African Entrepreneurship Records 2

Chapter 1600 Development of the Kingdom of South Germany
1935 10 Month 3 Day.

The Kingdom of South Germany.

The administrative division changes in the Azande region of East Africa will first affect the Kingdom of South Germany. As East Africa's most important ally in Africa, the Kingdom of South Germany's economy is highly intertwined with that of East Africa.

The Shari River basin, due to its early development history, is now the most developed region in the Kingdom of South Germany. The adjustment of administrative divisions in East Africa upstream also means industrial restructuring, and a series of issues such as related enterprises, foreign trade, and transportation in the Kingdom of South Germany will need to be changed.

Therefore, in response to this administrative division adjustment in East Africa, the Kingdom of South Germany specifically invited the East African ambassador to the Kingdom of South Germany, Clement, for an inquiry. The current monarch of the Kingdom of South Germany is Wilhelm II, grandson of the former Prince Leopold of Sigmallingen.

After supporting the establishment of the Kingdom of South Germany in Sigmaringen in East Africa, the first successor was Leopold's son Wilhelm, also known as Wilhelm I. However, he died in 1927, and the throne was inherited by his eldest son, Frederick Wilhelm, who is now Wilhelm II.

Bennu.

This is the new capital of the Kingdom of South Germany. During the reign of Wilhelm I, the territory of the Kingdom of South Germany expanded unprecedentedly, and the Kingdom of South Germany acquired large tracts of land from the former Nigeria and Cameroon.

Therefore, in the late reign of Wilhelm I, that is, in the 1920s, the Kingdom of South Germany began to plan to move its capital from the original Neusigmallingen (N'Djamena) to Benoît.

The city of Bennu is named after the Benue River, an important tributary of the Niger River and its longest tributary, stretching approximately 1,400 kilometers. The area along the river is now a key development area for the Kingdom of South Germany, and the city of Bennu was established on the banks of the Benue River.

At the Bennu Royal Palace, Wilhelm II asked Ambassador Clement, "Ambassador Clement, what changes does your government intend to make regarding the recent administrative division adjustments in East Africa?"

Ambassador Clement replied, "Your Majesty need not worry about this. Our current round of administrative division adjustments is mainly aimed at promoting local economic development and better connecting with the North African Railway. Of course, there are also ecological considerations."

"This is also a good thing for the Kingdom of Southern Germany, because after this administrative division adjustment, the Ok River basin will be fully under the administration of the new Azand Province, which will improve efficiency in the coordination between the two countries regarding the water source of the downstream Sauri River and reduce disputes over water use in our country."

Wilhelm II was not particularly interested in the allocation of water resources for the Chari River. After all, the relationship between the Kingdom of South Germany and East Africa was not like that between the United States and Mexico. East Africa would not completely disregard the lives of the people along the downstream of the Kingdom of South Germany for the sake of its own development in the Chari River basin.

Wilhelm II said, "I naturally have full trust in East Africa, after all, the Kingdom of South Germany is East Africa's most steadfast ally and partner."

"However, I would like to know what plans your country has made after the opening of the North African Railway, and whether our Kingdom of South Germany can participate in it. Did you also take the North African Railway into account in your recent administrative division adjustment?"

Clement did not hide anything, but said affirmatively, "That's natural. It can be said that the near completion of the North African railway is itself an opportunity for this administrative division adjustment."

"As for the layout of the North African railway, it is no secret that in order to unleash the potential of the North African railway in the future, we have incorporated most of the former East Azander province into Bavaria province."

“The province of Bavaria will become a key node and railway hub connecting trade between the Great Lakes region and Europe.”

Wilhelm II rested his finger on his chin, thought for a moment, and then said, "So, the future development direction of East Africa's trade route regarding the North African railway is to connect with the Great Lakes region?"

Clemente affirmed his idea: "The North African railway requires a huge investment, and the population along the route is sparse and the economy is severely lagging behind, which is insufficient to support trade between the empire and the Mediterranean countries."

"Therefore, in order to recoup the construction costs and maintain funding for subsequent railway operations, this railway must be connected to an economic entity of sufficient size."

"In the East African region, the Great Lakes region is not the core area, but its size is second only to the East, West and Central regions."

