Chapter 218: End Without a Breakthrough (BONUS)
London
In any case, the British government was an obstacle that could not be bypassed. Since they had been prevented from taking the first step towards German unification, Prime Minister Felix had turned to London.
The joint intervention plan had been in the works for some time. The fact that it could be dragged out until an agreement was reached with the Southern German States was because the Russians helped to hold things back.
In this respect, the Russian government still had credibility. Of course, Austria’s public relations efforts also played a role.
Otherwise, the joint declaration would probably have appeared as soon as the Kingdom of Saxony had been dealt with. Then it would have been very difficult for Austria’s subsequent plans to proceed.
Without a fait accompli, it would have been almost impossible to achieve these goals through negotiations.
The joint declaration had been published for so long and yet no international conference had been convened. This was to allow time for Austria’s public relations.
In other words, Austria had gained advantages that made others envious. If the others could not get enough compensation from them, they would stir up trouble.
This was Franz’s view. If the international conference were to be convened immediately, Austria would have no time to act at all. No, it should be said that there would be no time to go to London.
At the insistence of Napoleon III, this international conference would be held in Paris. The nearby French government had the opportunity to lobby.
Not to mention the Russians, without the support of the Bear, Austria would not dare to act rashly. The two sides have already made a deal. How could the shrewd John Bull tolerate such a thing?
The conference was originally scheduled for July, but at the request of the British, it was forcibly postponed until the end of August.
Faced with this situation, the Austrian government naturally had no choice but to send Prime Minister Felix to London in person.
……
Prime Minister Felix replied, “Mr. George, you can’t be unaware of the importance of the Kingdom of Lombardy-Venetia to Austria. Its economic value is still greater than that of Southern Germany.
Venice is Austria’s largest foreign trade port, and most of Austria’s naval ports are in the Venetian region. Do you think we can let it go?”
British Prime Minister George Hamilton-Gordon smiled and said, “Mr. Felix, your country is not lacking in ports. Rijeka and Trieste are excellent ports, and your country has many ports to develop in Dalmatia.”
Felix shook his head and said, “Mr. George, theoretically, as long as it is near the sea, it can be turned into a high-quality port, but what about the development costs?
Dalmatia is the poorest province in Austria. The local traffic there is enough to make any port worthless.
So we should stop talking about giving up the Kingdom of Lombardy-Venetia. We can’t agree to that.”
The British wanted Italian unification to contain both Austria and France and to balance power in the Mediterranean.
On this issue, however, Austria, France, and Spain jointly opposed Italian unification, making it a remote possibility.
The Kingdom of Lombardy-Venetia was the compensation Austria received for giving up the Austrian Netherlands. It has a land area of 46,991 square kilometers and a population of about 5.16 million, mainly Italians, with some Germans.
This was the most fertile land in Italy, with the Po Valley, Italy’s largest plain. More than half of Italy’s industry was concentrated here, along with the busiest port in the Mediterranean, Venice, which once accounted for 30% of Austria’s tax revenue.
With such huge economic interests, the Austrian government could not easily let go. Even now, when the British promised recognition of the new Holy Roman Empire in exchange, Prime Minister Felix refused outright.
British Prime Minister George Hamilton-Gordon, who was unable to achieve this goal, put forward another condition: “Mr. Felix, since your country cannot give up the Italian region, stopping support for the Russians should be no problem!
Surely you don’t want to see the Russians swallow up the Ottoman Empire, reach deep into the Mediterranean, and upset the balance of Europe, do you?”
After arriving in London, Felix had a feeling that what the British wanted was to break the Russo-Austrian alliance. Now it was confirmed.
“Mr. George, I think you have misunderstood. We have always been neutral in the Near East War and have never supported the Russians.
From the outbreak of the war until now, the Austrian government has always maintained neutrality and has only done business with the Russians on the principle of free trade.”
Free trade was proposed by the British and is one of the policies of the British government. British Prime Minister George Hamilton-Gordon, of course, cannot slap himself in the face.
British Prime Minister George Hamilton-Gordon asked, “So has your country decided to join the free trade system?”
Felix bluffed, “Mr. George, the situation in Austria is different from that in your country. Many people in our country are worried that once we join your country’s free trade system, our economy will suffer.
After all, your country’s industrial strength is too strong. All the countries in the world put together may not be able to compete with you.”
