Holy Roman Empire

Chapter 225: The Dark Days

The changes at the Paris Conference were passed on to Franz. Metternich explained his views, and the top government officials stationed in Vienna also made their suggestions.

In general, the idea was to give up while one was ahead. Austria’s original plan was to annex the Southern German States. Now Baden could not be kept, but Saxony was gained.

In terms of territorial area, the two were almost equal. Saxony was slightly more important to Austria. Leaving aside industry, the population was at least several hundred thousand more than the Grand Duchy of Baden.

The plan for a tripartite division of Germany was part of Austria’s plans for unification, first proposed by Metternich years before the preparations began.

However, the original plan was to unite the small states in Northern Germany and create a new country to block Prussia’s unification of the Northern German States.

No doubt, if this plan had been proposed by Austria, it would have failed 100%. The Prussian government probably wouldn’t have even bothered to think before deciding to act and get involved.

This important task could only be accomplished by the British. In the early stages, the Austrian government also had to be sufficiently spineless to make the Prussian government believe that Austria would admit defeat and withdraw from German territories under international pressure.

Once Austria was out, there would be no doubt that Prussia would unite the German states. Under such a temptation, Frederick William IV would not be able to resist. He would not miss the opportunity for a twofold division of Germany.

Franz could not command the British. He could only make the British believe that the tripartite division of Germany was most in line with their interests, or rather, make the British capitalists believe that the tripartite division of Germany could preserve their market.

Austria could not yet interfere with the decisions of the British government. At best it could buy some experts and scholars and shape public opinion.

It couldn’t even be traced back to Austria. From the beginning to the end, it was done by the Bavarian government, with Maximilian II providing the money and the effort.

Maximilian II was the first to be deceived by the theory of the tripartite division of Germany. Historically, it was also the Kingdom of Bavaria that put forward the concept of the tripartite division of Germany, but it lacked the strength to succeed.

On the surface, the Austrian Foreign Ministry seemed to have done nothing. But in reality, Metternich did a great deal.

To convince the Bavarian government that the tripartite division of Germany could succeed as long as the powers supported it, the Austrian government had to spend millions of guilders on propaganda every year.

Austria was in control at the beginning but had no control over the end. Trying to control a country’s decision-making was unreliable to begin with. Trying to control the rhythm was merely wishful thinking.

Franz did not hesitate long before making a decision: “Send a telegram to the Austrian government that concessions can be made, but don’t make it too obvious. We still need to use pressure from various countries to force the Prussian government to give up the Rhineland.”

The original purpose of creating a new country was to contain the Kingdom of Prussia. Now the British had the wild idea of proposing a strategic buffer, allowing the Kingdom of Prussia and this new country to exchange land.

This had to be supported! Throughout history, most famous diplomatic anecdotes have started as wild ideas. If there were no surprises, how could it be considered a classic?

Rhineland does not seem to be well-known. But if you use the term Ruhr or Rhine-Ruhr, everyone would know it.

It contained 80% of Germany’s coal, 90% of its coke, and 60% of its steel, and was also the most important center of mechanical manufacturing in the German lands, known as the “Heart of German Industry”.

Without the Rhineland, would the Kingdom of Prussia still be able to rise as it has historically?

Obviously not.

Of course, the Rhineland was not as important at that time as it would be later. Local industry had only just begun in the mid-19th century.

Otherwise, when Austria annexed Southern Germany, Napoleon III would have rushed in long ago.

Even if the proposal failed and Prussia refused to exchange territory, it didn’t matter. In the future, when France ran out of coal, Napoleon III would start the Franco-Prussian War.

Even if he didn’t want to fight, the French capitalists would find a way to start a war. As a last resort, Austria could add fuel to the fire.

If Prussia won, Austria would partition this new country with them. If France won, even better — Austria could annex this new country all at once, making up for France annexing the Rhineland industrial area!

……

Berlin

Since the British proposal was made public, the Prussian government had exploded. Frederick William IV cursed up a storm. No one was a fool. Isn’t their main purpose to follow the British for their interests?