"Moreover, the Great Lakes region is located inland within the empire and lacks its own sea access. The North African Railway becomes an excellent option. In this way, some goods that prioritize efficiency and time can be sold to the Mediterranean market via the North African Railway, instead of having to detour through ports such as Mombasa and Douala as in the past."

In the past, the main exports of goods from the Great Lakes region were mainly transshipped through the port of Mombasa. However, the journey from the Great Lakes region to Mombasa also required road and rail travel, and even after reaching the sea, it still required a sea route of up to 5,000 kilometers to finally reach the Mediterranean region.

In the future, with the railway connecting the Great Lakes region and North Africa, goods from the Great Lakes region will travel more than 3,000 kilometers by rail to eventually reach the port of Benghazi on the Mediterranean coast.

Both routes involve both land and sea, but they have different focuses. The former is a longer sea route, and after entering the Mediterranean Sea, it only reaches the northern exit of the Suez Canal, namely Port Said, and then continues to travel a distance to various destinations in Europe.

It's very convenient if you're going to markets in the Soviet Union, the Ottoman Empire, or the Balkans, but it's not so convenient if you're going to Western European countries.

The latter, the North African railway line, also known as the western line, has a longer land distance and relatively limited transport capacity, but it is faster to reach markets around the Mediterranean.

The North African Railway's terminus, Benghazi Port, is located in a relatively central part of the Mediterranean Sea. The distances from Benghazi to various places along the Mediterranean coast are relatively even, which can further reduce maritime transport costs for some freight shipments.

Especially for countries in Western Europe and Northwest Africa, this route saves nearly a thousand kilometers of sea distance compared to the eastern route, which departs from Port Said north of the Suez Canal.

It can be said that once the North African Railway is completed, without considering air transport, this route will be the fastest route from East Africa to Europe, especially Western Europe.

Therefore, for high-value-added or time-sensitive goods, choosing the North African railway line is also a viable option.

For provinces and cities along the North African railway, especially those in East Africa, the North African railway offers better value for money in Mediterranean trade.

Wilhelm II was clearly very interested in the North African railway, as this line would have the same effect on southern Germany.

He said, "We are also very interested in the North African railway, which would facilitate trade between the southeast and Europe, and North African countries. We are considering building the Southern Railway, or one that could connect with the North African railway."

Clement replied, "We certainly welcome this, given the high degree of economic integration between the two countries. The Kingdom of South Germany has also grown considerably in terms of population and economy over the years. Connecting to the North African railway will undoubtedly be beneficial to southeastern South Germany." Although the Kingdom of South Germany is a large country, approaching two million square kilometers, its population distribution is extremely uneven due to environmental and water resource constraints. Most of its territory consists of desert and extremely arid regions, with over 90% of the population and urban population living in the south.

In 1935, the total population of the Kingdom of South Germany was approximately 5.8 million, of which nearly 4 million lived in the area from the Chari River to Lake Chad, which is the southeastern part of the Kingdom of South Germany.

This is a very good result, considering that there are not many countries and regions in Africa with a population of more than five million.

In 1935, among the African countries with populations, apart from the Kingdom of South Germany, only five countries and regions in East Africa, Egypt, British Nigeria, Abyssinia, and Algeria had a population exceeding five million.

As for other countries and regions, reliable data is lacking, or they are quite fragmented. For example, Morocco is divided into French Morocco, Spanish Morocco, and a so-called international district. If Morocco were completely unified, its population would probably be comparable to that of the Kingdom of South Germany.

Besides these countries and regions, other countries and colonies had populations ranging from hundreds of thousands to one or two million, and even three or four million, but it is highly unlikely that any of them actually exceeded five million.

The population of South Germany is not small compared to the rest of Africa, but the Kingdom of South Germany has only been established for a few years and is incomparable to those countries.

If we assess the overall strength of African countries, the Kingdom of South Germany would rank among the top three. Its national strength is comparable to that of Egypt, but Egypt's population is more than three times that of the Kingdom of South Germany.

Egypt has a population of nearly 20 million, including several million from the former Sudanese population. Because of the existence of East Africa, Britain accelerated the integration of Egypt and Sudan.

Thanks to this, Egypt now firmly holds the position of the third most populous country in Africa, after East Africa and British Nigeria.

Besides its population advantage, Egypt has many other advantages over the Kingdom of South Germany. For example, Egypt has a long history of development and a longer modernization process. During Ali's time, Egypt had already made initial attempts at modernization, but these were later interrupted by Britain and France.

