Holy Roman Empire

Chapter 247: 134, Stable
On September 1, 1854, amid a solemn silence, Constantinople fell, and the Russians fulfilled a century-old aspiration, setting the Russian Empire abuzz while the European Continent collectively fell silent.

The day after the Battle of Constantinople ended, the New Holy Roman Empire issued a diplomatic note to the warring parties, declaring loudly its intention to mediate this war.

This responsible international attitude was immediately met with unanimous praise from both the French and the Russians, bringing a glimmer of hope for peace after more than two years of the Near East War.

The world turned its gaze towards—London. The Ottoman Empire and Montenegro Duchy had been ignored by everyone; it is indeed better for a weak country without diplomacy to stay out of trouble.

At 10 Downing Street, Prime Minister George furiously threw down his glass; Constantinople had been lost just like that, could they be any more obvious with their betrayal?

A week earlier, the Russians had halted their offensive, and the French Army began evacuating the wounded and sick from the city, halting their attack presumably due to an outbreak of plague, which seemed unobjectionable.

Just two days ago, the French Ambassador had assertively assured him that they would defend Constantinople to the death, that the one hundred and twenty thousand French soldiers were sufficient to stop any Russian offense.

Then, the previous night, he received news of the fall of Constantinople, where the one hundred and twenty thousand French soldiers miraculously broke through in the event of its fall and even took Takeilda, which was heavily guarded by the Russian Army, all in one day.

Prime Minister George wanted to say: Don’t make cheating so obvious; your actions really put me in a difficult position!

Foreign Minister Thomas, pale-faced, said, “Gentlemen, the French have unilaterally ended this war, we must act immediately, or else we will be at a disadvantage!”

It was not a matter of being about to be at a disadvantage, but they already were. Whatever agreement the French-Russian had reached, it was very unfavourable for the Great Britain Empire.

If the two countries were to form an alliance, the British painstakingly crafted balance strategy for the European continent would collapse. In this era, there was no formidable ally in existence.

Minister of Army Stanley stated solemnly, “The French have already withdrawn, even selling Constantinople to the Russians; we can no longer fight this war.”

The London Government had long since lost the desire to fight, but withdrawing from the war was not so simple; one misstep could be exploited by political opponents, and that would cause quite a stir.

Stanley was the most concerned; in case the French were to betray their allies more thoroughly, it was possible that the British Army at the front might be swallowed by the Russians before peace negotiations even began.

Considering the longstanding grudge between England and France, such a scenario was possible. If it were to happen, it’s likely that the rest of Europe would be pleased to see it.

After a moment of hesitation, Prime Minister George made a decision, “The situation is unclear now; we can only adapt as things progress. For now, let’s accept the Austrians’ mediation, and handle the rest through diplomatic means.

The focus of the Foreign Office will now be to find ways to isolate the Russians; we absolutely cannot allow a French-Russian alliance to form, as that would lead to a complete loss of control.”

A loss? In international politics, who hasn’t suffered a loss? Those who can only think of taking advantage and cannot afford to lose are not suited for the game of politics.

Suffering a loss today means looking for ways to make up for it tomorrow. The ability to be flexible is a basic quality for a politician, and a temporary setback naturally cannot frighten the British.

Following the stance of the London Government, the Vienna Peace Conference was scheduled, and, after negotiation, it was finally decided to officially convene on September 21.

History had changed; the Russians had not suffered a defeat on the battlefield, but rather had gained the upper hand, so naturally, the conference could not take place in Paris, as the Tsarist Government also had its pride.

 

Conakry port, Guinea, the future largest port in West Africa, was now a Savage Land.

Owing to its natural harbor, it had the good fortune to become one of Austria’s strongholds in colonizing Africa, entering the civilized world ahead of time.

The place now was practically a large construction site; according to the Vienna Government’s plan, the first step to colonize Africa was to build a town.

No, not a town, more precisely, it was to be a small town. According to the plan, this place would settle eight thousand immigrants, along with the stationing of an Austrian infantry battalion.

Then, using the small town as a core, they would gradually expand outwards until the entire coastal plains region was occupied.

The port of Conakry was no longer called Conakry, but instead had been given a distinctly Austrian name—New Brook.

This was just the beginning; if the colonization plan went smoothly, many Austrian city names would appear here in the future.

Colonel Stephen, the town’s governor and acting commander of the garrison, looking at the report in his hands, shook his head in resignation; New Brook lacked everything since it was just starting.

Especially people, the plan was to settle eight thousand immigrants. Up to now, only one thousand two hundred had arrived, and within less than two months, 56 had died from various causes, with 37 more lying sick in bed.

