Chapter 1219 On Stage (Part 2)

Chapter 1219 On Stage (Part 2)

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The first to bear the brunt was the economic crisis. Due to the impact of a series of events such as war defeat, political turmoil, national division (Alsace-Lorraine), and loss of colonies, the situation in France not only did not ease but became more serious.

Trade volume has decreased, companies have reduced production, and workers have lost their jobs. Due to land problems, agricultural output has been reduced and the currency has devalued. Farmers' income has been lower than expected. Farmers have canceled orders in large numbers, leading to food shortages in the market.

The more this happens, the more banks have to avoid risks, resulting in massive capital outflows.

Prices are rising, people's living standards are declining, and market credit is collapsing. These, in turn, interact with the economic crisis. As a result, small-scale uprisings continue in the country, and people's calls for political reform and improvement of life are growing.

Napoleon III had to consider everything carefully, otherwise it would not be impossible for another revolution to overthrow the Second French Republic.

At this time, if Louis Napoleon could win a foreign war like his uncle, the situation would immediately change.

However, Louis Napoleon was not his uncle, and the several uprisings he had launched were not very successful.

At this time, Louis Napoleon still had a relatively clear understanding of his own level, and he believed that France had other solutions besides war.

The cost of the war was huge. If the Second French Republic failed again or failed to achieve a victory that satisfied the French, both France and Louis Napoleon would be consumed by popular anger.

Moreover, Louis Napoleon knew very well that Russia was not the Ottoman Empire, and the purpose of the British was not to liberate the country, but to declare hegemony.

Why should France bet on its national destiny for British hegemony?

The borders between Russia, Prussia, and Austria are very delicate. When the rebellion broke out in the Russian-owned Poland, they did not immediately return to defense. Instead, they increased patrols to prevent Poles from escaping to Prussia and Austria.

At the same time, it was also to prevent Austria and Prussia from coveting Poland. Let alone the Holy Alliance, the Russians themselves did not believe in this at all.

So when there was a fire in his backyard, Russia's first reaction was to prevent neighbors from taking advantage of the fire.

In fact, the Russians thought too much, but their actions obviously stimulated the sensitive nerves of the Austrian and Prussian border troops.

As a result, the three parties began to deploy more troops on the border to guard against each other, but soon the Russians could not withstand it anymore, because the Poles directly cut off their logistics.

However, the Russians were embarrassed. At this time, they neither dared to retreat and defend, nor continued the stalemate.

You must know that if the army runs out of food, big trouble will happen. Therefore, in order to keep food supply, the Russian army sent food requisition teams to surrounding villages and cities to collect food on the spot.

As a result, rebels naturally appeared in nearby cities and villages, and the Russians could only hide in a few fortresses and military camps and tremble.

On the other hand, Poles in the Austrian Empire and Prussia began to organize fundraisers and secretly recruit volunteers.

The two governments turned a blind eye to the actions of the Poles. If the Poles made too much noise or might threaten the security of their country, they would kill them. If those Poles just wanted to find the Russians, they would kill them. If it's troublesome, just give it a try.

However, compared to the Poles' private actions, the churches in the two countries behaved very crazy.

The Holy See issued a statement expressing solemn protest as soon as the Tsar asked the Poles to convert. Pius IX made a speech in the Vatican calling on Catholic countries to stop the Tsar's crazy actions.

The bishops of every diocese received an oracle from the Holy See, which naturally included Archbishop Rauscher.

As the Archbishop of Vienna, the head of the Austrian Imperial Church, and the nominal teacher of the emperor, he found Franz immediately.

"Your Majesty, what do you mean?"

Archbishop Rauscher was not a very ambitious person, and he believed that Franz was definitely an ordinary person. In fact, from the perspective of a believer, His Majesty the Emperor is simply a saint than a saint.

The saint Moses just parted the ocean, but Franz pulled people out of hell, defeated the disease, defeated the pagans, drove out the darkness, and spread the "gospel" to all parts of the world.

Franz's answer is also interesting.

“Render unto Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and unto God the things that are God’s.”

Franz's words naturally had ulterior motives. Archbishop Rauscher had known Franz for many years and could guess what the emperor meant.

So the church in the Austrian Empire also began to take action, but unlike the churches in other countries at this time, the church in the Austrian Empire not only had money but also an army.

Although those troops are only mercenaries in name, each of them knows exactly who they are working for.

This time, in addition to Poles, there were also a considerable number of Albanians among the support sent by the church.

In fact, although the church regards the Albanian conversion as a major religious victory, it does not believe in them. After all, these people have a history of conversion and apostasy.

This mass conversion largely stemmed from the Albanians' reluctance to give up their land and property and their lack of confidence in the Ottoman Empire.

As border residents, they know very well what they will encounter as the weak side, being humiliated by a powerful country, jealous and suppressed by their own country, and even used as pawns just like in previous wars.

(Although Albania is now called the only Islamic country in Europe, Albanians have converted to Islam many times in history.

They originally believed in Catholicism, and then with the division of the Roman Empire, the Byzantines came and believed in Orthodoxy, the Venetians came and believed in Catholicism, the Ottomans came and believed in Islam, and the Soviets came and they were atheists.

Albania was once the country with the highest proportion of atheists in the world, even far higher than a certain Eastern power in later generations, with a purity comparable to 99K gold.)

The decision within the church was to let the Albanians prove their loyalty with their blood. If they died on the battlefield, it would undoubtedly be for their faith and they died for their own good.

If they just pretended to surrender, the Russians would teach them another lesson.

In fact, Prussia was even more lively than Austria. In 1848, the Rhine region almost split from Prussia, and a large part of the credit for this was due to the Archbishop of Cologne.

But all this has to start with the internal structure of Prussia. The Rhine region was the spoils of war that Prussia obtained at the Vienna Peace Conference, not the original land of Brandenburg.

In the past, the Rhine region was not considered a rich land, so Metternich waved his hand and gave this barren land close to France to Prussia, while Austria took the fertile land of northern Italy.

The Rhine region should not have the capital to resist the central government, but with the advent of the industrial age and post-war peace, this land burst into unprecedented vitality, and the originally barren land became the richest region in Prussia.