Chapter 914: George I in Action

  Chapter 896 George I in Action

Whether willing or not, since the French declared war on Belgium, Leopold II had no choice but to follow suit.

War without declaring this kind of thing without skin, Leopold II also can not do it, the Belgian public will not agree.

September 28, 1890, in a panic, the Belgian government issued a telegram openly declared war on France.

Undoubtedly, this telegram was not only for the French, but also for Austria.

It was as if to say: Boss, my little brother is on board, now it’s up to you.

In the afternoon of the same day, Franz made an anti-invasion speech in the Reichstag, denouncing the shameless behavior of France, and then the delegates unanimously passed a motion to declare war on France.

The next day, Franz issued a “Letter to the People of France” in the Palace of Vienna, listing a bunch of war consequences and calling on the French people to stand up against the war of aggression waged by the government.

Undoubtedly, such a persuasive instrument is half useless, have already declared war, naturally, it is impossible to listen to him yell a few times and then stop.

Of course, if the Italians were barely included in the French population, the political show would have been perfect.

As soon as the announcement was made, an anti-war, anti-invasion movement broke out in Rome and quickly spread to several Italian cities. If it hadn’t been for the incompetence of the Italian independence organizations, it could have been another popular uprising.

On September 29, 1890, the French government declared war on Austria, and on the same day the French army invaded Belgium and Luxembourg, kicking off the Continental War.

In the Hanover Royal Palace, George I is at this moment chattering and cursing, “Damn Britannia liars, all a bunch of child-bearing ……”

You can tell from the expression that George I was screwed over by the British.

The German Confederation was not weak, and there was an Austria behind it, joining the security guarantees promised by the British, George I mistakenly thought that the French were only targeting Belgium this time.

In this context, George I naturally had to encourage Austria to go on and hide behind himself to watch the show.

In order to drag Austria into the water, the anti-French alliance was established in the early stage, George I was actively cooperate.

After the signing of the treaty, George I thought that the situation had been finalized, coupled with the British people’s continued to fool, George I began to slacken off.

In any case, the German Confederation internal chaos is very much, the action delay some is also reasonable, not afraid of allies to hold accountable.

In addition to the face of the appearance, George I did not urge the states to expand the army to prepare for war, the allies urged him to push the Reichstag.

Bio two countries declared war on the French, George I is still secretly celebrating the success of the plan, who knows that the French actually even they are not spared this theater.

Because of the butterfly effect, Luxembourg remained a member of the German Confederation and did not become independent.

As the “Gibraltar of the North”, Luxembourg such a strategic location, the French naturally could not let go.

Otherwise, when the war came to a critical moment, the German army killed from Luxembourg, the French can only cry.

Facts proved that the British guarantee was worthless on the French side. Regardless of whether the German Confederation entered the war or not, the French army had already made its move anyway.

Unless George I could sit back and watch Luxembourg fall, the war was theirs for the taking.

“Your Majesty, calm your anger! We will settle the matter with the British in the future, the priority is to mobilize as soon as possible to ensure the safety of the western country.

At the same time, strengthen the ties with the allies, remove the previous misunderstandings, and find a way to win this war.” Prime Minister Aivar persuaded

Ignoring the Prime Minister, George I pursued, “What do the British say? After what happened, shouldn’t they give us an explanation?”

The central government of the German Confederation, dominated by Hanover, was pro-British from top to bottom, and even the pro-Austrian faction, which was the most numerous within the German Confederation, was a tiny minority here.

The traditional friendship between Britain and China has a long history, and for a long time the two countries shared a common monarch, and for nearly a hundred years the two countries have been the closest of allies.

Now this happened, the impact on George I can be imagined, and even the pro-British leader of the Prime Minister is not treated well.

“The British government says it’s a misunderstanding and that they’re in communication with France, telling us to remain calm for now.” Foreign Minister Weidlund replied apprehensively

Indeed it could be considered a misunderstanding, at least France and Germany hadn’t declared war on each other yet, and in theory there was still the possibility of mediation.

Calm is impossible, the French are attacking the Luxembourg region, George I can be calm, but the front line officers and soldiers can not be calm.

George I, however pro-British, was no fool. If the British government strongly announced its intervention, he could still wait and see, downplaying the misunderstanding, which was fooling the fools.

“Misunderstanding a ghost, is running to Luxembourg French army is to go on vacation?

Tell the British that if the French troops don’t pull out of the German area within 24 hours, it’s war!

