Start 1861: I Just Inherited the Dutch Throne

On September 5, 1869, with the fall of the eastern territory of France, public opinion panic aroused in France. Many French people pointed the finger at Napoleon III and the French government. Naturally, Napoleon III would not take the blame, so the Prime Minister of the French government Olivier became the target of widespread criticism.

The defeat in the first battle had an immediate political impact. The French Prime Minister Emile Olivier's cabinet government collapsed. On September 10, after Napoleon III's nomination was approved by the French Parliament, Charles Couzin Montauban formed a new French cabinet. government.

This person is 74 years old and belongs to the camp of Queen Eugénie’s main war faction.

The members of the newly formed cabinet government have not yet breathed a sigh of relief, but the war in eastern France has become more urgent, because Prussia has brought a greater war tsunami this time.

On September 13, 1869, the Prussian First Army suddenly launched a full-scale attack on the French Province of Namur in the east. The war in the French Province of Namur was in danger. If the Prussian attack could not be stopped, it was very likely that Namur would be occupied. After the province of Namur, you will step into Sedan in France. If this is the case, it will definitely be a huge blow to France, because the province of Namur was taken from Belgium, but Sedan is French. Inherent territory is different in nature.

Moreover, the defensive fronts in Lorraine and Alsace in the south have lost Lorraine, and it seems that Alsace will not be able to hold on for long. Napoleon III already knows that he can no longer escape.

Therefore, on September 15, 1869, Napoleon III, as Emperor of France and Commander-in-Chief of France, left Paris together with the nearly 13-year-old Crown Prince Eugène Louis Jean-Joseph to command the army on the front line in eastern France.

At this time, Empress Eugenie took control of Paris when Emperor Napoleon III was commander-in-chief of the army. At the same time, the French government restored the laws adopted during the 1859 war, and Empress Eugenie served as Queen Regent of France for the third time.

After the news spread from France to Europe, countries had different opinions. However, one thing is the same, that is, it can be seen that France was finally in a tight situation during the Franco-Prussian War, and was not as relaxed as the former prime minister Olivier who had fallen.

When news of the changes in Paris reached London, Queen Victoria's expression changed drastically.

In 1856, at Windsor and Buckingham Palace, her former husband, Prince Albert, met Napoleon III and his wife Yang Qingguo. The most profound impression that this couple made on Queen Victoria was that they fascinated the British masters in their conversations.

In particular, Napoleon III's straightforwardness and determination also impressed Queen Eugenie's initiative and elegance.

The then 37-year-old Queen Victoria developed a deep friendship with the 30-year-old Eugenie. This formal meeting changed some of the Queen's prejudices about Napoleon III and France.

This contributed to the thawing of many difficult problems between Britain and France towards the end of the Crimean War.

It was precisely after that time that she began to be interested in Eugenie. In the past ten years, Eugenie had been regent twice, both after Napoleon III left Paris. This was an ambitious woman who was not willing to hide behind the scenes. The woman behind the man.

At this time, Napoleon III was on the front line and Eugenie was behind the scenes. Is this really suitable for France?

Queen Victoria didn't know what the outcome would be, but she knew one thing, that was, France might suffer from chaos in the ruling class.

as expected.

After Napoleon III arrived at the front line, the Paris government under the regency of Queen Eugenie had political needs to protect its own rule. After Eugenie was unable to forcefully stop the Paris aristocrats, Queen Eugenie had to accept their demands and was coerced by these Paris aristocrats to repeatedly intervene on the front line. Commander’s combat deployment. The purpose of preventing the front-line troops from retreating deep into the war zone was to protect the interests of the great nobles in the front-line border areas, and to use public weapons for private use, which seriously delayed the actions of the French army.

The final result was that the French Emperor Napoleon III, who was commanding on the front line, was ridiculously able to only take orders from Paris, thus making a big mistake that would later lead to his own suffering.

On September 18, 1869, the main Army of the Rhine (the Army of the Rhine, which was once again established separately) originally commanded by Napoleon III, initially ordered to retreat to the Army of Chalon barracks in the strategic hinterland in the middle of the country.

After this news came out from nowhere, it immediately shocked the whole of Paris. Many people were angry again. Napoleon III actually chose to retreat?

Abandon the east to the territory?

How is this possible?

Many people, especially those who like the republic but dislike the royal family, went around and scrambled for it, and paraded on the streets of Paris calling for the royal family to apologize.

Many Parisians with territorial interests in the east were also very dissatisfied with the losses caused to them by Napoleon III's abandonment of the east. In this mood, almost all the pressure was on the Paris government.

As a result, the Paris government composed of Eugenie and the great nobles had to admit that if the army had withdrawn, many vested interests in the capital who had lost their interests in the east would cause trouble or even rebel. The consequences would be very serious, so the situation quickly deteriorated. Their more serious approach was conveyed to Napoleon III in the front, causing great passivity on the front line. If they could not defeat Prussia forward, they should retreat. Many people in Paris were unhappy, so the Rhenish Army commanded by Napoleon III was in a dilemma. In this kind of situation, Under the circumstances, retreat should not be an option for Napoleon III.

Don't you retreat even when you get beaten?

When word of the "farce" on the eastern front of France and Paris spread to other countries, it immediately made people laugh.

Queen Victoria and Prime Minister Disraeli looked at each other, and finally sighed.

Queen Victoria: "The French Emperor Napoleon III has trapped himself in a cocoon"

Disraeli also sighed: "It seems that Prussia really has the upper hand in this Franco-Prussian War. It was originally evenly matched, but perhaps what will happen next will be beyond everyone's expectations."

After Queen Victoria frowned, she suddenly asked: "Are there any changes in the countries surrounding France and Prussia?"

Disraeli was very curious about this and said: "Not yet, but it seems that the Netherlands has been interacting frequently with the Swedish and Danish military recently. It seems that they are brewing something, but there should be no big plan, and they will never intervene in the Franco-Prussian War. Bar"

The speaker is unintentional, but the listener is intentional.

Queen Victoria's expression changed drastically.

"I'm not sure, they are really prepared to intervene."

After speaking, Disraeli did not wait for the suspicious look, and ordered: "Immediately call the MI-5 people. While keeping an eye on the Prussian and French sides, they will also focus on the Netherlands, Sweden and Denmark. I think, this time The Franco-Prussian War may be about to take a sharp turn."