The War Court and Lap Pillow, Austria's Mandate of Heaven

Chapter 1436 Prisoners of War Issue
In fact, there were some supplementary agreements. That is, because the Ottoman Empire violated the treaty with Russia and allowed the British Navy to enter the Black Sea, the Ottoman Empire had to pay Russia a one-time penalty of 200 million rubles.

There were a series of disagreements about the Black Sea Straits, but the two sides of the disagreement were mainly Britain and Russia. The Austrian Empire did not care about the issue of the Black Sea Straits, as long as the Ottoman Empire did not charge transit fees as it did in the past.

The Ottomans were the most depressed in this regard. They were clearly holding the Black Sea Strait, a hen that laid golden eggs, but the eggs laid by the hen were not theirs. The most uncomfortable thing was that they had to hold it, guard it, feed it, and could not even throw it away if they wanted to.

It's the ultimate insult.

The Austrian Empire still had more than 2713 Ottoman prisoners of war and 2713 British prisoners of war. The British prisoners of war would naturally be released free of charge out of humanitarian reasons.

However, during this period, their food, accommodation and medical expenses need to be paid by the British government, a total of 35,000 pounds.

As for the hundreds of thousands of Ottoman prisoners of war, the Ottoman government was not willing to pay ransom. The Austrian Empire could not let these people do short-term work all day long, and the Russians would not allow it.

Generally speaking, the Austrian Empire's customary practice was to use work in lieu of debt. It had been used against the Italians and the French before, and had even been used when dealing with the Hungarian and Spanish issues.

Officials of the Austrian Empire were also full of hope that the Austrian Empire would soon have an additional group of cheap labor, but this proposal was rejected by Franz.

Cheap labor is good, but too much of it can disrupt the market. For example, the largest labor movement in the Austrian Empire at this time was the Bohemian workers' opposition to Hungarian prisoners of war entering factories and mines.

In comparison, the workers in 1848 seemed less enthusiastic.

In Prague, a group of people with soot on their faces and kerosene lamps took to the streets. Behind them were countless workers from all walks of life, even coolies, cooks, and bakers.

The Germans and Czechs put aside their prejudices and walked together, arm in arm, shoulder to shoulder. The vanguard of the Governor's Palace was on high alert, and they even set up cannons.

After 1848, officials and troops throughout the Austrian Empire were extremely sensitive to rebellions and demonstrations, and would panic at the slightest sign of trouble.

If someone hadn't given us a heads-up this time, the parade would have been nipped in the bud.

However, even if someone gave a greeting, the Bohemian Governor Alfred Karl zu Windischgrätz did not dare to take it lightly. While mobilizing the troops, he invited those who gave greetings to the Governor's Palace.

Alfred Karl zu Windischgrätz was the eldest son of Alfred Candidus Ferdinand zu Windischgrätz, who was dismissed from office due to his poor performance in 1848.

However, thanks to the help of his uncle Prince Schwarzenberg, Alfred Karl zu Windischgrätz became the Governor of Bohemia.

Alfred Karl zu Windischgrätz's mother was shot dead by rebels, so he hated rebels very much. As long as he was sure it was a rebellion, he would suppress it ruthlessly.

A temporary platform was built on the street, and the speaker's passionate speech made the audience indignant, directing the criticism at those cheap Hungarian prisoners of war.

“Who took away our jobs?”

"It's the Hungarians!"

“Who is letting our children go hungry?”

"It's the Hungarians!"

"Yes, my friends! It was the Hungarians! Their rebellion was suppressed, but the Hungarians succeeded.

They succeeded in taking our jobs and food away from us! The Austrian Imperial Labor Law is a reward for all loyal citizens. We enjoy a minimum wage, medical allowances, disability pensions, and death compensation.

But now the shameful Hungarians, with the help of those stupid officials, have succeeded in snatching away our sacred work!

Can we accept that?"

"cannot!"

"Your Majesty is too kind to be deceived by those stupid officials and despicable people. We must tell Your Majesty that whoever dares to steal our sacred work will be killed by us!"

In fact, the original issues against the Hungarians were all concentrated on the mining industry. After all, Franz wanted Hungarians to mine coal, and this was an extremely risky and tiring job, and no one would probably like it.

But after a series of reforms by Franz and the invention of a large number of new equipment, as well as the introduction of safety laws and labor laws.

Coupled with the rapid development of industry which led to an increase in demand for minerals, the working environment and income of mining workers in the Austrian Empire have greatly improved, which means that their lives have gradually improved.

But at this time, a large number of Hungarian prisoners of war poured into the mining industry, and these people made the miners doubt their lives.

The mining workers protested so loudly that the local government came up with a good idea.

Isn't it the mining industry that is most opposed? That's easy to solve! We can make some changes and send Hungarian prisoners of war to various industries. Wouldn't that solve the problem?

Then, under the operation of the Austrian Imperial Government, the issue of Hungarian prisoners of war became a major problem that troubled the entire society.

In fact, factory owners still like these cheap labors. The most important thing is cheap! Cheap! Cheap!

Small business owners in restaurants and grocery stores do not hate these Hungarians either. After all, these Hungarians can eat, drink, and go to whores, and they have a strong propensity to consume.

Contrary to what Franz had originally imagined, the vast majority of Hungarian prisoners of war did not choose to save money to redeem their freedom, but instead chose to spend spree.

They have no long-term plans and cannot see the future. They just want to enjoy the present moment. As for family, kinship, hometown, etc., they are really not that important to them.

People with conscience may still send money home in the first few months, but as time goes by and a large number of bad idols emerge, more and more people choose to abandon their family ties.

In addition, their treatment in the factories and mines of the Austrian Empire was much better than in the past in Hungary.

They don't need to think, they just need to work, eat, sleep, and then wait for one day of free time every week.

Although they can only be free in a specific area, these people who had never even left the village before joining the army have become quite accustomed to it.

There were frequent reports of Hungarian prisoners of war holding secret gatherings and plotting rebellion. After follow-up investigations, the Austrian secret police found that 99% of these reports were false.

It was Franz's policy to allow Hungarian prisoners of war to redeem themselves by working. The subjects of the Austrian Empire had to get used to the addition of fresh blood, but the Ottomans were obviously not among them.

In the end, the Austrian Empire and the Ottoman Empire reached an agreement that each Ottoman prisoner of war only needed to pay a ransom of one pound, but postage was not included, which meant that transportation and catering fees would be charged, totaling 130 million pounds.