Make France Great Again-Chapter 155 Secret Agreement between France and Austria
Chapter 155: Chapter 155 Secret Agreement between France and Austria
"The Bonaparte Clan is indeed as greedy as ever!"
The word "conditional" evoked a genuine disgust in Franz Joseph.
If the aversion towards King Frederick William IV was due only to Prussia and Austria’s unequal interests in Germany, then the repulsion towards the Bonaparte Clan stemmed from emotional [there were always rumors in the Habsburg family about Empress Dowager Sophie having an affair with the King of Rome] to principles of legitimacy [the Bonaparte Clan was considered a shameful usurper by the Habsburgs].
For a monarch as conservatively religious as Franz Joseph, the French Republic was undoubtedly a challenge to the traditional dynasties.
If it weren’t for the Austrian Empire itself being challenged by the Kingdom of Prussia and having no energy to deal with other issues, Franz Joseph would have surely crusaded against the French Republic.
Now the Bonaparte Clan dared to negotiate terms with him, which was practically an indirect insult to Franz Joseph, who inherently despised the Bonaparte Clan.
Felix Schwarzenberg also knew that Franz Joseph looked down on the French Republic and the Bonaparte Clan. Being of noble birth himself, he too disdained the parvenu Bonaparte Clan, but the most taboo thing in diplomacy is determining its direction based on the monarch’s moods. As long as something is beneficial to Austria, why not even flatter a monkey?
However, Felix Schwarzenberg dared not verbalize such blunt words to Franz Joseph, much like a consummate egoist would never admit to being such.
"Your Majesty, you are right! The Bonaparte Clan is indeed a greedy family, but we precisely need to use their greed to accomplish what we should accomplish." Felix Schwarzenberg cautiously replied, "Your Majesty, did not Prince Metternich also briefly compromise with France, but this did not prevent him from severing ties with France afterward and returning all the humiliation he once suffered? Your Majesty, if I may speak frankly, adhering to principles in today’s era will only bind us."
Felix Schwarzenberg’s blatant opportunist theory left Franz Joseph, who had been oppressed by 18th-century orthodox theories, momentarily bewildered. In his eyes, Schwarzenberg had already transformed into a second Metternich [Metternich: I’m not dead yet!]; he also recalled what his mother, Empress Dowager Sophie, had told him: to heed Felix Schwarzenberg’s advice.
"Perhaps you have a point!" Franz Joseph furrowed his brows, extending his hand to Felix Schwarzenberg, "May I see the content of the letter?"
Felix Schwarzenberg respectfully handed the letter to Franz Joseph, believing that as long as the letter’s content did not involve Austria’s territorial integrity, Franz Joseph would surely agree with his perspective.
[PS: Franz Joseph has a somewhat unimaginable obsession with territorial integrity, but he maintains a detached attitude towards Germany’s integrity, unwilling to delve too deeply into German lands.
Before the Austro-Prussian War in 1866, Franz Joseph had sought to exchange parts of Silesia for Schleswig, but this was ruthlessly rejected by William I. After that, the Austro-Prussian War left Franz Joseph with no further chance for territorial exchange.]
Seeing the letter, Franz Joseph’s furrowed brows relaxed. He returned the letter to Felix Schwarzenberg, saying, "Prime Minister Felix, do we really have to agree to these terms from the French Republic?"
"Your Majesty, this depends on how we want to shape Prussia! If our intention is merely to undermine Prussia’s prestige and reconstruct the old German Confederation, then we only need to agree to some of the terms." Felix Schwarzenberg already had a plan for dealing with Prussia, "If we wish to utterly crush Prussia and sever its ambitions towards Germany, then we must agree to all of France’s conditions."
"Is there a difference between the two?" Franz Joseph curiously asked Felix Schwarzenberg.
"Once we attempt to crush the Kingdom of Prussia through war, Nicholas I of the Russian Empire will surely intervene. At that time, we will need to bring in external forces to counter the Russian Empire’s influence, and the French Republic is undoubtedly the best choice." Felix Schwarzenberg explained.
"What about Britain? Can’t we seek help from Britain?" Franz Joseph responded.
"Your Majesty, the British Army cannot assist us immediately!" Felix Schwarzenberg replied to Franz Joseph, "Your Majesty, the Russian Imperial Army has gradually formed an encirclement around us. Once we engage in war with the Kingdom of Prussia, the Russian Imperial Army stationed in the Danube Duchy will certainly invade Transylvania at the first opportunity, and they will undoubtedly spread the flames of war into Hungary.
