Chapter 816 Seed King
At this time, the two Prussian enclaves were like a sharp sword on the waist of France, and they were also like a piece of meat on the lips of the French.
But no matter what, it will be difficult for the two sides to become friends again. Unless one party can sacrifice its own interests and promote an alliance.
However, this requires great courage, great wisdom and great sacrifice, because in this era of rapidly rising nationalism, ceding territory is tantamount to betraying the country.
Although it was an enclave, the Prussian people were still excited by the victory in the war. Prince William's heroic deeds became the biggest topic in Berlin for a while.
At this time, Prussia hoped to keep this enclave from top to bottom, so King Frederick William IV of Prussia took the opportunity to move around Vienna with the purpose of ensuring that the Jura state could fall into his pocket.
As for why it has to be Jura? One is for the family's heroic legend, and the second and most important factor is that administrative costs are low and relatively easy to control.
Before Prince William (later William I) came to Neuchâtel this time, Neuchâtel, as an enclave, had already owed taxes to the Prussian royal family for decades.
Now, Prince William has recovered all the principal and interest at once, which actually only cost more than two million Swiss francs (about half a million Prussian thalers).
In fact, the local tax rate set by the Hohenzollern family is very low, and there are many preferential policies. But since the sky is high and the emperor is far away, no one cares at all.
At this moment, at that moment, the Swiss Civil War broke out, the German Confederation wiped out the Free State forces like a whirlwind, and the Neuchâtel people who once violently attacked the king's tax collectors became obedient people again.
Closer to home, Frederick William IV personally went around, and princes from all walks of life gathered in Vienna, and the natural effect was outstanding.
In fact, it was nothing more than being moved with affection and "courtesy". Although giving the Jura state to Prussia had long been planned, Metternich still knocked the other party in order to increase his credibility.
At the previous Congress of Vienna, Franz was present on behalf of Ferdinand I. The latter was unfit to attend due to physical reasons, so Prime Minister Metternich had to do it for him at this time.
On the other hand, the French finally became anxious, and Baron Pasquière and a formal delegation visited Vienna again.
However, they were left alone and instead witnessed the spoils-sharing meeting within the German Confederation. The South German countries were the biggest beneficiaries in this parliament.
Austria got back its homeland of Allgäu, Baden got the nearby Thurgau, Bavaria got the strategic location of St. Gallen, Liechtenstein really got Graubünden, and Prussia also got what it wanted. Arrived in Jura.
Saxony got Zurich, Hanover got Glarus, Hesse got Solothurn, and Bern became an enclave of Luxembourg.
At the same time, the German Confederation decided to accept the applications of the former Swiss Orthodox Union states and accept them as members of the German Confederation.
They are: Lucerne, Schwyz, Walden, Uri, Friborg, Valais and Ticheno.
When he heard about Ticeno, Baron Pasquière couldn't sit still because it was obviously occupied by France.
However, only then did he realize that the target of his negotiations had changed. His opponent was no longer Austria, but the entire German Confederation.
As for the Orthodox Alliance, their army is still in the hands of Archduke Karl, and France is now extremely passive.
But something more disturbing soon happened. According to Franz's plan, these members who had just joined the German Confederation were free to choose their own monarch.
As luck would have it, the public representatives of the Canton of Ticeno chose Carlo Alberto, King of the Kingdom of Sardinia, as their new monarch.
Naturally, this cannot be a coincidence, considering that Ticeno State was still in the hands of Charles Duchardt at this time.
In fact, the public opinion representative is from the Kingdom of Sardinia, but the situation at this time is already very clear, that is, Germany and the Kingdom of Sardinia are coming together to deceive themselves.
Moreover, if the Kingdom of Sardinia dares to stand up and challenge France, it must be fully prepared.
At this time, France has two options. One is to abandon Ticeno and leave Geneva and Vaud in peace. The other is to go to full-scale war with the German Confederation, Switzerland, and the Kingdom of Sardinia.
At this time, the enthusiasm of the German princes has not yet dissipated. After all, those small countries will have to burn incense if they are not annexed. It is definitely a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to expand their territory at this time.
Coupled with the blessing of nationalism, the streets and alleys of Vienna were full of demonstrations, and successive victories made people think that France was nothing more than that.
This situation is all too familiar to the French. It is simply a replica of the French Revolution, but the reasons and circumstances have changed.
Baron Pasquière was so frightened that he could only ask King Louis-Philippe for a decision.
There was an immediate quarrel in France, but neither Louis Philippe nor Soult wanted to take this risk.
At the same time, the enfeoffment and transformation operations were in full swing. With the "enfeoffment plan", Franz left a good impression on the German monarchs. At least no one would question his IQ in person.
After two rounds, almost all the states were satisfied, and those princes who were not allocated land were also compensated with funds.
Of course, this money was made from the people's fat and money plundered by the Free State warlords.
In fact, due to the poor performance of the orthodox state bureaucrats in the civil war, the people have already complained about them.
Replacing these people at this time is completely in line with public opinion, and can even be described as pleasing to the people.
Franz was puzzled that he could succeed in the same trick three times in a row. In the last group of governors and representatives, no woman had the guts.
Sister Brandi's mutilated body was finally found in the dungeon beneath the Geneva City Hall. It was carefully packaged and sent to the Vatican by the Jesuit priests. It seemed that there was great hope for canonization.
There are many advantages to enfeoffing the German monarchy, because it can greatly reduce the waste of resources by integrating some German states that are too small, such as Saxony and Hesse, as well as Anhalt, Lippe, etc.
One of them, Hesse, included the Electorate, the Grand Duchy, and the Counties. Franz saw a headache and decided to help them.
Austria also successfully pulled the German Confederation over as its own shield, the outermost of which was Prussia, so that it could always maintain a passive position.
Compared to those time-travelers who only farm the land, Franz prefers farming kings.
In fact, such scattered enfeoffment was intentional by Franz. Switzerland was different from Germany. The former had a small population, barren land, and decentralized power. If they wanted to rise, they could only plan unifiedly.
There is only one country in South Germany that can shoulder this important task, and that is the Austrian Empire. Whether they want to develop their economy or maintain their rule, they cannot do without the support of the Austrian Empire.
On the fifth day after the end of the first round of tripartite negotiations between the German Confederation, the Kingdom of Sardinia, and France, the British finally got the news.