London, since the Vienna government proposed to deal with the American question first, immediately attracted the attention of the British government.

As the world's first colonial empire, the British are everywhere. Not to mention North America, where Canada is located, and among the European countries, they have the greatest interests in North America.

No matter how great the interests of the Americas are, they are still greater than Europe, and John Bull's national policy has always been to give priority to ensuring the balance of the European continent. The Russo-Prussian War broke out, and the government had to devote more energy to the European continent.

Foreign Minister Reslin analyzed: "The situation on the European continent is already very dangerous, and once the Russians concentrate all their strength, the Prussians are likely to be unable to withstand it, and we must be prepared to intervene in this war."

Now that the two countries are still in a stalemate, it does not mean that the Prussians have the strength to resist the Russians, but there are three main factors that cause the stalemate on the battlefield:

First, the tsarist government did not pay much attention to the Kingdom of Prussia as an adversary, and until now the Russians have not exerted all their strength;

Second, the Russians had financial problems and could not afford huge military expenditures, and the tsarist government wanted to win the war with as little military expenditure as possible;

Third, the Prussians, who had the upper hand, did not dare to fight the Russians in a decisive battle, they could not afford to lose the war. The Berlin government was ready to take advantage of the weakness of the Russians' lack of funds to force the tsarist government to compromise.

If any of these three points change, the European continent may change dramatically, and we must be vigilant.

If the Prussians win the war, it is acceptable, but if the Russians win the war, it is very likely that there will be a situation in which Russia, France and Austria divide the Prussian kingdom.

In the past decade or so, the strength of France and Austria has developed very rapidly, and the army and navy of the two countries occupy the second or third place in the world, and they are our greatest enemy after the Russians.

If we let them continue to expand, sooner or later it will threaten us. Thankfully, Russia, France and Austria are all crammed into the European continent, which creates opportunities for us.

At present, the European continent is still a three-legged stronghold, and Russia, the hegemon of the European continent, only has the strength to suppress one, but there is no way to suppress both of them at the same time.

In order to retain his supremacy, Nicholas I chose to ally with the Austrians and reduce one enemy.

However, with the change in the balance of power between the two countries, the importance of the Russian-Austrian alliance to Austria is gradually decreasing, and this change in the European continent is an opportunity to break up the Russian-Austrian alliance.

In contrast, the American Civil War was on the back burner. Although the United States is blessed with a unique geographical location, it is only a new country of immigrants, and the centripetal force of the people is not strong enough, and it will take a long time to catch up.

Moreover, because of the civil war, it has created an opportunity for us to divide the United States.

Originally, we planned to split the United States into five countries, but now because of the changes in Europe, each country has limited resources to invest, and now we can't do it.

However, according to the current situation, as long as we push, the division between the north and the south is a foregone conclusion, and the Indians can be independent.

After the division of the United States, it will take even longer to develop. We can also support the governments of the South to counterbalance the governments of the North and maintain the balance of the American continent. ”

Chancellor of the Exchequer Agarwal questioned: "The plan is very good, but is it really feasible?" What if something happens in advance on the battlefield in Prussia? ”

Foreign Secretary Leslin replied calmly: "No one can guarantee that these plans will succeed, and all we can do now is to be fast."

Before the end of the Russo-Prussian War, the North and the South were forced to sit down at the negotiating table. On this point, the position of the Austrians is the same as ours.

The Vienna government was very active in intervening in the American Civil War, the Austrian flag had appeared in Central America, and Mexico had a Habsburg emperor.

Whatever the reason, the Habsburg Lord of Restoration needed a divided America.

Now the Vienna government is anxious to end the American Civil War, in fact, also to regain its energy. The Russo-Prussian War affected Austria much more than it did on us.

Now Spain is in the midst of civil strife and has lost much of its voice in the Four-Power Intervention Alliance. As long as we are on the same page as Austria, we can already influence the decisions of the alliance. ”

In fact, the four-nation intervention alliance has now become a three-nation intervention alliance. Problems have arisen in Spain, and the extent of the government's determination to intervene in the United States has become unknown.

Even if they want to intervene in the American Civil War, no one knows whether they can fulfill their promise to send troops.

However, the four-nation intervention alliance is always more influential than the three-nation intervention alliance. Spain was already at the bottom of the great powers, but their political influence was still there.

Especially in the Americas, there is a large number of Hispanics. The position of the Spanish government can also influence the choices of many people.

John Bull naturally could not have kicked the Spaniards out of the Interference League, and of course Spain was inevitably weakened in terms of discourse.

After being silent for a while, John Russell said slowly: "End the American Civil War as soon as possible, it is easy for things to change if you wait." The Americans supported the accounts of the Irish independence organization, and this time by the way, I also settled with them. ”

Don't think that John Bull only has interests in his eyes, they also hold grudges.

President Lincoln's final counterattack certainly distracted the nations, bought time for the federal government to avoid being split into five, and also pulled up hatred.

Evidence? Sorry, but when did the Great Powers need evidence to do things? Just think it's enough.

Franz did not send anyone to look for evidence that the Americans supported the Hungarian Independence Organization, and the British would not do such futile work.

Only the weak will look for evidence and take it to protest. As the kings of this era, Britain, France and Austria did not protest to the Americans, and directly began to prepare for revenge.

This is the basic game of power politics in the 19th century, and only when there is really no way can everyone choose to protest, and more often than not, they will directly retaliate.

After all, there were too many conflicts in various countries in this era. The day before yesterday, you stabbed me in the back, and yesterday I secretly stabbed me back, and you have been back and forth many times, and I don't know which is right and which is wrong.

