Holy Roman Empire - Chapter 443

Chapter 443: Chapter 16, Developing the Bosnia and Herzegovina Region
 

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On April 6, 1869, the weather in Stockholm was exceptionally clear, and amidst the laughter and cheers of the public, the Nordic Federation was established.

Following the collapse of the Kalmar Union, the three Nordic countries had once again achieved unification. The only regret was the absence of Finland; the Baltic region was also no longer part of it, lacking the splendor of its peak period.

The emergence of the Nordic Federation meant that Sweden, Denmark, and Norway, three peripheral countries in Europe, could now make their voices heard in the world.

Franz did not attend the ceremony in person; traveling long distances in that era was really inconvenient. Unless one enjoyed the hustle and bustle, generally people were not enthusiastic about traveling abroad.

The unification of the Nordics had little impact on Austria; it was the Russians who were troubled. It must have been quite a sight to see Alexander II’s expression at this point, as the emergence of the Nordic Federation definitely increased the defensive pressure on Russia’s northern borders.

With Prussia serving as a role model, who could guarantee that the Nordic Federation wouldn’t follow suit? If they were to snatch Finland away in one fell swoop, then the Russian Empire would have no choice but to move its capital.

St. Petersburg was indeed a nice place, but unfortunately, it had a bit too much defence pressure. It didn’t matter when the Russian Empire was strong, but once it entered a state of decline, that would be dangerous.

Compared to that, Moscow was much better. Located at the heart of Russia’s Eastern European lands, it was basically absolutely safe strategically; by the time enemies reached there, winter would spell their doom.

The areas surrounding Moscow were granaries, so there was no worry about food supplies. The rivers also facilitated the transportation of materials, making transportation relatively convenient; it would be perfect with a few more railroads.

Of course, Poland has not lost yet, and with sea routes for transportation, St. Petersburg has even more advantages. Moscow still needed development, and moving the capital would at least require the construction of a railway network first.

Alexander II certainly hadn’t thought that much when under political and military pressures, he only managed to confine the rebel army to the Moscow area.

After all this turmoil, the economy of the Moscow area had suffered a devastating blow. The bourgeoisie who supported the Revolutionary Party had shot themselves in the foot.

It is easy to start an uprising, but difficult to control it. Originally, they supported the Revolutionary Party just to fight for their rights, but now they have invested their stakes before even gaining the rights they sought.

When the civil war erupted, in the face of survival, the Revolutionary Party did not treat them gently, requisitioning what they needed and issuing IOUs where necessary.

In any case, they suffered heavy losses. Unless the rebel army achieved victory, there was a chance that these initial investments might be recovered.

If the rebel army were to fail, whether these people could avoid the Tsarist Government’s purge was a question. Alexander II was not narrow-minded, but he could not tolerate traitors.

Such a cautionary example, Franz naturally publicized widely. Recently, the Vienna newspapers began reporting more about the Moscow rebel army, where stance dictates perspective.

The blemishes of the rebel army were naturally magnified, while also indirectly beautifying the Tsarist Government. After all, Monarchist countries must sit squarely on their seat of support.

Otherwise, had Alexander II lost the Prusso-Russian War, he would have already been labeled an inept Monarch, how could he possibly have been acclaimed as a reformer?

Not just in Austria, most European media did not place the blame for the war’s failure on Alexander II, but rather on the bureaucrats he purged who shouldered the blame.

Even the reports on the Prusso-Russian War subtly downplayed the Kingdom of Prussia, emphasizing instead that the corruption of the Russian bureaucratic faction led to the war’s failure; it was clear that everyone was not yet willing to accept the rise of Prussia.

Despite the Kingdom of Prussia defeating the Russian Empire and becoming a member of Europe’s club of great powers, they had not replaced the Russians’ status.

Europe was once dominated by four great powers, but now with the Russians out, it had become three: England, France, and Austria orchestrating European affairs, and the Kingdom of Prussia did not achieve the international status they desired.

The international status of that era was not just about position; it also included the division of interests. As the beneficiaries, England, France, and Austria had no intention of sharing their discourse power with Prussia.

This was a hard pill for the Berlin Government to swallow. England, France, and Austria could all be considered world Empires, each possessing vast colonial territories, dividing the world alongside Spain, Portugal, and the Netherlands.

As a newly rising power, Prussia found itself in an awkward position. It was already the tail end of the colonial era, with the old colonial empires having completed their land grabs; even if they hadn’t physically occupied the territories, they had already laid claim to sovereignty.

Prussians had not even scraps to settle for, with only a small colony in Asia, hardly anywhere else bearing the Prussian mark.

For the Kingdom of Prussia, which was recovering economically after the war, this was very disadvantageous. Yet, the world was only so big and truly nothing was left.

In the original timeline, there was a conference to divide the African Continent among colonizers, but that was no longer needed. The lands were almost completely divided; there was no need for an international conference.

At least this was the case for coastal regions, most of which had been occupied by England, France, and Austria, with Portugal and Spain also holding some areas, the Netherlands being squeezed out.

Now it’s not a matter of giving up colonies; there just isn’t much land available for colonization. Moreover, they lacked the strength to invest overseas, and maintaining a small colony on the Indochina Peninsula was considered decent enough.

