Chapter 173: The Cost
Saint Petersburg
Russian Foreign Minister Karl Nesselrode frowned and said, “Your Majesty, our envoy in Paris sent news that Louis Napoleon Bonaparte restored the monarchy on January 1, 1852, proclaiming himself Napoleon III.”
Hearing the news of Napoleon III’s restoration, Nicholas I became angry. In his view, the upstart House of Bonaparte was unqualified to act as French Emperor.
This was not just his personal opinion, but based on real interests as well. Napoleon coming to power through election broke the tradition of “divine right of kings”, shaking the foundations of all monarchist countries in Europe, which led to the Napoleonic Wars.
They had just suppressed this heretical absurdity, and now Napoleon III was restored, which was undoubtedly insulting to all participants of the Congress of Vienna. Most importantly, it insulted Alexander I.
What infuriated him even more was that Napoleon III even dared challenge the might of the Russian Empire. After the Holy Land Crisis erupted, the French government intervened, shaking Russia’s control over Orthodox Christianity.
With new and old hatreds combined, Nicholas I naturally could not acknowledge the legitimacy of Napoleon III. If the two were not so distant, he would have already taken action to show France the might of the Russian Empire.
Nicholas I disdainfully said, “Sure enough he’s just a nobody only capable of some petty tricks. Order our envoy in France to deliver a diplomatic note to the French government, condemning the shameless usurpation by Louis Napoleon Bonaparte, and demanding he abdicate immediately.”
Napoleon III’s restoration was naturally a swift decisive action. To avoid interference by international powers, the exact timing was kept secret.
In Nicholas I’s view, this was petty, without any imperial majesty, unworthy of being part of the group of monarchs.
Karl Nesselrode advised, “Your Majesty, isn’t such a firm response not good? This will further deteriorate relations between our nations.”
Not recognizing was one thing, but specially delivering a diplomatic note to upset Napoleon III would undoubtedly further worsen Franco-Russian relations.
Due to distance, Russia’s influence over France was not great either. This diplomatic reprimand would only embarrass Napoleon III a little at first.
In any case, no matter how fiercely the Russian government roars, Napoleon III could not possibly abdicate now. Having come this far, no matter what lay ahead, he had to continue.
Nicholas I disdainfully said, “What’s there to fear? If we offend them, then we offend them. Franco-Russian relations are like this already. How much worse could things get?”
This was Nicholas I’s attitude. It was not him being rash, but that on the Ottoman issue, Franco-Russian contradictions had become white-hot, with neither side conceding and little to no chance of reconciliation.
Facing the resolute Nicholas I, Foreign Minister Karl Nesselrode naturally would not try to dissuade him. What does the life and death of the French have to do with him?
“Yes, Your Majesty,” Karl Nesselrode replied.
Then he shifted the topic, “Your Majesty, it is now certain the Constantinople negotiations will bear no fruit. With British and French backing, the Ottoman Empire will not concede this time. We can now initiate the next phase of our plans.”
In other words, war was coming. Now, they needed a seemingly reasonable pretext. Influenced by European culture, the Russian government was no longer so reckless, and knew the importance of proper justification.
Nicholas I nodded, then said, “Order Prince Menshikov to deliver an ultimatum to the Ottoman Empire. If they still refuse our goodwill, the Foreign Ministry can fabricate a pretext!”
Goodwill? Who felt the Russian government’s “goodwill”? With such a huge appetite, even a weak Ottoman government had to firmly resist!
Compromise was slow suicide. Strong resistance still held a sliver of hope. With British and French backing, the Ottoman Empire was not completely without a chance.
“Yes, Your Majesty!” Karl Nesselrode replied.
There were thousands of possible excuses or justifications and they would surely find one. The Ottoman Empire itself was already rotten with countless messy scandals everywhere. Finding fault with them was too easy.
Constantinople has been the dream of the Russian government for generations. This was not purely because of military and economic value, but also contained tremendous political and religious significance.
In short, as long as the Russian government could successfully seize Constantinople, no matter how great the losses, it was acceptable.
In this regard, Nicholas II in history was too foolish to have fought against Germany and Austro-Hungary.
