After 1851, the situation in the Near East became increasingly tense. Russia and Austria were eyeing the Ottoman Empire, and the Sudanese government invited Britain and France to mediate the conflict.

What price did the Ottoman Empire pay? Let’s not talk about it. The problem now is that the French government is busy with internal strife, and the British alone cannot scare Russia and Austria.

In the eyes of the British, the core of this Near East crisis is with the Russians. As long as they don't cause trouble, it will be easy to convince Austria.

Under this judgment, the British-Russian negotiations began. There is no doubt that the British do not think that the problem can be solved at the negotiating table. The main purpose of launching this negotiation is to delay time.

The London government and Louis Napoleon Bonaparte have been hooked up. In order to cope with the increasingly severe Near East crisis, the British decided to support Napoleon III's seizure of power.

The British wanted to delay time, and the Russians were not prepared, so the negotiations started under this situation.

Vienna

The Austrian government is discussing the negotiations between Britain and Russia, which has affected Austria's next strategy. If the British fool the bears, the strategy of moving west will be ruined.

Metternich analyzed: "The conflict between Britain and Russia has been around for a long time, and the conflict between the two sides is very serious. From the Near East to the Far East, there are the focus of conflicts between the two countries everywhere.

Unless one of the parties can make substantial concessions, conflicts between the two countries are inevitable.

The current Near East crisis is mainly caused by the Russians' core strategy. It has been prepared for so long, and it is difficult for them to stop."

After the decline of the Ottoman Empire, a voice appeared in Russia, swallowing this old empire and inheriting all their legacy.

Because of the appetite, the Russians' plans were naturally boycotted by various countries. Although they were unable to swallow this empire, the Russians still gained enough benefits in the last two Russian-Turkish wars.

Perhaps it was because they felt that it was too difficult to swallow the Ottoman Empire in one go, so the Russians set two more small goals to complete this plan in steps.

The first step is to control the Black Sea, go south to the Balkans, and occupy the two straits;

The second step is to firmly grasp the protection rights of Orthodox Christians in the Ottoman Empire and then erode the Ottoman Empire.

The core of the first strategic plan is to occupy the two straits. Only by mastering this golden waterway can the strategic security of the Russian Empire be guaranteed, and there is no need to worry about being blocked by the Ottoman Empire.

This is also the first step for the Russians to move towards the ocean and a core part of his maritime strategy.

However, this most critical step was cut off by the British as early as the signing of the London Straits Convention in 1841.

The results of the Russians' struggle for it for half a century were wasted, and the Tsarist government, the protection power of Orthodox Christians, no longer allowed it. The fuse of the Crimean War in history was religious contradictions.

Now that Russia and the Austrians have formed an alliance, the diplomatic situation of European powers joining forces to suppress Russia has changed, and the French are no longer in the state. If this opportunity is not used to occupy the two-strait area, the Russians will never have a chance again.

The Holy Land crisis just so happened that it provided the Russians with sufficient excuses for war. The reason why they have not started yet is that they are preparing for the war.

Don’t the Ottoman government know about these issues? It is obviously impossible. As an old enemy, the Ottoman government has never relaxed its vigilance against the Russians.

The problem is that even if they know everything, they can only expect international mediation besides passively.

It does not exist to take the initiative. The Russians were not ready for war, and the Ottoman Empire was not ready for war either.

Nominally, their army is quite large, and they look strong. But their family knows their own affairs. On the surface, the powerful Ottoman army is actually just a fancy.

Whether fighting with the Russians or Austria, they are all cowardly. This is not something that can be overwhelmed by the corruption and incompetence of the government. The gap in national strength cannot be compensated overnight.

Prime Minister Felix thought for a while and said, "It is inevitable that the Russians will take action. Now we are not sure whether they will take action in the second half of this year or delay until 1852.

Not only is the time when the war breaks out cannot be determined, but how long this war, which is destined to be large, is also an unknown.

The most worrying thing is whether Britain and France will participate in the war. Even if they participate in this war, how much strength they will be able to do.

Before these issues are determined, any action we take is risky. Now we need to find a way to control the risk within a certain range.”

This is the difference between a big country and a small country. A small country does not need to consider the aftermath issue when formulating a strategy. If you win, everything will be easy, but if you lose, you will be completely ruined.

Austria is different. As long as you don’t act blindly, even if you fail once, you still have a chance to come again for a second time, so risk control is essential.

