Chapter 221

London

In any case, the British government is a hurdle that cannot be avoided. Since the German reunification process was stopped by a coalition of countries, Prime Minister Felix turned to London.

In fact, the joint intervention plan of various countries is already underway. If it can be delayed until an agreement with the southern German state is reached, it is all the Russians who help to hold back.

In this regard, the tsarist government is still very reputable, and of course the public relations expenses that Austria scatters have also played a role.

Otherwise, it is estimated that this joint declaration appeared just after the Kingdom of Saxony was settled, and then it would be difficult for Austria to proceed with the subsequent plan.

It is almost impossible to achieve these goals without making established facts and dealing with them at the negotiating table.

The joint declaration has been published for so long and the international conference has not yet been held, which is what leaves time for Austrian PR.

In other words, you Austria took advantage, we are jealous, and if we can't get enough compensation, we will do something.

This is Franz's view. If the international conference were to be held immediately, Austria would not have time to act. No, it should be said that there is no time to go to London.

At the strong request of Napoleon III, this international conference was held in Paris. The Paris government, which is close at hand, obviously has the opportunity to public relations.

Not to mention the Russians, without the support of the bears, Austria would not dare to act rashly. Obviously, the two sides have already made a deal. How could the shrewd John Bull tolerate such a thing happening?

The meeting was originally planned to be held in July, but was dragged abruptly to late August, which was requested by the British.

Faced with this situation, the Austrian government naturally had no choice, and Prime Minister Felix had to make a personal trip to London.

...

Prime Minister Felix asked on the contrary: "Mr. Henry, the importance of the Kingdom of Lombardy-Venecia to Austria, you must not be clear, the local economic value is still higher than that of South Germany.

Venice is Austria's largest foreign trade port. Most of Austria's naval ports are in the Venetian region. Do you think we might let it go? "

British Prime Minister George Hamilton-Gordon smiled and said: "Mr Felix, your country has no shortage of ports, Rijeka and Trieste are excellent ports, and in Dalmatia your country also has There are numerous ports that could be developed.”

Felix shook his head and said, "Mr. Henry, in theory, as long as it is adjacent to the sea, it can be transformed into a high-quality port, but what about the development cost?

The Dalmatia region is Austria's poorest province, with enough traffic to render any port worthless.

So let go of the proposal to drop the Lombard-Venetian kingdom, it is impossible for us to agree. "

The British wanted to unify the Italian region, balance Austria and France, and balance the power of the Mediterranean.

However, on this issue, it was opposed by Austria, France and Spain at the same time, and the reunification of the Italian region became elusive.

The Kingdom of Lombardy-Venecia is the compensation obtained by Austria for abandoning the Austrian Netherlands. It covers an area of ​​46,991 square kilometers and has a population of about 5.16 million, mainly Italians and some Germans.

This is the most fertile land in Italy, with the largest plain in Italy, the Po River Plain, where more than half of Italy’s industries are gathered, and the most prosperous port in the Mediterranean, Venice, which once occupied 30% of Austria’s fiscal revenue. %.

With such a huge economic benefit, the Vienna government cannot easily give up. Even if the British now offer to recognize the new Holy Roman Empire as a condition, Prime Minister Felix refuses.

Unable to achieve this goal, Prime Minister George Hamilton-Gordon once again put forward new conditions: "Mr Felix, your country cannot give up the Italian region, so it is not a problem to stop supporting the Russians!

Presumably you don't want to watch the Russians annex the Ottoman Empire, push their tentacles into the Mediterranean, and break the balance of Europe? "

After arriving in London, Felix had a feeling in his heart that the real goal of the British should be to dismantle the Russian-Austrian alliance.

"Mr. Henry, I think you have misunderstood, in the war in the Near East we were only neutral and never supported the Russians.

From the outbreak of the war to the present, the Austrian government has remained neutral, doing business with the Russians, adhering to the principle of free trade. "

Free trade was proposed by the British, which is one of the national policies of the British government, and Prime Minister George Hamilton-Gordon naturally cannot slap himself in the face.

George Hamilton-Gordon asked: "Has your country decided to join the free trade system?"

Felix said: "Mr. Henry, the situation in Austria is different from your country. Many people in the country are worried that once they join your country to establish a free trade system, the economy will be affected.

