Holy Roman Empire - Chapter 501

Chapter 501: Chapter 74, A New Page
 

Without much hesitation, Wilhelm I agreed to the plan. Prussia’s resources were limited, and there were no valuable chips to be traded with. Now that they were issuing promissory notes, why not inflate the figures a bit?

The international situation was ever-changing. Just a few years ago, England and France were fully supporting Prussia in its resistance against Russia, but in the blink of an eye, they were looking to ease relations with the Russians.

It wasn’t that Wilhelm I didn’t want to stop all this from happening; it was simply that he couldn’t, not in the face of interests.

The already declining Russian Empire was no longer a competitor of England and France, so they could naturally play nicely together.

During the next Prusso-Russian war, even if England and France were to stand on their side, the level of support wouldn’t be as substantial as the last time. To win the war, they could only rely on their own efforts.

The Russians were a warning from history, as in the Prusso-Russian war Austria no longer gave them unconditional support. The Tsarist Government, unable to adjust their mindset in time, paid a heavy price for it.

The cooling relations between Russia and Austria were actually due to the Tsarist Government’s dissatisfaction with the Vienna Government’s reserved support during the Prusso-Russian War.

The Tsarist Government had grievances, and the Vienna Government was also uncomfortable. As far as the Vienna Government was concerned, they had already done a lot, fully fulfilling their obligations as allies, even exceeding the terms of the alliance, and yet they had to face complaints from the Russians.

Both sides considered the issues from their own standpoints. The unresolved conflict became a stumbling block between the Russian-Austrian Alliance, and the post-war relationship between the two countries never returned to its original state, a testament to this fact.

As an observer, Wilhelm I could think about the issues calmly. But when it came to his own turn, it was different; it was clear that England and France only intended to use them as pawns.

After striking down the Russians, all the support and help came to an abrupt stop. The London Government once thought about supporting Prussia to balance France and Austria but, after weighing the pros and cons, eventually decided not to proceed.

In the end, it all came down to interests. Continuing support for the Kingdom of Prussia meant that the British had to pay too great a price for too little benefit and also face fierce backlash from France and Austria.

Compared to the British, the French were even more hateful, as they had their eyes set on the Rhineland region. If it weren’t for the French’s sudden annexation of the Italian Area, causing panic among European countries and making the Paris Government hesitant to make rash moves, the Rhineland region might well have changed hands.

In the inability to annex the German Federation Empire, the Rhineland region became a thorn in the side of the Kingdom of Prussia. Wilhelm I was constantly on edge, fearful that the French might swallow it up without a second thought.

To break free from the dilemma, Wilhelm I proposed several times to join the German Federation Empire. Without a doubt, this was strongly resisted by Hanover.

How could they not be vigilant about an intrusion into their nest? The volume of the Kingdom of Prussia was much larger than that of the German Federation Empire. It sounded good to say they were joining, but another way to put it was they intended to swallow up the German Federation Empire.

Diplomacy failed, and military means were out of the question. If the Berlin Government were to take action against the German Federation Empire, Austria would certainly not agree. If they acted forcefully, a Prussia-Austria war would erupt.

That would undoubtedly be the worst-case scenario. If things were to come to that point, the Kingdom of Prussia would truly become the enemy of the world.

While fighting Austria and the German Federation, they would also have to deal with the Russians, who would kick them when they were down. It’s possible the Nordic Federation would get involved too, and even the French might join in the fray.

When it comes to interests, nothing else matters; everyone is tempted. The geographical location of the Kingdom of Prussia is arguably one of the worst among the European powers; this dictates that they must be cautious and prudent in their expansion.

The Prusso-Russian War was a challenge for Prussia but also an opportunity. The best choice for Prussia to develop and grow stronger was to rise above Russia, which was determined by the first Prusso-Russian War.

In recent years, the Berlin Government had been anything but idle; even though the government coffers were empty, they were finding ways to develop the economy. For example, using English and French capital to build railways on newly acquired lands and even helping the Polish build railways.

To raise funds for development, the Berlin Government also increased its export of resources. Minerals from the Rhineland region were exported in large quantities to France and the German Federation Empire.

With industrial and commercial products as well as mineral resources exported, the Kingdom of Prussia achieved a trade surplus. Of course, a larger reason for this was that the Kingdom of Poland provided a dumping market for Prussian industrial and commercial products.

Normally, when a country experiences a trade surplus and a significant inflow of funds from abroad, it should not be short of money.

Unfortunately, Prussia was an exception; its wealth was used to pay off debts, thus economically remaining under the control of England and France.

In order to pay off debts, the Berlin Government did its best to minimize expenses. However, this did not include military expenditure; no matter how poor, the military could not be neglected, and even now, Prussia’s military spending had never fallen below 45% of fiscal revenue.

Against such a backdrop, it’s not surprising that the Berlin Government wanted to undermine the Russian-Austrian Alliance.

Only by completely defeating the Russian Empire could the Kingdom of Prussia secure a stable international environment for development, reduce military spending, focus on economic development, and escape the debt crisis.

Splitting the Russian-Austrian Alliance was the first step to win the war. Wilhelm I was already preparing to start the war early. If he waited for the Tsarist Government to complete internal reforms, the scales of war would tip entirely in favor of the Russians.

In the first Prusso-Russian War, Prussia won due to a transportation advantage, an advantage they naturally intended to maintain.

