Rise of Empires: Spain.

Chapter 583 The Treaty on the Immutability of Royal Power (Seeking monthly votes!)
After concluding his meeting with Ferdinand II, Carlo, accompanied by Queen Sophie, visited the rooms where Queen Sophie lived in Schönbrunn Palace and reminisced about some of the Queen's childhood.

Now that they are both getting older, they sometimes can't help but reminisce about their childhood and marvel at how quickly time flies.

Carlo knew that one day he would also pass away in old age and illness, just like the old Emperor Franz Joseph I.

Carlo wasn't worried about that day coming; he was only worried that he wouldn't have accomplished what he wanted to do before that day arrived.

Fortunately, Carlo has a worthy successor. Prince Ángel Fernando's abilities are beyond question, and Carlo believes he can become an excellent ruler, maintaining and deepening Spain's reforms to make the lives of the Spanish people better and happier.

The second son, Martin, will also be an asset to Prince Juan Fernando. Although Prince Martin's abilities are not as outstanding as his brother's, they are certainly above average.

If necessary, Prince Martin will be Prince Juan Fernando's most trusted assistant, and such a blood relationship is the most reliable.

As for Alexander, the youngest son who will soon become the Grand Duke of Finland, he can also become an ally of Prince Juan Fernando, provided he can consolidate his rule.

Of course, the two should generally be in a mutually supportive relationship. While Spain will become stronger in the future, it will still need more allies to help it gain influence within the EU and internationally.

Spain has now established close relationships with the royal families of several countries. These solidified relationships will be a great asset to Spain in the future, helping it to become the dominant power in Europe.

With a few days to go before Franz Joseph I's funeral, Carlo had ample time to visit Schönbrunn Palace in Vienna, one of the three great palaces of Europe.

Schönbrunn Palace in Vienna covers a total area of ​​2.6 square meters and has 1441 rooms, 44 of which are in the Rococo style. The palace includes Oriental-style rooms (decorated with rosewood, ebony, and ivory) and Japanese-style rooms (lacquered with gold leaf), displaying Oriental artworks such as celadon and Wanli porcelain.

Although Carlo had already experienced the Royal Palace of Madrid, he couldn't help but admire the grandeur and artistic atmosphere of Schönbrunn Palace in Vienna.

It can only be said that the three major European palaces each have their own characteristics. Except for Versailles, which is ranked first, which Carlo did not visit in person, he lived in the other two palaces.

Of course, living in such a grand palace was not as wonderful as one might imagine.

Carlo prefers smaller estates, as they feel more like home.

Every winter and summer, Carlo would travel to various estates and palaces throughout Spain, only residing at the Royal Palace of Madrid in the spring and autumn.

This could be considered a display of royal capriciousness. In any case, Carlo's wealth was already countless, with numerous estates and palaces throughout Spain, allowing him to choose his own residence.

Carlo never shortchanges himself in this regard, because no matter how much money he earns, he still has to spend it on himself.

Of course, Carlo was also generous to his sons and daughters.

In addition to the property he had previously given to his sons and daughters, Carlo also bestowed upon them many manors and castles, which enriched their aristocratic background and provided them with places to live.

Although these estates are not large in scale, they are all meticulously decorated, with a level of luxury that even ordinary nobles cannot afford. Only in the homes of Spanish nobles of the rank of duke or above can one see a similar style of decoration to that of the Spanish royal family.

The most expensive part of palace decoration is probably the different decoration styles from around the world, as well as cultural and artistic items from all over the world.

These artworks are generally of extremely high value. Carlo collected a large number of cultural and artistic works from all over the world at the Royal Palace of Madrid, which also added to the artistic atmosphere of the Royal Palace of Madrid.

If even a few of these artworks were to circulate in the future, they would fetch astronomical prices at auctions.

This can be considered a gift that Carlo left to future monarchs. If the Spanish monarchy were to be overthrown, even if the royal family members relinquished the Spanish throne, they could still live a luxurious life that ordinary wealthy people could not afford, thanks to the rich resources they had accumulated over the years.

