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

Chapter 1846 Aftermath
On one hand, there were tearful accusations in newspapers of Britain and France; on the other hand, there was the undeniable fact that Italian businessmen were all fat and bloated, and would spend lavishly in casinos, brothels, and auction houses at the drop of a hat.

Which side should the people of the Austrian Empire believe?

It's a matter of opinion.

The stereotype that Italian businessmen are generally obese is both true and false, because most Italian businessmen are indeed quite obese, but obese people are not only Italian businessmen.

In reality, Austrians had a very short period of time when they could eat their fill. In the past, obesity was a symbol of wealth and success, and for non-aristocratic elites, being called fat was a very respectable thing.

The subtext of obesity is "I eat very well, I don't need to do physical labor, I have plenty of wealth, and I won't lose out by following you." It represents a comfortable life.

Italian businessmen, taking advantage of their geographical location, are generally involved in foreign trade, and the frequent social engagements make them need to maintain a plump physique to preserve their image.

In addition, there was a change in diet. Because the Austrian Empire occupied a large number of sugar jars, Austrians' diet became sweeter.

Venice, located by the sea, has a unique advantage, coupled with the constant bombardment of high-fat, high-calorie foods and beer.

Here's an example: there was once a dish that was popular throughout the Austrian Empire called "sliced ​​pork cutlet in syrup".

Forget about eating it, just hearing about it tells you how greasy this stuff is.

Given the financial means, it's hard for someone who eats these things all the time not to gain weight.

In fact, most Austrians have long been numb to the double standards of British and French propaganda narratives after years of debate.

"A middle-aged scholar wearing glasses said angrily."

Why don't the British and French mention what they did in India and Algeria?

They slaughtered millions of people at once and also created famine and epidemics.

How many years has the Irish famine been going on and still hasn't subsided? Have they simply forgotten that the British used bayonets to reduce food demand?

"Our Emperor is benevolent, but he will not negotiate with terrorists."

"That's right! If he can kill innocent people indiscriminately just because he's unhappy, then what kind of order is there?"

"They just want to package conspiracy narratives as moral lessons so that we can accept them."

The same thing seems even more ridiculous to Italians, and Venetians' first reaction is...

"Why should those Lombard barbarians and peasants from the middle, and African beggars from the Two Sicilies sit at the same table as us?"
"What right do those Sardinian dogs have to represent us?"

"Who are they, and who are we?"

The Lombards reacted similarly.

"Can't we get rid of the Venetian first! Those vampires who are always out to commit commercial fraud are the biggest scourge on the world!"

"Those bumpkins from Piedmont (referring to the Kingdom of Sardinia) actually compared us to those salted fish (Venetians)! This is an insult to us!"

We are morally upright Lombards! Not those swindlers from the seaside!

Central Italy is relatively poor, but they feel they are cultured and have faith and look down on the nouveau riche of northern Italy.

The hierarchy of contempt is very strong throughout Italy; apart from southern Italy, no one in the other region is willing to submit to anyone else.

At that time, people in southern Italy were at the very bottom of the social hierarchy, and were even referred to as African beggars.

As for the attitude of the Austrian Empire, the Central Italian region fully supported it, after all, Franz's reforms were effective, and both landowners and commoners actually benefited.

The relative interests of a small privileged class were damaged, but their absolute gains increased significantly.

Most people were content with the status quo, while the few who were dissatisfied were simply physically eliminated by Franz.

The Venetians were supportive of Franz, and they were even afraid of breaking away from the Austrian Empire, because with the Austrian Empire around, they were always in the right place at the right time and it would be difficult for them not to take off.

The rebellion of 1848 was the darkest period for the Venetian region, with commerce and social order completely destroyed and the hard-earned savings of many families plundered.

Although Franz quickly returned with his troops, the devastation of the war, coupled with the Austrian army's large-scale purge, almost destroyed everything that had been there.

Those who truly opposed Austrian rule had either died in battle or been exiled.

And no matter what you say, they don't consider themselves Italian.

In the past, when the economy was bad, it was alright, but now, if someone were to classify Venice as part of Italy, it would be an insult to the Venetians.

