Chapter 275: Birth of the Eldest Son
Just as one wave subsides, another rises.
At the beginning of the 19th century, the great powers began to compete fiercely for the North African market, and the international situation became increasingly unfavorable for the Moroccan government.
In the 1840s and 1850s, large quantities of cheap European goods flooded into Morocco, wreaking havoc on the economy of the Kingdom of Morocco.
To reverse this situation, the Moroccan government raised tariffs in 1852, increasing the average import tariff by 20% in an attempt to protect the domestic market through high tariffs.
Clearly, this damaged the interests of the major European powers. In December 1856, the British pressured the Moroccan government into signing the Anglo-Moroccan Treaty.
The treaty gave the British extraterritoriality, the right to trade throughout Morocco, and a reduction in tariffs to 10% of the price of goods.
Once Pandoras box was opened, the situation spiraled out of control as powers rushed to gain the same rights.
The Moroccan government, believing that it had the support of the British, unequivocally rejected the demands of other countries, causing great dissatisfaction among them.
Colonial Minister Josip Jelai suggested: Your Majesty, the Moroccan government has rejected proposals from various countries. France and Spain could invade Morocco at any time. Should we also take action?
The main reason why Morocco attracted so much attention from various countries is that it was so fertile, with abundant mineral resources, 220,000 square kilometers of arable land suitable for agricultural development, and it was a major agricultural exporter in Africa with very good climatic conditions.
A mans wealth is his own ruin by causing others greed. Without poisonous insects and ferocious beasts to protect it, the Kingdom of Morocco became a fat sheep in everyones eyes.
Franz shook his head and said, Our interests in the Kingdom of Morocco are too small to justify our involvement. In recent years, we have already gained too many benefits, causing dissatisfaction among various European countries. What we need now is to digest the gains.
Although Morocco is good, it faces exploitation by Britain, France, and Spain. Instead of wasting time here, developing the ownerless African continent would be better.
Now Austria has followed in the footsteps of other countries, continuously sending exploration teams to Africa in preparation for colonization. Many private colonization groups have independently established colonies outside.
There are also some colonial teams from the German Federal Empire and the Kingdom of Prussia, which have affiliated themselves with the New Holy Roman Empire. Franz also accepted them without discrimination.
Why bother to differentiate between Germans? As long as everyone recognizes him as emperor, everything is negotiable.
For example, the colonial outpost in Cameroon was originally established by Prussian nobles, but now the Prussian government shows no interest in colonial activities.
Theres no other option. In the age of colonization, its very dangerous to colonize overseas with only personal power without the support of a country. To counter the British colonizers, they naturally united under the banner of the New Holy Roman Empire.
Another example is that capitalists from Hamburg established outposts in the Comoros Islands. The German Federal Empire, preoccupied with internal integration, neglected overseas colonization. They eventually hoisted the flag of the New Holy Roman Empire.
In short, according to the statistics of the Colonial Ministry, the number of overseas colonial outposts has reached 41, 27 of which are run by the Austrian government to establish rule over the natives.
The remaining outposts are merely nominal, set up by private colonial teams of limited strength. Often they just arbitrarily claim a piece of land and set up so-called outposts, or simply persuade a native tribe to sign a so-called protection treaty.
Under the current standards of various countries, mutual recognition is generally assumed in the absence of conflicting interests.
Even in the case of colonial disputes, negotiations usually precede any conflict, with the outpost often being purchased for a sum of money. Violence is only used when negotiations fail. If these outposts are not supported by a nation, they are often treated as pirates and wiped out.
In this era, it is common for capitalists engaged in international trade to occasionally dabble in piracy, so the accusations are not entirely unfounded.
Compared to major colonial powers like Great Britain and France, Austria can only be considered a small fry. Even small countries like Portugal and the Netherlands have colonial outposts numbering in the hundreds.
Many of these are not so much colonies as they are commercial outposts. These outposts vary in population from over a thousand to none.
