Chapter 472 The Grand French Empire

The Anglo-Austrian game in South Africa has just begun, and great changes have taken place on the European continent. This time Napoleon III showed his decisiveness and directly sent troops to control the governments of the Italian states.

Obviously, his patience has reached the limit, and he is not ready to continue dawdling with these guys.

After suppressing the weak resistance of the states, under the threat of bayonet, the governments were forced to agree to form the Italian Empire jointly with the Kingdom of Sardinia.

On August 24, 1870, the Italian Empire convened its first parliament, and the parliament elected Napoleon III as emperor.

The next day, Napoleon III couldn't wait to be crowned Emperor of Italy in Rome, namely: Emperor Napoleon I of Italy.

Immediately afterwards, Napoleon III announced the establishment of a union between France and Italy, the establishment of the Grand French Empire, and was crowned emperor again. To appease the Italians, this time there are twin capitals, Paris and Rome.

After Napoleon, the Bonaparte family once again created an empire. No, there should be two empires, the Bonaparte Dynasty of the Italian Empire and the Bonaparte Dynasty of the Grand French Empire.

Napoleon III had no regard for food and etiquette. Opportunities for the two countries to face each other are rare. If you miss this opportunity, it will be difficult to meet again in the future.

The Great French Empire was established, and the situation in Europe changed instantly. After the annexation of Italy, France is on the verge of dominating the European continent.

Because of the Prussian War, only Britain and Austria were left with the strength to intervene in the French annexation of Italy at this time.

At the same time as the eyes are focused on Vienna and London, a new round of diplomatic cooperation is also unfolding in secret, and an undercurrent against the French is surging on the European continent.

Vienna, Rao had already prepared in his heart, and Franz was still shocked by the boldness of Napoleon III.

In his plan, the Frenchman should take it one step at a time. For example: first establish the Italian Empire to unify the Italian region, and then promote the merger of the two countries, this time will last at least several years.

The Vienna government couldn't do it anymore, so Felix said immediately: "Your Majesty, we can't let the French continue to grow. This threat is too great."

It is not difficult to interrupt the French expansion plan. As long as they immediately join forces with the British, and then pull together European countries to put pressure on them, the French will most likely compromise.

Don't watch Napoleon III cut through the mess with a quick knife, make a mess, and annex Italy at all costs.

In fact, he was not ready to be the enemy of the whole of Europe, and the French did not have the courage to challenge the European continent again. This was just a demonstration to the outside world.

What really gave them confidence was the Fao Secret Pact. According to the agreement, Austria would also attack the German Federal Empire at this time, and everyone would share the international pressure.

Even the Vienna government is already doing it. Most of the state governments in the German Confederation have already turned to Austria. As long as Franz is willing to take up to a month, he can annex the German Confederation.

This is the convenience brought by the railway. Most of the countries that were attracted by Austria chose the Austrian standard, and many countries have completed the integration with the Austrian railway.

To this day, except for the Kingdom of Hanover, which has not been completely infiltrated by Austria, other states cannot escape the influence of Austria.

To be able to successfully complete this plan, in addition to the flourishing of nationalism, is more about economic interests.

The nobles and capitalists within the German Confederation have used practical actions to merge with Austria, and their interests are tied together.

Even the concentration camps of the opposition, the Kingdom of Hanover is no exception, and as time goes by, this influence will increase.

It is true that the British support them, but it is impossible for the British capitalists to share their market with them, much less allow them to enter their own colonies for development.

When Austria developed its colonies, they emigrated from Germany on a large scale, and these states were no exception.

At the same time of immigration, they also attracted local powerful factions, participated in the colonial development of Austria, and became a community of interests with many local people.

This kind of infiltration, the German federal government is powerless, can't introduce a law to prohibit the cooperation between the two sides?

Moreover, even prohibition is useless, and the following states will not buy the central government's account. Anyway, everyone has long determined that the central government does not dare to resort to force.

The French suddenly picked up their pace, and of course Austria did not keep up. From the beginning to the end, Franz was only trying to fool the French, and was not ready to unify the German region at this time.

