One crisis hadn’t ended before another began. As Japan sank into the Rice Riots, the situation in Europe also rapidly deteriorated, and the voice of revolution once again rang out across the continent. Unlike previous revolutions, this one was not led by France. Perhaps the shadow left by the former revolutionary government was still too frightening, as the Parisian public had been remarkably well-behaved lately. Neither were Belgium and the Italian states, which Franz was most concerned about. Although the crisis in those countries was the most severe, they couldn’t help but unite against the animosity directed at the French. Both the governments and the people blamed the French invasion for the economic crisis. This was a moment when the nations were most united. With the Austrian government providing timely aid and the government-issued relief food, ordinary citizens could at least eat their fill, and social order remained stable. Spain, mired in the quagmire of the Philippine War, certainly couldn‘t escape the crisis. But they weren’t the birthplace of this one. The first shot of revolution was unexpectedly fired in Bulgaria. Bulgaria was an innocent victim of circumstance. As a raw material for high-end cosmetics, the supply of rose oil was limited and had always been in high demand on the international market. Bulgarian rose oil, the king of all rose oils, was especially sought after. It was now the season for roses to bloom. In past years, the factories’ capacity would have been booked solid, and they would only wish for more supply. But this year, the situation was different. Affected by the economic crisis, the international market for rose oil saw a decline in both volume and price. When it was time to buy the rose oil, there were very few foreign merchants who had even arrived in Bulgaria. Even the limited orders they had came at an incredibly low price, less than a fifth of what it had been in previous years. With the processing plants struggling, no one along the entire supply chain was having an easy time. The farmers who made their living from planting roses and the workers who handled the harvest and processing all found themselves in dire straits. The officials of the Russian government couldn’t be bothered with the suffering of the people. Not only did they fail to provide relief, but they also demanded every cent of the taxes owed. When people have no money, they have no money. You can’t squeeze blood from a stone. Forced to the brink, the Bulgarian farmers and workers launched a tax protest. With the lives of the Bulgarian people already tough under Tsarist rule, the movement quickly gained support from all levels of society. On June 26, 1894, hundreds of thousands of Bulgarian citizens staged simultaneous protests and demonstrations, petitioning the Russian government for tax reductions and demanding national autonomy for Bulgaria. Unfortunately, the Bulgarian people were dealing with a governor who wanted to cover up the scandal. In a move to save his own career, Governor Arestovych feigned needing time to report the petition to the Russian government, persuading the people to disperse. After the crowd left, Arestovych immediately turned on them, sending men that very night to arrest the leaders of the protests and petition. What happened next was obvious. The betrayed Bulgarian people were completely enraged, and the spark of revolution was ignited. Revolution was contagious. The Bulgarian national uprising directly inspired the Poles, who also wanted to escape Russian rule. On July 11, 1894, Polish independence groups launched an uprising in Warsaw. Caught completely off-guard, the Russian army had no time to resist, and Warsaw fell. Once the floodgates were open, it was difficult to close them. On July 16, 1894, Portuguese Republicans launched an uprising in Porto; on July 21, the Great Hellenic National League launched an uprising in the Peloponnese; on August 2, a workers’ uprising broke out in Bilbao, Spain; and on August 13, the Irish people launched a national independence movement in Cavan… In just two months, over twenty uprisings of various sizes had broken out across the European continent, affecting seven nations: Russia, Spain, Britain, Portugal, Greece, France, and the Holy Roman Empire. That’s right, even the Holy Roman Empire couldn’t escape the wave of revolution. There was no helping it. When a forest is big, all kinds of birds can be found, and it’s only natural for a large number of states to have some strange things happen. In late July, a bourgeois revolution erupted in the Duchy of Nassau, a state so small it was barely visible on a map. It was immediately suppressed that same day by Duke Adolph and his guard. As long as the final outcome was good, Franz didn’t care about the details of what happened in the middle, nor did he want to know. Looking at a map of Europe, with small flags marking the revolutionary regions, it appeared as if the flames of revolution were burning across the continent with the potential to ignite a prairie fire. Of course, this was all an illusion. Although the revolutions were frequent and widespread, very few of them had grown into a significant force. In fact, since the beginning of the 19th century, revolution was not a new word. The specter of revolution appeared on the European continent almost every year, but very few of them truly caused a stir. Compared to the Revolutions of 1848, the impact of this revolutionary wave was noticeably weaker. Ultimately, it was because the people had not yet been forced to the brink. They still had an alternative: emigrating to the colonies. Don’t assume politicians are fools. No one who can defeat so many competitors is an idiot. They only choose to act foolishly when it suits their interests. When it comes to maintaining their rule, they’re usually quite smart. Every economic crisis was a high point for European emigration, and it wasn’t just spontaneous action from the people. Without government cooperation, how could tens of thousands of immigrants leave so easily? Even with an escape valve, Franz didn’t dare to let his guard down. The Holy Roman Empire had so many lords actively recruiting people for their domestic territories that unemployment had fallen to a historic low. This meant he didn’t have to worry too much about his own nation. What truly