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

Chapter 1850 An Evenly Matched Opponent

Olga asked with a worried look.

Are bicycles in our country really that bad in quality?

Franz couldn't answer, because what was lacking might not be quality, but rather something abstract like character or morality.

Soon when the opening ceremony began, and Franz saw that the athletes from other nations were all wearing plate armor, he suddenly felt that his side was still not well prepared.

Franz then looked at the royal families and dignitaries from various countries on the podium. Seeing that they all looked so confident, he realized that he had misunderstood.

As the prelude to "Das Lied der Deutschland" began, a large number of people stood up in the Austrian Empire's stands, only to suddenly realize that it was not "Ode to the Emperor" and sit down again.

Denmark actually prepared quite a few programs, but they can basically be described in two words: "boring".

After the German faction came to power in Denmark, they went to great lengths to cater to the concept of Germany, which made many genuine Germans feel awkward.

The only ones who were happy were the Germanized Danes and semi-Danish Germans, who saw this as what the German Confederation should look like.

Then there are the ordinary people at the bottom of society who have little concept of ethnicity. They only know that they can meet many important people, eat almost free food and drink almost free alcohol, and enjoy a new program.

For most people, it was like a celebration, which was also Franz's original intention.

Many people within the German Confederation had heard of the Austrian Empire's celebrations, but most had never witnessed them in person; now, they were finally seeing them for the first time.

In fact, to liven things up, Franz even brought in several airships to scatter candy.

Although airships had been in use in the Austrian Empire for over a decade, they were still a completely new and almost magical thing to people in other countries.

Frederick VII, as always, was disappointed. Looking at the jubilant crowd, his face was filled with a sorrowful anger at their incompetence.

Such people can only find solace in the Danish national anthem.

"King Christian stood beside the tall mast."

It was a song praising the Danish king's bravery and fearlessness, filled with reminiscences of past glories and the pride of the Kingdom of Denmark.

Those who don't know him might regard him as a loyal minister or a martyr, but in reality, Frederick VII never truly fought back, and he even bears undeniable responsibility for the decline of Denmark.

Let's talk about the competition itself.

Plate armor, heavy tanks, pepper spray, malicious tailgating, all sorts of contraband, eggs, tomatoes, potatoes—everything became weapons. There were even outrageous tactics like "crossing the river and then destroying the bridge."

There were also many instances of priests giving blessings and sorcerers casting spells outside the venue. In fact, those contraband items were brought in by the clergy, a byproduct of their pursuit of God's legacy.

However, it always proved to be very effective in colonization and exploration, so they brought it to the arena.

What should have been a sports meet was turned into a prop competition by these people, but the spectators on the roadside certainly enjoyed it, as the scene was unprecedentedly intense.

The rules of the competition had to be changed as the games progressed, but fortunately, none of the injuries were too serious.

Although it doesn't fit the theme of peace and friendship, Franz really thinks it's possible to develop a short-distance item race.

Paris France.

Napoleon III successfully defused the crisis brought about by the assassination attempt, and the Tour de Germany further diverted people's attention.

At that time, mass sports had not yet taken off, and so-called sports were still limited to the entertainment and health care of the aristocracy.

Sports of this era, such as horse racing, fencing, billiards, and hunting, are not actually strong in terms of athletic attributes, but rather have extremely strong social attributes.

In reality, many people who are serious about sports are doing so for the sake of so-called upward social mobility, so these sports are more like a political game than a sport.

However, the French viewed the Tour de Germany as a premeditated military operation, designed to demonstrate their military strength and prepare for war.

Moreover, as a nation that originated from nationalism, they were very sensitive to nationalism, and someone immediately advised Napoleon III that the so-called German Confederation was forcibly forcing a nation together.

This could potentially end the state of division within Germany, impacting France's position and strategic layout in Europe.

Their senses were undoubtedly very sharp, but at that time France's strength did not allow them to do so.

As Napoleon III looked at the letters falling like snowflakes, he suddenly felt a calling; he could not bring shame upon the Napoleonic family.

