Chapter 1196 Taxation and Population (Part 2)
In addition to these reasons, the Austrian Empire was one of the few countries that allowed gypsies to join the army, and due to Franz's reforms, soldiers of the Austrian Empire could receive a considerable pension for their deaths.
The so-called pension may not be worth mentioning for nobles and rich people, but for civilians it is a considerable income, and it can even change the fate of a family.
For gypsies living on the edge of the world, it is even more fatally attractive, so they fight very bravely and even sacrifice their lives.
The army of the Austrian Empire is the most respected place for gypsies. After all, the brave on the battlefield are definitely worthy of respect.
In addition to joining the army, the profession of tour guide is also very suitable for gypsies. The strong social attributes of gypsies and their adaptability to new things and new environments make them naturally suitable for this profession.
After having money, gypsies in the Austrian Empire usually make different choices from gypsies in other countries. They usually choose to settle down or narrow their wandering range within the Austrian Empire. After all, no one really likes a life of displacement.
The Albanians who converted to Catholicism gave Franz even more headaches. He originally thought that after signing an agreement with the Ottoman Empire, the Ottomans would move all the Albanians away.
Originally, this was an acceptable situation for both parties. The Ottoman Empire gave up the provinces that were difficult to control and had negative returns, while keeping the population and believers.
For the Ottoman Empire, protecting believers and population is undoubtedly a plus, and cutting off the rotten meat can save a lot of energy.
For the Austrian Empire, reducing religious and ethnic issues is more important than anything else. As for the manpower required for land development, it can just solve the population distribution and work problems of some people.
However, man's plans are not as good as God's plans. Some Albanians announced that they would convert to Christianity and be loyal to the Austrian Empire. This made both Austria and the Ottoman Empire very embarrassed.
The Ottoman Empire was firmly opposed to accepting this group of traitors, while the Austrian Empire was full of flattery, especially the church praised this behavior.
After all, in Eastern Europe, if you want to convert a nation, you have to coerce and lure for hundreds or thousands of years, but the Austrian Empire took less than a year.
But this kind of large-scale collective conversion actually arouses hatred, and Franz can even feel the cold murderous intent from St. Petersburg.
The British and French sides were even more smiling, they didn't expect that religious issues could be used in this way. The Austrian Empire's occupation of Albania itself has caused dissatisfaction in Russia. Although it is a transaction, Russia is dissatisfied.
And now a large number of potential Orthodox believers have converted to Catholicism, which has already stepped on Russia's red line.
Franz's wedding, which was supposed to be held this year, was postponed again. The Russian side even asked whether the queen could not convert.
In fact, the Habsburg family and the Austrian Empire are not opposed to interracial marriages. (Except for Judaism)
However, it is not possible to take it lightly to raise such issues publicly in diplomatic occasions, because it concerns many aspects such as national honor and influence.
So the high-level officials participating in the meeting on both sides refused to give in, and the scene was once very ugly.
How to deal with these converted Albanians is also a big problem. If the previous strategy is used, it may be scolded to death by Catholic countries.
But if it is done too well, such troubles will follow one after another, which is really a headache.
At this time, if Jews, gypsies, and converted Albanians are included, the population of the Austrian Empire has exceeded 50 million.
However, according to the usual calculation, the above three populations will not be included in the total population.
In fact, there are still about 200,000 to 300,000 Irish people in the Austrian Empire. They are currently only regarded as laborers, not as citizens.
Even so, the population of the Austrian Empire has not decreased much due to the war. After being supplemented by Germany and Italy, the population is still nearly 47 million.
This number is much stronger than the 38.6 million in the same period of the history of the Austrian Empire, and it is not much less than the 52 million before the First World War of the Austro-Hungarian Empire.
But this number still cannot satisfy Franz, and cannot satisfy his ambitions for the future.
Therefore, Franz did something that was against the will of the world-cancelling the head tax.
The abolition of the head tax will reduce the direct tax revenue of the Austrian Empire by 20 million florins, which is almost one-fifth of the fiscal revenue of the Austrian Empire in the same period of history.
If Franz really dared to abolish the poll tax in history, he would definitely encounter unprecedented resistance, and he would most likely be regarded as a madman, and the national finances would most likely collapse as a result.
However, this time is different. The abolition of the poll tax will only reduce the fiscal revenue of the Austrian Empire by one thirty-eighth.
Twenty million florins is really nothing for the thriving Austrian Empire, and Franz's influence and sense of oppression are not comparable to any emperor in Austrian history.
In addition, it is not the first time that Franz has done such a heretical thing, and the top leaders of the Austrian Empire have long been accustomed to it.
As for ordinary people, it is too late to celebrate, so how can they oppose it?
Nationalists and the so-called middle class have been repeatedly beaten by Franz for so many years. If they have a little memory, they will not jump out to make trouble at this time.
The abolition of the poll tax, such a big thing, did not cause any opposition in the Austrian Empire. Newspapers and the public were full of praise, and the clergy and nobles did not even have the courage to point out behind the scenes.
On the contrary, some foreign media and institutions looked down on the Austrian Empire, especially mainstream economists, because this was really inconsistent with the economic common sense of the time.
Everyone knows that the poll tax is unfair, and those economists even know it better than Franz, a later generation.
But the poll tax was not officially abolished in the UK until 1991, and there must be a reason for it to exist for so long.
The biggest advantage of the poll tax is that it is simple and easy to implement, does not require complex assessments and calculations, has low tax collection costs, and does not require a large tax agency.
It covers a wide range and is relatively difficult to evade taxes.
And it is more likely to be supported by the rich and nobles, promoting what they call social fairness and equality for all. The slogan for collecting poll taxes in a certain country is "tax equality is the first step to equality for all."
But in Franz's eyes, these benefits are not important, and even more untenable. In the 19th century, it was not uncommon for people to hide their population in Europe. The amount of tax evasion depended entirely on the mood of local officials and gentry.
In 1848, Hungarians arrested 20,000 able-bodied men in a small town of only 3,000 people. During the Italian War, the Austrian Empire discovered millions of Italians who should not have existed.
Let's talk about the so-called social fairness and equality. A big banker like Solomon Rothschild paid the same amount of head tax as an ordinary dock laborer. Such equality is better off not having it.
In the eyes of the rich and the nobles, this is the most powerful proof that all people are born equal. However, Franz was an emperor and Austria was an empire. In the matter of paying taxes, fairness was obviously more important than equality.