Schönbrunn Palace

The intelligence chief, Taryn, reported: "Your Majesty, the Grand Duke and his wife left Vienna yesterday and are bound for France. ”

Franz took a sip of tea, suppressed the dissatisfaction in his heart, and said, "Forget it, let him go!" ”

Now going to France at this point in time, it is clear that Massimiliano is ready to rely on the support of the French to become the emperor of Mexico.

Presumably, Napoleon III was also involved, and what the French needed was a puppet monarch of noble birth so that they could secretly control Mexico.

Massimiliano was able to stand out because the French had no better option. Not any kind of person, the Mexican constitutionalists would accept it, at least not the Napoleonic family.

In fact, the only options at the beginning were the Habsburgs and the Bourbons. There is no doubt that Napoleon III could not have supported a Mexican emperor of the House of Bourbon, and he was making himself uncomfortable.

In the event of a revival of the Bourbon dynasty in Mexico, some people think that the Bourbon dynasty has done a good job, and it will be miserable if they want to change the monarch of France.

After all, the Bourbons were recognized orthodoxy and had much higher legitimacy than the Napoleonic family, and the likelihood of a restoration occurring was very high.

The Habsburgs were almost the only choice, and Napoleon III supported Massimiliano not because of his outstanding ability, but precisely because of his second-class political ideas.

If they were really capable, neither the Mexican constitutionalists nor Napoleon III would have made them emperor of Mexico.

What everyone needs is a puppet, not a hero. The strength of the Habsburg dynasty was not weak, and if Massimiliano was really capable, he might turn against him at any time.

Now the family is reluctant to invest, it is because Massimiliano is incompetent, and the probability of success is too low. If he really had the ability, Franz wouldn't mind giving him a hand.

It turns out that the second secondary teenager can't afford to mess with, although Massimiliano is no longer small.

What a strange brain came up with refusing to travel to Mexico on an Austrian warship to protest against the family's lack of support for him?

You know, this escort also has a political connotation, indicating that the Habsburgs are still standing behind him.

With this, he can easily win the support of Germans in Mexico, the support of the Central American colonies, and by the way, he can fool a bunch of old and young.

At this time, Massimiliano ran to France, although he slapped his brother in the face, and also rejected the family's political resources in the Americas.

Without these resources, he can only rely on the support of the French to ascend to power, and it will not be so easy to get rid of the control of the French in the future.

For Franz, this is also a good thing, there is no need to throw resources into it for the glory of the family.

Britain, France, and Spain are all eyeing Mexico, and Austria's intervention is very likely to arouse everyone's hostility. What is happening now, Austria is just coming out.

Instead of so many people fighting for Mexico together, it is better to run the Central American region. At least if this area is integrated, it is up to Austria to decide when the Panama Canal will be opened.

If possible, Franz delays the excavation of the canal as much as possible. Without this canal, the United States is divided into two oceans, and if you want to take the sea route, you must go around in a big circle, and you can't look at each other.

Whether it is commercial trade, or national defense, it will be greatly affected.

……

Paris

Napoleon III welcomed Massimiliano with a grand welcome.

It can be seen that he is very happy, leaving the Mexican emperor supported by the Habsburgs is the Mexican emperor he needs.

Dealing with an idealist was too easy for Napoleon III.

He was not born into a high position, and Napoleon III also struggled all the way to become the emperor of France.

By virtue of this, he surpassed all the monarchs of his time. If it weren't for the gradual loss of himself under a series of victories, perhaps he would have become one of the greatest emperors of France.

The day after the banquet, Napoleon III and his cronies gathered to exchange ideas.

Regardless of the fact that these people did not have much presence in history, it was these people who, together with Napoleon III, made France so glorious in the mid-19th century.

Historically, the Second French Colonial Empire was created during this period, and the French Industrial Revolution was completed in their hands, and this period was also the era when France's economy developed the fastest and the people's living standards improved the fastest.

