Chapter 504: War Begins (Part 1)

The reason for starting the Mexican-American War was outrageous. The cause was that the bribes were not enough, which led to the dissatisfaction of the border general stationed in northern New Mexico (now Utah, USA).

So the hungry Mexican general was ready to continue to ask for bribes, but the United States felt that the time was ripe and asked this fool to eat a bullet.

The shrewd US military originally thought that it could save a lot of money, because the enemy army without a leader would definitely fall into chaos, and then be defeated by its own elite.

But the result was quite ironic. As soon as the greedy general who surrendered to the United States died, he was replaced by another general who was firmly anti-American.

So the US troops who had just entered the heart of Mexico were ambushed, and they fled back to their homeland in a hurry.

Immediately afterwards, John Tyler gave a speech at the White House, declaring that "Mexicans invaded our borders and shed American blood on American territory."

This sentence should have been said by his next president, but because the Mexican-American War broke out early, the protagonist of this sentence also changed. But what did not change was the result, which announced the official start of the Mexican-American War.

John Tyler condemned the Mexicans' behavior and had to "regrettably" sign the declaration of war in response.

However, this was all an illusion. Before this, Americans had already made a lot of preparations, which was the so-called "Manifest Destiny".

"God has long decided that the Western Hemisphere belongs to the Americans, from the Atlantic to the Pacific, and perhaps from the Arctic to the Antarctic."

"The democratic system is so perfect that it will not be restricted by any national boundaries. Expansion is a means arranged by God to inspire the masses of people in neighboring countries who are ruled by tyrants. It is not imperialism, but forced salvation."

"It is necessary to constantly acquire new land to open up living space."

"Since we have become an independent people, the North American continent should become our property, just as the Mississippi River must flow into the ocean. It is an unspoken natural law."

In fact, since the early days of the founding of the United States of America, the idea of ​​expansion and colonization has not changed.

It's just that it was a little restrained in the past due to its weak strength, but at this time the US economy has surpassed the former great power Spain, which has exposed its hidden claws and become unscrupulous.

Moreover, under this continuous propaganda offensive day after day and year after year, some Americans actually believed it and thought that the land of Mexico and Canada was what the great America deserved.

At the same time, the US military had already deployed troops on the US-Mexico border. According to the military, the federal army at this time had at least 130,000 people, and according to the plan, at least 300,000 people were mobilized; and historically, it was 42,000 people and then increased to 150,000 people.

Moreover, the United States has never stopped sending expeditions to the "West" over the years. As early as the Jackson era, retired soldiers were hired to go deep into the Mexican border to draw maps.

In addition to the help of "American immigrants" over the years, Americans even know their land better than Mexicans.

On the other hand, Tasan Anna was enjoying a wonderful performance from Europe in the world's largest opera house, the Tasan Anna Opera House in Mexico City.

In the box, in addition to him, his lover and the fighting cock, there were three generals with golden chests and six fully armed colonels. These people were the so-called Mexican high-level officials.

This guy had no sense of crisis at all, and even spent a huge amount of money to reward those screenwriters and performers. Instead, it was the Austrian side that first discovered the crisis and sent someone to send a letter to Tasan Anna in Mexico City.

In fact, Franz had asked someone to pass on his own letter before, reminding the complacent president to be careful of the threat from the "East".

However, the latter ignored it, because he had received similar letters countless times and had long been numb.

Historically, the current Mexican army was only 25,000 people, but now with the help of Franz, Tasan Anna can afford an army of 300,000 on the books.

Although the actual number of people is 200,000, the strength is also eight times that of the previous one. There is no reason to lose to those annoying Americans so easily.

However, there is also an unstable factor, that is France. The decision of the Gallic rooster at this time will undoubtedly affect the balance of the war.

Franz also thought about setting up a plan for Britain and Austria to intervene together, but if the benefits are great enough, Louis Philippe's ambitions cannot be ignored.

However, the temporary allies of Britain and Austria, who share the same bed but different dreams, may not necessarily work together, and California is always someone else's land in the eyes of people inside the empire, and it will have to be returned sooner or later.

The most important point is that the purpose of operating the Austrian-Mexican Joint Development Company is to make money, not to colonize or invade Mexico.

Therefore, there will not be a one-sided call for war in the country as before, and the current empire is not yet ready to fight a transoceanic war with the great powers, so it is simply nonsense to let it join this war.

Now the only thing Franz can count on is the Austrian troops stationed in California at this time, and hope that Archduke Karl Ferdinand is a military genius like his brothers to defend this treasure land.

Another way is to send as many Umbrella employees as possible and organize medical teams and military observers to Mexico at the same time.

Although it is cruel to say this, war is definitely a catalyst for medical progress, especially for trauma medicine and surgical technology.

As for the so-called military observers, they are "selling dog meat in sheep's clothing". After all, the military level of Mexicans is more worrying than their political level.

Moreover, Austrian officers can also gain new inspiration from this war and learn and improve. You must know that "one general's success is the result of the sacrifice of thousands of people" is by no means a joke.

If there must be a bloody lesson, it is better not to shed the blood of Austrians.

Of course, the media and the church should also participate in the hype. The biggest black spot is that the Americans fought without declaring war. In fact, this barbaric practice just fits the Europeans' view of immigrants in the New World at that time.

As long as the media exaggerates it appropriately, the Americans will not be able to wash it clean.

Mexico is a Catholic country, and the church has a strong influence. The church can take the opportunity to strengthen its influence on it and encourage local people to resist the invasion of the Americans.

In addition, the most critical point is to put pressure on France, the Catholic filial son, hoping that it will show mercy for the sake of the same religion.

Armando Poli was the Mexican ambassador to the United States at that time. He asked the Washington government to return his passport and send him back to the country, but was rejected.

So the diplomatic envoy could only sneak back home on a black ship, and the so-called "declaration of war" by the Americans would take several weeks to reach Tasan Anna's hands.

In the United States, the slave owners in the South did not support this war, because according to the previous agreement, the newly joined states would not become slave states.

And increasing the number of free states is to weaken their own strength in disguise. They are naturally very reluctant to do such a thing that harms themselves and benefits others.

However, John Tyler did not expect these short-sighted guys to be of any use. He was convinced of the weakness of France, so he decided to let the slave owners in the South defend against possible attacks by the French.

In fact, the president supported slavery. He himself was a plantation owner, but he was a believer in the Constitution of the United States. He considered more the overall interests of the United States and believed more in the so-called "Manifest Destiny", so he was naturally very supportive of expanding and extending the borders of the United States.