Wild North America 1846

Chapter 212 Starting with Alaska
A few months later
A major event happened in Europe. The Tsarist Russian court belatedly discovered that the protection of the Holy Land had been in the hands of the French. This aroused the tsar's fury and soon made a formal response.

Tsarist Russia reaffirmed the Russian-Turkish Kuchuk-Kanaji Treaty in 1774, which stipulated that the Orthodox Church had higher immunity and privileges than the Catholic Church. In addition, there were ambiguous clauses, which were interpreted differently by Russia and Turkey. The crisis is getting worse day by day.

In February 1853, Prince Alexander Sergeevich Menshikov went to Constantinople as the Russian plenipotentiary envoy to ask the Ottoman government to recognize the tsar's respect for the Orthodox subjects (Bulgarians, Serbs, Romanians and Greeks, etc.) have special protection.

The problem is that
The Sultan of the Ottoman Empire officially issued an imperial decree in December 1852, returning the "right to protect the Holy Land" to France. What else would he give to Tsarist Russia?

The furious Tsarist Russia immediately issued an ultimatum to the Ottoman Empire. If peace negotiations cannot be obtained, then it will resort to war.

For a time, the war in Europe was clouded.

When Li Cha, the king of the Tang Kingdom, heard the news, he almost clapped his hands excitedly. These days were really difficult. The British used various methods to beat the Tang Kingdom, and Li Cha had a hard time coping with it.

I don’t know what’s going on, the British Foreign Minister Henry John Temple is always staring at the Tang Kingdom, advocating the "Oriental Threat Theory", and pushing several bills in the parliament in an attempt to punish the Tang Dynasty. The Kingdom imposed trade restrictions, and it was difficult for Li Cha to get along with him everywhere, which really made people hate it.

last resort
Richard had no choice but to offer the Harvey steel formula through the channel of Prince Albert, and gave away huge benefits, which made Sir Henry John Temple shut up, and he calmed down for a while.

As the largest market for Harvey steel, the British are bound to win this advanced bulletproof steel formula. The fate of the Royal Navy of the British Empire cannot be in the hands of foreigners. This is the bottom line.

Fortunately, the two sides have reached an agreement that the UK will not export Harvey steel, and will compete with the Datang Kingdom in the world market for special bulletproof armor steel in the naval field, and both parties will get what they need.

If the European war crisis does not break out again, Richard will not have a second Harvey steel formula to feed the British, especially that greedy Sir Henry John Temple.

The bastard is now the Whig Shadow Prime Minister and will be next in line if the Whigs win the domestic election.

These two years

Li Cha's expected trip to Europe has never been able to come true, and he can only watch helplessly as Sir Henry John Temple is making his way in the British political arena, and his next step is to go straight to the throne of Prime Minister.

Nov. 1853, 5

Chang'an (San Francisco), Maple Leaf Palace.

After the Kingdom's first cabinet prime minister, Gu Yan, and a group of important cabinet ministers finished the imperial meeting, King Richard entertained the ministers with a banquet in the palace, and talked about the current international situation while eating.

"Qing'an, what do you think?"

"Qizou Your Majesty, I think that this trap arranged by Napoleon III, regardless of the outcome, France will be the winner." Gu Yan put down the chopsticks in his hand and talked freely;
"Since 1815, the "Quadruple Alliance Treaty" and the Holy Alliance have bound France's hands and feet like two shackles, and are the biggest obstacle to the French's grand ambitions in Europe.

The "Holy Land Issue" is now on the brink of eruption. No one can stop the approaching war, and the British cannot calm the anger of Tsarist Russia.

The old man went crazy, even scared himself.

Once the war broke out, the "Quadruple Alliance Treaty" and the Holy Alliance would naturally fall apart. France won a more relaxed development environment, lifted its isolation, and had the opportunity to fight side by side with the British.

More than 7% of Britain and France may stand on the side of the Ottoman Empire, and more than [-]% of them may jointly send troops to intervene to prevent Tsarist Russia from rushing out of the Bosporus Strait and curb the urge of Tsarist Russia to rush out of the Black Sea.

Without the military help of Britain and France, the current Ottoman Empire would definitely not be able to cope with the pressure of the Tsarist Russian army.

Judging from the recent orders from the United Kingdom and France, the hoarding of war materials is huge, and all domestic factories are operating at full capacity to meet the strong demand from Europe.

So now there is only one question, when will it start? "

When Gu Yan said these words, his tone was very relaxed, with a smile on his face, and the same was true of all the cabinet members.

