Chapter 1109 Dragon Trapped in Shallow Water

A few weeks ago, London, England.

Prince Albert and a group of British ministers did not know where Patagonia was, but they knew clearly that the Austrian Empire had violated British interests.

How can this be tolerated? Of course I can't bear it!

As a result, the British government once again rejected the peace proposal of the Austrian Imperial Mission. Baron Brooke left the conference room expressionlessly and boarded the ship returning home.

To be honest, as a financial industry practitioner in the 19th century, it was impossible not to have any expectations for the City of London, but at this time, Baron Brooke could not hide his disappointment.

The British's ability to innovate in finance is really limited. They still rely on lending and using information gaps to make money. They are unable to make more money, let alone get it where it should go.

Graft and corruption are everywhere. Baron Brooke can conclude that the UK's economic growth rate will not be able to keep up with the debt expansion rate in the future, and eventually this country will become a weak body.

Meanwhile, Downing Street.

"The Austrians are so pushy!"

Prince Albert slapped the table angrily. This behavior shocked him. You must know that Prince Albert has always been known as a elegant gentleman in the previous 29 years.

But I don’t know when he began to unconsciously make some rude behaviors. He felt that he might be trying to show anger enough to express his determination to safeguard British interests.

However, the new British Prime Minister Edward Smith-Stanley looked helpless, because Prince Albert's choice of no war or peace was really too much to bear.

Bankers in the UK are already going crazy. Seeing that the date for insurance compensation is getting closer and closer, if the British government can't come up with a way, then they will have no choice but to go bankrupt.

A large number of ocean-going companies will also go bankrupt. In just over half a year, Britain's market share in the Mediterranean region has dropped by 90%.

If this continues, Britain will lose all the goodwill and markets it has accumulated in the Mediterranean over the past few centuries.

This time it was devastating for Britain's Mediterranean trade routes, because it was not just Austria that could fill the British vacancy.

At the same time, there was more than one country that wanted to get rid of British control. The two sides should cooperate internally and externally, which led to the current situation.

Ottoman and Egyptian cotton, wool and other primary products can be sold to France and Austria, and Austrian and French industrial products can also fill the UK's vacancies.

And due to the shortened transportation distance and lowered tariff barriers, both parties can earn more. Everyone has discovered a problem. It turns out that life is not as good as the British.

Greece's relations with the British Empire were also constantly estranged. The negative impact of the Don Pacifico incident was still continuing. Coupled with the Crete incident, the seeds of hatred between the two sides had been sown.

The enthusiasm for aiding Greece has long since been exhausted. In addition, the power of the Austrian Empire is continuing to extend to the Balkans, and the Greek government has begun to waver.

Especially after the two Mediterranean naval battles, a large number of senior Greek government officials turned to Austria. In addition, there is another point, that is, King Otto I of Greece and the Emperor of Austria are cousins.

With this relationship, it is not surprising that the Greek government has changed its direction.

But the most troublesome things for the British government are not these, but the important nodes in the Mediterranean region, Malta, Cyprus, and Gibraltar, which have been besieged for several months.

Although the Austrians did not continue to attack Gibraltar directly, they did not allow British supply ships to enter Gibraltar.

Therefore, the local British troops could only eat dry food. Theoretically, the food reserves of the Gibraltar defenders could last for two years.

But the reality is that the disaster in Spain is serious. The British troops on the island have long sold their food to the Spaniards at high prices to make extra money, so they now have to buy it from the Spaniards at a higher price.

Britain and Spain have been hostile to each other for hundreds of years. It is almost impossible to say that the Spaniards have no resentment towards the British who bullied them at their doorstep.

As a result, the food sold by the Spanish to the British was not only expensive, but also often had added ingredients. Drool, urine, excrement, soil, patient's blood, dead mice, cockroaches, potentially poisonous plants

Eventually, a plague broke out in Gibraltar, but the Spaniards were not panicked at all. After all, the plague had already been raging on the Iberian Peninsula.

“Your Highness, the Austrians are indeed greedy, but the global interests of the British Empire are being comprehensively violated.

The damned workers at home, the disgruntled farmers, the critics who disrupt social order, and the Irish on Jewel Island. "

(The island of Ireland is also known as the Jewel Island. Some British officials do not like the name of the island of Ireland. They even hate the term Ireland, thinking it is a symbol of lowliness, filth, barbarism and stupidity.)

Edward Smith-Stanley was not a strong person, and more importantly, there were many hidden dangers within his cabinet that prevented him from becoming strong at all.

Prince Albert didn't want to hear those clichés from the boring man in front of him. He had heard similar words countless times, and he himself knew the current situation.

The Americans in North America who wanted to rebuild their borders and steal wool from Britain, the indigenous and guerrilla groups in the Central American colonies, the remnants of the French army and the infiltrated Austrian spies.

South America was also a mess, with uprisings everywhere, especially in the Viceroyalty of La Plata.

Juan Manuel de Rosas, the warlord, was not a peaceful person. After eliminating dissidents, he had been trying to get rid of the control of the British.

If he knew that the Austrians would enter Patagonia, no one could guarantee what this guy would do.

This was one of the reasons why Prince Albert opposed the Austrian Empire's claim to Patagonia.

The European continent was a mess, and Russia declared war on the Ottoman Empire. If Russia continued to grow, Britain would have to give up not only the Mediterranean region, but also the hegemony of the Near East.

Although the rebellion on the Indian subcontinent had ended, the biggest threat to Britain had never been lifted. The new king of Afghanistan, Akbar Khan, had been eyeing northern India.

In the Nanyang region, in addition to the Qing pirates who harassed British merchant ships from time to time, the resentment of the Nanyang countries towards Britain was also increasing, and there was even a major rebellion in Myanmar.

For Britain, rebellion was not terrible. What was terrible was the rising security costs and reduced labor caused by the rebellion.

This would lead to lower colonial income, which would lead to further reductions in investment, and then more rebellions.

If any other country in the world faced such internal and external troubles, it would have collapsed long ago, but the British Empire is different. Its foundation is deep enough and it has the ability to hold out for a while.

"Perhaps we should support the Hungarian cause."

Prince Albert said meaningfully. After all, he didn't have many cards in his hand at this time. The Hungarians must have their own uniqueness to hold out for so long. Maybe they should be given some more practical help.