With no other options, Prussia could only focus on developing itself. At this time, the arrival of the Japanese Delegation was welcomed by the Berlin Government.

Even a mosquito is still meat; even if it is just gaining an additional overseas trading partner, that might promote the development of the domestic economy.

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The Berlin Government seized the opportunity to sell a considerable number of products to the unexpectedly favored Japanese Delegation, among which the best-selling were second-hand weapons and equipment.

Strengthening the military was the first and most crucial step in the Meiji Restoration. In this ‘survival of the fittest’ era, without sufficient military force, all the wealth accumulated would only be for others to enjoy.

Prussia’s efforts to expand the East Asian market went unnoticed by the outside world. Everyone perceived the Japanese Government as very poor, including Franz, who overlooked the Japanese mania for developing its military.

In 1869, the Japanese Delegation signed a major foreign trade contract with Prussia worth 1.58 million Divine Shields. This figure was quite significant, ranking within the top twenty of single foreign trade transaction contracts for the year.

The surprise expressed in the newspapers merely made capitalists sigh at having missed an opportunity to make money, a type of business news Franz habitually ignored.

He was now reviewing the development strategy plan for the Bosnia and Herzegovina Province, which, as one of the poorest provinces in Austria, its current government did not intend to lie idle any longer.

This was also something forced upon them. Previous provincial governments only needed to do well in one aspect to show performance, but by the time their predecessor had finished, the tasks were already complete.

The population of the Bosnia and Herzegovina Province was not large to begin with and had been deeply scrutinized. After more than a decade of consistent efforts, the assimilation work could be considered preliminarily concluded.

The language and writing had been unified, and the efforts to change customs were nearly complete. By the time of this government, the easy achievement of this fixed performance was no longer viable.

As time flies by, many in the Austrian Cabinet have grown old, and a change in office was a matter of a few years.

Candidates qualified to take over were those with outstanding administrative achievements. This did not mean that local officials had no chance; those who stood out could still rise to the top.

Even if it was a step back, becoming a minister of a department would still be a step forward. Ambitious individuals naturally would not miss the opportunity.

Franz was not afraid of his subordinates’ ambitions, which also represented motivation. If they were all idlers waiting for death, that would be the real disaster.

The Austrian bureaucratic system operated on a step-by-step promotion basis; without the political performance of local governance, there was no chance of entering the Cabinet.

Even if one wanted to form factions for personal gain, that would require the opportunity to arise. Without performance, no connections mattered, staying at the bottom was in vain.

It’s easier to break a faction than to build one. Bureaucrats are also competitive among themselves; once the primary figures within a faction become political enemies, infighting ensures.

Often, it only takes one position to achieve this goal. If the bureaucrats all become one group, it only means that the Emperor is beyond help.

Bosnia and Herzegovina did have some advantages, at least it had mines, including coal, iron, copper, manganese, lead, mercury, silver, lignite, bauxite, lead-zinc ore, asbestos, rock salt, barite, among others.

These were gifts from nature and formed the foundation for Bosnia and Herzegovina’s economic development. The government of Bosnia and Herzegovina planned to start mining, and not just mining, but also developing heavy industry.

Simply put, this meant steelmaking, copper smelting, and dealing in salt on the side. Of course, other minerals would also be developed, but these three were viewed as having more “profit potential” for now.

Franz remembered that in the original timeline, Bosnia and Herzegovina’s heavy industry had developed well, but later declined due to war.

Despite the mountainous terrain of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the presence of rivers allowed for the development of waterborne transportation. If the railway lines could be extended further, the potential for heavy industry development was there.

Austria’s heavy industry was overly concentrated in the Bohemian region, which was fine in peacetime, but during wartime, it was too close to the front lines.

The conditions in Bosnia and Herzegovina certainly couldn’t match those of the Bohemian region, but establishing a smaller heavy industrial base was still a feasible idea.

Not just Bosnia and Herzegovina, but many areas on the Balkan Peninsula had the potential for heavy industry development. Compared to the European Continent, the mineral resources on the Balkan Peninsula were quite abundant.

Not to consider the long-term development, at least at the dawn of the industrial era, the resources needed could be satisfied. However, the development costs on the Balkan Peninsula were relatively higher.

Since Bosnia and Herzegovina was already assimilated, Franz was willing to invest certain resources. If it could be developed, then it was a gain. Even if the economy didn’t flourish, having several heavy industries was a good outcome.

Without much hesitation, Franz approved the plan with a “√” on the document. The rest did not require his attention; with policy in place, it was up to the bureaucrats to freely implement the details.

Unless it was a ludicrous plan, he seldom rejected the development plans submitted by local governments.

No one can guarantee the success of any major strategic plan, but without trying, success is definitely impossible.

For a country, the margin for error is quite high. Especially for a poor province like Bosnia and Herzegovina, a few economic development plan failures wouldn’t shake the foundation.

Since the Central Government needed to subsidize the administrative expenses, how much worse could it get?

But if it succeeded just once, then that would be a massive gain. Not to mention becoming one of Austria’s most prosperous provinces, but simply achieving financial self-sufficiency would be a tremendous victory.