Holy Roman Empire

Chapter 470: Napoleon III's Thoughts

After the news of the establishment of the Greater French Empire spread, all of France was in an uproar. At this moment, Napoleon III’s prestige reached its peak, almost surpassing that of his uncle, Napoleon.

From then on, Napoleon III was no longer just the second-generation heir who rose to power due to his uncle’s legacy but was now a great ruler of France in his own right.

However, this “great ruler” was not in a good mood. The reactions of European countries were even more intense than Napoleon III had imagined. The newly annexed Italy might not be easily digested.

The French Foreign Ministry had already worn out many of its people. Despite their vigorous efforts, the news coming back was still not promising.

As of now, no European country has recognized the legitimacy of the “Greater French Empire.”

In terms of legal grounds, Napoleon III really had none. The House of Bonaparte, when they were in Italy, were just ordinary nobles who quickly rose to power because of his uncle, Napoleon.

It would have been one thing if he couldn’t find a legitimate claim to the throne—he could have used an election to make do and barely manage. But there was no legitimacy for the empire itself; not just insufficient legal grounds, but none at all.

Looking back at history, Italy and France were once part of the same country during the Roman era, but even Napoleon III wouldn’t dare claim to be the heir of the Roman Empire.

Later, the powerful Kingdom of the Franks unified much of both countries and even parts of Germany. However, the Germanic people established this empire, and France is also known as the Western Kingdom of the Franks—a title that modern French people are not fond of.

In 843 AD, the Treaty of Verdun legally divided France, Italy, and Germany. The only connection between France and Italy was their languages, which belong to the Romance languages group.

This was of no use. Napoleon III also didn’t dare to raise the banner of the Carolingian Empire, as that would mean Austria would immediately turn against them.

Moreover, such a banner would be pointless since most people had already forgotten about that empire. Those who knew history would question the legitimacy of the emperor, as Napoleon III had no claim to the throne.

Europe originally recognized legal legitimacy, and now that interests were involved, they naturally wouldn’t easily recognize the “Greater French Empire.”

Countries that had originally been courted by the French, such as Belgium and Switzerland, were now involuntarily leaning towards Austria, clearly frightened by Napoleon III’s aggressiveness.

There was no help for it, different regions had different impacts. The Italian region was too well-known, and occupying it naturally caused a significant impact.

Look at the reaction of various countries to Austria’s expansion into the Balkans; it was much less significant. This is mainly because, in everyone’s impression, the Balkans are a rural backwater, whereas Italy is a prosperous metropolis.

This impression is not wrong. A few decades ago, the Balkans were indeed that, with local production levels stuck in the Middle Ages.

The wealthy areas were all concentrated around Constantinople. Since it was an economically backward area taken from infidels, it couldn’t be considered an invasion.

In this regard, the European public had a good sense of the bigger picture. Fighting the hated Ottoman Empire was politically correct.

However, when expanding into Germany, the result was completely different. If it weren’t for the Near East War raging fiercely, and Franz decisively stopping after taking the Southern Germany, Austria wouldn’t have gotten through so easily.

If he had the choice, Napoleon III would also have preferred to proceed gradually, reducing external pressure.

However, unlike Franz, who was young and could afford to wait, time was catching up with Napoleon III, born in 1808 and now 62 years old.

In later generations, this might be the golden age for politicians, but in an era when the average life expectancy in France hovered around forty, it was already considered a long life.

Seeing his health deteriorate day by day, Napoleon III had to consider paving the way for the next generation. He had many illegitimate children, but only one legitimate son, born in 1856 and now 14 years old.

At this age, he was clearly incapable of controlling such a large empire. The French war machine had already advanced too far and it couldn’t be stopped easily.

Napoleon III believed he could still control it, but his young son wouldn’t be able to.

Napoleon III was well aware of the hidden dangers of forcibly annexing Italy, but he did it anyway.

The French people’s desire for greatness was driving the war machine forward. Continuing to expand into Italy was inevitable. From the moment the Kingdom of Sardinia was annexed, the war machine could not be stopped.

Especially with the successful examples of Austria and Prussia, French ambitions were further stimulated. Napoleon III could barely keep the war machine under control.

He was uncertain how much longer his body could hold out, and if something unexpected happened, his young son would clearly not be able to control the empire.

Rather than expanding passively later, it was better to act now. At least with him personally at the helm, the success rate would be higher.

