Chapter 365: From Austria to Russia
Of course, Joseph wouldn't tell the Holy Roman Emperor that among the enemy forces in Brussels, over 18,000 were the Southern Netherlands militia, who were practically useless in battle. This group included the remnants of Witte's forces, whose morale had been shattered by the Imperial Guard, along with hastily conscripted farmers and merchants. Even the Dutch troops were mostly recruits from last year's uprising and lacked real combat capability.
The only formidable force was the 13,000 Hanoverians, but they lacked cavalry and artillery. Still, the total number of 35,000 soldiers was attributed to Prince Carl, which was intimidating enough on paper.
Joseph continued writing on the letter:
"To prevent the Southern Netherlands from falling back into rebel hands, you will need to deploy at least 20,000 soldiers here. Moreover, since Prussia and Hanover might send reinforcements, it would be wise to gather even more troops to ensure security.
Oh, and one more important thing, dear Uncle. Due to the threat from Prussian forces near Liège, our logistics have faced significant challenges. You know, the convoys from Luxembourg to Brussels must pass near Liège, which makes our supply lines vulnerable to attacks. Therefore, I hope to requisition military supplies locally in the Southern Netherlands, which would also save you some expenses."
Currently, a large portion of the French military expenses in the Southern Netherlands was covered by Austria. If the French were allowed to "requisition supplies locally," it would essentially mean taking over the tax revenue of the Southern Netherlands. Inevitably, this would require setting up some administrative positions to facilitate communication with the locals and the transportation of goods.
As for the "incompetent" Austrian officials, it would be quite natural for them to temporarily relinquish their duties during the war.
Joseph ended the letter with a righteous assurance: France will continue to provide Austria, its closest ally, with as much support as possible. Preparations are already underway to send reinforcements to the Brussels front, so the Emperor should have no worries.
He knew very well that Austria and Prussia were fiercely engaged in Silesia, where even a minor retreat could lead to disastrous consequences. Therefore, Emperor Joseph II was likely itching to recall the Austrian forces from the Southern Netherlands and certainly wouldn't send an additional 20,000 soldiers there.
So, Austria would be left with only two choices: 1) Abandon the Southern Netherlands, or 2) Offer concessions to France in exchange for their help in stabilizing the region.
In reality, there was no choice. If the Southern Netherlands gained independence, not only would the Empire suffer a severe loss of face and morale, but the Southern Netherlands militia and Dutch forces might even go to Silesia to support the Prussians. This would tip the balance in Prussia's favor, effectively ending Austria's chances in the war.
After handing the letter to a messenger, Joseph summoned a staff officer to deliver a message to the Austrian commander, Leo, in Luxembourg.
Just as he finished, Emans entered the tent with a messenger from Paris. The latter respectfully greeted Joseph before taking two letters from a leather case and handing them to Emans.
Joseph accepted the letters from his attendant. One was from Archbishop Briand, likely seeking the Prince's input on recent important matters in France—essentially a report. The other letter was from Queen Marie, with an attachment: a "Plan to Promote Russo-French Trade" submitted by the Russian ambassador.
Curious, he opened his mother's letter first.
As usual, the letter began with a lengthy declaration of how much she missed him, how she couldn't sleep thinking about him every night. Then she expressed concern over whether he was eating well in Luxembourg, if he was staying healthy, and not overexerting himself. She also scolded him for forgetting to bring his chefs along.
Feeling the warmth of his mother's love, Joseph smiled. It seemed his mother wrote the letter while he was still in Luxembourg. However, what's the point of bringing chefs to the front lines? Usually, they'd have to bring several carts of kitchenware and ingredients as well.
Suddenly, Joseph thought that perhaps he could have the royal chefs prepare nutritious meals for the wounded soldiers. It would show the troops that the royal family cared about them, and it would also stop his mother from scolding him about it.
He continued reading.
Marie then urged him not to go too close to the front lines and to leave the fighting to the generals—France had plenty of generals, after all.
Joseph couldn't help but feel a bit sentimental. To his mother, he would always be a vulnerable little child.
"Well, in that case, just give me a general's rank," he muttered, rolling his eyes as he turned to the second page.
After the motherly concerns, Marie recounted an amusing incident: The Russian ambassador, Count Stroganov, apparently drunk, expressed his admiration for France's "Swedish Plan" and promised to support France's claims in the Low Countries. Incredibly, Stroganov even suggested that once the Russian army crossed Poland, they would support France's conquest of the Rhine from Austria's eastern side. "Can you believe the nonsense he was spouting?" she wrote. "But even drunk, he was still articulate."
Joseph narrowed his eyes. The "Swedish Plan" was something he personally devised and had Talleyrand use to deceive the Russians. Clearly, this was Catherine the Great's response, and it was far from just a drunken ramble by the Russian ambassador.
What surprised him was the sheer audacity of Catherine's ambitions—not only did she want Sweden and Poland, but she also envisioned a joint partition of Germany with France! She truly deserved her reputation as the most formidable woman of the late 18th century.
To be honest, Joseph felt tempted by Catherine's proposal for a few seconds. If France could secure all the territories west of the Rhine, including the prosperous regions of the Netherlands and Belgium, and likely Italy as well—given that Austria would be too preoccupied to defend it—France would become the true hegemon of Europe.
However, he quickly shook off these unrealistic thoughts. Clearly, Catherine wanted France to take the brunt of the opposition so that Russia could expand unchallenged.
Consider what Russia was aiming for—Sweden, Poland, and possibly the northeastern Balkans. These were regions relatively distant from Europe's core, and even if Russia annexed them, the major European powers—Britain, Prussia, Austria, the Netherlands, and Spain—might hesitate to intervene due to the high costs involved.
