Start 1861: I Just Inherited the Dutch Throne

The Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Ottoman Empire, and the Kingdom of Bulgaria announced on the 3rd that they would join the British in conducting Mediterranean exercises on February 4, 1881.

The British Ministry of Defense said, “On February 10, 1881, the four countries will conduct combat exercises in the Aegean Sea to improve the ability of the four countries, including Britain, Austria-Hungary, Ottoman and Bulgaria, to deal with threats in the Mediterranean.

This is the first time that the UK and the Ottoman Empire have conducted joint exercises in the Mediterranean for many years. It is also the first time that the UK has conducted similar cooperation with Austria-Hungary and Bulgaria, and it was also conducted in the eastern Mediterranean. "

A well-informed source in the Government of the Kingdom of Greece said, “Now the Kingdom of Greece has lodged a protest on the grounds that the exercise location of the UK and the Ottoman Empire is not far from Crete, but the UK does not care or is indifferent to this. It has not changed, and it is even being carried out in the Aegean Sea in the east of the Kingdom of Greece. We have expressed our dissatisfaction to the governments of the four countries that appeared at the exercise site this time.

In this exercise, the UK will use more than three HMS Sovereign class steam battleships. As one of the most powerful surface warships in the world, these three battleships are also the main force of the British Mediterranean Fleet. They will practice there and Greece and other threats carry unprecedented pressure. We have made a supportable technical request to our ally the Netherlands"

Kingdom of the Netherlands, University of Sydney.

Hermann Van Peron, the president of the school, Tim, the director of the Dutch Statecraft Project of the National Peace Foundation in Rotterdam, Misid, an expert on the British Empire project of the Netherlands Center for Strategic and International Studies, Baloch, the director of the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessment, a think tank at The Hague University in the Netherlands, etc. People are participating in the general meeting of teachers and students of the School of Political Science at the University of Sydney.

Hermann Van Peron: "Professor Tim just now believed that the reason why Austria-Hungary unexpectedly participated in the British Mediterranean exercises was to increase its sense of presence and increase the weight of cooperation with Germany; while Professor Baloch objected , saying that this was a trick played by Germany and Austria-Hungary in an attempt to muddy the water in Europe.

Dear Dutch teachers, next we will ask for the opinion of Professor Misted, an authoritative expert from the UK, the host country of this naval exercise against the Kingdom of Greece in the Mediterranean Sea, and an expert on the British Empire project at the Netherlands Center for Strategic and International Studies.

Professor Misted, what is your opinion? "

Misted: "I have been studying Britain since I was a university student in 1850. It has been more than 30 years since I started studying Britain."

Hermann Van Peron: “Having spent 30 years studying a country, Professor Misted can be said to be one of the most authoritative British experts in the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Students, Professor Misted is also a member of the Royal Netherlands Think Tank. one of the important members of the British Council who advised our great William IV on the British side."

"Pap-pap-pap-pap."

Obviously, as Professor Misid's new identity was exposed, all the students were full of daydreams, and at the same time they were a little more optimistic about his "status".

Misted: "Britain can be said to be an expert in the saying that flies can't bite eggs without a hitch. In the past 30 years of research, I found that Britain has been looking for greater opportunities in Europe and even the world for hundreds of years. Yes. , it will not understand its position and desired purpose, and then create an environment conducive to the development of the UK itself.

The Germanic nation is Britain's biggest identity in Central and Northern Europe, but it was only part of the strategy that Britain used to deal with Southern Europe France and Paris Italy in the early 18th century. It successfully attracted countries such as Northern Europe and the German Confederation to form an alliance.

At the end of the 18th century, religious issues were used to break up the powerful Habsburg dynasty. Because this dynasty (Austria) was Catholic, like southern Europe, Spain and France, this caused conflicts in the Netherlands, Sweden, Denmark, including Prussia. The members of the North German Confederation resisted and enlisted the support of the Orthodox Church in the Tsarist Russian Empire to rebel against Rome. In the end, the Protestant churches established in these countries were able to have the same status as Catholicism and Eastern Orthodoxy. Britain finally fought for the restrictions of Rome and gained the freedom to control the country's governance. that power.

At the beginning of the 19th century, taking advantage of Catholicism and the conflict between southern and northern Europeans, the First Empire established by the behemoth and powerful Napoleon around Britain was finally defeated by the British alliance, and the First French Empire was defeated.

The three powerful Catholic allies, Fascia, disintegrated after the defeat of France, and were suppressed by the Protestants led by Britain and Prussia, as well as the Orthodox Church in Tsarist Russia. In the end, Britain completely rose to become the most influential country in Europe. "

As Professor Misted gave examples one after another, all the people in the School of Political Science could not help but feel quiet and secretly surprised.

Principal Hermann Van Peilon: "The strength of Britain has impressed people in the past, but Professor Misted's lecture made it possible for everyone here to better understand the trajectory of Britain's rise. It turns out that the professor has studied Britain very thoroughly."

Misted: "Every foreign move made by the UK has a profound meaning. Although the dispute with the Netherlands seems to be losing ground in recent years, if you study it carefully, you will find that you can see that in fact, the UK has not been injured. Bones, and even many of them are just a kind of self-shrinkage in the UK.

The reason why the Austro-Hungarian Empire participated in the British-led Mediterranean exercises this time was obviously that the British would definitely make a move to win over them. Of course, the most important thing is that the British had already seen through the embarrassing position of the Austro-Hungarian Empire when they cooperated with the German Empire, so they wanted to It is necessary to cut a wedge into German-Austrian cooperation and prepare to intervene in the relations between the two countries in the future.

Of course, these preconditions were because the Austro-Hungarian Empire was willing to accept Britain’s ‘gift’. "

"Professor, will the reaction of the German Empire be an obstacle to the Austro-Hungarian Empire's move?" a student asked after raising his hand.

Professor Misted: "This classmate, how do you know that Prime Minister Bismarck of the German Empire would not take the opportunity to let the Austro-Hungarian Empire test the depth of the murky waters of the Eastern Mediterranean? I think Joseph I of Austria-Hungary understood the ambitions of the German Empire, and it was precisely because he understood , so he understood that the German Empire would be willing to see Austria-Hungary's actions.

Similarly, Britain also understood the ambitions of the German Empire, so it encouraged Austria-Hungary to participate, helping Austria-Hungary maintain its status as a powerful country in Central Europe and trying to contain the German Empire."

Another student raised his hand and asked: "Then why did the Ottoman Empire participate?"

Professor Misted: "That's because the Ottoman Empire was originally extremely dissatisfied with Greece's independence from the Ottoman Empire in 1860. It was only under pressure from powerful countries such as Britain, France, Russia, and Austria-Hungary that it gave up resistance. Therefore, Britain's actions made the Ottoman Empire Seeing the opportunity, especially with the recent rise of Greece, they are dissatisfied with the Ottoman Empire's rule on Christ Island, where the Greeks are the majority. These people all hope to return to Greek rule, so Greece has been quarreling with the Ottomans for many years. Britain may be interested in it. Seize this opportunity and convince the Ottoman Empire."