Perhaps his uncle was in the same situation back then. Napoleon III also began to study military affairs, and his generals praised him as a military genius who was one in a century. It's just a pity that he started too late.

However, Louis Napoleon himself did not think so, after all, not many people were optimistic about him before he returned to Paris to become president.

But the most important thing right now is to meet that fat guy from the Kingdom of Sardinia and hopefully he'll give me a surprise.

The assassination itself still had some impact on France, especially in terms of security. It was simply outrageous that a few assassins could bribe a train commander and do whatever they wanted without authorization.

Actually, bribing the tank commander was the official story. In reality, the tank commander was a republican who strongly opposed Napoleon III's ascension to the throne, which is why he agreed to the assassination plan.

Otherwise, no amount of bribery would necessarily buy someone's life.

In addition, the weapons used by the assassins were mostly homemade or purchased in Britain. Most of these assassins were Italians who had been exiled in Britain and had even received funding from the British government.

However, the British side refused to acknowledge this, claiming it was the individual act of extremists.

But this time, the French newspapers didn't criticize London as harshly as they had in the past, when they called it a training center for terrorists and a sanctuary for evil.

Many French generals and celebrities publicly called for war against Britain, and Napoleon III wrote to Queen Victoria to complain, even proposing to sever diplomatic relations with Britain.

British Prime Minister Palmerston proposed the Conspiracy to Murder Act in an attempt to appease France, but the British were also known for their martial spirit, and members of parliament saw it as a sign of weakness.

Not only did the bill fail to pass, but Palmerston himself was also ousted from office.

Although the investigation also traced back to the UK, both countries adopted a low-key approach to prevent the situation from escalating.

Although the French still longed for war, the problem remained: France's national strength did not allow it. The loss of Alsace-Lorraine and almost all of its colonies would have a huge impact on France.

The situation in Britain wasn't much better. The defeat in the Near East, the dual turmoil at home and in the colonies, coupled with the Anglo-American War at the time, meant that even the most warlike British would not want to continue the war at this point.

Despite facing internal and external difficulties, the British economy has unexpectedly stabilized and is gradually emerging from the economic crisis. How did the British manage to overcome this crisis without technological innovation or large-scale policy adjustments?

The reason is actually quite simple: it significantly reduces labor costs.

Because British capitalists have adopted new tactics, the prolonged economic crisis has led to a large number of unemployed people in Britain, giving businesses greater bargaining power.

Lower costs allowed British goods to regain their strong competitiveness, while goods from its main rival, the Austrian Empire, were quietly increasing in price.

This is related to the Austrian Empire's own strategy, as its tax revenue mainly came from the revenue of state-owned factories and internal circulation.

The advantage is that it's less susceptible to external influences when operating behind closed doors; the disadvantage is that it limits its influence over the outside world. International trade doesn't aim to maximize surpluses, but a balanced budget is the bottom line.

After all, a trade deficit would be fatal to this structure. However, human nature is always greedy, and the Austrian government wanted to collect all the money from the people as soon as possible.

Guided by this ideology, the Austrian Empire's state factories always prioritized domestic demand, while dealing with foreign markets, except in the initial stages of market expansion, was done half-heartedly.

Another factor is path dependence. Due to its strong military and political power, the Austrian Empire often received more favorable conditions, which further contributed to the inertia of Austrian merchants.

That's why, despite significant technological advancements, commodity prices have actually increased.

The improvement in the UK's economic crisis does not necessarily mean an improvement in the UK's fiscal situation.

The Prime Minister, Earl Derby, looked at the endless reports before him and couldn't help but put his hands to his forehead.

"You've piled all this up in front of me. Are you hoping I'll offer some military advice, or are you trying to train me to be a general?"

Faced with the Earl of Derby's questioning, the British cabinet members remained indifferent, seemingly oblivious to their own thoughts.

Seeing this, Earl Derby became even angrier. He didn't know when the cabinet, which used to be as quiet as a vegetable market, had become as quiet as a library.

Actually, the Earl of Derby wasn't entirely right; the British Cabinet does have rather heated debates when discussing domestic issues.