concerned Franz were his allies. The situations in Belgium and the seven Italian states seemed stable for now, but who knew how long their people’s morale could hold up? Even with the French drawing public animosity and diverting attention, the people’s patience had its limits. Merely being able to eat half-full probably wasn’t going to satisfy them. Spain was an even worse case. Even though the Bilbao uprising was suppressed, Spain’s social conflicts remained unresolved. Other nations used war to divert domestic crises, but Spain was a special case where the war was actually accelerating it. There was no other reason: the public had grown impatient with the constant failure to secure a victory. “Japan is a very powerful nation”—this explanation would probably make any European laugh out loud. In their minds, all the world’s great powers were in Europe and everyone overseas was a weakling. In the original timeline, with the Italians constantly setting new records for military incompetence, everyone’s tolerance for humiliation was much higher. Even when they lost the Spanish-American War, the Spanish people soldiered on. This time, things were different. Without the Italians as the butt of the joke, the Spanish army’s performance became the object of ridicule. The Philippine campaign had been going on for nearly two years. The Spanish government had committed hundreds of thousands of Spanish soldiers and mercenaries and spent over a hundred million guilders on military expenses, yet they had no decent victory to show for it. It was a complete and utter embarrassment. Besides these major disaster areas that were on the verge of collapse, there were also some “minor disaster areas” affected by the revolutionary wave, such as Greece and Switzerland, which also needed close attention. If these allies were merely at risk of revolution, then France, the cradle of revolution, was a ticking time bomb. As a main participant of the European War and having just gone through a civil war, France’s losses were incalculable. Just as the situation finally stabilized with the ascension of the Bourbon dynasty, they ran into an economic crisis. The psychological shock of falling from a world-class power to a third-rate nation was something no sane person could endure. Now that they couldn’t even fill their stomachs, the public’s resentment had grown even deeper. With several dynastic changes already having taken place, no matter how the government tried to guide public opinion, the Bourbon dynasty would have to bear the aftereffects. In a sense, the Philippine War also rescued France. Behind tens of thousands of mercenaries were tens of thousands of families. Hundreds of thousands of people now had a livelihood because of this war. From that perspective, the Philippine War had some positive significance. Theoretically, if the number of mercenaries were to be tripled, the difficulties facing France would be easily solved. After all, the France of today was no longer the French Empire of yesterday. After a period of great chaos, France’s total population had fallen to less than thirty million. If they had four hundred thousand mercenaries, their monthly salary alone would be six million guilders. If you added the money they made on the battlefield, the figure would be even higher. All that foreign currency flowing back would not only solve the livelihoods of hundreds of thousands of families but would also stimulate the domestic economy and create a large number of jobs. However, it was an impossible plan. Even if the Japanese were stubborn enough to fight to the bitter end, the Spanish government couldn’t afford to hire so many mercenaries. In modern warfare, salaries were only a small portion of the cost. Even if the weapons and ammunition were just second-hand gear left over from the Anti-French War, other logistical supplies still cost a fortune. In fact, the Spanish government had only been able to hold on until now because the mercenaries were cheap. It wasn’t their salary that was cheap, it was their pensions and benefits. Out of a show of “humanitarian care,” a symbolic payment was enough. If a payment wasn’t made at all, it wasn’t a big problem and they didn’t have to worry about protests from family members. They had decent combat effectiveness, were cheap, and their families wouldn’t protest. It was the epitome of cost-effectiveness. Franz had even considered promoting French mercenaries to other colonial empires to help the French government get through the crisis. But these were just thoughts and he couldn’t actually act on them. The reason was very simple: it would be aiding the enemy. With cheap and effective mercenaries, other countries’ colonial maintenance costs would go down, which would invisibly weaken the Holy Roman Empire’s advantage. Of course, the most important reason was that French mercenaries were unpopular. Although France had fallen from grace after its defeat, other European nations were still wary of them. If they hired French mercenaries to maintain stability in their colonies, they’d be inviting a wolf into the house should France rise again. This included Spain, which was currently using French mercenaries. It was only a temporary arrangement, and they would send them all back after the war. If they were to use Swiss mercenaries instead, everyone would be much more accepting. At least they wouldn’t have to worry about the Swiss turning on them. With “Plan A” for solving France’s internal problems now a bust, Franz was forced to reluctantly use “Plan B,” which was to fund the Bourbon dynasty and use the power of the aristocracy to stabilize the situation. Luckily, the Parisian people didn’t cause any trouble this time, and King Carlos had decent political skill, so the situation was tentatively stabilized. Still, the overall outlook was not optimistic. The current situation was that as long as the economic crisis persisted for one more day, the European continent would not know a day of peace. The only thing to be thankful for was that the revolutionary wave had also pulled Britain and Russia into the mess. With everyone on the edge of a cliff, no one dared to cause any trouble right now.
*** https://postimg.cc/gallery/PwXsBkC (Maps of the current territories of the countries in this novel made by ScH)
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