Wild North America 1846

Chapter 547

Nov. 1870, 8

Imperial Capital Chang'an
Now is the hottest time of the year in Chang'an. During the day, the bright sun hangs high in the sky, pouring abundant light and heat onto the earth.

Fortunately, here is a typical temperate maritime climate. As long as it is evening, the cool sea breeze from the Pacific Ocean will pass over the bustling metropolis, taking away all the heat of the day, leaving only a cool and pleasant night.

Tai Chi Palace
Several brass fans were added to the palace. This kind of fan is an exquisite steam engine structure, driven by steam power. The power comes from burning and heating kerosene lamps, and there is only a slight sound when it runs.

In front of each brass fan, there is a gluttonous four-legged gold basin filled with large pieces of ice, emitting cold wind with icy water vapor.

This kind of summer cooling equipment has been widely promoted in the East Palace and West Palace, the Tai Palace and the duke's mansions, and has become the favorite cooling equipment of the royal family and imperial nobles.

Emperor Li Cha was wearing a cool and thin coat with wide sleeves. He sat reclined on the couch and read the urgent military report from Europe for a while. A smile appeared on the corner of his mouth and he shook his head. square table.

he thought in his heart;
The trend of the Franco-Prussian War is generally the same as in the original history.

It seems that the rise of the Tang Empire in North America did not affect most of the historical process in Europe and Asia. History followed the established trajectory along a strong inertia. The Franco-Prussian War is the most vivid example.

The situation of the Franco-Prussian War changed rapidly, beyond everyone's expectations, but this did not include the Tang Emperor Li Cha who was familiar with later generations.

On August 1870, 8, General Felix Douai, the Seventh Army of the French Charon Corps, crossed the border between the two countries and launched a tentative attack on the Prussian defending army. After a little contact, they withdrew.

only two days later

The 3 troops of the Prussian Army with the 24rd Corps as the main force counterattacked in an all-round way. After the Battle of Wissembourg and the Battle of Walters, the French Chalons Corps, which fought with an absolute superiority, was caught off guard and retreated in a row, which caused a shock in Paris.

Napoleon III's feeble reign was as thin as paper, easily torn apart.

After the news of the defeat came back to Paris, the French government, Émile Olivier, immediately collapsed and was replaced by the old and fatuous Charles Cousin Montauban to form a new transitional cabinet to preside over the imminent war.

From the large-scale counterattack of the Prussian army on August 8 to the collapse of the French imperial government on August 4, the sharp turmoil that occurred in just over a week made the French Empire controlled by Emperor Napoleon III fall into a precarious situation, revealing its weak nature.

At this critical juncture, Emperor Napoleon III, who knew that he had caused a catastrophe, resorted to another trick.

Seeing that the situation was about to get out of control, on August 8, Napoleon III handed over the command of the Rhine Army to Marshal Bazin under the pretext of being seriously ill.

This was undoubtedly a blow to the confidence of the precarious French army. The emperor actually left hundreds of thousands of French troops and slipped away. The bizarreness of this incident is simply jaw-dropping!
Less than a month ago, Napoleon III personally took command of the expedition to boost the morale of the French army. Now this behavior of naked betrayal of the entire French nation has doubled the confidence of the French army to fight to the end.

Fortunately, due to the news blockade, the officers and soldiers of the French army at the bottom do not know that the great French emperor and commander-in-chief has slipped away for the time being.

Under the pressure of the Prussian army, two consecutive bloody battles broke out between the two sides in Mas Latour on August 8 and Gravelot-Saint Privat on August 16.

The French army performed very bravely in the battle. They held their positions and fought bloody battles with the Prussian army to the end. They successfully repelled the attack of the Prussian army and caused heavy losses to the Prussian First Army and the Prussian Royal Guards.

After the war, the Bazin Legion of the French Army returned to the Fortress of Metz. Relying on the strong defense of the fortress, it was surrounded by a heavy army of 7 troops consisting of 16 armies and three cavalry divisions of the First and Second Prussian Army.

if at this time
The French Bazin Legion was able to break through resolutely, retreated and merged with the Chalon Legion led by Marshal McMahon to form a heavy army group, and the situation was much better.

