Start 1861: I Just Inherited the Dutch Throne

As everyone in Europe was wondering whether Huntington, the Speaker of the Dutch House of Representatives, would visit Spain in the next two days to support Spain's sovereignty over Gibraltar, at 11 a.m. on February 19, 1869, the French Empire's Ministry of Foreign Affairs urgently announced an announcement: A small fleet of four battleships led by the steam battleship Rotterdam is passing through the English Channel, heading south, and may be targeting Spanish Pacific ports.

This attracted European and world attention.

At 12 noon on the same day, the French Ministry of Defense reported that the French Imperial Coast Fleet discovered four British warships sailing behind the Dutch fleet, also heading towards the northern coast of Spain.

The French Ministry of Defense announced that France discovered that the British battleships were all the battleships of the Home Fleet. Obviously, the British had a clear goal of following the Dutch fleet.

The French Ministry of Defense stated that in the face of the threat posed by the fleets of the two countries sailing in the English Channel, France dispatched a number of warships to follow it for surveillance.

With the news released in Paris, many people speculated that the Speaker of the Dutch House of Representatives might be on the Dutch fleet, otherwise Britain would not have to send such a battle.

As this fleet slowly arrives at the coast of Spain, many people have speculated that this will inevitably attract the attention of Europe. The militaries of the three countries of Britain, Spain and the Netherlands will be on standby, and tensions around Spain will suddenly rise.

The Spanish Ministry of Defense announced at 14:00 on February 19 that it has conducted exercises at the northern naval port and will welcome the visit of its Dutch counterparts. The Spanish Navy has entered a period of enhanced combat readiness guidance and the time will be slowly adjusted.

At the same time, the Dutch Ministry of Defense announced that the Dutch Navy and the Spanish Navy had established an annual joint naval exercise a few months ago. This exercise will be held in the next week. During the joint exercise, the two countries’ militaries The two sides will learn from each other's strengths and appreciate Spain's history as Europe's most powerful navy for centuries. The Spanish navy's experience deserves to be taken seriously by the Netherlands.

After this study, the Netherlands will learn valuable lessons in naval warfare.

At the same time, the British military has stated that it will not turn a blind eye to actions that harm British interests. The British Navy will do something to safeguard the interests of the country. It is hoped that the relevant countries will think twice before harming British interests.

According to Spanish sources, on that day, several British Navy ships had slowly emerged from the Strait of Gibraltar at the exit of the Mediterranean Sea and headed north of Spain in the Pacific. Obviously, this was a threat to attack the Spanish and Dutch fleets from the north and south.

Warships from the four countries of Britain, Spain, the Netherlands, and France gathered in northern Spain. For a time, the atmosphere there was so rich that it was suffocating. Many people were afraid that their guns would go off and a naval war would begin between Britain and France.

"If any country dares to take action against a Dutch warship, the Netherlands has the means to make the other party pay a serious price."

The Dutch Ministry of Defense issued an unabashed warning.

"Military exercises with other countries are each country's own right, and no one can take it away. At the same time, visiting other countries is also someone else's business, and no one can take it away. It can be said that it is the duty of the Dutch army to protect its own citizens. The current escalation of the situation in Spain is not good for anyone. The Dutch army keeps a close eye on the safety of its citizens at all times. If necessary, the Dutch army will not retreat. Any country that infringes on the rights of the Netherlands must think twice. "

The toughness of the Dutch Ministry of Defense shows that the Netherlands supports Huntington. Obviously, although it does not want Huntington to visit Spain, it has to be said that the Netherlands is very serious about safeguarding international threats.

In this regard, the United Kingdom did not back down. After the Dutch Ministry of Defense released the news, the British Foreign Ministry named the Netherlands as a cover-up. It is obvious that the Netherlands is attacking the blind spot of deliberately damaging British interests. The United Kingdom is very angry about this behavior. At the same time, the British Foreign Office asked the Netherlands to make a guarantee not to make any actions or remarks that harm the United Kingdom on the Gibraltar issue, otherwise the United Kingdom will not give up.

At the same time, the British Ministry of Defense stated that it will double the number of warships currently gathered along the coast of Spain in the next week to more than 16 ships.

The news announced by the United Kingdom immediately caused a sensation, and even many people in Spain became uneasy.

Many people in the Netherlands also feel pressured by this.

Obviously, everyone in the world knows how powerful the British navy is. Can the Netherlands and Spain be able to withstand it?

"Dutch Speaker of the House of Representatives Huntington's remarks about Gibraltar during his visit to Spain pushed Spain to the brink of war. Britain has repeatedly warned, why does the Spanish government not retreat? If this incident is due to the fact that the executive branch of the Dutch Tolbeck cabinet government cannot stop Speaker of the House of Representatives Huntington Caused by the insistence of the Netherlands, Spain can take advantage of the Netherlands' own troubles and take advantage of the situation to provoke the conflict over Gibraltar that has been silent for more than a hundred years between Spain and the United Kingdom. This gambling game on the line of fire can make Spain a battlefield at any time. ,"

In Spain, an informed political figure from the Spanish opposition party revealed dissatisfiedly, “The Dutch Prime Minister’s Office and the Dutch Ministry of Defense once discouraged Huntington from visiting Spain. The Spanish Parliament even wanted to withdraw the invitation due to strong British opposition, but Huntington still Keep visiting Spain”

According to relevant information, this means that it must have been an invitation from Spain for Huntington to visit Spain. The Spanish Parliament even gave Huntington a plan to support Gibraltar, which led to today's scene.

