Holy Roman Empire

Chapter 497: The French Who Want to Cut Their Losses

The scaled-down version of the African railway network plan was finally unveiled, adhering to the principle of saving wherever possible. The central government would cover half the costs of the essential main railway lines, but the colonial governments would have to find their own ways to fund the construction of the branch lines.

These main railway lines were not merely tracks laid on land. They were strategic arteries meant to weave the colonies into a resilient web. Even in the face of a world war, Austria would maintain its grip on the African continent.

And let’s not forget the South African gold mines—these alone justified the railway’s construction. Austria needed to show its strength, keeping other nations’ greedy eyes at bay.

The Portuguese refrained from joining forces with the British, not because of loyalty, but because John Bull hadn’t dangled a juicy enough carrot. But what if they caught wind of vast gold reserves in South Africa? Could they resist such temptation?

To put it bluntly, in this era, colonies are just another form of wealth. For the Portuguese, as long as the potential gains are large enough, even if they lose their other colonial territories under Austrian retaliation, it would still be worth it.

Otherwise, why would Franz need to fight a war with the British in South Africa? If the Austrian government had simply announced the annexation of the Boer Republics, Governor Delf wouldn’t have been foolish enough to wage war on his own.

The greatest value of the Anglo-Boer War was making the British government soberly realize that they truly couldn’t fight on land.

As for the Cape Town colonial government, it’s estimated that it will take decades to emerge from the shadow of this war.

With the railways connected, even if the gold was exposed, the Cape Town government wouldn’t dare to stir up trouble. Such was the lasting effect of war.

Even the British government found its appetite for conflict waning. An integrated Austro-African territory could muster hundreds of thousands of troops at a moment’s notice. The price of wrestling the gold mines from Austria’s grasp was simply too steep, beyond what they could bear.

In the grand scheme of things, Franz’s focus on the African continent had outstripped his attention to Europe. To him, Africa was the land of Austria’s future.

There was no other choice as expanding further in Europe was a Herculean task. Without the African colonies, Europe would have seen far less peace over the years. Franz would have stirred the pot long ago, had he not set his sights on the untapped potential of Africa.

Leaving aside everything else, with the long-standing feud between the Habsburg dynasty and the Ottoman Empire, the Ottomans wouldn’t have lasted this long.

In the original timeline, Austria didn’t make a move against them because they lacked the strength. Diplomatic blunders and intense domestic political struggles led to consecutive military failures on the European continent, leaving them barely able to protect themselves.

Due to the establishment of the Austro-African colonies, the resources there were enough to keep Austria busy for many years, leading Franz to abandon any thoughts of stirring up war in Europe.

This was a matter of return on investment. In the original timeline, none of the parties involved in World War I emerged victorious, and in the end, all were severely weakened, ultimately benefiting others.

World War II was even worse, as the European countries involved were not just weakened but almost entirely annihilated, with only the French barely escaping complete ruin.

The risks were too high, and the potential gains too small. European territories were difficult to digest. If they choked on them, it would be disastrous.

Look at the French. To absorb the Italian territories, they had to focus all their efforts, even impacting their overseas colonial expansion activities.

The previously likely Franco-Austrian conflict on the African continent now showed no signs of occurring. Due to the shift in strategic focus, the French slowed their expansion in Africa, leaving plenty of buffer space between the two countries.

African territory was also limited, and as the French slowed down, Austria was quick to take advantage.

Even though the two countries had delineated their respective spheres of influence, without satellite maps in this era, the vastness of Africa meant that pushing forward 100-200 miles wouldn’t be noticed by anyone.

A line on a map could translate to significant discrepancies on the actual border. Fortunately, much of the boundary between the two powers lay across vast deserts, or else the French territories would have shrunk considerably.

Austria wasn’t the only one seizing territory. The British intensified their infiltration of the Sudan region. If not for the sudden Anglo-Boer War, diverting the attention of both Britain and Austria, the French might not be able to hold onto their interests in Sudan.

Of course, with the alliance between Britain, France, and Austria, these issues will gradually fade, and everyone will exercise restraint as much as possible.

In Paris, following France’s political decision to strategically withdraw, the resources allocated here have been reduced. By now, France can no longer control the situation in Mexico.

Napoleon III is now in a quandary, hesitating over whether to abandon the Mexican Empire. It’s a tough decision, as the French government has invested so many resources in Mexico in recent years, and it would be a pity to give it up.

If Austria had shown any interest in expanding its influence in Mexico, Napoleon III might have suspected that Maximilian I was a Habsburg spy specifically sent to create trouble for France.