Napoleon III asked: "What do you think of Massimiliano, and does he have any supporting value?" ”

Perisis replied: "Your Majesty, Massimiliano is like a spoiled child. I actually ran to Paris like this, and I guess the one in Vienna should be angry. ”

Napoleon III laughed and said: "It's better to be angry, otherwise we may suffer a big loss with the Habsburgs' political methods." ”

Under Franz's butterfly effect, Austria was reborn from the ashes and naturally became a compulsory course for monarchs of various countries.

Combined with the history of the development of the Habsburg family, it was compiled into a book "Habsburg Family Politics".

The lower half of the empire can not only be done by marriage, but also needs political means.

Otherwise, Europe would not have had only the Habsburg Empire.

The marriages between the great nobles were intricate, and the same stallion family was not only Habsburg, but only Habsburgs were able to integrate an empire, and the difference was in the political maneuver.

Of course, the power of political means does not mean that the power of military means is also good, and these two capabilities seem to be inversely proportional.

At its peak, the Habsburgs occupied a small part of the European continent, including: Spain, most of Italy, Belgium, the Netherlands, the HRE Communists, Hungary......

The Habsburg colonial empire stretched from North Africa to Mexico, and was the world's first empire on which the sun never sets, claiming to occupy half the world.

This title is not an exaggeration, at its peak half of the world was in the sphere of influence of the Habsburgs, but there was no way to rule directly because of the times.

However, such a behemoth was still defeated by the French. In the later years, the Habsburgs were forced to divide in order to maintain their rule.

Being able to play a good hand of cards is enough to prove that political strength is not equal to military strength.

At that time, the French were all surrounded, and as long as they did not make super mistakes and relied on their strength to push them through, they could achieve victory.

It is a pity that Charles V has made frequent tricks, although he has won and lost each other by relying on strong strength, but he has lost strategically.

Of course, the powerful Habsburg lost, but Charles V consumed too much wealth, and the heirs behind him had a hard time, and gradually lost their hegemony.

Staff member Patti analyzed: "Your Majesty, even if the one in the Vienna Palace is willing to contribute, I'm afraid Massimiliano may not appreciate it.

Having a good brother may be a good thing for the average person, but not necessarily for a spoiled child.

Growing up in the shadow of his brother, Massimiliano now wants to do something big and prove his abilities.

Staying in Austria would never have had this opportunity, and Franz could not have not known his younger brother, so all of Massimiliano's positions over the years were fictitious. ”

Napoleon III frowned and said: "It doesn't seem to be a good thing for us either." If Massimiliano is too incompetent, even with our support, it will be very difficult for him to become the emperor of Mexico.

Mexico is a mess right now, and ordinary people simply can't clean up the mess.

I hope Massimiliano can inherit a little bit of the talent of the Habsburgs, otherwise we will be in big trouble later. ”

This is where the contradiction lies. On the one hand, the French needed a puppet emperor who could facilitate their manipulation of Mexican politics to get the most out of it;

On the other hand, the French hoped that the emperor would have some ability to stabilize the situation in Mexico, otherwise how would they make money by fighting civil wars every day?

……

After some discussion and a combination of factors, the French came to the conclusion that Massimiliano was worthy of support.

As for the relatively high risk of failure, there is no way to do it, and only with high investment can there be high returns.

Even if Mexico changes its rulers, they will not dare to rely on their accounts. If you support a male lord to come out, then you may lose everything.

At the end of 1863, the Massimilianos sailed on a French warship to the Mexican Empire.

Franz, who was far away in Vienna, simply ignored all this. Except for the Sufi Empress Dowager, who sent a telegram and scolded Massimiliano, the rest of the Habsburgs chose to stand by and watch.

From the moment he left Vienna, Massimiliano and his descendants were directly relinquished by default to the Habsburg inheritance.

However, Massimiliano, who was writing a guide to court etiquette on a warship, did not seem to be affected. It was as if without the support of the Habsburgs was just an inconsequential matter.

Princess Charlotte felt a little uneasy, but she was immersed in the good life of becoming a queen, and she did not tell her husband about her worries.