This mortality rate was only slightly lower than that of an epidemic. If this continued, the average lifespan of new immigrants would probably not exceed 35 years.

Colonel Stephen concernedly asked, “When can the next batch of immigrants arrive?”

Assistant Gold replied crisply, “I don’t know!”

African colonies are different from the homeland; here, communication can only rely on the ships coming and going. If it weren’t for the monthly supplies being delivered, they would have thought they were abandoned.

Of course, to maintain contact between the colonies, Colonel Stephen still had a few small boats that could communicate with other strongholds.

Within the more than three hundred kilometers of coastline in Guinea, the Austrian Government had established three colonial settlements, and the first batch of colonists were dispersed here.

Learning from the successful experiences of other nations’ colonies, the Austrian colonization force only remained in the coastal areas; venturing deeper inland was a matter for the future.

A few native tribes in the plains had been cleared out for safety reasons, and even captives had been handed over to the Portuguese.

In this era, the slave trade was still rampant, with the United States being the world’s largest slave buyer. In recent years, nearly half of the population growth in the United States came from the purchase of slaves.

The slave market was still in a state of demand exceeding supply. After all, the African Continent during this age was not a pleasant place, with venomous insects and fierce beasts lurking.

Just look at the mortality rate of the immigrants to know, now they were only staying at strongholds to build their homes. If they were to venture into the interior, this mortality rate would considerably increase.

Colonel Stephen casually remarked, “Don’t know, aren’t you going to ask?”

As soon as he finished speaking, Colonel Stephen realized he had made a foolish mistake. This place was a colony, not the homeland; it would take several more decades to have direct contact with the homeland!

Even in the homeland, wired telegraphs were only popular in cities, and not even covered in rural towns, let alone the African Continent.

Technology for laying undersea cables had already appeared; however, considering the high costs, it was clearly not worth the investment for the African colonies by the Austrian Government at present.

“Ignore what I said!” Colonel Stephen quickly added.

Gold said seriously, “Colonel, I think we can’t keep waiting like this. If you don’t want to be overtaken by other outposts, we must take more proactive measures now.

Since we lack labor, let’s go and capture some. It’s been over two months, and we are still marking time. There are no colonizers in the world more compliant than us.

Do we really have to wait for the enemy to attack before we can passively counterattack? We should learn from our Portuguese counterparts. Even if we haven’t found precious minerals, we must find a way to break even.

If we continue at the current pace, I seriously doubt we can recoup the colonization costs within a hundred years. By then, it won’t be about gaining a title for our achievements; our graves will be overgrown with weeds.”

Unlike Stephen, who was from a military background, Gold, who had volunteered for the colonization effort, was by no means a contented man.

He had come to the colony to make his fortune, but now he was toiling daily on constructing the outpost. While the small town had begun to take shape, he hadn’t caught even a glimpse of the wealth he sought.

The plains in the coastal areas were indeed very good. If this were Austria, people would be scrambling for them. Unfortunately, this was the African Continent, where land was the least valuable asset.

According to Austrian colonial regulations, any Austrian citizen had the right to cultivate these lands. Whoever developed the farms would own them, on the condition that once property rights were confirmed, abandonment was forbidden.

Getting rich through farming was already fraught with difficulties back home, and Gold did not believe that one could get rich by farming here. The land was mainly for settling immigrants.

The best way to get rich in the colonies was to find mines, especially gold and silver mines, which were the simplest ways to wealth.

As part of the first batch of colonizers, those who reported the discovery of minerals to the colonial government could obtain a share of the profits from mineral exploitation or sell them directly to the government for a substantial sum of money.

Colonel Stephen shook his head and said, “Be patient, Gold. The mood among the immigrants is still unstable; they need us to keep an eye on them.

When the first harvest of crops is bountiful, the situation will change, and that’s when it’s our turn to expand.

If you have the time now, you can organize the young and strong among the immigrants for simple training. These people are no good; using them as cannon fodder couldn’t be more appropriate.

Here’s a piece of advice Africa is no paradise, and the dangers of the interior far exceed those of the coastal areas.

There are plenty of opportunities to make a fortune in the colonies, but there’s only one condition: you must be alive to spend it.”

One word stability. From the beginning of the colonization plan, the Austrian Government never expected to see a return within the first year; that was highly unrealistic.

The South African colony opened up by the British was not yet profitable, so how could Guinea expect to recoup its costs in the short term?

If making a fortune in the colonies was so easy, they would be overcrowded by now. Never underestimate the passion of the European populace for getting rich in this era.