War Palace and Knee Pillow, Austria’s Destiny

The word Bohemia once had nothing to do with wealth, but after the Austrian Empire lost wealthy Silesia, Empress Theresa turned the empire's economic focus to Bohemia.

What followed was the infusion of a large amount of capital, and handicrafts, glass manufacturing, steel plants, and various shops sprung up all over Bohemia.

But that only transformed it from a village into a city. With the advent of the industrial age, Bohemia's status was once again elevated.

However, historically, major development would not occur until after 1850. However, Franz advanced the progress at this time.

After joining the German Customs Union, Bohemia's economy took off directly. Coupled with Franz's investment and planning, it became one of the fastest growing economic regions in Europe.

Driven by huge interests, German businessmen and local nobles and officials jointly revived Czech nationalism.

But the difference in history is that Franz found an opponent for them - German nationalists. Under the guidance of the either-or thinking of both sides, neither Czech nationalism nor German nationalism had any influence in Bohemia. Dominate.

The Czech nationalists are even at a disadvantage, so although they covet the special status of the Magyar people, from a practical perspective, the conditions for a national uprising are not ripe for them.

Czech nationalist leader Palacki even warned that "blind recklessness will destroy everything we have created so far."

At this time, Palacki was more like Szechenyi than Kossuth, so his hints were very tactful and not sharp.

But it turns out that rational individuals often cannot stop violent collectives. The fierce confrontation between Czech nationalists and German nationalists gave birth to something newer and more powerful.

Pan-Slavism, as the so-called Czech nationalists found it impossible to defeat the German nationalists with their strength, who were too numerous.

Although there were not many Germans in Austria, they continued to draw reinforcements from the German Confederation.

Then a magical idea flashed in their minds. Bohemia was indeed not strong enough to compete with the entire German nation.

But Slavic people are not only Czechs, but also Slovaks, Ukrainians, Transylvanians, Slovenians, Croatians, Serbs, Poles, and Russians.

What if we could ask for help from these fellow Slavs? Going further, can these hundreds of millions of people be united to form a super confederation?

Such a super-confederation spanning the Eurasian continent will be able to defeat the enemies of all Slavic nations, and any other nation will be trampled under their feet.

And in reality, there is an excellent example of Russia, but what is sad is that even the Russians do not support them.

It is true that Nicholas I, who promoted Great Slavism, was opposed to the so-called Pan-Slavism of the Czechs. Although the two have many similarities, for example, both wanted to make Constantinople the capital, and both wanted to make the Ottomans and the Hungarians were driven out of Eastern Europe.

But the Czechs wanted a confederation, not an empire or a federation. This was simply unacceptable to the Tsar. He did not want to share power with others and then swear an oath to a constitution promulgated by others.

However, the promises from Britain and Hungary and the "holy war" launched by the Pope gave the Bohemians unrealistic dreams.

Note: The Moravians, who are also Czechs, are opposed to Czech nationalism, at least in terms of actual actions.

Palmerston assured Palacki that the British navy would blockade the Austrian coastline and would provide strong support to the Czech nationalists through secret passages.

Palacki was also a professor, but his eloquence was still somewhat inferior to Palmerston's.

Palmerston's words made Palacki feel that the gentleman in front of him would definitely help the Czechs regain their standing among the European nations.

He had also had a long talk with Kossuth before, who was also a passionate speaker, and a meal of chicken blood also made Palacki feel that he was omnipotent.

He believed that the Hungarians would be able to defeat the decadent Austrian army, which would greatly ease the pressure on Bohemia.

By then, maybe the rebels in Bohemia can march straight into Vienna, which would be a historic moment.

Of course, Kossuth also saw this idea of ​​​​Palacki. The former praised the latter's ambition and said a lot of words that made Palacki very useful.

Pope Pius IX's messenger also gave him great encouragement. After all, priests have the same professional counterparts in this field.

Palacki was deeply moved by the support from all parties. He felt that he had no reason to continue to shirk and let his compatriots down, so he decided to come out.