So what happened? Austria was kicked out, but it took a huge inheritance with it. The Kingdom of Prussia not only received no benefits but was kicked out of Germany along with Austria.

There was no need to think about why — he also knew it was because of interests.

The new regime would definitely be pro-British in the future. After Belgium, the British government had gained another foothold on the European continent.

Under the beautiful name of a strategic buffer, this buffer not only restricted Austria but also cut off the Kingdom of Prussia’s path to becoming a great power.

Frederick William IV angrily asked, “What about Austria? What was their reaction? Did they just acquiesce in the British acting so terribly?”

Foreign Minister Manteuffel replied, “Your Majesty, Austria’s attitude is very contradictory, apparently hesitant and indecisive. They neither want to give up the Grand Duchy of Baden nor do they want the negotiations to fail because of it.

All the pressure is on us now. Whether we agree to the exchange of territory or not, this new state will be born.”

In simple terms, this country would be created per the interests of the Great Powers, but the Kingdom of Prussia could refuse the exchange proposal because the countries did not force them to agree.

“What would be the chances of success if we were to join forces with Austria and divide up the German states?” Frederick William IV asked anxiously.

Forget Britain, in the face of interests, Frederick William IV mustered the courage to take a risk.

“Your Majesty, the premise is that the Austrians are willing to join hands with us. Now the situation has changed. Except for the Grand Duchy of Baden, the Austrians have gotten almost everything they wanted this time.

At this point, what interest do they have in cooperating with us? Unless we make major concessions in the distribution of interests!” Foreign Minister Manteuffel replied.

Frederick William IV remained silent. If concessions were made and Austria annexed Central Germany, the foundations of the Kingdom of Prussia would be greatly weakened.

A small territory and a small population meant that the potential for development would be limited. To dream of becoming a great power, you must first be big enough!

According to Austria’s original proposal, Prussia would annex Northern Germany, which had a population of over 20 million and a land area of nearly 380,000 square kilometers. The price was to offend Britain and France.

Now, starting a war would still offend Britain and France, but the benefits would be much smaller. Naturally, Frederick William IV was unwilling.

“Your Majesty, we missed the opportunity. It would be better to wait for the next opportunity! The European continent cannot remain in balance forever. As long as the balance of power between Great Britain, Russia, France, and Austria shifts, war will be inevitable,” Joseph von Radowitz thought for a moment before saying.

After hesitating for a while, Frederick William IV finally said, “Then what about the land exchange? Shall we refuse it?”

“Your Majesty, strategically speaking, after we exchange the Rhineland, our territory will be more concentrated, and national security will be better ensured. We also avoid bordering France.

But the resources of the Rhineland are also very important to us. Even if we were to exchange it for the economically developed Hamburg region, we would still suffer a loss,” replied Prime Minister Joseph von Radowitz.

It was a dilemma. Joseph von Radowitz suspected that the British proposal was made in bad faith. Of course, the target was not necessarily the Kingdom of Prussia, it was more likely to provoke a conflict between France and Austria.

Once the Rhineland fell into the hands of this new country, France would definitely set their sights on it in the future. Austria would certainly not accept this. With Britain adding fuel to the fire, the two sides would begin to fight.

If the Prussian government refused the exchange, then the situation would change. The one charging ahead might not be Austria but the Kingdom of Prussia instead.

This is just his speculative guess based on intuition; reason tells him it’s not reliable. Thanks to the reputation of the late Emperor Napoleon, any French external expansion would now provoke a strong reaction from everyone. Napoleon III wouldn’t act so rashly.

……

While the Prussians were hesitating, Metternich was also getting a headache. Many German states were waiting for Austria’s answer.

Theoretically, the German Confederation had not yet been dissolved. The governments of all the states were waiting for Austria to announce its position on the dissolution of the Bundestag (Federal Parliament).

Britain’s proposal for a tripartite division of Germany was not kept secret and was now almost universally known. For these state governments, the formation of a new country would naturally better protect their interests.

However, they were all old foxes and would not show any surprise at this time. On the contrary, their faces were full of gloom, pretending to oppose the dissolution of the German Confederation.

Faced with a group of talented actors, Metternich could only feel annoyed. Knowing that they were just putting on a show, Metternich still had to play along.

