Chapter 312: The Sword Pointed at the Abyssinian Empire
The road to the unification of the Kingdom of Italy was completely blocked, and a lot of territory was lost, but the population did not decrease on a large scale accordingly. Therefore, the Kingdom of Italy had to find a way out, and the only way left was colonization.
Inspired by the East African Kingdom, Emmanuel II also planned to open a colony in Africa, mainly to solve the food shortage problem in the Kingdom of Italy.
Although the work could not be started immediately due to financial constraints, Emmanuel II still ordered people to start collecting information on Africa.
There was only so much information available on Africa, and his men quickly collected the general information and reported to Emmanuel II.
"Your Majesty, the entire African coast is dotted with various countries' forces. West Africa has the best conditions, with Britain, France, Portugal, Spain and the Netherlands all distributed here. North Africa is the closest to us, but it is mostly desert, and there is no large-scale land suitable for farming. Some oasis areas are controlled by France and the Ottoman Empire. East Africa is dominated by the East African Kingdom and Portuguese Mozambique. South Africa is the British Cape Town colony, and its climate is most similar to that of Italy, but we can't afford to provoke Britain."
King Emmanuel II listened to his subordinates' reports and frowned as he said, "It seems that the competition in Africa is also very fierce! I thought it was a barren land. I didn't expect there are so many European forces there."
"Your Majesty, it's mainly because other countries have a big first-mover advantage. Even the small Principality of Hechingen in Prussia can go to Africa to seize a large area of territory, so the strength of the African natives is evident. Moreover, although these countries have bases in Africa, except for the Kingdom of East Africa and Portugal, the Boers have almost no power to develop the interior of Africa on a large scale. We still have many opportunities."
Hearing this, Emmanuel II was relieved: "Then do you have any general direction?"
"Your Majesty, after we have reviewed the data on the African region and the intelligence in the past two years, we have conducted a careful analysis and believe that the Abyssinian Empire on the Red Sea coast is a better place that is more suitable for the physique of our Kingdom of Italy."
Emmanuel II asked: "The Abyssinian Empire? What advantages does it have?"
"Your Majesty, first of all, Abyssinia is located on the coast of the Red Sea and adjacent to the Suez Canal, which makes it convenient for us to attack this place."
King Emmanuel II: "Then North Africa is closer to us!"
"Alas! Your Majesty, if it were the original Kingdom of Italy, we might still have been able to expand in North Africa, but now we have been greatly weakened. The weakest power in North Africa is the Ottoman Empire, which we cannot afford to offend. Although the Ottoman Empire is weak, it is huge. When we were strong before, we might not have been afraid of the Ottoman Empire. Now that we have lost nearly half of our territory, what can we use to compete with the Ottoman Empire? Moreover, if we really have a conflict with the Ottoman Empire, I am afraid that Franz of Austria will laugh in his dreams at night. Both our countries are facing the mortal enemy of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, so the two sides should maintain good relations and jointly deal with the threat of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. This is the right way."
The Kingdom of Italy was in danger of extinction in the face of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, and the Ottoman Empire's European territory was threatened by the Austro-Hungarian Empire. The two countries were in the same boat. Although the Ottoman Empire had a mortal enemy for generations, Tsarist Russia, there was also France to the west of the Kingdom of Italy. From a historical perspective, France was also a great threat to Italy.
"Secondly, the Abyssinian Empire has a large amount of arable land. In this regard, North Africa is far inferior to the Abyssinian Empire. What our Kingdom of Italy needs most now is arable land, and the arable land in the Abyssinian Empire is ready-made. Their land has been developed for thousands of years, unlike other parts of Africa, where there is uncertainty. As long as we can suppress the Abyssinian Empire by force, we can definitely import food to our homeland continuously."
The agricultural conditions on the Ethiopian Plateau are indeed good. If it weren't for the high altitude, which is nearly a thousand meters higher than the East African Plateau, and the high level of civilization, Ernst would have been tempted. The high altitude also has its advantages. The terrain of the Ethiopian Plateau intercepts rain, and the average annual precipitation is between 1200mm and 1600mm. It is known as the water tower of East Africa.
Especially in the southwestern part of the Ethiopian Plateau occupied by the East African Kingdom, precipitation remains above 1,300 mm all year round, forming a unique rainy high mountain plateau climate zone.
Of course, it is worth noting that in this time and space, the Abyssinian Empire cannot be equated with the Ethiopian Plateau. In the past, Ethiopia, as an independent country, exclusively occupied the Ethiopian Plateau, but now it is jointly owned by the Abyssinian Empire and the East African Kingdom. However, the main part of the Ethiopian Plateau is still within the territory of the Abyssinian Empire, and East Africa only occupies the southwest, while the southeast is a relatively arid plain area.
The agricultural area of the Abyssinian Empire is concentrated in the northwest region of the Ethiopian Plateau, which is also the foundation of the Abyssinian Empire, making it an agricultural country like Egypt. The Sudan region in the middle is dominated by nomadic industry, with only a small agricultural area relying on the confluence of the Blue and White Nile, and its water volume happens to depend on the Blue Nile originating from the Ethiopian Plateau.
King Emmanuel II: "In that case, the Abyssinian Empire should be strong. Are you sure it won't be a tough nut to crack?"
"Your Majesty, rest assured. We chose this area with this in mind. This is also the last point we want to emphasize. The Abyssinian Empire is not worth mentioning. Three years ago, the British broke through the capital of the Abyssinian Empire with very few troops. Its emperor committed suicide due to the defeat. The Abyssinian Empire then fell into a state of disintegration. At the same time, Egypt in the north also had a conflict with the Abyssinian Empire. The two sides fought in the Sudan region. Now is the weakest period in the history of the Abyssinian Empire."
As a local power, the Abyssinian Empire had several vassal states in the Sudan region, which was also the reason for the conflict between Egypt and the Abyssinian Empire. However, Egypt's rule over Sudan was relatively weak and its transportation was relatively poor, resulting in Egypt's strong national strength but unable to do anything about the fragmented Abyssinian Empire.
During Ali's time, Egypt's expedition to Sudan was stopped in the north of Sudan due to the harsh desert environment. Ali implemented a tributary rule over Sudan similar to the Ottoman rule over Egypt.
After hearing this, Emmanuel II was very satisfied: "As expected, the natives are the natives. We can't beat Austria, but I don't believe we can't beat the Abyssinian Empire. What the British can do, we can do too."
Subsequently, King Emmanuel II began to prepare for the Kingdom of Italy's plan to invade and colonize Abyssinia, and the Kingdom of Italy's Colonial Department also began to be established. Abyssinia was a large enough opponent with a large population and excellent agricultural conditions, all of which were what the Kingdom of Italy needed. Now that domestic industry and commerce were independent, the Kingdom of Naples needed markets, and the surplus population caused by the war also needed land. Nothing was more tempting than invading the Abyssinian Empire.
All forces in the kingdom also actively supported the decision of Emmanuel II. After experiencing the disastrous defeat in the Second Italo-Austrian War, whoever wanted to pursue the great ideal of unifying Italy could do so. The Kingdom of Italy was already scared by the defeat, so weak opponents like Abyssinia were the first choice of our Kingdom of Italy.
(End of this chapter)
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