The Han culture is spreading strongly in Southeast Asia

Chapter 781 The Second Anti-French Alliance

"God bless England, God bless my King!"

Napoleon nearly coughed up blood, but London was filled with jubilation, and even the sickly-looking George III's complexion had improved considerably.

Amid cheers, Prime Minister William Pitt Jr. said to King George III, "Your Majesty, we now need to do three things."

First, send at least 30,000 Irishmen to the Seres Empire as soon as possible to fully demonstrate to the Seres Empire and His Majesty the Great Emperor of Seres the friendship between our two countries and their complementarity in all aspects.

The second task was to send a special envoy to Transylvania to mediate the conflict between His Highness the Prince of Belgium and Emperor Francis II of the Holy Roman Empire, so that they could unite and relieve Prince Karl of his worries.

We need Prince Karl to return to power and go to Egypt as soon as possible. This is the best opportunity. If all goes well, we may be able to capture tens of thousands of elite French soldiers and deal a heavy blow to the arrogance of those regicides.”

King George III nodded. “Thirty thousand men are too few. Kill all the most unruly of the Irish rebels, and send the rest to Seres.”

At the same time, send our white slaves in Canada, as well as those captured from New England, to Seres.

War requires a lot of money. If possible, send the envoy to Seris to meet with His Majesty the Emperor and the Prime Minister of Seris, and it would be best to raise the price of white slaves.

Furthermore, we need a large amount of supplies. Let's see if Seris can provide some, at least some interest-free. In exchange, we will do our best to support Prince Karl and his son, Prince Karl, in Europa.

At this time in England, calls to abolish the slave trade were growing louder, and the slave trade was becoming unpopular not only among the nobility but also among the common people.

But if you think this is because the colonists who sold slaves for hundreds of years, resulting in the deaths of hundreds of millions of Black people, have had a change of heart, then you are wrong.

In fact, England began to actively promote the immorality of the slave trade in public opinion at this time because they had lost their North American colony, New England, which was the Thirteen Colonies of North America.

Without North America, England would not need so many slaves, but these slaves were exactly what the newly formed America, France which owned Haiti, and the Spanish Kingdom which was dependent on France and had large colonies in North America needed most.

Promoting the immorality of the slave trade was intended to target these three countries with a huge demand for slaves; it was purely a matter of self-interest.

Sure enough, when Inger discovered that he was making a fortune selling white slaves to Ceres, he immediately started applying double standards.

. . . .

"I knew it! I knew it! These lowly thugs who dared to kill even their own king are completely untrustworthy!"

In Vienna, at Schönbrunn Palace, Holy Roman Emperor Francis II once again broke down.

It seems like nothing good has happened to him since he ascended the throne.

What broke his spirits this time was the French breaking their promise and violating the Treaty of Campo Formio, which had been signed less than a year earlier.

France assisted the Swiss in establishing the Republic of Helvetii.

This was a truly horrific event for the Holy Roman Empire.

Because Switzerland, located in a key position in the Alps, is an important passage for France to Central Europe, and is also the most crucial place for the Holy Roman Empire of the Habsburg family to block the eastward expansion of France.

Compared to the Black Forest, a region riddled with numerous states and dense vegetation, which Prussia was extremely wary of others interfering in, the journey from Switzerland into Austria and then into Vienna was much easier and faster.

It can be said that the Swiss region was the heartland of Austria and the Habsburg family. If they lost this region, their defense situation would immediately become like the border defense in Fengxiang today.

Napoleon captured Vienna three times in history because Switzerland failed to defend it, allowing him to quickly advance his army into Vienna.

Although Switzerland was not previously under the rule of the Habsburg family, it had not become a puppet of France either.

The nobles of the Swiss cantons also favored the Habsburg family, but now, with the establishment of the Republic of Helvetii, all of that has disappeared.

What frightened Emperor Franz II and the imperial nobles even more was that the republic, especially one supported by the French revolutionary government, was bound to spread revolutionary ideas. The thought of the tragic fate of the French royal family and nobles sent chills down many people's spines.

Meanwhile, the Holy Roman Empire was not entirely stable. Although Francis II had managed to win back the support of most of the Hungarian nobles from his uncle, Mozi Rong, these nobles could not completely suppress those below him.

For example, Ignac Martynovich, the Hungarian Jacobin revolutionary who was executed by Francis II two years ago, publicly stated that only the authority of the social contract could be recognized by the people, that the nobility was the enemy of mankind, and that sovereignty belonged to the people. He also incited serfs to revolt.

As for all of this, the nobles who did not pay a single penny of tax to the Holy Roman Empire and the Kingdom of Hungary had no way to control these Jacobin activists. It was only through the deployment of the secret police by Francis II that these people were arrested and executed.

"Vienna is in danger. If we lose Switzerland, all we have left in the Alps is Tyrol."

