Chapter 610 Auction (Part 2)

Copenhagen, the capital of Denmark.

Christian VIII was surprised by the amazing offers he heard. At first, he just wanted to sell these colonies to survive the financial crisis.

After all, the value of these territories far away from Denmark was constantly decreasing and had been threatened by the British for a long time. It was better to sell them than to live in fear.

But the British offer was too low, it was simply robbery. However, if no one bid, Christian VIII had to agree to this loss-making deal.

Then the helpful Franz suggested to him that he could use an open auction to curb the malicious bargaining behavior of the British.

Christian VIII thought again and again and felt that the buyers were the ones who offended the British anyway, and he would not be blamed, so he started the auction.

It is not common to auction colonies, so he deliberately chose the neutral city of Frankfurt.

Soon, Denmark's colonies in India rose from the starting price of 100,000 Danish kroner to 700,000 Danish kroner. The bidders were naturally the Habsburg family.

As for the reasons, they were not needed at all. After all, it was completely reasonable for this family that could colonize deserts and glaciers to colonize India.

But Robert Peel didn't want to care about these. He just wanted to ensure the eternal foundation of the British Empire. Charles Canning at the auction was a staunch anti-Austrian and would never let Austria gain any benefits.

So the British offered 1 million Danish kroner, and before Christian VIII on the stage could get excited, Austria raised the price to 1.5 million.

Charles Canning could only helplessly raise the price to 1.6 million, followed by 1.7 million, 1.8 million, and 1.9 million.

Finally, the price was raised to 3 million Danish kroner (equivalent to 157,900 pounds). At this time, Charles Canning was already sweating profusely, because these rotten lands were not worth that much.

In order to prevent the Austrians and French from maliciously raising the price, Robert Peel allocated 200,000 pounds to Canning.

It should have been more than enough, but now the Austrian side has no intention of stopping. Especially after Canning saw that the person participating in the auction was a half-grown child (Franz), he became even more depressed.

Because when this rich young man is full of blood, it is possible to raise the price to 10 million. At the same time, Canning has heard a lot of rumors about Franz. He doesn't know whether they are true or false, but it is certain that he is spoiled.

To be honest, Canning really hates participating in the same auction with this spoiled "rich boy". He is also disgusted by "King of Pressure" Louis Philippe and "Merchant King" William II.

"3.1 million!"

"Britain bids 3.1 million! Is there anyone who wants to bid?"

There was a whisper in the venue.

"3.1 million! Once!"

There was silence in the venue.

"3.1 million! Twice!"

Canning breathed a sigh of relief. It seems that he finally survived.

However, before he could catch his breath, Franz raised the sign again.

"Three million and two hundred thousand! The Austrian Empire bid three million and two hundred thousand."

Canning looked over and saw a mocking smile on the other side, as if it was just a game.

The price continued to soar and soon reached four million. At this time, Canning finally found a problem. Whether it was Louis Philippe, the "King of Pressure", William II, the "King of Merchants", or Franz, who had been making trouble, they all seemed to have colluded and only bid against him.

The price at this time had exceeded the price of the congressional appropriation. Canning could not pay for the auction out of his own pocket, but he did not want his British competitors to have an easy time.

The final price was raised to five million Danish kroner (about 263,100 pounds), because the continued soaring price would not benefit Britain.

Because when it comes to hatred for Britain, the Danes can definitely rank among the top. The sinking of the fleet, the burning of the city, and the massacre in the capital are things that the Danes may forget.

If they can rise one day, the first person to retaliate is the British. Even if they cannot rise, the Danes are willing to help anyone who hits Britain.

Although Denmark is only an island country, it was once the overlord of Northern Europe and even invaded Great Britain. This made Britain dare not despise it, not to mention that the latter is also an island country?

Canning did not have the courage to speak harshly like Palmerston, so he could only leave in embarrassment.

Christian VIII was very satisfied with the result of the auction. Although he had to pay a 10% commission to the German Confederation, it was still a good deal compared to selling it to Britain at a low price of 100,000 Danish kroner.

However, the three countries that made the most money were Austria, France and the Netherlands. In fact, Canning's guess was correct. Austria, France and the Netherlands had colluded long ago. Instead of fighting alone, it would be better to form a group to compete with the British.

In addition to Trankripa in Tamil Nadu, Denmark's colonies in India also include Serampore in Kolkata and the Nicobar Islands.

These three colonies have their own characteristics and can just meet the different needs of the three countries. Austria and France are both powerful countries, so they prefer land on land.

Serampore is close to Calcutta, the largest opium distribution center in the 19th century. The French naturally hope to get a share of the opium trade.

The Nicobar Islands are located overseas and far away from the British. They are safe and the Dutch have rich experience in ruling small islands.

As for Tranquebar, it is strategically located near the Palk Strait. Besides, after two hundred years of operation by the Danes, it has relatively complete infrastructure and a relatively stable ruling foundation.

At the same time, there is another advantage, that is, it is close enough to Sri Lanka.

In order to finally defeat the British, Austria, France and the Netherlands prepared a total of 10 million Danish kroner, but only half of it was actually used, so it was a small victory.

According to the previously agreed distribution principle, the Netherlands needs to pay half of the cost, that is, 2.5 million, because the Nicobar Islands are the most advantageous region, and also because the Netherlands is the weakest of the three countries.

Austria and France each contributed 1.25 million Danish kroner (about 657,800 florins), which is not a big number for Austria and France, and is not even enough for the two sides to mobilize troops in the two crises of Luxembourg and Alsace-Lorraine.

But letting everyone share the benefits is a necessary act at this time, because none of Austria, France and the Netherlands can withstand the anger of the British.

However, the three countries joined forces, coupled with the approaching Sikh War, so that the British dare not act rashly.

The reason why the British dared to attack the Sikhs was that after Ranjit Singh's death, the once powerful Sikh Empire staged many dramas of loving fathers and filial sons, brothers and brothers, and even a battle between illegitimate children.

In the end, the wife of a branch of a branch of a branch became regent on behalf of the youngest son, and the power of the country was actually controlled by the army.

Not only was the emperor not very legitimate, but he was also too young to rule the country. The relatives of the emperor interfered in politics, there were many internal factions, and the local military was monopolistic, so this was the weakest time for the Sikh Empire.

The British would naturally not miss this opportunity to unify the Indian subcontinent in one fell swoop, but what they didn't know was that there was a pair of eyes in the north watching them.