Venetians believe that Venice is Venice and Italy is Italy, and that Italians are all poor people who lower their standards; they have a very strong sense of superiority.

Not to mention other regions, even the wealthy neighboring Lombardy was looked down upon by the Venetians, let alone those regions whose economies were not as good as Lombardy's.

During the rebellion of 1848, the Venetians had no interest in even uniting with the Lombards.

The situation was similar in Lombardy. The Lombards believed that the Venetians were a bunch of swindlers who didn't work for a living and that they were rich mainly by monopolizing maritime transport and trade and doing unethical business, unlike the Lombards who became rich through hard work in industry and agriculture.

In 1848, the Lombards witnessed even more war, and their memories of the war were more painful and bloody.

The Lombards had no interest in the activities of the urban commoners and even considered it the worst form of rule.

In fact, there was a great deal of conflict between urban and rural areas in Lombardy at the time. The Lombard nobles wanted to use agriculture to subsidize the industry in the city, but it would be a miracle if the local farmers were willing to do so.

In addition, during the war, the Lombard rebels also conscripted soldiers and requisitioned grain from rural areas on a large scale, resulting in the loss of both people and resources with the demise of the Lombard Republic.

If the grain can't be harvested, it can be planted again, but when people die, they don't even know who to seek revenge against.

Ultimately, the Austrian Empire's rule in Italy had become relatively stable over the years, and with changes in language, culture, and customs, they genuinely felt that Italy was just a geographical term.

At this time, instead of anyone taking the lead in rebellion, the powerful families and officials stood up to express their loyalty, and the people and the church followed suit. The specific methods were too nauseating to describe in detail.

Most importantly, whether it was the Venetians, the Lombards, or the people of Central Italy, they all felt that life was stable and prosperous at the time, and there was no need to fight a war that was impossible to win.

At least within this generation, few want to continue trying, since those who weren't afraid of death have either died or been sent to colonies, and most of the remaining people just want to live their own lives.

While no one within the Austrian Empire took the double standards of Britain and France too seriously, Britain and France themselves gradually became confused.

Surprisingly, a large number of criminals claimed that they were using their crimes to warn the world in order to support Italian independence.

The scene of thieves and rapists being arrested and put into prison vans while shouting "Long live Italian independence!" was somewhat comical. But as the whole of Central Europe treated it as a joke, something even more surreal happened.

In several cases in Britain and France, juries actually began to sympathize with the criminals, and many guilty people were acquitted in court.

Newspapers and public opinion were overwhelmingly sympathetic, and various celebrities and experts came out to say that everything was justifiable for the sake of Italy. Some even offered ransom to prisoners in jail.

"Great England shed its blood for Greek independence and protested for Polish independence; is it now going to turn a blind eye to the suffering of Italy?"

For a time, the voices supporting Italian independence and unification even surpassed those of the wars taking place around the world.

There was an atmosphere of shared hatred and mutual respect among Britain, France, and other countries, but it was somewhat puzzling to the Austrians, Germans, and even the Italians they referred to.

After the news spread, some thieves and robbers from the German Confederation shouted "Long live Italy!" after being arrested.

Instead of being released in court, he was sent to the Austrian Empire for further interrogation after the normal prison and trial process.

The Austrian Empire was also helpless, as those states were not actually that kind of people; their only goal was to drive the criminals away.

However, adhering to the principle of "better to kill the innocent than let the guilty go free," Austria had no choice but to accept everything.

However, this quickly led to overcrowding in Austrian prisons, as those involved in inciting subversion of the state could not be easily released.

Although it cannot prove their guilt, it also cannot prove their innocence, and the witness testimonies and physical evidence are undeniable.

So the Colonial Department came up with a solution: send these people directly to the colonies to serve as laborers, which would solve the colonies' manpower shortage problem.

As for whether this group will continue to engage in subversive activities in the colonies, let's wait until they survive in the colonies first.

While most people of that era couldn't understand the logic behind Britain and France's actions, Franz didn't have many doubts, since all he cared about was who benefited.

