Chapter 236 "Rome" conspiracy.
Speaking of the Italian issue, Franz’s face also darkened. After the Austro-Prussian War, Italy took away Venice. Before that, Italy also took away Lombardy and a country with the support of the French. Among the Italian affiliated forces of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, Italy is indeed the biggest enemy outside the Austro-Hungarian Empire.
Prussia gained the leadership of the German region, which was indeed never fought before, but Italy is a noob who knows how to take sides, and it also took away the territory of the Austrian Empire. As a result, there is only one Trilia left in Austria. The maintenance of a fragile navy in the port of Sturt was indeed the greatest humiliation suffered by Austria in many years.
Franz greeted Italy, Prussia and rebel Hungary in his heart. Internal and external troubles were coming one after another.
"Do you have any idea?" Franz asked.
The French are now protecting the Papal States. Nazian can be said to be the biggest promoter of Italian unification. During his early years of exile in Italy, he also joined the Italian "Carbonari" party. After Napoleon III proclaimed himself emperor in 1851, he clearly stated the "principle of nationalism" and supported the unification of Italy. In 1856, the Crimean War broke out. At the end of the war, the Kingdom of Sardinia took advantage of the rift between Britain and France to stand with the French and win the trust of Napoleon III. In order to win over France, the Kingdom of Sardinia used Savoy and Nice as rewards. With the help of France, it defeated its powerful enemy Austria, seized the Lombardy region controlled by Austria, and at the same time annexed Tuscany, which was under Austria's sphere of influence. , Parma, Modena and other small states initially unified Italy.
Looking at it this way, the geopolitical environment between Prussia, France, Italy, Hungary, Austria (Sman), and Tsarist Russia, which had a messed up relationship, was really extremely bad.
Ernst said: "The question now is whether France will lose on the European battlefield, causing it to withdraw its troops from Rome to support France."
Franz and Ferdinand They looked at each other and said in disbelief: "You mean that Prussia can pose a huge threat to France?"
It's not that you look down on Prussia, but France is recognized as the largest power in Europe, even if it is also a member of the great powers. The Austro-Hungarian Empire also had to admit this.
France has always given people the impression that it is very powerful, especially in the Napoleonic era, when it singled out all the heroes. After Napoleon's restoration, the French army's power is still strong. It regained its position from Tsarist Russia in Crimea, and even more so in recent years. Let Austria suffer a lot in Italy.
"To put it bluntly, you yourself have also fought against Prussia. At that time, Prussia defeated the Austrian Empire by itself."
"That is different, Prussia has Italy As an ally, and the situation in the empire was not very good at that time..." Franz retorted.
“I haven’t fought before, I just haven’t fought before, and everyone knows the level of Italy. To be honest, the level of the Italian army may not be able to successfully win the Abyssinian Empire in northern East Africa even in Africa. .”
“Haha...”
Franz and Ferdinand obviously didn't believe that the level of the indigenous people could be compared with that of Europe. It would be almost the same if the opponent was East Africa.
“It’s okay if you don’t believe it. Don’t be weird. Compared with your army, Italy’s level is so poor. Just admit it!”
There are cases from the last war. There, it is true that the case cannot be overturned.
“Besides, Prussia was just Prussia before, but now it is the entire North German Federation, and it is obvious to all how fast the Prussian army has grown over the years, from a rookie during the anti-French war to fighting Denmark. A draw, and later revenge Successful, it turned the Austrian Empire into the Austro-Hungarian Empire a few years ago, and at the same time gained leadership in Germany. Now four years have passed, the Prussian army should have reached a new height."
"You. It’s a bit exaggerated...”
"Am I bragging? In my opinion, I still have some say. If nothing else, the equipment quality of the Prussian army has improved a lot in recent years. After all, I am also chasing the dividends of the Second Schleswig War. Even the Prussian-Prussian War brought my business to a higher level, and the Franco-Prussian War will make a lot of money again," Ernst Deser said.
