Chapter 966 "Draft on Legal Disposal"

After a series of bargaining, on December 17, 1891, the Anti-French Alliance finally reached an agreement and signed the "Draft of Disposal of the Law".

At this point, the dividend-sharing meeting is almost complete. Just get the French to sign it at the Vienna Peace Conference to confirm its legality.

Although the countries of the anti-French alliance have agreed in advance, the ability to reach a preliminary agreement in less than two months is still a manifestation of efficiency.

After getting the signed contract, Franz was very suspicious that everyone was so quick to go home for Christmas as soon as possible.

The "draft" is indeed a "draft". Except for the agreement on the general framework, the specific details are basically blank, and even many clauses are ambiguous.

For example, the territory of France that was slaughtered has only one place name, and the specific boundary line is not reflected in the treaty.

It seems clear, but in reality there is a huge difference. In the history of thousands of years in Europe, the area under the jurisdiction of the same geographical name is not static. The exact time period is not specified in the treaty.

As a vested interest, this is clearly a good thing for Austria. There is no clear agreement, which means that there is more room for manoeuvre, and it is not a problem to shift the boundary line slightly.

The boundary line is not clear, and the amount of compensation is also not fixed, but the distribution ratio of each country is agreed, and the specific details can be negotiated.

In any case, I have to leave some things for the Vienna Peace Conference to do, and listen to the opinions of various countries, otherwise the later scenes will not be able to be performed.

The content of the treaty is as follows:

Territorial

Austria reclaimed the Principality of Lorraine, the province of Alsace, and part of the Kingdom of Burgundy (Franche-Comté region), totaling about 47,000 square kilometers;

The counties of Flanders and Artois (northern Calais region) were assigned to Belgium, covering an area of ​​about 12,000 square kilometers;

The Duchy of Savoie (Haute-Savoy, Savoie) was assigned to Switzerland, with an area of ​​about 10,300 square kilometers;

Parts of Provence were assigned to the Kingdom of Sardinia, covering an area of ​​about 30,000 square kilometers;

Corsica is assigned to Tuscany, covering an area of ​​about 8,682 square kilometers;

Spain reclaimed the Roussillon area, covering an area of ​​about 24,000 square kilometers;

Andorra becomes independent (468 square kilometers), and Monaco restores its original territory (20 square kilometers).

war reparations

Austria 33.4%, the Russian Empire 20%, the German Confederation 25.5%, Belgium 15.5%, Spain 0.3%, Switzerland 0.2%, all Italian states share 4.5%, and Montenegro, Greece, and Armenia each get 0.2%.

France needs to pay a total of 50 to 80 billion Aegis of war reparations (the specific figure will be determined at the Vienna Peace Conference), and the countries will form a joint bank to provide loans to the French government to pay the indemnity, with a monthly interest of 5%, and the principal and interest will be repaid in 99 years .

...

Despite Austria's efforts, it was not able to completely divide France. Even driving the French out of the Mediterranean failed to do so.

It's not that it can't be done, it's that it can't be done. It's okay to cede territory after a defeat, but there must be a limit to ceding territory, and it's best to have a legal basis.

As a de facto continental hegemon, Austria has become the biggest beneficiary under the rules system, so it is natural to maintain the rules of the game.

In this context, the division of France and Austria is all under the banner of regaining lost land, and the land obtained is also the homeland of Shinra.

This statement is indeed a bit far-fetched, but it is better to have a legal basis than no one. Plus the fist is big enough, it is barely legal.

In contrast, the land allocated to allies is not so particular. Except for Spain's reluctance to find historical support, everything else can be considered a ceded territory.

It's not that Franz is unwilling to give more, the problem is that the size of the allies is limited.

Moreover, the distribution of benefits should also pay attention to fairness and must be able to convince the public. If the line is crossed, the prestige that Austria has finally built up will be lost.

A careful study of the benefit distribution scheme shows that the treaty is full of compromises. Except for the Russians' indemnity, which was agreed in advance, the rest were made according to their respective contributions.

For example: Spain made soy sauce on the battlefield. In addition to the pre-agreed agreement to recover the lost ground, the war reparations received are only symbolic.

Belgium, because of its heavy losses in the war, made a considerable contribution and received a lot of territory and indemnities.

The German Confederation, which also made a significant contribution, received the second largest share of war reparations after Austria because it did not receive territorial compensation.

The Kingdom of Sardinia seems to have acquired a lot of territory, but in fact, it is also based on the premise that the Duchy of Savoie is divided into Switzerland, and it has a compensatory nature.

Moreover, these benefits are not enough for their family to eat, and they must be divided with other Italian states later.

This is still the result of Austria's intentional care. Otherwise, the Italian state, which has made limited contributions to the anti-French war, can be independent. What else do you want?

This can be regarded as imitating the British tactic of burying nails. It is estimated that the relationship between the Kingdom of Sardinia and Switzerland will not be good in the future, and there is a high probability that the relationship with other states will not be good either.

Putting down the text of the treaty, Franz asked suspiciously, "Why is there no content about the allocation of colonies?"

It's not that Franz makes a fuss. As the third colonial empire in the world, there are quite a few French colonies.

Among them are high-quality assets. It stands to reason that it should be something that everyone is fighting for, but it is not mentioned in the draft now.

Wesenberg explained: "Your Majesty, the colonial issue has indeed been discussed, but everyone is more than enough.

Belgium was busy rebuilding after the war and had no extra energy to run the colonies; Spain was also fighting the Philippine war, and didn't care about fighting for the colonies.