As for the college students at Czech universities, they naturally hope that teachers can join them. Nobles, businessmen, and bureaucrats are also very welcome. After all, it is a good thing not to have to stand up for them.

With Palacki's participation, the Czech nationalist organization finally embarked on the path of "formalization."

However, Palacki is still very particular about himself. He wants to be polite before fighting. Palacki made a petition and imitated the Hungarians' twelve-point program, and the Czechs also made a seven-point agreement.

Generally speaking, they are relatively restrained and do not want to establish an independent country like the Hungarians and annex some Austrian lands.

But they asked for the same privileges as the Hungarians before them. Although they did not ask for political independence, they asked for economic and military independence.

In addition, Czech must be included as an official language. Czech must have the same status as German in schools, and Czech should be the main language below universities.

Any policy requires the approval of the Czech Parliament before it can be implemented, and the Czech army will not participate in Austria's foreign operations.

The Austrian government will naturally not agree to such an outrageous initiative. In fact, no matter how weak a government is, they will not agree to directly transfer their power.

What's more, at this time, the Vienna government was only in chaos on the surface. In fact, major decisions were made by Franz and Mrs. Sophie.

However, the negotiation with Hungary was not the case. It was simply a wrong decision made by two political newcomers under pressure from the domestic privileged class.

On April 6, 1848, the "Bohemian Equality Committee" led by Palacki officially declared an uprising on the grounds that the emperor refused to reform.

The vanguard of the uprising was naturally the students of the University of Prague. These passionate young people were usually hostile to the German faction, so they were naturally at the forefront.

Those small shopkeepers, small businessmen, and small nobles were the backbone of the uprising. They had large numbers, good weapons, and professional skills.

Overall, however, the Czech nationalists were still at an absolute numerical disadvantage, but the uprising still occurred.

This actually has something to do with Prince Windischgratz, the top commander of the local garrison. He is not a Czech nationalist, but he is by no means a German nationalist.

Prince Windischgrätz is a typical aristocratic bureaucrat. He still adheres to Metternich's theory of national checks and balances, which is to make domestic nationalities hostile to each other so that the Austrian government can profit from it.

Therefore, Prince Windischgratz, who had a large number of troops, actually chose to sit back and watch the uprising occur when he determined that the target of the Czech attack was the Germans and Jews in the city.

Most of the Germans here were not Austrians, but came from other German confederations to settle and do business in Bohemia.

As for the Jews, let alone them. In the eyes of Prince Windischgratz, dealing with them was simply an act of justice.

The battle between the two sides seemed to Prince Windischgrätz to be a dog-eat-dog battle. His idea was very simple, that is, let them fight, and then go out to clean up the mess after the group of people tired themselves out.

This can not only save the consumption of troops, but also find a good reason to beat up those so-called nationalists.

In addition, Prince Windischgrätz also had his own selfish motives. As one of the top nobles of the Austrian Empire, he was naturally closely related to the privileged class who were regulated by Franz.

For the sake of himself and his family, Prince Windischgrätz felt that he should strengthen the power in his hands, at least not like those guys in Vienna, who were eventually beaten to death by a group of rogues under the royal orders.

The Bavarians were very poor, so in the eyes of the great German aristocrats they were just a bunch of hooligans.

But this time Prince Windischgratz’s idea cannot be said to be completely wrong, because it is really difficult for Franz to deal with those privileged classes himself before he ascends the throne.

So it can only be borrowed from others, and in the chaotic Vienna, there is nothing more suitable than a group of strangers.

Prince Windischgrätz wants to support the bandits in order to respect themselves, but the German nationalists are not so easy to deal with.

This group of people often clashes with Czech nationalists, so they also have weapons and equipment.

The so-called powerful support provided by the British was nothing more than hundreds of outdated muskets.

In fact, Palmerston also had difficulties, because at this time there were uprisings everywhere in Germany, and the censorship at every level was much stronger than before, but the most important thing was that the people in charge had changed, and all the previous channels and methods It's not easy to use.

