Wild North America 1846

Chapter 593 The Dilemma of Johannes IV

Author: Portuguese toothless

Chapter 593 The Dilemma of Johannes IV

Ethiopia is geographically adjacent to Sudan and Egypt in North Africa. Since 670 AD, Ethiopia has had frequent exchanges with various historical European kingdoms and regimes, and has been deeply influenced by European culture.

It is the only ancient Christian country in the Near East and the world with a long history.

Among the various tribes on the Ethiopian plateau, in addition to the popular Semitic and tribal languages, English is the common language mastered by most of the upper-class indigenous nobles. In addition, there are a small number of nobles who are proficient in French and Spanish, and there is no obstacle to communication.

The famous letter written by Menelik II, the last Ethiopian emperor who committed suicide by gunshot, to Queen Victoria of England was written in English.

The letters written by Ethiopian Emperor Johannes IV were also written in English.

In his wandering court, there were many British and French assistants, as well as some Portuguese advisers. It can be said to be a more international royal court.

His Highness Tang Li Xin had no problem reading this handwritten letter, and he also wrote a reply in his own handwriting to express his greetings.

Adhering to the world's great powers' attitude of always asking for benefits, His Highness Tang Li Xin did not hesitate to express his praise in his reply.

He called Johannes IV "the most outstanding king of kings in Ethiopia in history", "a leader with world insights", "a dear friend", "an emperor who also has ancient and noble blood flowing in his body" and so on.

The real intention of His Highness Tang Li Xin is not to make any more mistakes in border demarcation.

The boundary demarcation treaty signed by Duke Surel and the Empire can only be said to be a preliminary framework plan and does not have real legal effect.

The plan must be voted on by the parliament after the envoys return to their respective empires, and must be signed and sealed by the emperors of both empires before it can take effect. This is a necessary final procedure that cannot be avoided.

Ethiopian Emperor Johannes IV, who was familiar with European legal codes, knew this very well and could not possibly fool him.

His Highness Tang Li Xin simply gave him a few high hats to wear, and with a stroke of his pen when he was happy, the "Tang-Ai Boundary Demarcation Treaty" was finalized. It had an unshakable legal basis and no one in later generations could overturn it.

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Only when the fat is in your mouth will it be safe, and a few kind words will be treated as gifts.

these days

His Highness Tang Li Xin temporarily postponed his return to Suez for the sake of the draft boundary demarcation treaty. The purpose was to finalize the draft and avoid unnecessary complications.

free time

His Highness obtained a lot of first-hand information about the current chaotic situation on the Ethiopian plateau from the British businessmen Ryan Jacks and James Tomkins, and gained a deeper understanding of the situation of Johannes IV.

His predecessor was Prince Kasa of the separatist side. His home base is in the Tigray region. He is the famous local chief of the Tigray tribe. The tribe has a population of about 356,000 people and more than 20,000 tribal warriors. It is one of the local separatist forces.

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He was made a prince during the reign of Menelik II. This princely title was modeled on the European noble title. Like the duke, it was awarded to the chiefs of major tribes to appease people's hearts. In fact, it had no other benefits, except that it was called a prince.

It sounds better.

1863

The expeditionary force led by the British General Napier attacked Menelik II. Prince Kassa, as a chief close to European forces, immediately responded positively and sent tribal warriors to join the crusade. Therefore, he was particularly favored by General Napier.

after the war

The British Expeditionary Force took away a large amount of loot, including more than 500 precious religious relics and treasures, most of which came from the Church of the Savior in Magdala.

Among these cultural relics are the 15th-century scroll of St. George slaying the dragon, a Bible manuscript with a history of more than 500 years, and a large number of royal jewelry. Including the crown of Theodorus II, a large Coptic cross made of high-quality sterling silver, etc.

, as well as a large amount of wealth harvested from the private sector.

Because Prince Casa was licking hard enough and providing logistics such as black women, cattle and sheep for the British Expeditionary Force, General Napier took some rifles, ammunition and military supplies that could not be taken away, as well as more than 40 guns before returning home.

All the artillery was left to Prince Casa.

Among them, there were approximately 13,000 smoothbore rifles and hundreds of barrels of black powder.

It was precisely with the help of this batch of advanced weapons and equipment that Prince Kassa was able to rise up in the disputes between princes. Emperor Johannes IV was crowned the "King of Kings" in the ancient city of Aksum and became the supreme ruler of this land of warlord disputes.