Originally the Russians wanted to get French Indochina, but unfortunately the British were eyeing it. We cannot compete with the British in the Far East, let alone the Russians.

The rest of the countries are similar, limited by national strength, even if the colonial interests are determined at the meeting, they are unable to defend, so they simply shelved this part of the content. "

There was no mention of the German Confederation, because the German-Austrian merger was already underway. Now only to set off the image of Austria, the German Confederation alone participates in the distribution of benefits after the war.

Otherwise, Austria will take too much, which will easily lead to imbalance in everyone's heart.

In fact, some people are already unbalanced. Otherwise there would be no problem of "on hold" colony allocations.

The fattest "French Africa" ​​was swallowed by Austria, and the rest of the French colonies are scattered all over the world, all of which have their own particularities and are simply not accessible to everyone.

Since you can't get it, it is naturally out of sight. Allies do not participate in the allocation of colonies, and Austria naturally cannot force everyone to endorse it.

Franz nodded: "Since none of them are willing to participate, then we can solve the problem of the colony by ourselves.

In addition to the French Africa that has been won, we must try our best to get the French colonies overseas, as well as the French American part.

As for the French Indochina Peninsula, we can't care about it for the time being. If the British want it, we can give it to them. We can't stop it anyway.

These are small problems, but the real trouble is France's debt problem.

The final war reparations, whether it is 50 billion or 80 billion, the French cannot afford to pay, and debt default will inevitably occur.

These issues must be taken into account. Once the French default on their debts, what measures should we take and what measures can be taken should be clearly agreed in the treaty. "

If it is tens of billions of francs, it is estimated that the French government will get it together by biting its teeth. Unfortunately, the anti-French alliance wants the Aegis.

Even according to the minimum standard of 50 billion Aegis, that is 183,000 tons of gold, and it may not be possible to get it together after selling it in France.

Not only the principal, but also the interest. Calculated according to the monthly interest of five thousandths, the monthly interest is 250 million Aegis.

Not to mention the French, even Austria, the one with the Aegis, cannot afford this debt.

It doesn't matter if you don't pay, Franz was not going to let the French go back. With this debt burdened, Austria has enough reasons to prohibit the French from developing armaments.

In fact, the original plan of the French people to restrict Germany is also correct, but there was a problem in the implementation, but they killed themselves.

Prime Minister Karl reminded: "Your Majesty, this debt is too large for the French to repay.

Even if the Paris government agrees, the French people will oppose it. Once all the French people resist, not only will we not be able to get the reparations, but we will continue to invest in military spending.

In the interests of the Empire, it is better to set a reparation amount that is within their tolerance. It can not only limit the development of France, but also avoid the pressure of public opinion. "

If you can't afford it, you won't pay it back. It's not news anymore. If pressed, France is likely to enter into a state of anarchy for a long time, and then the mountains and plains are full of guerrillas.

This is continental Europe, and many extreme measures cannot be used. If the worst happened, there was practically nothing Austria could do.

The so-called military control of France is actually intimidating and superfluous. The anti-French alliance is strong, but if there is no return, I am afraid that no one wants to accompany Austria to go crazy.

Franz nodded: "The Prime Minister is right, the French really can't afford this reparation. If it is rushed, it will not be beautiful.

However, this amount of indemnity was approved by the Anti-French Alliance Conference, which means that most of our allies agree with this figure, and it is not easy for us to change it.

In two months, the Vienna Peace Conference will start, and it will be discussed at the conference, and the French will find a way to persuade the countries to reduce the amount of reparations.

As long as the French government is willing to disband the army and promise not to develop armaments, we will not make things difficult for them on the issue of reparations. "

Frankly speaking, Franz never thought that such a huge reparation figure could be passed at an internal meeting of the anti-French alliance.

According to the plan in advance, as long as the French can afford the compensation of 3 billion Aegis, Franz will be satisfied.

It's not that there can't be more, it's really meaningless. France, which lost its overseas colonies and suffered the baptism of war in its homeland, has long ceased to be the rich and powerful French Empire.

The indemnity of 3 billion Aegis is 15 million per month. To collect the monthly reparations, the nascent French government not only had to disband the army, but also had to live frugally.

The huge indemnity was proposed in itself to make the allies oppose, to be precise, to induce the Russians to oppose, to make the Russians stand on the opposite side of the West, Switzerland, Belgium, Saskatchewan and other countries.

However, the plan did not change quickly. I don't know if the Russians discovered the plan or were lured by the huge amount of compensation. In short, Russia

The representative of the country did not jump out to object.

No one objected, and Austria could not have come out against it on its own. Add up the losses from all parties, and astronomical reparations come out.

Fortunately, this is only a draft, and there is room for revision. If a formal treaty is signed, it is forcing the French government to play dead.

Similar cases have also occurred in the original time and space. After the First World War, the French proposed to the Germans 600-800 billion gold marks in indemnity, and then they were cut down to 132 billion gold marks all the way.

In the end, it was helpless to find that the defeated Germans still could not pay the reparations. In order to allow the Germans to pay the reparations, the Allied countries came up with a brain-damaged way of repaying the debt of industrial products.

Not only did it save the industry for the enemy, but it also allowed German manufacturing to enter the British and French colonies unimpeded through reparations. The capital consortium took the opportunity to make a fortune, and the sequelae was a depression in the domestic economy, and no one invested in the manufacturing industry.

With such a precedent, Franz is naturally extremely vigilant. Always remind yourself that indemnity is only a means to suppress the enemy, not the ultimate goal.