Holy Roman Empire - Chapter 99

Chapter 99: Chapter 99: Prusso-Russian Conflict

Translator: 549690339

Metternich replied helplessly, “Your Highness, the French government’s efficiency has always been low, and at this time they are still discussing in Parliament!”

He was also impressed by the French efficiency. Both sides had signed a treaty, with all conditions agreed upon in advance, yet when it came time to act, they still managed to drop the ball.

“How can the French suddenly lose interest in the Italian Area? Do they now wish to renege?” Prime Minister Felix asked doubtfully.

Metternich replied with a wry smile, “No, the French government does not intend to renege. The current debate is about how many troops to deploy, who should command them, and which unit should be sent.”

It was kind of ridiculous to think about it. Such trivial matters still required a decision from Parliament. By the time they would come to a decision, Austria might have already dealt with the Kingdom of Sardinia.

Franz rubbed his forehead and said, “Never mind, we cannot rely on our French allies anyway. We never really expected much from them. As long as they don’t cause trouble, that’s good enough.

“Keep a close eye on the British at the Foreign Office. With their way of doing things, they’ll definitely be up to something at this time. Don’t give them the opportunity.”

According to the secret treaty between France and Austria, the French should have sent troops to raid the People of Sardinian’s lair during the battle at Venice, annihilate the Kingdom of Sardinia, and then the two countries would equally divide the land of the Kingdom of Sardinia.

Now that the battle at Venice was over, the French Parliament still hadn’t come up with a result. Franz had lost hope that the French would be of much help.

“Your Highness, the French Parliament has been slow to come to a decision, and the British are behind this. Many Pro-British Faction members still oppose deployment.

“But the allure of Italy is too strong; the powers within France simply cannot resist. The French bourgeoisie and the military are driving this military operation, which silenced the opposition voices,” Metternich answered.

Franz was not surprised by British interference. If France and Austria divided the Kingdom of Sardinia, John Bull would lose tens of millions of British Pounds in loans, as well as a substantial interest in the Italian Area.

However, the internal problems in France were somewhat unexpected. He had thought that, given Austria’s major concessions and the push from the bourgeoisie and military, the division of the Kingdom of Sardinia would go smoothly, but it still stalled.

As the saying goes, the longer the night, the more dreams occur. The longer the delay, the more the British can do, and the smaller the chance for France and Austria to divide the Kingdom of Sardinia.

Still, the French would certainly not give up easily. Regardless of who is in government, they must consider the calls of interest groups.

France has been suppressed for too long, and after such a prolonged silence, the interest groups are ravenous. It won’t be easy to make them give up the feast that has fallen into their laps.

“Your Highness, if the French fail to fulfill their commitments, shouldn’t we also be allowed to tear up the agreement?

“A powerful France does not serve our interests, especially letting them expand their influence into the Italian Area!” Grand Duke Louis pondered aloud.

The temptation to monopolize Italy was too great; the overly smooth military operations had also awakened ambitions within Austria, and Grand Duke Louis merely voiced what some of them were thinking.

“Taking over the Kingdom of Sardinia alone would be too risky. We also have to consider the stance of the great powers, and we might face joint oppression from England and France,” Franz thought aloud.

He was very clear-headed, aware of Austria’s limitations. If Austria had the strength of Germany during the time of ‘Germany Second’, then monopolizing Italy might not be out of the question.

Clearly, this was not possible; Austria was unable to cope just with the alliance of England and France.

Neither Russia nor Prussia were mentioned because at that point, the two countries were at loggerheads with each other and temporarily unable to attend to matters in Italy.

After the March Revolution in Berlin, Baron von Arnim, a liberal from the Prussian diplomatic corps, took office and implemented a foreign policy favoring Britain and France and opposing Russia.

He saw through the Russians’ bluster, viewing Russia as a colossus with feet of clay. The Prussian liberals, led by him, advocated supporting the Polish Revolution to weaken Russia.

Of course, the Prussian liberals were not internationalist fighters. They supported the Franconian restoration movement and were even willing to forsake Prussian Poland, mainly aiming to contain Russia and create favorable conditions for the unification of the German Region.

Luckily, Frederick William IV intervened in time to stop this action, otherwise Prussia would have already gone to war with the Russians by that time.

Nevertheless, the liberals did not sit idle; they set their sights on the German Duchies of Schleswig and Holstein. As soon as the Berlin Revolution ended, they demanded Denmark incorporate these two duchies into Germany.

Clearly, this was bound to be met with refusal. If diplomatic efforts failed, they would resort to military action. On April 10th, Prussia took military action against Denmark, which led to an official declaration of war between the two countries on April 23rd.

Without a doubt, the now-declining Kingdom of Denmark stood no chance against Prussia and was soundly defeated on all fronts by the Prussians. By May 21st, the Prussian Army had already reached the Jutland Peninsula.

Seeing that it was untenable to continue, and with a significantly more powerful enemy, the Danish government found itself cornered and resorted to the ultimate move—summoning the big brother.

Seeing its ally being bullied, Russia as the big brother naturally had to intervene; the Russians could not afford to lose face.

“Your Highness is right; the risk of annexing the Kingdom of Sardinia alone is too great. Just look at Prussia; they wanted to annex Schleswig and Holstein, and now they find themselves in a difficult position,” Prime Minister Felix concurred.

Thinking about Frederick William IV, Franz’s mood improved considerably. Both were sharpening their knives, ready to slaughter, yet the Austrian Government’s diplomacy was in a much better position.

This time, the Ausa War was initiated by the Kingdom of Sardinia, who were in the wrong, bearing all the responsibility for the war as international public opinion largely favored Austria.

In that era, Italy was just a geographical name; no one recognized it as a nation. The so-called unification of the Italian Area had no legal basis for waging a war.

In the international community’s eyes, the war was an aggressive war launched by the People of Sardinian, and Austria did not need to bear moral responsibility. This was also why the British, despite their support for the Kingdom of Sardinia, did not take any practical action.

The German Region was also just a geographic name; in the eyes of the outside world, the German Duchies of Schleswig and Holstein had no relation to Prussia.

Of course, even if there were a relation, nobody would acknowledge it; otherwise, shouldn’t Switzerland, Netherlands, Belgium, and Luxembourg also be part of Germany?

At the very least, at the Frankfurt Assembly, these regions, along with the two duchies of Schleswig and Holstein, were considered part of Germany.

Lacking legal justification, Prussia’s military actions appeared feeble and unimpressive, putting them in a passive position diplomatically.