Order the 1st, 2nd, and 7th Divisions stationed in the Rhineland area to reinforce Luxembourg immediately, and order the 9th and 11th Divisions to move toward the Belgian area and be ready to reinforce Belgium at any time.

Inform the representatives of the states that the Reichstag will be convened this evening. The Government immediately issues a national mobilization order in the name of the Central Government.

Make the arrangements. I’m going to Berlin tomorrow. Things have come to this. We must enlist Prussia’s support.

……”

At the critical moment, George I. still showed the qualities of a monarch, and issued a series of orders in an orderly manner.

Not wanting to go to war with the French did not mean that the German Confederation was not prepared for war. The German region has been at war for hundreds of years, and all of the vassal kings who were able to survive are all well educated, and none of them is a light that can’t be saved.

The situation in Europe was tense, how could everyone not be prepared? The biggest problem of the German Confederation was the difficulty of coordination, not the other way around.

George I was snubbed by the British and in fact was forced to do so. Because at this time to follow the French to fight a war, no matter how the victory or defeat, there is more than ninety-nine percent of the possibility of losing the throne.

Lose the war, and either be jerked off the throne by the French, or be lifted off the stage by the people.

Won the war, the merger of Germany and Austria is the general trend, in the German region Gotha dynasty has no way to compete with the Habsburg dynasty, Hanover also can not compete with Austria.

For a monarch, the loss of the throne was not just a loss of a name, but a lifelong disgrace.

The promise of the British was a lifesaver, and a deep-seated desire drove George I to believe.

Now that the lie had been demolished, George I had come to his senses. Since war could not be avoided, reality had to be faced.

Winning the war, he still had the capital to negotiate terms, and even if he could not keep the throne, he could still have a decent end.

If he lost the war, then he lost all the initiative, and could only rely on the support of the British to maintain his rule, and could be overthrown by the people at any time.

After what had just happened, George I had lost confidence in the British and was ready to stand on his own feet.

To fight the French, the importance of the Kingdom of Prussia came into play. With its brilliant record against the Russians, the Kingdom of Prussia was the force of arms of the German Confederation.

Despite the heavy losses in the previous wars and being gutted by Austria after the war, the Kingdom of Prussia still had a notable fighting strength.

“Your Majesty, in light of the current complex international situation, where the British are likely to side with the French, I propose that the payment of the British loan be suspended.” Prime Minister Ivar remedied

The German Confederation was screwed over by the British, and as the leader of the pro-British faction, Prime Minister Eval, who believed in the promises of the British, was surely responsible.

Not wanting to follow the end of Prime Minister Aivar, decisively chose to make cuts with the British, and the pro-British faction turned into an anti-British faction.

Political figures, change of face like a book, this is a normal operation, Prime Minister Aivar did not have the slightest heart pressure.

“I’m afraid this is not possible, the British government in support of the French is not false, but that is all secretly, the surface of Britain is still a neutral country.

For us to announce a debt default at this time will likely force the British literally to the side of the French, and the situation will be even more unfavorable for us.” Foreign Secretary Weidlund

It’s the 19th century, reneging on a debt is no fun, forceful collection that’s a common occurrence, and the only European country that has really succeeded in reneging on a debt these days is the Russians.

In the face of British debtors, the German Confederation obviously does not have the strength to renege on the debt. If you really tear the face, the bad luck is still their own.

After hesitating for a moment, George I gritted his teeth and said: “With the outbreak of the war on the grounds of financial constraints, send electricity to the British, tell them that we want to postpone the payment of the loan.

This time they put us on the spot, if nothing else, the London government will give us a certain amount of appeasement.

By deferring payment of the debt now, the British should not make a big fuss. Remember to be a little more sincere in your tone, and the Foreign Office should try to appease the British.

The moment it is necessary, a promise can be made to the British that we will resume payment as soon as the French withdraw their troops.”

George I to rely on the British account was also forced out, the German Confederation has money, that is the local state state money, the central government has never been poor.

Taxes can not be collected, the central government of the German Confederation, even to pay staff salaries, many times can not come up with, must be advanced by the Hanoverian financial.

War is also a gold swallowing beast, huge war funds, the central government is certainly not out of pocket.

To be borne by the governments of the states, another protracted tug of war. At this juncture, it is better to save a penny than a penny, and it is better to defer payment of the British debt than to go into financial ruin.

By the way, it would also be a good way to warn the British not to go too far, or the German Confederation would be finished, and so would their debts.

Unfortunately for George I, the bottom line was that the warning was blown out of proportion.

(End of chapter)