After 1851, tensions in the Near East grew. Russia and Austria were eyeing the Ottoman Empire, and the Sultan government invited Britain and France to mediate the conflict.

What cost the Ottoman Empire took, leave it at that. The problem now is that the French government is busy with infighting, and the British alone cannot scare Russia and Austria at all.

In the eyes of the British, the core of this Near Eastern crisis lies with the Russians, and as long as they do not make a difference, it will be easy to convince Austria.

Under this judgment, Anglo-Russian negotiations began. There is no doubt that the British do not believe that a solution can be resolved at the negotiating table, and the main purpose of initiating this negotiation is to stall for time.

The government of London and Louis-Napoleon Bonaparte had hooked up, and in response to the growing crisis in the Near East, the British decided to support Napoleon III's seizure of power.

The British wanted to stall for time, the Russians were not ready, and negotiations began in this situation.

Vienna

The Austrian government was discussing the Anglo-Russian negotiations, which affected Austria's strategy for the next step, and if the British fooled the bear, the westward expansion strategy would be ruined.

Metternich analyzed: "The contradictions between Britain and Russia have a long history, and the conflict of interests between the two sides is very serious, from the Near East to the Far East, everywhere is the focus of the contradictions between the two countries.

Unless one of the parties is able to make significant concessions, a conflict between the two countries is inevitable.

The current crisis in the Near East, largely caused by the core strategy of the Russians, has been prepared for so long that it is now difficult for them to stop. ”

After the fall of the Ottoman Empire, there was a voice within Russia to swallow the old empire and inherit their entire legacy.

Because of the great appetite, the plans of the Russians were naturally resisted by various countries. Although they were not able to swallow the empire, the Russians still had enough benefits in the last two Russo-Turkish wars.

Perhaps finding it too difficult to swallow the Ottoman Empire in one fell swoop, the Russians set two small goals to complete this plan step by step.

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

The second step is to firmly grasp the protection of the Orthodox Christians in the territory of the Ottoman Empire, and then encroach on the Ottoman Empire.

The core of the first strategic plan was to occupy the two straits, and only by mastering this golden waterway could the strategic security of the Russian Empire be guaranteed, without fear of being blockaded by the Ottoman Empire.

It was also the first step for the Russians to go to the sea, and it was a central part of their maritime strategy.

However, this most crucial step was cut off by the British as early as 1841 when the London Straits Convention was signed.

The gains of the Russians for half a century were in vain, and the tsarist government of the Orthodox Christians could no longer let go of the protectorate. Historically, the trigger for the Crimean War was religious contradictions.

Now that Russia and Austria are allied, the diplomatic situation of the European powers joining forces to suppress Russia has changed, and the French are not in a state, and if they do not take advantage of this opportunity to occupy the area of the two straits, the Russians will no longer have a chance.

It just so happened that the crisis in the Holy Land gave the Russians a sufficient pretext for war. The reason why it has not been launched now is that they are preparing for war.

Didn't the Ottoman government know about these issues? Obviously, it was impossible, and as an old enemy, the Ottoman government never let down its guard against the Russians.

The problem is that even if they know everything, they can only look forward to international mediation except for passive response.

There was no such thing as an initiative, the Russians were not ready for war, and the Ottoman Empire was likewise not ready for war.

Nominally, their army is quite numerous, and they seem to be strong. But his own family knows his own affairs, and the ostensibly powerful Ottoman army is actually just a showcase.

Whether it was with the Russians or with Austria, they were cowardly. This is not a sentence that the government is corrupt and incompetent, and it can be overshadowed. The gap in national strength cannot be bridged overnight.

Prime Minister Felix thought for a moment and said: "It is inevitable that the Russians will do it, and now we are not sure whether they will do it in the second half of this year, or whether they will delay it until 1852."

Not only is it uncertain when the war will break out, but it is also unknown how long this war will last on a very large scale.

The most worrying thing is whether Britain and France will enter the war, and even if they participate in this war, how much strength they will show.

Until these issues are uncertain, 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 when formulating a strategy, everything is easy to say if it wins, and it is directly finished if it loses.

Austria is different, as long as you don't blindly mess around, even if you fail once, you still have a second chance to come back, and risk control is essential in advance.

Marshal Radetzky shook his head and said: "If the risk is to be controlled, then after the outbreak of the Russian-Turkish war, we can only wait for the war to escalate, and we cannot move until the French have not sent troops."

