I'm the Dauphin in France

Chapter 852: France's Counterattack

As soon as Joseph got off the carriage, a group of royal members or diplomats from Italian states came up to greet him enthusiastically, but they just stood respectfully on both sides of the road, waiting for him to come over with expectant eyes.

Apparently, they had learned from their respective channels that the French Crown Prince would most likely come to the Tuileries Palace today, so they had been waiting here early in the morning.

France is now the "caller" in northern Italy, and this summit is likely to determine the future prosperity or decline of the northern Italian states.

If we can get some important information from the French Crown Prince before the summit, no, even if we just chat with him and get to know him, it may bring unexpected benefits to the country.

However, at this moment, a teenage boy accompanied by several officials walked out from the stone pillars in front of the Tuileries Palace.

Joseph's eyes swept over the others and finally landed on him.

The boy was none other than Carlos IV’s eldest son, the Spanish Crown Prince Ferdinando, who would later become Ferdinando VII. The man behind him was the Spanish Chief Minister, Count Floridablanca.

"It's an honor to meet you here, Your Royal Highness." Ferdinando bowed first and said in a childish voice, "Your glorious achievements have spread throughout Spain. My father mentions you every day, saying that you are his closest and most respected friend."

Joseph smiled and returned the greeting.

After the two exchanged a few polite words, the boy silently stepped aside, while Count Floridablanca, who had been following him, came to Joseph's side.

"Your Majesty asked me to convey his congratulations to France on its great victory." The Spanish Chief Minister bowed and said, "You see, this war broke out too suddenly. His Majesty ordered troops to reinforce our most solid ally from the beginning, but the army was not assembled until recently.

"Right now, the Marquis of La Romana is leading 3 troops in the port of Valencia and is ready to go to Italy to assist you in the battle."

Joseph just smiled calmly when he heard this.

Obviously, there was a great deal of disagreement within Spain about whether to get involved in the ground war. They did not dare to commit troops until France showed a trend of winning.

If Napoleon had received these 3 reinforcements when he just crossed the Alps, it would have really affected the course of the war.

But at this time, sending Spanish troops to northern Italy would be of no use at all except giving them the opportunity to interfere in Italian politics.

Moreover, Joseph was well aware of how weak the Spanish army's combat effectiveness was. It was definitely the worst among the major European powers.

He looked at Count Floridablanca and said, “Thank you very much, Your Majesty, for your full support for France.

“But I suggest that the Marquis of La Romana’s army should assemble in advance at Cáceres.

"The British army lost a large number of troops in Germany, and even their Duke of York was almost captured by Lieutenant Colonel Saint-Hilaire. Now is a good opportunity for your country to retake Portugal."

His voice was full of temptation: "If our two countries join forces, we can even retake Gibraltar."

Count Floridablanca's pupils suddenly shrank.

He did hear His Majesty the King mention the plan of "joining forces with France to regain the entire Iberian Peninsula", but in his opinion, that would be at least ten years later.

But the French Crown Prince suddenly proposed to jointly send troops to Portugal!
This was not something he could decide immediately.

He nodded somewhat embarrassedly: "It is indeed as you said, this is an opportunity. I will report this to His Majesty as soon as possible." Joseph continued to "give him a shot of heart": "Once the battle on the Rhine is over, I will immediately send troops to assist you."

Of course, Joseph did not intend to deploy too many troops in the Portuguese battlefield. After defeating the anti-French alliance, France needed to rest for a while. The main force to attack Portugal had to be the Spanish army.

After Portugal was attacked, Britain certainly could not stand idly by - Spain's national strength was much stronger than Portugal's, and with the addition of part of the French army, if the British did not help, Portugal would really be driven out of the Iberian Peninsula.

Portugal is the most important supply point and forward base for the British Navy in the Atlantic Ocean. Losing Portugal means that Britain will lose control of nearly half of the European waters.

Therefore, when Spain declared war on Portugal, the Iberian Peninsula would become Britain's "bleeding point".

The British had to continuously send troops and logistical supplies to Portugal, thus never being able to rest.

France only needs to increase its aid slightly when Spain is about to collapse - France and Spain are adjacent to each other, so the cost of deploying troops and providing supplies is much lower than that of the UK.

By then, if Spain can really conquer Portugal, then Britain's influence in Europe will be greatly reduced. At the same time, Gibraltar will become an enclave without support and can be taken back by Spain at any time.

This is the outcome France most hopes for.

Even if Spain never defeats Portugal, this is also a situation that France would like to see.

France ended the war and developed its business with peace of mind, while Britain continued to consume its resources in Portugal.

It is unrealistic to say that it can bring down the British finances, but at least it can prevent Britain from having to cause trouble for France.

Moreover, unifying the Iberian Peninsula and recovering Gibraltar have always been the political correctness in Spain, and no one dares to raise any objections.

When Joseph and the Spanish Chief Minister entered the South Hall of the Tuileries Palace, they had already roughly outlined the plan for invading Portugal - this was drawn up by the General Staff last year.

He looked up at the conference hall of the summit, motioned for Count Floridablanca and the Crown Prince of Spain to sit down in the front row of chairs, and continued:
"By the way, I have a gift for His Majesty King Carlos IV."

The two Spaniards immediately looked at him with interest.

Joseph leaned forward and said, "I know that church issues have been plaguing Spain and have seriously restricted your development. Since the reign of His Majesty Carlos III, he has been committed to church reform, but with little success."

Count Floridablanca nodded slightly at once.

People often say that France is a "Catholic filial son", but in fact the Vatican has little influence on France. Among the major European countries, Spain is the one that is most deeply controlled by the Vatican.

Carlos III carried out church reforms and weakened the church's interference in Spanish politics, but the church still has great influence on the economy, land, and people's livelihood.

Joseph said: "The reason why the churches in your country are difficult to shake is because they are backed by the Roman Catholic Church.

“So, if we want to completely eradicate the church’s abuses, we must address them from the root.”

(End of this chapter)