Nothing is surprising about this. If theres not enough profit, its normal for private colonial teams to abandon these outposts. If someone is willing to pay, they can even be bought.
If colonization relied entirely on official promotion, with bureaucrats managing colonial outposts, the wealthy British would become the first bankrupt colonial empire. Thats because they control too much territory and too many outposts!
Franz naturally wants to learn from the successful experiences of others, while at the same time directing ambitious domestic figures abroad. Theres a saying on the European mainland that a prince has no shortage of generals and ministers, yet some may still suffer a failure of wisdom.
Even if there is room for advancement at home, Franz could not possibly allow them to form independent kingdoms. Overseas colonies, on the other hand, are a different story they can roam freely.
As long as they have the ability, if someone has the ability to conquer a kingdom, Franz will recognize it. Its just one throne, there are already several in the New Holy Roman Empire, and one more wont make any difference.
He is not afraid of people declaring independence overseas. In the European cultural system, the first consideration is not power, but bloodline. Without a bloodline, there is no legitimacy. Even the boastful Napoleon was troubled by this.
Even now, Napoleon IIIs legitimacy is questioned by outsiders. Despite the apparent stability of the French regime, its rule is actually very fragile.
No matter how powerful they become overseas, without his canonization as emperor, their regime cannot be stable.
Franz doesnt believe that anyone would willingly become president if they had the chance to be king. Even if they did, wouldnt his subordinates still want to become nobles?
In the evening, the lights were bright at Schnbrunn Palace, and important members of the House of Habsburg, located in Vienna, gathered there. The great nobles of Austria also hurried over to await the arrival of a new life.
In anxious anticipation, the usually composed Franz began to pace, beads of sweat forming on his forehead despite the winter chill in Vienna.
Franz, go back and sit down quietly. Dont pace around in front of me; youre making me uneasy.
There were only four people at the Viennese court who dared to scold Emperor Franz, and it was clear that it couldnt be Ferdinand I and his wife, who had abdicated and were living in seclusion. The answer was obvious.
Yes, Mother! Franz replied casually and then returned nervously to his seat.
The Empress is giving birth!
The doctors voice rang out, and everyone rushed into the delivery room. It was customary; to ensure the legitimacy of the princes lineage, supervision was essential.
This supervision directly affected the legitimacy of the bloodline of the next generation. Without witnesses, legitimacy would be called into question.
After all, medical technology was limited in that era, and many nobles lost their ability to bear children for various reasons, or, after much difficulty, produced an heir who turned out to be stillborn.
To ensure family succession, European nobles often borrowed seeds from outside sources.
However, these attempts were rarely successful. Those who could not prove their lineage directly lost their inheritance rights.
The supervision is imposed on the offspring of nobles, and even more so on the offspring of emperors. If its a prince, he would be the heir to the Habsburg dynasty, deception was impossible.
Amidst everyones anticipation, cries of wah, wah, wah filled the air, but before the gender could be determined, Franz rushed out.
Unfortunately, as soon as he took the first step, Archduke Karl grabbed him and sternly said, Dont go causing trouble!
Realizing his mistake, Franz immediately halted his steps. There was no need for him to help at this moment.
Its a healthy prince!
The doctors voice rang out, and everyones faces lit up with joy, signaling the arrival of the next generation of the Habsburg dynasty.
Then everyone stepped forward one by one to confirm that it was indeed a boy before the matter was considered settled. By this time a wet nurse had come forward to breastfeed while Franz continued to watch from the sidelines.
After receiving everyones congratulations and dismissing the supervisory team, Franz inquired about the Empress, who had suffered a great deal. Only then did Franz have the opportunity to interact with the little one.
Unfortunately, he was considered clumsy by the two ladies and was deprived of the right to hold the baby. His father, Archduke Karl, was similarly shunned.
As the eldest son, everyone was extremely cautious. Most of the time, the baby prince was held by experienced nurses. Even Archduchess Sophie was reluctant to hold him for fear of accidentally hurting him.
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