Relying on the continuous support of Paris, it should be able to withstand the stormy attack of Prussia and turn the war into a seesaw stage.

At this time, Paris has mobilized nearly 50 troops, which can give strong support to the peripheral field corps and reverse the difficult situation of the French army fighting more with less.

However, the Regent Queen Eugenie and the Prime Minister of the Empire, Charles Cousin Montauban, Count of Baliqiao, feared that the continued retreat would cause turmoil or revolution in Paris, and strictly ordered the Bazin Army to stick to the Fortress of Metz and not take a step back.

Such a decision based on political rather than military considerations completely ruined the last hope of the French Bazin Legion.

only a few days later
The Prussian army besieging the fortress of Metz increased from 16 to 24.7, and the siege of the fortress of Metz was almost impenetrable. At this time, the news that the French emperor Napoleon III had fled the battle spread among the middle and lower-level officers and soldiers, and the French officers and soldiers fought to the end. The blow to morale was fatal.

at the same time
The French government stumbled out and ordered the Chalons Corps under Marshal McMahon to go to the Fortress of Metz for rescue. Such an order is tantamount to letting the Chalons Corps go to death.

You must know that after several bloody battles, the Xialong Army has only less than 12 troops and 393 artillery pieces left, and is quite short of food and ammunition.

And what he has to face is the main army of the Kingdom of Prussia. In the entire Sedan area, the third main army of the Kingdom of Prussia plus the newly organized fourth army have a total strength of more than 30 people, with more than 1270 new artillery pieces. enough food.

Moreover, the Prussian army can dispatch the troops besieging the Fortress of Metz at any time, concentrate several times the strength of the French army, and join in the annihilation battle against the Chalon Corps.

most sensible course of action

It was the French Charon Corps that retreated to Reims that continued to retreat. After approaching the outer suburbs of Paris, on the one hand, they participated in the defense of Paris, and on the other hand, they supplemented and reorganized new forces on a large scale, forming a heavy army group that could compete with the Prussian army. 60 people.

Thus

The Prussian army will either fight head-on with the Xialong Corps, and fight a war of attrition that will cost both sides a lot. It is not yet known who will win and who will lose in a short time?

Either concentrate their forces to attack the Fortress of Metz, which is undoubtedly a tough bone, even if it is bitten down, it will crush half of the teeth of the Prussian army and pay the price of heavy casualties.

Relying on strong reinforcements from Paris and the southwestern provinces, the French army was not afraid to fight a protracted war of attrition with the Prussian army until one side could not hold on.

Unfortunately, these are all assumptions...

On August 1870, 8, a delegation led by Speaker Raul came to the headquarters of Emperor Napoleon III to persuade Emperor Napoleon III not to return to Paris. This would easily provoke a civil uprising in Paris and endanger the rule of the French Empire.

At the same time, McMahon should be ordered to march towards Metz in order to rescue the Bazan Legion trapped in the Metz Fortress and reverse the current passive battle situation.

Immediately afterwards, the Regency Council in Paris sent a telegram to Emperor Napoleon III:
"If Bazin is not supported, there will be extremely bad consequences for Paris. Facing this situation, it is really doubtful whether the capital can defend itself."

The greatest tragedy of the French Empire was thus born...

At first, the emperor who didn't understand the military rashly declared war out of anger, and personally took command of the expedition, and then saw that the momentum was not good, he ran away with oil on his feet.

Immediately afterwards, a woman and an old man took over the Regency Council and began to command dozens of French troops to die as a matter of course. How can there be no reason for invincibility?
At this time, the dizzy Napoleon III had no idea, so he issued a death order to the Charon Corps in Reims;
He ordered Marshal McMahon to lead his army to Metz, sending this field corps on a path of complete destruction.

in the hall

Li Cha clearly realized that the fate of France's fall was inevitable. If this nonsense continued, even the British Empire would not be able to stand it!

Fortunately, there is a strait between the British Isles and the European continent. As long as the Royal Navy does not decline, no country in this world can threaten the security of the British Empire.

