Chapter 304 Mediation
As the Austro-Hungarian Empire exerted its strength on multiple fronts, Italy soon could not hold on. At the end of 1870, the Austro-Hungarian army crossed Venice and Lombardy and headed towards the territory of the former Kingdom of Sardinia.
Seeing that the Italian Kingdom was doomed, the British had to step in to mediate urgently. After contacting the Russians, the three countries of Prussia, France and Spain sent representatives at the same time. On January 3, 1871, Italy and Austria negotiated an armistice in Birmingham, England.
Birmingham.
Italian diplomat Gamorre said: "Austria-Hungary openly sent troops to launch an aggressive war against the Kingdom of Italy, causing huge losses to the Kingdom of Italy. Austria-Hungary must withdraw its troops from the Kingdom of Italy and compensate the Kingdom of Italy for its losses."
"Puchi!" Austrian Foreign Minister Friedrich couldn't help laughing out loud. If you didn't know, you would think that Italy had defeated Vienna!
Friedrich: "You are better at confusing right and wrong. It was clear from the beginning who was actually responsible for the war. Italy ignored the Austro-Hungarian Empire's opposition and insisted on attacking the sovereign Papal States. This is unbearable for any Catholic country. The Kingdom of Italy, or rather the Kingdom of Sardinia, has always been a warmongerer, so the Kingdom of Sardinia must pay the price for its actions!"
Gamor: "The Kingdom of Sardinia originally shouldered the mission of unifying the Italian region, so our actions are supported by the entire Italian region. This is what the people want, not some warmongering."
Friedrich: "Oh! Popular support is really interesting. What I saw was not popular support. The soldiers and civilians of the Papal States joined the Austro-Hungarian Empire in opposing the invasion of the Kingdom of Sardinia. At the same time, in the Venetian region, the citizens of Venice cooperated with the Austro-Hungarian army to wipe out the Sardinian army in the city. The Kingdom of Naples was restored. All this shows that the emergence of the Kingdom of Italy was a mistake. You just used violence to force everyone together."
Gamor: "You, the Austro-Hungarian Empire, are behind all this. You are colluding with the enemies of the Italian people and are opposing the unification of Italy for your own selfish desires."
Friedrich: "Mr. Gamol, don't say anything careless. It was obviously your own unpopular behavior that led to the Papal States inviting Austria-Hungary to intervene militarily to stop the Kingdom of Sardinia's aggression. Before that, our Austria-Hungary had always maintained restraint, but the Kingdom of Sardinia turned a blind eye to the warnings of Austria-Hungary for its own selfish desires, which eventually led to the war."
Gamor: "Humph! How do you explain the Austro-Hungarian army that appeared in Rome? The Papal States is separated from Austria by the Adriatic Sea and the Kingdom of Italy, and the sudden appearance of the Austro-Hungarian army in Rome proves that you had planned it all along, dug a trap, and are waiting for us Italians to jump in."
"Hahaha!" Friedrich laughed heartily. "You also said this is a trap, but if your Kingdom of Sardinia wasn't too greedy, who would force you to jump into the trap? Besides, the Austro-Hungarian army accepted the invitation of His Majesty the Pope to protect the security of the Papal States on behalf of France. In terms of magic power and reason, the Austro-Hungarian Empire did nothing wrong."
Italy and Austria had a heated debate over who was the just side in the war.
"Okay, stop arguing!" British Foreign Secretary Earl Granville ended the speeches of both sides. "I called you here to solve the problem, not to quarrel. Now the problem in Italy has seriously affected the stability of the region, so both sides should first state the results they want. Let's not discuss right or wrong first, but to better strive for peace in the future."
Gamore: "The attitude of the Kingdom of Italy is consistent. The Austro-Hungarian Empire must unconditionally withdraw its troops from regions including Venice and Lombardy and stop interfering in Italy's internal affairs. This is the bottom line of our Kingdom of Italy."
Friedrich: "Humph, the war has come to this point, and you still want to simply stop. I dare to think that if all small countries provoke big countries like this, can they just say sorry and no longer be held responsible?"
Count Granville reminded: "Mr. Friedrich, let's discuss these things later. Now let's put forward the Austrian-Hungarian Empire's request for a ceasefire."
Friedrich: "As the initiator of the war, the Kingdom of Italy must be punished. The Kingdom of Sardinia does not have the conditions to unify Italy, so the Kingdom of Italy should change its name back to the Kingdom of Sardinia and recognize the independence of the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies. At the same time, it should guarantee that it will never invade the Papal States and the Kingdom of Naples again. Finally, the Austro-Hungarian Empire will take back Venice and Lombardy."
"This is impossible!" Gamor said sternly, "We in the Kingdom of Italy will never agree to this."
Count Granville also said: "Your country's request is too harsh, and Venice and Lombardy are Italian territories, and the people living there are also Italians, so Sir Friedrich, your country should change the plan!"
As a British citizen, Earl Granville naturally did not want to see the Austro-Hungarian Empire continue to strengthen, so he said this.
Friedrich sneered, "Venice and Lombardy were the inherent territories of the Austro-Hungarian Empire ten years ago. As for the Italians living there, if the Kingdom of Sardinia wants them, we can give them to you. And if the territory can be divided just because different ethnic groups live in the same area, I think Ireland and Scotland..."
Friedrich did not continue, but Count Granville knew exactly what he meant.
Count Granville was a little unhappy: "Today we will only discuss the Italian issue, and not discuss any unnecessary topics. As for the Venice and Lombardy issues, let's put them aside for now and discuss the issue of the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies."
Gamor: "The Kingdom of the Two Sicilies no longer exists, and even the current regime of the Kingdom of Naples is illegal."
Friedrich: "You have no say in this matter. Both the Kingdom of Naples and the Kingdom of Sicily have a long history, and their monarchs are also the monarchs of the two original countries, so the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies should exist independently."
The Kingdom of the Two Sicilies was composed of the Kingdom of Sicily and the Kingdom of Naples. Today, the Kingdom of Naples belongs to the Austro-Hungarian Empire, while the island of Sicily, where the Kingdom of Sicily was originally located, is under the rule of the Kingdom of Italy. Naturally, the Austro-Hungarian Empire hopes to strengthen the power of Naples.
Earl Granville said: "Since this one is also controversial, let's pass it first."
(End of this chapter)
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