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

Chapter 1480 Challenge
Although the scene looked much better, Lincoln knew that it was not enough to impress the congressmen, and he had to explain the pros and cons to both sides.

In fact, this is his or the North's real purpose.
"Gentlemen, why did the Austrian Empire rise? Because of war?"

At the same time, Ferdinando II sat up straight in the Royal Palace of Madrid. He was going to announce something important.

"The Americans have declared war on us!"

When the word war was heard, people all over Spain were in a panic. Although New Granada had just been recovered with the help of the Austrian Empire, Spain's own problems had not been fundamentally improved.

Moreover, taking over New Granada consumed a large amount of manpower and material resources, which made Spain's national strength even tighter.

In fact, the previous proposal to exchange Catalonia for New Granada was not just out of fear of the Austrian Empire, but also because Spain could no longer afford the cost of controlling the area.

If a war breaks out at this time, there is no guarantee that Catalonia will not become even more turbulent or even rise up in rebellion.

However, when they heard that their opponent was Americans, a joyful atmosphere immediately filled the entire court. Although Spain no longer had the glory of the past, they also looked down on the barbarians in America.

Although at this time, almost all the high-ranking officials in Spain came from Italy.
Carlo Ferrandini was once the Prime Minister of the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies and is still the chief minister to Ferdinando II. He was the first to speak in order to show his loyalty.

"Those American savages are so ridiculous! We should fight back against them severely!"

People around immediately echoed the voice, but most officials still couldn't figure out one thing, which was why the United States declared war on Spain. After all, there was no friction between the two sides, and some people even thought of the Monroe Doctrine.

Finally someone couldn't help but ask this most crucial question.

"Your Majesty, why did the Americans declare war on us?"

“Because they want to take Cuba.”

Ferdinand II's answer was calm, but the Spanish officials were not calm, after all, it was somewhat illogical.

"Your Majesty, haven't we already transferred Cuba to the Austrian Empire? If they want to seize Cuba, they should declare war on the Austrian Empire."

Foreign Secretary Paul Ruffo said with some confusion that he should have been the first to learn of the US declaration of war, but the Foreign Secretary was really incompetent.

In fact, at that time no one in Spain could make a conclusion as to why the United States declared war on Spain, but Ferdinand II himself felt that this was an opportunity.

Ferdinando II was also a monarch who was unwilling to be ordinary. It was he who built Italy's first railway, the first telegraph, and the first steam shipyard.

Coming to Spain from the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies also rekindled Ferdinand II's ambitions. Looking at the ministers below who were like headless flies, he stood up and said.

"Gentlemen, I think this is an opportunity for our Kingdom of Spain. Do you know why the Austrian Empire is so powerful?
Because they continue to win in successive wars, each war can strengthen their strength and expand their influence, and this victory can continue to feed back into their economy, and even the people will become more loyal. "

Ferdinand II had said so much, and the Spanish officials naturally knew what the king was going to do. But with Spain's current national strength, could it really support a transoceanic expedition?
"Your Majesty, should we ask for assistance from the Holy Alliance?"

"Not necessary. This is our war. Only by winning this war can we turn the tide." Foreign Secretary Paul Ruffo asked again hesitantly.

"Sire, shall we inform the Austrian Empire of our decision?"

In Paul Ruffo's opinion, the Austrian Empire should be Spain's most trustworthy ally at this time. After all, it first supported Ferdinand II to become the King of Spain, then gave the land of New Granada, and even helped the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies stabilize the domestic situation.

Where can you find such a kind and righteous boss?

Besides, according to the agreement, Cuba was already a part of the Austrian Empire, so it was reasonable and logical to notify the leader first.

However, Ferdinand II obviously had his own ideas. He did not want to take back the land of Cuba. He just did not want to rely on the power of the Austrian Empire. After all, that would be suspected of being a fox taking advantage of the power of another.

"I am the King of Spain! I am the master here! Why should we ask the Austrians?"

Paul Ruffo and other powerful figures in Spain all shrank their necks. They did not understand why Ferdinand II did this.

After all, the Kingdom of Spain was on the shore at this time, so there was no need to go into the water and fight a life-and-death battle with the fish.

However, Prime Minister Carlo Ferrandini understood Ferdinando II to some extent. The situation in Spain was really bad at that time. Although the recovery of New Granada seemed glorious on the surface, it actually hollowed out the entire Spain.

Moreover, Ferdinand II's rule in Spain was not stable. The Austrian rule gave rise to many unruly people. In addition, Ferdinand II was an outsider, so his recognition among the people and the nobility was very low.

Banks in many countries were unwilling to lend to Spain at that time. Even the Austrian Empire's consortium required collateral and more detailed financial information.

There is no doubt that no matter how the Austrian Empire supported Spain on the surface, its confidence in Spain was clearly insufficient from a financial perspective.

This was actually a bit unfair to Franz, as he thought Spain was very valuable. But the Austrian Empire itself also needed to develop, and he couldn't put all his hopes on Spain.

In addition, the Austrian Empire's science and technology developed unprecedentedly, productivity continued to increase, and the goods on the market continued to increase. The Austrian Empire has not experienced an economic crisis so far, not entirely because Franz passed the crisis on to other countries.

Instead, it completed its own cycle through precise calculations and gold from California and the South Pacific.

With the advancement of technology, the productivity of the Austrian Empire is expanding exponentially. Continuing to rely on metal currency can no longer meet the needs, and financial reforms must be carried out.

However, gold reserves are also necessary, after all, they can guarantee the lower limit of the Austrian Empire's economy.

Franz also wants to establish the European Monetary Union, so he won't invest too much money in Spain.

Franz was optimistic about Spain's value, but not its economy. In this era of large-scale industry, Spain is a land of damnation.

The lack of coal alone almost sentenced Spain to death. Coupled with the lack of iron ore and inconvenient transportation, it was simply a pipe dream for Spain to develop industry at this time.

Ultimately, from a strategic perspective, the Austrian Empire needed a large but not strong Spain.