Chapter 856 "Holy War"

Landry Prome received the start-up capital from Pius IX and embarked on a ship to France.

At this time, Pope Pius IX's brother, Holy See Secretary of State Joe Tell, raised a question.

"Why did he go to France?"

The Pope said very happily.

“As expected of a professional.”

Joetel looked puzzled. He didn't understand. Shouldn't Poland go east?

At this time, Pius IX spoke again.

"Commander Landry is a thorn in the flesh of the Austrians. Crossing the Austrian border is naturally the fastest option, but it is not safe."

Upon hearing this, Holy See Secretary of State Joe Tell couldn't help but sigh that his brother's wisdom was indeed unfathomable.

However, at this time the Austrian Empire rejected the Papal States' proposal, and the two countries were actually at war.

The Austrian Empire has a standing army of nearly half a million people, while the Papal State has only 50,000. However, considering the actual situation, the number of soldiers receiving long-term military training may not exceed 5,000.

In other aspects such as population, land area, financial revenue, weapons and equipment, the Papal State is at a comprehensive disadvantage.

And so far, no major country has declared war on Austria. The Kingdom of Sardinia has agreed to send troops, but it has to wait for a suitable time.

Among the remaining Italian states, only the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies had strong military strength, but Ferdinand II seemed to intend to sit on the sidelines.

If this continues, the Papal State's army must defeat one against a hundred in order to win.

The Secretary of State of the Holy See, Jotel, expressed his worries, but Pius IX was not worried. The latter pushed open the window, and at this time, a shocking sound rushed into the house.

"Long live Pius IX! Long live Italy! Long live liberty! Long live the Constitution!"

The roaring sound like a tsunami swept through every cell in Qiaotel's body, even giving him the urge to rush to the window and join the crowd.

"See? This is my confidence."

With his back to the window, Pius IX seemed to be glowing like the sun, and the roar of the people behind him made him look majestic.

The Secretary of State of the Holy See, Jotel, knelt down unconsciously.

"I would like to hear the oracle."

"I will launch a holy war! I will drive the Austrians out of Italy! The French will be next! They must pay back the debt they owe!"

When Jotel, the Secretary of State of the Holy See, heard that the Pope was going to launch a war against the French, he was completely shocked. He was deeply impressed by his brother's ambition. It seemed that his family's future dominance of Italy would not be a dream.

On March 2, 1848, Pope Pius IX held a swearing-in meeting of 100,000 people in Rome.

The Papal State will dispatch an army of 150,000 to conquer Austria, led by Archbishop Cavaghi.

Archbishop Cavaghi spent ten years in penance at St. Bernard's Monastery, reading ancient and modern war history. After returning to the Vatican, he devoted himself to studying for another thirty years. He was even the legendary "One Defeat" Minofel. teacher.

Pius IX placed high hopes on him, hoping that he could regain the northern Italian region occupied by the Austrian Empire in one fell swoop, and gave him his blessing.

Archbishop Cavaghi, who is 93 years old this year, compared the holy war launched by the pope to the Crusades.

Pius IX was overjoyed when he learned that, and immediately declared that "the Austrians are a hundred times more barbaric than the Arabs."

This move made Magid very hurt, and the Grand Vizier on the side also hesitated.

"Sultan, are we still on the side of the Papal State?"

"Nonsense! We don't want to help the Pope, we want to take back Belgrade."

The new Grand Vizier said yes repeatedly, but in his heart he was struggling with how to explain to the businessmen in the country.

Fueled by religious and nationalist fervor, the Italians set out on their journey to northern Italy singing their war songs.

"Weapons are polished

under the banner of asylum

sent from god

save italy

Long live Pius IX!

Long live Italy!

Long live unity!

free! "

At this time, Pius IX was not idle either. He wanted to summon all the monarchs in Italy and he wanted to unify Italy.

The Jesuits became active again and declared:

"At this time, the world was declining, the princes were rising, and only one person was left. Only Pius IX was God's only apostle on earth."

Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, Royal Palace of Naples.

Without saying a word, Ferdinand II picked up his pistol and shot the Jesuit priest who was reading the edict of Pius IX in the head.

However, before he could relieve his anger, he pulled out the pistol from the waist of his trusted minister Dozanka Xialuo and fired two more shots, and spit out two mouthfuls of phlegm before he finally vented his anger.

"Damn it! You actually want to order me?!"

Dozanka Xialuo asked in a low voice.

"Your Majesty, are we still sending troops? Or have we never seen the envoys from the Papal State at all?"

Ferdinand II sneered: "Send troops! Why not send troops? Let me recruit all those nationalists, college students, constitutionalists and the bastards of Pius IX into the army!

Those who deserted the military service were killed on the spot in the name of protecting the ninth generation, and their property was confiscated. Don't they want to support the Papal States in unifying Italy?

I want to see how sincere their hearts are! "

Dozanka Xialuo asked cautiously.

"Your Majesty, if we hand over the army to those traitors, won't we have even less chance of winning? It's fine if they lose, but if they win, wouldn't Italy belong to them?"

Ferdinando II said viciously: "Win? Do you really think the great powers are all paper tigers? Remember to let them go first, tell them that supplies will arrive later, and when they are far away, tell them to raise their own food and grass.

I don't believe they can win!"

"Your Majesty is smart!"

"Of course, these bastards want to overthrow me a hundred years too early! The war between Pius IX and Austria doesn't matter, but these bastards must not return to my land. Do you understand?"

"I understand! I understand! I will do it now!" Dozanka Xia Luo felt very happy when he thought that he could wantonly confiscate the family and exterminate the family, and his feet could not help but lighten up a bit.

The small countries ruled by the Este system in central Italy naturally had to respond to the call of Pius IX. The kings of these small countries had little power, and coupled with their long years of inaction, they were basically seized by nationalists at this time.

The worst of them should be the Grand Duchy of Tuscany. Because the death penalty was abolished, the liberals blew up the prison again.

As a result, this place became a paradise for crime, human life became the cheapest consumable, and law, morality, and order all became useless decorations.

Banks, arsenals, and shops were all looted, bridges, roads, and dams were destroyed one after another, and the largest mercury mine in Europe was blown up.

The provisional government plundered the people's wealth in the name of holy war, and even gathered an army of 200,000 men by conscripting men and coolies.

But there was an even more miserable person, the Archduke of Parma, Charles II of the Bourbon-Parma family. He originally wanted to make a big career by playing both sides, after all, both France and Austria needed him.