In addition, Prince Windischgratz is not a fool, so he cannot let the situation develop to the point where he cannot handle it.

If the situation in Bohemia really gets out of control, then he may not be able to protect himself, let alone raising the bandits.

However, the reality is that the influence of the rebellion in Bohemia is far greater than Prince Windischgratz expected. Vienna has been under tremendous pressure and the whole of Austria is trembling.

At the same time, the Hungarian army, led by Baujani, deceived the gate of a fortress outside Pressburg, and all 1,500 defenders were massacred.

You must know that Pressburg is less than 60 kilometers away from Vienna, which means that the Hungarian army can reach Vienna in just two days.

Although the senior officials in Vienna were shocked, they were not panicked because Pressburg had not fallen and there were nearly 100,000 garrison troops around, while Baujani only had a few thousand cavalry. It was impossible for them to break into Vienna. .

But the nobles of Vienna could not sit still. A large number of members of the noble Senate were gathering in a manor on the outskirts of Vienna.

The families of these people have a history of hundreds of years, and the four oldest families can even be traced back to before the arrival of the Habsburg family. They were already one of the most powerful families in Vienna.

"We cannot be buried with the Habsburg fools!"

"That's right! Look at the stupid things they did! Let a fool become the emperor! This country will be destroyed in their hands!"

"This damn Vienna government, they don't know who to serve! We are the masters of this country."

A group of people were attacking the Habsburgs and the Austrian government over the situation in Vienna.

However, some people have raised objections.

"I think Archduke Franz is pretty good, and the church bishops speak highly of him. As long as we survive this period, I think we still have hope."

"Have you bought the shares of Royal Development Company? Even though the market is so miserable this year, the dividends are still over a dozen points!"

"Indeed, if I had known earlier, I would have bought more. This would be more profitable than any other business."

"Exactly! If the Habsburg family falls, this royal development company will also be gone, and my fortune and life will be on it!"

At this time, an old man stood up and tapped the ground hard with his cane.

"Don't you have any honor as a noble? You talk about money all day long! We are nobles! We want to live with dignity!

What are the Habsburgs and the Austrian government doing now? They have no ability to protect us! The Hungarians have already arrived! The troops of the Papal States are coming soon! Now even the Bohemians are in rebellion!

I think this Austrian ship will sink sooner or later."

"What do you mean? Duke Fantero, you have to understand that this is Vienna."

Naturally, there are many supporters of Austria among the great nobles. They like to say bad things about the Austrian government and the Habsburg family behind their backs, but they do not want to overthrow its rule.

In fact, due to the existence of the Royal Development Company, Franz invited these people to buy shares many times and even gave them private placements in order to win over these people.

Therefore, many big nobles are already shareholders of the Habsburg family. It is not easy for them to get off the ship. Naturally, they cannot sit still when they hear that someone is about to sink the ship.

Although Franz was almost ready to move these nobles into the Royal Development Company, some people still did not buy Franz's account.

It's nothing, they just simply feel that they cannot let the royal family succeed. Franz didn't have any good way to deal with these people, but as long as they didn't rebel, Franz wouldn't touch them and would even give them a chance to get on the bus.

But under the current crisis, some of the great nobles had other ideas.

Duke Fantero said in a tone of educating children.

"Duke Ryan, you are still young, don't be so impulsive. Take a look at the conditions proposed by the Hungarians first, and it is not too late for you to object."

The Ryan family and the Fantero family have been married for generations. The relationship between the two families is very close, and the latter is the elder of the former, so he can't say anything.

The Count of Savoy on the side snorted coldly.

"Duke Fantero, didn't you just buy the shares of the Royal Development Company? Even with your millions, you want to be a shareholder, so stop dreaming!"

"Do you have a role to speak here?"

Duke Fantero roared and pointed to the box beside him.

"Hungarians are very willing to spend money, and our status will be higher than lower."