What if the French didn't go to war? Are we going to abandon this plan? ”

Prime Minister Felix affirmed: "It depends on the determination of the British, and if they are willing, there will be a way to pull the French together." ”

This conclusion is the same as that of Franz, who called Louis-Napoleon Bonaparte to the throne by the British?

Historically, he himself was a serious Anglophobe, and many times he echoed the British. During his reign, the French government and the British hard-topped were hardly visible.

Franz thought for a moment and said: "The key to the success of this strategy is secrecy, to make a surprise attack on various countries, to create an established fact, and to force Britain and France to admit it."

As long as the plan is not exposed, the initiative is in our hands, and it is up to us to decide when to do it and whether to do it or not.

After the outbreak of the Russian-Turkish war, whether Britain and France will enter the war or not is not a question that we can control, but presumably the Ottomans are more anxious.

Drawing Britain and France into the war was their only option to get out of the crisis. If necessary, let the Ottomans know that our goal is only the Danube Valley. ”

Franz did not have any psychological pressure to deceive the Ottomans, and if he told them that the Austrian government had no interest in them this time, it is estimated that the Sudanese government would not dare to believe it.

It is better to expose a false information and convince the Ottomans that the Austrians undoubtedly have a much smaller appetite than the Russians who want to swallow them.

With the main enemy and the secondary enemy clearly distinguished, the Ottoman government had few options. Being bitten by Austria is nothing more than a problem of ringworm, and if you are bitten by the Russians, you will be half-crippled if you don't die.

……

Chancellor of the Exchequer Karl proposed: "Your Majesty, in order to prepare for the ensuing war, the Ministry of Finance proposes to introduce a monopoly system of tobacco and alcohol in order to raise more money for the war. ”

Austria had a war fund, which was sufficient for the unification of South Germany, but it was not necessary to face the interference of various countries.

The Austrian Empire was also a great business, and it had long passed the stage of adventure. Franz also didn't like to take risks, and he couldn't just run to start a war with only a few months of war funds.

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

Of course, this is based on the joint efforts of Russia and Austria. Single-handedly, Franz was not so reckless, and the Austrian government was not that confident.

The side with a large number of soldiers will always have an advantage, especially if there may be a two-front battle, or even a three-front battle.

If there are many soldiers, military spending will naturally be large, and it is very necessary to raise as much war money as possible.

The most direct way is to collect war taxes, unless the war has broken out, Franz will not do it, he is a man of the rules.

"After the implementation of the tobacco and alcohol monopoly system, how much income can be increased?" Franz asked with concern

Karl thought for a moment and replied: "Judging from the current economic development situation in China, after the implementation of the tobacco and alcohol monopoly system, the annual income can be increased by at least 35 million dong. ”

In the case of the original fiscal revenue, it can also increase the income of Rp 35 million, and the profit of tobacco and alcohol can be seen in general.

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

Rp 35 million is enough to impress Franz, and deep down he has agreed, and now he asks the prime minister for his opinion, that is, the cabinet needs to be responsible for implementing this plan.

Prime Minister Felix replied without hesitation: "Your Majesty, special circumstances can be treated specially, the government will do ideological work for the capitalists, and I think they will understand." ”

Obviously, everyone's bottom line is so high, and in order to increase the financial revenue of Rp 35 million, everyone does not mind sacrificing the interests of some people.

Whether the capitalists whose interests have been damaged can figure it out or not is no longer important, and they have no say in politics anyway.

Historically, the Austrian government had a monopoly on salt and tobacco. However, Franz, who is disciplined, included salt and food as necessities in the previous livelihood bill.

In order to keep the people fed and not run to rebel, the government strictly controls the prices of these necessities of life.

In the case of not being able to raise the price, the inclusion of salt in the monopoly will not increase much income, so the Ministry of Finance naturally chooses another wine with higher profits.

These two commodities are not necessities of life, even if the price is a little higher, it doesn't matter, less smoking and drinking alcohol is also good for health.

This was Franz's true thoughts, and although he himself smoked and drank, this did not prevent him from guiding the people to develop a correct habit of life.

Franz thought for a moment and said: "In that case, then the government should legislate and implement the monopoly of tobacco and alcohol as soon as possible." ”

"Yes, Your Majesty!" Prime Minister Felix replied