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Having said that, many warlords did not agree with him, let alone the absolute authority of Johannes IV.

For seven years from 1866 to the present, Johannes IV has been leading his troops to fight in all directions. During this period, there were losses and losses, but he was never able to unify the Ethiopian plateau.

The guns and ammunition left by General Napier were almost exhausted. He wanted to import large quantities but had no money. The equipment of the army under Johannes IV had returned to the cold weapon age, and the unification of the plateau was further out of reach.

The Kingdom of Shoa in the south, as well as several indigenous kingdoms such as Gojam, Wollo, and Simeon, are completely independent. In addition, there are a lot of separatist warlord chiefs who do not obey the orders of Emperor Johannes IV at all, and there is chaos on the plateau.

This is the current bad situation.

It must be said that the Tang Expeditionary Army came at a good time.

Conveniently, they captured the two major areas of Laremeche and Tataikuraro in the upper reaches of the Abbe River. Not only did they expand the entire Yunzhong Province to 210,000 square kilometers, they also acquired the Abbe River, known as the "Faucet of North Africa"

The importance of the 800-kilometer river section in the upper reaches is undoubted.

The Abe River, which originates from the Ethiopian Plateau, is one of the major rivers with the widest basin in the world. It is called the "Abe River" on the Ethiopian Plateau. This river flows from Lake Nata and winds to the Sudan border for about 800 kilometers.

kilometer.

The Abbe River was called the "Blue Nile" after it entered Sudan because of the dense jungle on both sides of the river, the clear and rapid water, and the large height difference, which was very conducive to the construction of larger water conservancy facilities.

The later-famous Renaissance Dam was built in the Gurmuz area of ​​Banni Mountain, 15 kilometers away from the Sudanese border, a small place below La Reimaich.

After flowing for hundreds of kilometers, the Blue Nile joins the White Nile in Khartoum, covering a total of about 800 kilometers in Sudan, and finally enters Egypt.

After entering Egypt, it becomes the mother river of Egypt, the "Nile River". It meanders for more than 1,200 kilometers in Egypt. The drainage area occupies 3% of Egypt's land, but it concentrates more than 95% of Egypt's population and more than 99% of its arable land.

It nurtured the splendid ancient Egyptian civilization.

Only in terms of water volume

The Abe River has a huge amount of water, and is joined by more than a dozen major tributaries originating from the Ethiopian Plateau. The entire water volume can reach more than 85% of the input of the Nile River. It is worthy of being called the "Faucet of East Africa".

The water volume of the White Nile is very small and unstable, accounting for only about 15% of the total water output, which is far from comparable to the Abe River.

The Tang Empire included Lalemachi and Tataikuraluo in the upper reaches of the Yunzhong Province into the territory of Yunzhong Province. It not only added 450,000 black indigenous tribes to the territory, but also not only added 85,000 square kilometers of land. It also controlled

The entire "North African faucet" has the ability to exert strategic influence on major powers in the region.

Say something unpleasant

Whether it is Sudan or Egypt, they all have to act according to the wishes of the Tang Empire. Otherwise, the Tang Dynasty can turn off the "North African faucet" at any time and let the downstream countries eat all the sand.

As soon as the plan to build a dam in the upper reaches spreads, these downstream countries will panic. This is really true.

"Your Majesty, Your Highness, I would like to recommend myself to serve you." Ryan Jacks politely performed a gentleman's chest caressing gesture, with a flattering smile on his face, and continued confidently;

"I am a member of the Royal Geographical Society and have rich knowledge of geography and hydrology. Whether it is building bridges, dams, planning railway lines or drawing professional maps, they are all my specialty.

Moreover, I have been doing business in the Near East and the Arabian Peninsula for more than ten years. I have traveled all over the mountains and rivers here, made friends with many tribal chiefs and senior leaders of indigenous kingdoms, and I am very familiar with the environment of this region.

Believe me with this experience, this is the person His Highness needs most."

"You should have a better choice, Mr. Ryan, such as serving the United Kingdom." His Highness Tang Lixin did not refuse, but responded with a warm expression.

The Tang Empire has no shortage of British, German or French people who have come to serve, but there are very few people who are familiar with the situation in Near and North Africa and have rich experience. Mr. Ryan in front of him is indeed a good choice to let Yunzhong Province make decisions

It will save you a lot of detours.

