.

The two powerful emperors were unwilling to make concessions, and the matter gradually became serious. Only after the sequelae broke out, the two sides would re-emphasize the role of the alliance.

Obviously, the British will not leave such an opportunity.Continuing to drive apart the Russia-Austria alliance has become the most important relationship of the British Foreign Office.

Prime Minister John Russell smiled and said: "It seems that peaceful means have failed, so the next step is to test our strength.

The Russians fighting alone are not so terrible.As long as the war is delayed until next year, then the tsarist government's wallet may be in a hurry again, right? "

John Russell was in a very good mood. If possible, he would not mind awarding a medal to Russian capitalists and bureaucrats, which is the highest grade.

According to the plan, they originally thought that it was the Austrians who caused the deterioration of Russia-Austria relations.After all, the Russians are still fighting on all sides, how could it be possible to ignore the relationship between the two countries?

It doesn't matter who figured things out first, the end result is the same anyway.The current changes have directly increased the cost of war for the Russians.

War is a beast that swallows gold, and money is really not spent.Don't look at the tsarist government's huge profits, but the bureaucracy is too greedy, and no matter how much money they have, they will be squandered quickly.

This is a common feature of old empires. Which one of Britain, France, Russia, Austria, Spain, Holland, and Portugal is not a corrupt empire?

It's just that the tsarist government was more powerful, and the chaotic system provided a breeding ground for corruption, while Britain, France and Austria had a system that could curb corruption to a certain extent.

Even Franz has no way to completely solve the corruption problem. He can only adopt the policy of killing pigs from time to time. Every three to five years, there will be a big anti-corruption campaign to deter the bureaucracy by killing chickens and monkeys.

The advantage of doing this is that it makes the bureaucrats learn smarter, know what money can't be touched, and restrain themselves a bit.

At this point, it is already the acme of what this era can do.It is impossible to eradicate corruption.

The final result is naturally that seven or eight of the 10 yuan with constraints will be spent; it is not easy to spend four or five yuan of the 10 yuan without constraints.

After thinking about it, the Minister of Finance Aggarwal replied: "Not so fast, the tsarist government is still trying to find a way to raise funds, and it is not completely sitting on the mountain.

Of course, if the fire in their country is ignited, then the wallet of the tsarist government will really be exhausted.

At that time, the tsarist government should declare bankruptcy and pay off all its debts, and the Russian-Austrian alliance should almost collapse. "

The actual situation is even more serious. Because of the war, a large amount of gold and silver flow out of the Russian Empire every year, and the speed of this outflow has far exceeded the replenishment speed of mining.

The tsarist government's reduction of imports from Austria also had a "money shortage" factor. After all, this was a cash transaction, and they all took out hard currency.

In one transaction, if it is equivalent to silver, it can range from a few million taels to tens of millions of taels, no matter how big a family business is, it cannot afford such extravagance.

This is also the reason for the sharp increase in loans between Russia and Austria. The Tsarist government could not provide enough cash in the short term, so it could only pay for the goods with real mortgage loans.

This kind of mortgage must be established under the stability of the Russian Empire. If there is a civil war, many collaterals will fall worthless in an instant.

At present, the tsarist government holds a large amount of real estate, such as: port terminals, mines, farms, forest farms, shops in the city, residences...

These are good collaterals that can generate some income every year.Once the civil war breaks out, these things are worthless.

……

Moscow, Matetorsky was in no hurry to start an uprising.With the participation of so many international friends behind this uprising, it is natural that rebel experts exchanged experience.

After specialized training, Matetorski evolved.In order to mobilize more people to support the revolution, he is launching a workers' strike and organizing peasants to resist taxes.

Prices skyrocketed after the war broke out, but wages did not increase, but overtime hours were extended. Everyone worked hard for a day, and the rewards they got even to fill the stomachs of the family became a delusion.

Throughout 1866, 76 large and small strikes broke out in the Russian Empire. There is no doubt that these unorganized resistances were futile and all were suppressed.

