Chapter 1283 Isabel II's Self-rescue

Chapter 1283 Isabel II's Self-rescue

Taiwan Novel Network →𝔱𝔴𝔨𝔞𝔫.𝔠𝔬𝔪

Madrid, Almudena Palace.

Isabel II looked at Mario Alvarez Casal, who had been running around for days, and showed a rare look of pity.

"You are back."

"I am back, Your Majesty. Fortunately, I have fulfilled my mission and successfully executed Lieutenant General Varner who colluded with the Austrians."

"Good! Well done!"

Isabel II was overjoyed. These local warlords in Spain have always been a headache for her.

Spain's geographical environment is naturally suitable for separatism, and a declining dynasty is a hotbed for separatist forces.

In fact, in the original history, Spain at this time should have been ruled by a military government.

Although Espartero nominally honored Isabel II as king, all the internal and external powers of Spain were in his hands alone.

Then came Narvaez and O'Donnell.

But at this time, these people were still small warlords who ruled their own territories and failed to successfully enter Madrid.

It is impossible for Isabel II to not be afraid of them.

So when she heard that Varna was executed and Catalonia returned to the rule of Madrid, she was so happy.

"Mario Alvarez Casar, listen! I will make you a knight today!"

"Your Majesty."

Mario choked a little, and there seemed to be tears in his eyes.

"No need to refuse! Your loyalty to me has proved that you are qualified to accept all this! Now the threat of the Austrian Empire has not been lifted, and we must always be vigilant against enemies from within.

I order you to find the traitor among us!"

"Yes! My Majesty."

"I am relieved with you. You go down and rest first, and come to my room at night. I want to hear you sing."

What Isabel II didn't know was that the Spanish Legion of the Austrian Empire had 180,000 people at this time, and even exceeded the size of the previous Spanish government army in terms of strength.

However, although Isabella II was bad, she was not stupid. After the Austrian Empire landed, she had been recruiting soldiers crazily.

After all, no matter how nice the British and French said, they would not really fight for themselves. If you want to defend Spain, you have to rely on Isabella II herself. In this regard, she is very self-aware.

At this time, Spain was full of hungry refugees due to years of war and frequent natural disasters. It was not easy to recruit soldiers.

There are as many soldiers as there are food. This sentence is absolutely applicable to Spain at this time.

Before, when dealing with the Carlos faction in the mountains, Isabella II could not help no matter how many soldiers she recruited.

But this time it was different. Her enemy became the Austrians who were coming in full force. Isabella II knew from the previous war between Britain and France in the Iberian Peninsula that the Spanish army could no longer compare with the armies of the great powers.

She hoped that at least she could use the advantage in numbers to make up for the disadvantages in quality and equipment.

As a result, the number of troops under the control of the Madrid government soared from 100,000 to 200,000, but the cost was a doubled logistical burden and a large number of recruits who lacked basic training.

However, Isabella II was in no mood to train new recruits. She needed to put these people on the battlefield immediately and put them on the necessary routes of the Austrian Empire's offensive. In fact, the main value of these soldiers was not to defeat the army of the Austrian Empire, but to buy time.

Isabella II knew very well that Britain and France would not sit idly by and watch the Austrian Empire support a pro-Austrian king on the Iberian Peninsula.

Judging from her own experience, Isabella II knew very well that Britain and France wanted to use Spain to weaken the Austrian Empire.

But she knew even more that at least the French did not dare to gamble. As long as they learned about the situation on the Iberian Peninsula, they would definitely send troops to Spain, or at least put pressure on the Austrians in other directions.

However, Isabella II could never have imagined that the military supervisors she sent to various places to prevent local warlords from rebelling would eventually force those warlords to rebel.

In fact, the royal party under Isabella II has always hated those warlords who were separatist in the local area, so they all chose to stab in the back at this critical moment.

The subjective purpose of these people is actually to strengthen the centralization of Spain, but objectively it has led to the further disintegration of the Spanish government's power in the local area.

Everyone in Spain knows what kind of person Isabella II is. Even if they didn't know it before, the bloody facts are now in front of them, and the newspapers and charlatans are trying their best to fool them.

Those who have been protected by local warlords, those who are close to local warlords, and those who oppose the queen, will they gamble on Isabella II's character?

Obviously not, then surrendering to the Austrian Empire becomes the best option. After all, it is not so easy to be independent. If you are not careful, you may be attacked from both sides.

Franz's charity is naturally not in vain. Just like the sign of the Habsburg family, it can be of great use at times.

London, England.

A loan worth 100 million pounds has just been settled, and everyone in the financial city is celebrating.

But at this time, the top leaders of the British government were all frowning in their residence at 10 Downing Street. They did not expect that the Austrian Empire would control the entire southeast coast of Spain in a blink of an eye.

The Spanish government only fought a few extremely ugly battles and then surrendered without resistance.

And such a large-scale surrender is unheard of in the entire world history.

"Damn it! The Spanish government is really rotten to the core!"

Home Secretary Spencer Walpole couldn't help cursing.

But he was greeted with a cold snort of disdain. After all, the Spanish government has been a human being for a long time, and it is a recognized fact.

"What should we do? At this rate, the Austrian Empire will probably occupy the whole of Spain in less than half a year."

"How can it be that easy? Back then, the Berbers pushed Spain to Asturias, and the French announced many times that they had completely occupied Spain, but they still failed miserably?"

"It's different. Other countries' attack on Spain is called invasion. For the Spaniards, the Habsburgs' attack on the Bourbon family should be called recovering lost territory."

"That's right. According to our intelligence, the Spaniards did not have much resistance to the Austrian invasion, and many Spaniards even joined the Austrian army and worked for the latter."

"What a spineless nation!"

Earl Derby commented. He was in a dilemma now. The continued growth of the Austrian Empire would definitely be detrimental to the British Empire, but a falling out would be very detrimental to the bankers in the City of London, and also to him.

If the Spaniards can hold back the Austrians, it would be fine. If they can't, then Britain will have to consider supporting them, or even sending troops to Spain directly.

"Do we want to provide loans to the Spaniards?"

"That's impossible! The Spaniards will never pay back the money. That bitch will only take it for granted."