"The French are in a hurry!"

Having received the news of the release of the French, Gladstone came to this conclusion.

It was true that Britain was at a disadvantage in the war in Afghanistan, but not to the point where it could panic the British government.

Even if Afghanistan was completely destroyed, as long as the main British army on the front line was not completely annihilated, the British Empire would have the confidence to win the war.

For no other reason, I have money in my pocket, and my waist pole is so hard. The hundred years of accumulation of the British Empire are no joke, and when it comes to putting together the foundation, the Russians are simply not qualified.

Foreign Secretary George analyzed: "The European War has now been carried out, and the French dream of a quick victory has been ended.

In the next war, the two sides will fight for comprehensive national strength. Although the French army was strong, in other areas they were too inferior.

Judging by the current situation, if the French could not cross the Rhine in a short time and burn the flames of war into the heart of Germany, their strategic advantage would be lost.

They were greeted by an endless Austrian counteroffensive. Arguably, the longer this war lasts, the lower the chances of the French winning it.

At the current intensity of the war, if it lasts for another three or two years at most, the French will not be able to fight. ”

Obviously, George was not optimistic about the French now. The gap between the comprehensive strength of the two sides is too large, and it is too much of a loss to fight for the French.

It's just that the prestige of the French army is too great, and no one dares to guarantee that the French army will not turn the tables at a critical moment.

After all, similar cases have appeared many times in the history of the struggle between France and the Habsburgs.

After taking out a document, Chancellor of the Exchequer Xiaoji Childers smiled and said, "In two or three years, I am afraid that Your Excellency has overestimated the strength of the French."

It seems to me that it is a question mark whether the French would survive 1891 without the intervention of external forces.

Military issues, let's put them aside. Let's first calculate the economic score, and then reassess the strength of the French.

This is the data collected by the Ministry of Finance, and in the last three months, the total volume of our import and export trade with the French has increased by 5.1 times compared to the same period last year.

Among them, the export trade volume with France increased by 6.5 times, the total import trade shrank by 64.7 percent, and the trade surplus was 64.86 million pounds.

And this is only trade with us, and if France's trade with other countries is included, the French had no less than £120 million in foreign trade deficit in the last quarter of 1890.

If this war does not end, the French will continue to increase their foreign trade deficit.

In particular, French Africa was about to fall, and once this source of raw materials was lost, the French would have to import even more materials.

In the past, the arrogant French wanted to compete for currency hegemony, and they had been promoting the franc externally, and they did not hold much Aegis and British pounds.

At the current rate of depletion, it will not be long before the French will run out of foreign exchange reserves. When the time comes, they will have to trade with gold, and their pitiful gold reserves will not last a few days.

This is still ideal, and I am afraid that the real situation will be even more serious. Since Napoleon III, the French government has been adopting a fiscal deficit policy, which has long been heavily indebted.

Having started the war in a hurry with little preparation, I really had no confidence in the finances of the Parisian government. ”

Is France rich?

There is no doubt that France, as the world's third largest economic power, can definitely be regarded as a local tyrant.

However, just because France is rich does not mean that the French government is rich. If the front line is going well, the French consortium will naturally come to the rescue, and vice versa.

Capital knows no borders, it's not a joke. If it is really impossible to do something, the capitalists will not be buried with the government.

War is fought for manpower, material resources, and industrial strength, and in the final analysis, it is still for financial resources.

Supporting multiple fronts at the same time, France bears much greater pressure than the world war in the original time and space, and there are no allies to help share it, so it is a matter of time before problems arise.

After a cursory glance at the report, Gladstone asked suspiciously: "Why has the trade surplus with France increased so much, I remember that the trade volume has not increased so much?" ”

You must know that the trade volume between Britain and France is not small, and the reduction in import trade is understandable, after all, the French are at war and do not have the time to produce a large number of goods for export.

However, the volume of export trade has suddenly increased by more than six times, and that is a myth.

It is completely inconsistent with the laws of the economy, and even if the French increased the import of strategic materials because of the war, it is impossible to exaggerate it.

There's no way, it can't be produced! Even if the capitalists are desperately expanding their production capacity, it will take time to buffer, and it has only been more than three months?

"It's very simple, the price of the materials we export has increased!"

Chancellor of the Exchequer Childers replied unhurriedly.

"France and Austria are scrambling for supplies internationally, and the prices of all materials have risen to varying degrees.

In particular, the price of strategic materials has basically doubled compared with the pre-war period. The price of some scarce drugs has risen three or four times.

Of course, the fact that we and other European countries have raised tariffs on France is also one of the factors contributing to the rise in prices. ”

The capitalists take advantage of the fire to rob, this is the inevitable result. It's just that this time it's done too hard, but with one more Austria that is driving up prices, it seems that doubling is not so unacceptable.

Prime Minister Gladstone asked curiously: "What about Austria?" ”

Chancellor of the Exchequer Childers shook his head: "Contrary to the French, Austria needs to import very few materials and is basically self-sufficient.

