Start 1861: I Just Inherited the Dutch Throne

With the end of the seven-week Austro-Prussian War, Napoleon III once again asked the French government to claim these two areas.

Prussia did not agree at first, and now it even has no idea.

Therefore, Bismarck chose to make public the incident in which Prussia refused to cede territory and demanded the death of Napoleon III.

Bismarck even revealed Napoleon III's original letter directly in the interview in order to avoid being accused of being falsely accused.

This adds to his persuasiveness.

However, invisibly, Bismarck's actions completely annoyed the French Empire, especially its ruler Napoleon III.

As a result, the atmosphere in France and Prussia was very solemn, and the flames of war without gunpowder seemed to spread between the two countries.

Napoleon III became the object of ridicule in European society because of such a round of calculations by Bismarck, especially the "letter scandal" that was exposed, which made him the biggest victim of the "Transaction Gate".

Both Prussia and Austria hated him very much, and even the entire Germans hated him with the same hatred.

"Not to mention other things, Bismarck's ability to divert attention and establish an enemy to gather internal capabilities is really amazing."

Dutch Prime Minister Tolbeck said with admiration.

"Yes, the French Empire used to have some influence in the Southern German Confederation such as Württemberg and Beden, but now it is because of scruples and fear of being betrayed that no one dares to trust him."

Haysbet Feng also said.

"If not, how will his government win the next election? But I have to say that Bismarck's restraint is also extraordinary."

Mark Rudd, Chief of the General Staff, appreciated: "It is said that His Majesty King William I of Prussia and his generals wanted to continue attacking Austria and capture Vienna. It was Bismarck who dissuaded them, and they stopped as soon as they saw fit.

If this is not the case, then Prussia will use too much force and will be exhausted, and will eventually face France and Britain who are afraid of them. Even the Tsarist Empire does not know whether it will be a stumbling block behind its back.

Therefore, Bismarck can be said to have mastered the self-control of sending and receiving freely, which I admire very much."

Not to mention, he is worthy of being the chief of general staff. This theory is one after another, and it is really not a guarantee.

William IV nodded secretly.

"Now that the Franco-Prussian conflict has become public, the five-year alliance of the original Franco-Prussian-Dutch Alliance starting on February 17, 1862 is approaching, and it will arrive next year."

Foreign Minister Hesbert von said: "Based on the current relationship between the Kingdom of Prussia and the French Empire, it is very likely that the renewal of the contract originally agreed upon will be unsustainable. Therefore, we need to make other plans."

William IV secretly said: "Yes, historically, before the Austro-Prussian War, the relationship between these two countries was neither good nor bad.

Anyway, there is no conflict between wells and rivers, and each other uses each other to check and balance the opponents around them.

However, after the Austro-Prussian War, the French Empire faced the powerful and rising Prussia, and then it faced the other party as its opponent.

Austria, which had always been regarded as an opponent, was despised by Napoleon III because of its defeat by North Prussia.

So historically, starting from 1867 onwards, the combination of France’s suspicion and Prussia’s wariness slowly led to the Franco-Prussian War that began in 1870.”

Thinking of this, William IV said: "This existing covenant is just a fig leaf now. We really need to make corresponding preparations as soon as possible. Everyone, do you have any good suggestions?"

After a moment, Hesbert Feng said: "Your Majesty, I think France can be a good friend to us. However, this country likes to do things repeatedly. In the recent three-nation alliance's coordinated external operations, , France always hides behind and does nothing.

This has exceeded the position of the three countries' coordination. Therefore, I feel that I am more optimistic about the relationship between Prussia and the Netherlands than you, the French Empire."

"In other words, do you think the Netherlands should form an alliance with Prussia in the future instead of France?"

Haysbet von Busy explained: "The ambitions of Napoleon III of the French Empire are also not small. Compared with Prussia's current focus on the internal governance of the German Confederation, France has always been expanding externally, especially in its surrounding areas.

Some time ago, we took away several southern provinces of Belgium, and now, as revealed, we are eyeing those places within the German Confederation, hoping to take advantage of the opportunity.

These all show that although Napoleon III was not successful, he had many ideas.

If the Netherlands faces such an ally in the future, we will not only have to face an opponent, but also an ally that may be a stumbling block behind the scenes. Why is it necessary to have an ally? "

"Having said that, it would not be good for the Netherlands to have a bad relationship with France. You must know that the Netherlands borders the territory of France. With the north and south of Belgium being divided by us, the Netherlands and France already border the Principality of Luxembourg and Limburg."

Mark Rudd said fearfully.

Hesbert von: "But we have more borders with Prussia. Not to mention Limburg and Luxembourg. The Principality of Nassau is still in Prussia, and Prussia and Prussia have taken over the Kingdom of Hanover.

The entire north and east of our Netherlands is Prussian territory. Faced with such a neighbor, why should we choose France instead of Prussia?"

William IV also had a headache.

Mark Rudd is thinking about the issue from a military perspective.

France's military is not weak, and it has been an empire for a long time, and France has always been the overlord of Western Europe.

Prussia was a newly rising power. Moreover, it is very dangerous for the Netherlands to take advantage of the recent victory in the war, because they are likely to have a headache, thinking that the generals who want to gain more results will continue to charge into the battle and seize the right to govern Prussia.

It is not uncommon for the military to suppress the government.

Therefore, it is actually understandable that Mark Rudd would rather be a neighbor of a civilized country like peaceful France and be wary of Prussia.

But Hesbert Feng thought about the problem from a diplomatic perspective.

The French Empire has been domineering for a long time. Perhaps when it saw the threat from Prussia, it also opened its mouth because the Netherlands was also wary of Prussia, and wanted to seek more concessions and benefits from the Netherlands.

Diplomacy does not involve the direct use of swords and guns, but the secret tactics are also difficult to resist.

Therefore, Hesbert Feng would rather face France because it is easy to control, so he has a bit of an ostrich mentality.

Thinking of this, William IV said: "Since the two have different opinions, what about Prime Minister Tolbeck?"

Hesbert von and Mark Rudd heard this and both looked at the Dutch Prime Minister.

Tolbeck said: "You two, I don't think we need to decide who to ally with and who to be friends with right now?

There is no need to set up a framework for yourself. You can jump out and think on a larger scale. Since the covenant is about to disappear, the Netherlands needed it at the beginning, but now the environment the Netherlands faces has changed. Prussia no longer has too many scruples. I think we can Giving up on forming an alliance with them, instead keeping a distance from them all, and making good friends with the countries around them is what is most needed.

after all"

Tolbeck said: "The Netherlands, if it wants to emerge as a big country, then slowly establish its own position, so that it can gain the respect of all countries, instead of having to rely on others in the future."

William IV and others were stunned: Yes, the Netherlands is not weak now, but it needs to show its strength.

Tolbeck said: "Otherwise, Prussia and France would think that the Netherlands is easy to bully!

After all, people have been thinking about our ‘fat’ in the Far East for a long time. Maybe they are just like South Africa when the British took over us, and they fantasize about us sending it to them.”