After all, your country's industrial strength is really too strong, and all the countries in the world together may not be able to compare with you. "

That's right, the industrial strength of the British Empire is now thriving, and there is no other country in the world that can compare with them.

However, once the countries have completed their industrialization, the weakness of the British Isles' small size and lack of resources will be exposed, and it will be another ending.

Can't the British see this? The answer is: not seen.

The current British Empire is so brilliant that they ignore possible crises. Otherwise, they start to prepare now, not to say always at the top

Peak, at least to prolong the time of world domination.

The best option in theory is to shift the focus of development to Canada and compete with the Americans for the Americas. It is not impossible to kill the United States of this era with the national strength of the British Empire.

Secondly, it is to develop Australia and invade the Nanyang region. With such a region to support it, it can also support a superpower.

The third is to develop the African continent. In this era, the total population of the African continent was only more than 20 million at most. Thanks to the prevalence of the slave trade, the African population was still in decline.

Americans can turn Indians into minorities, more professional John Bulls, or Black Uncles into protected animals.

These three choices, no matter which one it is, require a lot of manpower, material resources, and financial resources. Unless the British elites are all transmigrators, they will definitely be useless.

Although it is flickering, but in this era, this is a compliment. George Hamilton Gordon was very happy to be complimented by Felix, but this did not affect the subsequent negotiations.

George Hamilton-Gordon can be sure that the Austrian government doesn't mind joining the free trade system right away, as long as they relax on the German region.

This is obviously not Austria's bottom line, George Hamilton-Gordon continued to test: "Mr. Felix, since your country has remained neutral in the Near East War, now you occupy the land of the Ottoman Empire, should it be returned after the war? "

Felix can only sigh, he really is the master of the continental balance policy, and he thought of the problems after the end of the Near East War so quickly.

"We have to discuss this with the Ottoman government, and if they can pay enough ransom, we don't mind returning the land we occupy now."

This "ransom" is obviously not something that the Ottoman Empire can afford. It is nothing more than to make the British make concessions on the issue of re-establishing the Holy Roman Empire in Austria.

In terms of territorial area, the sum of the major states that Austria is currently targeting is not less than 140,000 square kilometers, which is less than half of the territory currently occupied by Austria in the Ottoman Empire.

Kingdom of Bavaria: 75,865 square kilometers

Kingdom of Württemberg: 20,682 square kilometers

Grand Duchy of Baden: 15,070 square kilometers

Kingdom of Saxony: 14,993 square kilometers

Principality of Hesse-Darmstadt: about 10,000 square kilometers

Frankfurt Free City 248.31 square kilometers

But the account can't be calculated like this. Austria's annexation of the southern German region is not for land, but mainly for the population. The population of these German states exceeds 10 million.

These populations can effectively make up for the weakness of the main Austrian nation, and turn the seemingly powerful Austrian Empire into a truly powerful empire.

As for the land of the Balkans, what about returning it to the Ottoman Empire? Can the current Ottoman Empire keep it?

Take the two principalities of the Danube Valley as an example, as long as Austria insists against allowing them to become independent, the Ottoman Empire can only send them back, unless they want to be neighbors with hairy bears.

If the Russians win or tie this war in the Near East, then the Ottoman Empire will be forced to manage the enclave sandwiched between the Russians and Austria. Isn't it a joke?

Austria can give up the Balkans. Only if Britain and France win the war in the Near East will Prime Minister Felix's promise be fulfilled.

This question, George - Hamilton - Gordon quickly reacted. In such inland areas, the British Empire had too little say.

Don't look at the fact that Austria seems to attach great importance to them now. In fact, it is the Russians who have the most say, followed by the French.

The London government admits it is good, but the opposition will not change the final result. As long as one of France and Russia supports Austria, rebuilding Shinra will not be a problem.

In the end, the two sides did not reach any agreement, they could not get enough benefits from Austria, and they could not force the Austrian government to make concessions. Naturally, it was impossible for John Bull to give an accurate answer.

The South German region could not intervene, but they could not give up in the North German region. Only when they reached the coastal areas could they find the prestige of Britain.

These problems, the British have a headache. Felix won't worry about them, anyway, the goodwill of Austria has brought it.

With ambiguous answers, Prime Minister Felix set out on his way home. The upcoming Paris conference, let Metternich deal with it, I have to admit that he is the most professional in this regard.