Tyrol's high altitude and fragmented terrain make it impossible to station a large garrison, while the enemy can amass supplies and send tens of thousands of troops at once.

"The younger brother of Franz II, the short but exceptionally talented Duke of Gieshin, Karl Ludwig Lorenz, said in a deep voice. He was none other than the famous Archduke Karl of Austria in later generations."

"What should we do, Karl? Should we send troops to retake Switzerland?" Hearing his brother say this, Franz II was slightly flustered. For the first time, he truly felt that the French army might actually be able to invade Vienna.

After hearing this, Archduke Karl looked at his brother with a mixture of astonishment and a headache. After a long pause, he finally answered:

"After the Treaty of Baden in 1712, Switzerland became an independent region and did not belong to us."

If we were to attack them simply because they established the Republic of Helvetii, it would certainly provoke resentment and even resistance from all of Switzerland. This would be helping this puppet republic of France to unite the people.

Moreover, if we had the power to seize Switzerland from France, we wouldn't have lost the Netherlands or made peace with the French mob government.

That was incredibly harsh; it was practically like slapping Franz II on the head and yelling at him to be an idiot.

Franz II was so angry that his eyes turned red. He glared at Archduke Karl as if he would have ordered the secret police to shoot him immediately if this wasn't his own brother.

“Karl, I know you are not satisfied with the Treaty of Campo Formio, but I have no other choice. I must put the interests of the Empire first, rather than disregarding everything for hatred and to avenge Aunt Mary.”

Franz II said through gritted teeth, feeling quite aggrieved that, as the emperor and elder brother, he had to explain himself to his younger brother, who was a subject.

Archduke Charles was speechless. His brother, the Holy Roman Emperor, actually believed that the war with France was more about avenging his aunt Marie, Queen Antoinette of France.

No wonder my brother's attitude towards France was a bit strange; that's what he was really thinking.

Grand Duke Karl was losing his temper. He wanted to argue back and even wanted to use more vehement language to attack his emperor brother.

But Archduke Charles, now twenty-seven, was no longer the hot-blooded youth who had impulsively led his army to fight the French five years ago. He knew that if he were to speak his mind, his enraged brother, the emperor, would surely kick him out.

Archduke Karl wasn't after these positions, but at this moment, he couldn't leave his post; he had to protect the Habsburg empire.

“I know, I know Your Majesty’s difficulties,” Archduke Karl tried his best to appear empathetic. “But the most urgent matter is to show England and all of Europe our actions; the Treaty of Campo Formio must be torn up immediately.”

.

We must immediately agree to the Tsarist Russian Empire's proposal to once again form an alliance to intervene against the French mob government.

The Tsarist Russian Empire was already very worried when France began to amass troops in Toulon.

They feared that the French revolutionary government would support Poland, which had been completely infiltrated by revolutionaries and controlled by the Tsarist Rus' Empire, and even worried that the fleet would land in Crimea through Ottoman territory.

Yes, what Tsar Rus's biggest fear at that time was that France and the Ottomans would form an alliance, and then the fleet would enter the Black Sea and seize regions such as Crimea.

After the French army landed in Egypt, the Tsarist Rus' Empire immediately eased relations with the Ottoman Empire. Admiral Ushakov even led a fleet to the Aegean Sea to join forces with the Ottoman navy to attack the French base on the Ionian Islands in the Aegean Sea.

At the same time, Tsar Paul I extended an olive branch to Vienna, promising to do his utmost to aid the Holy Roman Empire in the future war against France.

He also invited the Holy Roman Empire to join the second coalition he initiated against the French mob government.

"Karl, do you mean to form a second anti-French coalition, take the initiative to attack France, and prevent them from attacking Vienna?"

Francis II wasn't particularly foolish; he knew that at this point, the Holy Roman Empire alone could no longer militarily confront France.

"I..." Franz II hesitated. Deep down, he wanted to say that he agreed to join the Second Franco-French Alliance, but his last sparring match with France had left him traumatized.

The thought of the enormous compensations owed to the Holy Roman Empire's vassal states and the loss of vast territories sent chills down Franz II's spine.

"Your Majesty, good news, great news!" Just then, Foreign Minister Ferdinand von Trautmannsdorf strode in.

"The Egyptian naval battle has concluded. The English navy has decisively defeated the French navy in Aboukir Bay, inflicting at least ten battleship losses on the French, and the casualties and prisoners of war certainly exceed six thousand."

The French army's retreat to Egypt was completely cut off, leaving them an isolated force unable to return home!

"Spread this good news immediately, tell everyone!"

Franz II stood up abruptly, as if the victory had been won by the Holy Roman Empire. Vienna had been shrouded in gloom and desperately needed some good news to boost morale.

“Agreed, my lord minister. Immediately inform the minister of the Tsarist Rus’ Empire that I, the Holy Roman Emperor, agree to join the Second Alliance against the French regicides.”