However, regardless of the circumstances, Egypt had far greater capital and resources than the latter in the early days of the Kingdom of South Germany.

The Kingdom of South Germany has certainly received external assistance to its development to this day, including from East Africa, Romania, and Sigmaringen. However, East Africa has largely adopted a hands-off approach towards the Kingdom of South Germany, primarily providing support in terms of military security and offering some economic incentives.

Although the Romanian royal family is also a member of Sigmaringen, Romania is not ruled by the royal family, and due to the distance, its assistance to the Kingdom of South Germany is even more limited.

As for the Principality of Sigmaringen, it was the ancestral home of the royal family of the Kingdom of South Germany, but like Heisingen, it had become defunct during the Prussian period and was too small to support large-scale colonial activities.

Therefore, it is no easy feat for the Kingdom of South Germany to have transformed from a colony provided by East Africa into a medium-sized country.

Wilhelm II said, "Although the main direction of development in southern Germany is now westward, cooperating with East Africa and connecting with the East African market, as the main source of tax revenue, is clearly the best outcome."

"Once the west is fully developed, the economy of southern Germany will be fully activated. Inland, it can connect with the large East African market and participate in trade with North Africa, Europe, and the Middle East through the North African Railway. To the west, through coastal development, it can strengthen connections with the west coast of East Africa, West Africa, and Europe."

"The only regret now is that we did not gain access to the lower Niger River; otherwise, the future development potential of the Kingdom of South Germany would have been even greater."

The Benue River is now a key development area in the Kingdom of South Germany, but the main stream of the Niger River downstream is controlled by the British.

Back then, the Kingdom of South Germany, under Wilhelm I, continued to expand westward, inevitably clashing with the British, and ultimately its expansion was forcibly interrupted by the British.

This is understandable, though, as Britain’s influence overseas continued to decline throughout the early 20th century, particularly with the shrinking of its Far Eastern empire and markets in the Middle East, and the growing separatist trends in its colonies such as India.

Britain has been paying increasing attention to Nigeria. Compared to other regions, Nigeria is relatively easy for Britain to control. It is not difficult for the British Navy to support Nigeria from the Atlantic. Moreover, Nigeria is a relatively prominent region in Africa in terms of population, arable land, and resources.

Therefore, Britain could not possibly allow the Kingdom of South Germany to continue to grow stronger and threaten its rule over Nigeria.

Although the Kingdom of South Germany has the powerful backing of East Africa, and if East Africa supports it, the Kingdom of South Germany is not afraid of Britain, East Africa has no intention of completely breaking with Britain at this stage, so it can only tell the Kingdom of South Germany to accept its gains.

It is estimated that it will take South Germany several decades to digest the land it has occupied in the west. If the territory it has expanded into the west can be effectively developed, it would not be difficult to support two or three thousand people.

Of course, if the Kingdom of South Germany could gain access to the Niger River, it would certainly be even more eager to achieve this, as it could then rely on maritime and water transport to accelerate the development of its western territories.

The British also saw this, which is why they were even more unwilling to allow it to occupy the Niger River estuary area.

Ambassador Clement said, “The Kingdom of South Germany is now large enough, and you have also gained a section of coastline. Although the construction cost of this coastline is high and it cannot be connected to the inland areas by water, the construction of land transportation is sufficient to temporarily meet the needs of South Germany.”

"As for the British, although they are in decline, they are still a superpower that no country can easily ignore."

"However, the Kingdom of South Germany is not without opportunities in the future. With the development of the situation in Europe, especially the growing strength of Germany and the Soviet Union, Europe will sooner or later fall into a new round of turmoil. At that time, when you try to take over the lower Niger River, the resistance will be much smaller."

East Africa is not worried about the Kingdom of South Germany acquiring the area along the lower Niger River, including the port of Harcourt. After all, even if the Kingdom of South Germany annexed that area and had the foundation to develop into a major power, the gap between it and East Africa would still be enormous. After all, there are only two superpowers in the world with an area of ​​more than ten million square kilometers, and only four if you include Britain and France.

Furthermore, East Africa also hopes that South Germany will acquire more arable land to boost its population growth, thus making the population buffer zone in northern East Africa more stable.

(End of this chapter)