In contrast, the benefits Catherine "offered" France—control over the Low Countries and the Rhine—were vital to Europe's major powers. They would fight to the death to prevent France from taking these regions!
Joseph grabbed the messenger and asked sternly, "How did Her Majesty respond to the Russian ambassador?"
The messenger only knew that Count Bobrinsky and Grand Duchess Alexandra were also present at the time. Beyond that, he had no idea.
That made sense—Stroganov, wary of leaks, had avoided all official settings, even disliking the idea of a ball. He had specifically chosen a private art exhibition to have this confidential conversation with Queen Marie.
Joseph sighed in relief. Catherine had sent both her illegitimate son and granddaughter, showing she was serious about this proposal. Although his mother's letter made it seem like she thought the ambassador was just talking nonsense, Joseph worried that she might impulsively agree.
He quickly wrote a letter back to Queen Marie, urging her not to respond to the Russians, and handed it to the messenger, instructing him to deliver it to Versailles as quickly as possible.
Watching the messenger leave, Joseph reflected that he needed to brief his mother on strategic matters in advance in the future. If she ever made a blunder, it could be difficult to clean up.
As for Catherine's proposal, while it couldn't be accepted, Joseph figured he could leverage her ambitions to France's advantage. But how exactly to do that would require careful thought.
He then picked up the "Plan to Promote Russo-French Trade." It mainly expressed Catherine's desire to expand trade with France and reduce dependence on British trade. Clearly, the rising trade volume of the Gemini Trading Company had caught her attention.
Joseph scanned the document, finding the clauses rather dull. France's demand for raw materials was only so high, and Russia's market wasn't going to fully open up to France, so their current trade volume was likely at its peak.
Russia did have plenty of coal and iron resources, but they were too far from France, making transportation costs prohibitively high. Otherwise, it might have been worthwhile to purchase large quantities.
He was about to toss the document aside when something occurred to him. "Wait, high transportation costs? We could localize the operations..." he muttered to himself.
He immediately recalled a British business venture in Russia during the 19th century.
After Russia's defeat in the Crimean War, the Tsar realized the importance of the steel industry and the urgency of developing the regions around Crimea. Around that time, a British entrepreneur named John Hughes, tired of the competition in Britain, decided to try his luck in Russia. He noticed that the Donbass region, north of Crimea, was rich in coal and iron but hadn't been effectively exploited.
He signed a contract with the Tsarist government, invested some money in Donbass, and personally brought over a hundred British workers to start mining and building factories.
At the time, Russia was heavily investing in building the Baltic Fleet, and Hughes's ironworks supplied the steel for the shipyards, earning him a fortune. He eventually expanded his ironworks into a sizable town. His investment miracle continued until nearly a century later, when the October Revolution finally put an end to it.
Currently, the coal and iron resources of the Donbass region hadn't even been explored. If he invested now, the costs would be much lower than Hughes's—he could probably buy high-quality coal and iron mines for the price of barren land. He could then set up local factories to mine and produce raw ingots, which could be shipped back to France for refinement. Any surplus coal could be turned into coke and shipped to France or even sold locally for profit.
The factories would employ Russians, and even if their wages were low, there'd be no worry of unrest—the Tsar was notoriously harsh on domestic troublemakers.
Of course, the ironworks in Russia would use outdated technology to prevent the rapid advancement of Russian industry.
It was a virtually foolproof plan!
Moreover, establishing mines and factories would also boost Russia's tax revenue and help build the hinterland of Crimea. Crimea was Russia's most crucial port, providing a vital maritime trade route with Europe. Every Tsar had prioritized it, especially after Catherine the Great defeated the Ottomans and secured control of this gateway to the Black Sea.
If France could help Russia solidify its control over Crimea—by developing surrounding towns and attracting settlers—it would undoubtedly earn Catherine's deep gratitude. Historically, the Tsars had always protected Hughes's investment, which spoke volumes.
A smile played on Joseph's lips. Given that, it would be appropriate to ask for something in return from Catherine the Great; otherwise, she might feel indebted.
So, he picked up his pen and began writing at the end of the "Trade Plan" document:
"France appreciates and supports the above terms of the plan...
In order to further promote the traditional friendship between Russia and France, France will encourage its investors and factory owners to invest in the development of the Crimean region... Only investments, with no involvement in political or military affairs, in full compliance with Russian tax and trade laws...
We hope that Her Majesty the Empress will consider providing appropriate assistance to France in matters related to North Africa..."
After handling the Russian matter, Joseph finally opened Briand's letter and began reading it.
The Prime Minister started by reporting the general situation in France, asking the Prince to decide on a few uncertain issues. He then discussed the significant costs of recent military operations abroad. Due to various unforeseen circumstances, total expenses had exceeded projections by 12%, though they were still within the budget. However, if France continued its military campaigns, the budget would likely run into problems by the end of the year.
This didn't surprise Joseph. However, he had no intention of waging long-term wars abroad. At least in North Africa, a turning point should arrive soon. And once they started collecting local taxes in the Southern Netherlands, it would relieve a large part of the financial burden. Overall, things were still under control.
He continued reading.
Towards the end of the letter, Briand reported on the latest discussions in the Cabinet regarding the land buyout plan for the peasants.
Joseph frowned instinctively. This buyout plan had already gone through three revisions but still failed to satisfy anyone.
Yes, although he had previously pushed to abolish the feudal privileges of the nobility, the policy on how peasants could buy land had not yet been announced.
So, for the peasants, they had only been exempted from some minor taxes like mill taxes, oven taxes, and hunting taxes. The core issue of land ownership had not yet been addressed, which was the main reason they weren't particularly enthusiastic about the abolition of feudal privileges.
However, the specifics of how the land buyout should work were extremely tricky and could easily destabilize the entire nation.
(End of Chapter)
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