Farmers are also having a hard time, and the high war tax makes it difficult for them to accept.

Although the actual war tax of the tsarist government was not high, it was not something that Alexander II could prevent.

A young man whispered: "Sir, the Prussians are urging again. They want us to find a way to cut off the Moscow railway and cut off the supplies of the Tsarist army."

The Russians don't have many railways, and Moscow happens to have one.As long as this railway is cut off, it will be even more difficult for the food in the Volga River Basin and the industrial products produced in Moscow to enter and transport to the front line.

In fact, the strategic position of the Volga River is more important. As the mother river of Russia, it can connect Moscow and St. Petersburg by water.But in winter it freezes, so it doesn't work.

After pondering for a moment, Matetorski frowned and replied: "Reassure them, we will complete the agreement!"

Obviously, he didn't want to cooperate with the Prussians, and if it wasn't impossible, Matetorski would not be willing to sell Russia's interests.

The geographical location of Moscow is very important. It is not only the second largest industrial base in the Russian Empire, but also the main road connecting east and west. It is also one of the most important food producing areas in the Russian Empire.

At present, the three major food producing areas of the Russian Empire are Poland, the area around Moscow (Volga River Basin), and Ukraine, and other areas have not yet been developed.

The Polish region can no longer be counted on, and if there is chaos in the surrounding areas of Moscow, the tsarist government will only have Ukraine.

Then the lack of food will also become a major problem for the tsarist government, and it is still an unsolvable problem.At that time, not only the soldiers on the front line will be hungry, but St. Petersburg will not last long.

The Prussians sent them to the Moscow area in order to cut off the Russians' logistical supply and weaken the Tsarist government's war potential.

Without local supplements, it is expected to import from the outside world, not to mention whether the tsarist government's wallet can support it. The key is that their transportation capacity cannot meet the demand at all.

Matetorsky did not want to be a puppet, he wanted to overthrow the rule of the tsarist government and establish a free country.

After arriving in the Moscow region, he took the initiative to alienate the Prussians on the grounds that he wanted to keep it secret, but in fact he didn't want to cede the land.

It's just that now he can't do without the support of the Prussians, let alone the support of the British behind him, so he has to look grateful.

In this era, the industry of the Russian Empire was not developed, and the number of workers was not large. It was not enough to overthrow the rule of the Tsarist government.

In order to make up for the lack of strength, Matetorski targeted the large number of peasants.Alexander II liberated the serfs and won the support of everyone, which became the biggest problem of the uprising.

"Qingjun side" This is an uprising slogan sponsored by an international friend for free.The purpose is naturally to attract more people to participate in the uprising. After all, the tsar's reputation among the people is still very good, and the direct rebellion against the people is not allowed.

This ran counter to Matetorski's ideals.European cultural traditions have determined that once this banner is played, even if the government is overthrown, the tsar is still the tsar, and at most he will use the constitutional monarchy to restrain him.

Nicholas I recovered Constantinople, leaving enough political legacy for Alexander II, and he himself announced the abolition of serfdom, which won the support of tens of millions of Russian peasants who had just been liberated.

Matetorski is very skeptical that even if the current government is overthrown, Alexander II will still be in power.

Although the "Qing emperor's side" was good, he also placed himself under the tsar, and his status as a monarch and minister was settled, so he was naturally at a disadvantage politically.

However, this slogan has won the support of many international friends.Needless to say, the reason is that everyone is a monarchy country, so it is natural to support this system.

"Hey!"

Sighing deeply, Matetorski reluctantly chose to compromise.There are many forces in the revolutionary party, and they are no longer monolithic. As a leader, he can't keep his word.

The bourgeoisie who supported them just wanted to take control of power through revolution, but they were not prepared to throw down the tsar.

Most of the revolutionary party also supports the retention of the tsar. If there is no tsar, how can they counterattack and become nobles?

