The Rise of the European Emperor

Marin was also very disgusted with Philip's "I am your little master" style. After all, even though he had served the Habsburg family back then, he had already become independent and became the lord of a country.

However, Marin also knew that Philip's temper of the "second generation of the emperor" was extremely arrogant, and he was very vengeful. Right now, Philip is not dead, maybe this guy ran for the emperor after the death of Maximilian I. It would be terrible if this guy became the emperor and still hated himself, and instead united with the princes to clean him up. After all, Marin has long planned to annex all the princes in northern Germany, and it will be a matter of time before they turn against the princes. As for the Habsburg family, try not to offend them if you can. Therefore, even if he was upset, Marin still pretended to be cooperative.

Regarding Philip's accusation, Marin explained in a tactful tone as much as possible that he was looking for those unemployed craftsmen to deteriorate the textile workers.

But what Marin didn't expect was that Philip didn't hold on to the matter, but directly started to ask Marin for advice, so that Marin almost didn't realize that he was here to ask for guilt?

Soon, Marin also reacted. Although Prince Philip is selfish, he is not a fool. After all, his father was a smart man, and he would never give birth to a fool. Prince Philip is not so stupid. Knowing that Flanders' wool textile industry has declined due to the British suppression, he must be in a hurry.

You must know that the wool textile industry in Flanders has flourished for hundreds of years, and it is also the most important source of tax revenue in the Netherlands. For example, Ghent, where Prince Philip often lives, is the most famous wool spinning center in Flanders and the fourth largest city in the Holy Roman Empire, with a population of 550,000.

The decline of the woolen industry meant that Philip received a sharp reduction in tax revenue. And for this second generation emperor who likes to enjoy himself, this will definitely kill him! Therefore, it is normal for him to come to ask advice.

However, Marin has no good way to do this. After all, this was caused by the British engaging in trade protection. After Edward overthrew the rule of Henry VII, he continued Henry VII's policy of high tariffs on wool exports. After all, it is good for Britain. But for Flanders, it is more uncomfortable.

For the same 364-pound bag of British wool, the purchase price of a local textile factory in the UK is only 8 pounds. When shipped to Flanders, the price has risen to £12 or even £13 due to high tariffs. In terms of cost, there is only a difference of four or five pounds. How can we compete? Unless, the Netherlands also learns from the British to raise a large number of sheep...

"Yes, let the Netherlands also raise sheep!" Marin thought of a way as soon as he slapped his head.

Well, the method is to learn from Britain and engage in the "enclosure movement" to raise sheep. As long as you raise your own sheep, wool will naturally not be threatened by Britain. Then, the woolen industry in Flanders can also be preserved...

...

Thinking of this,

Marin introduced England's "enclosure movement" to Prince Philip in detail. Then, it is suggested that Prince Philip also learn from England, enclosing public land in the Netherlands and even seizing farmers' land. For example, deliberately borrowing usury loans to farmers, and then, taking advantage of their repayment of usury, seizing the farmers' land...

The Netherlands is different from the German region, which is the main part of the Holy Roman Empire. It is next to France and across the sea is England. Therefore, the society here is more enlightened than in Germany. During the disintegration of serfdom in the 14th and 15th centuries, the Netherlands was influenced by France and the United Kingdom, and the serfdom basically disintegrated, and many self-cultivating farmers appeared.

However, the German region close to the Netherlands is more conservative and still retains serfdom. The main reason is that the princes in the German region, as separatist forces, urgently need to rely on the exploitation of serfs to maintain their rule and luxurious life. Moreover, there are many wandering knights in Germany, and they are powerful. Even if there is peasant resistance, the German knights can easily suppress it. Therefore, serfdom in Germany was relatively well preserved.

As for the Netherlands, although it belongs to the Holy Roman Empire like Germany, its culture is closer to France. Especially the southern part of the Netherlands, that is, the later Belgian region, was much more influenced by France than by Germany. There were also many owner farmers in rural areas and a larger number of tenant farmers.

And if Philip learns from England to engage in the land enclosure movement, then, in addition to enclosing public land, he can also use usury to bankrupt the owner farmers and hand over the land. At the same time, it is also possible to drive away the tenant farmers by not renewing the lease, and use the original arable land to herd sheep...

The labor required for herding sheep is completely different from that for farming. If a farmer farms, he can grow dozens of acres at most. No matter how extensive the farming methods are, even if there are two male laborers in the family, planting 100 mu of land is enough.

Unlike raising sheep, this industry does not require much labor. If you have a shepherd dog to help, you can raise a lot of sheep. For example, in his previous life, Marin read a news about the largest family farm in New Zealand. A family of 7 people owns 100,000 acres of land and raises 28,000 sheep and 26,000 head of cattle. They don’t use much labor for grazing, and directly trained 40 shepherd dogs to help take care of the livestock...