Of course, that day is unlikely to come anytime soon. As long as the education of the heir to the throne is properly managed, ensuring a stable succession, Carlo believes the Spanish throne will continue to be passed down and remain inextricably linked to Spain.

After all, Spain has now passed through the most difficult period, and with the country's overall strength rising steadily, the living standards of its people are also continuously improving.

Furthermore, the Spanish monarchy has already won over the peasantry and working class, leaving no class capable of forming a political force strong enough to overthrow the monarchy.

As long as the future King of Spain doesn't lose his mind and make any outrageous decisions, the Spanish throne will be secure; at most, the government will simply be a figurehead.

While awaiting the funeral of Franz Joseph I, Carlo also met with diplomatic representatives from Italy, Britain, and France, and had close conversations with them.

Although the actual relationships among the four major powers were very complex, they cannot be entirely categorized as competition and conflict. There were also cooperative relationships among them, and none of them wanted to break ties with the other unless absolutely necessary.

As the de facto ruler of Spain, Carlos enjoyed considerable prestige in Europe. He wielded immense influence within European royalty and governments; even the British Prime Minister had to personally request an audience with him to express respect for Spain and Carlos himself.

Of course, when meeting with the diplomatic representatives of these great powers, Carlo would not put on any airs of royalty.

The talks with the British and French diplomatic representatives were also quite uneventful, consisting of only superficial greetings and a few simple remarks on the international situation before they were abruptly ended.

However, Carlo had a rather in-depth conversation with the Italian diplomatic representative.

Unlike Carlo, who came to Vienna in person, the relationship between the Italian and Austrian royal families has always been somewhat distant. This led King Vittorio Emanuele III of Italy to send his prime minister instead of coming in person.

Sending the prime minister is sufficient, since the prime minister is the head of the Italian government and can indeed represent Italy even without the king's personal presence.

However, given that Carlo himself came to Vienna, Vittorio Emanuele III's actions were somewhat disrespectful to Carlo.

After all, in terms of blood relations, Carlo was Vittorio Emanuele III's uncle. In terms of power, Carlo wielded far more influence in the Spanish government than Vittorio Emanuele III did in the Italian government. Even in terms of their respective positions within European royalty, Carlo's status completely overshadowed that of Vittorio Emanuele III, who had virtually no presence in European royal circles and whose status was comparable to that of King Albert I of Belgium.

Carlo wasn't surprised by this, after all, his nephew Vittorio Emanuele III had a rather peculiar choice in history.

They could have united the government to prevent the dictator Mussolini from coming to power, but instead chose to remain indifferent. This led to Mussolini effectively sidelining the king after taking power, and ultimately resulting in the destruction of the Savoy family during World War II.

After the end of World War II, a referendum was held in Italy to decide whether Italy should retain its monarchy or become a republic.

In this referendum, most Italians chose to become a republic, which ultimately led to the loss of Italian rule by the House of Savoy, one of the key figures in promoting Italian unification.

From Vittorio Emanuele II, who spearheaded the unification of Italy, to Umberto II, who was deposed, the short-lived Kingdom of Italy saw only four monarchs.

The last monarch, Umberto II, was rather unique. He ascended the throne after his father, Vittorio Emanuele III, abdicated, and was deposed shortly after taking the throne.

Only three kings have truly ruled Italy. If we were to name one king who directly caused the Savoy family to lose the Italian throne, Vittorio Emanuele III would be the first to be blamed.

After all, the two Italian kings before him, Vittorio Emanuele II, were the unifiers of the country and were affectionately known as the Father of the Fatherland by the people.

Although Umberto I's reign was relatively short, he promoted Italy's military expansion, enabling Italy's military strength to match its status as a major power.

On the contrary, Vittorio Emanuele III, who reigned the longest, made a series of blunders despite having little to show for it, ultimately leading to the Savoy dynasty, which was supposed to live and die with Italy, being abolished less than a century after it gained the Italian throne.