In foreign affairs, especially when facing powerful nations, we may appear somewhat lacking in confidence.

In fact, after the end of the Near East War, the British expected to be able to deploy more troops and resources to the North American theater.

This way, the Third Anglo-American War could be ended in one fell swoop.

Strangely, after the Near East War ended, the British troops in North America did not receive any reinforcements or supplies, and everyone acted as if nothing had happened.

The British troops on the North American front were not having an easy time. Their forces were far fewer than those of the American forces, and their advantage in equipment and training was being narrowed over time.

However, these are not the most critical issues. The most critical issue is that the British forces are too few in number, making it difficult to effectively occupy the occupied territories.

Initially, the Americans surrendered without resistance, especially the surrender of New York, which greatly boosted the morale of the British army and allowed them to make a fortune.

The British army's successive victories led many American speculators to place their bets on the British army. They responded to the British army's call, not only maintaining stability in the occupied territories, but also transporting supplies to the British army, treating the wounded, and even mobilizing civilians to join the British army.

Without these American traitors, the British would have collapsed long ago in the war in North America.

The New England Auxiliary Corps had a strength of 300,000 men, more than the total British forces in North America.

So why hasn't such a powerful army been able to conquer North America?
In the past, tens of thousands of British troops routed the Americans. Now that the British have more than 200,000 troops, can't they conquer the North American continent?

The answer is no.

In fact, the American mobilization capacity was so exaggerated that it could be seen from the Civil War that the United States had a militia system from the beginning of its founding. At that time, the Americans mobilized nearly one million people in one go.

What does an army of one million mean? At the height of his power, Napoleon could only muster a little over 800,000 troops by mobilizing the entire continent of Europe.

In the previous Near East War, the total number of troops deployed by Austria, Russia, Great Britain, the Ottoman Empire, and Greece was just over one million.

So when a million American troops appeared on the front lines, William Roden was completely dumbfounded.

However, the so-called million-strong US military was actually very poorly equipped, with only a portion of the troops equipped with weapons smuggled from Texas and Mexico.

The vast majority of US military equipment still consists of the old-fashioned M1842 smoothbore gun produced by the Americans themselves, which even uses old-fashioned spherical bullets.

In fact, the latest rifle of the US military should be the Springfield 1855, which uses the latest Minié cartridge and rifled design.

However, at this time, the US military's weapons factories were mainly located in the occupied northern territories, and the factory owners in the north were unwilling to share technology, or rather, they wanted to make a profit.

The factory owners in the south were generally poor and unable to provide enough funds, so the two sides had no choice but to go to court.

Ultimately, the U.S. federal court ruled in favor of the Northern factory owners, prohibiting Southern arsenals from manufacturing or modifying Springfield 1855 rifles until they paid sufficient patent transfer fees.

That's why the U.S. military had to equip itself with a large number of old-fashioned M1842 smoothbore guns. In fact, it was already quite good that they were able to get the guns, since the U.S. government had never organized such a large-scale army before.

Many people couldn't get any weapons at all; they had to use the hunting rifles they had at home, and some even had to bring their own weapons.

In this context, Franklin Pierce's desire to drive Britain out of North America and reclaim lost territory appears utterly absurd.

However, he was, after all, the president, so the generals of the U.S. military had to act according to his orders.

The result was a complete defeat; the US military's organization was too poor to be suited for open-field skirmishes.

Fortunately, Robert E. Lee and others had anticipated the outcome and took immediate action—to continue their steadfast commitment.

The Americans held out in several key fortresses, waiting for the British to come to them, while the British, fearing a loss of their own teeth, dared not launch a direct attack.

Therefore, the two sides remained in a stalemate for more than a year. Theoretically, Britain imposed a comprehensive blockade on the United States, and the Americans should have been the first to give up.

But in reality, the British blockade was full of loopholes; they couldn't stop California, Mexico, and Texas alone.

The American South did rely on its export economy, but they could directly access ports in the German Confederation and Austria by land.

The British were helpless against this blatant smuggling, since they dared not attack Austrian merchant ships, and any talk of a blockade was out of the question.

(End of this chapter)