Marshal Radsky shook his head and said, "If we want to control risks, then after the outbreak of the Russian-Turkish war, we can only wait for the escalation of the war. We cannot move before the French send troops.

What if the French don’t join the war? Do we want to give up this plan?”

Prime Minister Felix said affirmatively: "It depends on the British's determination. As long as they are willing, there will be a way to pull the French into action."

This conclusion is the same as Franz came to. Who said that Louis Napoleon Bonaparte was promoted by the British?

Historically, he was a serious British-phobic patient, and often agreed with the British. During his reign, he could hardly see the French government and the British.

Franz thought for a while and said, "The key to the success of this strategy is to keep it confidential, attack a surprise attack from various countries, create a certain fact, and force Britain and France to recognize it.

As long as the plan is not exposed, the initiative is in our hands. It is up to us to decide when to take action and whether to take action.

After the outbreak of the Russian-Turkish War, whether Britain and France will participate in the war is not something we can control, but the Ottomans must be even more anxious.

To win over Britain and France to join the war was their only choice to get rid of the crisis. When necessary, let the Ottoman Empire know that our goal was only the Danube Basin."

Franz didn't have any psychological pressure to deceive the Ottomans. If he told them that the Austrian government had no interest in them this time, he would probably not believe the smallpox that had been soaring.

It would be better to expose a false information to make the Ottomans believe it. The Austrians have a much smaller appetite than the Russians who wanted to swallow them.

After distinguishing between the main enemy and the secondary enemy, the Ottoman government has few choices. Being bitten by Austria is nothing more than a psoriasis. If it is bitten by the Russians, it will be half-dead.

...

Secretary of Finance Carl proposed: "Your Majesty, in order to deal with the next war, the Ministry of Finance recommends the implementation of a monopoly on tobacco and alcohol in order to raise more war funds."

Austria has a war funding, and it is enough to unify the Southern German region, but it is not necessarily necessary to face interference from various countries.

The Austrian Empire was also a big family and had already passed the stage of adventure. Franz didn't like adventure either. It was impossible for him to run to start the war with only a few months of war funds.

So from the beginning, the strategic plan was made to take into account the intervention of the great powers. The worst situation was to go to war with Britain, France and the public at the same time.

Of course, this is based on the joint fight between Russia and Austria. If you fight alone, Franz is not that reckless, and the Austrian government does not have that confidence.

The side with more war soldiers always has to take advantage, especially when there may be two-line combat or even three-line combat.

With more soldiers, the military expenditure will naturally be large. It is necessary to raise as much war money as possible.

The most direct way is to collect war taxes. Franz will not do it unless the war has broken out. He is a man who follows the rules.

"How much income can be increased after the implementation of the tobacco and alcohol monopoly system?" Franz asked with concern.

Carl thought about it and replied: "From the current domestic economic development, after the implementation of the tobacco and alcohol monopoly system, the income of more than 35 million rupiahs can be increased every year."

With the original fiscal revenue, the income can also be increased by 35 million rupiah, and the profits of tobacco and alcohol can be seen as generally.

"Prime Minister, what do you think?" Franz asked

35 million ruts is enough to impress Franz. Deep down, he has agreed. Now asking the Prime Minister for his opinion is that the cabinet needs to be responsible for implementing this plan.

Prime Minister Felix replied without hesitation: "Your Majesty, special circumstances can be treated with special conditions. The government will do ideological work for capitalists, and they will probably understand it."

Obviously, everyone's bottom line is so high. In order to increase the fiscal revenue of 35 million rupiah, everyone doesn't mind sacrificing the interests of some people.

Whether capitalists with damaged interests can figure it out is no longer important, and they have no right to speak politically.

Historically, the Austrian government implemented a monopoly on salt and tobacco. However, Franz, who was honest, included salt and food as a necessity in daily life in the previous livelihood bill.

In order to allow the people to fill their stomachs and not go to rebel, the government strictly controls the prices of these essential daily necessities.

When the price cannot be increased, salt is included in the monopoly, and much income is not increased. The Ministry of Finance naturally chose another wine with higher profits.

These two products are not necessities for daily life, and it doesn’t matter if the price is a little higher. Smoking and drinking less is also beneficial to your health.

This is Franz's true thought. Although he smokes and drinks himself, it does not prevent him from guiding the people and cultivating a correct living habit.

Franz thought for a while and said, "Since that's the case, the government will legislate and implement the tobacco and alcohol monopoly as soon as possible."

"Yes, your majesty!" Prime Minister Felix replied
Chapter completed!