In fact, although the Italian and Spanish royal families are still closely related, they have long since separated, and Carlos is not close to the current King of Italy, Vittorio Emanuele III.

If the future Italian royal family is sensible, Carlo wouldn't mind helping them retain the Italian throne and maintain the glory of the Savoy family.

If the future Italian royal family doesn't know what's good for them, Carlo won't care about their situation. In any case, regardless of the Italian royal family's fate, as long as the Spanish monarchy survives, the House of Savoy will not perish.

As Emperor of Austria, Franz Joseph I's funeral was quite grand. In addition to the participation of diplomatic representatives from many European countries, his funeral also attracted tens of thousands of people.

The people spontaneously organized themselves and followed Franz Joseph I's hearse to his tomb.

Although the Austrian Empire declined under Franz Joseph I, Austria not only lost the war with Prussia for German hegemony, but also lost Hungary, leaving only Austria and Bohemia, Slovakia and other core territories.

But the people did not blame the old emperor Franz Joseph I, because most people understood that the decline of the Austro-Hungarian Empire was inevitable.

Franz Joseph I's achievement in maintaining the Austrian Empire amidst such difficult circumstances is unparalleled.

For Austrians, Franz Joseph I, who ensured Austria's continued status as a European power, is a hero to all Austrians.

They naturally didn't mind paying the highest tribute to the hero and sincerely hoped that this long-reigning emperor could enter heaven.

After the funeral of Franz Joseph I, at the subsequent banquet, Carlo spoke with many European monarchs and heirs to the throne who had attended the funeral, and proposed to them that the royal families of Europe sign a treaty to guarantee the survival of European monarchies.

Monarchy has been established in European countries for over a thousand years. Although this treaty is intended to maintain the monarchy, it will not cause any resistance from anyone.

Even in republican France, the majority of the forces initially supported the monarchy. It was only because these forces were divided into several factions, each supporting a claimant from a different family, that the monarchy was never able to abolish the republic.

Although support for the monarchy has been waning over the years, it remains a force that can threaten the French government.

If the orthodox faction, the Orleans faction, and the Panamanian faction within the royalist party could unite, there might truly be hope for France to return to a monarchy.

Of course, this is just a fantasy. When it comes to the throne, these three factions cannot unite. For the French people, accustomed to a republic, they are unwilling to accept a monarchy; after all, the defeat of Napoleon III is still fresh in their minds. On the contrary, republican France achieved relatively successful results when facing the powerful enemy, Germany.

When Carlo proposed the idea of ​​preserving the European monarchy, it was immediately supported by many European monarchs and heirs to the throne.

For many royal families in Europe, their concerns extend beyond the government's control to include the potential for their thrones to be overthrown by angry citizens.

Even in recent decades, there have been countless cases of kings being overthrown in various countries, including more violent methods such as assassination.

If it weren't for the intelligence agents sent by Carlo protecting Nicholas II, and if Nicholas II had ultimately chosen to cooperate with the Russian Provisional Government, the once glorious Romanov family would likely not have escaped the clutches of Soviet Russia.

Under such circumstances, European royal families do indeed hope for a treaty that can guarantee the survival of their respective monarchies.

Even if we don't guarantee the thrones of all countries, we must at least guarantee the safety of the royal families when they lose their thrones.

After all, only by surviving can one hope to restore the monarchy in the future. If one dies directly in a revolution or by assassination, even if the monarchy is restored in the future, it will most likely have nothing to do with them.

It's even possible that, like in Spain, the government, after electing a king, will invite a prince from another royal family to become king.

Besides their own anxieties about their fate, Carlo's immense influence and status within European royal families also motivated more European monarchs to join the declaration. They believed in Carlo's influence and that with the assurances of Carlo and Spain, their future would be secure, ensuring they would have a trump card to protect their lives even in times of crisis such as coups.

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(End of this chapter)