Rise of the 1630s South America

Chapter 1548 The End and the Beginning ([-])

"Now, the focus of the dispute has focused on the ownership of the Caribbean islands..." In a private mansion outside Amsterdam, Mr. De Witt, the speaker of the three-level council of the United Provinces, said in a persuasive tone: "Louis XIV is an extremely A face-loving king, and sometimes very willful and impulsive, it is actually very unwise for your country to offend him in this way. It is not worthwhile in terms of politics or military. Your goods are insulated from France, and your harvest You have killed a dangerous enemy, and your ships will face serious security threats when passing through the Strait of Dover and the western Mediterranean. Li, imagine for yourself, is it worth it?"

In this peace mediation between West and France, the United Provinces, which has attracted a lot of brothers and courage, is a well-deserved protagonist. Under the silver bullet offensive, Sweden, Switzerland, Münster, Brandenburg-Prussia, etc. have certain armies Powerful countries are on the side of the Dutch.Needless to say, the navy, even without the help of the people on the east coast, the Dutch navy, which had just won the war, could teach France how to behave.

In addition, these two countries, England and Austria, also exerted pressure on France either explicitly or secretly out of their own interests, forcing them to conclude a peace treaty with the Spaniards as soon as possible and withdraw from the occupied territories-of course, it is impossible to spit them all out. It is impossible for the French to get nothing after spending huge military expenditures. Not only would Louis not agree, but neither would the French aristocracy.

At present, the two sides have basically negotiated that the French will give up Franche-Comté, but they can retain Charleroi, Douai, Tournai, Odnard, Lille, Armentières, Couture, etc. The Seven Cities of Ultre.This is equivalent to taking half of the Southern Netherlands as a severance payment for the French army, allowing them to retreat from the Dutch border and stop being "scary".

In all fairness, the French still suffered a little "small loss" under this condition, because they completely spit out many lands along the Rhine, such as Franche-Comté and so on.But the Dutch are still quite dissatisfied with this, because in any case, the distance between them and France has been shortened, and they have gained half of the French in the southern Netherlands, and they only need to walk a few steps to visit the Dutch home. Circle, how can this not make them feel uneasy?

However, the choice of the French is quite welcomed by people in the Holy Roman Empire, Switzerland and other regions, because they finally no longer have to face a vicious neighbor, which is more important than anything else.Let the proud French and the philistine and shrewd Dutch be together. On the European continent, it seems that there is no more successful country than these two countries. Perhaps they can compete with each other to decide the winner.

However, France and the Netherlands and other countries have negotiated terms, but the Spaniards who are the parties have not agreed to all of this for a long time.This is not only because of the Spanish court's dissatisfaction with the United Provinces, France, England, Austria and other countries arbitrarily deciding their fate, but also because of the instigation and instigation of the people on the east coast.

Li Qing, the special envoy of the people from the east coast, has visited Spain many times before, persuading them not to make peace with the French prematurely, and it seems that it has had a certain effect so far.Because the people on the east coast promised to hand over some of the captured French Caribbean islands to the Spanish jurisdiction (such as French Santo Domingo, etc.), encouraging them to rebuild the Santo Domingo Procuratorate District and regain a pivotal position in the Caribbean Sea , These undoubtedly convinced many powerful figures in Spain not to sign a peace treaty with the French so quickly.

However, Li Qing also knew that this kind of thing could not last long.In history, the Spaniards have struggled in the face of pressure from all sides, but under the strong pressure of the French Army and the Netherlands threatening to cut off food (cutting loans), they shamefully counseled and accepted their own Austria According to relatives, half of the southern Netherlands was ceded, and Franche-Comté and other places looted by the French army were taken back. It is worth mentioning that Pope Clement IX acted as a mediator at that time. The actual influence on the peace talks is the special envoy of the United Provinces and the deputy mayor of Amsterdam, Van Boyningen.And in this time and space in the 17th century, Van Boyningen was still the ambassador to the United Provinces in Eastern Port, and Pope Clement IX sent a special envoy to Aachen to convey his opinions, but not many people paid attention to it. .

