Chapter 443: Development of Bosnia |
On April 6, 1869, the weather in Stockholm was exceptionally clear. Amid the joyous laughter and cheers of the people, the Nordic Federation was established.
After the collapse of the Kalmar Union, the three Nordic countries achieved unity once more. The only regret was the absence of Finland, and the Baltic regions were no longer part of their domain, lacking the glory of their peak.
The emergence of the Nordic Federation meant that Sweden, Denmark, and Norway, three peripheral European countries, could now make their voices heard in the world.
Franz did not attend the ceremony in person, as traveling long distances in this era was truly inconvenient. Unless someone enjoyed social gatherings, most people were not enthusiastic about traveling abroad.
The unification of the Nordic countries had little impact on Austria, but it was a headache for the Russians. One can imagine that at this moment, Alexander II’s expression must have been quite interesting, as the appearance of the Nordic Federation significantly increased the defense pressure on Russia’s northern border.
With Prussia setting a precedent, who could guarantee that the Nordic Federation wouldn’t follow suit? If they were to somehow seize Finland, the Russian Empire might have to relocate its capital.
St. Petersburg was indeed a great place, but the national defense pressure was a bit high. It wasn’t an issue when the Russian Empire was strong, but in a state of decline, it became dangerous.
In comparison, Moscow was much better. Located in the center of Russia’s Eastern European territory, it was strategically almost completely secure. By the time an enemy reached Moscow, winter would have already defeated them.
The area around Moscow was a granary, ensuring food supply wouldn’t be an issue. Additionally, there were rivers facilitating material transportation, making the logistics convenient, and building a few more railroads would make it perfect.
Alexander II certainly didn’t think that far ahead. Under the dual pressure of political and military strife, he had only just managed to confine the rebels to the Moscow region.
After all the turmoil, Moscow’s economy had suffered devastating blows. The bourgeoisie, who supported the revolutionaries, ended up shooting themselves in the foot.
It was easy to start an uprising, but controlling it was far more difficult. Initially, they supported the revolutionaries to gain some rights, but instead of gaining those rights, they ended up losing their assets.
When the civil war broke out, faced with a matter of life and death, the revolutionary party did not treat them kindly, requisitioning what they could and issuing IOUs.
In short, the bourgeoisie suffered greatly. Unless the rebels won, their initial investments would be unrecoverable.
If the rebels failed, these supporters would face the risk of being purged by the Russian government. Alexander II might have had a broad mind, but he had no tolerance for traitors.
Franz naturally capitalized on this negative example, spreading it widely. Recently, Vienna’s newspapers had significantly increased their coverage of the Moscow rebels, with their stance shaping their viewpoint.
The flaws and misdeeds of the rebels were magnified, while the Russian government was portrayed in a more favorable light. As monarchies, they had to support each other.
Otherwise, after losing the Russo-Prussian War, Alexander II would have been labeled as a tyrant long ago. How could he have earned the title of a reformist ruler?
Not only Austria, but most of Europe’s media refrained from blaming the war’s failure on Alexander II. Instead, the ousted bureaucrats were made to bear the brunt of the blame.
In the coverage of the Russo-Prussian War, there was a deliberate effort to downplay the significance of the Kingdom of Prussia, focusing instead on the corruption within the Russian bureaucratic group that led to the war’s failure. It was clear that many were still unwilling to accept the rise of Prussia.
Although the Kingdom of Prussia had defeated the Russian Empire and joined the ranks of European great powers, it had not supplanted Russia’s position.
Originally, European affairs were dominated by four major powers. With Russia out of the picture, it became the three great powers of Britain, France, and Austria dominating Europe. Prussia did not gain the international standing it desired.
In this era, international standing was not just about prestige but also about the division of interests. As the existing beneficiaries, the three countries—Britain, France, and Austria—had no intention of sharing their influence with Prussia.
This left the Prussian government feeling quite hurt. The three great powers could all be considered world empires, each with vast colonies, having divided the world along with Spain, Portugal, and the Netherlands.
As a newly emerging power, Prussia found itself in an awkward position. Now at the tail end of the colonial era, the established colonial empires had already completed land grabbing, staking their claims even without actual occupation.
What was left for Prussia was hardly even scraps. Besides a small colony in Asia, Prussia’s presence was barely noticeable.
This was highly disadvantageous for the post-war economic recovery of the Kingdom of Prussia. However, the world was only so large, and there simply wasn’t much left.
In the original timeline, there was a conference to divide up the African continent for colonization, but now it was unnecessary. Most areas had already been divided up, so there was no need for an international conference.
In the original timeline, there was a conference to divide up Africa, but that wasn’t needed now. Most of the coastal regions were already divided among Britain, France, and Austria, with Portugal and Spain holding parts as well, while the Netherlands had been pushed out.
Discussions about acquiring colonies are unnecessary at this point, as there is hardly any territory left to colonize. Moreover, Prussia didn’t have the strength to invest overseas; maintaining a small colony in Southeast Asia was already a significant achievement.