In the first half, Napoleon III's actions were flawless. The assassination attempt was originally a major political disaster, but he cleverly directed the blame at Franz.

This tactic of using someone else's strength against them was brilliantly executed. If Napoleon III hadn't shifted the conflict elsewhere, the Second French Empire would have been in danger.

After all, France had accumulated a lot of internal contradictions, and the Napoleonic family's reputation was no longer as appealing. Moreover, the Second French Republic, the predecessor of the Second French Empire, was originally a product of compromise.

When faced with doubts and panic, what should Napoleon III do?

Unable to prove himself or explain himself clearly, he ultimately had no choice but to resort to forceful suppression.

That would be the truly worst-case scenario.

Moreover, there were many political exiles in France, Italy, Poland, and Germany, so even if Napoleon III wanted to feign death, those French people would not choose to remain silent.

So how do the French people react when faced with terrorist attacks that kill their fellow citizens?

As for the so-called sympathy, it's more like a business deal. After all, even if those people are stupid, they wouldn't really want to put murderers and rapists on the street.

However, things change once money is received. What was once an almost unsolvable situation now has room for maneuver, and what was originally a complicated matter can now be dealt with with a simple excuse.

The so-called support for Italy is just an excuse.

This incident merely caters to the mentality of some people who want to transcend the law, but the law is the law, and it naturally has its purpose.

They'll ruin themselves if they keep playing like this, so Franz doesn't care.

As for the growing Italian independence movement, Franz was not afraid, after all, this day would come sooner or later.

He had done his best, but good words couldn't persuade that damned fool.

The situation in Spain was somewhat unexpected for Franz. He had thought that Fernando VIII would be very firm in his stance with the Austrian Empire, but this time he chose to stand with Britain and France.

However, Franz could understand it, since Spain did not border the Austrian Empire, but was instead surrounded by Britain and France.

For geopolitical reasons, aligning with Britain and France seemed to offer greater benefits and security.

But Franz overestimated Fernando VIII, who actually felt threatened by the Austrian Empire.

Fernando VIII could not tolerate the Habsburg family's influence in Spain, nor could he tolerate Franz's interference in his policies.

It was indeed Franz's fault, as Fernando VIII's policies were often ill-considered, and Franz did not want Spain to decline too much.

So sometimes I can't help but correct his mistakes, since only a strong enough Spain can pose a significant enough threat to England and France and play a role in balancing them.

However, Franz underestimated his influence in Spain. In fact, he did not underestimate it excessively; he knew that he was very influential in Spain.

But in reality, this influence far exceeded Franz's expectations. On the one hand, Franz fulfilled the imagination of all social classes in Spain, whether nobles, the church, soldiers, merchants, or commoners, they all felt that there was something to be gained.

On the other hand, Fernando VIII's ambitions were too great, while Spain's foundation was too weak.

In other words, desires and abilities are mismatched.

Fernando VIII always wanted to be a great monarch, as evidenced by his early actions.

Italy boasts nearly fifty "firsts," including its first railway, first telegraph line, first modern shipyard, first cast iron bridge, first modern lighting system, first maritime code, and first modern statistics bureau.

Without a doubt, he was a very forward-thinking monarch, and his achievements should have made him a legend.

This is why Franz was willing to befriend Fernando VIII and even push him to the position of King of Spain.

However, Franz still overlooked why this guy failed to make history.

While history is indeed written by the victors, Fernando VIII himself had significant problems.

His political acumen was inadequate; besides frequently choosing the wrong side, he also had a blind confidence in his own achievements and prestige.

To put it bluntly, Fernando VIII's version has a problem with his understanding; he was still using the enlightened despotism strategy of the 18th century.

Moreover, Fernando VIII failed to adapt to local conditions. He was eager to achieve industrialization and modernization, but in reality, neither the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies nor Spain at that time was well-suited for industrialization.

Forcing industrialization reforms without a solid foundation will only result in wasting resources and manpower.

Then Fernando VIII tried to copy Franz's work, and the result was that the country became poorer and poorer amidst endless wars and celebrations.

(End of this chapter)