Holy Roman Empire - Chapter 173
Chapter 173: Chapter 60, The Price
Translator: 549690339
St. Petersburg
The Russian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Carl-Wassell, frowned and said, “Your Majesty, the Paris Envoy has sent news that Louis-Napoleon-Bonaparte restored himself as Napoleon III on January 1, 1852.”
Upon hearing the news of Napoleon III’s restoration, Nicholas I became furious. In his view, the Napoleon family, being upstarts, had no right to act as the Emperor of France.
This was not just his personal opinion, but also a matter of practical interest. Napoleon’s rise to power through elections had broken the tradition of “divine right of kings,” shaking the foundations of all monarchies in Europe, which was the origin of the anti-French wars.
Having suppressed such heretical ideas with difficulty, the restoration of Napoleon III was a slap in the face to all participants of the Congress of Vienna, and most importantly, an insult to Alexander I.
What infuriated him even more was that Napoleon III dared to challenge the majesty of the Russian Empire by intervening in the Holy Land crisis immediately after its outbreak, undermining the Russians’ control over the Orthodox Church.
With old grudges and new antagonisms fused together, Nicholas I naturally could not recognize the legitimacy of Napoleon III. If it weren’t for the great distance between them, he would’ve already taken action to show the French the might of the Russian Empire.
Nicholas I scornfully said, “As expected, just a petty trickster, only capable of engaging in lowly schemes.”
“Order the Paris Envoy to issue a diplomatic note to the French government, denouncing Louis-Napoleon-Bonaparte’s shameless act of usurpation and commanding him to abdicate immediately,” he commanded.
The restoration of Napoleon III was a swift and decisive move, and to avoid international interference, the specific timing had been kept secret.
In Nicholas I’s view, this was pettiness unbefitting a monarch, completely lacking in regal dignity, and unworthy of being a member of the Monarch Group.
Carl-Wassell advised, “Your Majesty, such a harsh reply may not be wise; it will continue to degrade our relations with France.”
Rejecting Napoleon III and deliberately issuing a diplomatic note to offend him was undoubtedly adding insult to injury in the already frosty French-Russian relations.
Due to the distance, Russia’s influence over France was not significant; this diplomatic rebuke was simply for making Napoleon III lose face a bit at the outset.
After all, no matter how fiercely the Tsarist Government bellowed, Napoleon III was unlikely to abdicate. He must continue on regardless of what lay ahead.
“What’s there to fear?” Nicholas I disdained, “The offense has already been given. With Russo-French relations as they are, how much worse can they get?”
With an attitude of indifference, Nicholas I was prepared to break the jar. It was not out of impulsiveness, but because the conflict with the Ottoman over the issue had become acute, with neither side willing to concede and reconciliation almost impossible.
Facing the resolute Nicholas I, the Foreign Minister Carl-Wassell naturally did not counter, for what did the fate of the French have to do with him?
“Yes, Your Majesty,” Carl-Wassell replied.
He then changed the subject, “Your Majesty, it has been confirmed that negotiations in Constantinople will bear no fruit; with the support of England and France, the Ottoman Empire is unlikely to give in. We can proceed with our next plan.”
In other words, war was coming, and they needed a reasonable pretext. Influenced by European culture, the Tsarist Government was no longer as reckless as before and understood the importance of maintaining a facade.
Nicholas I nodded and then ordered, “Command Duke Menshikov to issue an ultimatum to the Ottoman Empire; if they still refuse our goodwill, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs can choose an excuse!”
Goodwill—who could feel the “goodwill” of the Tsarist Government? With such appetite, even if the Sultan Government were weak, it had to resist firmly.
A compromise would be akin to slow suicide, while a firm resistance offered a glimmer of hope. With the support of England and France, the Ottoman Empire was not without a chance of victory.
“Yes, Your Majesty!” Carl-Wassell responded.
Excuses were manifold and always forthcoming. With its deep-rooted corruption, it would be all too easy to find fault with the Ottoman Empire.
Istanbul was the dream of several generations of the Tsarist Government, not just for its military and economic value, but also for its immense political and religious significance.
In short, as long as the Tsarist Government could successfully seize Istanbul, any loss, no matter how devastating, would be acceptable.
In this respect, Nicholas II was utterly foolish for having engaged in a futile struggle against Germany and the Austro-Hungarian Empire.
If he had first bullied the Ottoman Empire and seized the Istanbul area, by leveraging the added political and religious significance, he could have completely overridden all internal contradictions.
