Chapter 858

Since the defeat of the Russian-Prussian War, the University of Berlin has become the cradle of German nationalism, and various radical ideas have emerged one after another.

Because of the failure of the war, the Kingdom of Prussia was burdened with huge debts. In order to repay the huge debts, the Prussian government had long been overwhelmed and had no money to develop the economy.

People's life pressure is high and their dissatisfaction with the society is high, which naturally intensifies the spread of ideas.

After joining the German Confederation, with the economic help of the central government, the domestic economy of Prussia has slightly improved.

However, now that's all over. With the signing of the coal export treaty with France, the era when the German Confederation relied on high-priced coal to make huge profits came to an end, and the central government's fiscal revenue was greatly reduced.

Without this income, the states are unwilling to pay taxes to the central government, and the central government itself is in a situation of making ends meet, and naturally has no ability to help the Kingdom of Prussia.

In this context, in addition to the coal-rich Rhineland region, the most violent reaction was the Kingdom of Prussia.

From the very beginning, the Prussian government had firmly resisted the negotiations with France, but they were very soft-spoken in the Commonwealth.

Being able to let them enter the Imperial Parliament is the result of years of diplomatic efforts, and there is no decision-making power at all.

Arms can not bend thighs, the Berlin government can only passively accept. The government accepted the reality, but the people couldn't help it.

As in all regions of the German Confederation, anti-French demonstrations of varying sizes broke out.

At the University of Berlin, a group of young students were having a heated discussion. They knew that they were planning to boycott the French.

...

A young student stepped onto the podium: "Students, the demonstrations that are going on now have no effect at all, the French can't see it at all, and the weak government dare not fight against the French.

To change all that, we have to be more aggressive and let the damn French know we're not easy to bully. "

The anti-French demonstrations were effective. Domestic newspapers and magazines stopped entertainment news and supported the patriotic movement organized by the students.

Workers, middle class, capitalists, and even government officials joined the demonstrations.

In some small states, the monarchs ran out to join in the fun and appeared in the crowd of demonstrations.

The influence is enough, but unfortunately the effect is not very good. The French did not choose to compromise, and the German federal government did not dare to tear up the treaty.

"Fritz, what is more aggressive action?

Is it the containment of the French embassy?

It's useless, the corrupt central government has already sent troops to block off the embassy area, and we can't get in at all!

Willing to the government is even more useless.

The Berlin government has always opposed the compromise with the French. In fact, all states except Hanover did not support the compromise with the French. "

As a state government, this kind of thing to be scolded must of course be opposed.

Except for Hannover, the central government, who can't escape and must go up, everyone else hides as far as they want.

From the fact that the imperial parliament did not veto this treaty, we know that compromise is the common will of many states, but the Hanover family has been blamed for the culprit.

Even William II, who had just succeeded to the throne, justly issued a letter of condemnation, scolding the French and the central government together.

Anyway, under the system of the German Confederation, the central government can't help the monarch of the state, and it will be scolded if it is scolded.

Prussia was willing to cooperate with the central government in order to obtain financial assistance, which was also a condition for Prussia to agree to form a bicameral empire with Hanover.

Now that the promised assistance is gone, William II has not turned his face, but just scolded a few words without pain, which is already very face-saving.

Fritz shook his head: "Of course not, the central government is too weak, Hannover colluded with Britain and France to sell the interests of the empire, this cannot be resolved by petition.

The best way to change the current situation is to let the French see our resolve and force them to make concessions.

Previously, although we called on the public to refuse to buy French products, this was not enough. We have to do more to get the French to compromise.

I have roughly calculated that the total annual import and export trade between the German Confederation and France is about 67 million Aegis.

Among them, the export of light coal accounts for a quarter. The French want to plunder cheap coal, so we will make them unable to buy a single piece of coal.

The coal exported by the British alone is not enough for the French. As long as the trade between the two countries can be cut off, there is no fear that the French will not compromise. "

This is a fact. Once the German Confederation stops exporting coal to France, the French can't find enough substitutes for a short time.