Even after expansion, the combined territories of the Kingdom of Prussia and the Kingdom of Poland were far from comparable to Russia’s, meaning they could finish building their railways first.

The current plan was progressing very well, and Prussia’s railway construction was far ahead of anything the Russians could compete with.

Although Alexander II was trying hard, Russia was simply too large, and a few thousand kilometers of railway were insignificant for the empire.

Strategically speaking, to escape their transportation difficulties, the Russians needed at least 300,000 kilometers of railways. Even if we ignore the Asian territories and only consider the European parts, they would need 150,000 kilometers just to barely meet the needs.

“`

By comparison, the Kingdom of Prussia was in a much better position, and even with the Kingdom of Poland included, they merely needed to build another ten or twenty thousand kilometers of rail to meet their wartime needs.

Of course, to reach the level of the original time-space German Second Empire, there was still a long way to go. Only the Germans had managed to extend railways to every town and village.

On a mere 540,000 square kilometers of national territory, over 60,000 kilometers of railway had been constructed, meaning one would see a railway within every five kilometers. The rate of railway coverage that Germans had achieved remained an unbreakable world record well into the 21st century.

Naturally, this unique situation was a product of the times. Once the automotive industry developed, many railways lost their economic value and exited the stage of history.

Alexander II was also crystal clear about the transportation issues at hand. The tragedy was that he wanted to attract foreign investment in railroads, but nobody showed any interest.

It was useless to offer more favorable conditions when the Austrian bonds for railways had already ruined many capitalists, and many railway companies suffered losses for over a decade—who would dare jump into the Russians’ massive pitfall?

At present, British and French capital invested in the railways of the Prussian and Polish countries was only placed in the economically valuable main lines. Branch lines were completely untouched.

There’s even less to say about the Russian railways; if the line from St. Petersburg to Moscow was offered for bidding, no railway company would dare take the risk.

This was not just about the economic risks. The main issue was that everyone began to doubt the credibility of the Tsarist Government. What if, after finishing the railway, the Tsarist Government declared it state-owned? Then everyone would face financial ruin.

It’s worth mentioning that, at this time, Russian railways were still a state monopoly, with high operational costs that put off private capital.

An Austrian Railway Company had once gone to Russia to conduct inspections and concluded that the overall operating costs of Russian railways were three times that of the Austrian ones.

All because of the winter. Aside from a few regions, the Russian Empire was a land of snow and ice. With limited technology in this era, not only was railway operation in winter high risk, but the maintenance costs also greatly increased.

High costs were one thing, but the key issue was the sparsity of the population and the backward economy. Neither the volume of goods nor passenger traffic was sufficient, and this modest income could not satisfy the operation of railway companies.

Without any additional conditions to offer, who would be willing to take the risk of building an unprofitable railway?

Unable to generate profits, with private capital unwilling to invest, the responsibility for railway construction in Russia fell solely on the government’s shoulders, which naturally slowed down the progress.

Even by the 21st century, Russia’s transportation was still not closely related to convenience. In Europe, it was barely passable, passenger transport in Asia was still manageable, but large-scale cargo transport remained a challenge.

In this era, it was even less necessary to mention. The vast Russian Empire operated less than 10,000 kilometers of railway, to be precise, 7,876 kilometers, less than half of that of the Kingdom of Prussia.

Less than that of the same historical period, all due to the aftereffects of the war. The financially-strapped Tsarist Government also saw delays in railway construction.

…

While Wilhelm I was preparing to undermine others, Alexandrovich also arrived in London. The strange smell that greeted him and the gloomy skies caused Alexandrovich to frown deeply.

To think that London, proclaimed to be the world’s largest city, would present such a sight was profoundly disappointing.

The only pleasing sights were the tall chimneys, with dense smoke rising to the sky, dancing with the wind, which seemed like a fairyland on earth.

Oh, these sceneries were only for distant viewing and not to be played with lightly. Anyone unfortunate enough to be choked by the smoke would not be held accountable by anyone.

The London of this era was indeed the epitome of industrial beauty, one of the world’s most polluted cities, the boss of the smog world.

Alexandrovich was fortunate to have not visited in winter, or else he would have experienced the most lethal biological weapon of the era.

It was autumn now, and London’s weather was still acceptable. Visibility was a few hundred meters, and there were no mass poisoning deaths.

Greeting Alexandrovich was Edward, the Prince of Wales, and this was not their first encounter. They were also relatives as the European royal families were interconnected, which wasn’t an overstatement at all.

They shared a common father-in-law, King Christian IX of Denmark, who was respectfully referred to as the “Father-in-law of Europe.”

It was proven once again that European royal families were not to be trifled with. Even the smaller ones could not be underestimated because their circle of relatives and friends was quite powerful.

There was one nice rule within the European royal families, which was to keep family relationships separate from war. Even if the battlefields saw fierce fighting, privately, everyone could still be friends… well, more accurately, “relatives.”

This slight relationship did not influence the diplomacy between Britain and Russia. Alexandrovich was in a slightly better position, having begun to participate in government affairs and wielding some political influence.

Edward, on the other hand, was less fortunate. Because of his casual lifestyle and sometimes lack of restraint, Queen Victoria had not allowed him to be involved in any real political affairs.

In other words, he was a titular heir to the throne; aside from his noble status, he had no place in politics.

After a round of formal pleasantries, the two left the noisy port via carriage. History seemed to turn a new page at this moment.