Chapter 147 Invitation from Central America (Part 1)

Chapter 147 Invitation from Central America (Part 1)

Vienna, Schönbrunn Palace.

In the royal chapel, Archbishop Rauscher sat opposite Franz.

The Archbishop had a completely new look, and all the decorations were replaced with rubies, especially the nine rings set with rubies that were really eye-catching.

Archbishop Rauscher opened a box, which was filled with red and blue gems. These gems have been polished and can be set directly in the jewelry shop.

What Franz didn't know was that these gems were actually of the highest quality, and their total price should be around 3 million florins. As for those in not so good condition, they were sold directly to jewelry stores.

"Most of these were found in Chenla according to your instructions, Archduke Franz, and some were donated by believers. The diocese has expanded to eight provinces, and I believe that it will not be long before the entire territory of Chenla is liberated."

It is obvious that the church's support for Chenla has played a great role. Rubber trees have been widely planted in areas controlled by the church, but it is still a few years away from official production.

At present, Zhenla's income is far less than the church's investment, but Franz still has a way.

"The church can consider taking back the silver mines in northern Chenla to cover daily expenses."

"But those silver mines are in the hands of the Siamese. Siam is a big country with a population of 8 million. Although we have ceased war with the Vietnamese, if we go to war with Siam, Vietnam will most likely take advantage of the situation to counterattack. Siam and Vietnam are at war, so we may not have enough troops."

Rauscher said with some embarrassment that the Austrian church had made a great contribution to Chenla, not only in terms of financial resources, but also in sending many capable and loyal believers.

"Don't worry, Archbishop. The Siamese don't have the courage, and fighting is not just about numbers. Indulgence notes can be used now, but they can no longer be used after the French come. Large transactions are exchanged for Austrian expected banknotes. , use white lead money for small amounts."

The church used indulgences as currency in Chenla with the purpose of extorting the wealth of the Chenla region. However, this kind of thing is very easy to be copied. The Chenla people, Vietnamese, and Siamese cannot copy it. It does not represent Europe with advanced technology. Neither can humans.

In order to maintain long-term peace and stable development in the region, it is necessary to use anti-counterfeiting banknotes with a higher degree of security. At the same time, white lead money is a currency of little value and has no value in counterfeiting.

In fact, the Siamese people did not have the courage. The British invasion of Burma showed the Siamese people the power of the West. At this time, the King of Siam was trying his best to avoid all conflicts with the West.

Of course, as Archbishop Rauscher expected, the Vietnamese thought this was an opportunity to organize a counterattack. Of course, the outcome was a disastrous defeat and they had to continue to cede territory and pay compensation.

"Archduke Franz, these gems are of good quality. I hope they can help you."

In fact, the best quality ruby ​​is Burmese ruby, but the real wax ruby ​​is so similar to it that it can be mistaken for the real thing in the eyes of laymen.

Although the British occupied Burma, they did not have strong control over the local area. In addition, the output of Burmese rubies was not high, so the ruby ​​market was not controlled by the British, which gave Austria an opportunity to take advantage of it.

After all, Zhenla's rubies have a high output and good quality. As long as they don't put in too much, they can maintain high prices.

The red and sapphire gems in this box are enough to make an ordinary person crazy. For ordinary people in this era, even if they don't eat or drink, it will take tens of thousands of years to afford the gems in the box.

However, in Franz's eyes, they are of little value. They are just some decorations. The output is much lower than diamonds, and the market recognition is not as good as diamonds. The money-making effect is very poor. It is better to win the silver mine.

But for the old magician to come up with so much, he must be asking for help from Franz.

"Archbishop, what brings you here today? Please tell me."

"The Central American Federation is experiencing a rebellion, and countless innocent people have been massacred. War, plague, and famine are raging in that land. Civilization is being brutally expelled, and the people there need your help."

The rebellion in the Central American Federation was entirely caused by the insistence of former President Ramosan. It is obviously a conservative stronghold and must carry out liberal reforms.

It would be nice if he was gentler, but this president's methods are extremely brutal, and his opponents may be exiled or executed at worst.

Lamosan admired French ideas and strictly enforced the Napoleonic Code, but most Central Americans did not understand the law at all. There were more people waiting for execution in front of the market than citizens in the market.

He was also very simple and direct in his treatment of the church. He abolished tithes, confiscated church property, exiled missionaries, demolished monasteries and allowed nuns to return to secular life.

At the same time, he followed Napoleon in establishing the St. Cyr Military Academy, followed Emperor Sui Yang in digging the Nicaragua Grand Canal, and forcibly conquered the native Indians. He liked micromanaging and almost never won his own wars. In short, he was addicted to food.

At the beginning of the rebellion, there were only a few thousand native Indians in the rebel army, armed with spears and wooden sticks. Lamosan led an army of 20,000 people and a swineherd to fight back and forth.

A year later, the number of rebels had grown to hundreds of thousands (so-called), occupying almost all of Guatemala. Morazan had no troops to send, so all the countries in the Central American Federation declared independence one after another.

Mexico once wanted to use troops to annex the Central American Federation, but was warned by Britain and France. The Americans also reiterated the Monroe Declaration, although it was of no use.

Obviously, the fragmentation of Central America is more in the interests of the great powers. Only the president of Nicaragua still supports the federation, but he does not have enough strength and appeal.

"Archbishop, as far as I know, President Ramosan is very opposed to the church and has almost zero tolerance for religion. Moreover, he himself is the source of unrest. Why should you help him?"

"Archduke Franz, what you saw is just what the newspapers said. Europeans do not care about the life and death of Central Americans. The war in the Central American Federation has evolved into a massacre against white people. The white people in Guatemala The population has dropped by 30%, and the church cannot continue to sit idly by."

In fact, the massacre of white people was instigated by the church. The church, which was forced into desperation by Morazan, took advantage of the outbreak of plague in Guatemala and spread the word in the indigenous villages that Morazan sent people to poison the water. .

As a result, this uprising against the liberal government soon turned into a massacre targeting white people and all privileged classes. Although the church priests escaped, there is a saying that "the rabbit dies and the fox is sad."

Most of the church's missionaries were white. Although the mob restored the church's land, it could not give the priests any sense of security.

As expected, massacres and robberies targeting priests occurred in some areas, which made the churches in Central America even more panicked.

Both liberals and conservatives want to restore order, but they have found the wrong person. Extreme liberals like Morazan are not only unable to do this task, but will also make things worse.

Even if order is temporarily restored with the help of external forces, the Central American Federation will fall apart sooner or later.