Of course, this thought quickly passed. From the perspective of family interests, if the Habsburgs were interested in Mexico, they wouldn’t have allowed Maximilian I to name an outsider as his heir.

When he first received this news, Napoleon III was stunned by this bizarre move. He even suspected for a while whether it was Maximilian I’s illegitimate child.

In his view, even if the Habsburgs’ direct line had no interest in the Mexican throne, it would have been better to send a distant relative to be named as heir rather than support an outsider.

If the House of Bonaparte had had more influence and could have gained recognition from the local constitutionalists, Napoleon III would have supported one of his own for the throne.

Napoleon III regretted it. Had he known earlier how incompetent Maximilian I would prove to be, he would never have supported that fool’s rise to power.

A plump elderly man in his sixties saw through the emperor’s predicament. After all, this political investment was led by Napoleon III, and it wouldn’t do for the emperor to suggest abandoning Mexico himself.

“Your Majesty, the investment in Mexico has failed. Continuing to pour resources into it may never yield returns. What we need to do now is cut our losses.

With the opportunity presented by the alliance of the three nations, we can deter the Americans. We must quickly find someone to take over and try to sell it at a good price.”

Selling off the interests in Mexico was indeed a promising option, certainly better than losing everything.

To crush the Mexican rebels, France had already lost over ten thousand soldiers and sunk billions of francs into loans.

The losses were nearing the magnitude of the British casualties in the Anglo-Boer War. Yet, despite these sacrifices, the Mexican rebels only multiplied, and the situation continued to deteriorate.

After a moment of contemplation, Napoleon III asked with uncertainty, “Who would buy our interests in Mexico when it’s not even a formal colony and the situation keeps worsening?

Spain is mired in a civil war over its throne and can’t possibly intervene in Mexico now. The British are too cunning to offer a fair price. The Austrians, with their focus on African colonies, have no interest in Mexico.

As for the remaining countries, they either lack the capability to take over, or they’re too poor and would find it expensive even if we gave it to them for free.”

This was the crux of the problem. If even they couldn’t stabilize the situation, who else would be foolish enough to take on such a mess?

Everyone’s not a fool. Anyone who understands the situation in Mexico knows it’s a mess and wouldn’t jump into this fire pit.

After pausing for a moment, as if something had just occurred to him, Napoleon III sternly reprimanded, “Marquis Fickel, don’t tell me, are you thinking of the Americans? That’s out of the question!

We can sell to any country except the United States and the Confederate States. This was agreed upon in the Four Nations Treaty.

If we violate the treaty, we’ll face sanctions from the other three countries, and the newly established Anglo-French-Austrian tripartite alliance would immediately crumble!”

When it came to containing the Americans, Britain, France, and Austria were in complete agreement. France was now a responsible great power and must not act recklessly.

Napoleon III wasn’t so short-sighted as to dismantle the Anglo-French-Austrian alliance just for some money.

He was acutely aware of the diplomatic challenges France faced. On the surface, reconciliation seemed to have occurred, but behind the scenes, European nations continued to marginalize France.

Especially after annexing Italy, things became more difficult. If the alliance with Britain and Austria were broken, there could be retaliation, potentially leading to another coalition against France.

Seeing Napoleon III’s anger, the elderly man immediately fell silent. He had already done justice to the Americans’ money, but if the emperor refused, there was nothing more he could do. He couldn’t risk his own position.

Sensing Marquis Fickel’s need for support, Finance Minister Allen stepped in to help, saying, “His Majesty is right. Mexico absolutely cannot fall into American hands. However, the Mexican issue must be resolved quickly. The longer we delay, the more we will lose.

My personal suggestion is that whoever takes over the Mexican Empire, as long as they can ensure the fulfillment of our loans with the Mexican government, should be able to acquire our interests there.”

It was clear that Finance Minister Allen was clear-headed. He knew that given the chaotic situation in Mexico, it was impossible to sell at a good price. Simply ensuring the loans were fulfilled would be a blessing.

He didn’t have much hope for even that since there were very few potential buyers willing to take over. Unless they wanted to risk breaking relations with Britain and Austria by involving the Americans, there was no one to bear the burden.

The debt owed by the Mexican government to France was not a small amount. Given Mexico’s financial situation, it would take decades to repay even with no other expenses.

After pondering for a moment, Napoleon III said, “The Ministry of Foreign Affairs should quickly reach out to European countries to see if anyone is interested in taking over the Mexican Empire.

We can’t afford to be too picky now. We’re not looking to sell for a high price, just to get rid of it as soon as possible to avoid a total loss.”