If the acting was not done properly, how could they explain it to the people in their countries?

The unification of Germany failed, but we tried our best. Don’t you believe it? Look at how we tried to visit government officials every day, even though we can’t meet them in the end.

Anyone could refuse to meet with these people, but Metternich couldn’t get away with it. He could only reluctantly receive them. Together they would lament the hardships of German unification, then angrily condemn the interfering countries before leaving.

In short, everyone here was a supporter of German unification, there were absolutely no selfish people, at least on the surface.

Under these circumstances, Metternich still had to visit the representatives of various countries every day and try to win everyone’s support.

So far, Austria has gained the understanding and support of countries such as the Kingdom of Naples, the Papal States, Tuscany, and others.

Even the attitudes of countries like Switzerland, Spain, Portugal, and the Netherlands had changed. From a religious point of view, everyone recognized the unification of Austria with the Southern German States.

As the saying goes, “First comes the ebb, then the flow, and finally the exhaustion”. The yet-to-be-formed intervention alliance has already fragmented and disintegrated while no one was paying attention.

On October 1, 1853, the curtain fell on the month-long Paris Conference. At Metternich’s insistence, Austria had successfully annexed Bavaria, Saxony, Württemberg, Frankfurt, Hesse-Darmstadt, and other regions.

It added some 12.2 million square kilometers of land and some 9.5 million people, taking the first step toward German unification.

Under the principle of consensus among the great powers, the remaining German states, except for the Kingdom of Prussia, merged to form the German Federal Empire, restoring the old traditional electoral monarchy.

The question of the exchange of territories between the Kingdom of Prussia and the German Federal Empire has reached an impasse. The Prussian government’s appetite was too great, and it faced resistance from many states, especially the governments of the territories to be exchanged, which strongly opposed it.

If it was just government opposition, the countries could still push it through. The problem was that the public reaction was even stronger. Most of the Prussian embassies in Germany were besieged by civilians.

This intense reaction directly shook the Prussian government’s determination to exchange territory. Frederick William IV did not want to rule over a mob, the lessons of the Berlin Revolution were still fresh in his mind.

National strategy could take a back seat to governmental stability. Moreover, the Rhineland had great development potential, and the Prussian government was reluctant to give it up.

If the benefits were too great, they could still be exchanged. Clearly, this was now impossible. The German federal government only agreed to exchange equivalent territories, which the Prussian government naturally did not agree to.

If everyone hadn’t taken the face of the great powers into account, the negotiations might have ended long ago.

Upon receiving the final resolution of the Paris Conference, Franz breathed a deep sigh of relief, though he did not show his joy outwardly.

To outsiders, Emperor Franz was currently furious. To protest the unfair treatment of the Paris Conference, he pretentiously wrote an essay “The Dark Days”.

“These are the darkest days of my life. The German lands have been forcibly divided by a group of shameless thieves and a traitor.

Even God frowned. The sunlight shining on the ground was reduced to a few faint rays.

The storm came and the wind howled. Great Germany, are you ready?

Ready to welcome the wind and rain, and face this dark moment.

This is a world of the strong. My people, you must be strong. The high winds cannot blow us away, and the storms cannot crush us.

The only thing that can defeat us is ourselves! Only by being strong and bravely facing everything, the dark days will pass and a rainbow can be seen after the storm…”

……

Franz had not yet returned to Vienna, but his article was already being circulated throughout Germany. Although the cost of telegrams was exorbitant at the time, he was not the least bit stingy.

Of course, it was essential to take the initiative in the propaganda of public opinion. Franz was quite experienced in this field. At that time, few people in the German lands would have been in good spirits, so Franz naturally stood together with the public.

For their future plans, he had to call on everyone to persevere and not to give in to reality. The division was only temporary, and the unification of the German lands was only a matter of time.

Every person was deceived once more. As long as the banner of unification did not fall, it was tantamount to opening a back door for Austria’s future expansion.

Influenced by Franz, the Austrian government also canceled the originally planned celebrations. From the top to the bottom of the government, everyone mourned the division of Germany.

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