And how big is 100,000 acres? 4046 square kilometers, equivalent to the size of several towns! The county of Marin's hometown in his previous life was only a few hundred square kilometers, with a population of 700,000 to 800,000!

In other words, if the "land enclosure movement" is carried out, a large number of owner farmers or tenant farmers will be forced to lose everything and become refugees with nothing.

In history, Britain achieved the glory of the wool spinning industry by forcibly sending these refugees to textile factories. In order to prevent these farmers who lost everything from becoming a social hidden danger, the cruel Henry VIII even ordered those poor farmers who did not go to work in textile factories to be imprisoned. Even, many people were hanged as a threat.

Later, the reason why England was able to colonize thirteen states in North America was because of the enclosure movement that brought hundreds of thousands of refugees to England. Despite the best efforts of the textile factories to absorb them, there are still too many people left. In desperation, the British sent them to the Americas to cultivate wasteland, and the colonies of thirteen states in North America also appeared...

In other words, as long as the land enclosure movement is carried out, a large number of farmers will inevitably be displaced and become refugees...

...

Prince Philip obviously thought of this too, so even though he knew the benefits of raising sheep were huge, he didn't dare to engage in land enclosures casually. Because those farmers who lost their land may become hidden dangers and even launch rebellions.

As early as 1490, rebellions broke out in Flanders. In the end, it was Albrecht, Duke of Saxony at the time, who led troops to help suppress it. In return, Maximilian I gave the then aristocratic republic of West Frisia to the Principality of Saxony, which also triggered a series of grievances and hatreds...

At that time, Prince Philip was still a child, and he was frightened by the riot of textile workers and local farmers. Therefore, even if Marin bewitched him to engage in the enclosure movement, he was a little timid. After all, that rebellion was the shadow of his childhood. Because he lived in Ghent in Flanders since he was a child and witnessed the rebellion with his own eyes.

After learning about Prince Philip's concerns, Marin immediately patted his chest to reassure, and at the same time, revealed his ultimate purpose

"Your Highness, you don't have to worry at all. Those farmers have no land, so I can recruit them to cultivate wasteland in the wild continent..."

This is the real purpose of Marin bewitching Prince Philip to engage in the enclosure movement for the population of the Netherlands!

At this time, the Netherlands had a large area, including the Netherlands and Belgium in later generations, as well as the Duchy of Luxembourg before it was partitioned. In the entire Netherlands, only West Frisia under the control of Marin, the former Geddes region, the Archbishop of Utrecht and the Limburg region do not belong to the Habsburg family, and the others are all Habsburg families. The territory of the country is divided into several duchies and counties. The total area of ​​the Austrian Netherlands under the rule of the Habsburg family is estimated to be more than 60,000 square kilometers, all of which are plain areas. The total population is also more than one million, equivalent to one-third of England.

Historically, the Netherlands was able to rise, and the abundant local labor resources were also an important guarantee. Otherwise, no one will compete for a hair?

Marin has taken a fancy to this million people. Once the Netherlands engages in the enclosure movement, at least hundreds of thousands of Dutch farmers will be driven out of their homes and become refugees. At that time, Marin can completely absorb these populations and become his own labor force. The Dutch have always belonged to the Holy Roman Empire and are relatively easy to assimilate.

What? You said that after the enclosure of the Netherlands, these farmers are also needed to be textile workers? nonexistent! Because there are already many textile workers in Flanders. Just Ghent and Bruges, the two major wool spinning centers, one has 550,000 people and the other has 350,000 people, with a total population of 90,000, most of whom are textile workers...

Therefore, there is no shortage of textile workers in Flanders, but wool. If the land enclosure movement starts, those Dutch peasants who have lost their land will have nowhere to settle. Marin promised to eat all of them, which gave Prince Philip confidence.

However, Prince Philip was also very reluctant to lose so many people, and was a little hesitant. Then, Marin made a big move...

"Your Highness, if you agree with me to recruit farmers who have lost their land, I will give you 100,000 English sheep. Moreover, most of them are young ewes! As long as you arrange good management, these English sheep can breed more much, and give you wool exactly like England's wool!"

"What, 100,000 English sheep?" Prince Philip stood up in shock. Then, he suddenly remembered that Marin seemed to be the Earl of Newcastle, England, who owned a fief as large as Northumberland, and it would not be difficult for him to get 100,000 English sheep...

And if there are 100,000 British sheep, then it is not difficult to breed to a large scale on the fertile plain land of the Netherlands. By then, Flanders would have had sufficient English wool of the same type. And the crisis of the wool textile industry in Flanders can be solved immediately...

Thinking of the tax revenue brought by the revived prosperity of the wool textile industry in Flanders, Prince Philip immediately succumbed...

"Okay, I'll go back and discuss the land enclosure with the nobles of the Netherlands!"

His Royal Highness, who was limped by the fool, hastily returned to Ghent to prepare for the enclosure...