In this respect, Nicholas I’s strategy was entirely correct. By recapturing Istanbul and leveraging his immense prestige, addressing reforms at home would be far easier.
The internal conflicts within Russia had long been noted by the Tsarist Government, but with such powerful opposing factions, Nicholas I dared not make rash moves.
Including Nicholas I himself, many high-ranking officials in Russia opposed serfdom, but unfortunately, faced with the entire Aristocratic Group, they all backed down.
Now, the Tsarist Government pinned its hopes on the Russo-Turkish War, believing that as long as they could capture Constantinople, everything would be fine afterward. If they failed, there would be no other option but to risk internal reforms.
Paris
After the successful restoration of Napoleon III, the country did not immediately stabilize, and the opposition forces were still strong. On January 12th, an anti-imperial uprising broke out in Paris.
Half a month later, the uprising spread to over twenty provinces including Toulouse, Marseille, Limoges, Perpignan, Balerina, Toulon, Bordeaux, and others.
At this time, the benefits of bribing officers became evident; Napoleon III’s response was much stronger than that of the July Monarchy, and he immediately ordered the suppression of the rebellion.
The country entered a state of martial law in 32 provinces, and in just one month, more than 26,000 people were arrested, with over 10,000 exiled, casting a white terror across France.
Because the insurgents lacked effective organization and were scattered across the country in battle, they were quickly suppressed.
Having secured his throne, Napoleon III’s troubles also arrived. The first challenge was the financial crisis, as during the restoration process, to win hearts, Napoleon III significantly increased everyone’s salary and benefits.
For example: A member of the National Senate earned an annual salary of 30,000 Francs, a State Councilor earned 25,000 Francs, and the minimum annual salary for ministers started at 40,000 Francs, with those holding multiple posts earning multiple salaries.
Napoleon himself also received an annual salary of 26 million Francs, which compared to France’s twelve or thirteen billion Francs of annual fiscal revenue, the Emperor’s annuity accounted for only 2.1% and did not seem too high.
However, this wasn’t the right way to account for it: if the upper echelons’ treatment improved, could the lower-level public servants’ salaries not increase?
Without a doubt, Napoleon III was a good leader, caring for everyone’s standard of living, so the civil servants of France were happy; the “high-salary era” had arrived.
When the government officials received pay raises, Napoleon III also did not forget the army, on the same front line as him, providing promotions and salary increases where due.
Even the Catholic Church, which had supported him, received funding of 42.8 million Francs in 1852. Compared to Franz, who had targeted the Church as soon as he took the throne, Napoleon III was clearly a good boy.
On this joyous day of the new Emperor’s accession to the throne, Napoleon III also considered the interests of the common people and abolished a series of vexatious taxes.
Then everyone was happy, chanting “Long live the Emperor” in unison, with finances being the only emerging problem.
With expenditures increasing and income decreasing, the French government’s finances were not far from bankruptcy.
Manipulating people’s hearts was Napoleon III’s forte, but when it came to governing the country, he was still a novice who had just started this journey.
To consolidate his rule, Napoleon III even expanded the civil service team, increasing the number of administrative officials from 470,000 to 620,000.
It is worth mentioning that in response to the crisis in the Near East, Napoleon III was also prepared to continue expanding the army, but due to financial difficulties, he was forced to postpone this plan.
Looking at the finance report teetering on bankruptcy, Napoleon III, with a headache, asked, “Rue, do you have any solution to the financial crisis?”
Rue replied with a wry smile, “Your Majesty, negotiate with the finance group; we need their support to get through this difficulty.”
I don’t know who gave him the title of “Deputy Emperor” to trap people. Since then, Rue became more restrained in front of Napoleon III.
Fortunately, this was the European Continent; had it been the Eastern world, by this time, he would have been torn to pieces already.
Even though he still held high power, Rue knew that Napoleon III, now Emperor, was different from Louis-Napoleon-Bonaparte before his ascension.
As the second-in-command of this group, he had to be careful with his words and actions. Being too cautious was not good, as it would affect their relationship between monarch and minister; being too arrogant was also not good, as it would cause annoyance to Napoleon III.
Seeking support from the finance group was a standard suggestion. Lacking innovation, yet very effective.
The French government was poor, but the French finance groups were very rich. After years of capital accumulation, they had earned the title of a Usury Empire.
However, this was not a long-term plan; getting support from the finance group also required a price to be paid, and without sufficient benefits, they would be reluctant to spend their money.