Yes, the industrial strength of the British Empire is outstanding in the world at present, and no country can compare with it.
However, when all the countries complete industrialization, the weaknesses of the British Isles’ small territory and scarce resources will be exposed, and then there will be a different result.
Can’t the British see this problem? The answer is that they can’t.
The present British Empire is so big that they couldn’t even recognize the possible crisis. Otherwise, they would start preparing now. At least they could extend the time of being the world hegemon, if not forever.
Theoretically, the best choice is to shift the focus of development to Canada, compete with the Americans for the Americas, and use the strength of the British Empire to defeat the United States of this era.
The second is to develop Australia and swallow up the South Pacific. With the support of such regions, a superpower can still be maintained.
Third, develop the African continent. At present, the total population of the African continent is no more than 20 million. Due to the prevalence of the slave trade, the African population is still declining.
The Americans managed to turn Indians into ethnic minorities. The even more capable John Bull could also turn blacks into a protected species.
Each of these three options would require a massive investment of manpower, resources, and money. Unless the British elite were all time travelers, there was certainly no chance.
It was flattery, but at the time it seemed like praise to George Hamilton-Gordon, who was very happy to receive Felix’s compliment. However, this did not affect the negotiations that followed.
George Hamilton-Gordon was sure that the Austrian government would not mind joining the free trade system immediately, as long as they softened their stance on the German question.
This was not Austria’s bottom line. George Hamilton-Gordon continued to probe, “Mr. Felix, since your country has remained neutral in the Near East War, shouldn’t the Ottoman territories you now occupy be returned after the war?”
Felix could only sigh. As one might expect from a man who was in charge of the continental balance of power, he had already thought about what would come after the end of the Near East War so quickly.
“We must negotiate this issue with the Ottoman government. If they can pay a sufficient ransom, we do not mind returning the currently occupied territories to them.”
This “ransom” was unaffordable to the Ottoman Empire. It was merely intended to get the British to compromise on Austria’s re-establishment of the Holy Roman Empire.
In terms of territory, the few large German states Austria was eyeing totaled less than 140,000 square kilometers, still less than half of the current Ottoman territories occupied by Austria.
The Kingdom of Bavaria: 75,865 square kilometers
The Kingdom of Württemberg: 20,682 square kilometers
The Grand Duchy of Baden: 15,070 square kilometers
The Kingdom of Saxony: 14,993 square kilometers
The Grand Duchy of Hesse-Darmstadt: approximately 10,000 square kilometers
The Free City of Frankfurt: 248.31 square kilometers
However, the account cannot be calculated that way. Austria’s annexation of Southern Germany is not for land, but mainly for population. The population of these German states exceeds 10 million.
This population could effectively remedy Austria’s weakness of insufficient major ethnic groups and turn the seemingly powerful Austrian Empire into a truly great empire.
As for the Balkans, what was the point of returning the land to the Ottoman Empire? Could the present Ottoman Empire even hold on to it?
To take the example of the two principalities along the Danube, as long as Austria insisted on opposing their independence, the Ottoman Empire could only send them back, unless they wanted the Russian Bear as their neighbor.
If Russia won the Near East War, or at least fought the Ottomans to a draw, the Ottoman Empire would suffer miserably, caught between Russian and Austrian enclaves. It would be a joke to get them to govern this area.
Austria might give up the Balkan Peninsula, but only if Britain and France won the Near East War would Prime Minister Felix’s promise come true.
George Hamilton-Gordon soon recognized this problem. Britain had too little influence in such landlocked regions.
Although Austria now seemed to attach great importance to them, Russia’s vote was still the greatest, followed by France’s.
London’s recognition was certainly good, but the opposition would not change the outcome. As long as France and Russia support Austria, the reconstruction of the Holy Roman Empire will not be a problem.
In the end, no agreement was reached. Unable to extract sufficient benefits from Austria and unable to force the Austrian government to compromise, John Bull naturally could not give a definitive answer.
While they could not intervene in Southern Germany, they could not give up Northern Germany. Only in the coastal areas could they find Britain’s prestige.
These questions were giving the British a headache. Felix would not worry about them. In any case, Austria’s goodwill had been conveyed.
Carrying the ambiguous answers with him, Prime Minister Felix set out on his return journey. For the upcoming Paris conference, it was still best to leave it to Metternich. It had to be admitted that he was the most professional in this respect.
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