The Dutch are well aware of the crux of the stalled peace talks.Therefore, after seeing the tit-for-tat attitude of the East Coast envoy at the Aachen Peace Conference, in order to end the war as soon as possible and let the French withdraw the [-] to [-] troops stationed on the border, the Dutch had to come forward in person. Do the ideological work of the East Coast people.They want them not to continue to hold on to the French's pigtails, spit out some Caribbean islands, and to put it bluntly, it is best to return the core territory of French Santo Domingo to the French, otherwise the East The people on the coast will far outweigh the gains.

"The French are implementing a large-scale shipbuilding plan, and have launched many warships equipped with dozens or even hundreds of cannons. Li, I don't intend to hide some confidential information and return to China. Many warships of the French are already in the water. The final construction process is underway in the dock. If you still delay and refuse to end the war, you may not be able to get the results you want? Mr. Li Qing, do you plan to return a large number of elite ships to berth in Bilba for a long time? Hubei, Dover port, and then start a protracted naval war with the French? That would definitely not be the return of the country, your merchant ships are constantly being attacked, and your warships are always fighting (and the fighting is Means loss), naval officers and soldiers who are not easy to train die in day after day of boring wars, and the country gets nothing..." Speaker DeWitt continued to persuade: "So, what is there to do in this kind of war? Is it necessary to go down?"

"Even though the construction of many warships of the French is coming to an end, it will not be a matter of one day to form combat effectiveness." Li Qing spread her hands and said in fluent Dutch: "Besides, the soldiers of our East Coast Republic are not afraid of Fighting, on the contrary, they regard defeating the enemy as a great honor, especially in a country as large as France."

"Li, we have known each other for many years, so you don't need to talk to me about these meaningless words." Speaker DeWitt said in a slightly disappointed tone: "Compared with lands like the Southern Netherlands, the French don't care about St. Domingo, Martinique, or Guadeloupe! Their center of gravity is always on the Old Continent, there is no doubt about it! Even if you insist on not returning those islands in the Caribbean Sea, the Spaniards have been blinded by the devil. If you can't understand the situation clearly, the French are unlikely to compromise with you because of these overseas islands. They will generally continue the war, and no matter who interferes, it will be useless until the two sides sit down again because they can't bear the damage of the war. .Li, what good does this do to you? You didn't have to participate in this war, but you were forced to get involved because of some trivial interests. Now? How much have you spent on the military? There have been casualties How many officers and soldiers? Is it all worth it?"

Upon hearing this, Li Qing put away the smile on her face, looked at Speaker DeWitt, and sighed inwardly.This person is really thinking about the interests of the United Provinces. As the chairman of the third-level parliament, he really loves his country. It is said that his daily life is very simple. Usually there are only two servants around him, and he lives a diligent and economical life. , even if his wife comes from Bickle, a family known as the wealthy.

This time the Dutch gathered a large number of countries to put pressure on France, isn't it the work of this person?Of course, although he successfully forced the French King Louis XIV to succumb, stopped his advance, and spit out a considerable part of the occupied land, but in the original idea of ​​the Dutch, it was better for France to occupy Franche-Comté and other places, and Handed over all of the southern Netherlands to King Philip of Spain.It's a pity that the French didn't let them do what they wanted. The proud Louis XIV chose to leave seven cities in the Southern Netherlands, and temporarily stopped the expansion of the eastern border.

This move by the French also made the Dutch extremely vigilant.Because obviously, the French are obviously more interested in the rich lowland areas, whether it is the Catholic Southern Netherlands or the Protestant United Provinces.Retaining control of parts of the southern Netherlands meant opening the door to the United Provinces.

This point, both Louis XIV and DeWitt, should be clear in their hearts.