Even if there is a shortcoming, it is imported from Russia. Relatively little susceptible to external influences.

Although the price of goods has risen, the total amount of trade between them and us has fallen instead of rising.

Of course, the interception of the French navy was also one of the reasons that hindered our trade with Austria.

In many cases, even if a contract is signed, it cannot be fulfilled normally. ”

Gladstone's brow furrowed, the result was completely different from what he expected. Originally, it was hoped that France and Austria would use this war to deplete each other's strength and consolidate Britain's maritime supremacy.

Anyway, the plan didn't change quickly. Taking advantage of this war, Britain did slaughter France with a knife, but unfortunately ran away from Austria.

No matter how prices skyrocket in the international market, they have little to do with Russia-Austria trade. After all, the tsarist government was exporting industrial raw materials and Austria in exchange for strategic materials, and if the price really increased, it would also go up together.

The wool comes out of the sheep, so naturally the Russians don't need to join in the fun.

Then France became the only victim, after all, it is easy to speculate on materials, and it is difficult to bring down prices.

After hesitating for a moment, Prime Minister Gladstone said slowly: "The Ministry of Foreign Affairs will negotiate with the French first, and as long as the French are willing to exchange their benefits, they will find a reason to reduce the tariffs, or simply exempt them from tariffs." ”

This was the greatest help Gladstone could give to the French. As for whether prices can be lowered, it still depends on the ability of the French themselves.

After all, the capitalists are not easy to mess with, and the government forces them to lower prices, which will cause public anger.

After all, it was the French government, not the British government, who was buying supplies now, and Gladstone didn't need to offend people for them.

The matter of bargaining still has to be fought for by the French themselves and the capitalists. How much they can gain depends on their bargaining ability.

Foreign Secretary George: "There is no problem with the Foreign Office. However, the reduction of tariffs alone may not be enough.

In order for the French to consume power together with the Austrians, we had to find a way to increase the economic power of the French, or lend them money directly.

While supporting them economically, we also need to limit the military power of the French so that there is no imbalance of power between the warring parties. It's very difficult to do that. ”

Timidity is a true portrayal of the British government. On the one hand, the war in Afghanistan has held back most of the government's energy, and on the other hand, it has to maintain the balance between France and Austria.

For fear of causing something to happen, the situation will get out of control. It is arguably the most challenging moment for the British Foreign Office in decades.

Prime Minister Gladstone nodded helplessly: "Try it first!" Later, it will be adjusted according to the actual situation.

Before the strength of France and Austria is greatly depleted, we must act cautiously so that the situation does not get out of control. ”

……

At the same time as the Anglo-French negotiations began, Alexander III, who was far away in St. Petersburg, also welcomed his new toy - airplanes.

Watching the beautiful flight procession performance, Alexander III was in a particularly comfortable mood, and asked with high spirits: "When will these planes be put into the battlefield?" ”

Watching the show and watching the show, Alexander III still did not forget the real purpose of introducing the aircraft.

It has been proven in the European War that airplanes against airships are massacres. In order to increase the chances of victory at the front, Alexander III was desperate for the aircraft to enter service as soon as possible.

War Minister Ivanov: "Your Majesty, we don't have pilots yet. Airplanes are different from airships, and the requirements for pilots are also stricter.

The War Office had reached an agreement with the Austrians to help train a group of pilots, and preparations were already underway.

If nothing happens, after three months, our first aircraft brigade will be ready to enter service in the army. ”

In just three months, a group of pilots will be trained. At this speed, the pilots who are trained will naturally not be elite.

Anyway, the enemy is just an airship, and there is no need to test the comprehensive quality of the pilot, and it is almost enough to be able to fly the plane and launch an attack normally.

The rest of the knowledge, the pilot will slowly accumulate experience in the actual combat later, anyway, now the Russian army has to pay attention to efficiency, just meet it quickly.

After hearing the words "three months", Alexander III's smile suddenly disappeared all at once.

"Why is it so slow, can't it be faster than that?

You must know that the situation at the front is urgent, and the sooner we put our planes into the battlefield, the sooner we can take the sky from the British! ”

Faced with the tsar's demands, Marshal Ivanov's heart was broken. According to the Austrians, it is very rare to be able to train pilots in three months.

No matter how fast it is, the quality of the crash course, which is not of high quality, may not be guaranteed.

Ivanov replied stiffly: "Your Majesty, pilots are an emerging branch of the armed forces, and we have no training experience in this area, so we can only learn from the Austrians."

If you want to speed things up, I personally recommend including airship pilots in the training course, which should save you a lot of time. ”

Whether it was a bad idea or not, Ivanov still does not know. Anyway, the tsar has already asked, and he can't be without ideas.

As for the effect, I'll talk about it when the time comes. Anyway, it is a new branch of the army, and the War Department is not familiar with the situation, and it is reasonable to say that it made a mistake in judgment.

………