War Palace and Knee Pillow, Austria’s Destiny

The National Assembly lost this magical showdown with Franz, but they were not resigned to it.

At this time, the strength of the German nationalists was not weak. In fact, their power and influence had become countless times stronger due to their victory in foreign wars.

On the other hand, after the war against France ended, the Austrian Imperial Army rushed to the Hungarian battlefield in large numbers, and some troops even disbanded directly on the spot.

The members of the Frankfurt National Assembly thought over and over again and decided to issue a call to all Germans:

“All people who believe in democracy, equality, and freedom unite to overthrow the tyranny of the Austrian Emperor, and let the sunshine of democracy, freedom, and fraternity penetrate the boundless darkness brought by the autocratic emperor.

I'd rather be a German than an Austrian dog. "

In fact, even if the main force of the Austrian Empire is not present, its combat effectiveness still scares most nationalist officers, and no one wants to meet it with swords.

However, the Austrian Empire had begun to initially establish a social insurance system and began to partially implement it in some imperial factories, which made the elites of the National Assembly feel imminent fear.

The previous victory in the war with France gave the men in the National Assembly the illusion that the German Allied Forces were very strong, at least as strong as the Austrian Imperial Army.

The Austrians needed to deal with the Hungarians, and even had weapons and weapons stored in the warehouse, and the horses were released to Nanshan. However, the German Allied Forces were mostly gathered in Frankfurt and the Rhine area at this time.

This was a God-given opportunity to assemble the nationalist forces from all over Germany to capture Vienna when it was not prepared. By relying on the strong to bully the weak, they would be able to defeat the weak with many.

In fact, the reason why the German nationalist troops gathered in Frankfurt and the Rhine region was, to a certain extent, because they had homes and could not return.

While the German Allied Forces were fighting the French army, the nobles and kings of various countries were not idle either. They were working hard to suppress domestic nationalists, and the royal parties were restored one after another.

When the coalition forces return home, they will face the situation of being forcibly disbanded and then dealt with in batches.

For example, both the Netherlands and Hanover have opened special lines to Texas, specifically to send domestic nationalists to the colonies, under the euphemistic name of making contributions to the Confederacy.

Although the gentlemen of the Frankfurt National Assembly have never fought in a war, they understand that in order to achieve great things, the more friends the better, and even if they are not friends, they cannot become enemies.

As a result, the Frankfurt National Assembly reached an alliance with the British and Hungarians in a very short period of time, and extended an olive branch to the French, and even promised to return Alsace-Lorraine to France after defeating Austria.

The envoy of the Frankfurt National Assembly stated that the German nation was bewitched by the Austrians. As long as France could send troops to Austria regardless of its past suspicions, the German Confederation was willing to help the Second French Republic handle its internal affairs.

I have to say that as businessmen, everyone in the National Assembly in Frankfurt knows very well what the French want, and Alsace-Lorraine is very tempting.

However, the French were unable to get out at this time, because a new round of general elections was about to begin, and all parties were working hard to win the presidency.

As for restarting the war against Austria, everyone in the Second French Republic seemed a little less confident, and they did not believe that the Germans would fight on their own so soon.

In fact, what they were more worried about was that they would be involved in the German Civil War and unable to escape. At this time, France was already falling apart and could no longer withstand the struggle.

The British were confused when they first heard the news. They all found it a bit unbelievable, but it was just the right time for Prince Albert.

Without this, they would have to face a dilemma: either go to war with the two major powers, Russia and Austria, at the same time, or give up their strategic deployment in the Near East.

The German Confederation stabbed Austria in the back. Whether they succeeded or not, Austria and Germany would fall into huge chaos.

At that time, not only Austria but also Prussia will have no choice but to bow to Britain. The Holy Alliance will be reduced to two out of three, and the Russians will be left alone.

And all this does not require the British to pay any price. They only need to pay the right price at the right time to reap the benefits.

This is the rhythm that the British are most familiar with. Prince Albert also breathed a sigh of relief. Everything seemed to be finally getting better.

As for Hungary, there was no reason to refuse. Prime Minister Kossuth introduced Gabriel Risel, deputy speaker of the National Assembly, as a confidant on the spot.

The latter expressed his willingness to liberate the Hungarian nation from the national prison of the Austrian Empire. The former was naturally grateful and willing to contribute to the liberation of all Europe and resolutely opposed the tyranny of the tyrant.

The two sides reached a consensus in a very warm atmosphere that only by establishing a democratically elected government and overthrowing the monarchy can people's legitimate rights and interests be protected from infringement.

On August 23, 1848, the Frankfurt National Assembly announced the dissolution of the German Confederation and formally established the German Federation, with Frankfurt as its capital.

(In fact, Confederation and Federation are the same word in German, but due to special needs, the two words are separated in the book.)

On the same day, he formally declared war on the Austrian Empire, demanded the removal of Austrian Emperor Franz Joseph I, and listed his ten major crimes.

1. The position was incorrect, and his father was the first heir to the Austrian Empire.

2. Insatiable greed and intent to seize the legitimate property of merchants.

3. Indulging in sexual activities and having affairs with many women.

4. He was bloodthirsty and warlike. He led his troops into many battles, constantly provoked wars and forced prisoners of war to work.

5. Fool the people, confuse people, build public schools, implement compulsory education, and take the opportunity to brainwash the people.

6. It violates morals and employs female workers.

7. Disobey morals and disregard human ethics. Grant women the right to vote.

8. A lackey who bullies good and fears evil, oppresses good businessmen, and pleases the devil.

9. Arrogance, claiming to be the Emperor of Germany and the King of the Romans.

10. Betrayal and allow laborers to massacre and enslave indigenous people who believe in God in the colonies.

In addition, they also had the help of 100,000 Prussian regular troops from the Rhine region. The Archbishop of Cologne, a pawn supported by Franz, finally chose to side with the National Assembly.

Historically, the Prussian government has always threatened to confiscate church property and dissolve religious orders in order to eliminate the influence of the church.

This time the Cologne Church received secret assistance from Franz. The archbishop was no longer controlled by money, but he was still suffering from it.

Until a Jewish businessman found him, the Archbishop of Cologne changed from a nationalist to a national capitalist, and finally sided with the National Assembly at this time.

In fact, the reason why the Frankfurt National Assembly is so confident is because they have many supporters in the Austrian army, and most of these people are mid-level and senior officers in the Austrian army.

According to the National Assembly's vision, when the German federal army arrived, the German nationalists in the Austrian army should cooperate with each other again.

Not only in Austria, but also in the German states, there were nationalists everywhere.

According to their conception, this move could not only deal with the Austrian Empire, but also the entire Germany, so they were so anxious to establish the so-called German Federation.

However, they underestimated the regional nature of the nation. There were indeed many nationalists in the Austrian Imperial Army, even Field Marshal Archduke Albrecht.

But Archduke Albrecht did not hesitate to send his old acquaintance who persuaded him to fight back to a military court. Such things were common in the Austrian army at this time.

On August 24, 1848, the Austrian Empire declared the German Confederation an illegal organization, marched to Salzburg, and the German Civil War officially broke out.