The main coal-producing countries in Europe are Britain, Germany, Russia, and Austria. The coal from the Russians is sky-high, and the coal from Austria is rarely exported.

Although the British export of coal is large, the sudden increase in the market gap cannot be made up in a day or two.

In an enlarged version of France, the daily consumption of coal is an astronomical amount. Once there is a shortage of supply, the French economy will have problems immediately.

But the unfortunate is not only the French economy, but also the German Confederation.

If the trade between the two countries is cut off, the German Confederation will also suffer heavy losses, countless companies will go bankrupt, and millions of people may lose their jobs.

Hearing this crazy plan, Li

Sexual Hans exclaimed: "Fritz, your plan is crazy. The French will go crazy!"

Loss or something, for nationalists, is a small matter.

After all, most of the people who can enter the university are from better family backgrounds, and they have not been beaten by the society. They do not know how heavy the economic losses are. The focus of attention is still the reaction of the French.

Don't look at the loud slogans of everyone, don't be afraid that the French are just talking about it. If the French call, everyone will still panic.

Fritz sneered: "If you want to defend national sovereignty, how can you not take risks?

Even if the French really called, what would happen?

His Majesty Franz has publicly pledged to keep us safe, and everyone knows what his old man's reputation is.

Gathering the strength of all the countries in the German region, we are not afraid of the French, and even our strength is stronger.

The only thing they are afraid of now is the corrupt central government. They are worried that the outbreak of war will lead to the unification of the German region and the loss of their power. "

Looking at the emotional crowd, Hans fell into self-doubt. It seems that a war has broken out, and it is not so terrible.

Although the French are strong, the German Confederation + Austria is not weak. The disparity in the combat effectiveness of the army, no one knew before this was fought.

But fundamentally, Deoga looks really good together. The population is twice that of France, the total economy is 2.7 times that of France, and the heavy industry is 4 times that of France...

In fact, the steel output of the North German Confederation is equal to that of France, especially the steel output is still higher than that of France.

Putting aside other factors, just looking at these data, we really can't find a reason to be afraid.

Even if the French army's combat power can break the table, everyone can pile up the number. The Russian-Prussian War has proven that as long as there are enough quantities, no matter how high the quality is, it will be buried.

From the beginning to the end, the opinions of Franz, the party concerned, have been represented by everyone, and they tacitly believed that he would fight for the unification of the German region.

...

Severing trade between the two countries is easier said than done, at least not by the students at the University of Berlin.

A vigorous serial movement began to spread from Prussia to the entire German region.

Once the number of participants is too large, it cannot be kept secret, and the matter of the students' connection will soon appear on the table of the leaders of various states.

After receiving this news, William II, who was in the birthplace of the storm, was confused, and trouble came.

Multiple-choice questions are not easy to do. Students who are new-born calves dare to gamble, but it does not mean that rulers dare to gamble with all their worth.

Having personally experienced the failure of the Russian-Prussian War, William II did not have the arrogant arrogance of the original time and space, and the current Kingdom of Prussia is not the second empire.

It is naturally the best choice to be able to force the French to compromise without the outbreak of war.

But what if the situation gets out of control?

Once the war broke out, as a member of the German Confederation, the Kingdom of Prussia could not survive alone.

If the war is lost, the already unstable Hohenzollern dynasty will be destroyed directly; even if the war is won, it will be a wedding dress for others.

If it weren't for the determination that Austria was not ready for war, Wilhelm II would have suspected that this was a conspiracy of the Habsburg dynasty.

Of course, Wilhelm II had another option, and that was to immediately stop the students from connecting together to avoid the outbreak of a nationwide anti-French movement.

It will only affect the prestige of the monarch, and may even be regarded by nationalists as a betrayal and weaken the basis of their own rule.

Also in a state of confusion is George I. As the central government of the German Confederation, they bear almost all the firepower.

Sometimes George I really wants to ignore the reckless wave, win the emperor of the empire, lose the king of the state, and save so much anger.