Persian Empire 1845

Chapter 396 Vienna Negotiations (Part 1)

In Vienna, the capital of the Austrian Empire, diplomatic delegations from Britain, Iran, and the Netherlands arrived one after another. The British delegation was led by Foreign Secretary Russell, while the Dutch delegation was personally led by Prime Minister Johann Thorbe.

Iran sent a delegation led by Foreign Minister Abdullah, with Sadiq also among them. Their objectives were twofold: first, to get Britain to recognize Prince Mohammed; and second, to get the Netherlands to secede from Sumatra.

The negotiations were held at Schönbrunn Palace in Vienna, a venue specially chosen by Emperor Franz Joseph. The fact that the Emperor sent his trusted confidants to greet the Iranian delegation highlighted Austria's different attitude towards Iran.

"Austria wants to form an alliance with the infidels," Chancellor Tolbert and Lord Russell said as they headed toward the negotiation site.

"You can't blame him, after all, only Iran firmly supports the Austrian Emperor. As far as I know, most of the investment in Austria and Sicily now comes from Iran, and Iran also helped a lot during the Venice riots last year."

Britain's diplomatic intelligence gathering is quite effective; they know that Iran is involved in everything Austria does. Hungary hasn't been this turbulent in the past, except because of its demolition. Now, apart from the Hungarians, everyone else is praising the emperor and wishing him a long life.

"We need to unite now and get Iran to give up its interests in Malaya. If they make concessions, then other places will also make concessions. Then we will take everything."

Tolbe nodded, and they went to the conference room, where Abdullah had been waiting for a long time.

"Lord Russell, you are still in such good health. It must have been a long and arduous journey."

"For the sake of peace between us, any hardship is worthwhile. The situation between the three countries in the Far East has deteriorated, and Her Majesty the Queen wants to restore peace, so she sent me here."

Russell adopted a righteous and indignant demeanor, as if to say that Britain would do anything for peace. Abdullah then greeted Prime Minister Tolbe, who was noticeably colder, likely due to resentment stemming from Iran's seizure of West Borneo ten years prior. If Tolbe knew that Iran was preparing to take Sumatra, one wonders if he would wage war against Iran.

The three parties took their seats, and the negotiations began at Schönbrunn Palace.

Russell spoke first: "The Malayan issue has affected peace in the Far East. Our country and the Netherlands' commercial interests in the region have been affected. If your country truly wants peace, it should completely withdraw from Malaya."

Abdullah slowly put down his teacup, the porcelain cup clinking against the silver tray with a crisp sound.

"Withdraw from Malaya?" He smiled slightly. "Lord Russell, you seem to have forgotten that Prince Muhammad has been elected as the Sultan of Perak, a legitimate monarch voluntarily supported by the local people, while Dutch rule in Sumatra—" He looked at Torbe, "was built on the bones of countless Acehnese."

Tolbert's face turned ashen: "What right do you have to talk about the legitimacy of the colonies? Are your actions in Baku and the Caucasus truly aboveboard?"

Sadig suddenly interjected: "At least we won't be like the Dutch, displaying the heads of rebels on the gates of Batavia."

The temperature inside the conference room suddenly dropped to freezing.

This wasn't Russell's idea from the start, so he quickly said, "I think regarding the East Indies, the Dutch have ruled there for over a hundred years, and as far as I know, no one knows the area better than them."

“You’re right, Mr. Russell.” Abdullah handed him a document. “This is a petition from the people of Aceh and Malaya requesting our country’s intervention. They have explained the oppression they have suffered at the hands of the Dutch over the years and are asking Shah to save them from their plight.”

“This is slander!” Torbe shouted. “The land under our rule has entered the civilized world; how can we believe the one-sided story of these barbarians?”

"Civilization may be barbarism disguised; the truth will tell." Lord Russell took the petition, his fingertips slightly clenched—the paper was covered with dense fingerprints and signatures, and even a few dark brown bloodstains. He forced himself to remain calm as he flipped through a few pages, then suddenly his gaze sharpened.

"In March, Dutch troops massacred 400 civilians in South Sumatra because they refused to pay double the pepper tax?" He read one of the lines, his voice unconsciously lowering.

Prime Minister Tolbert abruptly stood up, his chair scraping against the floor. "This is blatant fraud!" he exclaimed, his face flushed. "Dutch rule in the East Indies was a symbol of civilization and order! These so-called 'petitions' are nothing but tools for inciting rebellion!"

"Yes, but your newspapers are different."

Abdullah produced a newspaper, the East India Daily, which had been banned by the Dutch government. The photos on it clearly showed Dutch soldiers standing beside mountains of corpses, smiling. One photo even clearly showed the unit number on the regimental flag—"Royal East India 3rd Infantry Regiment".

"Although your country will certainly say this is a manifestation of civilization, you are the first to do it so openly, and I sincerely admire you."

Prime Minister Tolbert looked to Lord Russell for help, took a deep breath, and said.

“Your Excellency Abdullah, we are discussing matters in Malaya today, not Aceh. Is it inappropriate to bring this up now?”

Just then, a few people walked into the next room, carrying documents in their hands.

"Your Excellency, this is the latest intelligence from Malaya."

“Your Excellency, this is from Aceh…”

"Sir, this is from Qinistan..."

The three men took a look, and some were happy while others were sad. Without a doubt, Torbe was the most saddened.

Aceh's sudden rebellion caught them completely off guard. According to reports, they had already captured towns like Daiiri and Sinkel, and were marching towards Jambi, the heart of their central power base. Along the way, they were greeted by welcoming local populations; Dutch rule there was crumbling.

Meanwhile, news from Britain indicated changes in Malaya: Songkhla suddenly intervened, clearing away local obstacles; Perak acquired Kelantan, and other Malayan tribes were stirring. Malacca was experiencing its biggest upheaval in decades.

At this time, neither country possessed the immense power they would later wield; their finances and military were concentrated in India and the Americas. The Netherlands, on the other hand, focused its resources on Java, centered around Batavia. The events in Malaya and Aceh were a complete surprise to them.

"I think we can negotiate more effectively if we take a break!"

"I agree."

With the two saying this, Abdullah agreed, after all, to take their feelings into consideration, and the intermission began.

(End of this chapter)