The German region is to be unified, but this time is definitely not now. Franz is not ready to become the target of public criticism until he has the strength to dominate the European continent.

Franz tapped the table with his fingers and said, "Wait for now, the French cannot forcibly annex Italy so easily, and the internal problems cannot be solved in a short time.

Now we can just pretend. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement strongly condemning the shameless behavior of the French, and we will see the reactions of various countries. "

Just kidding, how can I let the French slip through the bait?

Grand France is so easy to establish, why didn't Napoleon directly unify Italy, but entrusted the king to rule.

If it is simply to unify Italy, Napoleon III is also the emperor of Italy, it is estimated that the Italian people can still accept it. Now it is directly incorporated into Greater France, and it is only surprising that the nationalists can accept it.

To know that they merged together but France, the cradle of revolutionary ideas,

It is estimated that it will not be long before revolutionary ideas will be introduced from France to Italy, and then the spark will catch fire.

Even the establishment of a dual empire is better than the direct annexation of Italy. At least the former will be able to stabilize as long as there is no war, no external force to break the situation, and after attracting local power factions.

Frankly speaking, with the strength of France, as long as the diplomatic work is done well, the external threat is very small. As long as the government doesn't mess up, this dualistic empire can last for many years.

If it weren't to make the scene more realistic, Franz would have had a big feast to celebrate this great victory. France will not be a threat for many years from now.

If you want to defeat France in the future, you only need to fund the Italian Revolutionary Party. Every day there are revolutions, and the strength of France will be consumed in the quagmire of Italy.

Foreign Secretary Weisenberg proposed: "Your Majesty, now that the French have attracted the attention of the outside world, should we also speed up the pace."

At this time indeed no one could prevent Austria from annexing the German Confederation. The French themselves were caught in the center of the storm, and they wished Austria would jump out and share the pressure.

Without the French thugs, the British had the most demonstrations at sea. Prussia next door was powerless, and Austria really took action. It is estimated that the first reaction of the Berlin government was not to block it, but to quickly annex Poland.

Franz sneered: "No, according to the original plan. We are not in a hurry, the German Federal Empire is there, and it will be ours sooner or later.

Now we still continue to compete with the British for South Africa, and things on the European continent are not in a hurry. As an ally, we have to share the pressure for the French. "

Fulfill the obligations of allies and share the pressure. People will not believe this. When did France and Austria become truly friendly?

Even after the alliance, the two sides did not hold back each other less. Now that Franz suddenly wants to help the French, there must be a story behind it.

The emperor didn't want to say it, and everyone couldn't help it.

Franz can't justify it. They haven't felt the power of nationalism, so they naturally don't know that this is a huge pit.

There is no way to explain it. There is no way, Franz can only do it once.

Anyway, the French annexed Italy, which is the target of public criticism. Austria will not be short of allies any time. Everyone can wait patiently.

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Austria's slack has had a huge impact on the European continent. Many people think that the Vienna government is afraid and dare not confront the French directly.

Behind this, there is also Franz fueling the flames, and there is a lot of meaning that he will not give up until France is sent to the throne of the first empire in the world.

In London, the British government, which was originally watching the excitement, wanted to pick up a bargain can no longer do it. They never expected that Austria would not come forward, which directly shattered their fantasy of sitting on the mountain and watching tigers fight.

Downing Street, Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli asked with a gloomy face: "Can anyone tell me what the Austrians are thinking, don't they know about the French threat?

Or is it that the famous Franz the Great and Felix the Jagged Prime Minister are two soft eggs who will only develop the economy at home? "

No one can answer this question, and everyone is equally puzzled. Anyway, no one thinks that Franz and Felix are soft eggs, otherwise how did the Austrian land come from?

Foreign Secretary Maclean analyzed: "My Excellency Prime Minister, my view is exactly the opposite. The Vienna government is reluctant to come forward, I am afraid it has seen our plan.

After suffering the losses of the anti-French war, it is impossible for Austria not to be afraid of the French. Now they don't start, I'm afraid they don't want to face the French alone.