Taking it slow was definitely not an option anymore. If he were to learn from Franz and seek stability wholeheartedly, it might not be possible to annex Italy even in twenty years. Napoleon III didn’t have that much time.

Italy wasn’t easy to digest, and now with forced annexation, it would be even harder to digest. In the future, France’s main energy would have to be spent on digesting the Italian region.

During this period, they would certainly encounter many troubles, but with France’s strength, they could still suppress them. After experiencing setbacks, even the radicals would gradually calm down and think, and wouldn’t blindly provoke war.

As long as France didn’t actively provoke war on the European continent, there would be no danger. Napoleon III was very confident about this point.

Austria was the only power on the European continent capable of threatening France, but geography dictated that whichever country between France and Austria initiated a war would be at a disadvantage.

Since Austria had given up on Italy, their strategic focus on the continent wouldn’t be there.

As for Central Europe, Napoleon III had abandoned his original plans. After annexing Italy, if they were to turn their attention to regions like Belgium and the Rhineland, they would likely face another coalition against them.

In any case, Italians without a strong nation would be easier to govern than the Germans in Central Europe.

Moreover, occupying Italy would strengthen France’s influence in the Mediterranean and consolidate its control over North Africa.

There were benefits and drawbacks. The price was earning the enmity of all European countries. For a long time, France would be the most disliked country in Europe.

If not handled well, a coalition against France could emerge. To prevent the worst-case scenario, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs was working hard.

As Foreign Minister Montero approached, Napoleon III asked anxiously, “How about it, are the Austrians willing to help keep the British occupied?”

Winning Austria’s support was the most crucial element of French diplomacy at the moment. Without Austria as a main ally, the remaining European countries were not a significant threat.

The troublesome steamroller was now busy farming. After experiencing a defeat, the Russian government seemed to have become invisible, hardly participating in European affairs.

Of course, the fact that they had too many creditors and didn’t dare to face them was also a factor. The Russian government was not thick-skinned enough and was currently trying to lower its profile to avoid being chased for debts.

Spain’s stance was originally also crucial, but they were fighting among themselves, their brains turning to mush, and they couldn’t care about the Italian region at all.

The remaining European powers were Prussia, Poland, and the Nordic Federation. These countries had some strength, but without anyone taking the lead, they wouldn’t dare to cause trouble.

Napoleon III’s strategy to win Austria over to keep the British occupied was aimed at leaving Europe leaderless and preventing a coalition against France from forming.

Foreign Minister Montero, pleased, responded, “The Austrian government agreed to limit the British, but they want our support for their actions in the Middle East. They intend to reclaim the Holy Land. Considering the importance of this issue, our envoy in Vienna has already agreed to Austria’s terms.”

French influence had also spread to the Middle East, and Napoleon III was keen on sending troops to reclaim the Holy Land to gain political prestige. However, he had been too busy to take action.

Napoleon III decisively said, “Well done. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs should find ways to encourage the Austrian government to wage war against the Ottoman Empire.

If necessary, we can promise them that we will divide the Mediterranean interests. The Eastern Mediterranean, including the Ottoman Empire, will be theirs, and the Western Mediterranean will be ours. We’ll let the British eat shit!

Also, send people to raise funds for the German unification movement, inciting these nationalist elements to create trouble and pressure the Austrian government to act against the German Federal Empire.”

Anyone could write a blank check, and Napoleon III was no exception. Winning Austria over to keep the British occupied was a test. He didn’t expect Austria to actually restrain the British.

Even if they agreed to help now, perhaps in a couple of days, the Austrian government would change its mind and want to join with Britain to cause trouble. In the face of interests, all promises were unreliable.

The division of Mediterranean interests had already become a fait accompli since the French occupied Italy. It was just a matter of including the Ottoman Empire.

However, Austria needed to deal with the Ottoman Empire themselves. Only by winning the war would they be eligible to have a share of the spoils.

Regardless of how much Austria gained, as long as they went to war against the Ottoman Empire or annexed the German Federal Empire, Napoleon III would be relieved.

He didn’t know that Franz had already made up his mind to merely watch things unfold, otherwise he wouldn’t have been so worried. Since he didn’t know, the best way was to find something for Austria to do, lest they turn their attention to them.

Montero nodded. This wasn’t the best choice but the safest one. As long as Austria took action, France’s crisis would be over.