This means we not only need to guard against attacks from the Kingdom of Prussia but also against the Russian Empire. We need a strong land power to rely on."
Felix Schwarzenberg’s anti-Russian declaration left Franz Joseph somewhat taken aback.
"The Russian Empire has just helped us..." Franz Joseph said to Felix Schwarzenberg, his tone filled with surprise.
"Your Majesty, Nicholas I is eager to befriend us merely to devour the spoils seized from the Ottoman Empire. At present, His Majesty Nicholas I needs the Holy Alliance more than we do!" Schwarzenberg replied with a tone completely devoid of warmth.
Britain’s refusal made Felix Schwarzenberg realize that the old Holy Alliance might no longer meet the needs of the Austrian Empire.
The Austrian Empire needed to ally with a new variable to counterbalance the increasingly greedy Russian Empire.
"Your Majesty, the strategy against the Russian Empire since Prince Metternich has always been to prevent them from completely encircling the empire!" Schwarzenberg continued.
For the 19-year-old Franz Joseph, completely understanding the diplomatic mechanisms of the European Continent at this age was undoubtedly a strenuous task. Not to mention him, even the diplomatic envoys were not fully aware of their own country’s diplomatic objectives and means. There were even some non-diplomatic personnel serving as diplomatic envoys; to name one, the French Republic’s envoy to Russia, a military minister with no diplomatic experience, was virtually transferred to serve as an envoy in the Russian Empire.
Unless, of course, someone from the French Republic had the historical foresight.
Franz Joseph, confused by Schwarzenberg’s diplomatic rhetoric, once again displayed his military style, directly asking: "Prime Minister Felix, I just want to know if we should crush the Kingdom of Prussia, or if we just need to undermine its prestige."
"Our primary goal is to undermine the prestige of the Kingdom of Prussia, making them give up competing with Austria," Felix Schwarzenberg explained to Franz Joseph. "It’s like a big tree; we can only further cut down its trunk after first cutting off all its branches."
Felix Schwarzenberg used the "tree-cutting theory" to briefly describe his strategy to Franz Joseph.
"So, we must have a battle with Prussia?" Franz Joseph asked Felix Schwarzenberg.
"Your Majesty, Prussia will not stand idly by and watch us unify Germany!" Felix Schwarzenberg tactfully expressed his diplomatic philosophy.
Establishing a great empire of 70 million people centered around Austria was Felix Schwarzenberg’s aspiration.
"Prime Minister Felix, should we accept his conditions now?" Franz Joseph once again sought Felix Schwarzenberg’s opinion.
"We can appropriately agree to some of France’s demands, but for the other demands, we need to use vague rhetoric," Felix Schwarzenberg suggested.
"Which should be vague, and which should be satisfied?" Franz Joseph, still in a learning mode, pressed for details.
"Your Majesty, please look here!" Felix Schwarzenberg pointed to the contents of the letter, saying: "We can pressure the Pope to release some war criminals to show our sincerity to the French Republic. As for the territorial demands regarding the Rhine Land, we should handle them vaguely. We could agree to some of France’s demands and offer France a vague rhetoric, such as suggesting that the Rhine Land issue could be resolved after we decisively win against the Kingdom of Prussia, by then transferring some Prussian territory to France..." frёeweɓηovel_coɱ
Felix Schwarzenberg’s approach was exactly the same as Bismarck’s promise to France 17 years later, except that Felix Schwarzenberg overestimated the capabilities of the Austrian Empire and underestimated the Kingdom of Prussia.
Even the same strategy can produce different effects in different countries.
Moreover, Felix Schwarzenberg’s understanding of the Austrian Empire might not be as profound as someone at the Elysee Palace.
"Prime Minister Felix, when can we reduce Prussia’s trunk?" Franz Joseph inquired of Felix.
"After we’ve thoroughly resolved the Hungarian issue!" Felix Schwarzenberg responded.
The issue of Hungary had always been a concern for Felix Schwarzenberg. Only by fully integrating Hungary into the empire could Felix Schwarzenberg truly cut down the trunk of the Prussian tree.
Before that, Felix Schwarzenberg still needed to force the Kingdom of Prussia into the Confederation, continually weakening their influence.
"Let’s proceed with this plan!" Franz Joseph commanded Von Gentz, who was quietly waiting by the side.
"Yes!"
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