Compared with the UK, the geostrategic environment around France is much harsher.

Located on the European continent, France is surrounded by the rising Kingdom of Prussia, the always unwilling Tsarist Empire, the traditional Austrian Empire and the Ottoman Empire, the Kingdom of Italy that comes out to make trouble from time to time, and the Kingdom of Spain, the traditional powerhouse of the Mediterranean, will all be given to France. Cause all kinds of troubles.

Li Cha didn't sympathize with the French at all, just like he didn't like the British.

study its essence
Both Britain and France are of the same breed, essentially bloodthirsty wolves.

After France recovers a little bit of strength, it will colonize the world even more frantically, and compensate for its own losses by plundering the flesh and blood of the colonies, in order to restore its strength faster.

The franc colonial circle headed by France has high trade barriers. Just like the native France, it imposed high customs duties on the agricultural and industrial products of the Tang Empire, which greatly hindered the process of expanding the European and global markets.

Therefore, the Tang Empire has been committed to establishing its own Tang and Yuan circle of friends, which includes the United States of America, the Confederate States of America, and a series of countries in South America, as well as countries in the Western Pacific such as Fusang, Ryukyu, and Lanfang.

Although the current situation in Europe is turbulent, the Tang Empire has no willingness to intervene.

Richard is very well informed. He knows that European countries including Britain, Austria, Italy, the Netherlands, Belgium, Norway, and Denmark are more or less afraid and wary of the Tang Kingdom, and their resistance is quite serious.

At this time, it is even more impossible to add fuel to the fire.

The Tang Empire should show a diplomatic tendency based on trade, and play the role of a harmless little white rabbit instead of using aggressive military means.

After all, Europe is the Europe of white Europeans, the traditional Christian world. Any attempt to touch or colonize Europe is an extremely stupid delusion, which will be smashed to pieces in the face of cold reality.

In this world, it is neither realistic nor possible for any country to colonize Europe with a population of 3.5 million.

It turns out that the United States of America was so powerful in history that it did not have an inch of territory in Europe (note; it is a territory, not a military base), which is very illustrative.

The resistance of Europeans to East Slavia has been fully demonstrated in the history of modern European wars, forcing the Tsarist Russian Empire to abandon the westward policy of more than 200 years and turn around to look east...

Europeans are also wary of the United States of America. When the United States of America revealed its intention to buy Greenland in 1867, it was ridiculed by all European countries.

Former Treasury Secretary Robert Walker suggested to Secretary of State William Seward that by buying Iceland and Greenland, the power of the United States of America could cross the North Atlantic and reach Europe, and to some extent get rid of the grip of the Tang Empire.

This idea was rejected without hesitation by the Kingdom of Denmark, who sneered; "Europe is crowded enough to accommodate a rough American cowboy, not to mention that he is not a good neighbor, but a pauper with debts."

in today's era
Li Cha could more clearly feel the vigilant and distant gaze from the other side of the Atlantic Ocean, so in the long-term strategy of the Tang Empire, there was no attempt to get involved in Europe at all.

The Cuban Civil War has entered its third year, and the Spaniards are frantically suppressing the rebels on the island.After receiving stable military aid, the rebel army became more aggressive than in the original history, and the two sides fought endlessly.

Due to years of wars and brutal suppression by the Spaniards, the number of residents on the island of Cuba has dropped from more than 150 million to less than 120 million. Among them, more than 20 Cuban women and children were thrown into concentration camps, living in extreme conditions. bad.

The Spanish colonists have always acted cruelly. When suppressing the local uprising in Cuba, they were merciless in killing native white villages and towns, destroying villages and towns at every turn, leaving no one alive.

That's great!
The civil war in this Central American island country continues, and there will be no one left after another five or six years. Naturally, it will fall into the hands of the empire.

At that time, the Spanish colonists in Cuba, Puerto Rico in Central America, and the Luzon Islands, a colony in Asia, will all be included in the empire's territory.

The 8600-ton "Zhenyang" steam ironclad battleship series that the Datang Empire is developing is a large capital ship built to enhance ocean-going combat capabilities, and also to prepare for colonial expansion and harvesting of Spanish territories in a few years.