King Li Cha, who was sitting at the top, couldn't hide his joy in his heart. He smiled happily and said in a hypocritical tone;
"For the dire prospect facing Europe, the Datang Kingdom expresses its concern, and hopes that all parties involved will remain rational, show enough wisdom and courage to resolve the dispute, and try to avoid the situation from slipping to the point of war.

Of course, wishes are beautiful.

As Qing'an said, the issue of the Holy Land was a conspiracy directed by Napoleon III. War will surely become the theme of the world and Europe this year and the next few years, a tragedy that will sweep half of Europe.

From the snowflakes of orders from Europe, it can be seen that this will be a huge opportunity for the economic development of our country. Whether you can take advantage of this opportunity to take off again and take the kingdom's industrialization process to a higher level will be a test for all the ministers here. major proposition.

End of 1852
The population of the Datang Kingdom exceeded 556 million, and the national output value exceeded 6.34 million Tang yuan, making remarkable achievements.

Looking to the future
The goal by the end of this year is to have a population exceeding 700 million, a national output value exceeding 8 million Tang Yuan, and a 30% leapfrog development of the overall economy.

Judging from the first four months of the first half of the year, both immigration and economic development showed a vigorous trend, especially the export of kerosene, lubricating oil and heavy oil, which continued the momentum of last year’s triumphant growth and has rapidly grown into a pillar comparable to gold and silver mines. The industry has great potential for development.

According to the statistics;
The petrochemical products exported by Datang Kingdom account for 91.2% of the world market share, and it is the undisputed overlord of the world petrochemical market today. Last year, the export value was as high as 8630 million Tang yuan.

On this basis, it is expected to double again this year, which is really gratifying!

Come, come, dear friends, let us toast together, and wish the kingdom more prosperity. "

All the ministers present raised their glasses with joy, and congratulated in unison; "We congratulate His Majesty and the Kingdom."

"cheers!"

After drinking a cup, Li Cha looked at the ministers and laughed, feeling the pressure on his body was gone.

For nearly a year before that, the Tang Kingdom had been stared at by the British, and felt uncomfortable in various ways. From King Richard to the cabinet ministers below, they were walking on eggshells and felt the pressure was enormous.

mid 19th century
The Victorian British Empire was at its height, with industrial economic output approaching one-third of the world, a colossal, suffocating global hegemony.

What an arrogant monarch was Louis Bonaparte-Napoleon, Emperor of France?
In front of the UK, he can only play the role of licking a dog.

After the British sent troops to drive the French army out of Egypt, Napoleon III tried his best to flatter him. He immediately recognized the dominance and legitimacy of Britain in Egypt, and took the initiative to coordinate the diplomatic relations between France and Britain to unify the positions of the Near East and Europe.

King William I of Prussia betrothed Prince Friedrich to Princess Victoria of the United Kingdom, hoping to embrace Britain's thigh so as to unify the divided southern German princes.

Without the acquiescence of Britain, the Prussians could do nothing.

god sorry
When the British Foreign Secretary Henry John Temple stared at the Tang Kingdom like a mad dog, how much pressure did Li Cha bear?

Well now, it's all over.

Europe is about to fight a big war. No matter how energetic the UK is now, it can’t take care of the Tang Kingdom. Now the British have not only started hoarding war materials on a large scale, but also asked Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Ireland, India and other colonies to start intensive recruit training , ready to deploy troops to reinforce Europe.

Gu Yan could see that the Ottoman Empire could not resist the attack of Tsarist Russia, and the British naturally saw it more clearly when they were in the middle of the situation;

If there is no strong intervention by force, so that the savage and rough Tsarist Russians rush out of the Black Sea and the shackles of the Bosporus Strait, then the situation in Europe will quickly slide into an uncontrollable direction. unacceptable results.

Just when the monarchs and ministers were talking and laughing, the royal secretary hurried into the banquet hall and presented the latest news with both hands.

Li Cha laughed out loud when he saw it, and then casually asked Wang's attendants to circulate it to the ministers, making everyone happy.

It turned out that just a few days ago, the Ottoman Empire rejected the ultimatum of Tsarist Russia and allowed the joint British and French squadron to enter the Dardanelles.

This means that the Ottoman Empire, relying on the support of powerful countries such as Britain and France, has openly turned against Russia.

The old Tsarist Russian man really went against the grain, and immediately announced the severance of diplomatic relations with the Ottoman Empire, and sent troops to invade the two Danube principalities of Moldavia and Wallachia, which belonged to the Ottoman Empire.

