War Palace and Knee Pillow, Austria’s Destiny

August 8, 1848. 【】

Witnessed by 100,000 troops and 1.2 million citizens of Vienna, Franz entered the city from the docks along the Danube River to receive the cheers and worship of the people.

Franz was sitting in the carriage, looking at the crowds of people on both sides of the road, and couldn't help but smile bitterly in his heart.

Although there are three layers of protection measures around him, the crowds on both sides of the road have also been carefully scrutinized; the army even rebuilt the entire street to make sure there were no explosives underground.

But Franz still didn't like this ostentatious approach, because destroying the ceremony did not necessarily require a successful assassination, or even an assassination.

It's enough to explode something, create some trouble, and make people panic.

Fortunately, what Franz was worried about did not happen. His first stop was St. Stephen's Cathedral, where he would receive the blessings of the Pope and all 47 cardinals and complete his baptism.

After that, Franz will complete the handover with Ferdinand I at the Hofburg Palace. After all, for a multi-ethnic empire, legitimacy and legitimacy come first.

Overemphasis on religion and ethnicity is detrimental to national unity and stability.

Everything went smoothly, except that the baptism was a bit surprising. This group of old bastards actually created a pool that was one person deep, forcing Franz to dive into it.

But fortunately, the V-shaped route design has a good visual effect.

In the Hall of Mirrors of the Hofburg Palace, the royal families and their representatives from various European countries have been waiting for a long time. The German, Italian states and Russians were the most active. With the exception of the Tsar, almost all heads of families were present.

This also includes King William IV of Prussia. In fact, from a personal emotional point of view, he does not want to come to Vienna to take a trip into this muddy water.

But it is a pity that William IV has never been a strong-willed person, and he was afraid just thinking about the possible consequences of not attending.

Of course, William IV did not simply come to congratulate Franz on his accession to the throne. After all, the French had surrendered. So as the eldest brother of the German brothers, should he help solve the Schleswig issue?

The character of William IV determined that Prussia did not dare and was unable to solve the Schleswig problem alone.

In fact, from a kinship perspective, William IV should be Franz’s uncle. William IV's wife was Lady Sophie's eldest sister.

The situation in Denmark is similar to that of Prussia. Frederick VII was roasted by his ministers and domestic nationalists as soon as he took the throne.

Frederick VII's idea was to have Holstein join the German Confederation and Denmark merge with Schleswig.

His original intention was to adopt a compromise solution that would not offend both parties. However, the reality was that this approach angered both German and Danish nationalists, and eventually triggered the First Prussia-Danish War.

At this time, Frederick VII hoped that the new emperor Franz of the Austrian Empire could stand up and solve the chaos in front of him.

King Oscar I of Sweden looked down upon the Austrian Empire due to the influence of his parents, but he had a different view on the Schleswig issue. He hoped to use the strong influence of the Kingdom of Sweden to make the Austrians recognize the reality.

Both Oscar I's parents had a deep connection with Napoleon. Austria had always been considered by some experts to be a clown-like existence during the anti-French war, and Oscar I happened to be such a person.

Other heads of state in the German states also had various small thoughts. Some hoped that Austria would send troops to solve the domestic rebellion problem, while others regarded Austria as a symbol of German nationalism and came to worship it.

The countries of China and Italy have surrendered, and they have no reason not to attend Franz's coronation ceremony. As for the Papal States and the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, they decided to be highly bound to the Austrian Empire after recognizing the reality.

Pope Pius IX even sent an invitation to Franz to go to Rome for a coronation, but Franz prevaricated him.

Ferdinand II of the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies twice witnessed Austria's victory over the arrogant British navy at home, and defeated the Italian coalition forces.

These were things that Ferdinand II never dared to think about, and the establishment of the Second French Republic made it even more difficult for him to think about joining forces with France.

The Count of Paris hopes to regain France, the Duke of Omer hopes to gain a foothold in Algeria, and Louis-Philippe's other heirs hope to inherit their father's legacy.

Although Louis Philippe has announced that the Count of Paris will inherit the Duchy of Orleans, he is just the regent in the territory.

However, with the signing of the Treaty of Strasbourg, the German Confederation forcibly separated the Duchy of Orleans from France.

Coupled with Duke Omar's bad example in Algeria, some people have a change in their hearts.

In fact, the only ones who wanted to compete for the inheritance were the third son, François d'Orléans, Prince of Joinville, and the fifth son, Antoine d'Orléans, Duke of Montpensier.

Prince Joinville was originally in Algeria with Duke Omer, but neither brother apparently wanted to share power.

Prince Joinville, who had lost the internal fight, felt that he was fully qualified to inherit the Duchy of Orleans. Antoine, Duke of Montpensier, would have married Isabel II after she turned eighteen and jointly ruled Spain.

However, the woman unilaterally broke off the engagement, which is a great shame for any family.

If the Orleans Dynasty had not fallen, it might even trigger a war between the two countries.

Originally, Antoine, Duke of Montpensier, could only swallow his anger, but there was no end to his fate, and the fortune of the Orleans Dynasty was not cut off.

Although the Duchy of Orleans only has two states, France is surrounded by powerful enemies outside, there are endless rebellions inside, and the so-called Second French Republic is unpopular. It is difficult to say that there will be no chance.

"Thirty years to the east of the river, thirty years to the west of the river, don't bully young people into poverty."

Duke Antoine has made up his mind to enter Madrid sooner or later and become proud, and inheriting the Duchy of Orleans is the first step in his plan.

Count Chambord was naturally indispensable for such an occasion. His fiefdom at this time was even obtained by Franz for him.

Of course, it was precisely because of this that Count Chambord felt that Franz could help him again. In fact, the French territories in Switzerland, Vaud and Geneva, were still under the control of Prussia, Luxembourg, and Friborg.

The residents of Vaud and Geneva are mainly French-speaking residents, so the Luxembourgers are not interested in this. Although Prince Shotgun of Prussia wanted to expand the territory, King William IV of Prussia was unwilling to anger France too much.

The residents of the cantons of Vaud and Geneva also had no sense of belonging to the Second French Republic. The easy occupation of these two states by the German Confederate forces was largely due to the cooperation of the local residents.

Therefore, Count Chambord felt that he was the only real owner of this land.

Of course, the Count of Chambord was not stunned. Without the nod of the Austrian Empire, he would not be able to eat these two states no matter what.