Franz II also made a swift decision: the peace treaty, which had been signed less than a year earlier, was immediately abolished, and the Second Coalition against France was about to be established.

After Franz II issued a series of orders, and the initial excitement subsided somewhat, Archduke Karl immediately said to his brother:
“My brother, this is indeed excellent news. If the Kingdom of England, the Tsarist Rus’ Empire, and even the Kingdom of Prussia rejoin this punitive alliance, our pressure will be greatly reduced.”

“It’s not much less!” Franz II interrupted Archduke Karl with a wave of his hand.

"Instead, they will overthrow the regimes established by those regicides, allow the Duke of Anjou to return to Paris and become the 18th King Louis, and let the Bourbon family reclaim the throne they have held for hundreds of years and rule France again."

At this time, Louis XVI's brother, the Duke of Anjou, had already ascended the throne as Louis XVIII in the presence of the exiled members of the French Bourbon dynasty.

However, his reign as Louis XVIII did not receive widespread recognition because the restoration of the French Bourbon dynasty was attributed to the monarchs of the major European powers, who sought to demonstrate the unshakeable nature of the aristocratic lineage.

Louis XVIII's independence, which involved little territory and even a small army, was not considered significant by them.

When Duke Karl heard his brother say this, he was speechless again. He did not believe that the Second Coalition against France would necessarily bring down the Directory of France.

Because such alliances, especially alliances between major powers, are bound to have their own demands and ideas, making it impossible for everyone to be of one mind; they are bound to be filled with intrigue and backstabbing.

The rule of the French Republican government had actually begun to solidify, and the wars of the past decade or so since the beheading of Louis XVI had honed the French army and instilled in the French people an intense hatred for the interfering European nations. They were not so easily defeated.

Archduke Karl had become somewhat numb to his brother's temperament, which alternated between pessimism and fear and blind self-confidence.

Alas, if he hadn't been the eldest son, suffered from epilepsy, and hadn't been in such poor health as a child that he seemed destined to die at any moment, history might have allowed this Holy Roman Emperor to live a little longer if he had been handed over to Archduke Karl.

“Yes, brother, but precisely because this opportunity is so rare, we should seize it to unite our forces and quell the brewing trouble in the Kingdom of Hungary,” Archduke Karl said solemnly.

"You mean Karl and Ferdinand's family?" Franz II asked, somewhat displeased.

At this time, Mo Zirong's European name was Karl Maximilian Mo, while Mo Gongze's actual name was Ferdinand Karl Albrecht Mo.

Mogonze was called Prince Karl or Little Prince Karl, which was actually a term of endearment used among European monarchs.

To be more formal, Mo Zirong should be addressed as Prince Karl, and Mo Gongze as Prince Ferdinand.

"Yes, the title of Grand Duke of Transylvania was not something my uncle insisted on, but rather bestowed upon me by my grandmother."

I think that neither you, my elder brother, nor my father or uncle, can compare to my grandmother in terms of politics. There must have been a deeper meaning behind my grandmother's decision to single out Transylvania, which had already been separated from the Kingdom of Hungary.

Moreover, when the uncle turned against the uncle after the grandmother's death, the empire became unstable; when the father became close to the uncle, the empire began to prosper.

Now, it is time for you, elder brother, to demonstrate the emperor's magnanimity and benevolence.

Hearing his brother's words, Franz II still felt somewhat uncomfortable, but he also knew that his brother Archduke Karl was right. They had to stabilize the country first before they could concentrate their efforts on dealing with France.

After all, with Switzerland as a buffer lost, Vienna is constantly in danger. If it were to engage in internal strife now, it would be playing with the empire and its own lives.

“Your Majesty, the Grand Duke is right. If we take this opportunity to veto the Treaty of Campo Formio, then the provisions concerning the Lower Netherlands will necessarily be invalid. Following this line of thought, the title of Prince of Belgium will still exist.”

Baron Carl Funke, who was by Franz II's side, quietly reminded him that ceding the rights of the Lower Netherlands without Prince Carl's approval had already drawn criticism from other nobles in Europe and caused the Holy Roman Empire to lose face.

If we tear up the Treaty of Campo Formio now and don't return the title of Prince of Belgium, what would that look like!

At this critical moment when the interests of the nobility must be protected, isn't this just contradicting oneself?
Franz II was once again subtly humiliated by his subjects, and his already stiff face turned extremely ugly. He tried his best to appear humble and receptive to advice, and after taking a deep breath, he slowly said to his younger brother, Archduke Karl:

“Alright, Karl, go and apologize to the Prince in person. Tell him that I have decided to rescind the Treaty of Campo Formio regarding the Lower Netherlands, and that he remains the Prince of Belgium of the Empire.”

After some thought, Franz II felt he should offer some compensation, but he didn't want to pay too much, so he continued:

"If the prince has any other requests, you can have him bring them up and then report them to me."

(End of this chapter)