And since things have gone so badly (half of the southern Netherlands has fallen into the hands of the French), then quickly stop the loss and end this frightening war, lest the French change their minds again and expand the war in an all-round way. So much fun!Perhaps, this is the main reason why Speaker DeWitt is anxious to get the East Coast, Spain and France to cease fighting.

After guessing a few times in her heart, Li Qing thought about it carefully, and then said seriously: "John, we are friends, so I'm telling you the truth. Of course we won't invest too much in the interests of Spain, But we will never sit back and watch the Kingdom of Spain be severely weakened, let alone return the French Caribbean islands that our boys took with blood and sacrifice without compensation. The above are all prerequisites and our bottom line. The French better understand Now, is the fleet they are building enough to fight against the coalition forces on the east coast and Spain..."

Speaking of this, perhaps considering that the Spaniards may not dare to fight to the end with the people on the east coast, Li Qing eased her tone and said: "Of course, we are not war mad, nor do we have to impose war on anyone. If the French are willing to give the Kingdom of Spain a fair agreement, recognize the Caribbean Sea as the Kingdom of Spain's sphere of influence, and pay a considerable ransom, we may consider the possibility of ending the war."

"Is this your final opinion?" Speaker DeWitt's face softened slightly.He knew that as long as the people on the east coast were willing to talk, then everything would be easy to talk about. The worst thing was that the two sides were unwilling to even talk about it, and it would be troublesome.Of course, the people on the east coast are far away in the New World, and they are also in the hands of the French (the trade line is threatened), not to mention the Spaniards, facing the coercion of the French army front, it is impossible and unnecessary for them to be in France. He has always maintained a tough stance in front of people. The reason why the previous rounds of negotiations were very unpleasant with the French is that Speaker DeWitt is more inclined to think that this is a negotiating strategy, nothing more than wanting to obtain greater benefits at the negotiating table .

However, the East Coasters can continue to delay for a while, but the Dutch can't afford that risk.Because God knows that the "nervous" King Louis XIV of France will become angry one day, tear up all the oral agreements reached with the Dutch, once again mobilize the army to storm the Southern Netherlands, and then use the Netherlands to obstruct them before, and break into the United Provinces in one go , that result is unbearable for many people.Therefore, the Dutch now have a strong urge to end the West-French war, and try to calm the war between the two sides, lest they themselves be involved.

Therefore, after hearing that the people on the east coast were willing to ease the tension between the two parties a little bit and offered conditions to the French, Speaker DeWitt finally breathed a sigh of relief. Ordnance purchase orders for arming the local militias in the seven provinces, etc.-urge them not to continue entanglement, and reach an agreement with the French as soon as possible.

Of course, for the Kingdom of Spain, which is a bit unclear, Chairman DeWitt felt that it was necessary to beat it.That is to let the Spaniards know through economic and financial means that there will be a price to pay for the face of the United Provinces!The East Coasters don't need the loans from the United Provinces and the goods they provide, but the Spaniards don't!He intends to use this method to make the Spaniards sober, stop following the people on the east coast, and sign a peace treaty with the French as soon as possible-your own army was completely defeated by the French, but because of some insignificant maritime victories and the East Coast The theory that the Caribbean Sea belongs to Spain put forward by the people on the coast is inflated. Is this not death?

However, things in the Caribbean islands are indeed more troublesome.The people on the east coast have made it very clear just now that they can't give up the captured islands, provided that the French pay a considerable ransom.It is conceivable that this ransom cannot be called a small amount. With Louis XIV's haughty temperament, it is unknown whether he is willing to spend money to buy it back.Although they spent 500 million livres to buy Dunkirk back from the British, you must know that the city originally belonged to the Southern Netherlands and was captured by the British, not the territory lost by the French. It's not a shame, but the nature of islands such as French Santo Domingo is different. I don't know how Louis XIV would think about this matter.

But in any case, this protracted war must end as soon as possible, and then the United Provinces will begin to make complete preparations-a preparation for the beginning of an era of aggressiveness by the Kingdom of France.

(End of this chapter)