But this does not mean that the dishes you pick up are vegetables. You should always check to see if there are any pesticide residues.

Ryan Jacks smiled wryly, shrugged his shoulders, spread his hands and said frankly; "I don't think that is a better choice. In fact, as an expert on Near Eastern issues, I have served the British Colonial Department for many years.

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Reports are submitted irregularly every year, which are special reports on the situation in Egypt, Sudan, Ethiopia, or various regions of the Arabian Peninsula, historical origins or actual conflicts, hydrogeological conditions, and tribal vendettas.

There are many others in a similar situation to me, such as Father McLean who preaches in Khartoum or others.

And we will also get some similar charity-like rewards, maybe a dozen pounds, maybe 20 pounds, not much more.

I doubt that anyone will seriously read the report submitted, let alone formulate policies based on it.

Maybe it won't be placed on the desk of a powerful person at all, but thrown away in a room where information is stored, letting it gather dust day after day.

This is very frustrating…

Your Highness, you know that I am a Scotsman, and I am incompatible with the middle and upper levels of the government that are filled with English people. They will not give a Scotsman more opportunities.

This superficial perfunctoryness makes people feel even more frustrated. It seems to be saying...

Hey, man, come and take your meaty bones away. Go enjoy it somewhere where no one is, and don't bother me again."

"Hehehe..."

His Highness Tang-Li Xin couldn't help but burst into laughter. He majored in European history in Germany and had a deep understanding of the historical grievances and grievances between the English, Scots and Irish. He knew what kind of situation this was.

The feeling of helplessness.

After hundreds of years of development and evolution, the feudal royal power of the British Isles has now solidified its strata and even all walks of life. It restricts the entry of outsiders, including authentic English and Scots, through various industry guilds and civil organizations.

This stubborn insistence on tradition makes the dull and solid social environment almost suffocating. It is also the main reason why many British people go to North America and other colonies around the world to seek development. The domestic crisis is too serious.

Unless you are willing to be a bastard for the rest of your life, you will never get ahead.

This is not like the Tang Empire, where society is full of opportunities to get rich overnight, opportunities to become legends, and opportunities to rise in class. This is like a magnet, attracting those who are talented and ambitious, and come in droves.

Take effect.

Ryan Jacks is not the first, and he will never be the last.

After chuckling a few times, His Highness Tang-Li Xin turned his head to look at Colonel Liu Daqing beside him, and said, "Brother Daqing, I think Mr. Ryan has more comprehensive abilities and is a good helper. I will leave this person to you."

Use it."

"Very welcome, I am in urgent need of talents in this field." Colonel Liu Daqing nodded.

His Highness Tang Li Xin said "hmm", put away the smile on his face, and said seriously to Ryan Jacks;

"Mr. Ryan, I hope you can understand the true meaning of this arrangement.

In the entire Red Sea Rim region, only Yunzhong Province is an overseas colony that the Tang Empire will invest a lot of energy in building. It is enough for you to fight.

As for other places, they just maintain the status quo.

At this stage

Yunzhong Province needs to survey and plan railway lines, find out the types and quantities of minerals, need coal and iron ore and other minerals, and also need to rationally plan bridges, reservoirs and other infrastructure, and these are all areas in which you are good at.

Your report will not be locked in an iron cabinet, and will even affect the formulation of development policies in Yunzhong Province. For example, if high-quality iron ore and coal mines are discovered, then we will have the foundation to develop the smelting industry.

In this process of changing the historical face of the region, I believe Mr. Ryan will not give up the opportunity to showcase his talents, right?"

"I am very honored to be able to contribute to the development of Yunzhong Province. Your Highness, you will not be disappointed with today's decision." Ryan Jacks expressed his gratitude very gentlemanly, with a fiery light shining in his eyes.

He has only a few short decades in his life, and he is not willing to spend it in a sluggish way. Now he is ready to roll up his sleeves and do something big.

"Then your original..."

"Your Highness, I will send a telegram to Cairo to resign from this part-time job. I believe they will be happy to save another salary. Maybe they will line their own pockets, who knows?"

"Okay, the Preparatory Office of Yunzhong Province will issue you a formal appointment letter and hire you as an infrastructure consultant. It may be more suitable."

"Thank you very much Your Highness, I will prove myself suitable for this job."

(End of chapter)