Holy Roman Empire

Not only them, but the Austrian officers who commanded the battle were all caught in self-doubt at the moment.

who am I?

Where am i?

What's next?

……

The comedic victory had a huge impact on Hutier and others.

Many people have deeply doubted their military command ability, and they no longer have the arrogant arrogance they just came out of.

In the evening, the rebel soldiers who chased out returned to the camp one after another.

The best of them, with a few heads hanging from their waists, shuttled around the camp triumphantly, as if they were showing off their bravery.

Soldiers who got nothing, chose to bow their heads to avoid it, as if they were ashamed to see others.

Seeing the brutal scene after scene, everyone in the headquarters looked unhappy.

After all, the elder Hutil still needs to be more knowledgeable, and said calmly: "Don't be angry, these people with heads hanging around their waists should all be from tribes.

It is their tradition to hang the heads of their enemies on them as a proof of their valor.

If you spend a lot of time in Africa, you get used to it all.The most barbaric is the cannibal tribe. If you are lucky enough to see that scene, you will feel that it is nothing today.

However, this was all in the early years, and there are no such dangerous elements in Austrian Africa.Perhaps in the colonies of Britain, France and Portugal, it may still exist. "

Hutier, who seems calm, is actually hearsay.Even if he came a few years earlier than these people, he did not catch up with the colonial movement.

Falkenhayn was the first to recover, and he sighed and said slowly, "It's a barbaric world, but this may be a good thing for our next mission.

It's a pity that the main force of the French army slipped away. If we had known that they were short of ammunition, we would have launched an attack in advance. "

……

Chapter 63 Trade Deficit

The main force of the French army was not able to stay, and Hutil and others had no interest in continuing to hunt down the Egyptian colonial army.After the battle was over, the Eighth Division immediately began a large-scale conscription campaign.

In just one week, the establishment of the Eighth Division has tripled, and all the young and strong people around have been recruited.

Finally, he still has a conscience, and he didn't really learn from the rogues to incorporate men, women, children, and children into the army as cannon fodder.

The army marched along the mighty Nile River, turning a blind eye to the cities along the way, and only selected the plantations in the countryside to attack.

While destroying the manor, he recruited enslaved Egyptians into the army and spread the idea of ​​national independence.

Relying on the playing style of bullying the weak and fearing the strong, the Eighth Division can be described as smooth sailing, rapidly expanding like a snowball.

In contrast, the progress of the main force of the rebel army was much worse.Unlike Hutil and others who just leave with one vote, the top leaders of the rebel army still have pursuits.

If you want to be a warlord, you naturally need a territory.Mahdi, the leader, could no longer control the scene, and major powerful factions rushed out to grab the territory.

Even in order to grab the territory, they even fought.If it weren't for the threat from the French, it is estimated that the rebel army would have separated.

In order to unite the rebel army and jointly fight against the French's next counterattack, Lieutenant General Gerrett has repeatedly stepped out to coordinate the relationship between all parties.

However, what should be messed up will still be messed up.The composition of the rebel army was too complicated, and internal contradictions emerged endlessly. It was only under the threat of the French that they maintained an empty unity.

As the leader of the rebel army, Mahdi was very dissatisfied with this situation.However, the bombing of the Aswan Dam earlier caused his prestige within the rebel army to plummet.

If it weren't for the support of the British, it is still unknown whether he can secure his position as the boss.

By this time, if he didn't know that he was cheated by the British, Mahdi would not be able to leave a great reputation in the original time and space.

Facts have once again proved that any blame can be blamed, but black blame cannot be touched.

With the reputation of being cruel and merciless, it is difficult for Mahdi to recruit younger brothers.Everyone really didn't like this boss who might betray him at any time.

Affected by this, Lei Tingsi, the number two figure in the rebel army, directly led his troops to the valley plain, preparing to separate one side.

There was nothing Mahdi could do about it, and although he won the first round of the anti-encirclement war, his political reputation plummeted as a result.

There is no real restraint, and the rebel army raised only by personal prestige is itself a loose alliance.

Forced to do nothing, Mahdi can only join the ranks of land grabs.This dissatisfied Lieutenant General Gerrett, who wanted to attack Huanglong directly.

Lieutenant General Jerrett said righteously at the headquarters of the rebel army: "Everyone, the crisis has just begun, and it is far from the time to enjoy the fruits of victory.

The French will not resign themselves to defeat. It will not be long before they make a comeback, and then we will not have to deal with the colonial mob.