These places have a warm climate and fertile land, and it is easier to take over colonial rule. Why bother to fight for those barren and cold places in Europe?
Li Cha really didn't think what's good about his neighbors in Europe?

The best piece should be the territory occupied by the French, Italians and Spaniards. There are more plains and sunshine, and the land is more fertile and suitable for farming.

Others are much worse. For example, the Kingdom of Prussia and the German states have many mountains and little flat land, and the land is generally relatively barren. It has always been an area where there is not enough food to grow, and now the food gap is getting bigger and bigger.

Belgium, the Netherlands, and the three Nordic countries, which are bordering the sea, have a worse environment. As for Switzerland, a country of mountains, poor birds don't shit. I really don't see any good?
In this poor and remote place in Switzerland, many people will starve to death every year.

An ordinary peasant couple in the mountainous area gave birth to seven or eight children and half of them would starve to death.Therefore, Switzerland, like the German nation, has been the origin of traditional mercenaries since the Middle Ages.

When children grow up, they will go out to work hard, and they cannot afford to stay at home.

Tropical areas like Cuba, Puerto Rico and the Luzon Islands are wonderful, and they will be occupied and developed in the future, all of which are the dishes of the Tang Empire.

sitting on the couch

Li Cha was eating melons and fruits with a leisurely expression, and his mind shifted from thinking about the Spanish colony to the Nicaragua Canal Project in Central America, which has entered a construction boom...

In the case of sufficient labor force, the current Nicaragua Canal project is in full swing, and the progress is quite fast, and it may be completed earlier than expected.

In the winding canyon from the Pacific Ocean to Lake Nicaragua, after large-scale blasting operations, the straightened river channel has basically shown a rough outline.

in canal construction
Inevitably, some labor camp labor casualties, some due to landslides, landslides or drowning, some died of epidemics, some were overworked, and some were caused by strange construction site accidents...

In order to make achievements, the canal company inevitably used some excessive hard labor. Tens of thousands of hard labor have disappeared from the list after more than three years of construction.

The empire's attitude towards the canal company is more tolerant. Although it is a bit regrettable, this is the price that must be paid.

Today, when mechanization has not been popularized on a large scale, many dangerous tasks have to be done by manpower. In the crude construction environment, high-intensity labor is inevitable, and staff reduction is inevitable.

Fortunately, after the South American War, a considerable part of black slave labor was added, and the labor force was quite sufficient.

At the same time as the construction of the Nicaragua Canal Project, the railway project around Lake Nicaragua will be completed at the end of the year, adding another main land railway line to connect the Pacific Ocean and the Atlantic Ocean, which is of great significance to the promotion of local economic development.

The plantations and pastures operated by Chinese immigrants along the railway line can easily transport agricultural products out, whether it is going north to North America, or south to South America, or exporting to Europe.

The area is dominated by the development of sugar cane, fruit tree plantations and farms, and the grown fruit can be made into canned fruit, which is very popular in the empire and Europe.

Needless to say, sucrose is originally a bulk export material in the tropics. It is in great demand in Europe and the mainland of the empire. Sell as much as you can.

Taking full advantage of the rich local water resources, Central American farms are areas where rice is concentrated. The rice produced here is full of grains, soft and sweet, and it is very popular among the Chinese residents of the empire. The sales have been very good.

After taking stock of the situation in Central America, Li Cha showed a satisfied look on his face.

At the beginning, due to years of war, the population of Central America was cleaned up relatively thoroughly.

Now here has been basically Chinese, and some Indian and native white women are mostly family members of local Chinese families. The children born in this place go to Chinese schools to study, and the Sinicization is quite thorough.

This is inseparable from the government’s efforts to popularize Mandarin education over the years. The Ministry of Education’s funding has always been the bulk of the government’s funding, accounting for more than 10% of government spending. Years of hard work have finally borne fruit.

The Royal Household Office has always broadcast a large sum of money to support charity education every year. It has been unremitting for more than [-] years, and it is now a good situation.

Investment in education in the next few decades must not be slackened!
(End of this chapter)