Since the Dutch executive branch has objected, Spain should be able to find a way to withdraw the invitation and say no to Huntington.

Spain understands Britain's tough attitude, and Gibraltar may cause major trouble between Britain and Spain, but it has to fight hard. In addition to Huntington's resolute attitude, it naturally has its own strategic considerations.

The Spanish government must also have seen that the Netherlands has been tied to this super storm, and that His Majesty the Netherlands will take the responsibility if something goes wrong, so they dare to let it go.

Spain has always been looking forward to having other major powers support Spain in the event of an accident between Britain and Spain. In the past, the French Empire was a good choice. If Spain had trouble, France would send troops to protect it. However, as the relationship between the French Empire and Britain eased, Britain tried to put pressure on it. Next, the French Empire's support for Spain's Gibraltar complex has become smaller and smaller, and it even dares not to talk about this topic publicly. Napoleon III has not dared to make a commitment since he came to power. This has made Spain from Isabella II to Ordinary people were very dissatisfied.

Especially when Spain was facing domestic turmoil, Paris even wanted to support Isabella II's uncle to become the new king of Spain. This shocked Isabella II, so she became an anti-French pioneer. . Under her leadership, a series of anti-French actions by the Kingdom of Spain brought relations between the two countries to a low point.

The Netherlands used to only selectively support Spain, but rarely dared to express its opinions on the Gibraltar issue. Of course, Spain didn't care before. However, with the rise of the Netherlands as a new power, the status of the Netherlands has changed rapidly. With the close relationship between Spain and the Netherlands, Spain is no longer satisfied that the Netherlands only sells weapons and ordinary political support to Spain.

Therefore, Spain is actually taking advantage of the visit of Huntington, Speaker of the Dutch House of Representatives, to create a trap for the Netherlands.

As the fourth most powerful person in the Netherlands, Huntington insists on visiting Spain and supports Spain. He represents the Kingdom of the Netherlands no matter what. The Dutch government must provide protection for his trip, especially since the United Kingdom has repeatedly warned him not to visit Spain. He also endorsed Spain's position on Gibraltar. He is still here. Naturally, the Dutch military will strictly protect him. He has not invaded Spain yet. Dutch warships have attracted warships from Britain, France and other countries to densely swarm the waters of northern Spain. Once a conflict occurs, it will be the British and Dutch warships. Even the four countries of France and Spain collided. "

The Spanish opposition continued to complain dissatisfied: "Prime Minister Ramon Narvaez's cabinet government may be planning that this is a risk and an opportunity. A conflict broke out between the trillions of British and Dutch people because of Huntington's visit to Spain. It means that the Netherlands and the United Kingdom have become direct conflict parties on the Spanish issue. In this way, Spain has found an important ally on the Gibraltar issue. This has become a Dutch war, and there is no question of whether to send troops or not to support Spain. If the Netherlands wants to win, it must mobilize its army to try its best. In this case, Spain can evolve from being an agent of the Netherlands or using anti-British objects to the Netherlands coming to Spain to help Spain fight the war, and once the war starts, it will be a military and economic During the multiple wars, Spain's troubles turned into troubles with the Netherlands, and the Netherlands' troubles with Spain soon turned into troubles with the Netherlands' allies.

With this idea in mind, Prime Minister Ramon Narvaez and Her Majesty Isabella II will let Huntington do things in Spain. The original plan was for Huntington to be greeted by Spanish Speaker Julian after leaving the port. , rested for a night, and set off to Madrid the next day. After visiting Her Majesty Queen Isabella II, he met with Prime Minister Ramon Narvaez, arrived at the Spanish House of Representatives to give a speech, and then returned to the Gibraltar border to support Spain’s position. .

Information came out yesterday that Huntington has become more active in Spain, and even plans to hold a press conference in Spain. He will also visit the British and Spanish Naval War Memorials in the afternoon and deliver a speech. At the same time, Huntington will participate in a hearing on the survival of Dutch people in Spain. , attended a meeting of the Spanish and Dutch Friendship Associations.

It is also reported that these changes were made after communication between Spanish House of Representatives Speaker Julián and Huntington’s team, showing that the legislative bodies of both parties are like-minded and are increasing their efforts to provoke the United Kingdom.

Even now in Madrid, many statuses are filled with Spanish and Dutch flags standing side by side on the streets, and there are various slogans thanking Huntington, Spain and the Netherlands for cooperation, etc., as high-profile as possible. "

Finally, the Spanish opposition called on the Spanish government not to be used as a weapon. What Spain needs is a safe and stable international environment, not a risky move.