Rebirth of the Spanish Empire

When Chulalongkorn was 14 or 5 years old, he married Princess Pengben, the daughter of Prince Menonai, but soon after, he married Pei, the granddaughter of the regent, Duke Sisuriyang. Later, he married several half-sisters who lived in the inner palace and named them queens. According to the Chinese point of view, marrying a half-sister is an act of treason. But in the Siamese royal family, this kind of thing happens often. In order to maintain the royal bloodline, they usually choose their spouses within the royal family. In fact, it is similar to the blood marriage of European royal families, especially the royal families of powerful countries such as Britain, Italy and Spain and Germany who think highly of themselves. .

Among the many queens of Chulalongkorn, three were the most beautiful and the most favored by the fifth king. These three queens are Princess Sunamtha, Princess Sawangwathana and Princess Zhaowa Papensi. They were born to the same mother. Their mother was Princess Bea, the most beloved concubine of the fourth king.

Princess Su Nanta was the favorite of the fifth King Chulalongkorn, and Chulalongkorn named her the royal queen. In 1881, the king and queens took a large ship to Bang Pa-in Palace. Queen Su Nanta, who was pregnant with Liujia, was sitting in front of the shed of a large ship admiring the scenery. Her eldest daughter was playing in the shed. Unexpectedly, the river overflowed and overturned the boat. No one dared to go into the water to rescue them. They could only watch the queen and the little princess perishing at the bottom of the river. Because according to the king's law, people are not allowed to touch the queen with any part of their body, and any offender will be killed. The remaining little prince, Apyo, was named Zheng Shuangpi and was the fourth among the children.

After the tragic loss of Queen Su Nanta, Chulalongkorn named her sister Sawangwathana as the main queen. She gave birth to 8 sons for the king. The eldest prince Mahava Chilunxi was born in 1878 and was named the crown prince by Chula Londo. This was unprecedented in the history of Siam. But unfortunately, in 1895, the crown prince died at the age of 17. The princes born to this queen were all short-lived, and only two survived to adulthood, because one of them was Prince Lapi, who was called ** in Chinese and was the fourteenth among the children. That is now the Minister of Justice. (I don’t know if it is the result of incest marriage.) There are 5 people \u003c ren, among whom Maha Vachararon is the oldest. In 1895, Chulalongkorn granted the crown prince to Maha Vacharajong, who was also ranked twenty-ninth in the list.

In March 1897, Chulalongkorn decided to canonize Queen Chaowa Papongsi as "Her Royal Highness the Queen" and title "Queen Liren". She acted as the king's authority and became the first female regent in the history of Siam. In April of the same year, Chulalongkorn embarked on his eight-month European tour. He has visited France, Russia, Germany, the United Kingdom, Austria, Italy, Sweden, Belgium, Denmark, Luxembourg and other countries, and received warm hospitality from the heads of state. During his visit to Europe, he kept detailed records of the history, politics and customs of the countries he visited everywhere he went, and sent these notes in the form of letters to "Her Royal Highness the Queen" Chaowa Papensee who was in power in Siam.

The book "Letters to the Queen" was published after the death of Her Royal Highness the Queen. Ten years later, he visited Europe again, visiting Germany, the United Kingdom, France, Denmark and other countries. He also wrote about his experiences and customs in Europe to his precious daughter Princess Nipa, which was later compiled into the book "Days Far from Home".

According to statistics, Chulalongkorn had 92 princesses and 77 children in his lifetime, including 32 princes and 44 princesses. Although he did not have as many children as the fourth king, he had the most number of concubines among all the kings of Siam.

During his reign, he abolished the kneeling ceremony and abolished the 500-year-old slavery system in Siam. Learning from Western parliaments, we reformed the national government system and established a cabinet government. Twelve ministries were established based on the Western model to exercise corresponding powers, and two state affairs conferences were established to listen to people's opinions on government work. The tax system was reformed, various taxes were collected by dedicated personnel from the Ministry of Finance, and military service was replaced by a poll tax.

Imitate the European military system, establish a standing army, implement compulsory military service, establish military academies, and introduce advanced military equipment. He vigorously advocated the establishment of education, established schools and vocational training centers, and sent himself and his noble children to study abroad. Implement the Gregorian calendar and make Sunday a legal day of rest. Hospitals were built in Bangkok to vaccinate people for free. He also introduced electric lighting and telephones, built a tram system, and built Siam's first railway, completely changing the face of Bangkok.