If he had bullied the Ottoman Empire first and seized Constantinople, relying on the political and religious bonuses, he could have overwhelmed all domestic contradictions.
In this respect, Nicholas I’s strategy was completely correct. Retaking Constantinople and relying on tremendous prestige, reforming domestically afterwards would have been much easier.
The internal contradictions in Russia had long caught the Russian government’s attention. It was just that the opposition was too powerful and Nicholas I did not dare act rashly.
Including Nicholas I himself, many top Russian leaderships opposed serfdom. Unfortunately, faced with the entire group of aristocrats, they cowered.
Now, the Russian government pinned their hopes on this Russo-Turkish War. As long as Constantinople is taken, everything could be easily discussed after. Failure meant having no choice but to take risks and reform internally.
……
Paris
After Napoleon III’s successful restoration, the country did not immediately stabilize. The opposition forces remained powerful, and an anti-imperialist uprising erupted in Paris on January 12.
Half a month later, the uprising spread to over 20 provinces including Toulouse, Marseille, Limoges, Périgueux, Béziers, Toulon, Bordeaux.
This was when buying over officers paid off. Napoleon III’s response was much stronger than the July Monarchy’s, immediately ordering crackdowns.
32 provinces nationwide entered martial law. In just one month, over 26,000 people were arrested, with over 10,000 more exiled. White Terror pervaded France.
Lacking effective organization and scattered nationwide, the uprising was soon suppressed.
After securing the throne, Napoleon III’s troubles came too. First was the financial crisis. To win hearts during his rise, Napoleon III had massively raised salaries.
For example: senators had annual salaries of 30,000 francs; the annual salary for councilors of state was 25,000 francs; cabinet ministers started at 40,000 francs annually, with multiple salaries for concurrent posts.
Napoleon himself had an annual salary of 26 million francs. Compared to France’s annual fiscal revenue of 1.2-1.3 billion francs, the emperor’s annuity was only 2.1%, which did not seem to be too high.
But the accounts could clearly not be calculated this way. With higher pay at the top, could lower civil servants’ wages not rise?
Undoubtedly, Napoleon III was a good leader caring about living standards, so French civil servants became happy. A “high salary” era had arrived.
After raising officials’ pay, Napoleon III naturally did not forget the army that fought alongside him, with promotions and raises.
Even the Catholic Church that supported him received 42.8 million francs in 1852. Compared to Franz cutting the Church immediately upon ascending, Napoleon III was clearly a good kid.
On the celebratory day of the new emperor’s ascension, Napoleon III also considered the people’s interests and abolished a series of harsh taxes.
Then everyone was happy and shouted “Long live the Emperor!”. The only problem was with finances.
With expenditure up and revenue down, the French government finances neared bankruptcy.
Napoleon III’s strength was manipulating hearts, but he was still a novice at governing a country and had just started.
To consolidate power, Napoleon III also expanded the civil service, increasing from 470,000 to 620,000 administrative officials.
It was worth noting that to address the Near East Crisis, Napoleon III also planned to expand the army further, but this was shelved due to fiscal woes.
Looking at the bankrupt financial reports, Napoleon III asked in anguish, “Rouher, do you have any ideas to resolve the fiscal crisis?”
Rouher smiled bitterly and replied, “Your Majesty, negotiate with financial groups. We need their support to overcome difficulties.”
Who knows who disparagingly titled him “Vice-Emperor”, but from then on Rouher became more restrained before Napoleon III.
Fortunately, this was mainland Europe. If it were the Eastern world, he would have died miserably already.
Although he still held a high position, Rouher knew the crowned Napoleon III was different from the pre-ascension Louis Napoleon Bonaparte.
As number two of this group, he had to watch his words and actions. Too cautious was no good either, as it would affect their sovereign-subject relations. But too arrogant was also bad, as it would make Napoleon III displeased.
Seeking financial group support was a middling proposal—nothing innovative yet still very effective.
The French government was poor, but French financial groups were very wealthy. After years of capital accumulation, the label of usurious empire had emerged.
But this was not a long-term solution either. Gaining financial group support also required compromises. Without sufficient interests, they would not fund him.
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