Chapter 1103 The second Moroccan crisis breaks out
After a group of senior officials in the city of Mostar discussed the issue of "war preparation", it was not difficult to implement it. Although this is the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the lower Neretva River Valley can be said to have been infiltrated into a sieve by East Africa. .
There are a large number of East Africans present in important institutions such as regional governments, courts, customs, and the military. At the same time, East Africa controls the lifeblood of the local economy. It can be said that those participating in this meeting are the shadow governments in the lower Neretva River Valley. Second government.
So starting in 1911, with the support of this shadow government, East Africa began to orderly transport weapons, food and other war preparation materials to the lower Neretva River Valley. At the same time, locals were treated in farms and factories controlled by Hechingen. public opinion propaganda and military training.
…
Textile factory in the city of Mostar.
Lehtard, director of the Publicity Department, is giving a safety education class to the textile workers in the factory, but the content of his lecture today is a little different.
Letard stood in front of the workers and said: "Today we are not talking about conventional safety education issues, but how to protect our homeland in a state of war. Europe, especially the Balkan Peninsula where we are located, is the center of global conflicts. In hotspot areas, extremist nationalists often carry out terrorist activities in the Balkans, which are not limited to sabotage, assassination and other activities. This is something we must be vigilant about, and our factory employees must resist this kind of thinking. "
"Mr. Letard. What kind of national extremists are too far away from us? We are just small workers, how can we encounter such trouble." Some workers questioned.
Letard said: "No, the truth is exactly the opposite. This is closely related to our lives and work. The main reason you have not encountered this situation is that the regional government and economy have not encountered problems."
“If you often pay attention to the news in Bosnia or other regions in the Balkans, you will know if there is anything wrong with what I am talking about, not just extreme ethnic groups, but also extreme religions.”
“And our city, Mostar, is obviously the object of common hatred between these two forces, such as the religious forces left over from the Ottoman Empire, or the extreme national sentiments of the Kingdom of Serbia.”
“Suppose the Kingdom of Serbia rules Mostar, can the equal social status you enjoy now continue to be maintained?”
"Not to mention anything else, the skin color of most of you makes it difficult for you to integrate into Europe. The moral character of the Balkan Peninsula army can be said to be the same as that of soldiers and bandits. And we, Mostar, are a typical economically developed country in the Balkan Peninsula. Once the area is at the mercy of others, just wait and enjoy the suffering you have had!”
Letard only gave a little guidance, and many workers fell into this kind of thinking. After all, Mostar is an area dominated by immigrants from the Far Eastern Empire, and it is incompatible with the surrounding culture and forces.
While Letard was promoting this hatred of Serbian ultra-nationalism and religious extremism to its workers, many other factories were doing the same thing.
At the same time, the media in the lower Neretva River Valley also began to highlight the various disasters caused by extreme nationalism and extreme religion in Bosnia, as well as the destruction of social order.
In addition to ideological guidance, material reserves have also quietly begun. With the cooperation of customs personnel, weapons produced in East Africa have quietly flowed to rural areas in the lower Neretva River Valley.
The Austro-Hungarian officials stationed in Mostar were unaware of this. It can be said that a powerful military force has been accumulated in the lower Neretva River Valley, just waiting for the right time to explode.
…
Rhine City.
"His Majesty the Emperor, and His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, this is an urgent message from Europe today. According to the information from our intelligence personnel, Germany sent a warship to the port of Agadir during the day, triggering a fierce response from the French government." Constantine had just returned from a northern resort recently. The white-haired old emperor asked Ernst: "How is the relationship between Germany and France recently? Where is Agadir?"
Ernst said: "Agadir is a port in Morocco. In fact, the last time, almost when our First Five-Year Plan was about to end, Germany and France had a conflict over the Moroccan issue. This should be considered the second time. ”
“It seems that the competition between Germany and France has reached a fever pitch. This time the French government’s response is very strong, and the domestic national sentiment is almost one-sided in support of the war.”
This can be considered a new grudge. After the Franco-Prussian War, France had always wanted to take revenge on Germany, and the two Moroccan crises can be said to have completely exploded French national sentiment.
After all, Morocco’s position is very special, so France has always regarded Morocco as its own sphere of influence, and Germany’s intervention is naturally unacceptable to the French who already control Morocco.
Constantine asked: "Is it possible that war will break out between Germany and France?"
Ernst shook his head and said: "The final result is not certain. At this time, it depends on whether the top leaders of the two countries are clear-headed. If we really take this as an opportunity, it is very possible to declare war on each other."
After the second Moroccan crisis broke out in the previous life, France and Germany even started mobilizing their troops and almost started fighting. Therefore, Ernst did not dare to say whether the European war would break out in advance. Even a change in details may change the direction of history. .
In the context of the current world situation, Ernst believes that there is a possibility of war breaking out in Europe at any time. This feeling is just like when the economy was in recession in the previous life, Ernst believed that World War III might break out at any time.
At present, both Britain and France are afraid of Germany's industrial development, especially as Germany continues to expand its armaments. As time goes by, this concern has intensified.
Ernst said to Constantine: "In the current environment, a large-scale war may break out in Europe at any time. After all, Germany's industrial and military expansion has been difficult to stop, and the German business community's desire for markets and overseas colonies can at any time It will also push the whole of Europe into the abyss of war.”
Germany’s military expansion cannot be contained at all, especially in terms of its navy. It is certainly impossible for Germany to let these newly built warships rot until they rot. Such a high-profile participation in the naval arms race was prepared for war from the beginning.
It is obviously impossible for Britain and France to give Germany satisfactory bargaining chips for peace. Given the current market demand of the German business community, it is impossible for Britain and France to meet it.
Furthermore, Britain and France will not make concessions to Germany. As the world hegemon, Britain naturally cannot show weakness. After all, if the world hegemon shows weakness, it will be difficult for him to convince the public, and the world hegemony system built by Britain will collapse.
This is especially true for France. Currently, French society is full of revenge against Germany. The spirit of the French people today is not comparable to that of the French during World War II. At this time, any politician who dares to show weakness to Germany will probably be labeled " Traitor" label.
Britain and France have reasons for doing this, and the same is true for Germany. Radicals in Germany have also expanded. Mainly since the middle of the last century, Prussia has been too smooth. Now the whole of Germany has become the most developed region in Europe. The national Pride is running high.
Moreover, as democratic countries, this kind of national sentiment in European countries can easily affect the ruling class. Although this sentiment is originally instigated by interest groups, it can easily backfire once it is instigated. Germany is better, but William II I get emotional too easily, which makes it even more dangerous.
The French and British governments will inevitably be more affected. After all, public sentiment is also related to votes, and the emergence of hostility to Germany in the two countries also shows that Germany has caused huge damage to the interests of interest groups in both countries.
In short, among the three countries, except for the temporary indecision of the British government, the conflicts between Germany and France are irreconcilable, and war may break out at any time.
(End of this chapter)