On April 6, 1869, the weather in Stockholm was exceptionally sunny, and the Nordic Confederation was established amid the laughter and laughter of the people.

Following the collapse of the Kalmar Union, the three Nordic countries were once again unified. The only regret is that Finland is missing, and the Baltic region is gone, and there is no glory at its peak.

The emergence of the Nordic Federation also means that Sweden, Denmark, and Norway, the three European peripheral countries, can make their voices heard in the world.

Franz did not go to the ceremony in person, and it was really inconvenient to go far away in this era. Unless it is a master who loves to join in the fun, under normal circumstances, everyone's enthusiasm for going abroad is not high.

The unification of Northern Europe had little effect on Austria, and it was the Russians who had a headache. Presumably, Alexander II's expression must have been wonderful at this time, and the emergence of the Nordic Confederation has increased the pressure on the defense of Russia's northern frontier a lot.

With Prussia's role as an example, who can guarantee that the Nordic Confederation will not follow suit? If Finland were poached again, then the Russian Empire would have to move its capital.

St. Petersburg is indeed a good place, but unfortunately the pressure on defense is a little greater. It didn't matter when the Russian Empire was strong, once it fell into a state of decline, it was dangerous.

Moscow, by contrast, is much better. Located in the center of the Russian and Eastern European lands, it is basically strategically absolutely safe, and when the enemy hits here, winter will kill them.

The Moscow region is surrounded by granaries, so there is no need to worry about food. There are also rivers to facilitate the transportation of materials, and the transportation is also convenient, and it would be perfect to build a few more railways.

Of course, Poland did not lose its front, there was sea transport, and St. Petersburg had an advantage. Moscow still needs to be developed, and the relocation of the capital will require at least the construction of a railway network.

Alexander II certainly did not think so much, and only now did he compress the rebels in the Moscow region under the double political and military pressure.

After this toss, the economy of the Moscow region has already suffered a devastating blow. The bourgeoisie, which supported the revolutionary party, shot itself in the foot.

It is easy to start an uprising, but it is difficult to control it. Originally, he supported the revolutionary party just to fight for his rights and interests, but now he didn't get the rights, so he got into it first.

When the civil war broke out, in the face of life and death, the revolutionary party did not be polite to them.

In short, they lost a lot. Unless the rebels are victorious, it is possible that these early investments will be recouped.

If the rebels fail, it is questionable whether they will be able to escape the purges of the tsarist government. Alexander II had a big heart, but he could not tolerate thieves.

This kind of negative example, Franz naturally wants to hype. Recently, there has been an abrupt increase in the news of the Moscow rebels in the Viennese newspapers, and positions determine opinions.

The stain on the rebels was naturally magnified, and incidentally the tsarist government was glorified. Everyone is a monarchy, and the ass can't sit crookedly.

Otherwise, Alexander II lost the Russo-Prussian War, and he would have been the spokesman of the faint monarch for a long time, how could he be mixed with the title of the Lord of Reform?

Not only Austria, but most of the European media did not blame Alexander II for the defeat of the war, but the bureaucrats he purged carried the blame.

Even the news covering the Russo-Prussian War also downplayed the Kingdom of Prussia, consciously or unconsciously, emphasizing the corruption of the Russian bureaucracy that led to the defeat of the war, and it was clear that everyone was not happy to accept the fact that Prussia had risen.

Although the Kingdom of Prussia defeated the Russian Empire and became a member of the club of European powers, they did not take the place of the Russians.

Originally, Europe was dominated by the four major powers, but now the Russians are out of the game, and the three major powers of Britain, France and Austria dominate Europe, and the Kingdom of Prussia has not obtained the international status it wants.

The international status of this era is not only about status, but also about the division of interests. As vested interests, Britain, France and Austria had no intention of giving the right to speak to Prussia.

This hurt the Berlin government, Britain, France and Austria can be regarded as world empires, everyone has a large number of colonies, and the world is divided together with Spain, Portugal, and the Netherlands.

As a newly rising power, Prussia was embarrassed. It is now the last train of the colonial era, and the old colonial empire has completed the horse race, even if there is no actual occupation, and the sovereignty has been sworn first.

The Prussians were not even left with the cold burns, and apart from a small colony in Asia, Prussia was nowhere to be seen.

It was very unfavorable for the Kingdom of Prussia, which recovered its economy after the war, but the world was so big that there really was nothing left.

There was also a colonial conference to divide the continent in the original plane, which was no longer needed. It's almost divided, and what else do you need for an international conference?

At least this was true of the coastal areas, most of which was occupied by Britain, France and Austria, Portugal and Spain also occupied some areas, and the Netherlands were squeezed out.

There would be no need to say that the colonies would be abandoned, there would not be much land to colonize at all. Besides, they don't have the strength to invest overseas, so it would be good to be able to keep a small colony in Indochina.

In desperation, Prussia had no choice but to develop itself. At this time, the arrival of the Japanese delegation was welcomed by the Berlin government.