At present, the tension in Europe has further escalated, and the war has actually broken out, but it has not yet been declared openly.

Britain, France, the Ottoman Empire, the Kingdom of Sardinia, and the Tsarist Russian Empire are all actively deploying troops and deploying troops to fight, and the situation has completely slipped into an irreversible abyss.

"Hahaha... Dear Sirs, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Count Juan Carlos, has an important announcement to announce to everyone, please." Sitting at the head, Li Cha enthusiastically made a gesture of invitation.

Count Juan Carlos stood up politely from his seat, gave a deep salute to His Majesty the King, and then said to the cabinet ministers with a smile;

"Your Excellency Prime Minister, fellow colleagues, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has followed the secret order of His Majesty the King, and has been negotiating with the Russian side in secret since the beginning of the year. After several months of hard work, it finally succeeded in signing the "Transfer of Alaska Treaty" with the Russian side.

the treaty provides;
Tsarist Russia will transfer the territorial sovereignty of its Alaska region to the Datang Kingdom at a price of 460 million yuan, of which 1/3 will be paid for by weapons and equipment, mainly the new Colt artillery and its ammunition.

According to the provisions of the treaty, our side will transfer 820 field Colt breech-loading guns of various calibers and 15 rounds of artillery shells, as well as corresponding artillery training to the Russian side.

With so many artillery pieces, it is enough for Russia to form 10 elite artillery divisions to make the Ottomans suffer enough in the upcoming war.

From now on
The Alaska region will become the 25th province of the Datang Kingdom and the third overseas province. It is also the province with the largest area, with a total area of ​​about 3 million square kilometers.

That is
Since the signing of the "Mexico Treaty" in September 1851, the total area of ​​the Tang Kingdom has increased from 9 million square kilometers to 449 million square kilometers (note, the increase includes 559.3 square kilometers in Hawaii Province and 1.75 square kilometers in Panama Province). The territory has been greatly expanded again.

Including the 171.7 million square kilometers acquired this time, the territory of the Tang Kingdom reached 731 million square kilometers, surpassing the United States and second only to Brazil, ranking second in the Americas.

At the same time, it overwhelmed the United States and became the country with the largest territory in North America. "

As soon as this earth-shattering good news was announced, all the cabinet ministers including Prime Minister Gu Yan were dumbfounded, and it took a long time for them to burst into warm applause.

overjoyed
A few ministers also raised questions; "The transaction with Russia includes advanced weapons and equipment. Will this cause the British side to misunderstand?"

Count Juan Carlos replied; "No, the "Transfer of Alaska Treaty" was signed at the end of last month, before the war broke out at that time. Tsarist Russia, as one of the world powers, previously had relations with Britain, Prussia, and the Austro-Hungarian Empire Close allies, with warships made by the British and the French, more than 7% of the Tsarist Russian General Staff is composed of Prussian soldiers, and half of the Tsarist Russian Army’s equipment is the standard equipment of the British and Austro-Hungarian Empires. Why is there any reason to blame us?”

"Then...is the situation different now?"

"It doesn't matter. The advanced artillery and ammunition delivered to Tsarist Russia will be transferred from the inventory, and the insufficient part will be transferred from the existing troops. They have already been shipped to Russia one after another. The transaction has been confirmed."

"Oh, okay, but I suggest that Britain, France and other countries should be notified of this formally signed treaty as soon as possible, so as to avoid unnecessary misunderstandings."

"Of course, the relevant official diplomatic letter is already on the cruise ship heading to the Atlantic Ocean, and it is estimated that it will arrive in Downing Street in a week. At that time, the transaction will have been completed."

After hearing such an explanation, what else can you say?

The arrangement really fit perfectly, impeccable!

seriously

Not only was France the biggest winner of the Crimean War this time, but the Tang Kingdom should also be the biggest winner. They really ate the last one and the next one, and their mouths were full of oil.

The Kingdom of Datang took advantage of Tsarist Russia's fear of Britain to take over Alaska at a very low price, and successfully sold a large number of arms, making money inside and outside.

Due to the remoteness of Alaska, Tsarist Russia was worried that if war broke out, Britain would send troops to occupy the area, and it would be empty-handed.

Instead of making the British cheaper, it is better to sell some money to raise armaments and compete with the British and French in Europe.

Therefore, Tsarist Russia quickly softened its position in the negotiations and sold the entire Alaska region at a price of 460 million yuan.

More than ten years earlier, Richard once again snatched away the possessions of the United States. From a certain point of view, isn't it the interception of a part of the country's fortune that originally belonged to the United States?
(End of this chapter)