Chapter 497 Crisis Surrounded
Russia, Saint Petersburg
Nicholas I was obsessed with everything about the army, so ten of his thirteen most important ministers were from military backgrounds.
An outstanding young man looked more energetic under the straight military uniform, which made His Majesty the Tsar extremely happy.
However, the surname Uvarov still brought back some not-so-good memories of this iron-fisted monarch. The old Duke Uvarov was a favorite of the late Emperor Alexander I.
However, this person chose to support Constantine (the brother of Nicholas I) during the Decembrist rebellion. Although he did not directly participate in the rebellion, it is impossible for such a person to gain the trust of the Tsar again.
As a result, this family with a glorious resume was driven out of St. Petersburg. In fact, Nicholas I has always been worried about being forced into the palace, but fortunately he is in a good mood now.
And the tsar was particularly open-minded in some respects, that is, he rarely took his anger out on other people's family members.
"Andrei, you said it very well, so are you willing to serve the Russian Empire? I need someone with both smart and brave qualities to visit the Ottoman Empire to release my goodwill."
Being entrusted with an important task by the Tsar is a supreme honor for a young nobleman. Although Andrei Uvarov's character is relatively aloof and cold, he can't hide the joy in his heart at this moment.
"I am willing to serve His Majesty. It is an honor to serve the Russian Empire."
In the eyes of Nicholas I (205cm), the young man in front of him was of medium height (186cm), with a handsome and cold appearance, resolute but not rigid. The dark green military uniform of a Russian officer fit perfectly on him, but his rank of major was a bit Low.
In fact, if Andrei Uvarov was not the eldest son of the Duke's family, then he would at most be a lieutenant at this time.
"Okay, this is how young people should be. I will promote you to major general now. General Qi and Mainkov will go to the Ottoman Empire together.
Remember, don't forget what you said. I'm waiting for your good news. "
"Yes! His Majesty the Tsar Ula!" Andrei Uvarov usually disdains shouting such slogans, but at this time, he found that he could also shout it so smoothly.
London, 10 Downing Street
Robert Peel slammed the information in his hand on the table. He could not believe that the aid to the miners was actually coming from Prussia, and that these people were "dangerous elements."
At this time, the Prime Minister even suspected that the Prussians were planning some shocking conspiracy. After all, their finance minister Friedrich List had just visited not long ago, hoping to smuggle British goods.
It is said to be smuggling, but in fact it is a monopoly; after all, the German Customs Union is now filled with Austrian products, and Prussia's industrial base is too backward, and it seems that it is a complete fantasy to catch up and surpass it.
But this Mr. Lister is a ruthless person who doesn't take the usual path. He understands that the primitive accumulation of capital is bloody - either letting others bleed, or letting himself bleed.
So now that you know this truth, how should you act? It's very simple. Austrian goods can sweep through Central Europe, but can they deal with Great Britain, the world's number one?
He has personally visited the United Kingdom and Austria, and naturally knows that the citizens of the former are obviously harder working, while the people of the latter spend more energy on internal fighting and consumption.
Of course, it is precisely because Austrians like to spend money that the German Customs Union has not been hollowed out by them. Therefore, Friedrich List's strategy of saving the country through curves made Frederick William IV's heart move.
After thinking about it, Robert Peel even wanted to take action, but the fact that the Prussians had played a role in the previous miners' strike made him confused.
Now the United Kingdom's civil war around the world is too long, and all aspects at home and abroad are affecting the energy of the chief minister. The white hair is the ironclad proof.
He deeply felt that the "three thousand civil servants" system that made the British proud was no longer able to meet the growing needs of the empire.
The large number of temporary workers and outsourced personnel has greatly reduced administrative efficiency, and also brought a lot of waste and corruption.
But if he wanted to change this system and involve high-level interests, he could only feel comfortable in his mind.
Vienna, Schonbrunn Palace
Franz was also troubled by domestic corruption. Because Friedrich led his fleet to Asia and Africa and was busy quelling chaos in Africa, the number of escort ships required for normal trade was insufficient.
The mysterious disappearance of a gold transport ship from Mexico to Austria made Franz feel a little pity at first. After all, encountering various disasters at sea and even pirates may lead to such results.
But soon information came that an Austrian gold transport ship was discovered in Boston Harbor in the United States. Tens of millions of florins disappeared, and more importantly, detailed information about the Austrian side was revealed to the United States.
This makes future activities of the empire on the Atlantic extremely unsafe. At the same time, because Tasan Anna talks about the "Emancipation Proclamation" all day long, and actually does it until the Americans do it hundreds of years later. This incident led to frequent mass escapes of black slaves in the American South and the French Texas Colony.
Tasang Anna's black guards have also grown from the original 2,000 to more than 8,000. This includes the number of people lost in the civil war, otherwise the total number would have exceeded 10,000.
The Black Legion played an important role in the Mexican Civil War, and its leader Diego became the first black general in Mexican history.
However, giving blacks and whites the same rights aroused dissatisfaction among the people and the opposition, and even angered slave owners in the South and Texas.
The relationship between Mexico and the French Texas colony was already very poor. At this time, Washington received news about large gold mines. I am afraid that a war is inevitable.
In fact, since Guizot arrived in Texas, he has filled up the local tax revenue, causing farmers and factory owners to complain.
However, the gap between the American cowboys and the French regular army is not generally large. The latter only needs one-third of the former's troops to win the battle. If the two have equal strength, it will be a complete massacre.
So these Americans could only pay taxes to Guizot honestly, but these guys also made a request, that is, the problem of slave loss must be solved.
Therefore, on the one hand, the former French minister and the newly appointed governor of Texas continued to purchase slaves from Dutch and Portuguese merchants, and on the other hand, he asked his subordinates to pay more attention to the increase in slave escapes.
In fact, he also understood that there could never be real peace between Texas, Mexico, and the United States, so he took it for granted that the Emancipation Proclamation was a Mexican conspiracy against France.
For this reason, Guizot found many French literary figures and legal experts to refute the declaration, but they all failed. After all, France itself admitted that the slave trade was neither humane nor legal.
Washington, White House
John Tyler repeatedly weighed the pros and cons of going to war with Mexico, and finally wrote a personal letter to King Louis Philippe of France.