Chapter 633: The Old One
"Trieste has changed so much in recent years. I thought the development of East Africa was shocking enough, but I didn't expect the Austro-Hungarian Empire to be the same!" Karina exclaimed.
Trieste has undergone new changes almost every year over the past decade, and Karina and Ernst have been in East Africa for so long that their previous impression of Trieste is completely different.
Under the tide of the times, it is not just East Africa that is developing, but Europe, the world center, is even more so. In the 19th century, with the connection between the two industrial revolutions, any country that seized the opportunity would undergo earth-shaking changes.
The most typical examples are Germany and the United States. Just by looking at Trieste, we can see the tremendous development of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Germany and the United States, which have achieved even better results, will be even more unexpected.
Even Ernst, who had witnessed the "infrastructure maniac" in the Far East Empire, felt a spiritual shock in his heart about the current development of Europe.
"This is the change brought about by science and technology. The two technological revolutions have had a significant impact on the entire world civilization. It is understandable that the Austro-Hungarian Empire has achieved such results under this wave." Ernst said to his wife.
“People always talk about how serious the economic crisis and the Great Depression of 1873 were, but this did not hinder the development of European society. On the contrary, after the water was drained, the industrial structure became healthier. Now the Austrian economy is much more dynamic than before we went to East Africa.”
In fact, the great development of Trieste is inseparable from the boost of trade between East Africa and the Austro-Hungarian Empire. The prosperous port trade has tripled the population of Trieste in the past twenty years.
The first surge in population and industry in Trieste came from the establishment of the Austro-Hungarian Empire and the recovery of the Venetian region by Italy. After the loss of Venice, Trieste became the only excellent seaport in the Austro-Hungarian Empire, so Trieste's economy took a direct leap and quickly became a major city in the Austro-Hungarian Empire.
The second time is that the trade volume between East Africa and Germany has skyrocketed in recent years, thanks to the previous railway construction of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. This place is a transit port for commodity trade between East Africa and the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Most of the import and export trade between East Africa and the entire German region is circulated through here.
East Africa is a huge supplier of raw materials, and Germany is one of the most economically developed regions in the world. The complementary relationship between the two has enabled Trieste to usher in its second major development.
The total area of the German region in Europe is more than one million square kilometers, and all of it is developed land. The density of its railway network is second only to that of the United Kingdom. It connects the Baltic Sea and the Mediterranean Sea, has a dense land water network, and has developed inland shipping. It is also the east-west land passage of the European continent. It has a population of nearly 100 million, rich coal and iron resources, and a very developed industry. In comparison, East Africa's only advantage is that its territory is large enough.
If we remove the rich mineral resources in the inland and south, and only rely on the resources of East Africa in the previous life (East Africa in the true geographical sense), it would really be nothing to show for it.
With this calculation, Germany and Austria actually had the ability to join forces to fight the whole world in World War I. In addition, with no energy shortages, it makes sense that they could not lose to the Allied Powers.
The subsequent failure was more of a failure of confidence, with the fate of the United States accounting for the vast majority of the factors. If the United States had not existed, Germany and Austria would have been able to tie with the exhausted Allied Powers, let alone win. Tsarist Russia was also an unstable factor in the Allied Powers, but the contradictions within Tsarist Russia were irreconcilable, and Ernst did not believe that the Tsarist Russia's provisional government could succeed.
"My dear, you are quite capable. After all, East Africa started from scratch. The fact that it has developed to its current level is enough to make many countries ashamed." Karina said to Ernst while glancing at her father.
Ferdinand said unhappily, "Why are you looking at me? The situation in Mexico was complicated at the time, and none of the various forces took me seriously. I only had a reputation. If you are not an old fox, you can't expect to have peace. And, you are my daughter, aren't you exposing my scars?"
Karina hugged Archduke Ferdinand's arm and said coquettishly, "How dare I expose your scars? Besides, I know that you were just a remote-controlled puppet of Napoleon III at that time and you might not get support."
Speaking of Napoleon III, it brings back memories of Ernst and Ferdinand. Napoleon III must not be at peace in his grave. Now the French people certainly do not have a very good opinion of Napoleon III, but in a few years the situation may be reversed because the later French government will never let the enemy down.
However, Ernst and Archduke Ferdinand remembered Napoleon III not because of his civil and military achievements, but because of his death. Napoleon III was once very successful in Europe, but died in England. This contrast always makes people sigh.
Archduke Ferdinand once had some resentment towards Napoleon III, but as the debt is settled after death, he feels that he is much luckier than Napoleon III. After all, he is now the naval leader and even the founder of a great country. Future history should show more kind praise for his life.
It is correct to think so. There are many monarchs who escaped in European history, but few of them can be remembered. However, there are many famous monarchs who were executed, such as Louis XVI, Charles I, and the previous life Archduke Ferdinand (Maximilian I), the Emperor of Mexico.
Moreover, Archduke Ferdinand did not escape. In the future, history will record him as being rescued from the Mexican anti-government forces by his son-in-law Ernst. Rescue sounds much better.
Ernst was thinking about how Napoleon III dealt with it and taking it as a warning. Before the Franco-Prussian War, no one was optimistic about Prussia, but Prussia fought back. Although East Africa is now stable, we cannot be careless and must not develop an arrogant mentality of "the advantage is mine."
This is the result of combining the current situation in the Orange Free State. In the past, Britain mobilized 400,000 troops to conquer the Boers, but now the people of Transvaal and the British stand together, and Portugal will also support Britain. If Britain targets a country like East Africa, it will definitely not learn the same tactics it used against the Boers, because the size of East Africa is not comparable to that of the Boer countries.
If Britain really uses force, the troops that can be assembled will be at least 600,000. Britain itself will have no less than 400,000 troops. The Transvaal people have Britain's support, so it should be no problem to mobilize tens of thousands of people. The Portuguese should also have no problem mobilizing hundreds of thousands of people. This also requires considering the issue of the Indian vassal army.
It’s not that Ernst thought too much, but he should try to consider the enemy’s strength as comprehensively as possible. The British definitely have this ability. After all, Britain has demonstrated it in the past.
The regular army in East Africa has only more than 300,000 people, and this is the result after adding the navy. Of course, there are also hundreds of thousands of retired soldiers in East Africa. Adding the militia, the mobilization capacity is terrifying, but the combat effectiveness of the militia is questionable. Therefore, foreign wars are not decided on a whim. If something goes wrong, it will be a laughing stock.
As for making fun of the British lobster soldiers, East Africa is not necessarily more certain than the Boers in the previous life, because there is a big difference between regular troops and the Boers' guerrilla tactics.
(End of this chapter)
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