Prussia declared war on France. Among other things, with such a large army, military expenses must be raised. A lot of war bonds will definitely be issued, and the Hechingen Bank is currently large enough to do some business. Five One billion in war reparations is indispensable for oneself.
"The last time Prussia fought with you, it mobilized more than 500,000 troops in a short period of time. If Prussia attacks France this time, it will probably be a million troops!" Franz and Ferdinand did not refute this time. Integrated the North German region Prussia did have this ability. During the Austro-Prussian War, Prussia's mobilization ability was terrifying, but it was not Prussia's limit, because there were still many Austrian allies mixed in Prussia's territory at that time, and Prussia's railway system could not use its full strength.
In addition to the last war, the states annexed by the North German Federation are all densely populated and economically developed areas. Their population should be close to 30 million in recent years, and France The population is about 38 million, so the difference between the two sides is not big, because Not counting the South German region, several states in South Germany are not bad in strength. The last Austro-Prussian War established Prussia’s leadership position in the German region, so several states in South Germany will also support Prussia. Bavaria would be able to bridge the demographic gap between the two groups.
The total population of the Little Germany region exceeds 40 million, and South Germany can contain some of France's forces without using all its strength.
"Prussia must also have a battle plan against you. Although this battle will definitely not be fought, it is certain to be wary of you siding with France." Ernst teased unkindly.
I do think so! Franz said in his heart that it was actually impossible for the Austro-Hungarian Empire to participate in the war. As his foreign minister said: "The Austro-Hungarian Empire is no longer a 'defensive country' that cannot engage in territorial expansion. This country is already 'overweight' and cannot If you bring anything else, whether it is soil or gold, he will capsize."
"If France and France fight, it will probably be a very brutal war. The French are not terrible, because Napoleon III is not Napoleon the Great. , No matter whether they win or lose, France and Prussia will do their best from the beginning, and the Roman garrison closest to France will probably return to support it!" Ernst sighed: "What do you think Italy will do at this time?"
< br>“Take the opportunity to annex the Papal States!”
"That's right, so this is the last chance for the Austro-Hungarian Empire. It is difficult for the Austro-Hungarian Empire to expand, but it can still be done to cause trouble for its enemies."
"But, how can we Interfering in Italy, especially the Papal States, is on the west coast of Italy. Even if we want to mobilize the army to intervene, it will be difficult! And the French have not left yet, so we have no reason to interfere in the affairs of the Papal States." Franz asked. .
“So, arrange the troops there first!”
“How to arrange it? This is impossible!”
“The troops do not have to wear You don’t have to wear military uniforms, and you don’t have to carry weapons. You say this is an army, but I look like a devout believer on a pilgrimage to a holy place.”
"You mean to disguise yourself as a believer and enter the Papal State! If you want to interfere in the affairs of the Papal State, there must be a lot of people!"
"So you can arrange it slowly in the past two months. The number of people must be at least 5,000 to be safe. , entering the Papal States in batches, as long as they can hold back Italy, the empire will almost succeed in threatening Italy from Venice."
"How to deal with weapons!"
"Of course it is merchants. After the ship is shipped, a special diplomat should be set up. When the French army is preparing to withdraw, he can get in touch with the Pope in time and invite Austria to send troops. "
Franz fell into trouble. After thinking about it, this plan is still feasible, but the specific implementation is relatively difficult. If there is a mistake in any link, the success may be in vain. This is like gambling, making Franz, the stability-maintaining emperor, hesitant.
Ernst continued to encourage: "I missed this opportunity, but I don't even have any regrets. I don't need to tell you that the countries Italy hates the most are nothing more than France and the Austro-Hungarian Empire. According to the persimmons, pick the weak ones. Based on this principle, Italy will only become more tit-for-tat against Austria-Hungary in the future, and the hatred has already been forged in southern Austria and even the eastern Balkan Peninsula. But this is the hometown that Italy will never forget.”
“Okay, I will consider this matter, but this plan is too risky, I still have to consider it carefully, military and national affairs are not trivial, I have to deal with the army first. Discuss the feasibility of the plan before making a decision.”
(End of this chapter)