Moreover, it is not Austria that will bear the brunt of France's expansion. The Italian region is a newly occupied land, and the French cannot rest assured that they will give the Italians their way back.

If an attack is launched from Central Europe, the geographical environment determines that the French can only attack from the north, and they will be safe until Belgium, the German Confederation, and the Kingdom of Prussia fall.

Since there is no threat in a short period of time, the Vienna government can naturally wait. When everyone couldn't take it anymore, they formed an anti-French alliance once again, and together they started to maim the French. "

Obviously, this will not be the result they want. If France is finished, the European continent will be Austria's world. When the German region is unified, Britain will be powerless.

To suppress France, it is the French who threaten their interests by becoming bigger. If nothing else, once the French annexed Italy, there was no place for them in the Mediterranean.

Not only that, but the French, who have had a lesson, will obviously not follow Napoleon's old path this time.

After annexing the Italian region, the French will try their best to avoid conflicts with other countries on the European continent for many years to come, reducing everyone's vigilance.

Continental Europe cannot continue to expand, so the target will definitely turn overseas. The British bore the brunt, and it was almost certain that the French would challenge their maritime supremacy.

The world's first colonial empire brought not only glory and wealth, but also challenges from various countries.

In this respect, Austria is much more stable, and the core colonies are all on the African continent.

The interests of the few overseas colonies are not big enough to make everyone turn against Austria.

In contrast, the British are very hateful and eat the biggest cake. The colonies of European countries together are not as attractive as their colonies.

Not only the colonies, but the Strait of Gibraltar at their doorstep makes the French often unable to sleep

Sleep.

The feud between Britain and France is not so easy to forget. If you don't get stuck here and divide the French navy in two, it will be the British who can't sleep.

Contradictions made it difficult for the London government to make up its mind. Now they want to suppress the French, and they are afraid of maiming France, which is a headache.

Colonial Minister Louis reminded: "Everyone, don't forget that our conflict with Austria is not over yet, and it seems that the Vienna government is not going to give up.

According to the battle report sent by the front line, we are now at a disadvantage on the battlefield, and that idiot from Delphi has sent three times of telegrams for help, and each time is more urgent.

If we don't take action, maybe the French problem is not solved, and the Cape Town colony will be lost first. "

The French were so rude, everyone's eyes were drawn to the past, and they even ignored the South African telegram for help.

Admiral Robert said excitedly: "The Cape Town colony must not be given up. The Suez Canal is controlled by France and Austria. Once the corner of good hope is in Austria's hands, our two sea routes to the Indian Ocean will not be safe."

He couldn't help but be excited. The fact that the Suez Canal fell into the hands of France and Austria had already made them very passive. If the Cape of Good Hope is lost, life for the Royal Navy will be even more difficult.

Not to mention, in case of a turn with Austria one day, the coast of Africa is a colony of the enemy, and the Royal Navy's trip to India will be a headache for even logistical supplies.

There is no need to consider the Suez Canal. Warships are now prohibited from sailing. Except for French and Austrian warships, which can run, warships of other countries must detour.

The regulations of the Canal Company are specifically aimed at the British, mainly in retaliation for the damage done by the British during the excavation of the Suez Canal.

In his heart, Benjamin didn't just scold Louis for being incompetent, he did nothing but cause trouble.

Since we were going to carry out colonial expansion, we hurried to start a war without even knowing who the enemy was. Now that I have suffered a loss, I still don't know how to admit my mistake. The scolding is scolding, and the aftermath work still needs to be done.

Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli rubbed his forehead and said: "Well, the strategic value of the Cape Town colony is very important, and we really can't afford to lose it.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs first contacted the Vienna government to see if they could negotiate. The Colonial Department came up with a plan as soon as possible to prepare to increase troops in the Cape Town area.

Now that the situation in Europe is out of control, we must resolve the Cape Town issue as soon as possible and abandon the Boer Republic if necessary. "

There is no doubt that Benjamin has tied this war to Louis. If the war is lost, the Colonial Minister can be replaced.

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