You must have heard of the name of the world's number one army.This was not blown out by the French, but shot out from the battlefield with one knife and one gun.

Winning once by fluke, but the same tactic couldn't be used a second time.After being fooled once, it is impossible for the French to be fooled a second time.

In the future, we will face an unprecedented battle.If we want to gain an advantage in the next battle, we must win here first. "

Looking at the position Lieutenant General Gerrett was pointing at with his baton, it was no surprise that it was Cairo.

This ancient city, which has political, economic, and military values ​​at the same time, is crucial to the next battle of the rebel army.

After taking Cairo, the rebel army had a chance of independence from the French.

A middle-aged man asked suspiciously: "Your Excellency, Lieutenant General, hasn't the Eighth Division already set off for Cairo?"

In his opinion, the French army in Cairo suffered heavy losses in the battle not long ago, and now it is at the time when its strength is the most empty, and it cannot stop the Eighth Division at all.

Gerrett shook his head: "Ethon, you are too optimistic, Cairo is different from the small towns you have encountered.

In fact, the reason why the rebel army progressed smoothly was that the French in these small towns were frightened and did not organize a decent confrontation at all.

Cairo is different. This is the center of Egypt, and the French will definitely not give up.

The news of the defeat on the front line has already been sent back, and the French who stayed behind probably have organized a new garrison at this moment.

In the absence of heavy firepower, the Eighth Division wanted to capture the city of Cairo, which was strictly guarded by the French, it was completely nonsense. "

Frankly speaking, Gerrett is still very satisfied with the Eighth Division under the command of the Austrians.

Whether it was destroying the cotton plantations along the way or heading straight for the delta, it was very much in Britain's interest.

Judging from the current situation, Egypt's cotton production capacity is destined to drop sharply this year, and it will be difficult to recover in the next few years.

This is undoubtedly the greatest good news for British cotton spinning enterprises.The shortage of raw materials and the drop in production capacity of competitors are undoubtedly the best time to seize the market.

Although it wasn't planned by Gerrett, it didn't prevent him from taking the credit for it.

Politics also pays attention to equivalent exchange. As the leader of the Egyptian rebellion, he will naturally receive a return from domestic companies after returning to China.

It may be economic or political. In short, Lieutenant General Gerrett has made a lot of money this time.

Encouraging the rebels to attack Cairo is only part of Lieutenant General Gerrett's plan. If possible, what he hopes most is that the rebels will approach the Suez Canal.

It is best to be able to block the navigation of the canal, and then the British Empire can use the opportunity of defending the navigation of the canal to penetrate deep into the Suez Canal area.

……

The capital market is sensitive. Affected by the defeat in the Egyptian battlefield, the stock prices of textile companies in Paris plummeted, and many companies engaged in the operation of Egyptian plantations went bankrupt directly.

In just one week, the Paris stock market as a whole fell by 11.4%, and the market value of billions of francs was evaporated.

The international cotton price also fluctuated violently. In the cotton futures market in London, the cotton price once soared by one-third.

Under this double blow, the French cotton textile industry ushered in the biggest winter.

Affected by the reduction in the supply of raw materials, countless companies announced layoffs and production cuts. The unemployment rate soared for a while, and the French economy faced challenges again.

Even though he had prepared himself, when all this really happened, Napoleon IV still seemed like a lifetime away.

No matter how hard I feel, I still have to find a way to solve the problem, otherwise a new round of economic crisis will break out again.

Having experienced the Paris Revolution, Napoleon IV was extremely vigilant against economic crises that might shake the foundation of his own rule.

"The domestic economy continues to deteriorate. What plans does the Ministry of Economic Affairs have?"

After a little thought, Economic Minister Elsa replied cautiously: "This economic turmoil is mainly due to the impact of the Egyptian rebellion, and the cotton production capacity has dropped sharply.

Coupled with the drought in North America this year and the reduction of cotton production in several federal states, a sharp rise in cotton prices in the international market is a foregone conclusion.

The Ministry of Economic Affairs suggested that the government temporarily exempt cotton import tariffs, reduce the cost of importing raw materials for textile enterprises, and at the same time provide them with low-interest loans to tide them over. "

Is it possible to reduce tariffs?

the answer is negative.

The insufficient supply of cotton in the international market means that some enterprises must not purchase enough cotton.

Capital cooperation is also based on a first-come, first-served basis. Capitalists engaged in cotton wholesale will definitely choose to cooperate with reliable old customers at similar prices.