However, now a capable person may die, and I don't know if this is the fate of all strong people.

"Who is it?" Zheng Bao, also known as Wachala, said in a long and deep voice. It's not that he never thought that this day might come. After all, his father also made this choice at the beginning, but he is different. He is different from the previous kings. The difference is that they all made the choice without making the decision of the crown prince. However, they have been in the position of crown prince for 13 years, and now they have to face this side. This has greatly violated the original plan of their father. The original intention of his introduction was to avoid the massacre of his sons in the fight for the throne. However, judging from the situation, his father may be disappointed. What is more likely to mean is that the decision made by his father may have already been made. Many people began to take their dissatisfaction to the surface. Wacha Lachong thought that his more than ten years of studying abroad had turned out like this. Should he regret it? What would happen if the time was shortened by a year or two? Shouldn't it be like this? But he immediately rejected such an idea.

Alfonso didn’t know that the other party’s thoughts had gone through such a big circle. Since the other party asked, of course he would not hide it, “The fourth prince Zheng Shuang Apiyo, and the fourteenth prince, Prince Lapi, the Minister of Justice **.”

"It's them!" Although he had already guessed it, he still couldn't help but trembled when he heard this.

"Yes, the fourth prince is the only prince left by Queen Su Nan. When Queen Su Nan was alive, she was the most popular among the ministers and the most loved by your father. However, she died so suddenly. So many people felt pity for her. Naturally, people felt pity for the fourth prince Apiyo, who was also an extremely smart and studious person. Although in recent years, under your father's care, In my eyes or my heart, you are the most popular and beloved prince, but the other person is also one of the prides in his heart."

Of course Wacharazhong knew it, not to mention that the other party was Queen Su Nan, the only son of his nominal aunt. Needless to say, this hit the most vulnerable weakness in his father's heart. So that even if he is uneducated and has no skills, he will not be made things difficult for him.

Needless to say, Lapi, this guy was the first prince to enter the officialdom of Siam. Especially during the years of studying in the UK, he gained huge connections, especially in the UK. It is said that the British government was also "devoted to him" He tried his best to help him complete various studies, so that the other party's weight in his father's heart greatly increased. He even suspected that Lapi had been recognized by the British and became the Minister of Justice of Siam early. Zheng Shuang Apiyo has received the full support of France and is about to become the Minister of Finance of Siam.

Although the other princes are not so prominent, they also have different countries supporting them. If you add Spain behind you, Spain? Wachala couldn't help but smile bitterly in his heart. He was one of them. Although it was a bit unpleasant, wasn't this the result that his father wanted to see? With the driving force behind these princes, as long as they are given a point to compete for their interests, the kingdom will not be in danger of subjugation. After thinking about this, he couldn't help but admire his father, and at the same time, he also secretly planned for his future.

He had no dodge to think about the thoughts of His Majesty Alfonso XIII beside him. The efforts he had made to cultivate himself over the years were enough to explain everything. However, he didn't understand it at the beginning, but later he became relieved when he grew up a little. All living beings go for benefit. This Buddhist saying is still very descriptive. He would not have the extravagant expectation to think that the other party was kind enough to help him without asking for anything. In this case, and looking at the situation now, the road in front of you has begun to appear obstacles one after another, so the only way to make a difference is to use your strength. Since Spain is willing to give itself the main force, why not?

As long as he can carry out more in-depth reforms like his father after becoming king, and as long as he develops the country into a strong country, then he will no longer be passive as he is now. As for the conditions that may arise in Spain, based on his attitude toward Spain over the years, With his political understanding, he knew that Spain and Britain and France were completely different in their approach of only occupying colonies. The most likely solution was a free trade area. Even an alliance, an alliance, by the way, it seems that Spain really doesn't have a reliable ally on the Eurasian continent. Thinking of this, Wachala's heart moved, and he knew what Spain wanted.

"Then what should I do?" Wachara asked.

Alfonso raised his eyebrows. From the other party's tone, he saw the meaning of the request. This meant that the other party had begun to have his own position, and judging from the situation, the other party had also opened up his mind. , and saw clearly where he was. This is of course the best. After all, if this is done, the cooperation between everyone will be much more pleasant.

Second update, please recommend and collect. \u003cdd\u003e