Of course, if there is evidence, it is better to exert pressure on public opinion, and the final game still depends on strength and means.

……

After a round of urgent consultations, on March 7, 1865, Britain, France, Austria and Spain finally reached an agreement, and the four countries sent diplomatic notes to the North and the South on the pretext of maintaining peace in the Americas.

The British, the most powerful in the Americas, became the leader of the alliance. Mark Oliver, the British minister to the United States, represented the Intervention Alliance to negotiate with the North and the South.

On 8 March, Britain, France, Austria and Spain simultaneously held joint military exercises in the eastern and western Pacific regions.

A total of more than 200 warships of the four countries were assembled to conduct exercises in the coastal areas of the United States, and some residents of the coastal areas heard the roaring sound of artillery fire.

The two sides, which are in secret negotiations, have also reached a deadlock because of the issue of the distribution of interests, and have been unable to reach an agreement for a long time.

At this time, the four countries intervened, and President Lincoln's first reaction was that the negotiations were exposed, which caused dissatisfaction among the countries.

In order to intervene in the Civil War, everyone invested a lot of manpower and material resources, and if they reached a compromise in private, how would the interests of each country be guaranteed?

Secretary of State Al Safar analyzed: "Your Excellency, including you and me, no more than 10 people know about the secret negotiations, and these people are in high positions, and there is no reason why they will leak information.

Now the sudden intervention of Britain, France and Austria is mostly due to the situation in Europe. They don't want to wait any longer, and that's a good thing for us. ”

The plan worked, but Lincoln was not very happy. Now the negotiations are at an impasse, and the battle over Maryland is not willing to let go of both sides.

Maryland was also one of the animal slave states, now occupied by the Confederate government, and the state's slave owners shed blood for the Southern government, with more than 60,000 people joining the Confederate army.

Abandoning it now would undoubtedly undermine the prestige of the Southern government and weaken the centripetal force of the member states.

The government of the South cannot give up, and neither can the government of the North. Washington is next to Maryland, and without Maryland as a barrier, Washington is exposed to the enemy's nose at any time.

No, now under the noses of the enemy, the neighboring state of Virginia joined the Southern government early.

At the beginning of the Civil War, parts of Virginia near Washington remained loyal to the Union, saving Washington from the embarrassment of starting the war on the front line.

However, this did not work, and most of Washington's suburbs had fallen so far that the war had progressed, and the federal government had only held a few strongholds, indicating that the battle for Washington was still ongoing.

Secret negotiations began, and the North and the South tacitly stopped the large-scale fighting. Otherwise, if not, the news of Washington's fall would have been heard right now.

Regardless, Lincoln still didn't want to give up Maryland. Even if he is not popular in Maryland, he may not get many votes.

"This is good news, but it also comes with big trouble. With the intervention coalition involved, there is no way for us to force the southern government to make concessions.

If the interests are suitable, I don't think the southern government will mind inviting Britain, France, Austria and Spain to join the negotiations, and then we will be passive. ”

Lincoln had no illusions about the support of the four countries, which was impossible to do.

A strong United States is not in the interests of all countries, and with the recent support for revolutionary organizations in various countries, the two sides are already on opposite sides.

Knowing is knowing, this does not mean that he has to make concessions to the southern government. As a politician, you have to think about the political implications, not just the superficial benefits.

Perhaps on the face of it, it may seem that abandoning Maryland to end the civil war early will be a smaller price to pay than if the states intervene, but can politically the federal states accept it?

It is important to know that Maryland is pro-federal government, and even though this support is the result of President Lincoln's extraordinary means, this does not affect Maryland's ability to be one of many federal states.

Now that this is abandoned, the centripetal force of the states towards the federal government will be reduced, and the authority of the federal government will inevitably be weakened.

In contrast, the abandonment of Maryland under the intervention of foreign powers, or even more benefits, is more acceptable to the population.

When the time comes, you can also wash your name, it's not that the government doesn't work hard, the main thing is that the enemy is too strong, and there is really no way to have to compromise.

Especially for individual politicians, choosing the former is not good to step down with the hat of a southern spy, and choosing the latter can at least pull some sympathy points.

Even if it's the end of a political life, it's better than everyone shouting and beating it?

Secretary of State Safar said indifferently: "Anyway, it has come to this point, and the situation is out of our control." If we can protect the core interests of the federal government, we will be worthy of the people's vote. ”

Indeed, on the whole they are not bad, and they can even be described as excellent. Being able to integrate so many federal states and shop with the South for so many years is enough to prove their ability.

No matter how strong the ability is, it can't hide the fact that they are losers. Secretary of State Safar has already seen it, and their term of office is about to expire anyway.

In the new general election, Safar is not ready to participate at all, so as not to bring shame on himself when he gets it. Whoever is unlucky in the future will be elected, and let the latecomers clean up the mess.

No, if it weren't for the postponement of the elections due to the civil war, the next government would have been elected.

No one is a fool, and no one will jump out and act as a backstabber until an armistice is signed.

Therefore, the Republican Party and the Democratic Party have always believed that the people of many federal states could not participate in the vote during the war, and the current elections cannot represent the will of all the people.

Naturally, the election was postponed until after the war, and the Lincoln administration was prolonged.

Otherwise, Safar and the others would have been relieved immediately, and they were less than a month away from the end of their term of office.

The Lincoln administration must shoulder the responsibility for the division of the United States before it can roll up the covers, which is the common will of all parties.

Of course, Lincoln could also run in the next presidential election. It's just that as a loser, his popular approval rating is very low, and he has almost no chance of winning.