No matter how small a mosquito is, it is meat, and even adding an overseas trading partner could boost the domestic economy.

The Berlin government took the opportunity to sell a number of products to the flattered Japanese delegation, the best of which were second-hand weapons and equipment.

Strengthening the military was the first and most important step in the Meiji Restoration. The Japanese are not wrong in this regard, there is not enough force in this era of the jungle, and no matter how much wealth they have, they are prepared for others.

Prussia's efforts to expand the East Asian market did not attract the attention of the outside world. Everyone has the impression that the Japanese government is very poor, and even Franz ignores the madness of the Japanese in developing the military.

In 1869, the Japanese delegation signed a large foreign trade order with Prussia for 1.58 million Aegis. This number is not small, and in a single foreign trade transaction contract, it can be ranked in the top 20 of the year.

The surprise in the newspapers only made the capitalists sigh that they had missed an opportunity to make money, and Franz did not read this kind of business news.

Now he is reviewing the strategic plan for the development of the province of Bosnia and Herzegovina, which is one of the poorest provinces in Austria, and the current government of Bosnia and Herzegovina does not intend to continue to fish.

This is also forced out, the previous provincial governments just need to do a good job, and the achievements will come out, and they have already done it by their predecessors.

The population of Bosnia and Herzegovina is already small, and it has been deeply cleaned, and after more than ten years of persistence, the assimilation work has come to an initial end.

The language has been unified, and the change of customs has been carried out more or less. By the time of this administration, this fixed performance could not be brushed up.

Time flies, time flies, many people in the Austrian cabinet are old, and the change of office is a matter of the past few years.

The candidates who are qualified to fill the seats are all those who have outstanding achievements in local governance. This does not mean that local officials have no chance, as long as they have outstanding political performance, they can also counterattack the upper ranks.

Even if you take a step back and become a minister of a certain ministry, it is a step further. Naturally, ambitious people will not miss this opportunity.

Franz was not afraid of the ambition of his men, and ambition also represented motivation. If it's all a bunch of salted fish waiting to die, that's a disaster.

The Austrian bureaucratic model is to climb up step by step, and without the achievements of local government, it is impossible to enter the cabinet at all.

Even if you want to form a party for personal gain, you have to have that opportunity. If you don't have political achievements, you can't climb at all, and no matter how extensive your connections are, it's still useless to stay below.

It's much easier to split a faction than it is to build one. The bureaucracy itself is also in competition with each other, and once the main figures within the faction become political enemies, they will fight themselves.

This often just takes a position to get the job done. If the bureaucracy becomes a clique, then it only means that the emperor is hopelessly stupid.

Bosnia and Herzegovina is not completely without advantages, at least there are mines here. Including: coal, iron, copper, manganese, lead, mercury, silver, lignite, bauxite, lead-zinc ore, asbestos, rock salt, barite and other minerals.

These are the gifts of nature and the basis for the economic development of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The government of Bosnia and Herzegovina is ready to mine, not only but also to develop heavy industry.

To put it simply, it is steelmaking, copper smelting, and by the way, it is selling salt. Of course, other minerals will also be developed, but at the moment these three are more "profitable".

Franz remembered that the heavy industry in Bosnia and Herzegovina had developed well in the original space-time, but later it declined due to the war.

Despite its mountainous nature, Bosnia and Herzegovina has rivers and can develop water transport. If the railway branch line is extended, then there is also potential for the development of heavy industry.

Austria's heavy industry was too concentrated in Bohemia, which didn't matter in peacetime, but in war it was too far from the front.

Naturally, the conditions in Bosnia and Herzegovina are not as good as those in Bohemia, but it is still not a big problem to build a smaller base of heavy industry.

Not only Bosnia and Herzegovina, but also many regions of the Balkan Peninsula have the potential to develop heavy industry. Compared to the European continent, the Balkan Peninsula is relatively rich in mineral resources.

Not to mention long-term development, at least at the beginning of the industrial age, the required resources can still be satisfied. It's just that in terms of development costs, the Balkan Peninsula is still relatively high.

After all, Bosnia and Herzegovina has been assimilated, and Franz is still willing to invest some resources. If it can be developed, it will be profitable, and if the economy cannot develop, a few more heavy industries will also be a good result.

Without long hesitation, Franz put a "√" on the document, which can be regarded as approving the plan. He didn't need to bother with the rest, gave the policy, and the bureaucrats left the rest of the problem to play freely.

As long as it is not a crazy plan, he rarely rejects the development plan submitted by the local government.

No one can guarantee the success of any big strategic plan, but it will not succeed if you don't try.

For a country, the fault tolerance rate is still very high. In particular, the strategic plan for economic development in a poor province like Bosnia and Herzegovina has failed several times, but it has not been able to shake its foundation.

The central government needs to subsidize administrative expenses in the first place, no matter how bad it is, how bad can it be?

But as long as you succeed once, then you will make a lot of money. Not to mention becoming a developed province of Austria, as long as it can be financially self-sufficient, it is a great victory.