I Am the Crown Prince in France

Chapter 353 The Ambition of Catherine II (asking for monthly votes)

If you don't want the interests of Austria and Prussia to converge, you must first prevent the partition of Poland from happening.

So for Joseph, he can only suffer Sweden first.

If King Gustav III of Sweden knew his thoughts, he would probably give him a thumbs up and shout, "You are great, you are noble!"

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Of course, Joseph did not intend to indulge Russia's wanton expansion. On the contrary, he was very wary of Russia's endless desire for territory.

The title of "European Gendarmerie" is no joke. Once the huge Russia finds the feeling of fighting, its troops will sweep the heart of the European continent. Historically, just 20 years later in 1814, the Russian army surrounded Tsar Alexander I and entered Paris.

The reason why Joseph pushed Russia to the Swedish front was because he knew very well that Sweden could definitely withstand the Russian onslaught. Even if they failed to defeat the Russian army in the Battle of Svensksund, there would definitely be a comeback victory later.

There is no other reason, just because Britain is behind Sweden.

Britain is also very concerned about Russia's expansion. They have always adhered to the policy of continental balance and will not allow a powerful country that overwhelms other forces to appear on the European continent, so Sweden is the bridgehead used by the British to block Russia's westward advance.

As for Poland, the British don't care so much. After all, even if Russia can annex Poland, the whole of Germany, including Austria and Prussia, will stand in front of it, making it difficult for it to continue to reach out to the west.

Once Sweden is lost, Russia will roam freely in the entire Baltic Sea, and Britain will most likely have to face the Russian army directly.

Historically, Russia won consecutive victories in the early stages of the war with Sweden, and then Britain began to intervene strongly and joined Prussia to put pressure on Russia's ally Denmark.

After gaining some benefits, Denmark quickly announced its withdrawal from the war. Sweden was able to concentrate all its forces to deal with Russia, and finally defeated the Russians with the large-scale assistance of Britain, and took back all the land lost in the early stages of the war with the Treaty of Verel.

Therefore, Joseph strongly supported Russia to fight Sweden. On the one hand, it would give Poland more breathing space to complete the integration of the country. On the other hand, Sweden could be used to consume Britain. France did not have to invest anything except talking, which was definitely a very cost-effective deal.

However, this seemed too exciting for Queen Marie.

She waited for the Russian ambassador Stroganov to finish speaking, and her eyes widened, trying to recall whether Talleyrand had submitted such an important report on national strategic planning to her.

And Stroganov thought she had acquiesced, so he moved closer to her and lowered his voice a few decibels: "Your Majesty, His Majesty the Emperor thanks you for your position.

"At present, Prussia and Austria are fighting fiercely in Silesia, and France has also intervened in the war there on a large scale.

"His Majesty the Emperor understands your claim to the Low Countries very well and is ready to support you at any time."

"No..." Queen Marie was still thinking about Sweden, and her brain was even less capable after hearing this. France had no idea about the Low Countries. Did the Russian ambassador drink too much?

If Joseph were here, he would be very shocked - the French army is still hovering on the border of Liege, and Luxembourg is still legally part of Austria. Catherine II saw his thoughts on the Southern Netherlands.

This woman is worthy of being one of the most outstanding tsars in modern Russia. This strategic vision alone is enough to overwhelm the European powers.

Of course, she used her own ambition to guess the French strategy. In fact, Joseph only wanted the Wallonia region in the south. Eating too much at once will make you full.

Count Stroganov continued: "But His Majesty the Emperor believes that France's strategy should not stop at the Low Countries."

Queen Marie immediately shook her head: "I never thought that the Low Countries..."

"Yes, I understand." The Russian ambassador thought she wanted to say "The Low Countries were never the ultimate goal", so he nodded immediately, "His Majesty the Emperor also believes that what you have in mind is the broad Rhine River."

He raised his right hand to his chest and waved it vigorously: "But that is definitely a difficult goal to achieve. Oh, I am not questioning your strength, but with France facing the entire Germany, please believe that Britain, Italy and even Sweden will be hostile to France because of this. It will be a protracted war and will bring huge losses to France.

"And if France and Russia join forces, the situation will be very different.

"As long as His Majesty's army can cross Poland, of course, this must be after the war between our country and Sweden ends, we can provide you with strong support from eastern Austria.

"As for the subsequent strategy, perhaps you and His Majesty the Emperor will have to discuss in detail to determine it. "

His words were very clear - Catherine II wanted to join forces with the French strong woman to divide the European continent from the east and west!

France took the west bank of the Rhine, and Russia obtained eastern Sweden and Poland. In the end, the two armies attacked Austria from two directions.

As for how far they were going to fight in the end, the two women had to discuss and determine in detail.

After Queen Mary's brain repeatedly crashed, she finally determined that the Russian ambassador was drunk.

What Low Countries? What Rhine River? What facing the whole of Germany?

He couldn't be so drunk just by drinking wine, he must have drunk a whole bottle of vodka!

After she figured this out, she immediately regained her composure and looked at Stroganov with a smile: "You are really good at joking. Maybe you need to take a rest? Debeninak, please tell someone to prepare a rest room. …”

Stroganov was a little anxious and said hurriedly: "His Majesty the Emperor asked me to convey to you that in Europe today, only France and Russia can bring a new order. Although France is currently facing some financial problems, under your rule France will eventually become stronger!"

He suddenly turned sideways and signaled to Alexandra: "Oh, you see, His Majesty the Emperor is absolutely sincere in promoting closer ties between our two countries."

Queen Mary still maintained a tolerant and polite smile towards the drunkard: "Okay, okay, I am very grateful to your Majesty for your sincerity. So, do you need to go to the lounge to eat something first?"

Stroganov was slightly startled and confirmed that he had expressed everything clearly. Then the French Queen's words meant that he needed time to think about it.

So he stroked his chest and bowed: "Then I won't disturb your appreciation of the art."

Joseph, who was far away in Luxembourg, never expected that his previous series of operations would actually inspire such huge ambitions of Catherine II.

If Queen Mary really chooses her granddaughter to be the Crown Princess, then there will definitely be a tremor throughout Europe.