Don't expect everyone's ideological awareness to be high. Most revolutionaries rebelled because they were dissatisfied with reality, and they did not have lofty ideals to liberate mankind.

Matetorski can't go against everyone's wishes, otherwise changing the leader is just a question of a meeting, and there will be another three or five days of quarrel at most.

On December 1866, 12, under the leadership of Matetorsky, a coalition of many Russian revolutionary parties launched the Double Twelve Uprising in Moscow.

The rebel army took "the side of the Qing emperor" as its political platform, and called on all the Russian people to rise up and kill corrupt officials and return power to the tsar.

Chapter 1 Misfortunes Never Come Alone

The Double Twelve Uprising succeeded, and the real crisis of the Tsarist government came.The internal enemy is far more terrifying than the external one. Since the revolutionaries played the banner of "the side of the Qing emperor", many people chose to be neutral.

It's not that they betrayed the tsar, the main reason is that everyone is dissatisfied with the current situation.Radical reformists were dissatisfied with the tsar's suspension of reforms, and conservatives wanted to remove clauses in the reforms that were not conducive to them.

Most of these people have families and businesses. Naturally, they cannot participate in such high-risk activities as rebellion.

In St. Petersburg, the sudden bad news caused the tsarist government to panic, and the Russian Empire, which had internal and external troubles, was uncertain in the wind and rain.

Minister of the Interior Mikhail suggested: "Your Majesty, we can't go on like this. We must first suppress the domestic rebellion!"

There is nothing wrong with this proposal. At most, the foreign enemies can only tear a piece of flesh from the Russian Empire, and they cannot threaten their survival. It is the internal enemies who can really kill them.

"Qingjun side" knew from this banner that it was destined to be a bloody storm.Once the rebellious party gains power, those with vested interests are the targets of cleansing.

If you don't kill a few corrupt officials, how can the people explain it?Now the senior officials of the tsarist government are all so-called "filthy ministers" who were punished.

Alexander II was expressionless, as if he didn't care at all.In fact, he was already vomiting blood in his heart, and he never dreamed that the revolutionaries would actually make a fuss at this time.

Alexander II very much agreed with the Minister of the Interior's proposal to suppress internal rebellions first, but he could not bring up the peace talks.

With the truce now, the Russian Empire is bound to pay a heavy price, and the tsar cannot bear the blame.

Hlamed, the Minister of War, echoed: "The rebellious party has occupied Moscow, and the threat to us is too great. Whether it is the Polish battlefield or the Central Asian battlefield, it is inseparable from the material support of the Moscow region.

According to the current situation, these two battlefields will last up to half a year.If we can't suppress the rebellion and restore supplies within half a year, the situation will get completely out of control. "

It took half a year to suppress the rebellion and restore supplies, which seemed like a joke.Destruction is always faster than construction. After being harmed by the rebels, can local production resume immediately?

Besides, it is still winter, and fighting in this season has higher logistical requirements.

The tsarist government does not have so many anti-insurgency troops and materials in its hands. Apart from drawing from the front line, it has no other choice in the short term.

In this way, it is bound to affect the situation on the front line.If too many troops are deployed, leaving an opportunity for the enemy and leading to a defeat on the front line, the consequences will be even more serious.

Chancellor of the Exchequer Christian Wahl said: "The recent price rises have been very serious, and the cost of the war is increasing. If the war is not ended as soon as possible, we will go bankrupt within a year at most."

Alexander II asked in disbelief: "How is this possible, did we just get a fortune?"

During the anti-Semitic movement, the tsarist government gained a lot and spent all the money so quickly, Alexander II did not believe it.

Chancellor of the Exchequer Christian Valle hurriedly explained: "Your Majesty, we do still have a lot of assets in our hands, but these things will not be realized in a while.

Now that the civil strife broke out, many of these real estates have fallen to the bottom, and even if they are sold, they will lose a lot.

All the government can use is confiscated cash and some marketable bonds.The money will also be used to repay previous debts and support the expenses of this war.