With no other options, Prussia could only focus on developing itself. The Prussian government welcomed the arrival of the Japanese delegation at this time.
Even a small gain was valuable; gaining an overseas trade partner could potentially boost the domestic economy.
The Prussian government took the opportunity to sell various products to the delighted Japanese delegation, with second-hand military equipment being the best-selling items.
Strengthening the military was the first and most crucial step of the Meiji Restoration. The Japanese were not wrong in this approach. In this era of survival of the fittest, without sufficient military power, any amount of wealth was simply to benefit others.
Prussia’s efforts to expand its market in East Asia did not attract much attention from the outside world. In everyone’s impression, the Japanese government was extremely poor, and even Franz overlooked the Japanese obsession with military development.
In 1869, the Japanese delegation signed a foreign trade deal with Prussia worth 1.58 million guilders. This was no small figure and ranked among the top twenty annual foreign trade contracts.
The surprise in the newspapers merely caused capitalists to regret missing out on a lucrative opportunity. Such commercial news was something Franz typically ignored.
He was currently reviewing the development strategy plan for the province of Bosnia. As one of Austria’s poorest provinces, the current provincial government of Bosnia did not intend to continue in its passive state.
This change was forced upon them. Previous provincial governments had only needed to focus on one key task to show progress, but those tasks had already been completed by their predecessors.
The population of Bosnia was not large, to begin with, and it had also undergone a thorough purge. After more than a decade of unwavering efforts, the assimilation work had preliminarily reached a conclusion.
The language and script had been unified, and customs and habits had largely been reformed. By the time the current government took office, these traditional measures of achievement were no longer viable.
Time waits for no one, and many members of the Austrian cabinet have aged, with a reshuffle expected within a few years.
Those qualified to step up were typically those with outstanding local governance records. This did not mean that local officials had no chance. With remarkable achievements, they too could rise through the ranks.
Even if they were to fall short, becoming a minister in one of the departments would still be a significant step forward. Ambitious individuals would naturally seize this opportunity.
Franz was not afraid of his subordinates having ambition as it also represented motivation. Having a group of lazy, indifferent officials would be disastrous.
Austria’s bureaucratic system required officials to climb the ranks step by step. Without achievements in local governance, one couldn’t even enter the cabinet.
Even those who wished to form factions and act in their own interests needed the opportunity to do so. Without accomplishments, they couldn’t climb the ladder, and no matter how extensive their connections, they would remain stuck at the lower levels.
Breaking up a faction was much easier than establishing one. The bureaucrats were also competing with each other. Once the main figures within a faction became political enemies, they would turn against each other.
Often, just one position could achieve this purpose. If bureaucrats ever formed a unified group, it would only indicate that the emperor was unbelievably foolish.
Bosnia was not without its advantages; at least it had minerals. This included coal, iron, copper, manganese, lead, mercury, silver, lignite, bauxite, lead-zinc ores, asbestos, rock salt, barite, and other mineral resources.
These were gifts from nature and the foundation of Bosnia’s economic development. The Bosnian government planned to exploit these minerals, focusing not only on mining but also on developing heavy industry.
Simply put, they aimed to produce steel and smelt copper, along with selling salt. Other minerals would be developed as well, but these three were seen as the most profitable in the immediate future.
Franz recalled that in the original timeline, the heavy industry in Bosnia had developed quite well but later declined due to war.
Despite the mountainous terrain, the region had rivers that could support water transportation. If the railway lines could be extended, then developing heavy industry would have potential.
Austria’s heavy industry was overly concentrated in Bohemia. This was fine during peacetime, but during wartime, Bohemia would be too close to the front lines.
The conditions in Bosnia were naturally not as favorable as those in Bohemia, but establishing a smaller heavy industrial base was still feasible.
Not only in Bosnia but many areas in the Balkans also had the potential for developing heavy industry. Compared to the rest of the European continent, the Balkans had relatively rich mineral resources.
Even if they don’t consider long-term development, at least in the early stages of the industrial era, the necessary resources could still be met. However, in terms of development costs, the amount needed for the Balkans was still relatively high.
Since Bosnia had already been assimilated, Franz was willing to invest some resources. If the region could develop, it would be profitable. Even if the economic development didn’t take off, having more heavy industry would still be a good outcome.
Without much hesitation, Franz marked a “✓” on the document, thereby approving the plan. He didn’t need to worry about the rest. After setting the policy, the bureaucrats would handle the implementation.
As long as the plans weren’t overly extravagant, Franz rarely rejected development plans submitted by local governments.
No large strategic plan could guarantee success, but without trying, success was impossible.
For a country, the margin for error was quite high. Especially for a poor province like Bosnia, economic development plans could fail several times without shaking the foundation.
The province already required central government subsidies for administrative expenses, so things couldn’t get much worse.
But if a plan succeeded even once, the benefits would be tremendous. It wouldn’t necessarily make Bosnia a prosperous region, but achieving financial self-sufficiency would be a significant victory.
