Chapter 217 Ernst’s little plan
December 3, 1869.
The first town in the central region of East Africa, Swet Palace.
"Hahaha, this East Africa is really a treasure." Prince Constantine looked at the detailed data in his hand and said, "Ernst, what do you plan to do next?"
On the other end of the phone: "Father, all affairs in East Africa can proceed as usual. However, we still need to speed up the progress. Otherwise, it may cause trouble in the future."
"What's up?"
"It's about the Gredi Sultanate in Somalia."
"Are you going to do something to him?"
"Although the population of the Gredi Sultanate is not large, its location is very important, especially since its residents are mainly black, which is a potential threat."
The location Ernst mentioned is important in terms of population policy in East Africa and has no geographical significance.
Constantine had not seen the horrific birth rate of black people in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, so he could not feel the urgency in Ernst's heart.
Historically, the population of Somalia has increased from 2.94 million to 17.06 million from 1961 to 2021. Now the Goledi Sultanate is only a country in southern Somalia, with a population of only about a hundred thousand, so it won the Goledi Sultanate. The country is not very difficult.
Historically, the Sultanate of Zanzibar defeated the Sultanate of Grady and made it a client of its own. So East Africa might as well just go ahead and annex the Sultanate of Grady directly.
Somalia, like Ethiopia, is a mixed race. The difference is that Somalia is mostly an Arab country. Arabism is a bond of culture and does not pay attention to blood. This is similar to the German culture in East Africa that promotes racial integration.
(Picture: The dark blue area represents the distribution of African black and white mixed race people)
"Ernst, you are making too much fuss. The Grady Sultanate has a population of only a few hundred thousand and cannot be a threat to East Africa. However, its geographical location is indeed not bad. If you want to eat something from it, just say so. No need to tell me. Just cover it up and tell the truth between father and son.”
"Father, I am completely planning for the future situation around East Africa. In fact, the Gredi Sultanate does not have any resources that I am interested in. Only Mogadishu is slightly valuable, but East Africa itself also has a lot of resources. The ports of Es Salaam and Mombasa.”
"Besides, after the opening of the Suez Canal, Mogadishu will be even less valuable. The Sultanate of Grady is not really in the Horn of Africa. It can control the passage from the Red Sea to the Indian Ocean, and there is also a large desert. It’s not worth much money to come down.”
(Picture, location of the Gradi Sultanate)
"Okay, let's decide whether it is worth defeating it first. Anyway, its population is not large, so it is not difficult to occupy it." Constantine said.
"Well, when the time comes, just replace all the black people here with immigrants. Then there will be very few pure black forces in the entire north of the East African colonies." Ernst said.
Prince Constantine was very disdainful. He thought his son's reaction was a bit excessive, as if he heard that black people were like a kind of terrifying and difficult monster, and he felt a little bit embarrassed.
However, if Ernst's plan is completed and there is no harm to East Africa anyway, then he can do whatever he wants. In an ordinary conversation between father and son, the fate of another ancient African country was decided.
"This year is a critical year. Before May next year, we must lay a stronger foundation for East Africa so that when East Africa becomes a kingdom, it will look better," Ernst said.
When it came to the topic of nation-building, Constantine immediately became interested. In fact, Ernst had already hinted that he wanted to build East Africa into a national purpose.
But this was the first time Constantine heard Ernst clearly say that East Africa should become a kingdom, not a princely kingdom, a princely state, or a grand duchy. The temptation of becoming a kingdom was too great for Constantine!
"Ernst! Are you sure you can complete this matter?" Prince Constantine suppressed the excitement in his heart, with a tremor in his voice.
"Father, given the conditions in East Africa, it is natural to become a kingdom. To be honest, if you want to amuse yourself, there is no problem in calling it the African Emperor." Ernst joked.
The geographical location of East Africa determined that it did not need to position itself according to European legal principles and procedures. However, Ernst did not want to be a real African chief, so it was better to have some relations with Europe.
In Europe, there has been only one emperor from beginning to end, and that is Caesar of Rome. Now there are three rulers in Europe who call themselves Caesar, namely Franz of Austria, Nazian of France and Alexander II of Tsarist Russia.
There is no controversy about Franz's emperor. After all, the Holy Roman Empire is orthodox, and there is a dispute over whether it counts as an orthodox noble. Tsarist Russia is completely excluded by Europe. Not to mention Tsarist Russia, even Eastern Rome can only be spoken of by Western European countries while they are still alive. of the Byzantine Empire.
"How do you plan to operate it?" Constantine asked curiously, wanting European countries to recognize that this is the problem in East Africa. Otherwise, calling himself the Kingdom of the Universe will only be a joke in the eyes of others.
"It's very simple. We established the East African Kingdom first. The source of legal principles naturally comes from the land of East Africa. This is also one of the reasons why I want to win the Sultanate of Gradi.
Then Uncle Franz came forward and claimed to recognize the legitimacy of the East African Kingdom, so we had recognition from a European emperor, which naturally also represented official recognition from the Austro-Hungarian Empire.
Then, we obtained recognition from Prussia, Romania, the German states and the Kingdom of Sweden, which was not difficult, after all, they are all related.
Finally, we focus on attacking Tsarist Russia and Spain. Tsarist Russia is okay, at least we have cooperated with them before, and you don’t have to worry about Spain.
The success rate of the above countries is basically over 60%. The success rate of the Austro-Hungarian Empire is 100%. The success rate of Romania, Prussia and Sweden is also 100%. However, their influence is slightly weaker than that of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Most of the German states will support us, and North Germany has become the mouthpiece of Prussia.
All in all, by obtaining the recognition of these countries, we have basically controlled international public opinion. Even if Britain, France and other countries have opinions, they can only admit it by pinching their noses. "
The most crooked part of Ernst's plan is that it forcibly links East Africa to Europe. For an African country to ask Europe to recognize its legitimacy, it is tantamount to adding a layer of protection to itself.
And the most important point is that the legal principles of the East African Kingdom come from Africa, not Europe. But how can there be any legal principles in Africa? It’s not just how you explain East Africa.
Franz became Ernst's tool. According to European procedures, in order for a country to be promoted to a kingdom, it needs to be canonized by the emperor. The Kingdom of Württemberg next door to Hechingen was canonized by Napoleon and turned from a grand duchy into a kingdom.
However, Ernst's plan for establishing a nation in East Africa was to first establish a kingdom himself, rather than confer it with the emperor. However, later the emperor Franz admitted that the power of interpretation was still in East Africa's own hands.
However, it is also easy to give European countries who do not know the truth the illusion that East Africa is a subsidiary force of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, which adds another layer of protection to East Africa.
As for why it is the Austro-Hungarian Empire, it is because Prussia after the Franco-Prussian War was so awesome. Prussia suddenly became the top power in Europe, which would have a huge impact on all countries. If East Africa surrenders to Prussia again, Britain and France will definitely go crazy in the future. .
Although the Austro-Hungarian Empire is also very powerful, everyone knows that the Austro-Hungarian Empire is resting on its laurels, so that other countries will not be too afraid, and at the same time they will not dare to take it too lightly.