Now the price of strategic materials has almost doubled, and the Moscow region is in chaos again. We have to increase overseas purchases, which increases expenditures. "

The real estate confiscated by the tsarist government can actually be realized.It's just that there are too many dignitaries in the country, and once these people intervene, it becomes the price of cabbage.

The Ministry of Finance can't afford to sell so many assets at such a low price. Even if it is embezzlement of state-owned assets, it must at least settle the account!To be on the safe side, of course we can only take our time.

Otherwise, even if these assets are used for mortgage loans, hundreds of millions of rubles can be mortgaged, so as not to guard the golden mountain and cause famine.

Alexander II frowned, and said with some hesitation: "The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is negotiating with the Austrians, trying to find a way to keep prices down."

There is no way for domestic prices. Changes in supply and demand have led to price increases, so we can only pin our hopes overseas.

Foreign Minister Clarence Ivanov said with a wry smile: "Your Majesty, this may be difficult to do. Now the trade tariffs between Russia and Austria have increased by 80.00%. The excuse for the Austrians to raise prices is the increase in tariffs.

While raising tariffs, we ask others not to raise prices. This may be too much for others. "

Clarence Ivanov is on eye drops, blindly raising the price of tariffs, which led to the deterioration of the relationship between the two countries and brought a lot of trouble to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Don't look at the current coldness of Russia-Austria relations. In fact, Russia-Austria relations are still the first in the tsarist government's diplomacy.If other departments cannot cause trouble, let the Ministry of Foreign Affairs deal with the aftermath!

The tsarist government also had factional power struggles, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is also the real power department second only to the Ministry of Finance. The struggle between the two sides has never been less.

Alexander II's face was very ugly. He was not a fool, and he made up what happened in an instant.

Chancellor of the Exchequer Christian Wahl hurriedly explained: "The increase in tariffs is mainly to increase fiscal revenue and protect national industries. You must know that the tariffs between us and Austria are very low, even if it is increased by 80.00%, it is only on par with other countries. "

Christan Val is not a fool, there is still some sense of propriety.He had done his homework before raising tariffs in both countries.

The Russia-Austria alliance has not yet broken up. If the tariffs are raised above all countries, he will not be able to escape the charge of destroying the alliance.

The choice is the same as that of other countries, indicating that this is a normal tax adjustment and is not specific to Austria.

Alexander II glared at him fiercely, very angry in his heart, and secretly scolded the Ministry of Finance for being useless, even if it is to adjust tariffs, it takes time!

Now Russia-Austria trade has almost monopolized the foreign trade of the Russian Empire, and the Tsarist government is one of the main buyers. Isn’t raising tariffs asking for trouble?

Now people are retaliating, the wool comes from the sheep, the tariffs have risen and prices have also risen, and the rise has become even more excessive.

Monopoly operation, love to buy or not to buy.Now they have to spend more money, and the increased spending is far more than the increased tariffs can match.

To protect national industry, dare to come up with such a nonsense reason.Who doesn't know that the Russian industry has just started now, and whoever uses a bunch of inferior goods will be unlucky.

That's all for civilian goods, and military supplies are simply murder.

Alexander II has already made a decision to strip the Ministry of Finance of the right to set tax rates, and find an opportunity to replace the idiot in front of him.

Dissatisfaction with Austria, Alexander II decisively pressed down in his heart.If you want something from others, no matter how dissatisfied you are, you have to endure it.

"Communicate with Austria, the issue of tariffs can be negotiated. Based on the commercial and trade treaty signed by the two countries before, no one is allowed to change the tariff rate without authorization."

When he said this, Alexander II was bleeding in his heart.This meant that the tsarist government would make substantial concessions on the tariff issue in exchange for Austria's support.

This support is not limited to economics, but more politically.Once you choose to end the war, Austria's support is essential.

Without the support of a big power, even if it comes to the negotiating table, they will suffer a lot.

The current Russian Empire is no longer the glory of the past, and if it is not operated well, it may usher in a catastrophe.

……