Many supply partnerships have lasted for several years, or even decades, and they are not easily leveraged by latecomers.

Most of these enterprises are concentrated in Britain. As a rising star, the French cotton textile industry developed more after occupying Egypt, the cotton producing area.

Unless they can snap up at a high price, French textile companies simply cannot purchase enough cotton in the international market.

It is precisely because of knowing all this that many companies have announced layoffs and production reductions in advance to deal with the next crisis before the cotton reserves are exhausted.

Foreign Secretary Terrence Bulkin reminded: "It's not that simple, international cotton wholesalers are not fools, such a good opportunity, they can't not be ripped off.

If nothing else, they may use this as a threat to get us to permanently abolish the cotton import tariff. "

Tariff barriers were also one of the main reasons why the French cotton plantation economy could develop.

The high tariffs made the originally cheap cotton lose its competitiveness after entering the French market, and local plantation businessmen made a fortune.

Driven by interests, the number of capitalists investing in cotton plantations in recent years has also been increasing, and the French have basically achieved self-sufficiency in cotton.

This has harmed the interests of overseas cotton growers and wholesalers, and everyone is eager to see through this market.

Naturally, it is nothing in ordinary times. With the strength of France, these interest groups cannot shake it.

But it is different now. There is a problem with the cotton supply chain in France, and we have to find a way from the international market.

Economy Minister Elsa objected: "It is impossible to abolish the cotton import tariff. Without sufficient incentives, domestic capitalists will not invest money in cotton plantations at all.

Moreover, this is not just a cotton issue, but also involves other industries.

Once a compromise is made here, calls for us to abolish tariffs will continue to emerge.

Given the domestic economic development, we will have to adopt tariff barriers to protect domestic national industries for a long time to come. "

This is true and has been proven in previous economic crises.Participating in international competition, France is really not good enough now.

Roy Vernon, Chancellor of the Exchequer: "Not only that, our foreign exchange reserves have fallen dramatically in recent times.

Now it is necessary to purchase a large amount of cotton from the outside world, which will inevitably consume a large amount of foreign exchange, and the foreign exchange reserves of the empire have fallen into a very dangerous situation.

So far, our holdings are 3187.6 million pounds, 6542.3 million Aegis, plus other niche currencies, totaling about 17.8 billion francs. "

Since the gunfire of the Paris Revolution, the French economy has been in a state of trade deficit for many years.Relying on tariff barriers, it was hard to achieve trade balance. After a few days of good times, it has now fallen into a state of deficit.

The long-term capital outflow is obviously not conducive to the development of the national economy.Finding a way to reverse the trade deficit has become a major problem for the French government right now.

Minister of Economy Elsa: "The Marquis is right. To restore the domestic economy, we must find a way to get rid of the trade deficit.

There is no need to think about increasing exports for the time being. Even if there is no barrier of tariffs, our industrial and commercial products will not be competitive in the international arena.

In a short period of time, the best way to solve the problem is to reduce foreign exchange expenditures.

At present, the major commodities we import are: grain and coal.

Indigenous coal production is insufficient, and large coal mines have not been found in North Africa.The only large coal mine under our control is far away in the Indochina Peninsula.

However, if we want to meet local needs, the production capacity is still far from enough, and we have to bear high transportation costs, so self-sufficiency is simply impossible.

The only thing that can be figured out is food. Algeria, Tunisia, and Morocco all have areas suitable for agricultural production. As long as they are developed to meet domestic needs, it is not a problem at all.

The rate of return on investment in grain cultivation is too low, capitalists will not participate, and can only rely on government investment.

This is also a good thing. As long as we control this level, we can ensure food self-sufficiency without harming the interests of domestic farmers.

Not only can it save a lot of foreign exchange expenses, but it can also fight against our competitors in the European continent and ensure the strategic security of food. "

Since the African farm plan was proposed, Elsa has become an advocate of this policy, constantly promoting its benefits.

Of course, this is just the opinion of the outside world.In fact, Elsa did this more out of necessity.

Withdrawing from the free trade system also has advantages and disadvantages. While gaining benefits, it also needs to bear the disadvantages brought about by this policy.

If you restrict me, I will naturally restrict you.Affected by high tariffs, French industrial and commercial exports plummeted.

These are just small problems. Relying on trade protection, international competitors are driven away, and the share left in the local market is enough for capitalists to make up for losses.

But France is still a big importer of industrial raw materials?